I have had the privilege of serving as your new Labour Member of Parliament since May 1997, a period of twelve years in which I believe that Don Valley and the country have changed for the better.

I believe that during the period I have been fortunate to serve as your MP, we have seen profound improvements in the general quality of life of the people in Don Valley. I am proud to have supported policies for the many and not the few, from a government with much work still to do.

Among the key policies which I have supported in parliament, which I believe my values of fairness and equality, are:

• LOCAL POLICING TEAMS: 3 new Safer Neighbourhood Policing Teams serving Don Valley, with police working with PCSOs and community safety wardens, patrolling communities and tackling nuisance.
• NEW POWERS TO TACKLE ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR: new dispersal orders to stop late night gangs; powers to remove alcohol in the street from under 18s or older groups where under 18s are believed to consume the alcohol; and powers to close crackhouses.
• REFORMING THE NHS: Don Valley residents are able to access GP appointments within 48 hours, to have evening or weekend doctors appointments and have access to a new town centre NHS walk in centre, known as the “8 til 8 centre.”
• BRINGING THE NHS INTO COMMUNITIEIS: 5 new health centres have been built serving the people of Don Valley, bringing NHS services out of the hospital into the neighbourhood; no one waits more than 18 weeks for hospital treatment; and patients receive A&E treatment within 4 hours.
• SURESTARTS FOR EVERY COMMUNITY: many of Doncaster’s Sure Start Children’s Centres are in Don Valley, including The Croft in Dunscroft and the Sprotbrough Children’s Centre, just two of the 22 Doncaster Children’s Centres and 3,000 nationwide.
• EASY BUS TRAVEL: Free local bus travel for pensioners and the disabled; and park and ride schemes along new bus corridors, for those commuting into town.
• EVERY SECONDARY SCHOOL TO BECOME A SPECIALIST SCHOOL: All of Don Valley’s secondary schools are specialist schools, two have been rebuilt: Rossington All Saints and The Thomas Wharton Community College in Edlington. Northcliffe School re-opens as an Academy in September 2009.
• EVERY SIXTEEN YEAR OLD GUARANTEED SCHOOL, COLLEGE, TRAINING OR APPRENTICESHIP: this will ensure that no young person in Don Valley needs to be left behind during the recession, or as the country emerges from recession.
  FULL EMPLOYMENT: even during the downturn, I have supported new jobs coming to Doncaster, on the Hatfield and Rossington colliery sites, at the airport, and through new initiatives like the eco town programme which Doncaster Council must support.
• UNIVERSAL AFFORDABLE CHILDCARE: thousands of children in Don Valley now benefit from childcare, either in local nurseries, with childminders or at school-based nurseries. The extended school programme also provides breakfast clubs, homework clubs and other activities 8am – 6pm. Our children need the best start in life.
• MORE HOME OWNERS AND WARM, MODERN HOMES FOR ALL: I have supported measures to help families stay in their homes during the downturn; new offers for first time buyers; a boost to housebuilding; and the largest improvement programme of social housing in our life time. I have also supported the Warm Front and home insulation programmes.
• REDUCING WORLD POVERTY AND ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE: my support for Britain’s role alleviating world poverty and addressing climate change have been widely encouraged by the large number of letters and emails I have received from Don Valley residents.

As your MP, I last pledged to support the above policies in 2005, and I am proud to have kept my promises during the parliamentary sessions since. It is because local people can see the effect of these pledges in local neighbourhoods, that I believe so strongly that profound difference has been made to the quality of life of the people of Don Valley.