What a week for democracy.

Recorder, March 2007

Thursday 8^th of March was International Women’s Day.  We celebrate the day in Westminster with women politicians from all political parties laying flowers at the statue of Mrs Pankhust, who along with her supporters fought for British women to have the vote.  Many of Mrs Pankhust’s supporters died fighting for the right to vote and this battle for equality for women is still being fought around the world.

I was joined at the ceremony by Councillor Alana Davies who manages to combine running a business, teaching, being deputy Mayor of Porthcawl and a County Borough Councillor with being the mother of seven daughters.  I invited Alana to join me for the ceremony, and for the afternoon debate on equality for women, as a woman who has always fought for equality for women.  As we all stood there in the sunshine we reflected on another major political change which had taken place earlier in the week.

Tuesday and Wednesday had been dedicated to debating the reform of the House of Lords.  This debate had far reaching consequences for how we are governed in Britian.  For most of our history the Lords has been peopled by means of sex, money and patronage. Being the illegitimate child of a monarch, buying a peerage or being placed there by a political party has been the entry qualification for hundreds of years. Around the world, there are some Parliaments with no second chamber, and some with a second chamber with more or less powers than our House of Lords.  There is however, only one other second chamber, that in Lesotho, in which membership is based on a hereditary principle. 

The evening of votes on the reform options is one I will always remember. The decisions taken that evening have been descried as heralding the most radical constitutional change in British history.  Tensions were high, as this was when we tried yet again to reach a decision on whether Parliament would have a second chamber and if so, how it would be constituted.  The first vote said yes, to retaining the second chamber.  There then followed a number of votes on what percentage of the chamber should be elected and percentage nominated.  This was not an issue on which I had received many letters.  Before the vote I had had one letter.  After the vote I found a further letter at my home informing me of the writer’s expectation that I vote for both an 80% and 100% elected chamber.  I have a simple view of democracy.  You cannot have an 80% democratic system.  Either it is 100% elected or it is not democratic.  The vote for 100% elected chamber was won by a majority of 113 votes. We then voted to remove the remaining hereditary peers. 

Did we change Britain’s Parliamentary system with those votes?  Yes and No. We decided the future we wanted.  The Lords will certainly over turn the decision and vote to remain as they are.  Many meetings will take place between the political parties to agree a way forward and I expect no changes will take place until after the next general election.  This is when you will have the chance to enter the debate and make the final decision on a number of issues including the name of the second chamber, whether the Church of England should have seats for its Bishops, and how long members should serve for.  One thing is certain, the Lords will be reformed, and there can be no going back.

Madeleine Moon MP

Pubs;  An Unrecognised Part of the Community

The Recorder, Jan/Feb 2007

The pub is central to the lives of the main characters in all British soap operas.  The Queen Vic, the Rovers Return, the Woolpack and the Bull feature heavily in plot lines.  Around the world the British pub is identified as the place where people go to meet and share a community life.

I am a member of the All Party Parliamentary Beer and Pub group (APPG) at Westminster because I see pubs as providing a range of activities and services in our communities.  Pubs are no longer just about the consumption of alcohol.  Pubs offer a neutral meeting places to share gossip, build friendships, places to meet to plan activities, relax and have fun.  Pubs are also increasingly a source of tea, coffee, soft drinks and good food, a role which is keeping pubs financially viable. 

But pubs are at risk.  There are 51,479 pubs in the England and Wales, and every week twenty six will cease trading.  The majority of these will be community pubs.  The APP Beer and Pub Group has been examining ways of supporting community pubs over the last few months.  We found that pubs are changing, growing and developing to meet new challenges.  Home based entertainment means fewer people go out regularly to the pub so landlords are diversifying the activities and services they offer.  We met landlords running local post offices, community shops, coffee bars, lunch clubs, and hosting community council meetings.  The range of services is growing as pubs find new roles. 

The period 17^th -24^th February is Community Pub Week. The event is organised by the Campaign For Real Ale to highlight the importance of pubs to communities.  I hold regular advice surgeries in The Pheasant in Pen y Fai, the Llangewydd arms on Broadlands and The Fox and Hounds in St Brides.  I use the pubs because they are central locations, easy to find, have disabled access, are welcoming, warm, friendly places, where people can sit and wait, have a drink (including tea and coffee) and read the paper if  appointments over run.

I spent time with South Wales Police in the summer and saw how landlords and the police work together.  Late at night it was obvious which were the well run, well organised pubs.  In both Bridgend and Porthcawl Pub Watch brings together licensees to tackle shared problems and improve services to customers.  Fears that the extension of licensing laws would bring an increase in anti social behaviour in town centres and all night drinking have proved largely groundless.  A YouGov poll shows that licensing law change has not encouraged people to go to the pub more, neither has it resulted in pub goers drinking much later into the evening. 

We accept pubs as part of the landscape of Britain so Community Pub Week offers an opportunity to ask what role pubs and alcohol play in our lives.  The people of Ogmore by Sea organised a campaign to oppose the loss of their one pub to a housing development. The action group successfully argued that loosing the pub would leave them with no community facility and meeting place.

There is, rightly, public outcry at the binge drinking in town centres at weekend.  Pub landlords, Police and Government are responding to the challenges of controlling drunken behaviour in public.  But the threat to public order does not come from the well run and regulated pub; it comes from the availability of cheap alcohol from supermarkets.  It comes from the place we give alcohol in our lives and see getting drunk as an acceptable social activity.  It comes from the hidden fighting and domestic violence taking place behind closed doors, fuelled by alcohol.  I hope that 2007 will bring a revival of the community spirit of the pub, of the social relaxed enjoyment of soft drinks and alcohol, the camaraderie of the bar and the expansion of the pub into the wider life of the community.  Cheers.

Madeleine Moon MP

Happy Families

The Recorder, January 2007 

How was the Christmas holiday for you?  Was it the time of family, fun, food and festivity that we all hope for?  Or did the boring television, family closeness, excess rain, alcohol and food leave you depressed and longing for the return to daily life?

We expect so much of Christmas that we forget the impact of its failure to live up to expectations.  The Samaritans have a greatly increased use of their service at Christmas.  Mental health workers know there is greater risk of suicide, family breakdown and emotional crisis.  Homeless charities such as Wallach Clifford know this is a time when young people will leave home and live on the street as the tensions of enforced closeness prove too much and fragile relationships fracture.

As parents we teach our children about the danger of strangers but it is the tensions within families which are the most dangerous.  Most violence occurs within the home and is committed by partners, relatives, and friends.  These are people in relationships of intimacy, trust and care with the person they abuse. The violence and abuse is seen as justified on the basis that the victim is not of equal status and worth as the abuser. On this basis, two women a week are killed by a partner or former partner. Babies under one year old have the highest homicide rates in the UK with one to two child homicide deaths each week.  Abuse of older people remains a largely hidden problem and almost a quarter of adults with learning disabilities will experience physical abuse at some time.

Is this because we are a more violent and intolerant society?  Or, is because as a society we are refusing to tolerate violence and abuse of vulnerable people and are gaining awareness of the problems around us?  I believe it is the latter.  Western society in its ongoing search for greater stability, security and harmony has accepted that one of the ways forward is through greater equality.  Violence and abuse grows out of unequal relationships.  It is based on the misuse of power and the exercise of control by one person over another. 

The new Commission for Equality and Human Right (CEHR) comes into being in 2007. The Commission must help pull together the various organisations and legislation working on violence in the home.  To support the commission we must all open our eyes to the inequality around us and recognise how it leads to abuse and violence.  Part of our problem is that violence and abuse forms a major part of our entertainment industry.  This desensitises us to the hurt and pain of the abused person and can make us blind to its existence around us. 

Next time you watch a soap opera; remind yourself that the plot is about the reality of some people’s daily lives.  An abused woman is likely to experience over 30 incidences of violence from her partner before seeking help.  It is estimated that at preset 76% of domestic violence is not reported to the police.   No one should have to accept abuse and violence as part of their life.  A 24 hour domestic abuse helpline is available in Wales from 16^th January providing support for women, men and children.  If you, or some one you know, needs help and advice, the number to call is 0808 8010 800.

Madeleine Moon MP

Politicians' Christmas

The Recorder, December 2006

Christmas is a hectic time for politicians.  There are all of those cards to write, new Bills and debates in the Chamber most days and finding the time to go Christmas shopping with weekends full of constituency events is just about impossible.  But as I write the cards 99.9% done, I’ve yet again done most of my Christmas shopping via the gift shop in the Commons or on line and there have only been one or two minor disasters.  The gift shop ran out of the House of Commons diaries in November despite last year there being many still unsold by March.  Those who enjoy their diaries as Christmas presents will this year be disappointed.  Then at the post box the hand clutching the cards with stamps on stayed still while the one holding the unstamped cards pressed them into the box.  A series of apologetic phone calls followed.

The most common complaint I have heard as I’ve dashed back and forth between the constituency and Westminster has been about the weather. With global warming a risk to humanity we still find time to complain about the weather.  We in Wales have always known we have higher than average rain fall.  In fact we have three times more rain than the south east of England. While the south east of England needs 50% of average rain fall to meet its public water supply needs.  In Wales we need just 3% of average rain fall to meet public need. Even so with hot dry weather water demand is up to 40% higher mainly because of people watering their gardens.

What will 2007 bring?  Well the reason I am taking about rain fall is that 2007 will bring the Climate Change Bill into the Commons.  As you put up your Christmas cards with their pictures of snow and listen to the news about how the ski slopes are bare of slow and the ice flows are melting be aware that water and its supply is becoming one of the most important political topics.  Some countries are facing flooding and whole areas submerged under water.  Others are battling invading desert sands and a lack of water to grow crops.  While we in Britain are responsible for only 2% of the global CO2 emissions tackling climate change impacts on us all.  If we are to avoid mass migrations of people because of water shortages or inundation we must work together.

Also coming into the Commons will be the new Mental Health Bill.  It is going through the Lords first which is unusual.  With information from local mental health providers I will reflect on how services locally will be affected by the proposed changes and speak in the debate.  I also hope to serve on the Standing Committee which will scrutinise the Bill line by line before it returns to the Commons for its final third reading.  In spring I hope we will have a consultation document on the proposed Marine Bill to talk with local groups about and feed comments back to the Government to influence the draft Bill.  Plenty to keep me busy in 2007.

For Christmas I look forward to having a few dull moments with no letters to answer, no Bills to read, no meetings to attend just time with friends and family.  Best wishes to all of you over Christmas and New Year.

Madeleine Moon MP

Health and fitness in Bridgend

Glamorgan Gazzette

Do you do a weekly food shop and will tonight’s meal come from the freezer or the take away?  My mother shopped daily and cooked the family meal with fresh products every day.  The foods available were not as exciting or as varied as those available today.  It was plain British cooking, no pasta, no curry, no French sauces and certainly no wine with the meal except on special occasions.  There were mainly British grown fruits and vegetables which changed along with the seasons.  Ready cooked meals were almost unknown until the 1960’s until the arrival of the TV dinner and the dried Vesta curry. Times have changed.

Now even men are worried about their diet and putting on weight.  Levels of obesity in the UK have trebled since 1950 as food has become cheaper, more readily and easily available.  Today more men than women are overweight, although sadly about the same proportion of men and women are obese. Here in Bridgend 57% of men and women over the age of 18 are classed as obese.  More than half of our population is dangerously overweight. 

For a number of reasons men accumulate excess fat around their abdomen which is believed to be more damaging to their health.  There is now a known link between obesity and type2 Diabetes.  We have know for some time that raised levels of high blood pressure and higher levels of LDL cholesterol are major risk factors of heart disease and stroke.   Deaths from heart disease in Bridgend are much higher than the national average. The numbers of people with high blood pressure, diabetes, respiratory and heart disease are all higher than the Welsh average.

We need to wake up to the fact that 5% of all male deaths are directly attributed to obesity, many deaths occurring before retirement age.  Obesity is second only to smoking as the most important preventable risk for cancer. Colorectal cancer, oesophageal cancer and kidney cancer are much common in men than women.  Studies show that children and young people are also showing dangerous levels of weight gain and obesity.  Thirty percent of boys under fifteen are either overweight or obese.

Healthier school meals, fruit tuck shops and a greater emphasis on physical activity will help. Following a healthy lifestyle as a child should reduce the risks of becoming overweight as an adult. At present only 38% of the population of Bridgend meets national guidelines for eating fresh fruit and vegetables.  When you add this to, higher levels of smoking and binge drinking in Bridgend than the Welsh average, we need to take a long hard look at how we are living our lives. 

Madeleine Moon MP

Prorogation and Standing on Ceremony

The Recorder, November 2006

The Prorogation ceremony in Westminster is not as grand as the Queen’s Speech but is equally as interesting.  Black Rod calls MP’s to the Lords to hear the Queen’s agreement to Bills debated by Parliament becoming law.  The Queen is represented by The Lord Chancellor resplendent in full robes, wig and tricorn hat.  On returning to the Commons MP’s shake hands with the Speaker then leave for their constituencies. 

Is this outdates, fussy and laughable or is Parliament and its conventions part of our history and unique way of doing things?  Parliamentarians from across the world come to Westminster to see how we conduct business.  Most enjoy the sense of history, the connection with centuries of developing and evolving a modern democracy in a traditional setting. Parliament is changing; with further plans for the reform of the House of Lords but electronic voting has been rejected so members continue to head for the chamber when the division bell rings. 

One of Parliaments conventions is for an MP to advise when making an official visit to another’s constituency.  It is not a case of seeking permission, just of good manners.  This courtesy is extended to members of the Scottish Parliament and to the Welsh Assembly. David Heath, Liberal Democrat MP for Somerton and Frome recently apologised for the lack of notice of a visit he made to the Bridgend Constituency that I had not even been aware of. Today I received an email from Dr Brian Gibbons AM of a visit he is making.  Some see this as old fashioned and stuffy others as the continuation of a Parliamentary protocol that has existed for hundreds of years.  The convention does not apply to Councillors. 

Courtesy, along with trust, honesty and integrity are at the heart of the British way of doing things.  We are rightly shocked when all they are abused.  When all four are abused at the same time there is outrage.  This is what has happened with Farepac.  Christmas clubs and companies rely on the honesty trust and integrity of agents to collect money and their courtesy and friendships to extend their network of customers.  Sadly the trust, courtesy, integrity and honesty coming from the agents and customers have been abused.   

Over the next few months the Department of Trade and Industry will uncover where responsibility lay between Farepac and Halifax Bank of Scotland. Farepac directors blame the bank and the bank blames the directors.  New legislation will prevent this happening again. In the meantime the squabble between the wealth banks and directors contrasts with the generosity and compassion of local people.  Peter Morgan the estate agents have taken a lead.  They are using their office to coordinate collection of cash and presents for distribution to the affected families.  Street collections will be held in Bridgend, Porthcawl and at McArthur Glen retail outlet over coming weekends.  If you can help in any way please contact Peter Morgan ring my office on 750002. 

A good thing to come out of Farepac is awareness of Credit Unions savings and loan services.  Bridgend’s Credit Union with has made special arrangements with Valleys to Coast Housing Association for Farepak customers to apply for instant loans at a very low rate of interest so that money is available in time for Christmas.  They can be contacted on (01656) 729912, or visited on Thursdays at Evergreen Hall, Bridgend-11-1pm

Co-op Pyle-   2.45-4.45pm or Scout Hall, North Cornelly-10-11am

Madeleine Moon MP

Bridgend

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

The Christmas lights are twinkling and shop windows are filled with presents, trees, smiling children and gaily wrapped parcels.  The air is full of people complaining of weekends spent shopping for food and presents and the stress of planning for those few family filled days.

When you are singing your Christmas carols go and look in the window of Peter Morgan the estate agents in Dunraven Place in Bridgend.  The window has a few presents wrapped and ready and one bike.  This is the start of a collection for local people who saved all year for Christmas and lost everything. 

You will have read the accounts of Farepac’s directors and Halifax Bank of Scotland squabbling over who was responsible for 150,000 customers loosing £45m in gift and food vouchers, some of whom live locally.  There will be an investigation by the Department of Trade and Industry into the collapse and new legislation to prevent it happening again but meanwhile local families face a bleak Christmas.

I have met with some of the women who acted as agents for Farepac and who are desperate to help their customers.  These women are devastated and feel responsible for their friends and family loosing hundreds of pounds and their planned for Christmas.  They knew nothing of Farepac ceasing to trade on the stock exchange in August.  They were not informed that the savings they were paying in were being used to pay off Farepacs loans to HBOS.  The savers and agents will be the last to receive any money from the administrators; they will get pennies back not pounds.  The family fund set up to compensate victims has less than £5m so far to cover losses over £45m.  On Friday 13^th October one local agent paid in £450 to HBOS.  Shortly afterwards she was told Farepac had folded and was charged £10 to stop the cheque by HBOS so that she could retrieve her friends and families money.

One positive step that may result from this could be one large credit union which could offer savings and loan accounts via post officers.  This would brining viability to post offices and improved banking to communities and those on benefits. Knowing that loan sharks are targeting local families Valleys to Coast have facilitated Bridgend Credit Union offering quick access to savings and loan facilities at low interest before Christmas.  The credit union which has branches in Bridgend, Pyle and Cornelly and new ones  planned in Cefn and Porthcawl can be contacted on 01656 729912. 

This is excellent news but still means the families will be paying for their Christmas twice over thanks to HBOS and Farepac.  There are five shopping weeks to Christmas.  During those weeks Peter Morgan’s office will be accepting gifts and cash donations which will be passed to the families.  Weekend street collections will also be made in Bridgend, Porthcawl and McArthur Glen.  If everyone used their Boots or Sainsbury’s points or Tesco vouchers to provide one gift or gave a £1, these local families will join the rest of us and have a merry and happy Christmas. If you would like to help visit Peter Morgan’s or ring my office on 750002.

Improving the Safety of Young Drivers

The recent bout of bad weather that has swept across South Wales has meant hazardous driving conditions for those people who regularly use our roads and motorways.

The television and newspapers report of accidents, sometimes fatal, as we battle with the elements on our way to and from work.

However, many fatalities on our roads do not happen simply as a result of bad weather.

Despite an overall reduction in the number of deaths and serious injuries on UK roads over the last few years, the proportion of young people affected continues to rise.

Far too many young drivers are dying on our roads in accidents that could have been prevented. In Bridgend, the number of 17-25 year olds killed or seriously injured last year represented a 9% increase on the average for 1994-98.

I welcome the announcement recently made by the Transport Select Committee in the House of Commons, that it is launching an inquiry into novice drivers.

Passing your test is just the beginning of learning to drive many new drivers will not yet have even encountered a motorway or driven at night.

That is why I welcome what companies such as Pass Plus Cymru offer to all drivers under the age of 25. It offers an advanced course that builds on the driving skills and knowledge that a person already has to help reduce the risk of being involved in a crash. It also helps you to qualify for a discount with a number of insurance companies.

With four people killed or seriously injured in accidents involving young drivers every day, now is the time to take action.

For further information on Pass Plus Cymru visit www.dragondriver.com

Act now on climate change

Posted online: 02/12/06

We need a national effort to tackle climate change now that the evidence that our activity is changing our climate is clear.  We now know the disastrous effects climate change will have on our lives and that of our children and grandchildren if we don’t act to halt and reverse it.

While warmer days may seem pleasant, the overall impact of climate change certainly won’t be.  It will bring more storms, floods, heat-waves and drought with rising sea levels flooding our coast line.  In Britain, we might, at huge cost, be able to restrict the damage and disruption. But elsewhere in the world, it will mean more famine, disease, destruction and death. 

The recent Stern report shows if we all work together, we still have time – just - to turn the tide.  The G8 and EU are working together to push climate change to the top of the international agenda. The next step is to getting agreement from every country on cuts in their greenhouse gases. We need to Invest in new technology, in renewables and other clean energy and spread and share this knowledge with developing countries. 

In our homes we need tougher standards on insulation and to stop wastage from light bulbs, fridges and televisions and computers on standby. Even little changes can make a big difference. Switching just three ordinary lightbulbs with energy saving replacements in every household would cut family bills and save enough power to run street lighting across the country.  Make your changes now.

Madeleine Moon MP

Bridgend

Posthumous Pardons

The Recorder, September 2006

Andrew Mckinley MP has recently been successful in his campaign to  obtain  posthumous pardons for those men shot for desertion and cowardice during the great war.  I supported Andrew’s campaign and wrote to the Prime Minister explaining why I felt the Government should grant the pardons.  I am attaching part of the letter I wrote as part of this column. 

Dear Prime Minister

Some years ago I began trying to make sense of a small hand written diary kept by my grandfather during his time in France and to put the events he described into their historical setting. I wanted to reclaim the man who had only a brief knowledge of my father and whose absence had made such an impact on his family. 

The diary starts on 1^st January 1915 then stops on July 14^th 1915 with a description of a return home on leave. My grandfather was killed on the second day of the third battle of Ypres on 22^nd July 1917.

Having read so much to understand the diary and travelled to France and Belgium and seen the graveyards and memorials to the missing it also became very important to give a voice to one of the millions who suffered, endured and died in that time of horror and madness. The diary became a way of taking back from those madmen, who sent thousands each day to a senseless death, at least one man and bringing him home to his family.

War was declared on August 4th 1914 and on August 13^th 1914 my grandfather left Limerick by train for Queenstown, embarked on the SS Matheron for France. 

The diary records on SUNDAY AUGUST 23  1914 that;

We rested for the day.  The war commenced around here at 12 o’clock, the firing was terrible to stand all day and all night.  We are about 2 miles from the firing line.  Saw 2 German aero planes above our head.

The was the first Battle of Mons and over the next two days the diary details the constant shelling, the large numbers of wounded and the chaos that prevailed during the retreat from advancing German forces. Wednesday August 26  1914 saw the shelling and loss of life continue at the Battle of Le Cateau,

The diary jumps four days at this point covering the retreat from Mons. Lyn Macdonald in her book 1914 gives a detailed account.

The road could not possibly carry them all, for there were carts wagons, ambulances, guns and limbers, and mounted men too, all entangled in the crush.  In the hope of making at least some headway, most of the infantry took to the fields on either side and, carefully keeping the road in sight, stumbled on across the fields and farmland.  Even if they had been fit and fresh it would have been rough going, and as the hours went on some dropped to the ground in spite of themselves and slept where they had fallen among the mangelwurzels and the beets.  There was no one to rouse them. There were no orders.  There was no one to give them. Not many detachments had managed to leave the field as a body and those which had, had been split up and hopelessly confused among the throng. There was no question of proceeding in formation, no question of moving faster than a crawl and no means of skirting obstructions when crawling vehicles trying urgently to pass through brought the whole procession to a halt. There was no question of food, no question of rest and, with the enemy on their heels no question of stopping.  So the army inched and shuffled and plodded on half unconscious with weariness.  Apart from his rifle and ammunition hardly a man had any belonging other than the clothes he stood up in.

The British soldiers were not plodding now. They had begun to hobble.  Blisters raised by the night’s march had burst and raw flesh burned and chaffed against matted shreds of wool and boots that gripped their bloated feet  until their boots were full of blood.

The men who reached St Quentin were exhausted, hungry and thirsty. unable to move further.  Officers requisitioned ever motor car, every wagon, every cart, every wheeled vehicle in the town to carry away the exhausted men.

It was the end of the first day of the retreat from Le Cateau and the forth day of the retreat from Mons.  No one from the Commander in Chief downwards would have believed that they would still be retreating and on the march for nine more days.

The diary resumes on 30^th August and every day thereafter details the constant shelling and the terrible plight of the wounded.  By 19^th September it was estimated that 400,000 men had died.

Sadly on Friday September 8th 1914 he records;

Arrived at the Chateau Chambray having rode all night, we rested here for the day and a young chap was brought in here for desertion, he belonged to the West Kents.

The diary does not record why the man was thought to have deserted or what happened to him. Having read the diary, and seen the fear and death faced on a daily basis, I believe that we must acknowledge the failure to protect and equip soldiers for what they faced. On even the most basic level there was neglect. The diary records on October 17 1914 that;

We got a blanket served out to us.  We have had nothing to cover us since we came out.

Lyn McDonald notes that;

There was hardly a man of the original Expeditionary Force who possessed more than the clothing he stood up in - and that was often woefully inadequate.

During the long retreat, items which had not been lost or captured had been thrown away because, as Sir William Robertson tersely answered when asked to provide an explanation for large numbers of missing caps, blankets, greatcoats, rifles, valises, shirts, shovels, machine-guns, tripods, entrenching tools, ‘because they could not be carried’.  In his view it was as simple as that.  In the view of officialdom it was much more complicated.  It was Sir Williams duty to see they were replaced.  And if officials did not precisely see it as their duty to thwart him, they were aghast at the very suggestion that they might circumvent long-established procedure by waiving the rules.  Stores could only be issued against forms.  Forms must be filled in ( and in triplicate) with each item meticulously detailed together with a full account ( in the space provided) of the circumstances in which the required article had been lost.  Moreover the forms must be completed and signed no one of lesser authority than the Commanding Officer of each unit concerned.  Such were Army Regulations and Army Regulations could not be flouted.

When the Commanding Officers of more than half the battalions in the field had been killed, or wounded or captured, when the troops on the retreat from Mons has not regarded it as a priority to burden themselves with army forms and a battalion’s stationary had been the first thing to be ditched, it was something of a problem to comply with the Army’s requirements.

Constant shelling, fear, death and destruction a lack of equipment, food and leadership faced these men. The miracle is that more did not take actions which would be judged as desertion or cowardice.

I hope that this Government will recognize those men who were shot were often unable to cope any longer with the horror and madness they faced.  Many had impeccable records for bravery and were clearly suffered from shell shock.

I am pleased that the family history set out in this letter played its part in obtaining pardons for those soldiers forced to face the horrors of the Great War.

Keeping commitments to constituents and democracy

The Recorder

August 24 2006

August is the month when MPs finally get around to reading those briefing documents, Bills, news letters and other documents that have been languishing in the pending tray.  August is the month for catching up with reorganising the constituency office, sorting out the filing and getting out and about and meeting people. For many women MPs, August brings an opportunity to give the house a good clean, making up for weeks of neglect.  Not this August, which has so far been hectic and the filing, cleaning, re-organisation and reading are still in the pending tray.

So what have I been doing during this ‘long holiday’ from Westminster?   When I read the national press there are times when I am filled with despair and depression at how much is going wrong in our world.  Yet when I go out and about in Bridgend I am filled with optimism and energy at how much is going well.  This last seven days has seen me meet with a UK’s expert in furniture and flammability issues who lives in this constituency; with the Bridgend Community Safety Partnership; Sandville Self Help Centre; The Parc Prison Supporting Families Forum; Bridgend Women’s Aid; Lloyds TSB; Dr Frazer of the Sexual Health clinic; visited the Eisteddfod; joined volunteers picking up litter along the coast and presenting Veterans Badges in Porthcawl and Bridgend.

I have met people dedicated to improving the quality of life for those around them. People who give service to their communities and struggle to find (except perhaps for Lloyds TSB) the money to carry on and improve the quality and range of what they do. All face incredible pressure and not enough hours in the day to do all they would like to achieve. Life here in Bridgend would be worse without their dedication and commitment. 

So when I return to the office and find emails claiming that the Government’s foreign policy is the cause of terrorist attacks in Britain I feel both angry and pleased.  Angry because such an argument could be made by those whose cause is Ireland or anti homosexuality, anti abortion or anti vivisection, to also justify the right to bomb and kill. I have tended to use this column to give news and insight into how Parliament works in a light-hearted but informative way. You will excuse me if this week I take a more serious turn.

We live in a democracy. It is flawed, it is frustrating and at times it fails and does not live up to the high expectations we have of it at its national, regional and local levels. It involves selecting representatives (some of whom we may not like, trust or support) who will engage in debate and make decisions on our behalf and fight for what is considered to be in our best interest. Nowhere in this system does it give anyone the right or the justification to say that if you don’t like the decisions made you can kill your fellow citizens. So I am annoyed by the suggestion that terrorism can and should be ended by changing Government foreign policy; that the Government must change its policy because some people in Britain threaten mass murder if they do not. But at the same time I am pleased. Pleased because the writers have taken the democratic route, they have asked their MP to listen to their voice; to answer their concerns and to take them forward to Government. For this reason I have added my name to the letter organised by my colleague John Trickett MP calling for a recall of Parliament so as to allow a debate over the present conflict in the Middle East. So much for that pending tray…

VETERANS’ BADGES

SeasideNews Magazine

Issue 87 -August 2006

Veterans Day, held on 27 June 2006, saw celebrations taking place around the Bridgend Constituency, to honour our veterans for the contribution they made.  

Former military personnel who served in the Second World War and beyond can now receive an impressive new Veterans’ Lapel Badge to wear every day.  Anyone who served in any of the armed forces up until December 1959 may be eligible to receive a Veterans’ Badge.  If you would like to know more contact Linda at my Constituency Office, on 01656 750002 and we will send you eligibility details and an application form.

I know there may be many people living in the Bridgend Constituency who will qualify and would be delighted to receive such a badge, in recognition of their service to the country.  This scheme has also been extended to cover those who receive a widow’s or widowers pension.

I will be inviting veterans and their families to presentation ceremonies across the constituency in the coming months to receive the Veterans Lapel Badges.

And remember the Veterans Agency Helpline on freephone:

0800 169 2277, if you have any problems relating to medals, health, welfare and much more or visit www.veteransagency.mod.uk

Today is the last day of the Parliamentary term and the recess is ahead of me.  This morning Linda rang from my Bridgend office to tell me that both August and September are just about fully booked.  As my mother would say; ‘No peace for the wicked’.

No escaping Bridgend here in Westminster either.  Last week I slipped out of the Standing committee on the Vulnerable People’s Bill to make a phone call in the corridor.  In case there is a vote in the committee you can never move more than a 30 second run from the room.  Deep in conversation an English MP tapped me on the shoulder and indicated he needed to speak to me.  He has been asked to pass on a message from two members of staff from Bridgend County Borough Council he had met at a conference the day before.  They had asked David to let me know how furious they were at the money paid by the Council to senior staff to allow them to retire early.  An interesting way to receive constituents opinions but if you were one of those staff members, the message did reach me. 

Hearing from local people is vital for MP’s which is why most Fridays I try and meet community groups.  Last Friday along with Huw Irranca Davies the MP for Ogmore I met Mental Health Matters.  The members of Mental Health Matters talked of their concerns regarding the forthcoming Mental Health Bill.  The Bill is not published yet and we don’t have a time table for its coming onto the floor of the House.  The comments we heard were however very valid for a Bill in the Commons on the following Monday.

The Welfare Reform Bill will replace Incapacity benefit and Income Support from 2008 with Employment Support Allowance.  The ESA will be based on an assessment of someone having ‘limited capacity for work’ because of their mental or physical condition.  Bridgend was a pilot area for Pathways to Work which tested the idea of providing individual tailored support to those on Incapacity benefit to help them return to work.  In a written answer from Margaret Hodge Minister at the Department of Works and Pensions I was told that 3450 people on Incapacity Benefit had been supported to return to work during the pilot.  I was able to use the debate to raise some of the concerns expressed by the people we met at the mental health matters meeting.

Being a Member of Parliament brings many new opportunities and experiences.  One of the good ones was being invited to take part in my first cricket match since I played on the beach as a child.  I joined the All Party Parliamentary Cricket Group and proudly wore my scarf as I took to the field in Brecon for the Hywel Rees Memorial Cricket Match.  This sports event of the year had the Welsh association of Cricketers with a Disability playing against the Parliamentary X1.  The match was arranged by Roger Williams MP for Brecon and fielded such well known cricketing legends as Huw Irranca Davies MP for Ogmore, Ian Lucas MP for Wrexham and myself.  The opposition won and amazed us with their prowess, capability and humour throughout the game.  I do not wish to crow but I did bowl out 2 players for 4 runs in two overs and will pass over the hilarious image of me trying to run while wearing leg pads.

I look forward to seeing you over the summer.

Madeleine

An ordinary woman with an extraordinary job

The Recorder  

June 7th 2006

I have tried to use this column over the past year to give people insight into the working life of a Member of Parliament. I wanted to try and debunk the mystique which surrounds life here in Westminster.   As I reached the end of my first year in office I thought I would share some of my reflections. 

This first year brought constant frustration that there are just not enough hours in the day to do all that I wanted to achieve.  I looked earlier today at the figures from my Bridgend and Westminster 0ffices.  Over 3,600 letters have been sent and almost 450 cases of casework have been dealt with.  I tried to estimate the number of emails and letters received and the figures were well in excess of 25,000.

The most enjoyable part of being an MP has been meeting and talking to school pupils and facing some of the most challenging and probing questions you can face.

The most difficult has been setting up as a small business and facing all of the challenges that brings as you run your Constituency and Westminster offices from a distance.  Undertaking an Industry and Parliamentary Business Fellowship has given me a great insight into the problems faces by the business community.  I have visited local employers and attend Department of Trade and Industry Questions on a regular basis to keep myself up to date with issues affecting employers.  I also now understand more about the role of industrial gases in our daily lives than I thought possible.  Did you enjoy your beer in the pub last night?  Thank British Oxygen; they mixed the gasses to help establish the flavour of the beer.  Did you enjoy your supermarket bought steak?  The redness of the meat and its freshness was aided by British Oxygen’s mix of gasses inside the vacuum packing.  As for the gas inside the packet of crisps you are eating just now, yes thank British Oxygen.  Before the Fellowship I thought gasses were about heavy industry, not getting fresh food to Marks and Spencer’s within a 15 minute delivery window.  

My most memorable moment must be being called for a Prime Minster’s question when I had not stood to indicate I was seeking to be called. The silence in the chamber as I began to rise and the look on the PM’s face as they all knew I had no prepared question will never be forgotten.  I asked about support for women in Bridgend who are forced to leave their homes along with their children because of matrimonial violence.

The successes of the past year have only been possible because of the help and support of my family, friends, colleagues, staff and the many wonderful people I have met over the last year.  My thanks to you all.

One year on and I am still learning.  Tonight before coming into the library to sit amongst the other MP’s working away as we wait for votes which will go on after 10pm I learned something new.  Sian James the MP for Swansea East pointed out a door in the corridor.  Last week she discovered that behind the door is a lift to the committee corridor.  I just gained at least ten minutes a day in my dignified race between meetings scattered around the Palace of Westminster.  Thanks Sian. 

The Industry and Parliament Trust Fellowship

Bridgend MP Madeleine Moon is to undertake a fellowship with the Industry and Parliament Trust within the BOC Group. The Trust offers a number of fellowships to Members of Parliament in order for them to undertake a programme of study in business.

Mrs Moon will spend time with The BOC Group over a period of 18 months, during which she will engage in activities arranged to suit both her parliamentary timetable and her own interests, giving an insight into how business strategy is formulated and implemented within the wider community.

“I am looking forward to what I think will be a fantastic opportunity to gain an understanding of the principles that are the foundation of the running of such a major organisation as BOC.” Mrs Moon said.

“I am sure it will be an extremely rewarding and worthwhile experience.

“Through the Fellowship I will gain practical experience of issues facing a company such as economic pressures, environmental impacts, personnel and the role research and development plays in staying ahead in a global market.  The fellowship will also enable me to explore BOC’s relationship with its suppliers, customers and investors.”

Current fellows of the Industry and Parliament Trust are representative of the whole political spectrum including senior MPs across political parties, former Ministers, Privy Councillors, Government Ministers and the Speaker of the House of Commons.  The Fellowship is endorsed by all three main political party leaders who have advocated the need to build stronger links between business and Parliament.

Mrs Moon now invites companies in her Bridgend constituency to meet with her so that she can gain insight into the issues affecting the local business environment. 

“The fellowship will enable me to see which issues are impacting across small, medium and global enterprises and inform my discussions with relevant government ministers.” Mrs Moon added.

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On the 23^rd May, eighteen days after my election, I walked into the Chamber of the House of Commons to make my Maiden Speech.

I chose to speak in the debate on the ‘home affairs and communities’ legislation outlined in the Queen’s speech, because I wanted to pay tribute to one of the great strengths of the Bridgend Constituency; the great wealth of voluntary and community activity taking place here.

Having paid tribute to my predecessors, Win Griffiths and Peter Hubbard Miles, I spoke of individuals such as Aileen Jones, Helena Parobij, Gordon Taylor, David Matthews, Idris Jones, Ted Davies and Gwyneth Poacher who have improved life locally for so many people.

I talked of how organisations such as The Wildmill and Brackla Tenants and Residents Associations and community hall committees, working with the police, housing and youth services, make their communities a better place to live.

I gave a commitment to embrace partnership working by debating and discussing the new legislation with organisations such as Age Concern, Shout, Help the Aged, Mental Health Matters and the Shaw Trust.

I also used my speech to emphasize the importance of investing in communities and young people. If new developments such as Broadlands, Brackla and Wildmill are not to become soulless and isolating places to live, community facilities must be provided. Equally, if we are to free our communities from nuisance behavior and provide inspiration, opportunities and role models for youngsters, the Council must fund groups working with young people.

In conclusion, I reiterated my pride at representing a constituency where there is an understanding that it is the things we share that makes life good, and the glue that binds communities is the things we do for others.