The Public Accounts Committee published a report on 23 July 2023 which uncovered that billions of pounds are sitting in the Child Trust Fund (CTF) accounts of millions of young people aged 12 to 20, young people born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011, who have not claimed the money saved in their CTF accounts.

HMRC set up these accounts for children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011, and as of April 2021 the total value of all CTFs was £10.5 billion, and the average account value was £1,911.

Around 887,000 of these accounts are for children who are in low-income families, and the report found that many such children and young adults are unaware that they have CTFs. Providers continue to charge fees up to a cap of 1.5% on the accounts, earning collectively £100 million per year through charges on CTF accounts.

I would advise all young people and their parents to contact HMRC and The Tracing Group, which has set up a Child Trust Fund register, to track down their accounts and withdraw their savings.

If you know your CTF provider, you can contact them directly to withdraw your savings. You can also contact HMRC to find your CTF, and they have set up a tool on gov.uk to find out how to ask HMRC to find your account. You can use the HMRC tool by clicking here: https://www.gov.uk/child-trust-funds/find-a-child-trust-fund

To find your CTF on The Tracing Group website click here: https://www.thetracinggroup.co.uk/ctfregister 

 

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. 

I attended the Walsall Black Sisters Collective AGM on Friday, 27 October, at Bethel Lighthouse on Caldmore Road. The AGM celebrated the achievements and progress of the Walsall Black Sisters Collective over the past 12 months, and the Chair shared the exciting plans for the forthcoming year. We listened to stories from the Windrush generation and poetry written and delivered by Derrion Thompson.

The WBSC provides community activities to empower and develop deprived communities from various ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds in Walsall; addressing inequality and bringing long-lasting change to encourage community cohesion, cultural respect and a diverse community we can all be proud of. The WBSC exists to serve the most vulnerable communities by delivering relevant needed services which lessen loneliness and isolation, improve health and wellbeing and educate and inform. The organisation will transform into a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with a revised constitution which will leverage new investment to grow and secure its financial stability. 

You can find out more about WBSC by clicking here: https://www.walsallbsc.co.uk/ 

I have signed the open letter to the Prime Minister, urging the Government to enact the 2019 Government's manifesto commitment to ban trophy hunting imports. The letter coordinated by Henry Smith, MP for Crawley, and signed by 64 MPs and Peers is set out below:

I presented a petition in the House on Wednesday, 25 October 2023 about the change in DVLA services that can be found at Post Offices. I said: 

"This is a petition of the residents of the United Kingdom who are concerned that post offices will no longer provide customers with access to Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency services. The petitioners say that post offices are vital in accessing DVLA services and provide a service to 6 million people. Senior citizens rely on post offices to renew their licences, which have to be renewed every three years after the age of 70, and citizens who are unable to use the internet require help and advice from post office staff when completing DVLA applications. The petitioners say that many post offices providing this service may risk closure if customers are not able to renew licences or vehicle tax.

The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to recognise the importance of DVLA services remaining accessible from post offices, and to renew the contract with Post Office Ltd so that customers have a choice of in-person or online renewal."

The petition is now forwarded to the ‘Department for Business and Trade’ (DBT) for their initial consideration. If the petition falls within their remit the associated observation will be tabled in their name. In accordance with the resolution of the House on 25 October 2007:

“substantive petitions should normally receive a response from the relevant government department”, and this should normally be within two months of the petition being presented.
Petitions and observations on petitions from Government Departments will be printed in Hansard. Petitions will appear on the day they are presented. Observations will be printed, along with a copy of the petition they relate to, as soon as possible after they are received.

Post Offices in Walsall South risk being forced to close down if DVLA does not renew its contract to enable Post Offices to provide this service. Many elderly residents, people with no access or who are unable to use the internet, or just anyone who needs help and advice from Post Office staff, rely on being able to use this service at Post Offices.