I have today, Wednesday, called on the Government to take urgent action after new figures were released that show over 40 per cent of children in Leicester are growing up in poverty – which is a rise of almost three per cent in the last year. Here in Leicester West […]
Universal Credit
Liz opens new office for Leicester homeless charity
I was extremely proud to open the new outreach office for homelessness charity Emmaus on Hinckley Road on Friday. Emmaus is a fantastic charity that is dedicated to giving people who have been homeless the opportunity to rebuild their lives and get back on their feet. Their brilliant new “Brighter […]
Liz calls on Government to address serious problems with benefits assessments
The Government has announced that from this spring disabled pensioners will no longer have to have their Personal Independence Payments (PIP) awards repeatedly reviewed unless their circumstances change. The Work and Pensions Secretary also announced her plans to merge the work capability assessment process for PIP, Employment and Support Allowance […]
Liz questions Home Office Minister over Domestic Abuse Bill
The Government has finally published its draft Domestic Abuse Bill, two years after pledging to change the law. Whilst I welcome the steps the Bill will take to reform family courts and create a commissioner for tackling violence against women and girls, I have serious concerns about a number of […]
Liz welcomes MPs to Leicester West to learn about impacts of Universal Credit
I was pleased to welcome Heidi Allen and Frank Field to Leicester recently to hear from residents, charities and organisations about the impacts of Universal Credit here in Leicester West. As trustees of Feeding Britain, Heidi and Frank are travelling the country to listen to people who have been affected […]
Liz meets volunteers at Money Matters
Today I visited Money Matters in Leicester to find out more about how they are supporting people living in Leicester West who are facing hardship after moving onto Universal Credit. They told me about clients who find it difficult to complete the forms, delays in people receiving their first payments […]
Liz questions Employment Minister on Universal Credit
On 8 January Labour secured an Urgent Question in Parliament following reports that the Government has delayed a vote on moving 3 million people currently claiming benefits including Housing Benefit, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance – known as ‘legacy’ benefits – onto Universal Credit, and has instead decided […]
Support our local foodbanks
Since the rollout of Universal Credit began in Leicester, the number of people going to foodbanks has gone up by 20%. With Christmas just around the corner, many people will really struggle. So please, if you can, donate to your local foodbank – not just over Christmas but throughout the […]
Supporting Leicester’s Credit Union
I am really proud to back Clockwise, my local credit union. Many families find this time of the year incredibly tough, especially with Christmas just around the corner. It’s really important that if you find yourself in difficulty, that you don’t turn to payday lenders. Credit Union’s are different. Clockwise […]
Update from Feeding Leicester Steering Group
On Friday I chaired this month’s Feeding Leicester Steering Group. At this month’s meeting we looked back at the success of the Holiday Hunger project. It was absolutely fantastic to hear that the project delivered over 32,000 meals to children across the city over the summer holidays – 10,000 more […]
Drop-in event on Saturday 19 March for anyone concerned by Universal Credit
Over 17,000 local people will be affected when Universal Credit is rolled out here in June. A drop-in event to support anyone who is worried about moving onto the new benefits system is taking place this Saturday, 19 May, from 10:30am – 14:30 at Woodgate Adventure Playground on Bonchurch Street. […]