Constituents’ health and lives should not be gambled with
Iwould like to once again thank voters in Washington and Sunderland West for re-electing me in the December General Election. Whilst the national result was not as I hoped, I remain committed to delivering for all of my constituents. That means standing up for our local area and everyone who lives here.
One of my first appearances in the new Parliament was this week, when I presented a petition to the House of Commons signed by constituents who oppose the building of a gasification plant in Hillthorn Park. Like thousands of constituents, I am opposed to the building of this plant.
The main reasons for my opposition are threefold:
The location is close to houses and schools. It is these communities who will bear the brunt of increased traffic and associated pollution, and who are most at risk.
The applicants have failed to satisfy any questions from myself and campaigners. We still do not know what technology will be used by the plant if building goes ahead, for example.
The proposed plant could be expected to release millions of tonnes of CO2 during its anticipated lifetime. This will undoubtedly have a negative impact on our environment and climate change.
As I said at the planning and highways committee meeting in July, where the application was rejected, my constituents should not be used as guinea pigs; the health and lives of my constituents should not be gambled with.
Although the application was rejected, the application is now up for appeal, which will be held for eight days from February 18 at the Stadium of Light’s Montgomery Suite.
Because so many of my constituents have expressed concern about application, I have written to the Planning Inspectorate and the National Planning Casework Unit to request the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government recovers the appeal, which if approved, will give the Secretary of State the final say. I will continue to work with constituents, campaigners and local councillors to oppose this plant and raise this issue in Parliament.
To get in touch with me about this, or any other concerns, email Sharon.hodgson. mp@parliament.uk. Please provide a full postal address.