Lynne Featherstone

I am remiss in blogging the things I am doing outside of the Equality Bill – but I am still doing the usual level of meetings, events and so on. I met with the Gurkhas at Parliament to support the campaign for equal pension rights. I met with a local woman who is starting a campaign to get a counsellor (talking therapy kind – not Haringey Council) into every primary school. I think this is a very good idea – and in principle am supporting her campaign. I met with a Japanese reporter who wanted my assessment of the key issues around the Baby Peter case as they have a similar case in Japan – where they don’t have children’s social services. I did a lecture on ‘ A Different Future’ to a progressive group – expounding my theories that we mustn’t return to the same old same old greed and avarice – both in banking and in politics. I did an interview with the programme ‘How to Look Good Naked’ and no – it didn’t involve me in taking my clothes off – and no I am not going to reveal here what it was about! All will be revealed in the autumn when the program goes out! I did an interview with the Westminster Hour (pre-recorded) on the Parliamentary procedures around Bill Committee – don’t get me started – just so wrong.

I visited a local hostel run by St Mungo’s – famous for its work with rough sleepers and the homeless. This hostel works with those coming out of prison – and is doing really great work with some of the most difficult and challenging persistent offenders. They are having quite a lot of success in reducing re-offending – which in my view is the way to go. Currently re-offending rates are astronomical – but often because those in prison have mental health or substance issues and come out with no skills, sometimes illiterate and no home or job. The work that St Mungo’s do is to give people the ability to take their place back in society by helping them with all those things.

I went to Abyssinia Court – a local sheltered housing scheme – where a local volunteer had organised a fantastic afternoon. Yolanthe had persuaded local therapists and nutritionists to come into the home to talk about important, really important things for the not so young – like nutrition, exercise, yoga, homeopathy and many other alternative therapies. There were talks explaining the different things in the main room – and then you could go to any of the advisers or therapists for a taster. What a fabulous thing to do for our older citizens. And then there’s been the the Hornsey Carnival and Bazm-e-shero adab at Wood Green library!

Comments

1. Anonymous says:

   6 July 2009 at 1:58 am

   It's programme not program. Next thing you will be writing nite instead of night. It's not right and it's not clever
2. Lynne Featherstone MP says:

   6 July 2009 at 11:02 am

   Well – I seem to have managed to spell it both ways within two lines of each other. Either is OK – but both – absolutely not acceptable. Clarifications and corrections always welcome.
3. Lynne Supporter says:

   6 July 2009 at 7:00 pm

   Lynne- don't you worry about that annoying and snooty jerk, who is complaining about your spelling.

   We want and need an MP who is out there, working hard for US and making a difference- we have that it you.

   They are simply a sore loser, who really ought to go out and get a bloody life.
4. Anonymous says:

   8 July 2009 at 3:19 pm

   It;s all very well looking to get councilors etc into schools but we're in a recession so there really isn't the funding available.

   In my experience our primary schools are especially poor these days, the teaching i significantly worse than it used to be and it really doesn't good foundations for secondary school and certianly not for life in general nor the workplace.

   Primary education is incredibly important, but lets get some more decent teacher in the job first before we start creating new roles. Kids would be willing to talk to the very best, friendly and approachable teachers anyway, thus negating most of the need for a councillor anyway.

   in particular we need to have more men in primary schools, though of course they should be there on merit rather than through sexist quotas and discriminatory "equality" bills.