Our new permanent Oldham Town Centre Post Office Branch is officially open

Great to cut the ribbon to officially open the refurbished Oldham Town Centre Post Office branch, thank you to Post Office Ltd. for having me.

After months of work since WHSmiths’ announcement in May that they would close their shop in Spindles which hosted the branch, and years of effort behind the scenes to secure our town centre’s branch for the long term – we can now say that Oldham’s Post Office has been saved!

This means a return of all services to our town centre branch which makes it so important for local people, including digital & paper passport applications, SIA licence applications, DVLA applications & renewals, and MVL (car tax renewal).

The months of uncertainty caused by its closure in May and only having a temporary solution with limited services since June is over thanks to local people who made their voices heard, and the investment of the new franchise holder and postmaster.

This week in Parliament

Great to be back in Parliament after the conference recess 🌹💪

It was important to speak in a 𝗱𝗲𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗞𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲, with focus on youth knife crime and child criminal exploitation.

We need a step change in how we safeguard children from violence & criminal exploitation. With a Labour-led local Council in Oldham, Labour Greater Manchester Mayor, a local Labour MP and a Labour government, we are truly able to tackle both youth knife crime and its causes across Oldham, Chadderton & Royton.

The 𝗕𝘂𝘀 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 is now awaiting Royal Assent after passing the final hurdles in the legislative process in both Houses of Parliament. Now it is set to become law, we will be able to end the postcode lottery of services.

By overhauling how bus services operate to boost local control of services, Labour is delivering on our commitment to improve living standards across the country. Local authorities will control over routes, timetables, connections and fares, reversing the decades of decline we have seen.

Greater Manchester has led the way on this since 2017 and so much progress has been made with the completion of the publicly-run Bee Network buses, its integration with the Metrolink, and ongoing work to bring commuter trains into the network over the next few years – including at Moston & Mills Hill which serve the constituency.

Here in Oldham, our reforms have pushed up ridership to the extent that we have been able to extend the £2 single fare cap, this new Law will allow the same reforms to happen across Britain.

Both the 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 and the 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝘃𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 returned to the Commons for votes returned to the Commons for their Third Readings. Being able to vote in the space of two days to bring us another step closer to both introduce powers to air travel more sustainable; and to give mental health patients greater choice, rights,and support shows our values in action.

A lot of time has been spent this week on research ahead of important interventions on issues like temporary accommodation and the unacceptable standard (and the frankly cost to the taxpayer too) of private rented properties serving as HMOs for many families with children. More to come on that.

It was nice too to catch up with the gaffer Angela Rayner. Now back in the constituency for a few busy days full of visits and meetings.

Parliamentary debate on the co-operative sector secured

Delighted to have secured a parliamentary debate next Tuesday in Westminster Hall on Government support for the co-operative sector.

I’m really keen to hear from local co-operatives on the work they are doing to make a difference in creating jobs and being rooted in the communities they serve. Get in touch Jim.McMahon.mp@parliament.uk.

The case is clear; if we want an inclusive, sustainable and resilient economy we have to deliver on our promise to double the size of the co-operative sector. So much is happening across Treasury, Business and other departments it’s a promising time for the movement. 🐝

Tackling youth knife crime & child criminal exploitation in Oldham

There is an urgency to tackle youth knife crime, gang activity and child criminal exploitation which continues to hit working-class communities the hardest.

We have some of the highest levels of Section 60 ‘stop and search’ notices in Greater Manchester, with seven in Limeside alone in recent years, and orders covering Coppice, Westwood, Oldham Town Centre & Royton over the same period show how wide the issues cover.

Knife crime is not inevitable. We need a step change in how we safeguard children from violence & criminal exploitation and to learn the hard lessons from child sexual exploitation where young victims were too often treated as the problem, when they were definitely not; the offenders and system which failed them were at fault.

That means recognising vulnerability, not just criminality; restoring trust in communities; and rebuilding the foundations in our youth services, safe spaces, and neighbourhood networks.

It doesn’t take away individual responsibility nor the role of parents of course, but with so much intimidation and threats escalating online through messaging & platform apps, much isn’t seen until it’s too late. We have to tackle it at every turn.

No one wants to see another life lost, as we saw just streets away from the constituency in New Moston, and there are far too many reported across Greater Manchester.

I’ll continue to work with Kate Green as Deputy Mayor for Policing & the Violence Reduction Unit and local partners to do all I can to tackle this surge.

See the speech in-full below ⬇️

Impressive Views from the Civic Centre Tower!

Some great views across Oldham and the wider borough from the old Civic Centre Tower.

A building with so many memories from 13 years as councillor for Failsworth East, 4 years as Leader of Oldham Council, and visiting regularly for almost a decade as MP for Oldham West, Chadderton & Royton.

Oldham’s often called one of the highest towns in England, and from here you can see why …

To see more, head to my Facebook Page.

UN International Year of Co-operatives

I’ve tabled an Early Day Motion in support of the UN International Year of Co-operatives.

Celebrating the contribution of UK co-operative retail societies to local communities and national economic life which contributes an estimated £179.2 billion to the UK economy.

https://edm.parliament.uk/early-day-motion/64366

New Facilities for Oldham Theatre Workshop

Great to see the fantastic new studio spaces for Oldham Theatre Workshop at the renovated JR Clynes Building to inspire the next generation of performers.

Yes, the JR Clynes Building is now the part of the new home for Oldham Council as it vacates the Civic Centre, but as the new civic and cultural heart of our borough, it offers much more than that.

Having this new space for Oldham Theatre Workshop is just one way in which restoring this disused building not only safeguards the rich heritage of our town, but too makes the investment impactful for local people by allowing the space to be used in modern ways local people deserve

Giving our young people opportunities in creative industries and to enrich their lives, which the Oldham Theatre Workshop has always done, is a brilliant form of community use, as shown by its extensive list of famous alumni of actors, musicians and more.

Our country is a cultural superpower on the world stage, and local people have Labour in power at every level who are working to safeguard our heritage and community venues, which I prioritised for local people at the general election.

From restoring the Old Library for community use; to Saving Oldham Coliseum at its historic site, modernising Gallery Oldham & the central library, legislating for new tax relief for British films, and initiating a new National Youth Strategy: we are committed to supporting our creative & cultural sectors.

Thank you to Oldham Theatre Workshop for having me.