Other issues

Harlow MP Robert Halfon calls for young people to take action this summer and make a difference in the community

Published on 17 May 2011

HARLOW MP Robert Halfon is calling on young constituents to make this summer one of change, personal development and social action. 

The Catch22 NCS (National Citizen Service) partnership will give 16-year-olds from different backgrounds across Harlow to make a difference in their communities. 

Young people will be offered a wide range of opportunities and innovative experiences from sport, drama, media, outdoor education and involvement in environmental projects. 

One thing is certain - the young people taking part will have a summer to remember. 

Mr Halfon, who has visited Catch 22 regularly over the years and found it inspiring to see people transform their lives, said: "This is a great opportunity for young people to show the valuable contribution they can make to Harlow. 

"It’s an exciting, challenging and safe way for 16-year-olds to spend some of their summer. 

"Another important aspect of NCS is that it could develop the qualities valued by employers and educational institutions.” 

Catch22 NCS Partnership is one of 12 pilot providers of NCS. There will be two residential phases, a team building week of outdoor adventures and a local community week which will see the young people planning their own social action project. 

The young people themselves will help shape this phase and use it to make a lasting contribution to where they live. 

For your chance to mix it up this summer, meet new people and make a difference, get involved in NCS. For more information visit www.catch-22.org.uk/ncs

Harlow MP Robert Halfon questions the need of the national Census

Published on 16 May 2011

HARLOW MP Robert Halfon has questioned whether the national Census is really necessary saying the cost of the questionnaire could have been better spent. 

Mr Halfon was among the MPs who debated the Census during a Commons Public Administration Select Committee when members questioned the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA). Speaking after the meeting, 

Mr Halfon said: "Whilst I have great respect for UKSA - particularly its independence from Government - I do have issues with the national Census. 

"It is somewhat authoritarian to compel every householder in the UK to fill it out, to make them divulge their personal details and to threaten us with fines - or even imprisonment - if we don't comply.

"Moreover it is wrong to make veiled threats - as certain adverts did - that if the census is not filled out, areas of the country, might not get their public spending allocation. This is patently not the case." 

Mr Halfon added: "There is also the question as whether a costly and compulsory census is necessary. 

"The Coalition Government have said this census will most probably be the last. If that is the case why was it necessary to have a census this time around? "In other work done by UKSA they do sample surveys with much smaller numbers of people. 

"Why is it not possible to do this instead of the nationwide census? 

"I filled in my Census because I have to obey the law but I felt uncomfortable about divulging so many details to the machinery of the state. 

"I suspect many others did as well. The cost of the Census to the taxpayer is huge - money that could be otherwise spent on vital services."

Harlow MP Robert Halfon invites Energy Minister to visit Harlow recycling charity

Published on 11 February 2011

HARLOW MP Robert Halfon has invited Energy Minister Gregory Barker to visit a groundbreaking Harlow recycling charity. 

Mr Halfon is a long-time supporter of ECCO (Environmental Conservation Co-operative) based at Bush Fair. 

Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Halfon highlighted the not-for-profit charity's work and offered an invitation to Mr Barker to visit ECCO which recycles textiles and batteries. Mr Halfon believes ECCO's efforts could be mirrored across the country. 

Mr Halfon asked: "Will he (Mr Barker) visit ECCO with me to see this important example of the big society, and to see whether such a contribution to recycling could be rolled out across the country? 

Mr Barker said: "It is important to take a holistic approach to these green and sustainability questions.

"My hon. Friend is a fantastic champion of the big society in Harlow and I would be delighted to go there with him to see what is being achieved there."

Farming issues come under the spotlight as Harlow MP Robert Halfon welcomes Farming Minister Jim Paice to Matching Tye

Published on 4 February 2011

THE farming community was praised for its "ability to adapt to change" when the Minister of State for the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs, Jim Paice MP, visited Matching Tye yesterday.

Mr Paice was invited to the constituency by Harlow MP Robert Halfon. He addressed about 50 farmers and local residents on Government policy and a range of farming-related issues before answering questions. 

Mr Halfon said: "I was delighted to be able to welcome Jim Paice to the constituency. I've been meeting with local farmers and they have raised concerns about a number of issues so I wanted the Minister to come along and hear those concerns first hand." 

Questions covered a range of topics - from the Common Agricultural Policy, the Rural Payments Agency and the future ownership and management of some of England's forests and woodlands. 

Commenting on the latter, Mr Paice said the Government was looking to "let people have more involvement in the running of the forests". 

He added that despite concerns that had been voiced nationally it was the Government's intention to ensure all existing public access to the forests was maintained. 

Speaking before addressing the farmers at Matching Tye Village Hall, Mr Paice said he was delighted to be out and about meeting local farmers. 

He said: "You can sit in your ivory tower and read as many farming newspapers as you can but until you get out and meet people you don't know what the reality is." 

Addressing the meeting, which was chaired by Richard Broad, chairman of the west Essex branch of the National Farmers Union, Mr Paice - who grew up near Colchester and is the MP for South East Cambridgeshire - said: "Essex farming is in my blood. I've always believed that farming is at the heart of rural communities. 

"We've had a hell of a bad time - a period when the Government of the day treated farming with quite a lot of distain, and that distain extended into the community. 

"People who live in the countryside have an incredible ability to adapt to change. They are entrepreneurs."