Helen Maguire MP on working with Citizens Advice to help our communities thrive
Along with CA Mole Valley colleagues, we were pleased to meet Helen Maguire MP, our new representative at Westminster. It was a great opportunity to talk about how we can work together for the benefit of local people.
Lisa Davis is CEO at Citizens Advice Epsom & Ewell (2 minutes)
Helen Maguire MP has been busy since her success in the July general election. Meeting local organisations, becoming a spokesperson on defence, giving her maiden speech in the House of Commons.. Our new MP is clearly enjoying her new role.
Among her local priorities are improvements to the water environment and progress towards Epsom’s promised new hospital. In her maiden speech she also underlined her commitment to raising the living standards of struggling families; she regretted a housing waiting list of 1300 households, families relying on food banks and worried about losing Winter Fuel Payment.
And she expressed her thanks to ‘all the volunteers and local charities who work tirelessly to provide for our community’s most vulnerable’.
At our meeting Helen Maguire confirmed these priorities. Afterwards she posted: ‘I met with CAEE to hear about the challenges they face as a charity and the issues they are seeing among our constituents in E&E. I look forward to working with you to help our communities thrive.’
Yvette Ball, Barnaby Hopson*.
Vision for change
We share Helen Maguire’s vision of positive change. She expressed genuine interest in our data on hardship across the constituency and our local and national policy concerns:
- Housing Benefit. In Surrey and elsewhere the level of Local Housing Allowance is out of balance with the private rental market and driving tenants towards problem debt.
- Homelessness. We have seen a 19% year on year increase in threatened homelessness.
- Disability benefits at risk. Government is planning changes to Work Capability Assessment but detail still lacking. We have real concern that people with disabilities will lose income essential to their quality of life.
- Energy support. With bills set to rise we are asking government to ensure targeted support for those at most risk of ‘heat or eat’ decisions this winter.
- Employer National Insurance Contributions. CAEE, along with much of the voluntary sector, is facing increased demand and higher costs. At the same time the cost crisis is causing a worrying fall in funding.
* Attending the meeting at CAEE Town Hall offices on 2 December. Parliamentary Team: Helen Maguire MP, Chris Sevier, Constituency Support Officer. CAEE hosting: Yvette Ball, Chair of Trustee Board, Barnaby Hopson, Trustee, Lisa Davis, CEO. CA Mole Valley: Tim Prideaux, Chair, Kristina Kenworthy, Trustee, Alison Boyd, CEO.