It doesn’t feel that long since the great and the good of the Labour Party descended on Oldham East and Saddleworth to support Labour Party Candidate Debbie Abrahams. From grass root activists, to Labour Party backbenchers, shadow cabinet members to the Leader of the Labour Party – anybody who is anybody was there. For many it was a fantastic campaign to support and be involved in, particularly as Debbie’s energy and enthusiasm shone throughout. All the hard work paid off with a fantastic result on the 13th January and a majority of more than 3,500. So how has Debbie settled in to life as an MP? She writes for the WYYL blog about the first few months in her new role as MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth.
I can’t believe it’s the middle of March already – January and February have flown by – or that I’ve been an MP for seven weeks already! And what an amazing learning curve it is.
When Parliament is sitting from Monday to Thursday I’m based in London and then I’m back in the constituency from Friday to Sunday. It’s been pretty hectic, and quite a change to my family life and routine, but I still can’t find the words to express how privileged I feel to be the Oldham East and Saddleworth MP.
In the constituency office it’s been all systems go as we deal with a significant back log of local case work, which we’ve nearly cleared, with over 60 local cases being undertaken over the last few weeks. So far I’ve held seven surgeries meeting local people at a range of locations across the patch starting the week following the by-election. On average we’re dealing with 6 cases at each surgery and even this early on in the job I am noticing a great many people asking me about health-related issues or telling me how worried they are about their jobs. In the Constituency in addition to surgeries and ad hoc meeting requests for example on NHS reforms and Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council developments, I am planning to host two events: one for young people and one on the local economy.
During my first few weeks my Parliamentary office has received over 140 separate contacts raising issues such as police pensions and NHS reforms. The recent demonstrations in Egypt and outrage at the proposed forestry sell-off prompted dozens of contacts on both issues. And both issues are, surely, great examples of what ‘people power’ can achieve!
At the beginning of February I was delighted to be elected to the Health and Social Care Bill Legislation Committee. If I’m not in the office or the Chamber I will be in a Committee Room fighting to save our NHS! And the good news for the NHS is that the health secretary announced a major government U-turn saying he will amend the Bill to stop plans that would have allowed hospitals to undercut each other on cost.
There are dozens of All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs); currently I have joined the APPG on Kashmir chaired by Lord Nazir and spoke at a recent meeting convened by the Jammu-Kashmir Self-Determination Group. I have also attended meetings on legal aid reform, sudden death from epilepsy, socio-economic inequalities, as well as with the Aneurin Bevan Society and Manchester Airport Group Forum.
Finally, I’d like to say ‘thank you’ for all the support and kind messages I have received from so many of you – I am very honoured to be the Member of Parliament for Oldham East & Saddleworth.
