[ posted by jim cairns(james tindle), June 19, 2012 15:15 ]

my MP mr ian mearns who is mp for gateshead has assured me(by letter) that he supports this campaign, and yet i don't see his name on the list, maybe mr dave anderson, mp for blaydon(a neighbouring constituency)who IS on the list could ask him why, as i feel very strongly on this subject, i have reminded him using the usual channels(e-mail) but am unable to get a satisfactory answer.
Perhaps he might have been in the job a little too long and might be in need of a rest from parliament? if so please let the constituents know and we will see to it at the next election, after all one's mental health is just as important as one's physical health.

[ posted by Jim King, June 20, 2012 20:29 ]

STOP PRESS. I ACTUALLY GOT A REPLY FROM MY MP!!!!!!!! ITS ONLY TAKEN HIM A MONTH TOO - RESULT, Well no not really it seems VAT is the fault not fuel duty and he did not even add my name to the top - copy and paste below-


Dear Constituent,

Thank you for getting in touch about fuel prices. I know high fuel prices are hitting local people hard, just at the time when families, pensioners and businesses are already being squeezed by higher food prices and rising gas and electricity bills.

It is now clear that the Government’s decision to increase VAT to 20% in January 2011 – which has pushed up the price of petrol and the cost of living – was a serious mistake. I have supported, and will continue to support, measures in Parliament to ease the burden of high fuel prices for families. Although as things stand the amendment you highlighted is not currently scheduled for a vote in Parliament but Labour will continue to seek ways to bring the high cost of living and the high cost of fuel to parliament, as we have been doing for over a year.

Raising taxes and cutting spending too far and too fast has put Britain back into recession. We have seen no growth for over a year, and unemployment pushed to record highs – and all of this well before the crisis in the Eurozone. The result of this slower growth and higher unemployment also means £150 billion more borrowing than the Government planned.

That is why I believe the Government needs to take urgent action now to help ease the squeeze on struggling families and jump-start our stalled economy. I have urged the Government to temporarily reverse the VAT rise – cutting it back down to 17.5%.This would cut the price of a litre of petrol by around 3p. The Chancellor could and should have taken this action in his recent Budget. Cutting VAT would not only have had an immediate effect on the price of petrol, but also on the cost of many other things families rely on. In fact, it would save a couple with children an average of £450 a year.

I voted to make this change last year but, unfortunately, the Government blocked it, and kept VAT at 20%, which has kept petrol prices high and hit economic growth. The VAT cut, which would help to immediately reduce the cost of petrol, is part of Labour’s Five Point Plan for Jobs, which includes a tax on bank bonuses to support 100,000 jobs for young people, and tax breaks for small businesses taking on extra workers.

More information on our jobs plan can be found at [here he gives a website to labour which i cant include on FFUK]

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me, and I will keep you updated on developments.

Yours sincerely,

Jamie Reed MP

[ posted by Sylvia Butler, June 26, 2012 11:45 ]

My MP Claire Perry has not even bothered to reply to me,but I am not surprised

[ posted by Graham Holmes, June 26, 2012 22:55 ]

I got two standard letters from my MP, Dr Daniel Poulter (Con, Central Suff), in response to the FFUK e-mails I sent. But when I wrote a personal e-mail asking him to respond to the original question - why had he not signed up to abolish the August rise - surprise, surprise, no reply. I forwarded it again - no reply. Standard responses are one thing, but it's clear that setting out an individual reply to a constituent's personal letter is too much effort. Well, sorry, Dr Poulter - it's also going to be too much effort for me to vote for you at the next local election. Time to take out the trash!