Winners and losers
June 1999
There was one small piece of good news amidst the dismally disappointing results of this month’s European elections. If June 10th 1999 been a general election I would have held onto my seat – just. But the number of people who voted was so abysmally low that it made even this hollow victory meaningless. Only 21% of the electorate in Stevenage turned out to vote – 3% less than the national average. The real winners that night were the stay-at-homes. The loser was democracy.
What are the lessons? First of all, voters did not like the regional list system. Many with poor sight found the ballot paper confusing and the party names too small. But the overwhelming problem is that people simply did not, and do not, see Europe as relevant to their everyday lives.
In Stevenage this could not be further from the truth. Many of our jobs are with European companies. Most of our livelihoods depend on European trade. A lot of our community projects depend on European funding.
This election was not about joining the European Community. The Conservatives did that, without a referendum, on January 1st 1973. When Labour came into power in 1974 they promised a referendum Britain’s membership. This was held on 5th June 1975 and two-thirds of the electorate voted to stay in. We are in and we have been in, with the majority’s consent, for the past 16 years.
This election was not about joining the European Monetary Union. Like most people, I think that this is something we may have to consider in the future but, at present, our economy is simply not ready. I do not know when it will be. But, if and when it is, I do know that if Labour is still in power, it will be the people, not the government, who will decide. Meanwhile, we need a strong voice in Europe. We did not get that on June 10th. That makes us all losers.
Dealing with debt
As a member of the International Development Select Committee I have been following, and supporting, Jubilee 2000's high profile campaign on Third World debt. I was, therefore, tremendously pleased when, earlier this month, the British Chancellor, Gordon Brown and the Development Secretary, Clare Short, managed to persuade the other G8 countries to get together and cough up $70 billion to write off the debts of 36 of the world’s very poorest countries.
But writing off these debts is only the beginning. Now we have to do all that we can to make sure that countries like Ethiopia, where most people earn less than £63 a year, are given the help they need to become self-supporting. There is still much work to be done. I know that Jubilee 2000 and the generosity of the British people can be relied upon to help.
Mothers and babies
This month, the Prime Minister announced a £60 Million campaign to halve the number of teenage pregnancies in England and Wales over the next ten years. Britain has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy and abortion in Europe with nearly 1 in every 100 girls falling pregnant before they leave school.
Girls and boys will be taught the realities and responsibilities of parenthood, contraceptive guidance will be expanded and new help lines will be set up. A major part of the campaign will be the establishment of semi-supervised accommodation for teenage mothers who are, for one reason or another, unable to live with their families. In this, Stevenage ones more leads the way. The Council’s popular Mother and Baby unit at Wellfield House has been providing accommodation, advice and support for teenage mothers for years.
I have visited Wellfield House and am very impressed with the work done there by health visitors, social workers and midwives. Projects like this will help young mothers back into the community where they and they children can live the rich and full lives they deserve.
Beautiful Benington
Last weekend the people of Benington opened their gardens to the public. Whether large, like the magnificent Lordship, or tiny, like the cottage near the duck pond, they were all beautifully kept and tended. The flowers, soaked with the Sunday morning rain, were among the best I had ever seen.
Barbara Follett MP
The 'View from Westminster' columns originally appeared in the Stevenage Mercury
Also see ...<< Columns for 2001
<< Columns for 2000
<< Columns for 1999
