What a week in Westminster. Liz Truss has finally resigned after crashing the economy on top of the cost of living crisis the Tories have created after 12 years of failure. They have created all of these crises and made the whole country weaker and worse off. I know I speak on behalf of many constituents when I say, they cannot simply reshuffle in another Prime Minister without the consent of the British people. We need a general election now. The British public deserve better and they deserve a say on our country’s future. It is time for real leadership with Keir Starmer and a Labour Government.  

I was delighted to learn this week that after campaigning for a long time on this, Birmingham has been chosen as one of the trial areas to use noise traffic cameras. A road camera designed to identify and track drivers who break the law by revving engines will be installed on Heartlands Parkway. Noisy exhausts and nightmare car cruisers have plagued our city for far too long, which is why I am delighted to have secured the trail which will clampdown on anti-social driving. I will continue standing shoulder to shoulder with residents to tackle antisocial behaviour and criminality blighting our communities. 

This week, I received some answers from the Government to the parliamentary questions I tabled. I asked about the new cladding remediation orders and the government’s recent changes to the eligibility of the Warm Homes Discount. You can read my questions and the Government’s responses here. 

I wrote to the many constituents who were excluded from government support on their energy bills because they receive their energy on a communal contract – it often happens in blocks of flats. I explained that the Government has launched the Energy Bill Relief Scheme, which is designed to provide support for non-domestic customers. Under this scheme, the business with the direct commercial relationship with the supplier will receive support from the Government, which they must pass on to residents as legislated for in the Energy Prices Bill.  

The amount of support and therefore the size of the discount depends on whether you are on a fixed or variable or other rate. You can read more about the support through the Energy Bill Relief Scheme here. Those on heat networks were explicitly included but I have followed up with the Government to seek clarity on whether those on private electricity networks are included. If you are affected by this issue, I would encourage you to contact your energy provider or management company that deals with your energy supplier to confirm that you will be receiving the discount you are entitled to.  

I rounded off the week with a visit to Y International – an export business based in Nechells that ships British-made goods to South Asia and the Middle East. The business is a Ladywood success story, going from strength to strength and employing over 100 staff at its main location, many of whom are from the Birmingham Ladywood constituency. We spoke about their current business and potential plans for expansion while on a tour of their packaging and export facility. 

I hope everyone has fantastic weekends!