Chuka Umunna MP

This week, Chuka hosted an event in the Palace of Westminter to promote the Robin Hood Tax campaign. Actor Bill Nighy spoke at the event, which was also attended by director Richard Curtis, both of whom are supporters of the campaign.

The Robin Hood Tax is a proposed 0.05% levy on non-consumer financial transactions to raise money for domestic use and international development projects. Chuka is one of the Robin Hood Tax’s Champions in Parliament.

To find out more about the Robin Hood Tax, follow this link.

A project to build four new and improved children’s playgrounds in the Streatham constituency next year is under threat as a result of government spending cuts.

The Play Pathfinders scheme, set up under the previous Labour government was set to deliver 20 new play areas across Lambeth between 2008 and 2011 with new, safe play equipment and environments.

The four planned playgrounds are located at Streatham Vale Play Project, Streatham Common, Streatham Hill Estate and Notre Dame Estate. A new playground was completed at the Tulse Hill Youth and Play Project last year and another project at Agnes Riley Gardens is set for completion by the end of this year.

Lambeth is one of 30 authorities across the country taking part in the scheme, but in June 2010 the Liberal Democrat-Conservative coalition government announced it would be entirely removing the ring fence for the Play Pathfinders grant.

Following this, the Department for Education has written to all Play Pathfinder authorities to explain that it is reviewing the scheme’s funding for 2010-11 financial year despite the fact that they have already been allocated. The government has also asked local authorities to identify savings in the scheme.

Member of Parliament for Streatham Chuka Umunna, said: “After the government’s cuts to local school building projects earlier this year, the threat to funds for local playgrounds is a further blow for children and young people in our area and their parents.

The government’s announcement today of the abolition of the Youth Justice Board (YJB) has cast doubts over the future of local youth offending teams dedicated to preventing crime among young people.

In an adjournment debate held in Parliament last month and initiated by Chuka Umunna, MP for Streatham, the important role which youth offending teams play in preventing re-offending among young people was highlighted.

The teams, which work in the community and are assigned to each local authority area, have been funded by the Youth Justice Board. They work across different agencies, providing help and expertise with rehabilitation and supervision.

Home Office Minister James Brokenshire, who wrote to Mr Umunna following the debate, said in his letter: “The YJB has the important aim of preventing youth offending…the Government intends to do everything possible to ensure the best outcomes for young people, their families and communities.”

So far this year, over 1,200 teenagers in London have been victims of knife crime , 145 have been victims of gun crime, and 15 teenagers have been murdered in London.

In July, Zac Olumegbon, a constituent of Mr Umunna, was stabbed and killed outside Park Campus in West Norwood. Mr Umunna raised this with the Prime Minister on 7 July.

Commenting, Mr Umunna said: “The abolition of the Youth Justice Board is deeply concerning given the problems we have had with youth gun and knife crime this year.
“Youth Offending Teams play a hugely important role, working in the community to prevent young people offending and re-offending. For me, this decision reflects a failure to grasp the urgency of this issue on the part of the government.”

Chuka Umunna, Member of Parliament for Streatham, has been appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to Ed Miliband as leader of the opposition, meaning that he will attend shadow cabinet meetings.

The announcement was made on Sunday October 10 after the shadow cabinet was unveiled on Friday.

In his role as PPS, Mr Umunna will be one of two personal aides to Mr Miliband, providing advice and acting as a contact point for backbench MPs.

Keith Hill, Mr Umunna’s predecessor as MP for Streatham, served as PPS to Prime Minister Tony Blair between 2005 to 2007 and features in his memoirs A Journey, published last month.

Mr Umunna will retain his role on the Treasury Select Committee, scrutinising government economic policy and holding to account the Chancellor of the Exchequer and his ministerial team.

Commenting on the appointment, Mr Umunna said: “I am delighted and honoured to have been appointed as Ed Miliband’s PPS and look forward to the role and its responsibilities, as well as working alongside colleagues in the very strong team which the leader has put together.”

Chuka features in a new Labour party political broadcast which was aired earlier this week, following the election of Ed Miliband as party leader – watch it below