235 couples with children in part-time work in Lanark & Hamilton East could lose around £4,000 a year from this April, following a change to tax credit rules being introduced by the government.

Jim Hood, Labour MP for Lanark & Hamilton East is urging the Conservative-led government to reconsider a little-noticed change to tax credit rules which means thousands of families will lose all of their working tax credits unless they can significantly increase their working hours.

The change means that couples with children earning less than around £17,700 will need to increase the number of hours they work from a minimum of 16 to 24 hours per week or they will lose all their working tax credit of £3,870 per year.

Jim Hood MP said:

“This is a deeply unfair change from a government that is increasingly out of touch with parents feeling the squeeze and struggling to juggle work and family life.

“Raising taxes and cutting spending too far and too fast has seen unemployment rise and the economy go into reverse, and many employers are cutting people’s hours. In this climate, very few people in part-time work will be able to increase their hours by up to 50 per cent. And for a couple with children losing around £4,000 a year, or £75 a week, from this change could mean going out to work makes no sense. 

“This tax credits bombshell is now just a few weeks away. For many families here in Lanark & Hamilton East it means going out to work won’t pay and they’ll be better off on benefits. That makes no economic sense at all. The government urgently needs to think again.”

ENDS

Notes for Editors

HMRC’s website explaining the changes says:

At the moment, if you’re responsible for at least one child and working at least 16 hours a week, you can get Working Tax Credit.

From 6 April 2012, the rules for couples with at least one child are changing. In most cases, to qualify for Working Tax Credit your joint working hours will need to be at least 24 a week.

This will mean:

• if you both work your joint weekly hours must be at least 24, with one of you working at least 16 hours a week
• if only one of you works, that person must be working at least 24 hours a week
• If neither of these apply, your Working Tax Credit will stop from 6 April 2012.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcreditsbudget/index.htm#2

“Pupils from local schools took part in the launch of the “Labour of Love”, a book celebrating the life of Robert Smillie who lived in Larkhall and was one of the leading lights in the Labour and trade union movement, a man who was instrumental in setting up the Scottish Miners’ Federation; the Scottish Trade Union Congress; the Miners Federation of Great Britain and the Labour Party.  Robert Smillie was also the founders of the National Association for Civil Liberties and a Member of Parliament.  Provost Russell Clearie gave a thought provoking introduction to the life of Robert Smillie and welcomed Jim Hood MP who spoke about the contribution the Miners and its leaders made to the Larkhall Community.  Music was provided by pupils at Robert Smillie Memorial Primary School and Larkhall Academy before Jean Devlin, Headteacher at Robert Smillie Memorial Primary School introduced Blair Smillie who presented details of his great grandfathers life.  The vote of thanks was given by Head boy at Larkhall Academy Christopher Shaw and Head Girls Louise McKee.  In a fitting tribute  to the contribution made by Robert Smillie to Larkhall, local Labour Councillors Jackie Burns and Andy Carmichael announced that the Council planned to erect a plaque in memory of Robert Smillie.”

PHOTO

Jim Hood MP Lanark and Hamilton East, Bob Smillie Grandson of Robert Smillie, Blair Smillie great grandson of Robert Smillie and Councillor Jackie Burns

Launch of the book 'Labour of Love' at Robert Smillie Primary School, Larkhall - 18/11/11

New UK Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries for Scotland

 Following the announcement on 13 October, 2011, publishing the initial proposals by the Boundary Commission for Scotland to review the UK Parliamentary constituency boundaries, Jim Hood,  MP for Lanark and Hamilton East, said:-

“   The Scottish Boundary Commission has published its Initial Proposals for new UK Parliamentary Boundaries to be in place for the next General Election 2015. Scotland is being cut from 59 to 52 Constituencies as part of the Coalition’s UK wide cut of 50 MP’s. This review was in the 2010 Con/Dem Coalition agreement, where they wanted to cut Labour seats disproportionately in Wales and Scotland hoping to give the Conservatives a UK wide 30 seat advantage.

Shamelessly David Cameron’s passion to cut the number of MP’s  didn’t stop him from appointing an extra 200+ unelected Life Peers to the House of Lords. The Lib/Dems now know they were deceived and now find they stand to lose half of their MP’s along with Labour’s 30. Don’t be surprised if we see another Lib/Dem Coalition “boundary pause” until after the 2015 election. “

 Jim Hood MP for Lanark & Hamilton East showed his support for World School Milk Day on Thursday 22 September, by being an honorary milk monitor at the Cadzow Nursery School in Hamilton where he helped to hand out milk to the children.

World School Milk Day is organised by the UN Food & Agriculture Organisation and is celebrated in over 30 countries around the world.  The company Cool Milk supply the milk to the Nursery School and they promote the day throughout the UK.

 Jim Hood said :

“A change of career for the day to being “Honorary Milk Monitor” reminds me of the time when everybody had free milk at school and the significance milk played in the diets of ‘us kids’ in recharging the mind & body for the rest of the day.  I am pleased to be able to join the Cadzow Nursery School children in celebrating World School Milk Day and helping to create awareness of the importance of drinking milk at school.”

JIM HOOD MP URGES SCOTTISH SECRETARY TO VISIT LANARKSHIRE

A delegation of Lanarkshire’s Labour MPs  met with Scottish Secretary Michael Moore on Wednesday 7 September, to urge him to act now to help all those out of work in Lanarkshire.

Figures show that Lanarkshire is among one of the hardest hit areas in the country with a higher claimant count than the Scottish and UK averages.  Youth unemployment currently stands at 12.5% across the county.   In Lanark & Hamilton East 12.2 % of 18-24 year olds are out of work.  

Jim Hood MP for Lanark & Hamilton East has invited Michael Moore to visit Lanarkshire, to see for himself how people and businesses are struggling, and to understand the impact of government policies on Lanarkshire communities.    Michael Moore has agreed to the visit.

Jim Hood said:

“Lanarkshire is being disproportionately hit by the policies of the Tory-led government.

More people now are in receipt of Jobseekers’ Allowance than a year ago.  With a higher claimant count than the Scottish or UK average, it is clear that people in Lanarkshire are bearing the brunt of the government’s actions.   Businesses are also struggling and still finding it difficult to access bank lending.

One of our biggest concerns is youth unemployment. We cannot afford to lose a generation to worklessness.  Too many young people in my constituency are out of work – with little prospect of finding a job any time soon.  10 people are going for every JobcentrePlus job in Lanarkshire.

The government must do more to create jobs, not cut them. It must find work for our young people, not consign them to the unemployment scrapheap.   With massive public spending cuts, high unemployment, increased VAT, astronomical energy bills, and the ever rising cost of living,  action must be taken now to help struggling families across Lanarkshire.

I welcome the fact that Michael Moore will visit Lanarkshire, so that he can see for himself how local people and businesses are suffering. Maybe then he will see that the Tory-led government’s policies are hurting, because they are certainly not working. Real action is needed now to help young people back into work.”

The horror that was visited on the peace loving people of Norway by the mass murdering psychopath Anders Behring Breivik shocked the world. Breivik, a white Norwegian, when surrendering himself to the police admitted membership of a rightwing white supremacist movement in Norway with links to the UK English Defence League.  Before going on his killing spree the crazed killer emailed 250 copies of his “1500 page manifesto” to UK addresses. Since his arrest he has further claimed there are 80 cells throughout Europe ready to carry out similar attacks.

Nordic

The Nordic countries Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway along with the Netherlands has experienced votes haemorrhaging to the far right in recent years and this has resulted in all but Norway with rightist governments accompanied by and including other extreme rightist  parties gaining influence under the political radar. The UK security forces are well aware of the activities of the extreme right here in the UK with the BNP and English Defence League (EDL). However few believe that the modus operandi of the recent Mumbai type slaughter in Norway will be the last in Europe.

The hacking scandal moved up the political rector scale last week following the appearance of Rupert Murdoch and his son James before the Culture Media and Sport Select Committee. The Murdochs who both relied on the defence of “deny deny and deny again” were defiantly unconvincing. The only credible defence of Rupert Murdoch came from his wife’s right hook, landed on the shaving-foam protestor who had splattered her 80 year old husband whilst giving evidence.

Describing the goings on at the News of the World hackers’ scandal as a firestorm is an understatement. The House of Cards that now depicts the Murdoch global media empire, is spiralling into a terminal meltdown and in its wake are the Prime Minister and the Metropolitan Police.

Top Cop resigns

This weekend the scandal engulfed the Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson who resigned from the country’s top police job. When resigning he fired a warning shot off at the Prime Minister, citing his relationship with News International and Andy Coulson the PM’s former media guru and former editor of the News of the World, as being part his dilemma that caused him to resign.  The direction of the scandal is now raging towards the PM’s front door. Rupert Murdoch’s evidence to the Select Committees will not change that direction and Rebekah Wade’s appearance following her 12 hours in custody answering police questions may further damage her former dinner guest.

Summer Recess

I will be contacting voluntary groups and local Charities this week inviting them to meet with me during the summer recess. I will also be conducting Roving Surgeries. For Appointments and/or home visits Tel: 01555-6731677 or email davidsonh@parliament.uk/ mckayk@parliament.uk

The decision to close the News of the World has been described as Rupert Murdoch’s News International’s nuclear option. Killing off his most popular and profitable red top tabloid and sacking 200+ journalists was the price he was prepared to pay to keep his takeover of BSkyB on track.

Chief Executive Ms Rebekah Brooks, who was previously married to EastEnders hard man Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp), is the only survivor of the regime that was in control of the paper when the Royals phone hacking scandal was exposed. There were two jailed; a journalist and private detective who were said to be  rogue employees inside the paper. However, we now know there was an enormous cover-up which included the collusion of senior officers within the Metropolitan Police.

This hacking scandal has a long way to run. It will damage careers, reputations and personal liberties will be at stake. David Cameron conceded last Friday that Coulson whilst editor at the News of the World had “screwed up”.  His chummy friendship with Coulson, Brooks and Murdoch now threaten to define his Premiership. American broadcasters are already describing it as a British “Watergate”. All that said, there is very little appetite to regulate our media by statute and rightly so, but the status quo with the chocolate fireguard that is the Press Complaints Commission is no longer an option.

My generation will just remember the 1948 National Assistance Act. The post war Attlee government introduced it to create a safety net for the disadvantaged and vulnerable in our society. It was then seen as short-term support because that generation lived only a few years after retiring where now 20 years retirement survival rates are not uncommon.

The Dinot Report, a Coalition commissioned inquiry into Social Care in England is published this week which will seek to cap individual payments for their own care at £30,000. Gordon Brown proposed a similar scheme before the General Election proposing a £20,000 cap but consensus fell at the first hurdle when David Cameron labelled it as a Gordon Brown “Death Tax”. A sound bite for political purposes maybe, but he now has to tell the country what his coalition government will do to provide fair and affordable social healthcare for the elderly.

Scotland

Scottish governments since First Minister Henry McLeish have kept to a policy of free personal care, though cuts to Local Authorities spending  have changed the criteria for care.  In spite of repeated denials from Ministers, Scottish health officials and COSLA are openly briefing that with costs doubling since its introduction to £370M and with a £40M funding gap last year, charges and means testing for personal care in Scotland is very much a live issue. Watch this space?