I welcome the announcement that pubs will receive a 15% discount on the business rates they pay.

It recognises what pubs mean to our communities and our economy, and the real impact of revaluation at a time when costs are squeezing every last bit of headroom needed to survive.

After 7,000 pubs closed during 14 years of Tory government, Labour is taking action to turn the tide. And in our borough, the consequences weren’t just lost jobs, strained social connections, and falling footfall on our high streets — but also what too often followed: low-quality HMOs cramming rooms into every inch of buildings left empty.

But the pressures facing pubs are felt right across hospitality.

Restaurants, hotels, clubs, leisure centres and gyms, children’s soft play centres and more are all facing rising operating costs. This also highlights the impractical nature of business rates themselves. What is a pub? Many are no longer drink-led, yet those offering food often face the biggest increases. How many overnight rooms does a pub need before it becomes a hotel? What if a restaurant allows customers to stay for drinks without ordering food, or a hotel operates a large bar that functions exactly like a pub?

Take the “Egyptian Room” which to most people functions like a pub (free access, buy a standalone drink, main bar focus) and plays a vital role in Oldham’s social life, it is classified by the Valuation Office Agency as a “food court and premises,” not a pub for business rates purposes. Because the new 15% business rates support is tightly defined around properties officially classed as pubs, venues like the Egyptian Room and many others will not qualify, despite operating in the same hospitality ecosystem and facing the same rising costs.

To be clear; the valuation process is independent. Government then decides on what follows; how much business pay relative to that valuation, and what discounts, reliefs and exemptions are put in place to support priority uses and industries.

The government is doing so much work to support our town centres and high streets, for instance the Pride in Place funding, high street rental auctions, and more. But we’ve got to protect what we already have if we are to rebuild at a pace people can see.

I have urged the Treasury to look again and take this support further. After years of neglect under the previous government the foundations are weak, urgent cross hospitality action is needed before the shutters come down for good on our town centres.

This cannot be the final word on support for hospitality.

81 years ago today, Auschwitz was liberated.

We pause to honour the six million Jewish lives lost in the Holocaust, alongside people with disabilities, Roma & Sinti communities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and all others who were persecuted & murdered by the Nazi regime.

Peace is something we must protect together by recognising how division and intolerance can grow into unimaginable atrocities. Remembering those dark chapters should compel us to create a more hopeful and humane future.

May those who were taken rest in peace. May those who live on never lose sight of where antisemitism, extremism, and hatred can ultimately lead.

#HMD2026

Another good advice surgery this week helping local people with some complex cases, thanks to those who came along.

Often unseen, it is the one-to-one support away from meetings, visits, and debates that makes the some of the greatest impact for local people and we are lucky that this is a constituency full of decent people doing amazing things, often in difficult circumstances.

Please get in touch with me at jim.mcmahon.mp@parliament.uk to book an appointment if you need some advice about a problem you are facing and are a constituent of mine in Oldham West, Chadderton & Royton.

Another good week down in Westminster, here’s the round-up

𝗙𝗶𝘅𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺

Members voted on a range of government legislation this week, such as on the Sentencing Bill in its final parliamentary stages. We’re not afraid of taking the tough decisions needed to fix the broken justice system we inherited from the Tory years of chaos and decline.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀

A privilege to attend the AGM of the All Parliamentary Party Group on Lancashire. Our town is proud of our deep roots and historic links to the county. We had a productive discussion with Minister Alison McGovern on the Growth Plan for Lancashire and how local government reform can finally help places across the North that Westminster has too often overlooked.

𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

As Chair of the Co-operative Party, I hosted a roundtable with colleagues and representatives from across the co-operative and mutuals sector. The focus: the opportunities and potential challenges for growing credit unions in 2026. A vital conversation about fair finance and community power.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲

I welcomed the Government’s announcement of a consultation on whether under-16s should be banned from social media. It’s right we take this seriously and do it in the right way.

𝗖𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗪𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻

During Commons Business Questions, I pressed the Leader of the House for clarity from the government on when WASPI women will finally get some answers over questions about compensation.

Now heading back up home for meetings with constituents, the Council and local stakeholders across Oldham West, Chadderton & Royton. Onwards.

Too many WASPI women are still being left in limbo.

After years of delay, we’re now being asked to wait again even though the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s investigation took six long years and ended with a clear recommendation on compensation.

That’s why I raised this in the Commons. This issue affects women in communities right across the country, and it demands urgency, transparency and action.

I’m pushing for proper time to debate this in Parliament and for the DWP to move at pace. Justice delayed has already gone on long enough.

More schools’ free breakfast clubs are now up and running.

On top of the early adopters who began the roll-out last year at Whitegate End Primary, Richmond Academy, Westwood Academy, & Northmoor Academy, now St Martin’s CofE Primary & Medlock Valley Primary have joined too through the National School Breakfast Programme for the children and families who need it most.

This means more children starting the day with a healthy breakfast and 30 minutes of free childcare. It’s a real lifeline for working families, putting up to £450 a year back in parents’ pockets.

I’ve seen the impact first-hand. At Northmoor, 150 children are fed every morning and when kids are settled and ready to learn, it makes all the difference.

Labour promised at the last election in our manifesto to deliver free breakfast clubs in every primary as a first step in achieving our mission of breaking down the barrier to opportunity at every stage – and we are delivering on this promise.

This is politics as it should be: backing our kids, supporting families and tackling child poverty head-on. Every child here deserves the same fair start as anywhere else.

Yesterday ministers launched a consultation on whether to ban under-16s from social media, as part of wider action on children’s use of mobile phones. That’s a welcome and overdue step.

Young people need protecting from the very real harms that social media can cause. Tech companies have had years to get their house in order and the truth is that while the Online Safety Act is a step in the right direction, it still doesn’t go far enough.

We’ve seen that again in recent weeks with the latest issues around Grok, underlining just how quickly things can go wrong when technology races ahead of regulation.

Many Labour MPs support the Australian-led approach to banning social media for under-16s. The government should give it serious consideration and be prepared to act.

Children’s safety online must come before the interests of big tech.

Pavement parking causes real problems for people every day, from parents with prams to wheelchair users and those with sight loss.

I’ve been calling for action on this for some time, and the government’s announcement that will give councils the powers they need to keep pavements clear and communities safe is extremely welcome.

This is about fairness, accessibility and making sure our streets work for everyone.

Labour is taking action to protect our communities.

Head to https://www.theoldhamtimes.co.uk/news/25769849.oldham-council-welcomes-powers-tackle-pavement-parking/?fbclid=IwY2xjawPcN3VleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA81MTQ3NzE1NjkyMjgwNjEAAR7B4HqHNAdB_-KLYYfNWrH-3L-gfwpTc7s498UmHa0iPgU6rOagvBRr53RuPQ_aem_H3lB51tgijEOXAwcV_JSww to see more.