Carole Tongue

Vision for the BBC

The BBC is the most important cultural institution in our country.

It is part of the infrastructure of citizenship.

It is a pillar of our democracy with a clear duty to enhance an inclusive citizenship.

I am most proud of having campaigned for and contributed to two documents which underpin and protect public service broadcasting constitutionally as an essential component of any society. (more…)

We must place renewed emphasis on tackling the causes of crime. Children in care represent 0.5% of the population but 25% of the prison population.  We must allocate resources to improve their quality of life and in particular give them far greater assistance during their  transition to independence.

Labour is expanding family intervention projects and more alcohol treatment schemes to fulfill its pledge on tackling the causes of crime.

Labour has increased investment in child welfare, Sure Start, health, education and housing plus measures to reduce child poverty.  All of these policies have not only improved the lives of the most disadvantaged but also played an important role in reducing crime and disorder.

There is more to be done…..

As a parent I’m deeply concerned by the anti-social behaviour that comes from young people buying alcohol from irresponsible licensees and binge-drinking. I was pleased with the Home Secretary’s initiative to confiscate alcohol from under-18s and launch an independent review into whether the industry is selling drink responsibly.

Better education on the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption can help to change our drinking culture over time.  Minimum pricing of some kinds of alcoholic beverage and availability of alcohol are possible measures worthy of consideration.

We all must be able to feel safe around our homes and when we travel. CCTV cameras located carefully can help reduce crime, particularly outside tube stations.  If there had been one outside my local tube then perhaps my bike wouldn’t have been stolen a while ago!

Sadly knife crime is a serious problem in London. Much needs to be done. We must prosecute youths caught with knives. However, our young people deserve more support and facilities.  Thus more resources must be invested in quality youth services.

The Government’s introduction of Safer Neighbourhoods teams can make a real difference, but the police can’t keep us safe on their own. They need to work with the community, and it is something that must be encouraged everywhere.

I am Vice Chair of a charity that works with the probation service and welcomes offenders on community service.  They receive worthwhile training in important skills as well as learning about teamwork and cooperation. Evidence of their job placements and reduced recidivism prove that such approaches work.  We need to use this route more.

I want to see an even greater focus on prevention and rehabilitation in our criminal justice system.

It would be the work of a think-tank to publish a comprehensive set of policies for the next Labour government, but I’ve got a few thoughts that I’d like to share with you. As an ex-MEP, you could expect me to have strong views on the first one in particular…..

The European Union

Cooperation between us and our European allies in the EU is essential to tackle most foreign policy challenges.  The EU, with Baroness Ashton as its High Representative, is now well placed to take a global lead on a range of issues, especially the Middle East.  The more the EU can speak with one strong voice on the difficult issues causing so much humanitarian distress, the better. The Tories anti-EU stance fails to protect our national interest and will hinder useful accord with our allies.

Campaign against HIV/AIDS

I am proud of the strong leadership and sizeable funding the UK has provided in the fight against AIDS, but I believe the Government can still do more to ensure people around the world have access to affordable generic versions of crucial AIDS drugs. To that end, I would campaign with others to push for an international agreement to help us we reach the goal of universal access to AIDS treatment by 2010.

Middle East

It is important that parliamentary delegations organised by the Council for Arab-British Understanding and Labour Friends of Israel organise fact-finding visits to Israel and the West Bank for MPs to see for themselves the situation on the ground.  It is crucial that MPs meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, and apply pressure for meaningful negotiations that respect a genuine viable two state solution.

I welcome the Government’s provision of humanitarian and financial help in Gaza, but it is clear the borders must be opened further to allow Gazans to rebuild their homes and vital services, and I am pleased the Foreign Secretary and Secretary of State for International Development have said they are pressuring Israel to do so.

When he was Leader of the House of Commons, the late Robin Cook ensured that there was a vote before the war on Iraq. I marched against the Iraq War, and now I would like to see a change in the law so that Parliament rather than the Prime Minister decides whether we go to war.

On the issue of Trident, I am firmly opposed to the renewal of our nuclear weapons. It is a waste of £76 billion that could be better spent on ending child poverty. I do not believe we should have weapons designed to kill millions of civilians.

Climate Change is the biggest challenge of our generation. I am very pleased that Parliament passed the Climate Change Act in 2008. The essential measures it introduces include the world’s very first legally binding targets: to see reductions in CO2 emissions of 26% by 2020 and of green house gas emissions through action in the UK and abroad of at least 80% by 2050.

At the United Nations Climate Change Conference held in December 2009 in Copenhagen, for the first time the whole world, including the USA and China, are signed up to action to reduce emissions.  This is a colossal change from just a few months ago.

I must admit I was disappointed the Copenhagen Accord didn’t give us everything we wanted. But despite the procedural frustrations the British team encountered, their hard work both at Copenhagen and in recent months has achieved significant progress.

The agreement we got means:

• The increase in global temperatures must stay below 2 degrees and we must act together to ensure that this happens
• There will be real scrutiny to ensure emission targets are met by both developed and developing countries, with mandatory reports every two years
• Funds from developed countries will help the poorest tackle and adapt to climate change: $30Bn Fast Start between now and 2012 and $100Bn a year from 2020.

It is not everything that we worked for. We don’t have the legally-binding international agreement we need, nor the necessary higher targets for cutting emissions by 2020.

But it is, without doubt, an important first step. I was gratified to see how much the government role in these negotiations – particularly with regard to finance for the developing world and pushing for an ambitious deal – was recognised.

Our challenge now, is to keep up the momentum. The threat of climate change is too profound and urgent for us to let go now. I will keep pushing on this. (more…)

I’m really pleased that Labour is going to be fighting the 2010 election on a platform of constitutional reform. It’s a subject that I’ve cared about for a long time, having  served for many years on the Council of Charter 88.

For this reason, I’ve welcomed all the constitutional reforms introduced by recent Labour governments and I look forward to further democratic reforms.

If I were elected to Parliament, I would campaign for :

• a written constitution which sets out where power lies and our rights as citizens
• fixed term parliaments that remove the power from just one person to decide on election dates
• a proportional electoral system to ensure all votes are equal
• a fully elected second chamber that is elected by the people
• greater decision making and taxation powers for local government to ensure decisions are taken as close to citizens as possible

Times are changing. Society is different, and politics is different to what it used to be. Transparency and fairness in the voting system are essential to a modern democracy and I’m really pleased that this is going to be one of the major themes of the next few months.

“I want Britain to learn from the catastrophic debacle of the financial crisis, and ensure it never happens again. The hopes, aspirations, health, jobs, businesses and climate of Britain must not be sacrificed to pay for economic failure engineered by a small elite in the City of London.

That’s David Cameron’s plan: to deflect the terrain of political debate from the City and focus it instead on the public sector finances. Under this plan public services are targeted as the cause of the crisis; ‘balancing the budget’ the solution; and those least responsible expected to bear the long-term costs.”

When we look at under-5s education, all the evidence is there.

Young children from poor homes suffer great educational disadvantage before they even get to school.

We now have evidence from Hammersmith and Fulham Tory Council, likely to be imitated by a Tory government, is that they wish to end social housing as we know it by ending secure tenancies and charging near market rents.

Already Boris has underspent on social housing despite a government subsidy of £120m.

I’m completely with Karen Buck on this one.

The government provided £90 million to renovate social housing in Waltham Forest. That has greatly improved the quality of life for many people.

But now we need more affordable homes in the borough to cope with an enormous over crowding problem.

I will campaign for Councils to be able to build more council housing as soon as possible. This makes sense in an economic and housing crisis. It will offer decent homes and jobs that are so badly needed.

All the Tories plan to do is cut the deficit and abolish council housing as we know it. This is why they’ve got to be stopped in 2010.

I am very concerned that high bonuses encourage risky behaviour amongst banks. It is outrageous that their reckless risk taking has done so much damage to society.
We must change the way bonuses are regulated.

I am glad that the government plans to make bonuses less short term.

The extra 50% payroll tax announced by the government is welcome but we must go further.

• Bonuses of publically-backed banks should be taxed at 100%
• We need a more progressive taxation system to deal with excessively high salaries.

This would help restrict excessive pay as well as raising money for public services and redistributive measures like tax credits.

I welcome the government’s 50% tax on incomes over £150.000. However I would lower this threshold to £100.000. I would also like to see progressive taxation go further to make sure the super wealthy make a greater contribution.

We must also reduce tax avoidance and evasion, working with our EU and other international allies.

The time is ripe for a real crack down on tax havens so that we can achieve a more equal society that has solidarity at its heart with

• More progressive taxation
  Better bonus regulation
  Cutting tax avoidance

I’m fully behind Harriet Harman’s report on how to tackle entrenched wealth inequality.