Covid 19 & Vaccinations
An additional 321 cases of Covid 19 have been registered in Sutton Coldfield for the week of 8th - 14th August compared to an updated figure of 341 for the week of 1st- 7th August based on data from Birmingham City Council’s public health division.
The 7-day case rate between 7th- 13th August in Birmingham was 315.5 cases/100K population, compared to 336.6/100K for the period between the 31st July and 6th August.
Over the 7 days leading up to 14th August, of 21,559 PCR pillar 2 tests, 3,452 (16.0%) were positive in Birmingham, a higher positivity rate than the West Midlands and England.
Birmingham ranks 14th in the region for pillar 2 PCR tests, with 1,888 tests per 100k population. 43,598 LFD pillar 2 tests were also carried out.
Hospital admissions range between 31 and 55 new cases a day at Birmingham hospital trusts over the 7 days from 7th-13th August, a decrease of 20 admissions compared to the previous 7 days.
The attached image shows the number of vaccines per age group for Sutton Coldfield from data published yesterday.
Walk-in appointments are taking place at a mass vaccination centres across the Birmingham City Council area. Please check the latest availability via: www.birminghamandsolihullcovidvaccine.nhs.uk/walk-in you can also continue to book in advance online as normal including bringing forward your second dose if your appointment is more than 8 weeks from your first vaccine: www.nhs.uk/covid-vaccination
Royal Sutton Coldfield updates
Congratulations to local Suttonian Hannah Simnett who has been recognised in the Prime Minister's Points of Light award programme this week for her work founding ‘Cherished’, a programme training people to become volunteer mentors for girls aged 4-16.
The Sutton Coldfield Chronicle has an article on former Sutton Coldfield Councillor Dennis Birbeck who celebrated his 100th birthday last week: https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/birmingham/sutton-coldfield/2021/08/16/much-loved-councillor-from-sutton-coldfield-celebrates-his-100th-birthday/
The latest unemployment figures for Sutton Coldfield show that the number of people claiming unemployment related benefits fell in July and the total figure was 20 fewer than in June. The figures remain higher than before the pandemic began, however I hope that we will continue to see the figure fall as the economy begins to recover from the pandemic.
Birmingham City Council has terminated their contract with North Birmingham Travel for Home to School Transport for SEND children. The Council has promised that families will not experience any interruption to service as a result of this decision.
The Department for Transport has announced £15 million of additional funding to maintain traffic signals across England. Birmingham City Council will receive £250,000 to address maintenance backlogs and upgrade technology at traffic signal sites to help reduce congestion and improve conditions for road users.
Major businesses and corporations are being offered the opportunity to become the official sponsor of our region’s new cycle hire scheme. The West Midlands Cycle Hire programme is already set to be the UK's biggest outside London once the roll out is completed later this year, but has the potential to grow even further with the backing of a corporate sponsor. Around 1,000 bikes are currently available for hire and there have already been nearly 100,000 journeys made by people across the West Midlands. https://www.wmca.org.uk/news/businesses-offered-the-chance-to-become-the-official-sponsor-of-the-region-s-popular-cycle-hire-scheme/
Westminster news and Parliamentary business
This week parliament was recalled for an emergency session to discuss Afghanistan. While I did not speak in the debate, I have written an article for the Telegraph outlining my views on the current situation and what I consider to be a priority over the coming days and weeks. https://www.andrew-mitchell-mp.co.uk/news/britain-must-stand-traumatised-afghans I was also interviewed on the World at One yesterday on the same subject. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000ytzv.
I am in little doubt from extensive correspondence from my constituents across the Royal Town that the general view is that while we should have robust immigration and asylum rules in general, now is the time to support refugees from Afghanistan and in particular those who worked for Britain and British forces over recent years who are at particular risk from the Taliban.
Ministers are establishing a new route for Afghan refugees who have been forced to flee their home or face threats of persecution from the Taliban. This is in addition to existing programmes and routes already established and in operation. The Afghanistan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme will prioritise women and girls, and religious and other minorities, who are most at risk of human rights abuses and dehumanising treatment by the Taliban. The UK is working with international partners to develop a system to identify those most at risk. We will work with the devolved administrations and local councils to ensure that Afghans who will be rebuilding their lives in the UK have the help they need and support to integrate. This new route is separate from, and in addition to, the existing routes including the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy. This route offers any current or former locally employed staff who are assessed to be under serious threat to life priority relocation to the UK.
I am pleased that Birmingham City Council are getting ready to receive at least 80 Afghan families fleeing from their homeland and have indicated that Birmingham will provide a generous welcome and take our share of those fleeing in these terrifying circumstances.
The Government is bringing forward new guidance to improve how people applying for a firearms licence are assessed in future, including social media checks. In the meantime Police forces have been asked to review their current firearms processes and whether they need to revisit any existing licenses in light of the tragic attack in Plymouth.
Yesterday Ministers announced a £20 million investment to support Family Hubs and vulnerable children and their families across England. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/20m-to-provide-more-early-help-for-vulnerable-families
This week the Government has launched the UK’s first-ever Hydrogen Strategy, setting out our plans to invest in clean energy technology and create more than 9,000 jobs across the UK by 2030, while keeping costs low for consumers. Innovative new technologies including those that harness hydrogen are critical to decarbonising transport and creating new jobs as we continue to progress towards our net zero ambitions. A Tees Valley project will help supermarkets, emergency services and delivery companies use hydrogen-powered transport to move goods and carry out local services. If these trials are successful it will help us develop the knowledge and expertise needed to roll hydrogen out as a fuel source more widely across the UK.
The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs is introducing new rules to improve the welfare of farm animals during transportation, including introducing shorter maximum journey times for live animals, giving animals more headroom during transit, and stricter rules on transporting animals during extreme temperatures.
Opportunities and Events
The Birmingham Weekender will take place between Friday 27th – Sunday 29th August with over 100 free events to enjoy at Bullring & Grand Central and the surrounding New Street Station concourse, Birmingham Markets and 1000 Trades Square. http://www.birminghamweekender.com/
To mark the 50th anniversary year of Bangladesh’s independence, Sampad and Midlands Arts Centre are inviting families from all communities to a free family event on Sunday 22 August. https://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/bangladesh-at-50-celebrating-together
--
As your MP I am here to help. If you feel I can assist with any concerns, please do not hesitate to get in contact by emailing me on andrew.mitchell.mp@parliament.ukMy weekly updates are available via email: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/bhE9MGy/AndrewMitchellNewsletter Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrewmitchellmp and my website: https://www.andrew-mitchell-mp.co.uk/news. Please feel free to share with anyone who might like to receive a copy.