The job of being an MP is to lend a hand to people and groups who are fighting for justice as well as those who create employment, which is a basis of a decent life.
One of my key passions is working with disability charities to raise their profile, help them lobby ministers for the benefit of people living with disabilities.
I have linked up with the UK Autism Foundation (UKAF) to help raise their concerns over the impact that spending cuts will have on those with Autism.
UKAF is a small charity which campaigns for poor families with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome. In 2002 they initiated Autism Awareness Year which was backed by 800 organisations - the largest ever movement on autism. They also launched Autism Sunday with an historic service at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, which is now a huge world - wide event.
It started as a small acorn of an idea in Ivan Corea, the Chief Executive of the UK Autism Foundation's front room. He campaigns with passion because he is a parent and carer for Charin who is 14 years old and has autism spectrum disorder and a severe communication disorder.
For Ivan, autism is a 24 hour job and life is a huge struggle, but he does this campaigning for love and because he wants the best for his child and other children tagged with the label of autism.
I have asked the Prime Minister to meet me and autism campaigners to discuss the desperate needs of parents, carers and cuts in welfare benefits and public services.
Also facing the squeeze are small companies which form the backbone of the economy and employ a great many people. Yet many of them are not seeing their money, literally, from a government initiative that requires prompt payments for companies providing services to the public sector, according to a new survey by the not - for - profit Forum of Private Business.
Suppliers of services to government departments should get their invoices paid within ten days. That seems to be happening but many main contractors are then dragging their feet, sometimes for months, before paying their sub - contractors. These are often small businesses for which cash flow is king. They cannot afford to wait so long and could go under needlessly.
I have tabled parliamentary questions on this to most ministers. They need to get a grip on this scandal. It's one thing to pay big companies but they need to ensure that the small ones are dealt with fairly. Companies at the end of the supply chain need assurances that the state will make sure that they are paid quickly or they won't bother bidding for business.
Newcastle Chronicle and Journal
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