Dagenham And Rainham MP Listening To The Concerns Of Her Constituents: ‘The Well Being Of Our Neighbourhoods Is Vital’.

The Member of Parliament for Dagenham and Rainham-Margaret Mullane today shares her monthly column in the Havering Daily:

“It’s the economy, stupid” was the answer that the US President Bill Clinton liked to give to questions about what was the most important issue facing him and America in the 1990s. I’m pretty sure that most politicians here and across the world would probably give the same answer now. And yes, how the economy is doing – growth, unemployment, inflation – is vital. Certainly, news programmes on TV and radio and reports in the press fixate on national economic issues.

I am certainly not denying that how the national economy is doing is central to funding for our essential public services and the defence of our nation, but this does not tell us everything about our sense of wellbeing.

Listening and learning from people over the years in Dagenham and Rainham tells me that feelings of contentment are significantly shaped by our view of the health of our local neighbourhoods. This includeshigh streets and shopping parades, so seeing closed shops, litter strewn streets and feeling fearful of crime bring about a sense of depression and a general feeling of discontentment.

For me, doing all I can to strengthen and enhancehigh streets and neighbourhoods across Dagenham and Rainham is a local priority, alongside working for a solution to the ongoing fires at Arnolds Field and securing the delivery of the much needed Beam Park station. One of the longstanding problems that has blighted high streets is the Business Rates system that places financial burdens on shops, especially small independent shopkeepers.

So I warmly welcome the Labour Government’s commitment to cut Business Rates from 2026/27 for shops with a rateable value less than £500,000. This will be a great boost for local shops and will help tackle the unfair imbalance with so many of the online mega businesses. This will breathe fresh life into town centres and shopping parades and help them thrive again. As important as this is, we all need to feel safe in our local areas and when we go to the shops. The rash of prolific shoplifting, organized by gangs of criminals, has really blighted shopping centres in Dagenham and Elm Park and traumatized shop staff with threats and actual violence. That’s why I have been working with senior Police officers and management of the stores to get action to arrest and deter these criminals.

So yes, former President Clinton, the economy is certainly important but it’s not everything when it comes to how we feel.  

I would like to hear from you with any comments on this article. Email me on:

 margaret.mullane.mp@parliament.uk

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