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Knowing how a good MP can work brings me to the most laughable article in this week's papers. To quote this weeks MP's column in the SNJ

'There is a common perception portrayed in the media that being a newly elected backbench Member of Parliament means that you are just 'lobby fodder', whipped through the voting lobbies of Westminster supporting the government, and that you can't influence policy unless you are promoted to being a minister.

My experience as a new MP since May is that may have been the case under the last government but times are now changing.'

Now apart from the fact that what is said in the article is totally factually incorrect as the period of Labour Governments were amongst the most rebellious of all times, if anyone cares to read any of Philip Cowleys' books will adduce, one has to start to fear for the opinion of someone purporting to be an MP when on each and every occasion he has supported his own government, and failed to call them to account in any way at all.

Of course he is a new boy and the trappings of office are alluring but I hope that he quickly ends this period of self-delusion or at the very least gets rid of the teenage scribblers who seem to compile his ever more inane weekly ramblings. No wonder a letter in this week's SNJ wondered whether the MP had any opinions of his own on anything at all?

The purpose of this day is to highlight the cruelty in the Zoo Industry. The day is organised by Captive Animals’ Protection Society. As a long term supporter of all forms of animal welfare I welcome this initiative. I am pleased that in the UK we do continue to work on improving animal welfare issues as was highlighted as recently as July with Jim Fitzpatrick’s EDM 403 ‘Wild Animals in Circuses’. If you want to find out more about the Captive Animals’ Protection Society you can visit their website on www.captiveanimals.org .

‘That this House notes that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs public consultation on the use of wild animals in travelling circuses shows that 94.5 per cent. of respondents support a ban as the best option to protect the welfare of circus animals; further notes that the new Government has been unclear on whether it will take action; believes that treating wild animals as circus tricks has no place in civilised society; underlines that violence against animals continues to occur routinely in circuses as revealed in an investigation into the Great British Circus in 2009; recognises that the only thing stopping this ban from coming into place is a decision by Ministers; and urges the Government to use its powers under section 12 of the Animal Welfare Act to make a regulation banning the use of all wild animals in circuses’.

Let’s call Cameron to account – the idea that Sir Philip Green the boss of Arcadia should conduct an examination of Government spending is the equivalent of asking Al Capone to become Chief of Police a well known tax exile. What we should be doing is conducting a full examination of how people such as Green, Murdoch, Ashcroft and the Barclay brothers fiddle the tax payer out of billions of pounds each and every year.

We all knew that Cameron and his gang was the captive of the very rich but the shear gall of the way in which he is getting these people to cut the wages, jobs and conditions of ordinary people is outrageous. This coalition is already beyond its sell by date and must be called to account so that we can really find where the money is and it is just not with dishonest bankers!

And by the way what are we paying Sir Philip Green? And will that end up in Monaco as well? And will our new MP put in a written question on this?

One of the proudest achievements of the last Government was to start the rebuilding of our dilapidated stock of secondary schools. Of course this has been put at risk by the Coalition's vindictive move to end the programme of Building Schools for the Future. The unfairness of this has been highlighted by the lamentable performance of Michael Gove, the Education Secretary who has continually got the list of schools affected wrong and has arrogantly blamed everyone else for his failings. If he had one scruple of decency he would have already offered his resignation such is his incompetence but more particularly for the damage he will cause to the education of our secondary school pupils.
 
Allied to this the dreadful performance of Graham Stuart the Chair of the Education Select Committee who has failed in every respect to hold the Secretary of State to account bodes ill for the future of this Parliament. In case he hasn't realised it it is his job to scrutinise the way in which the Minister has carried out his duties or not as the case may be. Even the local MP is not beyond reproach having not taken the slightest interest in the impact of the loss of BSF monies upon the planned rebuild of Maidenhill and the Shrubberies. It used to be the preserve of Stroud's MP to lobby to make sure that such schemes are progressed. Obviously this MP doesn't share this concern.

During my years as MP I belonged to many All Party Groups, including the APPG on Human Trafficking. I celebrated the 200th Anniversary of William Wilberforce’s Slave Trade Act in 2007 but there are still huge numbers of people in slavery all around the world. It is said that there are more people in slavery today than in the entire 350 years of the slave trade and one in eight of them are children.

I have heard on the news recently about the campaign organised by the Body Shop who are working with ECPAT UK to Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People. I have signed their petition and wish them success in raising awareness around the world of the terrible crimes that continue under our very noses.

We are being encouraged to ask our MP to sign EDM 513 which is asking the government to introduce a system of guardianship for child victims of trafficking.

Peter Bone’s EDM 513 Guardianship for Child Victims of Trafficking

‘That this House believes that child victims of trafficking are some of the most vulnerable children in the UK; notes that while there exists a range of guidance to ensure a higher level of support and protection for child victims of trafficking, there remain substantial gaps in this system of support and these vulnerable children are not able to rely on one responsible adult with parental responsibility to care and support them and take decisions based on their best interests; believes that a system of guardianship would provide child victims of trafficking with someone to prevent them from facing further exploitation, reduce the risk of them going missing and ensure they receive the educational, medical, practical and legal support they need to help rebuild their lives; further notes that a system of guardianship is a requirement of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings and is a key recommendation of the UK anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group, made up of nine leading charities, including ECPAT UK and UNICEF UK; and therefore calls on the Government to introduce a system of guardianship for child victims of trafficking.’

Please ask our MP to sign this EDM it is vital that we continue to do all we can to help vulnerable people all around the world especially children and young people.