This month, we celebrated some incredible news as Gaie Delap was finally released from being unjustly held in prison over Christmas. Gaie is a peaceful climate protester who was recalled to prison after the company in charge of security monitoring couldn’t find a tag to fit her wrist – something I wrote to the Prisons Minister about at the time. It was a huge relief to hear that she has finally been allowed home. I’m still really concerned by threats to the right to protest in this country, and will keep pressure on the government over the unjust jailing of peaceful protesters.
Meanwhile, I’ve been busy both in Bristol and in Westminster. I recently visited the fantastic St Peter’s Hospice Clifton Superstore last week to hear about the Hospice’s vital work caring for people at the end of their lives. I was also invited to look around the Atmospheric Chemistry Research Group’s lab at the University of Bristol and discuss their work monitoring emissions.
In Westminster, I’ve been fighting for better public services for people in Bristol and across the country. I spoke in Parliament about the appalling state of train services here in Bristol, and pressed the transport minister on when Great Western Railway will come into public ownership. I also wrote to the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, urging her to address the severe financial pressures facing local councils as a result of rising costs and years of underfunding from government.
Sadly, it’s been a bad month for the government when it comes to climate action. Earlier this month, MPs had the chance to vote through a landmark piece of legislation – the Climate and Nature Bill – which I co-proposed. But, disappointingly, despite my best efforts to push the bill to a vote, most MPs decided not to have a vote on it and instead kicked it into the long grass. Days later, the government announced it backs airport expansion at Heathrow, even though this would be catastrophic for climate action. And last week, the government refused to rule out pushing ahead with oil drilling at Rosebank, despite a judge finding that the previous government’s consent for the oilfield was unlawful. I’ve kept the pressure up in Parliament for the government to stick to the environmental pledges it made before the election. Here in Bristol, I registered my opposition to Bristol Airport expansion, which would be reckless and irresponsible in the face of the climate crisis and would expose residents to severe noise, road congestion and pollution.
Finally, this month the Renters’ Rights Bill had its third reading in Parliament. I proposed an amendment on rent controls, and another to make sure that disabled people are able to make the adaptations they need to their homes. While I was not successful in persuading the government to take action on the housing affordability crisis, I was pleased to meet with the Housing Minister to discuss how we can make my disabled adaptations amendment work in practice.
If you live in Bristol Central and have a local issue you need support with, you can email me at bristolcentraloffice@parliament.uk or write to Carla Denyer MP, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA For enquiries about national issues please email me using carla.denyer.mp@parliament.uk