South Birmingham has the lowest bowel cancer screening uptake in the West Midlands with just a 45.98% uptake rate. In fact, I haven’t taken part in bowel cancer screening yet, something which this campaign has prompted me to do.
Hundreds of you have got in touch with me about the Assisted Dying Bill. The Bill comes up for debate in the House of Commons this Friday (11th September). Over the past weeks and months I have sent individual replies to as many people as possible. However, the sheer quantity of e-mails I have received – both for and against the Bill – means that I have not been able to get back to everybody …
Scores of local people have written to me over the past few weeks to ask where I stand on our NHS – whether I will fight privatisation and support a well-funded, public health service in the future. Put simply, as your Labour MP I will back the NHS as a public health service and ensure it can provide the care we all rely on. I am absolutely committed to protecting our NHS for the reason the …
News that the Birmingham City Council will rebuild Northfield Pool and Leisure Centre on the existing site puts an end to months of speculation following last year's public consultation on the issue. You can read some of the background to the issue here. During that consultation, many residents and traders emphasised the importance of retaining a central Northfield location for the new leisure …
This week, on World Cancer Day, we heard that half of the UK population will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives.
That is a staggering figure. And it is a reminder of why can never stop campaigning to save the lives of more cancer patients. There are over 1600 cancer cases diagnosed in the Northfield are every year, and sadly over 800 deaths from cancer in our local area too.
It’s two weeks into the New Year and we’re at the point where many of us forget about our resolution of shedding a couple of pounds. With that in mind, this week is National Obesity Awareness Week. Almost a quarter of children in Birmingham (23.4%) are classified as obese, compared with 10.1% nationally. Meanwhile the number of recorded cases of diabetes is double the UK average, affecting almost …
I was Labour Member of Parliament for Birmingham Northfield between 1992 and 2019 and a former Shadow Transport Minister. I now chair Healthwatch in Birmingham and Solihull, and the West Midlands Board of Remembering Srebrenica. I also work as a public affairs consultant. I am an effective community advocate and stakeholder alliance builder with a passion for human rights. I am a trustee of the Balfour Project charity and of Citizens Advice Birmingham, and a former Chair of Medical Aid for Palestinians.