Until polling day on 12 December, Emma is Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate for Wolverhampton North East.

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Emma has been surveying her constituents about road safety, and has completed a report on the findings. Of those who responded, 99 per cent were concerned about road safety, with 96 per cent worried about road safety in their own street.

Speeding was the number one cause for concern for an overwhelming majority of respondents. Four out of every five people who responded said it was an issue. Poor driving was second and inconsiderate parking was third. The other major concern was the increase in traffic and the subsequent dangers to pedestrians and cyclists.

Commenting on the findings, Emma said:

“The response to the survey makes it is clear that road safety is a big issue in Wolverhampton. 99% of respondents said they were worried about safety on our city’s roads, and 96% said they were worried about it on their own streets.

“The vast majority are worried about speeding, with a considerable number concerned about poor driving or inconsiderate parking. The Police, the Council, and the government nationally need to make changes to ensure people in our area are able to travel safely.

“This survey has shown that things need to change. I will make road safety an issue I campaign on in the forthcoming General Election campaign and if I am re-elected as your MP on 12 December, I will press for changes at a local and national level to make our roads safer.

“If re-elected on 12 December, I will call for a debate on road safety in the House of Commons, and campaign for new speed cameras, cycle lanes and more action from West Midlands Police on speeding. Emma will also press for a change in the law to allow Wolverhampton Council and West Midlands Police to keep the money raised from speed cameras, and spend this on road safety. Currently this money goes to national government.”

The report can be read in full below:

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“The latest crime figures show that our region has experienced a shocking 20 per cent increase in knife crime – almost triple the national rise of 7 per cent. Knife crime is now at record levels in our region. Police officer numbers are down by over 2,000 since 2010. These cuts are having an effect, and have led our Chief Constable Dave Thompson to say he is “struggling to deliver a service to the public” and “criminals know how stretched we are.”

“There were over 3,500 cases across the West Midlands which involved a knife in the last year and, as the Express and Star reported earlier this week, more than 100 young people were caught brining a knife or a blade into school with them. More officers must be combined with preventative work to ensure our young people do to not turn to carrying knives.

“In our region, crime is up 10 per cent, yet some forms of crime have seen huge increases. Knife crime has risen 20 per cent, violent crime has risen 32 per cent, stalking and harassment is up 63 per cent and sexual offences are up 19 per cent. Burglaries have also risen, and possession of weapons are up 38 per cent. This shows the huge and pressing need for more police officers, to combat ever rising levels of crime.

“Last week it was announced that the West Midlands would receive 366 new officers by 2021. New officers are of course welcome, however they do not make up for the 2,131 lost since 2010. Our communities want the reassurance of more police officers, who can focus on preventative work, solve cases, and get knives off our streets – not to be over 1,700 short of where we were ten years ago.”

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Our region has seen our unemployment rate stubbornly stuck at more than double the national average since January 2015. While the government boasts about national employment, this is not seen in Wolverhampton. In fact, my constituency saw a rise of almost 20 per cent in the last twelve months.

For too long our unemployment has been too high, and I’ve been calling for the Prime Minister to make tackling unemployment and delivering decent-paying jobs his number one priority, yet nothing on this was announced in the Queen’s Speech. People across Wolverhampton deserve to know what this government is going to do to stop unemployment rising, and bring these numbers down.

On policing, our region has seen crime rise by ten per cent in the last year, yet police officer numbers are down by over 2,000 since 2010. These cuts are having an effect, and have led our Chief Constable Dave Thompson to say he is “struggling to deliver a service to the public” and “criminals know how stretched we are.”

Last week it was announced that the West Midlands would receive 366 new officers by 2021. New officers are of course welcome, however they do not make up for the 2,131 lost since 2010. The West Midlands needs a real-terms funding boost so new officers can be hired, make our streets safer, and curb the ever-increasing levels of crime our region and our city is facing.

The Queen’s Speech announced that new sentencing laws would be put in place, along with rehabilitation for prisoners, and greater support for victims of crime. This is of course welcome, along with extra laws and protections around domestic abuse, but our communities want the reassurance of more police officers – not to be over 1,700 short of where we were ten years ago.

Finally, on education, 87 of the 88 schools in Wolverhampton have suffered cuts to per-pupil funding between 2015 and 2019. Yet the Prime Minister’s flagship £7.1bn schools funding announcement won’t even put back the money they have lost through cuts.

From visiting schools in my constituency, I have seen that spending cuts have left schools struggling to cope with fewer teachers and teaching assistants, which is having a direct impact on the education of children. In the Queen’s Speech, one line was given to education – that “all young people will have access to an excellent education” – a welcome commitment, but not backed up by any government action over the last decade.

This Queen’s Speech was an opportunity for the government to make meaningful changes which would have a huge impact on Wolverhampton and the wider West Midlands. This opportunity was not taken. This Queen’s Speech was sorely lacking in the three key areas which would really benefit Wolverhampton, and local people deserve better.

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Baby Loss Awareness Week, now in its 17th year, runs from 9th to 15th October every year and is an opportunity for those affected by baby loss to unite with others across the world to commemorate their babies’ lives and lost pregnancies.

At the start of the campaign, Emma said:

“Baby Loss Awareness Week is an opportunity for bereaved parents, families and friends, to commemorate babies’ lives and break the silence around pregnancy and baby loss in the UK.

“Wolverhampton has the highest rate of stillbirths in the West Midlands, and has the second highest rate for deaths of babies within the first week of life. Losing a baby is devastating for parents. Yet in nearly 9 out of 10 areas of the UK, bereaved parents cannot access specialist psychological support, and the majority cannot access the support they need on the NHS. This is not good enough.

“Pregnancy loss or the death of a baby is a tragedy that affects thousands of people every year. It is devastating for parents and families and it’s vital they get the bereavement support and care they need, for as long as they need it. I have written to the Health Secretary to ask what additional support can be provided to bereaved parents.”

For more information on the campaign, and where to access support, please visit www.babyloss-awareness.org

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