Mason’s Month – May 2009

30 Apr 2009
  • Unemployment figures are a grim measure of recession
  • East End MP calls for action on Housing from UK Government
  • MP focuses on Baillieston traffic issue
  • House of Commons expenses hit the headlines
  • John Mason’s diary: A brief guide to your MP’s recent activities, and what’s coming up
  • ‘A word from Westminster’

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ID cards plan ‘absurd’ in teeth of recession, says Mason

29 Apr 2009

The former Home Secretary who introduced the idea of ID cards eight years ago has called for the multi-billion pound plans to be scrapped.

SNP MP for Glasgow East, John Mason, welcomed David Blunkett’s turnaround, which echoes SNP demands for Labour to ditch vanity projects like the £5 billion ID cards scheme or the £25 billion cost of replacing Trident at the same time as the Treasury makes a massive real terms cut to the Scottish Budget.

Mr Mason, who represents the East End in Parliament, said:

“David Blunkett’s calls for the scheme to be scrapped eight years after he introduced the plan is an extraordinary turnaround.

“Now that the Treasury has confirmed its plans to make a real terms cut in Scottish spending in the middle of the recession, it is clearer than ever that vanity projects like ID cards and Trident should be ditched completely.

“The SNP opposed ID cards from the very outset. The UK Government’s abysmal record on data protection is reason enough to cancel ID cards but given the dire state of the UK’s finances, these plans are all the more absurd.

“The chorus against ID cards is growing louder by the day. First, Stephen Byers and now David Blunkett.

“Labour in Scotland are now in the embarrassing position of defending Tory-style cuts whilst supporting billions being wasted on weapons of mass destruction and big brother style ID cards.”

“Hit the bottle” through improved labelling of alcohol, says East End’s SNP MP

14 Apr 2009

East End MP John Mason has called on the UK Government to support doctors and health professionals by introducing legislation on alcohol labelling.

His call comes in the wake of a report from the British Medical Association detailing the impact of alcohol abuse on health services and comes as evidence from the Royal College of Nursing and Royal College of Physicians showed 90% believe alcohol should be labelled with information on units and safe drinking guidelines.

Evidence shows that 10 years after introducing a voluntary code only 3% of products are properly labelled and 43% of alcohol products carry no information at all.

Mr Mason has lodged an Early Day Motion (EDM) in Westminster highlighting the failure of a voluntary code to introduce better labelling on alcohol products and calling for UK legislation.

The measure is supported by the Scottish Government at Holyrood but requires UK Government action.

Mandatory labels on alcohol content are shown to increase awareness of drink driving and the impact of drinking during pregnancy.

The SNP MP for Glasgow East said:

“We need real action to tackle the cost of alcoholic excess and the best way to do that is literally by hitting the bottle with better labelling.

“As the strength of alcohol products has changed and new drinks have come on the market it is increasingly hard to judge how many units are in a product. When it comes to tackling issues of drink driving or alcohol consumption during pregnancy this is vital information that could save lives.

“It is simply unacceptable that 43% of alcohol products do not carry the proper information and only 3% carry all the information they should do.

“While Scotland is leading the way with plans for a range of radical measures including minimum pricing and an end to deep discounting of alcohol in supermarkets to tackle our drinking culture, to reduce excessive drinking and to reduce the enormous cost both to our health and our economy the UK Government must play it’s part.

“There is no more time for delay and excuses and the UK government must grasp this issue and bring in legislation.”

Notes:

Mr Mason’s Early Day Motion is below:

ALCOHOL LABELLING

Mason, John

That this House notes the recent publication of The Human Cost of Alcohol – DoctorsSpeak Out by the British Medical Association Scotland; recognises that those in the medical profession have a far greater understanding than most of the true extent and cost of alcohol misuse in the UK; further notes the range of recommendations made in the report to reduce excessive drinking, including steps to control price and availability and increase awareness of the amount of alcohol in drinks; further notes that, 10 years after the drinks industry introduced a voluntary code of practice for alcoholic labelling, only 3 per cent. of products were found to contain all the information required, and 43 per cent. of products contained no information at all; acknowledges previous research from the USA which found that mandatory labels on alcoholic beverages increased knowledge regarding the risks of drink-driving and drinking during pregnancy; and therefore calls on the Government to introduce legislation to make clear and consistent labelling of alcoholic products a legal requirement.

Stamp price hike bad news for business, says Mason

07 Apr 2009

The SNP MP for Glasgow East, John Mason, has described yesterday’s (Monday) increase in the price of stamps as ‘yet another blow to small businesses and those on fixed incomes’.

The price of a first class stamp is now 39p, with a second class stamp costing 30p. The Royal Mail’s Special Delivery Next Day service has also increased in price, up 35p to £4.95 for mail weighing up to 100g.

Commenting, Mr Mason said:

“This is yet another blow to small businesses and those on fixed incomes.

“These are substantial increases which will hit those who rely on the Royal Mail – individuals and small businesses – very hard indeed.

“Those East End businesses that do not have access to alternative carriers or bulk mailing arrangements will suffer as a direct result of this increase.

“Although many people now use email as an alternative to the post, those folk who continue to rely on letters for their family and personal communication will be hard hit. It will tend to be pensioners and those on fixed incomes that are affected, and this price hike is a cruel blow to them in the midst of a recession.

“Royal Mail should have been fighting for all the custom it can get, not driving folk away with eye-watering price hikes. I fear that this could well be a sign of things to come if Lord Mandleson pushes on with his crazy privatisation plans.”