News In Brief

Michael supports campaign to protect children from tobacco marketing

27 January 2012

As reported in the Barnsley Chronicle today, Michael met with the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) last week and pledged his support for a campaign to protect children and young people by putting tobacco in plain, standardised packaging. 

Commenting, Michael said: “The reality is that smoking is a deadly addiction that kills half of smokers, but many young people are simply unaware of this. Introducing plain packs would minimise the dangerous allure of cigarettes and reduce the chances of children starting to smoke.”

Barnsley Chronicle, Friday 27 January 2012

To find out more about the campaign, click here.

 

Michael on Dean Pepall’s BBC Radio Sheffield show

In an interview on BBC Radio Sheffield’s Dean Pepall show yesterday, Michael asked the Government to “think again” over plans to cut South Yorkshires Police helicopter and replace it with a shared helicopter service based in West Yorkshire and Humberside.

Michael said: “I join the new chief constable (David Crompton) in his concerns over the loss of the South Yorkshire Police helicopter, at a time when we are already facing a reduction in front line police officers and an increase in crimes such as theft and personal violence by as much as 11%”.

To hear the full interview click here and scroll to 1:16.50.

 

Michael signs the Holocaust Memorial Day Book of Commitment to honour the victims and survivors of the unprecedented persecution of the Holocaust

27 January 2012

Today marks the 67th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Nazi concentration and extermination camp, which is the site of the largest mass murder in history.

Last week Michael signed a Book of Commitment in the House of Commons, pledging his commitment to Holocaust Memorial Day and honouring those who died during the Holocaust.

Michael said: “Holocaust Memorial Day is an important opportunity to remember the victims of genocide. We must never forget what happened and I pay tribute to the extraordinary men and women who having survived the Holocaust, work to educate young people about what they endured."

Holocaust Memorial Day has been held in the UK since 2001 and the United Nations declared it an International event in November 2005. It seeks to bring together a diverse range of people to remember the Holocaust as well as the genocides in Rwanda, Cambodia, Bosnia and Darfur.

To find out more about this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day, visit www.hmd.org.uk.

 

Barnsley Chronicle: Fifth of homes in Barnsley missing out on heating help

26 January 2012

The Barnsley Chronicle is reporting on the figures that Michael revealed recently showing that nearly 20 per cent of households in Barnsley are entitled to some form of assistance with their fuel bills.  This extra help is worth an average of £250 per household.  Michael is concerned that many people in Barnsley are unaware of this entitlement and is encouraging people to contact a free helpline (0800 336699) for more information. You can read the full article below:   

Barnsley Chronicle, Friday 20 January 2012

 

The Sunday Times - Live on Sunday - January 22nd

22 January 2012

Michael took part in a “Live on Sunday” online Q&A discussion for the Sunday Times website today.   

Click here (£) to read Michael’s responses to the questions from Sunday Times readers. 

 

Michael visits Barnsley Independent Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support (BIADS)

19 January 2012

Michael visited Barnsley Independent Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support today to meet staff and volunteers who provide support to both sufferers and carers of people with Dementia and Alzheimer’s. To find out more about BIADS, you can visit their website at: www.biads.org.uk.

Commenting after the visit, Michael said: “The staff and volunteers who work at BIADS are inspiring and I am very proud to be a patron of such a worthwhile organisation”.

 

The Daily Mail: Strip Fred 'the Shred' Goodwin of tainted knighthood, demand MPs

16 January 2012

The Daily Mail is reporting today on the growing calls for Sir Fred Goodwin to be stripped of his Knighthood.

Michael Dugher, quoted in the article, said: "It was wrong that Fred Goodwin was knighted. Most of my constituents in Barnsley think it is outrageous he can dine out on being a ‘sir’ and I am inclined to agree with them."

To read the full article, click here: Strip Fred 'the Shred' Goodwin of tainted knighthood, demand MPs

 

Tribune Magazine: The future may not be bright, but it’s unlikely to be Orange

16 January 2012

In an article in the latest edition of Tribune Magazine, Michael says that Clegg may have a differentiation strategy, but the Lib Dems are just quasi-Tories and pay-roll survivalists.

Click here to read the full article:  “The future may not be bright, but it’s unlikely to be Orange”

 

The Sunday Mirror: Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude goes against his own spending squeeze in £5m recruitment campaign

15 January 2012

The Sunday Mirror is reporting today that Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude is “defying his own spending squeeze by hiring a host of highly-paid staff”.

Quoted in the article, Michael said: “The Government is constantly lecturing people to tighten their belts. Yet they are splashing ­taxpayers’ money to spruce up their internet PR.”

Click here to read the full article: “Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude goes against his own spending squeeze in £5m recruitment campaign”

 

Michael Dugher and Dan Jarvis host joint Labour dinner in Barnsley with special guest Ed Miliband

13 January 2012

Last night, Michael Dugher MP and Dan Jarvis MP hosted a joint Labour dinner at Ardsley House Hotel in Barnsley with special guest, the Leader of the Labour Party, the Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP.
Other guests included: Rt Hon Caroline Flint MP, Paul Blomfield MP, Linda McAvan MEP and Steve Houghton, the leader of Barnsley Council. 

Over 200 Labour Party members, councillors, trades unions and representatives of local businesses attended the event and heard speeches from Michael, Dan and Ed Miliband. 

The evening was a great success with everyone saying how they particularly enjoyed Ed Miliband’s speech, where he set out how we can get Barnsley and Britain back to work.  He said the Government was letting down our young people in particular and that there were different policies the Government could be pursuing.  He also said Labour would have to make difficult decisions in the future, but that active government could make a real difference to promoting jobs, growth, better opportunities and fairness in our economy and society. 

Barnsley Labour Dinner with Ed Miliband

 

Barnsley Chronicle: "Six things you may not know about ... Michael Dugher"

13 January 2012

Barnsley Chronicle, Friday 13 January 2012

 

Michael attends ‘Proud of Barnsley’ event

13 January 2012

Last week, Michael attended a Proud of Barnsley event with Dan Jarvis MP. Read the article in the Barnsley Chroncile today (below) for more information.

 

Barnsley Chronicle, Friday 13 December 2012

 

Michael puts pressure on Nick Clegg to return £2.4m "dodgy donation"

9 January 2012

The Sunday Telegraph and Sunday Mirror both reported yesterday on Michael’s call for Nick Clegg to repay a £2.4million donation made to the Lib Dems by Michael Brown.

The police arrested the runaway in the Dominican ­Republic last Friday.  In 2008, Brown was sentenced in his absence to seven years in jail for stealing £36million from clients.

Michael said: “The Lib Dems took a massive donation from this man - they should pay the money back out of decency. Michael Brown’s victims want their money back, and the Lib Dems have £2.4 million of it.

“Nick Clegg likes to talk about the need to clean up politics, so the arrest of the Lib Dems’ biggest donor gives him an opportunity to put this dodgy money where his mouth is.”

Sunday Telegraph: Michael Brown, Lib Dem's fraudster donor, facing justice at last

Sunday Mirror: Nick Clegg under pressure to return £2.4m "dodgy donation"

 

The Daily Mirror: Nick Clegg stages humiliating retreat over Lib Dem plans for a "mansion tax"

6 January 2012

The Mirror is reporting today that Nick Clegg has back-tracked over Lib Dem plans for a “mansion tax”.

Quoted in the article, Michael said: “It looks like Nick Clegg has been forced by his Tory bosses to drop yet another of his pre-election promises. The ditched mansion tax is just one more Lib Dem policy to add to the scrapheap, on top of the broken pledges to abolish tuition fees, hold down VAT and protect the NHS.”

To read the full article, click here: Nick Clegg stages humiliating retreat over Lib Dem plans for a "mansion tax"

 

Government changes are bad for the NHS - and bad for Barnsley, says Michael Dugher

3 January 2012

Blog post by Michael Dugher:

Here's a quiz question for you for the New Year: Where can you find the statement "we will stop top-down reorganisations of the NHS that have got in the way of patient care"? The Labour Party website? Wrong. Try again. An article by Andy Burnham? Nope. Answer? This is the pledge that the Conservatives and Lib Dems signed up to when they drew up the coalition agreement last year. Yet the Government continues to push forward with its plans to impose changes to the NHS from above, ignoring the concerns of doctors, nurses and patient groups, at a cost of over £3 billion. And, as is so often the case with this Tory-led Government, the changes will disproportionately hit the places that are most in need.

Take my own borough. In the last ten years of the Labour government, health care in Barnsley improved substantially. Between 2000 and 2010, investment increased by 95% in real terms and by 2010 there were 5,270 more doctors across Yorkshire alone. The mortality rate in Barnsley fell over the same period, especially among those suffering from cancer, heart disease and strokes. Yet there are still massive health challenges that need tackling. Official NHS figures show that mortality rates in Barnsley are still well above the national average, with life expectancy lower, on average, than in the wealthier parts of the country by 8.8 years for men and 7.7 years for women.

Click here to read the rest of the article...

 

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