The Draft Environmental Protection (Plastic Plates etc. and Polystyrene Containers etc.) (England) Regulations 2023  is to restrict the supply of single-use plastic plates, bowls and trays and to ban the supply of single-use plastic cutlery, balloon sticks and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and drink containers, including cups. This statutory instrument applies to England only as environmental protection is a devolved matter.

I asked the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Rebecca Pow "Will she say whether local authorities, which are broadly the enforcers of the measure, will be given extra resources?".

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State answered "There has been full consultation on the funding that will be required for trading standards departments to carry out the duties that will fall to them. It amounts to approximately £660,000 a year over three years, and local authorities have agreed that that is an adequate sum. There was much negotiation with them to make sure that the funding was in the right ballpark, but such measures are always reviewed three to five years after implementation to see how they are working and whether any tweaks are needed. I can therefore assure the right hon. Lady that resources have been discussed and clarified".

I am pleased the Minister confirmed that local authorities will be provided with extra funding to enforce these regulations which will come into effect in October later this year.

On Monday 3 July 2023 I attended the reception hosted by the Football Association and Tracey Crouch MP ahead of the FIFA Women's World Cup.  Both Gillian Keegan MP, Secretary of State for Education, and Lucy Frazer KC MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport,  spoke about and supported the inclusion of more girls and women in football.

Ellen White is a record goalscorer for the England Women's Team and spoke about the need to involve more girls in football which is part of the FA's campaign to Let Girls Play.

I signed the card to wish the Lionesses 'Good luck' for the forthcoming World Cup.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care came to the House on Monday 3 July 2023 to present the NHS Long-term Workforce Plan. This was announced by NHS England on Thursday 29 June and in a written statement on Friday 30 June before the Secretary of State announced it to the House. I asked the Secretary of State a question:  I associate myself with the remarks the Secretary of State made about Bob Kerslake. He was a true public servant, and his death is our loss. What is the point of a workforce plan if the Secretary of State is not actually talking to the workforce? When will he talk to the junior doctors and the consultants? Can I also ask whether the work on the workforce plan will start forthwith or sometime in the future?



The Secretary of State said he had settled with the NHS but I indicated dissent as he has not spoken to Junior Doctors and the Consultants who are going on strike again. He did not mention when the workforce plan would come into effect.

I was delighted to meet Professor Richard Layard who was launching the Well Being Manifesto which sets out to include:

1. Measurement: All Governments, employers and schools should be measuring the wellbeing of those they affect at least once a year.

2. Government: The Goal of Government should be to sustainably increase the wellbeing of citizens choosing those policies which are most cost-effective in terms of wellbeing.

3. Business: The purpose of business should be to sustainably improve the wellbeing of their employees, customers, suppliers as well as shareholders.

4. Schools: The main aim of educators should be to enhance the present and future wellbeing of their pupils using evidence to achieve this.

5. Individuals: We should all be trying to create the most wellbeing in the world and the least misery.

I encourage all my constituents to sign the Manifesto at worldwellbeingmovement.org/manifesto



Wellbeing rankings: The rankings in columns with the Walsall figures are:

Life satisfaction:7.4

Anxiety: 3.3

Happiness:7.4

Things done in life are worthwhile: 7.7



And the Wellbeing ranking for Walsall comes in the bottom third of all local authorities.

Professor Layard has had a longstanding interest and has promoted wellbeing as an important factor of GDP.

I met the Prime Minister of Yemen on 28 June 2023 Maeen Abdulmalik Saeed with other members of the APPG for Yemen where we discussed the current situation in Yemen. Whilst the peace is still holding, more humanitarian aid is needed and accountability for some areas that are under the control of other groups. There needs to be elections. But there are ongoing discussions.