Paulette Hamilton: I absolutely agree with the hon. Gentleman: that was the issue in the area in which I was a councillor prior to becoming an MP. When HMOs were being set up in the area, we had to go through planning, but when rogue landlords realised that HMOs needed planning permission, they switched tack and went for these exempt supported living accommodations. The problem is that we would struggle to get...
Paulette Hamilton: That is okay—
Paulette Hamilton: I am learning, Mr Efford.
Paulette Hamilton: Thank you, Mr Efford. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship—I feel as if I have said that a few times recently. It is no secret that Birmingham has a serious problem with exempt supported accommodation. I absolutely agree with the amendment. One of my constituents is currently living in a five-bedroom house where partitions have been put in and the toilet is broken. For the last...
Paulette Hamilton: I thank my hon. Friend for securing such an important debate. Post office staff work really hard, including in Erdington, Kingstanding and Castle Vale. We have seven post offices, but I understand that, despite one in five people visiting post offices every week, there are serious concerns about franchises being lost across the country. Does my hon. Friend agree that the Government should...
Paulette Hamilton: Before Christmas, I asked the Home Office how many of my constituents in Erdington had applied to the Windrush compensation scheme. Shamefully, the way the Government record applications means that they cannot tell me. Now we hear that Ministers are abandoning most of the recommendations of the Windrush review. Can the Minister tell me, a child of the Windrush generation, why the Government...
Paulette Hamilton: It has been six months since Birmingham City Council applied for round 2 of the levelling-up fund. Sadly, Ministers overlooked our bid in round 1, but that was two Governments ago. I am grateful to the Minister for Levelling Up for confirming that the results of the second round will be announced by the end of this month. If our bid is successful, the funding will totally transform Erdington...
Paulette Hamilton: Have I missed it?
Paulette Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that people living with a severe mental illness are able to receive a flu vaccination in winter 2022-23.
Paulette Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the 10-year plan for dementia will increase dementia diagnosis rates in (a) England and (b) Birmingham, Erdington constituency.
Paulette Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications to the Windrush Compensation Scheme have been received from (a) Birmingham and (b) Birmingham, Erdington constituency.
Paulette Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a national landlord registration scheme.
Paulette Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing councils to introduce stronger financial penalties for rogue landlords.
Paulette Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to encourage greater standardisation in the operation of landlord licensing schemes across the country.
Paulette Hamilton: I was a nurse for 25 years. Nurses work long hours, day in, day out, to support people all over the country, often on very low pay. I know from experience how tough it can be, and it is shameful that many hospitals have opened food banks specially to feed their staff. Let us be absolutely clear: the power to stop these strikes, which nurses themselves do not really want, lies squarely with...
Paulette Hamilton: Research shows that nine in 10 disabled people are worried about their energy bills this winter. People with disabilities have been one of the hardest-hit groups during the cost of living crisis, yet many are being denied crucial support. One of my constituents is a disabled single mother who is currently undergoing chemotherapy. She told me that the mobility element of her personal...
Paulette Hamilton: I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Wirral West (Margaret Greenwood) on bringing forward this important and timely debate. In all areas of healthcare, it is incredibly important that our NHS is able to cope with the growing demand for its services. Across the board, staffing shortages in the health service, let down by 12 years of Tory chaos, are endemic. In nursing, 40,000...
Paulette Hamilton: The death of Awaab Ishak was a tragedy that shone a light on the issues in the sector. A family in my constituency contacted me as they had been living in temporary accommodation for more than four years. The property was absolutely full of mould; when it was inspected, it was so bad that there were mushrooms growing in the bathroom. It was ridiculous. The Government’s consultation on the...
Paulette Hamilton: The Conservatives crashed our economy, and mortgage rates have skyrocketed as a result of their mismanagement throughout this crisis. Under the Tories, working families’ pay is falling by £1,300 on average, and everyone is feeling the hit from the rising cost of energy, food and fuel. On top of that, people across the west midlands, such as my Erdington, Kingstanding and Castle Vale...
Paulette Hamilton: The Prime Minister faces serious questions about security concerns relating to the appointment of his Cabinet Ministers. The Home Secretary resigned only 20 days ago, saying: “Pretending we haven’t made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can’t see that we have...is not serious politics. I have made a mistake; I accept responsibility; I resign.” In a letter to the Select Committee on...
