Valerie appears on BBC Politics Midlands

I was one of the guests on BBC Politics Midlands on Sunday, 29 October 2023, with the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) Mayor, Andy Street, and the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Simon Foster, presented by Rob Mayor. 

The topics of discussion were scrapping of the second leg of HS2, changes to the West Midlands Police estate and the new power of the Mayor to take on the role of PCC through the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023, the conflict between Israel and Gaza, and Shaun Bailey MP’s comments regarding Sandwell Council.

We also discussed the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 which gives Andy Street the power to request the powers of the PCC be given to the Mayor of the WMCA with local consent which the Minister agreed is the Lord Mayor’s and not the public’s. I suggested this would effectively give Simon Foster, the PCC, his P45 at any time which is undemocratic.

The other topic was the ongoing conflict between Israel and Gaza following the terrorist attack on civilians and the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza. I call for an immediate ceasefire to allow much-needed humanitarian aid to reach the vulnerable civilians residing there with no access to food, water, medicines, or fuel.

Lastly, we talked of my good experiences when contacting Sandwell Council regarding constituent issues, and the effective response I received from them. Shaun Bailey called for Sandwell to be put in the bin. I suggested that is what will happen to him at the next election.

You can watch the full interview here:https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001s0rz/politics-midlands-29102023 until 29 November 2023.