Andy Slaughter MP Labour MP for Hammersmith & Chiswick
Council By-Elections
For those living in Broadway ward in Hammersmith and Lillie ward in Fulham, Council by-elections are being held this Thursday (tomorrow).
These vacancies have arisen as former Mayor, Emma Apthorp, and the newly elected MP for Chelsea and Fulham, Ben Coleman, have stood down.
I would of course urge you to support the two excellent Labour candidates, Lydia Paynter and Callum Nimmo. Both are committed local campaigners and I know they would both make excellent local Councillors.
If you are unsure what ward you live in, you can check the Council’s website for further details and for a map of each ward:
Full information about the by-election can be found on the Council’s website.
Polling stations will open at 7am and close at 10pm.
And please remember, you must bring some form of accepted photo ID to the polling station in order to be able to vote on the day.
The King visits Hammersmith
On Wednesday 5 February, I was very pleased to meet with His Majesty King Charles III, during his visit to Hammersmith.
The King had expressed a wish to learn more about the Polish community in London, and where better to do that than at the Polish Social and Cultural Centre in King Street, which is the largest outside Poland.
The King met with trustees, staff and volunteers, and we were all treated to musical performances and excellent Polish food.
If you haven’t visited POSK it is well worth it, especially to their fantastic jazz cafe, which holds regular gigs every weekend.
Heathrow
Over the last few weeks I’ve received over 100 emails from constituents who have been concerned by the discussion about the future of Heathrow and plans for a third runway.
Long-time readers of this newsletter will know my views on this already, as it is something I have written about many times during twenty years as an MP.
There are many issues with the plans to expand Heathrow, not least the significant concerns about the environmental impact, the impact on public health from noise and air pollution, and the increased congestion on local transport networks if more people begin travelling to Heathrow. In addition, the airport is poorly sited close to major population centres, with 2 million people affected by the noise from aircraft using Heathrow. Once you take these issues into account, it clearly becomes an untenable decision to expand the airport any further.
While I agree with the government on the need for major infrastructure projects to help with economic growth and productivity, I do not think the expansion of Heathrow, that would take a decade at least, will achieve this.
Earlier this month I spoke at the AGM of HACAN (the Heathrow Association for the Control of Aircraft Noise) who have been campaigning against a third runway for many years. You can read the Hammersmith Society’s account of the meeting here.
I have also spoken in Parliament about my concerns about the third runway, and I’ll continue to keep residents updated with any news on the expansion plans.
Hammersmith Bridge
Two weeks ago the transport minister reconvened the Hammersmith Bridge taskforce after 3 years of it lying dormant. The last government refused to let it meet or even answer enquiries from MPs.
At the meeting we narrowed down the options for the future of the bridge, agreed to look at cheaper ways to repair it and to get up to date figures on the impact on traffic using other roads and bridges (inc Chiswick and Kew) in the area. We will meet again as soon as this information is assembled.
Parliamentary Update
The Justice Committee continues its evidence gathering for the inquiries into reducing reoffending, drugs in prison and the civil justice system. A private session of the Committee was held last week, followed by a visit to HMP Wormwood Scrubs on Thursday.
The prison was in my constituency prior to the boundary change at the last election, so I had visited it on many occasions, but this was my first chance to visit as the Chair of the Justice Committee.
It was a chance to speak with staff and prisoners and learn more about what support is needed to reduce reoffending. we were impressed by the ‘right course’ restaurant run by inmates and the employment opportunities on offer.
In the Commons I recently spoke on the need to speed up the prosecuting of the most serious rape and sexual assault cases. There is a shortage of advocates for these cases, making it more difficult to secure convictions and leading to victims being failed by the justice system.
I also called for the government to come forward with solid proposals on what can be done to deal wtih the scourge of knife crime in the UK and supported the call by Idris Elba for kitchen knives to be sold with blunted points.
Last week I spoke in a Westminster Hall debate on the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and I asked the government when it would formally respond to the opinion given by the ICJ.
Supporting local events
The Chiswick Calendar has launched a new business directory for Chiswick. Over a year’s work has gone into building the site, which has just gone live, and it aims to be a comprehensive guide to all the local businesses serving Chiswick.
There is also a ‘Social & Cultural’ section where you can find churches, clubs, social and cultural organisations. You can find the site here:
The site is still a work in progress and is being updated every day. If there’s a business or organisation you think should be included then please email info@thechiswickcalendar.co.uk.
I’d also heartily recommend the next Media Club event that the Chiswick Calendar is hosting. Former Conservative Party Chair, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, will be discussing her book Muslims Don’t Matter with Peter Oborne at the George IV pub at 7pm on Wednesday 12 March.
The Conservation Foundation’s Tools Shed Initiative
The Conservation Foundation’s Tools Shed project collects unwanted or broken small garden hand tools which are refurbished in prison workshops and then given to schools and community gardens.
Covid meant postponing the project, but now I’m delighted to say that HMP Wormwood Scrubs is keen to reopen their workshop and the W6 Garden Centre is kindly helping to collect donated tools for the prison.
With spring on the way, I am sure that there will be plenty of demand for much needed tools – nothing heavy or electrical please – and I will report in future newsletters where the refurbished tools will be going. If you are a school or community garden needing tools please contact: tools@conservationfoundation.co.uk.
Tools Shed is a brilliant project made possible by the dedication of staff and volunteers. The project has great benefits for all involved as prisoners gain skills while giving back to the community.
Addison Singers Spring Concert
The Addison Singers are performing Mendelssohn’s Elijah for their annual Spring Concert. These concerts are always excellent, and I’d definitely recommend buying a ticket.
Details can be found on the poster above or on their website.