Letter to the Editor:- "Sweeteners Prior To The Next G/E"

"THE Liberal Democrats, have never led a Government, yet they could be a real alternative to the market driven economics of the Tories, and the New Labour Government under Tony Blair who got in on the Labour ticket in 1997, but then continued with the same right wing neoliberal agenda until 2010. The LibDems are pro-European, something we desperately need to return to, but unfortunately we have a large Tory vote in many Regions, which must be due to Tory voters either not caring or not realising the rotten state this country has fallen into, 44 years on from Thatcher, and that the NHS is being privatised. Just to remind Tory voters, that their party have had 4 decades in office beginning with Thatcher who started a war on working people, continued by them to this day, along with their genocidal destruction of the countries lifeline NHS. The Tory's have ignored our infrastructure, stopped building social housing, got rid of our industry, brought in a low waged insecure short term free market economy, and weakened Unions. Thatcher's 1st policy after 1979, was to reduce the State Pension for the elderly generations, when she broke the previous link with earnings. The State Pension has been allowed to wither on the vine ever since, with not 1 opposition party ever having a manifesto to restore the earnings link, increase the State Pension to a decent liveable amount, and get rid of the draconian degrading means testing the elderly are forced to endure. To challenge this:- 'Wake Up Britain!' have a Petition on the Governments web site (number 630163), calling for a �416 per week State Pension, and a retirement age of 60 for all, that in 3 months has gathered over 38,571 signatures Nationally and is in the top dozen. We would appreciate your readers signing and sharing the petition, because this is the best way of getting the public and media's attention, that Britain's meagre State Pension has never received before, but rightly deserves. Morally, the State Pension should be increased to the National Minimum Wage level, and put into Statute, so no incoming party can legally change it. The small increases by this Government should be seen only as sweeteners prior to the next G/E." Michael Thompson.

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Letter to the Editor:- "Just because a child is disadvantaged - it doesn't make them less able"

"THE academic attainment gap continues to widen between children facing disadvantage and their non-disadvantaged peers. Far too many young people across the Region are at risk of slipping through the net because they couldn't get the pass grade in their English or maths GCSE. But just because a child is disadvantaged, it doesn't make them less able. But unfortunately for them, education in this country is unfair. That's why, as CEO of Action Tutoring, I want to share how deeply proud I am of all our local volunteers who give up 1 hour a week to help a child; it is a small commitment that makes a world of difference. At the moment, we are in need of volunteer tutors for the remainder of the academic year to help respond to the immediate gap in learning provision across the Region. Together we can help bridge the gap in educational inequality and give disadvantaged pupils the necessary tools to achieve their academic goals. I'd like to invite your readers to help us change a child's life by becoming a volunteer with us; many of our volunteers tell us it is 1 of the most rewarding things they have ever done." Susannah Hardyman, from:- ActionTutoring.Org.UK.

Letter to Editor from:- "Dogs Trust CEO - Re: Kept Animals Bill"

"FOR more than a decade, Dogs Trust has been campaigning to end the cruel puppy smuggling trade to protect countless dogs from the horrific mistreatment of being illegally transported into the UK. The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill is essential to tackling puppy smuggling, and future legislation under it would close legal loopholes that allow unscrupulous traders to import puppies, pregnant dogs, and dogs with mutilations like cropped ears. However, despite pledging to tackle puppy smuggling, the Government is dragging its heels and has not progressed this crucial legislation since November 2021. I'm incredibly disappointed that the Government continues to side line these critical improvements to dog welfare which could help to stop the needless suffering of animals. We are calling for the Bill to return to Parliament as a matter of urgency. This is a view shared by the 40,000 plus people around the UK who have supported Dogs Trust's campaign and emailed the Prime Minister to ask him to progress the Kept Animals Bill. I recently chaired a parliamentary roundtable on the issue of puppy smuggling. We were joined by 17 organisations who are on the front line of the problem, including major transport carriers, Trading Standards, and veterinary professionals as well as Members of Parliament. We all have a shared goal; to tackle the abhorrent illegal trade and do all we can to bring this Bill back to Parliament. The meeting allowed us to discuss how we can work together to tackle the cruel trade, and it was encouraging to see that other organisations are also committed to this crucial cause. While I'm pleased that we have such a weight of backing on this issue, it's frustrating that the Government will not recognise the urgent need to progress the Kept Animals Bill. Dogs Trust remains committed to working with other organisations and will continue to rally the public for support until the Government makes good on its election promise to crack down on the illegal smuggling of dogs and puppies. We will not give up. To show your support for our campaign, visit:- Action.DogsTrust.Org.UK" Owen Sharp, CEO, Dogs Trust.

Damien Moore MP calls for 'inadequate' social services to be removed from Sefton Council control

DAMIEN Moore, local Member of Parliament for Southport, is calling for the resignations of Labour Councillors Mhairi Doyle and Ian Maher for their role in overseeing the continued Ofsted rated:- "inadequate" children's services in Labour run Sefton. Mr. Moore has also written to the Government appointed Commissioner and the Minister for Children, Families, and Wellbeing, to add his support to calls for children's services to be taken away from Labour.

Yesterday, Ofsted released their latest update on the state of children's services in Sefton, outlining that there has been:- "insufficient progress in improving the response to children in need of help and protection", and that:- "the pace of improvement is too slow and most practice weaknesses�remain today."

This comes despite the release almost a year ago of an Ofsted report slamming the Labour Council's children's services as:- "inadequate" in every category, the lowest attenable rating. The Education Secretary subsequently appointed 2 commissioners to determine whether Labour's Sefton Council should be allowed to remain in control of children's services, despite their gross failings.

Mr. Moore has repeatedly called in Parliament for greater accountability of local Labour politicians' repeated failings, and has met repeatedly with the Children's Minister, commissioners, and many of his concerned constituents, to fight against the ongoing tragedy within Southport's children's services.

Damien Moore, Member of Parliament for Southport, said:- "It is simply unacceptable that Sefton Council continues to fail to give Southport's children the support they need. The Council stand on the brink of another local tragedy, and as Southport's local MP, I simply cannot stand by and watch that happen. That is why I have written to the commissioner and the Minister for Children, Families, and Wellbeing, to add my voice to the growing calls to take the responsibility for Southport's children away from those who continue to fail to give them the support they deserve. Our Town's children only get 1 start in life, and it is a disgrace that Labour Councillors think continued failure is acceptable. I urge my constituents to use their vote in May's Local Elections to show our town's children that Southport will not stand by idly while its children are failed by the Council."