Shailesh Vara MP is supporting World Parkinson's Day. He recently met with members of Parkinson’s UK, as well as people living with Parkinson’s disease, at the House of Commons.
Parkinson’s UK is the largest charity funder of research into Parkinson’s in the UK. It supports initiatives that seek to find better treatments and improve the understanding of the disease and its causes.
Parkinson’s disease is a condition where parts of the brain get damaged over time, leading to symptoms such as involuntary shaking, slow movement, and stiff muscles. They may also experience depression, balance problems, and memory issues. Many people are of the view that those with Parkinson’s develop symptoms later in life, but the reality is that many thousands of younger people are also affected.
In the United Kingdom, around 153,000 people live with Parkinson’s, affecting all aspects of their daily lives. This includes talking, swallowing, as well as writing. While there is currently no cure, research and support services – such as those provided by Parkinson’s UK – help improve the quality of life for those affected.
Amongst the issues discussed by Mr Vara was the need for early diagnosis and the importance of ensuring that those with the disease have access to appropriate care provision, as well as the need for continued support to try to better understand the disease and eventually find a cure.
Following the meeting, Mr Vara said:
“I was very pleased to meet with Parkinson’s UK to discuss the impact of Parkinson’s disease on our communities. Many people in the UK live with the condition, and it affects their lives in significant ways. It is important to recognise that this disease affects not only older people but also younger ones.
“It is vital that we continue to support the research and services which improve the quality of life for those affected.
“Parkinson’s UK has my full support as it continues to support research to find a cure and also as the charity offers help.”
Shailesh Vara MP met with representatives of WaterAid at the House of Commons to discuss the lack of clean water and proper sanitation for millions of people in some of the world’s poorest countries.
WaterAid is an international charity dedicated to increasing access to clean water, decent sanitation, and better hygiene for all. Operating in 22 countries, the charity installs clean water systems such as wells, taps and toilets where they are most needed; in addition to their work training local people to manage and maintain them.
Since 1981, WaterAid has helped 28.5 million people with clean water, 29 million with decent toilets and 27.8 million with good hygiene.
Globally, one newborn dies every minute from infections caused by a lack of clean water and an unclean environment, and a child under 5 dies from diarrhoea caused by dirty water and poor toilets every two minutes.
Mr Vara discussed the importance of collaborating with communities to raise awareness of the issues, and the need for continued global support to ensure that there is accessibility of clean water, toilets and proper hygiene practices for those who need it.
Following the meeting, Mr Vara said:
"It is clear that continued action is needed to ensure that many more millions of people are able to have access to clean water and better sanitation.
“It is good to see WaterAid working to improve the life chances of some of the poorest people in the world, and it is important for the UK to continue working with our international partners to support such efforts.
“In the UK, we take such matters for granted, but this is a life-or-death issue for far too many.”
Photo: Rt Hon Shailesh Vara MP with a representative of WaterAid
Shailesh Vara supports WaterAid
Shailesh Vara makes interventions in the debate on the Second Reading of the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill which will quash convictions resulting from the Post Office Horizon scandal. He calls for lessons to be learned and acted on, including looking at those who produced the evidence in the first place.
Shailesh Vara (North West Cambridgeshire) (Con)
I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving way; he is being generous with his time. Does he also agree that we must look not only at how lawyers have handled this but, more importantly, at those who produced the evidence in the first place to persuade prosecutions? I hope he will agree that lessons must be learned by those who blindly said, “These people are probably guilty” and built up a case around that when, as we have found, that was not the case.
Jonathan Reynolds (Stalybridge and Hyde) (Lab/Co-op)
I thank the right hon. Member for making those powerful points, which reflect on the nature of the evidence that was given. One of his hon. Friends has already made the point about the role of technological, computer-based evidence in the legal process. To be frank, there is also the Post Office’s approach to the data as it saw it, which I assume it believed to be a way of unveiling wrongdoing, rather than questioning that data. Most of our constituents ask, “How could the number of convictions have gone from five or six a year to 50 or 60 without that being flagged in some way?” Clearly, the powers that be—at the time—thought the data was revealing wrongdoing, rather than necessarily revealing something going wrong.
Shailesh Vara
I am most grateful to the hon. Lady, who has been very generous in giving way. She says that the Scottish Government want to see what happens here. We have heard that a Bill can be passed in three days. Once the Bill goes through this place, then in a matter of days, not weeks, it can be replicated in Scotland and passed in 72 hours. Given that the matter has been going on for years and years and years, I fail to see what the big issue is with having a few days more so that a Bill can get through in Scotland.
Marion Fellows (Motherwell and Wishaw) (SNP)
There is absolutely no guarantee that it would just be a few days more. There are the different timings of Scottish Parliament sittings and a lot of other considerations that the right hon. Gentleman will not know about and does not normally need to know about. I will be seeking to amend the Bill—I will take advice and then attempt to do what is going to be done for Northern Ireland. I am well aware that that may seem a futile exercise to some, but this is democracy and this is what has to be done from a Scottish perspective, and I am more than happy to take that on.
Shailesh Vara
Those are the people who received the awards, but does my hon. Friend agree that an award is due for every single sub-postmaster?
Paul Scully (Sutton and Cheam) (Con)
For sure. We cannot do enough for these people. They have been cast out as pariahs in their communities. They have been charged, they have been put in prison, they have lost houses, families and health, because of a body that is ultimately owned by the state. We, as a collective body, have destroyed these people’s lives. There is not enough that we can do for them.
Shailesh Vara
I commend my hon. Friend for a very passionate and committed speech. The point about learning lessons is crucial. I fear, as do others in this Chamber, that in the old times we would say that the file is sitting on a shelf, collecting dust; nowadays, it would be archived and just stay there. Does my hon. Friend agree that serious attention needs to be paid to ensuring that we learn from this episode and the countless other occasions when things go wrong? There needs to be some sort of set-up to make sure that other bodies—voluntary organisations or those at arm’s length—actually take on board what has been said.
Paul Scully
Absolutely; that is a really good case in point. I hope my right hon. Friend will be in the next Parliament to help drive this through. I have said I am stepping down, so I will not see Sir Wyn Williams’s final report—not from these Benches, anyway. I hope the House takes it to heart and drives through the lessons learned.
Shailesh Vara MP recently attended a Parliamentary reception hosted by the British Deaf Association (BDA) to mark Sign Language Week 2024.
The charity is the only national deaf-led charity in the UK which represents and advocates for the signing community. They aim to “empower deaf people to fully participate and contribute to society as equal and valued citizens and to build a world in which the languages, culture and heritage of deaf people in the UK are protected, preserved and promoted.”
Mr Vara met Ms Nadia Nadarajah, a constituent from Peterborough and active member of the deaf community, along with Mr Tom Lichy, Head of Policy for BDA, and discussed with them the provision of British Sign Language education for deaf children and their families.
In view of the importance of sign language exposure in the very early years of deaf children’s lives, Mr Vara pledged his support for the charity’s campaign urging the Government to fund access to sign language education for the families of deaf children, the amount being just under £5 million per year. With 90-95% of deaf children being born to hearing parents with little or no experience of deafness or sign language, bridging this gap is essential to maximise their linguistic abilities.
Following the reception, Mr Vara said:
“I am grateful to the British Deaf Association for the opportunity to speak with Ms Nadarajah and Mr Lichy about their efforts to raise awareness of this issue for the over 50,000 deaf children in the UK and their families.
“Given the pivotal role of early exposure in sign language acquisition, I very much hope that the Government will consider providing the necessary funds to provide free access to sign language for the parents of newly identified deaf children.
“The estimated cost of just under £5 million would be well spent in better providing for thousands of children and their families.”
Photo: Ms Nadia Nadarajah, Rt Hon Shailesh Vara MP and Mr Tom Lichy.
Shailesh Vara MP has called on Post Office Minister, Kevin Hollinrake MP, to ensure that claims by Postmasters are dealt with quickly and efficiently.
Following a Ministerial Statement, Mr Vara congratulated Mr Hollinrake for working “night and day to bring this painful issue to a conclusion”.
Mr Vara also sought assurances from the Minister regarding those Postmasters who did not wish to accept the fixed sum offer, but instead wished to pursue a personal claim. He asked that they are given “expeditious treatment” to ensure that their claims are concluded as swiftly as possible.
He also asked for claimants to be provided with a named claims manager, rather than having to deal with random individuals.
In his reply, Mr Hollinrake gave an assurance that the Government would support those wishing to pursue a personal claim and would work to “significantly abbreviate the timescale” for their claims.
Mr Hollinrake also said that he would reflect further on Mr Vara’s suggestion for named claims managers.
Following the exchange, Mr Vara said:
“I am very pleased to see that further progress is being made to support all those affected.
“These Postmasters and their families have suffered greatly, over a number of years, and every effort must be made to ensure that they are properly compensated and that this is done as quickly as possible.
“It was reassuring to hear the Minister’s response, particularly as regards the speed of processing claims, and I very much hope to see that there will also be named claims managers for claimants.”
Attached video shows exchange between Shailesh Vara MP and Kevin Hollinrake MP.
Shailesh Vara MP has called on Post Office Minister, Kevin Hollinrake MP, to ensure that claims by Postmasters are dealt with quickly and efficiently.
Following a Ministerial Statement, Mr Vara congratulated Mr Hollinrake for working “night and day to bring this painful issue to a conclusion”.
Mr Vara also sought assurances from the Minister regarding those Postmasters who did not wish to accept the fixed sum offer, but instead wished to pursue a personal claim. He asked that they are given “expeditious treatment” to ensure that their claims are concluded as swiftly as possible.
He also asked for claimants to be provided with a named claims manager, rather than having to deal with random individuals.
In his reply, Mr Hollinrake gave an assurance that the Government would support those wishing to pursue a personal claim and would work to “significantly abbreviate the timescale” for their claims.
Mr Hollinrake also said that he would reflect further on Mr Vara’s suggestion for named claims managers.
Following the exchange, Mr Vara said:
“I am very pleased to see that further progress is being made to support all those affected.
“These Postmasters and their families have suffered greatly, over a number of years, and every effort must be made to ensure that they are properly compensated and that this is done as quickly as possible.
“It was reassuring to hear the Minister’s response, particularly as regards the speed of processing claims, and I very much hope to see that there will also be named claims managers for claimants.”
Attached video shows exchange between Shailesh Vara MP and Kevin Hollinrake MP.
Following the Government statement about Post Office legislation and the Horizon redress schemes, Shailesh Vara seeks assurances that where postmasters do not accept the fixed offer, but wish to pursue an individual claim, such claims will be treated expeditiously, and that resources will be made available to deal with those claims quickly and efficiently.
Shailesh Vara (North West Cambridgeshire) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friend on all that he is doing, working night and day to bring this painful issue to a conclusion for the many postmasters and their families who have suffered so much over so many years. Where people do not accept the fixed offer but wish to pursue an individual claim, may I seek his assurance that such claims will be treated expeditiously, and that resources will be made available to deal with those claims quickly and efficiently? Will he also give an assurance that claimants will have a named individual responsible for their file, rather than whoever happens to pick up the file on a specific day?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kevin Hollinrake)
I thank my right hon. Friend for his question and can absolutely give him the assurance he seeks. A fixed-sum award is only one route; it is not right for everybody. Some people have higher levels of claims, and we will support them where we can. In my remarks, I announced new measures we are using to do that, including a pilot scheme where expert reports are not required. That should significantly abbreviate the timescale between being able to submit a claim and getting a response. As for expediting in this area, in the GLO scheme we set a target that in 90% of cases we would respond to a final claim within 40 days. Currently, we are on 87% against that measure, so we are delivering this more quickly. He makes an interesting point about a named claim manager or something along those lines, and, if I may, I will take that away with me.
Speaking in Prime Minister’s Questions, Shailesh Vara speaks out against the inclusion of land to the west of Peterborough City in a revised Local Plan.
Shailesh Vara (North West Cambridgeshire) (Con)
Q11. A few years ago, there was a proposal to build nearly 7,000 houses in a beautiful part of my constituency near the villages of Castor and Ailsworth, against the wishes of local residents. I worked with the local community, and together we were able to stop the development. However, efforts are now being made to include this land in a revised Peterborough local plan. Does the Prime Minister agree that it is very important that the voice of the local community is heard and that it is unacceptable that developments can take place in this circuitous way, especially when other, more suitable land is available in and around the city of Peterborough? (901705)
The Prime Minister (Rishi Sunak)
My right hon. Friend raises an important issue, and he is right to say that the local community should always have their voice heard. It is important that councils bring forward local plans, but this must be done in close consultation with local communities, because their voices matter. As I understand it, the Peterborough local plan is still under preparation and there are opportunities to provide comments on the draft plan, so I commend him for continuing to support his local community to ensure that their voice is heard.
Shailesh Vara MP today spoke at Prime Minister’s Questions against the inclusion of land to the west of Peterborough City in a revised Local Plan.
Mr Vara made reference to a previous attempt to build nearly 7,000 houses near the villages of Castor and Ailsworth, against the wishes of local residents.
He said that at the time, working with the local community, together they were able to stop the development from going ahead.
However, Mr Vara went on to say that
“efforts are now being made to include this land in a revised Peterborough Local Plan”
and it is
“very important that the voice of the local community is heard”.
He added, it
“is unacceptable that developments can take place in this circuitous way, especially when there is other more suitable land available in and around the City of Peterborough”.
In his reply, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak commended Mr Vara for his support for his local community and he agreed that the local community should have its voice heard.
The Prime Minister added
“It’s important that councils bring forward Local Plans, but this must be done in close consultation with local communities, because their views matter.”
Following PMQs, Mr Vara said that previous attempts to build on this “beautiful” land had been defeated and he will work closely with local residents to prevent the area from being included in the new Plan.
He added
“We have had this fight once before, and it is very disappointing that those in favour of these thousands of houses are determined to press on, despite massive local opposition.
“I will be fighting alongside the local residents to ensure that this land remains unspoilt and is not included in a revised Local Plan.”
Attached clip shows the exchange between the two at Prime Minister’s Questions.
Shailesh Vara MP today gave evidence at the appeal hearing regarding the application by Envar Composting Ltd for an expansion at their waste disposal facility on St Ives Road, Woodhurst, Huntingdonshire.
The hearing follows an appeal by Envar, after Cambridgeshire County Council rejected their planning application. The 8 day hearing started with opening statements by lawyers on both sides. Following this Mr Vara spoke saying that in his time as a Member of Parliament, this is one of the biggest community protests he has seen.
As well as citing the negative impact of a 26 metre chimney on the local rural landscape, he said that the planning application contravenes many aspects of the Huntingdonshire District Council Local Plan to 2036. This includes increased noise, light, and odour pollution.
Mr Vara went on to criticise the lack of proper public consultation, by Envar, including not seeking the views of the 6,000 residents in neighbouring villages.
Following the hearing, Mr Vara said:
“This started as a mushroom composting facility in 1965, and since then it has expanded considerably, and the local community has been very accommodating. But this application is a step too far.
“If the proposal goes through, it will have a huge negative impact on the local community as well as local businesses, some of which are family businesses passed down through generations.
“I very much hope this application does not go through and that the voice of the community is heard.”
Photo: Members of POWI (People Opposing Woodhurst Incinerator) outside New Shire Hall Alconbury, where the hearing is taking place. Shailesh Vara MP (fourth from left) and Cllr Steve Criswell (seventh from right).