Weekly Update – Friday 19 June 2020

Dear Constituent,

Last Sunday was three years since 72 people lost their lives in Grenfell Tower. They died because of decisions made by this Government not to act on the warnings of a previous fire in Lakanal House. Three years after Grenfell and the Government is continuing that policy of not acting to protect tenants across the country.

Thousands of tenants live in properties with flammable cladding. Many of those who survived Grenfell are still homeless. The Inquiry has been delayed and risks becoming a whitewash. Worst of all, nobody has been arrested and brought to justice for one of the worst crimes this country has ever seen.

We must continue to fight for the victims of Grenfell, the survivors and those who live now in unsafe conditions. Next year on the fourth anniversary I hope we can say that justice has been done.

Black Lives Matter Charter

The response to the Black Lives Matter movement in Edmonton has been amazing. I’ve received hundreds of emails from constituents supporting the movement and calling for change. I’ve read and listened carefully to the frustration, anger, hope and solutions put forward by those who have written to me.

In response, I’ve created a Black Lives Matter Charter which can be found here. I hope to update it as more of you write to me and the movement develops. I’m also planning to host a Black Lives Matter Zoom meeting to discuss so the issues that impact us in Edmonton and beyond. If you would like to attend please email my office.

ALL children should be entitled to Free School Meals

On Wednesday Marcus Rashford’s brilliant campaign for Free Schools Meals helped force the Government into another U-Turn. Free School Meals will now be extended across the summer. That decision will make a huge difference to thousands of families across the country.

However, the details of the U-turn are not yet clear. Normally, many children are not entitled to free school meals because of their parent’s immigration status. As a result of COVID-19 the Government extended eligibility to those children, but it isn’t clear that will continue into the summer and beyond. I’ve written to the Minister for Children to ask the Government to clarify there position urgently and ensure that all children, regardless of immigration status, get free school meals.

We need the Department of International Development

The Prime Minister made the sudden announcement this week that the Department for International Development will be merged with the Foreign Office. As the former Shadow Secretary of State for International Development and a current member of the International Development Select Committee, I’ve seen first-hand how important having an independent International Development is.

The consequences of Boris Johnson’s decision are clear. Less aid will be delivered to the countries that need it the most. The Government will be less accountable for the aid it does spend and ultimately as a country, we are likely to end up delivering less aid. COVID-19 has demonstrated one simple fact – none of us are safe until we are all safe. If Boris Johnson goes ahead and scraps DFID he may learn that to his cost.

Enfield Council – Funding Gap

The cost of COVID-19 to Enfield Council is likely to be more than £68 million. That is the inevitable and necessary cost of fighting the pandemic and ensuring that residents in Edmonton and throughout Enfield were in the best possible position to meet the challenges posed by COVID-19.

But that is an unaffordable amount of money for any council and councils across the country face huge funding gaps as Government so far refuses to adequately financially support local government. So far Enfield has only received £17.9 million from Government.

After 10 years in which Enfield has been forced to cut services in the name of austerity they simply cannot afford and should not be made to cut more vital services such as social care as a result of the pandemic. I have written previously to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government about this issue but he was unable to tell me how he expected Enfield to cover the cost of COVID-19. This week I tried again in parliament, asking the Minister of State what action he expected Enfield to take. He was unable to answer.

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Thank you for taking the time to read my latest update, if you have any issues that you would like to raise directly with me then please do email  edmontonconstituency@parliament.uk. I’m always happy to help whenever possible.

Kind regards,

Kate Osamor MP