Oldham Labour Group Friday Briefing 16/05/2014

Weekly Leader’s Blog

There is no Leader’s Blog this week, nor for the duration of purdah, 14 April – 22 May 2014.

News from Oldham Council

One Stop Shop
Oldham businesses can now access help and information to set up and expand, in a new town centre one-stop-shop. The unit has staff on hand to provide information about subjects ranging from regeneration projects through to grant assistance.  Councillor Shoab Akhtar, Cabinet Member for Business and Town Centres, said: “Oldham Town Centre is experiencing a period of exciting change. We want to support new as well as established businesses and the Town Centre Team Shop is part of this commitment, acting as a one-stop-shop for them. If you are thinking of opening a business I encourage you to pop in and see if we can help” (Read more)

Unemployment decreases in Oldham
Unemployment figures have decreased again this month in Oldham thanks to our Get Oldham Working initiative and inward investment. Figures are down by 6.3% this month and down by 44.6% from last year.  For more news on Get Oldham Working please follow at @EmployOldham

Oldham marks Dementia Awareness Week
The Partnership, which includes Oldham Council and NHS Oldham Clinical Commissioning Group, is marking Dementia Awareness Week (May 16-24) with a programme of activities for people with memory problems, their families and carers and a number of public awareness sessions about memory problems and dementia.  More than 50 events will take place during the eight days aiming to promote greater understanding of the condition, let people know about the services that are available to support people with dementia to live well, as well as giving people with dementia and their carers the opportunity to have some fun and meet new friends. (Read more)

Ten prosecuted for environmental health breaches
Oldham Council has successfully prosecuted 10 people for breaching environmental health laws (Read more)

Energy Efficiency in Oldham
Residents on the St Mary’s Passivhaus development in Oldham are reaping the benefits of having a super low-energy home, in their pockets and with their health. There are no draughts, low noise and average energy bills of £20 a year. The Passivhaus (which literally means “passive houses” in German) is one of a range of energy-efficient options in a ground-breaking scheme from sustainable development and regeneration experts. (Read more)

News from Westminster

Rt Hon Michael Meacher MP

A million forced to depend on Foodbanks
‘Britain now has more billionaires per head of population than any other G8 country, including the US, at the same time that a million inhabitants were forced to visit foodbanks because they had virtually no resources at all. Total wealth in the UK now amounts to some £3 trillions, so 0.0016% of the population now owns 10% of the entire wealth of the UK, about 10,000 times more than their share if wealth were evenly distributed’ (Read more)

Other news from Michael this week includes:

Nuclear gets a glowing review

For more news from Michael Meacher MP please follow this link

To follow Michael Meacher MP on Twitter please go to: @michaelmeacher

Debbie Abrahams MP

Old Mill House Shop officially opened
Debbie Abrahams MP, has officially opened the Old Mill House Shop in Grotton, which has been set up by the residents at the Housing 21 scheme with the support of Old Mill House Extra Care Court Manager, Dianne Hayes, and council money donated by Saddleworth West and Lees Councillor, Adrian Alexander, who said: “It’s a real thrill to see all the hard work that Dianne and the residents have put into the scheme come together. What’s really great about the shop is hearing how so many people are getting out more and making new friends.” (Read more)

Other news from Debbie this week includes:

Guaranteed GP Appointments – Great News for Oldham

‘Working for your Community’ Oldham Summer School

For more news from Debbie Abrahams MP please follow this link

To follow Debbie Abrahams on Twitter please go to @Debbie_Abrahams

News from the LGA

For news from the LGA Labour Group this week please follow this link to read more

To follow the LGA Labour Group on Twitter please go to @LGA_Labour