Claire Ward MP
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People often ask how do I manage to juggle being Watford MP, Justice Minister and a mum of two little children. Well a lot of organisation, good support and some luck. But I love all three roles and being Justice Minister gives me chance to develop some of the issues that people in Watford raise with me. Recently I went to Nottingham to visit the Gal-leries of Justice to take part in a „You be the Judge‟ event designed to get people talking about sentencing. I probably do not need to encourage people to talk about the sentences criminals re-ceive – it is often the topic for pubs, workplaces and over dinner tables. It is interesting to note public perceptions on the sentences handed out by judges and the real-ity. We often read about heinous crimes but are we always clear exactly what the sentence means? If someone receives an IPP with a tariff of 8 years are you clear how long they will be in prison? If not, you are not alone as many people are unaware that Indeterminate sentences for Public Protection (IPP) allow a judge to set a minimum number of years that someone must stay in prison and they will only be released after an independent Parole Board has considered if they are safe to be released. Even if released they will be subject to close monitoring and restrictions. The purpose of the event was to let young peo-ple consider a typical case that would come be-fore a magistrate‟s court, as if they were a jury, and decide what the sentence should be. The perception is that the magistrates or judges hand out soft sentences, but these events often show that when faced with the details of a case the public actually reach the same sentence or one more lenient than the judges. Sentencing is often confusing – probably be-cause English criminal law is equally complex. It is something that I am keen that everyone in-volved in the justice system should try to make clearer. The only way that we, the public, can be sure that justice is being done in our names is if we can see evidence of it. That is why the Com-munity Payback teams of criminals sentenced to carry out physical work in their fluorescent jack-ets are an important part of justice being seen to be done. We all need to feel confident in the jus-tice system. Crime is falling – in Watford it is down by more than 4% in an already relatively safe county. But we should not be complacent. When I meet residents groups and constituents at my advice surgery I am aware that whatever statis-tics say, if you are unfortunate enough to be a victim of crime you want support and justice. So my other big event was to help launch the National Victims Service. Working with Victim Support this new service will mean that each victim will receive an assessment of their needs on a 1-2-1 basis. Having spoken to many victims and their fami-lies both in Watford and beyond over recent months, this extended and more tailored service is what they want to see. It may not be the great-est news story but it is the sort of thing that a government should do to provide help for those who need it most. |
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For many of my constituents 2009 was a difficult year of uncertainty and challenge caused by the global recession. It seems that the first few days of 2010 have been a challenge of a rather different but no less hazardous kind. Many have had to battle through the snow and ice to get to work, avoiding the growing rubbish outside most of our homes as it piled high wait-ing for the recycling and bin trucks to find safe passage on our barely gritted roads and foot-paths. As I write, with the ice slowly melting outside and hope that more reasonable weather will return, attention focuses on the economy. Can we continue to weather the economic and political storms? In Watford, unemployment has not risen as high as it did in the last recession and remains lower than the national average. The number of home repossessions has also been a tiny fraction of those that took place in the recessions of the 1980‟s and 1990‟s. Whilst some people have undoubtedly had a tough time in the last few months, many have managed to keep their businesses going thanks to extra help such as the deferrement schemes for paying tax and additional business support services brought in by the government. We all know that the coming years will mean that we have to start to spend the money more carefully than we have in the past in order to reduce the national deficit. But the key to our sustained recovery is not just what we spend but how we spend it. Both locally and nationally we will need to make sure that public money is invested for the long term. That is why I have continued to campaign and lobby my colleagues in government that we need to have our redeveloped hospital in Watford. Some of my political opponents have suggested that we should have a freeze on any new hospital building programmes. That would not only be a disaster for our econ-omy but a tragedy for us in Watford if that were to happen. We have all waited long enough for a new hospital. Over the years I have visited Watford hospital on many occasions, not least to give birth to my children in its maternity wing. Despite new blocks such as the Accident and Emergency Unit and the improvement of some wards, there is no doubt in my mind that we need and deserve something better. Our NHS is too important to all of us to be a casualty of the recession. It is clear that the next few months will be a fierce political battle at local and national level. Most readers will be fed up of seeing political leaflets and party political leaders by the time the election finally comes along. But here in Watford, what really matters is whether we have a hospital we have faith in, schools we are confident our kids will get a good education in and the opportunity to build a bet-ter town and country to live in. As always my new year resolution will be to work even harder |
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Another busy month has passed and the great thing about this column is that it gives me a chance to pick out the best bits and look forward to the month ahead. Well, the big event in the Parliamentary calen-dar was the opening of the new session with the Queen‟s Speech. For those not hooked on the ceremonial splen-dour, there is still plenty of meat on the pro-gramme that the government has set out for the coming months. Last year of course, I had the privilege of being the captive held hostage in Buckingham Palace while the Queen visited Parliament. This year I took the chance to take part in the procession from the House of Commons into the House of Lords to hear the speech at first hand. Despite what the gloom-mongers may say in the media there is in fact some really important pieces of legislation for Parliament to debate. More importantly, getting some of this into law will make a real difference to the lives of many people in Watford and across the country. The big issue is the economy and how to make sure we continue the recovery from recession. New legislation is needed to control the banks and especially the bonuses paid to bankers. It is clear that it is more regulation of the banking sector and not less that is required. Taken together with tough measures to reduce the government borrowing, the economy is a strong feature in this programme. But so too is the need for continued investment in our public services and in our future. I believe very strongly that although we have to get the deficit down, we cannot afford to push the coun-try back into recession just as we seem to be getting out of it. So we need to continue to invest in the skills of young people to get them back to work and the new Digital Economy Bill will promote invest-ment in modern technology. Over the years many of my constituents have talked to me about the problems of getting old and having to sell their homes to pay for their care. I know it is a real worry for them and their families. So the new Social Care Bill should be widely welcomed. It will provide for free personal care in their own homes for those with the highest needs. From next October more than 275,000 of those with the greatest needs will be protected for good from charges and top-up fees for care in their own homes. In due course we should have a na-tional Care Service. There is so much more in the Queen‟s Speech that I don‟t have space to mention – control of cowboy clampers; new guarantees for parents and pupils to know how schools are performing; new parenting orders for those whose children ignore ASBOs; bringing into UK law a ban on the production and use of cluster bombs; more support and a fairer deal for consumers faced with high energy prices. Check out my website for more information on these and more www.claire-ward.org.uk. So there will be plenty to keep me busy in Parliament and in Watford in the coming months. For this month I shall also be preparing for Christmas. With two young children, Christmas is such an exciting time and I am making sure that I enjoy it as much as they do. Whatever your faith, can I wish you a Happy Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year. |
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It‟s not often that I am still in Watford town centre at 3am but when it is for a good purpose, I am happy to oblige.
Not that I was ever a great fan of the nightclub scene but certainly less so as the years pass by. So last month I took the chance to go on patrol with Watford Police.
Although I have been on previous occasions during my time as MP, it was busier this time and different.
Something has really changed in Watford polic-ing. Over recent years, many of my constituents have expressed concern that the town centre acts as a huge draw for police presence.
It has frequently meant that those living out-side of the town centre resent paying taxes for a police presence which has been far too concen-trated on the town centre at the weekend. I shared those views and raised them with the police on many occasions.
About 18 months ago, the police changed the way that they police the town. Instead of stand-ing around outside of the clubs waiting for the problems to start, the police have taken a less obvious place on the edge of the town.
Now they can be into the High Street in a mat-ter of seconds if trouble starts. Together with better monitoring of CCTV it appears to have reduced the amount of bad behaviour.
Just as importantly, there are now officers available to patrol the rest of Watford. This is precisely the changes that the government have been keen to see at local level to bring back real neighbourhood policing.
Of course, there is still much more to do to reduce anti social behaviour and crime. It is something that I feel strongly about and even more so now that I have a chance as Justice Min-ister to influence some of the policy in this area.
So I was delighted to hear from local police officers during my night out that they would like to see extra powers to impose a financial penalty on those people who accept a conditional caution.
A conditional caution can be used by the police, in agreement with the prosecution service, as an alternative to someone going to court.
The person must have admitted the crime, there has to be evidence of the crime and the offender has to be willing to accept the caution and the conditions that go with it.
If they refuse or fail to abide by the conditions, then the original offence can and generally will be prosecuted. It is an ideal tool that can be used to punish without going through the court sys-tem but it is limited to certain types of offences and cannot be used for violent crimes.
At the moment an adult cannot have a finan-cial penalty added as a condition of the caution. But earlier this month, I took legislation through the House of Commons to pilot this idea in 5 police areas. If it works, we will look at giving the powers to all police areas.
I will do all I can locally and nationally to give the police the powers they need to act on our behalf so we can all sleep easily in our beds at night. |
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The summer holidays are now a fading memory and the next big focus is Christmas. Sorry to mention the C word in October but you could hardly miss it on the high street.Shops have been recruiting thousands of new staff – much welcomed as we climb out of recession. The shelves are rapidly filling up with potential Christmas presents. It won‟t be long before we start to hear the Christmas carols on the radio and then we will know it really is just around the corner.
But in the bit in between summer holidays and Christmas, something quite special took place in Watford. Actually it was the opening of two new Academies serving Watford – Francis Combe Academy and the Bushey Hall Academy. You might not think that is very special but for the pupils at those schools and thousands of children at primary school in Watford, it will make an amazing difference.
Over the period of nearly 13 years that I have been the MP, the annual round of secondary school transfer has been a trauma for many parents and pupils. When I first became MP, there were two schools that parents would fight tooth and nail not to send their child to – Westfield and Francis Combe.
The other schools were and remain of such high standard that the gulf between the schools was even greater. Westfield school was the first to pull itself out of problems, taking community and technology college status. Under a dynamic head teacher it soon became the number one choice of many parents for their child. Its exam results have continued to improve and it is a genuine success story.
That was great news for those who attended Westfield but it put even greater pressure on Francis Combe and latterly Bushey Hall. We all knew that the situation could not continue and it was greatly welcomed when these schools became part of the Government‟s drive for Academies.
These work with outside sponsors, sometimes another successful school, or a business or in the case of Francis Combe, West Herts College and the University of Hertfordshire. Their funding and operation are different from a school traditionally run by the local county council.
I went to visit Francis Combe Academy on its first day of lessons in September. The smart new uniforms were a credit to the pupils and the Academy. Over the next two years the school will be transformed with new classrooms and facilities, replacing most of the outdated buildings. This summer‟s exam results have already exceeded expectations and the numbers of children through the door in September has also risen over the year. By the time you read this, I hope that I will have had the chance to visit Bushey Hall Academy too.
So the reason why I am telling you this now is because in the run up to Christmas, parents will already be looking at potential schools for their child to move to in September 2010. I am immensely proud of our schools and in my time as MP I have seen them all transform – new classrooms, new maths and IT blocks, new language centres and sports centres.
Above all improved exam results and a better quality of education for all our children. For September 2010 no parent should feel that there is a school that they can‟t consider. All our schools are different but in their own way all are excellent. I wish Francis Combe Academy and Bushey Hall Academy the very best in their new status. |
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