As Parliament returns this week, it’s been a case of straight back into the thick of it.
On Monday, in my role as Shadow Defence Secretary, I responded to a Government statement updating the House on the latest situation in Ukraine. For all the talk of peace – and with Putin, it is very much talk – the reality is that only days ago Ukraine suffered the second biggest aerial attack of the war, with twenty-three deaths – including four children – and many more injured. Many readers will inevitably ask – when does this all end?
But just imagine how the Ukrainian people feel, continuously bombed and attacked for so many months. That’s why any peace has to be a lasting settlement with meaningful security guarantees for Ukraine. If the war were to cease, we have to accept the risk of Russia continuing to rearm and therefore, we shouldn’t imagine that the support we have given to Ukraine would suddenly stop. They would need to be in as strong a position as possible to deter any renewed aggression – that’s why they would still need our help and, in particular, that of the United States.
On the home front, as a rural MP it remains a top priority for me to campaign against the Government’s proposals for a ‘Family Farm Tax’, which I believe will cause untold damage to the countryside – putting the very future of farming as we know it in peril. I’ve been trying to get a meeting for my farmers with the relevant Treasury Minister. That was James Murray MP, but he was reshuffled yesterday, and I will now try my luck with his successor as Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury.
Of course, this is a role I know well, having held the job myself under the previous Government. It’s a job with many important areas – from fuel and alcohol duty to infrastructure, energy and growth. But looking back on my ‘in-tray’ at the time, it’s hard to think of any single proposal we were seeking to put into law that presented an existential threat to a particular sector of the economy. And let’s be honest, food security is pretty important. The least the Government could do is meet those on the frontline, who now fear so profoundly for their future.
In addition to being a rural constituency, South Suffolk is not unlike much of East Anglia in having a relatively high proportion of residents over retirement age. Which brings me to my Seniors Fair which I will be holding for the second year running later this month on Friday, 26th September at Shotley Village Hall from 10:00 – 12:00. A range of organisations including the NHS, Citizens Advice and Hourglass will be present to provide information and advice on the support that is available. There will also be one of the most popular stalls from last year – the NHS Slipper Swap, aimed at preventing falls. People can come to the event with their current dilapidated slippers and swap them for a new pair, for free. When I held my first Seniors Fair last autumn, in Capel St Mary Village Hall, the issue of Winter Fuel Allowance was dominant. We were just on the cusp of that moment when so many people in South Suffolk are ordering their pre-winter oil tank top-up. The Winter Fuel Allowance was always very handy on that front.
As it is, even with the Government’s eventual U-turn, I’m very conscious that the cost of living remains a key issue for many people – especially those, like pensioners, on fixed incomes. The main inflation rate is almost double what it was at the general election. Meanwhile, food inflation is starting to increase at a particularly worrying rate, with figures at the end of August showing butter and egg prices rising sharply. Of course, inflation rocketed when we were in Government – but it was low until the unprecedented combination of the pandemic ending, and Putin invading Ukraine, forcing energy prices (and thus the wider cost of living) through the roof. Despite all of that, we had inflation back to 2% and bang on the official target by July last year, when the election was called.
So when it comes to the economy, one big thing I want to see from the Government this autumn is a proper strategy, to reduce pressure on the cost of living. Sir Keir Starmer has just had yet another reset, appointing some supposedly senior economists to his Number 10 team, in an apparent snub to Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor. My advice? Food prices are rising – so maybe think again about a tax which will hit our farmers hard. Let’s back local farming so that they can produce more of the food we need, at fair prices.
James Cartlidge is Conservative MP for South Suffolk
Published by the East Anglian Daily Times.
