Chuka’s maiden speech
Chuka has made his first ever speech in Parliament, in which he thanked the people of Streatham for electing him, paid tribute to retiring MP Keith Hill and challenged the Liberal-Conservative government to confirm whether or not crucial local school developments will still be going ahead.
Building projects under the former government’s Building Schools for the Future programme were planned to take place at Dunraven, La Retraite, and Bishop Thomas Grant schools, but the new government has not yet confirmed the future of these projects.
Chuka also called for better regulation of banks and financial services to prevent financial crises in the future and to replace what he described as the ‘casino culture’ which was allowed to develop in the sector.
He said: “I am the first Member for Streatham who was born and bred in the constituency, and it is such a privilege to represent the area. The constituency is officially the centre of my universe.
“Although there are outstanding problems, there is a terrific sense of community in the constituency. It is not ‘broken’ in the way that some have described our country as being.
“We must never again allow a situation to develop where the hard-working people whom we are elected to represent are left to pick up the tab for a financial crisis that was not of their making, jeopardising continued investment in our schools, hospitals and other public services.”
To read the speech in full, please follow this link.
