Gordon Marsden MBE

Labour MP for Blackpool South 1997- 2019 . Shadow Minister for Higher, Further Education & Skills 2015-19. Co- Founder of Right to Learn 2020-

[Gordon Marsden MBE @GordonMarsden]

Govt strategy for new higher technical qualifications take no account of input from union learning reps , LEPs or devolved powers for Mayors & local councils. Must have access to learners / workers at all ages as well as 16-24. See my concerns out today https://t.co/toGCpDL9t4

[Gordon Marsden MBE @GordonMarsden]

@ChrisWebbMP

[Seema Malhotra MP @SeemaMalhotra1]

Happy Diwali and Bandi Chhor Diwas to all celebrating in Feltham and Heston and across the world! 🪔

As we celebrate the Festival of Lights, may your homes be filled with warmth, laughter and love, as we remind ourselves of the power of togetherness, and the hope that comes with the triumph of light over darkness.

Wishing you and your loved ones a joyous celebration and a prosperous New Year!

#HappyDiwali #BandiChhorDiwas #FestivalOfLights #CommunityConnections

[Gordon Marsden MBE @GordonMarsden]

Bn no y hi

[Chris Webb MP @ChrisWebbMP]

A few weeks ago, I hosted my first ever Older Persons’ Fair at the Winter Gardens Blackpool. Despite a poorly timed Storm Boelo, around 300 people still walked through the doors to see what was on offer. 🙌

I knew I wanted it to be about more than advice, so I put on workshops, games, talks and activities hosted by brilliant local organisations. There was dancing from ballet to Bhangra, singalongs, and a silent disco that even I joined in.

Tackling loneliness and isolation is just as important as getting someone a new boiler or accessing healthcare – both were also outcomes of the day. It was brilliant to see so many people getting involved and a pleasant reminder of how much is happening across our community, from activities to incredible organisations offering support and guidance. 🫂

[Angela Rayner @AngelaRayner]

I welcome today’s decision that Urban Splash is ordered to repay more than £45m of taxpayers’ money spent fixing their unsafe buildings.

The industry must pay its fair share. I’ll continue efforts to recover taxpayer funds.
https://t.co/gOhzbBPdoV

[Gordon Marsden MBE @GordonMarsden]

Bn no y hi

[Jess Asato MP @Jess4Lowestoft]

Brilliant news 👏

[Andrew Bettridge @Andybettridge1]

@plaidcymruwatch Can £1 million out of a £20 something billion annual budget really be described as a “priority” when it spends vastly more significant sums of money on areas such as health, education, transport etc? If it was the other way around, you might have a point.

[Chris Webb MP @ChrisWebbMP]

🏚️ £𝟭.𝟯𝟱 𝗠𝗜𝗟𝗟𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗧𝗢 𝗕𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗕𝗟𝗔𝗖𝗞𝗣𝗢𝗢𝗟’𝗦 𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗧 𝗕𝗨𝗜𝗟𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗢 𝗨𝗦𝗘

Blackpool has so many wonderful buildings but too many are sitting empty when they could be serving our community.

After campaigning hard for funding to tackle the blight of derelict buildings in Blackpool, I’m delighted to have secured £1.35 million through the new Derelict Buildings Fund to help bring empty buildings back into use and breathe new life into our town.🗼

This is on top of the £180 million I’ve already secured for Blackpool since becoming your MP.

As your MP, I will lead this work to identify our local priorities, making sure residents have a voice in shaping them and working with @BpoolCouncil to turn those priorities into action.

Which empty or derelict buildings in Blackpool should we prioritise and what would you like to see them used for?Whether it’s an empty shop or a much-loved building that’s fallen into disrepair, I want to hear your ideas. 🗣️

Share the building’s name or location and your suggestions. Together, we can build a better Blackpool.

Take the survey at:
https://t.co/OVoU14JcbW

[Gordon Marsden MBE @GordonMarsden]

@ChrisWebbMP Great Budget speech Chris -hammering home things for Progress & City of Culture for Blackpool deserves .Very proud seeing you turn a page of Blackpool’s history. Privilege for me to have been a Blackpool MP for 22 years - & now I see both people & renewal under Labour

[Gordon Marsden MBE @GordonMarsden]

@ChrisWebbMP Great Budget speech Chris -hammering home things for Progress & City of Culture for Blackpool deserves .Very proud seeing you turn a page of Blackpool’s history. Privilege for me to have been a Blackpool MP for 22 years - & now I see both people & renewal under Labour

[Jess Asato MP @Jess4Lowestoft]

@ChrisWebbMP @ChiOnwurah I’m so sorry you’ve had to endure this Chris x

[Richard Corbett @RichardGCorbett]

So sad to hear of the death of Patrick Stewart, not only a great actor, but in real life a stalwart Yorkshireman, Labour member, and anti Brexit campaigner

[Matt Van Swol @mattvanswol]

In 1952, an English teacher named Cecil Dormand secretly paid for a dirt-poor 11-year-old to take a drama course.

He never told him and the boy didn’t find out until decades later.

By then, he was a knight, that little boy’s name was Patrick Stewart.

He was born into a poor family in Mirfield, a small mill town in Yorkshire and his father came home from World War II a violent man, and he was violent toward Patrick’s mother.

Young Patrick learned exactly when to step between his father’s fist and his mother.

An English teacher put a copy of Shakespeare in his hand and told him to get up and perform.

He never stopped and left school at 15.

By 19 he was completely bald... most agencies told him he'd never make it because of that.

In 1987, the LA Times called him an “unknown British Shakespearean actor” when he was cast as Captain Picard.

Then he became one of the most famous faces on Earth.

You’ve probably heard that part.

Here’s the part you haven’t:

He spent decades as a patron of Refuge, sheltering women and children from domestic violence.

But he never stopped trying to understand his father.

He dug up a 1940 newspaper clipping that said his dad had come home with severe shell shock.

He went to France and walked the ground where his father’s unit was pinned down under bombing for hours.

He learned his father had PTSD, and nobody ever helped him.

So Patrick became an ambassador for Combat Stress, a charity that helps veterans.

In 2013, a young woman at a Texas convention told him she was a survivor of domestic violence.

He asked, “My dear, are you okay?”

Then he hopped off the stage, held her, and told her: “You never have to go through that again, you’re safe now.”

At Dragon Con, a Make-A-Wish girl dressed as Spock came to meet him.

2,000 people were waiting for him to speak... he sat down and talked with her for 15 minutes, making all of them wait.

He told her that since they were friends now, whenever she saw him on screen she could wave and say, “Hello Patrick.”

After 9/11, he felt helpless, so he brought his one-man A Christmas Carol back to Broadway for a full week of charity shows.

He played every character himself and donated every cent.

In 2019 he did it again, and every dollar went to feeding hungry New Yorkers.

In 2017, he fostered a pit bull named Ginger, who had been rescued from a dogfighting ring.

She was his first dog in more than 50 years.

He couldn’t bring her home to England, so he found her a family.

Then he kept fostering more.

When he said he was done with Star Trek so many people told him the show had gotten them through the hardest times of their lives.

So he wanted to see if Picard could do it one more time.

Rest in Peace, Sir Patrick 🖖

[Chris Webb MP @ChrisWebbMP]

Today, I spoke in Parliament about what this Budget means for Blackpool. 🗣️

Blackpool has never lacked ambition, only the sustained investment to turn that ambition into lasting change. Through years of austerity and economic decline, places like Blackpool were asked to do more with less, until there was nothing left to cut.

This Budget is a chance to give Blackpool the investment it has been denied for too long and turn our ambition into lasting change. 🗼

[Kennedy Memorial Trust @KennedyScholars]

Congratulations Kennedy Scholar and former Chair of the Trust, Lord Peter Hennessy (Harvard 1971) on his appointment to the Order of the Garter by King Charles III.

[Angela Rayner @AngelaRayner]

Everyone deserves a safe, secure home they can be proud of.

Today I visited @Shelter to hear directly from their team and social housing campaigners about how we can deliver a new generation of council homes.

As we strengthen the Social Housing Bill, we’re putting tenants at the heart of those changes, from protecting survivors of domestic abuse in social housing to giving council tenants more control over repairs and maintenance.

Because delivering a new generation of social housing isn’t just about building more homes. It’s about making sure they’re safe, secure and shaped by the people who live in them.

[Andy Burnham @andyburnham]

Congratulations to President @LulaOficial on your re-election - a true victory for democracy and progressive values.

I look forward continuing to work together as we create opportunities for people in the UK and Brazil.

[Angela Rayner @AngelaRayner]

We can do this. It’s time to stop accepting rough sleeping as a fact of life and unite the country behind a mission to end it.

It was a privilege speaking at the first ever rough sleeping summit @10DowningStreet bringing together businesses, charities, housing providers and local leaders to help make this mission a reality.

[John Healey @JohnHealey_MP]

My Budget today will help families with the pressures they face now.

It will back businesses and entrepreneurs, invest in Britain's future, and strengthen our national security.

A plan to get through this moment and build a stronger Britain.