I was delighted to hear this month that Sevenoaks District Council leader Julia Thornton, Cabinet member Lesley Dyball and council officers, have successfully obtained £40,000 of new, external grant funding on behalf of the local Citizens Advice for the coming year. This will come from Kent County Council and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. While Sevenoaks District Council were still guaranteeing for the next three years an annual grant of £81,540 (the largest Council grant to any voluntary organization) like many of you I was concerned about the grant reduction of £35,000.
However, having raised such concerns with council leader Julia Thornton, I was assured the council was working on ways to provide further support and assistance – and so it has proved to be the case.
This is fantastic news and means overall Citizen’s Advice will see an increase in funding, meaning no change to the vital work they do for our community. My huge thanks to Julia, Lesley and officers for all the hard work they have put in to win these awards so quickly.
Nationally, this month also saw the Chancellor deliver the Spring Budget, and it has been great to hear local reactions. A number of residents have mentioned to me both the cut in National Insurance, and the changes to the threshold at which families start to pay the High-Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC). Both of which will make a huge different to day-to-day finances for many families across Sevenoaks.
The cut in National Insurance in the Spring Budget from 10% to 8% will benefit 27 million working people from April. Combined with the cut to NICs at the Autumn Statement, that is a tax cut of over £900 for the average worker earning £35,400 - giving the average earner the lowest effective personal tax rate since 1975.
On child benefit, this was a topic many of you had raised with me at surgeries and by email since becoming an MP. The current rate of withdrawal between £50,000 - £60,000 causes a steep marginal tax rate – especially if you have multiple children, and there is a fairness point around the full benefit being lost by single earners over £50,000 whereas two-income households could potentially earn up to £98,000 without any loss. I was therefore delighted that as part of the Treasury Team I have been able to play in part in dealing with this issue. The changes announced by the Chancellor mean the threshold at which families start to pay the HICBC is now rising from £50,000 to £60,000, and it is withdrawn more slowly above this between £60,000 and £80,000. This comes into force from this April, meaning nearly half a million families will gain around £1,300 in the next tax year. And, going forward, this Conservative Government will end the unfairness of single-earner families being treated the same as double-earner families.
I will always stand up for Sevenoaks and Swanley residents in Westminster, and if you have any concerns you wish to raise with me, please do not hesitate to get in touch with my office at [email protected].
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Below is a snapshot of what we have been working on. If there is anything, I can do to support you, please get in touch.
- I was delighted to co-host (alongside six other Conservative MPs) my second Apprenticeship Fair at Maidstone Leisure Centre, with another great turnout of nearly 2000 students. Three local schools (Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys, Walthamstow Hall and Weald of Kent School) attended as well other businesses operating in our local area such as: FM Conway, Aldi, Everyone Active – (Sevenoaks & Swanley leisure centres), NatWest and UK Power Networks. Apprenticeships are such an important way to both gain a qualification and earn at the same time and with nearly seventy businesses in attendance, the breadth of fantastic apprenticeships available was really on display. Thanks to all the schools, students and businesses who made the day such a success.
- I had the absolute pleasure of attending the Kent Police Passing Out Parade alongside some of my fellow MP’s from across Kent and our excellent Police and Crime Commissioner for Kent, Matthew Scott and Chief Constable, Tim Smith. It was brilliant to see the 98 new police officers being proudly supported by their family and friends at the parade which was the culmination of their 22-week intensive training. The new officers will now go out on response for the next fifteen weeks and I was able to meet some of the new officers who are being deployed to join the team in Swanley. I was especially pleased to see 36 women amongst the 98 new officer cohort passing out on International Women’s Day. Having more police on our streets is a common theme when I send out my feedback surveys so I look forward to working with and supporting the new officers who will be joining the local teams here Sevenoaks and Swanley.
- I am pleased that Sevenoaks District Council has been awarded £612,950 from the Swimming Poor Support Fund for new solar panels at White Oak Leisure Centre in Swanley, which will reduce energy costs and help cut the centre’s carbon footprint. Good facilities for swimming are so important to the community and the problems caused by the pandemic and the rise in utility costs have put them at risk in recent years. This is the second successful bid I have supported locally to the fund, and my congratulations to Cllr Leader Julia Thornton, Lesley Dyball the Cabinet member for People and Places, and all officers for their hard work in successfully securing this vital funding.
- It was an absolute pleasure to welcome Mark Sereshchenko, a Ukrainian national and Sevenoaks resident, for work experience in my Parliamentary office. Mark came to the UK on the Government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme. My team and I worked very hard, alongside his brilliant host, on securing his visa, and it was fantastic to finally meet him and hear how he has settled into our community, and university course.
- One topic I discussed at my surgeries this month was Kinship Care. Kinship carers play a vital role in our community and, since my election, I have been committed to reducing the barriers they face to offering a safe, stable and loving alternative to foster care. I am determined to keep the profile of kinship carers as high as possible on the agenda both on a local and national level.
- Local bus services are also pivotal to so many residents, and especially school pupils. This month I met with Arriva buses and local councillors to discuss improvements to local bus routes residents regularly raise with me. In particular, we discussed the #477 bus route which previously was used to travel to Darent Valley Hospital and Bluewater, but for the last couple of years has terminated in Dartford. So many residents write to me about this, as well as concerning the cut in frequency, that I want to do all I can to encourage Arriva to restore the previous route. I fully appreciate the challenges bus companies face in making routes viable, but the way to encourage people to use the bus is to improve the service – not make it worse. This is a subject I will persist with.
- Last year, I wrote in support of a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) for London Road, Halstead, part of the Orpington By-Pass, Badgers Mount, and the M25 Spur Road by Junction 4, to address anti-social behaviour coming from dangerous and noisy car meets which had been taking place. A PSPO gives the Police and the Council the power to issue on-the-spot warnings, or a fixed penalty notice for anti-social behaviour, and prohibits behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm, and distress, meaning those causing trouble cannot return to the area within 24 hours. I am therefore delighted that following a consultation the Order has now been confirmed by Sevenoaks District Council and will come into force from 1 May for a period of three years. A huge thank you to all those involved, including a number of local residents, Halstead Parish Council, Kent and the Metropolitan Police, as well of course as Sevenoaks District Council with Cllr Lesley Dyball, along with officers taking the lead.
- Gracious Lane Bridge for many years has been a location where tragically people have attempted to take their lives. As soon as I was elected, I lobbied for safety improvements to take place, and whilst I appreciate the works took a long time and were frustrating for residents, I know that everyone wanted whatever could be done to ensure the bridge was as safe as possible. I was therefore devastated to hear that earlier this month someone was able to get onto the lip of the bridge and jump. I am relieved to say that they have survived, however their injuries are of course serious. Various meetings have since been held on site with the police and council leader Julia Thornton, and I am in discussions with the police and National Highways. I know there are measures in place which should have prevented anyway getting down the outside of the bridge – but clearly, they did not work in this instance. It is difficult to comment until an investigation has taken place, but I have made clear to National Highways, who are responsible for the bridge, that we need fast urgent improvements. I will keep you updated.
- The School Games Mark is a government-led awards scheme to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school and into the community. And, I am delighted to say that Shoreham Village School and St Lawrence Church of England Primary School have both achieved Platinum Status. My congratulations to all the staff and children for this excellent achievement – you should all be very proud. Every child, no matter their background or ability, should have the opportunity to play sport and do regular physical activity, and it is so great to see our local schools leading the way.
