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The future of Meddygfa’r Sarn GP surgery in Pontyates has been called into question by Hywel’s Dda Health Board’s proposal to close it.
It currently serves 4,000 patients and having a doctor’s surgery in the centre of Pontyates really matters.
Hywel Dda need to start genuinely listening to local people’s concerns.
Further information on Hywel Dda Health Board’s consultation on Myddegfa’r Sarn GP Surgery and how to respond can be found here: https://hduhb.nhs.wales/news/press-releases/views-sought-on-proposed-changes-to-gp-services-provided-by-meddygfar-sarn/
Labour came into office promising to break down the barriers to opportunity: to make sure that our young people can fulfil their potential, no matter their background.
That promise is built on a belief shared by so many Portsmouth people and across the country, and on an understanding of how badly the last Government failed, leaving almost one million young people not in education, employment or training.
Not earning or learning can scar a young person’s entire life. It means lower lifetime earnings, poorer health, reduced wellbeing and lower life satisfaction.
Today the Government is confronting this crisis. The Prime Minister has already committed to a new target for two-thirds of young people to go to university, further education or take on a gold-standard apprenticeship by the age of 25.
Following National Apprenticeship Week last week, I want to update you on the next steps the Government is making to turn things around for young people across Britain.
We are investing £725 million more to deliver 50,000 extra apprenticeships.
That investment will mean the full cost of providing an apprenticeship is covered for small businesses, enabling them to take on more young people.
It will support Mayors across our regions to match thousands of young people up with local apprenticeship opportunities – so that every community feels the benefit.
And this week, Ministers announced further reforms to the system:
This change for young people – and all we have delivered so far – will benefit young people in our community and across Britain.
The country is turning the corner under this Government. We’re making sure young people aren’t left behind.
Stephen Morgan MP
The post Labour is breaking down the barriers to opportunity appeared first on Stephen Morgan MP.

Jeff Smith MP has welcomed the Labour Government’s announcement that ground rents will be capped at £250 a year, calling it a “long overdue step that will make a real difference to leaseholders in Manchester Withington.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Steve Reed, confirmed the cap as part of a wider package of measures.
Jeff Smith said the change will bring relief to families who have faced unfair and escalating charges for years.
“I have met many residents who have been ripped off for far too long. This cap will save some families hundreds of pounds a year and finally puts an end to one of the worst injustices in the leasehold system.”
Alongside the cap, the Government has published the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, which will strengthen the rights and protections of more than five million leaseholders. The Moving to Commonhold consultation has also opened, giving people the chance to shape the next phase of reform.
The announcement also builds on the recently passed Renters Rights Act and Labour’s landmark planning reforms, aimed at ensuring everyone has a safe and secure home.
Jeff also welcomed the Government’s commitment to ban new leasehold flats, delivering on Labour’s manifesto pledge to bring to an end the outdated leasehold model.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
“Good news for homeowners, we’re capping ground rent at £250. That means if you are a leaseholder, and your ground rent is more than £250, you’ll be paying less.
“And I’ve spoken to so many people who say this will make a difference to them of hundreds of pounds.
“That’s really important because the cost of living is the single most important thing across the country.
“So this is a promise that we said we’d deliver and I’m really pleased that we’re delivering on that promise.”
Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Steve Reed said:
“If you own a flat you can be forced to pay ground rents that can become completely unaffordable. We said we’d be on the side of leaseholders – which is why today we are capping ground rent – helping millions of leaseholders by saving them money and giving them control over their home.
“The leasehold system has tainted the dream of home ownership for so many. We are taking action where others have failed – strengthening home ownership and calling time on leasehold for good.”
Jeff Smith, Labour MP for Manchester Withington, said:
“This is fantastic news for leaseholders in Manchester Withington who have been trapped in an unfair system for too long. The Conservatives promised to fix this problem back in 2017 but didn’t. I am proud that a Labour Government has delivered where the previous Tory Government failed. When I stood to be your local MP in July 2024, our manifesto promised this reform, and I’m delighted this protection for leaseholders is being brought forward by Labour.”
Local MP Amanda Martin has today welcomed the major announcement by Labour that communities across the UK, including in Portsmouth, will be given the opportunity to own and control their own energy projects.
Labour’s plan delivers the biggest public investment in community energy in British history, and will give communities a stake in the places they live, as well as generating profits that can be reinvested locally.
Communities will be able to express their interest in funding and advice on building clean energy projects in their town or village through Great British Energy, with a new “one stop shop” set up for local energy.
Welcoming the plan, Amanda Martin MP said: “This is a hugely exciting plan that opens up opportunities for communities in Porstmouth to take back control of their energy.
“This Labour government is putting power and wealth back in the hands of local communities, so profits can flow back into local areas, not simply out to big energy companies.”
Emma Bridge, Chief Executive of Community Energy England, added: “Community Energy England welcomes the announcement of £1bn for local and community energy, which will unleash the sector to grow exponentially again. By harnessing the passion, expertise and money of local people, this investment will deliver community benefit, bill savings, local jobs and energy justice.
“The Local Power Plan is an important step to putting people and community energy at the heart of the energy transformation. We look forward to working closely with Great British Energy and the government on detailed investment and delivery programmes so that our members can scale this work as soon as possible.”
The post Amanda Martin MP welcomes historic investment in community energy by the Labour Government appeared first on Amanda Martin MP.
Published in the Sunday Express
Sir Keir Starmer must stand firm against the EU when it comes to post-brexit freedom to develop gene-edited crops banned by Eurocrats, an MP has warned.
George Freeman urged the Prime Minister not to “give away” the UK’S freedom to pioneer in plant breeding and regulation, such as the development of disease-resistant and drought-resistant crops.
He said: “Agritech is a huge global growth market for both exports and investment. For it to thrive, we must have policies in place that incentivise our farmers to “grow more with less”.
“Europe is also a key market – for both UK food and agritech. One of the real benefits of Brexit was the freedom to develop disease-resistant and drought-resistant crops, such as the blight-resistant potato.
“As the government reduces trade friction with the European market, we mustn’t give away the freedom to pioneer in plant breeding and regulation, but instead be an innovative accelerator testbed where new innovations can be tested on their way to the EU market.”
The Express’s Give Us a Proper Brexit crusade has called for the government to slash red tape for businesses.
The UK introduced the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023 after Brexit, diverging from EU rules by allowing lighter regulation for gene-edited crops. Both the National Farmers’ Union and MPS on the Commons’ Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee have raised concerns over these technological advances being sacrificed in order to reach a deal with the EU.
Mr Freeman said: “Although few in Whitehall seem to understand it, the global market for agricultural and food technology is exploding with billions of pounds of investment as nations look to secure food supplies for growing populations.
“To avoid mass famines, the globe has to double food production on the same land area using half as much water and energy.”
He added: “The UK is a powerhouse in agricultural research and development, and agritech innovation – Norfolk especially – but we’ve been very bad at commercialising it globally.”
Norfolk’s Broadland Food Innovation Centre is home to a cluster of agricultural food innovators such as Condimentum, the home of Colman’s mustard powder, and hand-made frozen meals brand Farmyard.
James Smith, CEO of Condimentum, told the Express during a tour of the 25,000sq ft facility that the consortium was set up by the English Mustard Growers’ and Norfolk Mint Growers’ co-operatives.
It is one of only three mills worldwide capable of producing double superfine mustard flour.
The factory makes mustard for Colman’s parent company Unilever, which closed its Carrow Works site in Norwich in 2020 after 160 years. Talking about how Colman’s is integral to
Norfolk, Mr Smith said: “Mustard is probably one of those legacy condiments that have such a heritage.”
They also process fresh mint from local farmers within two hours of harvest. Mr Smith said Brexit had not impacted hugely in terms of sourcing raw materials. He added: “But goods coming from Europe into the UK got slowed down quite a bit.we were at that time selling predominantly into the UK so it didn’t really affect us. I think longer term, we’re going to find challenges around regulatory diversion... especially around farming operations like the use of pesticides and insecticides.
“There is some cost impact that we’ve seen and some logistic challenges that have come but I would say that’s levelled a little bit now. But I think for us in the food industry generally, diversion of regulation is going to be a big challenge we need to keep an eye on.”
Meanwhile, nearby food innovator Hannah Springham and her chef husband Andrew Jones create Michelin restaurantlevel food for first and business class airline travellers out of Heathrow and Gatwick.
The pair closed their fine-dining restaurant Farmyard, which featured in Michelin’s guide, in 2024 after seven years.
When the Express visited their kitchen of the same name, parmesan cream sauce with black pepper was bubbling away beside lentil bolognese in industrial-sized pots.
Hannah said: “In lockdown, we pivoted to making frozen ready-meals, which was a bit controversial because we were fine dining. My husband, who’s the chef, was like, I didn’t get into chefing to do frozen meals. We’ve just pivoted because somebody in our restaurant came and took away the food on their private jet and said ‘you need to get into airlines’.
Chicken, currently sourced from Europe because of supply chain issues, is their “big seller” and is a staple on flights to the USA every day.
Andrew cooks around 20,000 chicken breasts each month which then get added to other dishes, and the kitchen uses locally sourced vegetables.
Hannah said: “As a small producer and a small business, we hear a lot of talk about the government wanting growth and I think decisions being made more quickly in support of business is really important.
“Quite a lot of the time stuff with government or local council can take a while, and if we have to wait that means we can lose a contract if we can’t act quickly.”
I took part in a debate on the government’s genocide risk assessment in Gaza. Since Israel launched its offensive in 2023, we have seen actions which clearly constitute a genocide: targeted attacks on civilians and journalists, the forced displacement of people from their homes, the obstruction of humanitarian aid, the weaponisation of starvation and the destruction of vital civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, schools and universities.
More than 70,000 people have been killed, with entire bloodlines wiped out. Yet the government still refuses to designate what is happening in Gaza as a genocide. When governments avoid the term genocide, it is not because facts on the ground are unclear. It is because the implications are inconvenient. They would require us to stop arms sales and suspend military cooperation, for instance. History will not describe what is unfolding in Palestine as a war, an invasion or just an occupation; it will describe it as a genocide.
The post There is Still a Genocide Happening in Gaza appeared first on Bell Ribeiro-Addy.
In Parliament today I asked the Secretary of State for Defence, will Canada be asked to join the JEF? You can Listen to my question and the response from the Secretary of State below.
The post Defence Question 02/02/2026 appeared first on Emma Lewell MP.
This week Labour has published its draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill.
For too long, leaseholders and homeowners with unadopted estates have paid through the roof for
substandard service from unscrupulous managing agents and freeholders.
Every year, homeowners pay £600 million to freeholders. And in 2024, service charges reached an
average of £2,300 a year, increasing well above inflation.
Labour’s Bill will take direct action on the cost-of-living crisis for leaseholders.
The Government is capping ground rent at £250 a year, and moving to a peppercorn after 40 years.
The legislation also establishes commonhold as a default tenure, bans new leasehold flats, and creates
a route for leaseholders who want to transition to commonhold to do so.
More plans are also in the works to make it easier for leaseholders to enfranchise, and to ensure that
managing agents and freeholders are held to account for poor practice.
Every week I see in my constituency inbox the costs which homeowners are forced to pay for
substandard service. Working people deserve managing agents and freeholders who work for them,
and that is exactly what Labour’s Bill will achieve
The post Labour is protecting Leaseholders from unfair charges, and capping ground rents appeared first on Liz Kendall.
The Member of Parliament for Barking, Nesil Caliskan, is celebrating a government announcement on ending leasehold and cap on ground rents: “Since I became the MP for Barking, I have been fighting against dodgy developers and housing management companies who have been ripping people off,” she said. “It is clear the system is broken.”
The government has announced a total ban on new leaseholds, with current leaseholders given the choice to switch to commonhold as part of the new Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill. There will also be a cap on ground rents of £250, drastically reducing the cost of homeownership for people across the country.
Nesil Caliskan has called out developers, freeholders and housing managing companies across Barking for their exploitative practices and unaffordable service charges. Last year, for example, she slammed HomeGround, a freeholder in Barking Riverside linked to many allegations of poor transparency and exploitative fees: “They have made the dream of homeownership a living nightmare for so many families in Barking & Dagenham.”
Commenting on the wider reforms, Nesil Caliskan MP said: “Freeholders and management companies have exploited the basic need of people to have a roof over their head for too long, charging sky-high fees for poor service.
“I have seen families living with no heating or hot water and elderly people forced to climb flights of stairs because the management company failed to do basic lift repairs.
“I’m glad that now people in Barking & Dagenham will be able to have a say over their own futures, and we are seeing the back of this feudal system.”
The post December Newsletter appeared first on Mohammad Yasin MP.
The closure of Banbury Museum would be a devastating blow for our town. I have created this petition to urge Cherwell District Council to find alternative funding, so the museum can continue to serve our community. Please see the petition below: https://www.change.org/p/save-banbury-museum-and-gallery-urge-cherwell-to-source-alternative-funding
The post Banbury Museum Petition appeared first on Sean Woodcock, MP for Banbury.
Sure Start was life-changing for so many people in Bassetlaw, transforming the lives of children by putting in place family support in the earliest years of life. Sure Start, introduced by the last Labour government, helped level the playing field for children from lower income families, with research showing that children who attended a Sure Start centre were much more likely to perform better at school.
The previous Government cut community services, scrapping Sure Start, leaving a gaping hole in family services. When they left government, one in four families with children under five couldn’t access local children’s centres, rising to one in three lower income families. Speaking to local families in Bassetlaw, I hear time and again an ask for more support around SEND, youth services, and early development.
I welcome the news that the Government are building on the proud legacy of Sure Start, and reviving family services by rolling out 1,000 ‘Best Start Family Hubs’ by April 2026, including here in Bassetlaw.
Best Start Family Hubs will be a one stop shop for parents needing support, including on difficulty breastfeeding, housing issues or children’s early development, and other services such as:
The post Giving Children in Bassetlaw the Best Start in Life appeared first on Jo White MP.
It was great to call into Neighbourhood Watch in Pelsall again and catch up with Edwin and Andrew.
We discussed a range of local issues across the Rushall, Shelfield, Pelsall, and Brownhills Neighbourhood Watch area. Our focus was on how we can work together as one community to address these challenges.
It was also fantastic to hear about Project Phoenix – a pilot community-run initiative launched by Walsall Council! This project is dedicated to building a stronger community right across our Borough, and I’m really keen to see the positive impact it will have.
An abridged version of this article ran in The Times on 3rd February 2025
In 2007, in the pages of this newspaper, I argued that Britain should seize the moment and move Heathrow to the Thames Estuary, freeing up the congested west London site for much-needed housing while creating a world-leading transport hub fit for the 21st century. It was an ambitious plan—perhaps too ambitious for a nation that has lost its appetite for grand infrastructure. Seventeen years later, what do we have? The same tired debates, the same dithering, and now, a third runway proposal that represents the absolute minimum of what could be done. It is not a vision; it is a concession to stagnation.
Throughout history, Britain built infrastructure that transformed cities and continents. The Victorians laid thousands of miles of railways across India and Africa. British engineers built the world’s first underground railway in London, the great docks of Hong Kong, and the vast shipping hubs that made global trade possible. Ours was once a nation that saw scale and complexity as challenges to be overcome, not reasons to prevaricate. Today, while China constructs floating airports in Hong Kong and Dalian, we are still arguing over a few extra miles of tarmac at an aging airport hemmed in by suburban sprawl.
The case for expanding Heathrow is undeniable. The airport operates at near capacity, with any disruption causing delays that ripple across the global aviation network. Additional capacity is needed. But the third runway is not a bold leap forward—it is an unimaginative compromise. The design is a relic of a bygone era when Britain was still willing to approve large infrastructure projects but had already begun its slow descent into cautious incrementalism. Surely for a solution we should be looking beyond the immediate horizon, daring to create something transformative.
Compare this to the grand infrastructure ambitions of Asia. Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok, which replaced the legendary but perilous Kai Tak airport in the 1990s, was built on reclaimed land. It was a marvel of engineering (mostly British), completed in just six years. Now, China is taking the concept even further: Dalian is constructing a floating airport, pushing the boundaries of what is possible. This is a country that doesn’t simply accept geographic limitations—it overcomes them. Britain, meanwhile, is paralysed by protest groups, endless consultations, and political hand-wringing.
A floating airport in the Thames Estuary—an idea proposed and swiftly dismissed—would have been a statement of ambition. London could have had its own Chek Lap Kok, a world-class hub unencumbered by the constraints of Heathrow’s location. Instead, we are left with a piecemeal expansion of an outdated site, in a project that will take decades and still leave Britain trailing behind.
The environmental argument against expansion is often cited as a reason for delay, but it is a red herring. Modern aviation is rapidly advancing towards lower emissions and greater efficiency. If the concern is air pollution and carbon footprints, the answer is not to stifle airport expansion but to embrace new technology, support cleaner aviation fuels, and invest in modern air traffic management. Britain should be leading these efforts, not using environmental concerns as an excuse for stagnation.
The economic cost of our hesitation is immense. Aviation is a key driver of trade, tourism, and investment. Heathrow’s constraints mean we lose out to European rivals, with airlines shifting long-haul routes to Paris, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt. The third runway, even if built, will do little to reclaim lost ground. By the time it is operational—assuming it even survives the judicial challenges that will inevitably come—other nations will have long since surpassed us.
What Britain needs is a fundamental shift in mindset. We must stop viewing major infrastructure projects as necessary evils to be endured and start treating them as national priorities. This requires reforming our planning laws, streamlining approval processes, and fostering a political culture that celebrates engineering excellence rather than recoiling from it.
The third runway at Heathrow is not the answer—it is a symptom of our decline. Instead of an afterthought tacked onto an aging airport, we should be considering radical alternatives: offshore airports, high-speed rail integration to regional hubs, and a renewed commitment to infrastructure that places Britain at the forefront of global connectivity. We were once a nation that built the world’s most advanced transport networks, that pioneered engineering breakthroughs others only dreamed of. We can be that nation again—but only if we stop settling for mediocrity and start daring to think bigger.
The world is not waiting for Britain to catch up. While we squabble over a single new runway, China is building entire new airports on water. The contrast is stark, and the lesson is clear: boldness breeds success, hesitation ensures decline. If Britain truly wishes to remain a global player, we must abandon the timid incrementalism of the third runway and embrace the kind of audacity that once made us great.
Kit Malthouse 1st February 2025
Christmas is a very special time. It's when we come together with friends and family to take stock, and give thanks for what we have.
Some years – in the best of times, this is cause for celebration.
Other years – it's more complicated if we're missing loved ones,
affected by illness, or facing money worries, homelessness, or loneliness.
Sometimes – let’s be honest, for many reasons, Christmas can just be about getting through it, and that's ok!
Because regardless of the year that’s been, or the circumstances you find yourself in, Christmas offers everyone a precious gift – hope.
The post Toby Perkins MP supports Chesterfield Hedgehog Rescue and Rehabilitation appeared first on Toby Perkins Labour MP.