‘I am ambitious for Dagenham and Rainham but we need a change of government’-Margaret Mullane.

Today, Labour Prospective Candidate for Dagenham and Rainham writes her monthly column for the Havering Daily.

One of the things I am most proud of about Dagenham and Rainham is its industrial heritage. For much of the twentieth century we were one of the powerhouses of the British economy, with Fords, May and Baker and Standard Telephone and Cables employing over 50,000 local people.

I think in many senses Britain lost its way in the 1980s. As a nation we moved away from making things to rely on the City of London’s financial services and other service industries. The Margaret Thatcher government and Reagan in the USA put their eggs in “trickle down economics”. Well it certainly gushed for those hedge fund and merchant banker people, but for many parts of Britain, Dagenham and Rainham included, it was more like a drought. Our industries contracted and many fell by the wayside.

Today there are local signs that we are set for a bright future. These come about from the strong vision and planning from the two local Councils, Barking & Dagenham and Havering and despite the very unhelpful actions of the Conservative government at Westminster. The historic Billingsgate and Smithfield London markets are moving to Dagenham and all across the site of the former May and Baker factory construction works are well underway on major film studios and other allied creative industries. Great credit has to go to Barking & Dagenham Council for winning these prizes for our area.

Massive credit is due to Havering Council for its commitment to the regeneration of the corridor between the A13 and A1306 running through to Dovers Corner. The same can’t be said of the government, that has attempted to pull the plug on the promised Beam Park station.

So that is all promising, but we need a change of government to help deliver for us. I am ambitious for Dagenham and Rainham and our country. We need a proactive government that matches that ambition so we can build a Britain that works for working people and businesses. Everyone deserves a job they can live on and build a life on. That means greater job security with decent employment rights and recognising that Britain’s trade unions have a vital and positive role in building a strong economy in which growth is shared far more fairly than at present.  These values are central to me and I believe most people in Dagenham and Rainham would share this view.

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