I was very pleased to be able to visit Solus Repair Centre in Erith earlier this month.
I particularly enjoyed meeting young people from the apprenticeship programme and discovering all the opportunities available to develop technical skills and expertise in the sector.
You can see my social media post about the visit below or here.
Thank you to all constituents who have taken the time to write to me about the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) London-wide expansion.
I recently contacted the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to raise concerns about how the current proposals to extend the ULEZ will affect constituents of Erith and Thamesmead, many of whom do not have good links to public transport.
I welcomed the £110m for the new scrappage scheme to support Londoners on lower incomes, disabled Londoners, charities and micro-businesses as a welcome starting point. However, many of my constituents, including struggling families and businesses, are not covered by the scrappage scheme. I therefore strongly encouraged the Mayor to review of the scrappage scheme to support small businesses and to undertake an assessment of what additional support can be provided to families.
I will continue to monitor the impact of ULEZ expansion in Erith and Thamesmead, and pass on my constituent’s views to the Mayor directly.
Please find below my letter to the Mayor of London.
As the Member of Parliament for Erith and Thamesmead, I send my congratulations to King Charles III and Queen Camilla for their successful Coronation this month.
It was great to see so many people get involved from across the community, including with street parties and events to celebrate this historic occasion. I was grateful to join a reception for the King and Queen before their Coronation and meet with so many people doing important work across the United Kingdom.
I hope everyone in Erith and Thamesmead and across the country had a great Coronation weekend with family and friends.
It was a privilege this month to be invited by the Stephen Lawrence Foundation to attend the Stephen Lawrence 30th Anniversary Memorial Service. This was a significant and inspirational occasion as we cherished Stephen’s memory and came together to spread a message of hope and change.
Those of us who were growing up in South East London at the time of Stephen’s murder know we have come a long way. However, we all know that we have so much further still to go. It is important that we all come together to honour Stephen’s life and commit to making sure the next 30 years are meaningfully different from the last.
I was also pleased to join Baroness Doreen Lawrence OBE and Keir Starmer at their in-conversation event to discuss Stephen’s legacy and the great work of the Stephen Lawrence Foundation. It was especially great to hear about what they have been doing to help young people and what they plan to do in the future to inspire a more equitable, inclusive society.
On 21st April, I was delighted to visit Discovery Primary School and meet the newly formed Junior Leadership Team. The students took me on a tour before asking me lots of insightful questions about my life as an MP.
I was very impressed by the enthusiasm and ambition of the students in the Junior Leadership Team and I am sure they all have a bright future ahead.
My office continues to receive hundreds of emails a month on many important issues effecting constituents in Erith and Thamesmead.
This month I held another surgery, and I was deeply saddened to hear of the experiences my constituents are facing on a wide range of issues.
Currently food prices are soaring, and people’s rent and mortgages continue to increase. I receive a large amount of casework which makes clear what impact the cost-of-living crisis and 13 years of a Conservative government is having on people’s lives.
For all those who are struggling, I continue to share my Cost-of-Living booklet to help them know where to access support when needed. The link to the booklet is here: https://www.abenaoppongasare.com/cost-of-living/
For those who would like a surgery appointment with me, they are always welcome to contact my office who will be able to add you to the next available surgery.
I was delighted to visit Discovery Primary School and meet the newly formed Junior Leadership Team. The students took me on a tour before asking me lots of insightful questions about my life as an MP.
I was very impressed by the enthusiasm and ambition of the students in the Junior Leadership Team and I am sure they all have a bright future ahead.
April has been another important month in Parliament as I have been able to raise a number of issues that I know constituents in Erith and Thamesmead and so many across the country are really concerned about.
In my role as Shadow Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, I spoke for Labour in the Finance Bill Committee of the House and I closed the Opposition Day debate on the cost of living crisis. In the Finance Bill speeches, I challenged the Government with my concerns about their policies on energy and alcohol duty and I made clear Labour’s critiques and position on these important issues.
Then for the cost-of-living debate I outlined the devastating impact that the current squeeze is taking on ordinary families. I mentioned that despite high inflation and stagnating wages, the Government has raised the tax burden to its highest point in 70 years, including 24 tax rises since 2019. I criticised the government for the lack of any clear plan to sort out the economy and turn around this cost-of-living crisis. You can read my speech online here or watch a clip on Twitter here.
However, an issue of such important in our community is housing. At Prime Minister’s Questions this month I questioned the Prime Minister about our current housing crisis. I reminded him that mortgages are soaring, rents are rising and housebuilding is set to fall to a post-war low. I fear that the Prime Minister’s lack of action is putting at risk the needs and dreams of millions of young people and families across the country.
You can see a clip of my question to the Prime Minister on Twitter here or on the BBC website here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-politics-65323233.
Really enjoyed seeing in the Nepalese New Year 2080 with the Royal Borough of Greenwich Nepalese Society and Greenwich Mummies. I want to thank Cllr Jit Ranabhat for the kind invitation.
I hope that everyone celebrating across Erith and Thamesmead had a great celebration with family and friends.
I was very pleased to join the Ukrainian community and a number of constituents from Erith and Thamesmead at this celebration event this month.
Last month, we all paused to reflect on the one-year anniversary of the illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. While the illegal war started by Russia continues, I want all the Ukrainians who have settled in our area to know that our support for you and all of the Ukrainian people remains.
It was a great event with great music, dancing, performances and beautiful artwork on display from across the community.
