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Dear *|FNAME|*

Last week we saw the coincidence of several major religious festivals. I’d like to wish a very Happy Easter, Ramadan, Passover, and Vaisakhi, to everyone who celebrated. After spending lots of time in the constituency over Recess, Parliament was back in earnest this week.

This week, Labour voted through a motion to begin a parliamentary investigation into the Prime Minister without opposition from the Tory party. Boris Johnson has done more than any other single politician to undermine trust in our democracy and not even his MPs are willing to go on record to defend him. It’s absolutely vital that we begin to hold him to account for his actions, including lying to Parliament and the people about his lockdown parties. In a clear sign of his weakening position, this motion passed this week with Tory MPs unwilling to publicly vote to support him.

In Streatham

Little Village Donation Drive

A final reminder about my donation drive with Little Village to get baby clothes and equipment for under-5s to families who need them in our area.

📍 St Margaret’s Church (SW2 3BH)

📅 Saturday 23rd of April

🕙 10am-12pm

Spread the news and bring your pre-loved baby kit for another family who needs it.

Throwing the First Wood of the Season

Enjoying the long weekend at the Belmont Bowls Club

Located off Streatham High Road, the Belmont Bowls Club is a little oasis of green right in the middle of our constituency. It was great to join members of the club for their open day over the long weekend and throw the first wood of the 2022 season. A big thank you to members for the warm welcome to this lovely community space and good luck for the season ahead. Lawn bowls is a fun and accessible sport for people of every age and the club are always looking for new members. You can email belmontbowls@belmontbowls.uk if you’re interested in trying it out.

Improving Foster Care

Talking about how we can improve fostering

It was great to meet with the Fostering Network in Parliament this week to talk about some of the key issues affecting foster carers and fostered children. The longstanding shortage of foster carer means many children are placed far from their homes, separated from siblings or left in placements that don’t meet all their needs. There’s a real need to value, recognise and support the foster carer role and find ways of navigating the bureaucracy that puts many people off.

Meeting with the Tamil Community

On Friday, I met with constituents from the Tamil community who have rebuilt their homes in Streatham after facing torture and persecution in Sri Lanka. As we approach the thirteenth anniversary of the end of the Sri Lankan civil war, a whole catalogue of human rights abuses committed primarily against Tamil people are yet to be investigated. The Government has received several significant submissions detailing the human rights abuses inflicted in Sri Lanka but has not acted on them. I was happy to commit to raising this with the Government and support the campaign.

Back in Parliament

Address Falling Dementia Diagnosis Rates

Last month, I met with local dementia advisers from the Alzheimer’s Society to hear more about the situation facing dementia patients during the pandemic and how we can better support people in Streatham. Dementia diagnosis rates have fallen by 14% in our area since the start of the pandemic. We need urgent action to address the dementia diagnosis backlog, and to help over 30,000 people who are living in the dark about their condition as a result of the pandemic. This week in Parliament, I asked the Government when they are going to bring forwards funding to address this and ensure every dementia patient in our area gets the help and support they need.

Last month, I met with local dementia advisers from the Alzheimer’s Society to hear more about the situation facing dementia patients during the pandemic and how we can better support people in Streatham. Dementia diagnosis rates have fallen by 14% in our area since the start of the pandemic. We need urgent action to address the dementia diagnosis backlog, and to help over 30,000 people who are living in the dark about their condition as a result of the pandemic. This week in Parliament, I asked the Government when they are going to bring forwards funding to address this and ensure every dementia patient in our area gets the help and support they need.

Fix the Post-Brexit Trade Fiasco

Jacob Rees-Mogg recently claimed that there was little evidence Brexit has hit trade. The Government’s own data puts the projected damage at £1,250 per person in the coming years. It won’t be hedge fund traders like Rees-Mogg and big companies like Amazon who feel the worst of this, it will be everyone else and particularly small independent businesses. Small businesses in Streatham are struggling to navigate post-Brexit bureaucracy with EU trade plummeting as a consequence of new red tape. This week, I asked the Government whether they are every planning to make good on the promise of tariff-free trade or whether this fiasco is just the new norm.

End The Cladding Scandal

I joined campaigners from End Our Cladding Scandal to show my support for the campaign as the Building Safety Bill returned to Parliament this week. Too many people are stuck in unsafe or unsellable homes with cladding or other fire safety defects. These failures are a consequence of regulatory failure and corner-cutting developers. Campaigners have already forced major concessions but we must keep fighting to ensure no leaseholder is left paying for developers’ and governments’ negligence.

Opposing Rwanda Expulsion Plans

This week, the Government set out their plans to outsource our country’s responsibility for asylum seekers to countries in the Global South. 85% of the world’s refugees are already hosted in lower income countries. Their cruel and costly plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda are modelled on an Australian system which has been condemned by the UN for violating international laws against torture and killed twelve people – all at an inordinate expense to the taxpayer. As a former Home Office Permanent Secretary put it, these plans are “inhumane, morally reprehensible, probably unlawful and may well be unworkable”. I’ll continue to oppose them.

If you have any questions about the work I’m doing as MP, please get in touch at this address: bell.ribeiroaddy.mp@parliament.uk.

Best wishes,

Bell Ribeiro-Addy,
Labour MP for Streatham

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