Karen recently had the pleasure of celebrating the West Midlands horticultural achievements at an event hosted by the NFU in Westminster and in conjunction with the official launch of Asparagus Season.

Interestingly there are 30,000 hectares of horticultural crops grown throughout the region with a farm gate value of £350 million and a Gross Value Added contribution to the region in excess of £600 million. The sector employs over 13,000 full time workers and a further 7,000 part time workers. These are figures to celebrate and be proud of.

Access to fresh fruit and vegetables is a significant issue for local people and the wider population. With nearly 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 10 children aged 2-10 obese; this crisis places a major burden on the NHS at a cost of approximately £4.2 billion per annum. Growers in the West Midlands are extremely well placed to assist with the national 5 A DAY campaign.

Many might be surprised to learn that growers from the region produce 20% of the total UK soft fruit production and a staggering 65% of the UK asparagus crop plus also growing significant volumes of field vegetables, salad and protected crops. Yet more reasons to celebrate!

Of course the sector is not without its challenges and to identify these, the NFU working with an organisation called the European Food and Farming Partnership (EFFP) together with Wychavon District Council have undertaken a region wide survey to highlight issues raised. Karen has also taken the opportunity to meet with local farmers in the area recently to listen to and discuss their industries’ concerns.

Karen is pictured with Asparagus Man and also with fellow local MP’s Harriet Baldwin and Peter Luff.

Karen went back to her home town of Wrexham to help in their local elections.

The local candidate standing next to Karen is Alex Jones who was in the same class at school as Karen’s daughter!

Feeling old or what!

Karen recently paid a visit to St Augustine’s Catholic High School to meet with students during their Citizenship class.

Topics of conversation included HS2, body image and prisons where students put their thoughts and feelings on matters directly to their local MP.

Pictured with Karen are students Shay Kerins, Liam Kennedy and Leah Carver.

Karen would like to invite food lovers in the constituency to nominate their favourite South Asian Restaurant for the national Tiffin Cup 2012 competition.

Karen said “We have so many fantastic restaurants in the area that we stand a very good chance in this competition! I would encourage all curry lovers in the area to nominate their all-time favorite”.

The deadline for nominations is 2nd April 2012. Proceeds raised will go to the charity World Vision. The winner from the area will be nominated by Karen to be one of 10 restaurants to cook in the Bellamy’s Restaurant, in Parliament, to compete for the Cup and be crowned the Champion!!

People can nominate by emailing Karen at karen.lumley.mp@parliament.uk detailing “Tiffin Cup 2012” as the subject title with the restaurant name, address, contact name at the restaurant and the telephone number.

Let’s show the whole country that Redditch can cook a mean Masala, the best Balti, a top Tikka, not to mention a delightful Dopiasa and the nicest Naan!

As part of Tenacres First School ‘Fruity Friday’ celebrations children had the opportunity to learn more about eating healthily and take part in a range of ‘fruity’ activities. The School Council organised a Fruit drawing/painting competition with prizes for the best entries which Karen Lumley MP took time to judge, picking winners from each year group.

Children also attended school wearing the colours of their favourite fruit(s) and at lunch time there was a competition to see who had the healthiest lunchbox. This year the school has been lucky to receive donations of a range of unusual and exotic fruits from Total Produce. We are hoping this will allow children to experience the range of fruits available and discover new favourites.

Karen said of the visit “I had a wonderful time at Tenacres First School meeting pupils and teachers all dressed in vibrant fruity colours. It was great to see the enthusiasm of the children taking part in various arts and crafts activities and trying out unusual fruits for the first time. It was a tough job judging their art competition as there were several impressive drawings to consider.”

Karen is pictured with Harry Fox, Cloe Kindon, Kaitlyn O’Tool, Jack Jones and Evie-Jane Lawrence.

Karen recently paid a visit to HMP Hewell to learn more about the about the aims, objectives and progress of the Hearing Dogs training program as it nears its six-month stage. The project is the first of its kind at the prison and has proved to be a huge success and extremely beneficial for all involved.

Karen said she “was very pleased to learn more about the progress of this project and all of the hard work the participants have put in for such a good cause. Training a Hearing Dog takes a lot of commitment and focus and those involved should be extremely proud of the difference their efforts have made and will continue to make in the community.”

Woodrow Library celebrated World Book Day by having a “Where’s Wally” tea party.

Cakes, refreshments, themed activities along with book reading were enjoyed by all the children.

Karen met with two suitably dressed girls, Jaydon Heron and Charlotte Oakes both aged 10.

Karen met recently with local care providers from the Redditch area at their National Care Association Meeting at the Holiday Inn Express to hear about the latest developments for social care providers and to take forward any comments and concerns they raised.

Karen said –”I found the meeting with the National Care Association very informative and I am planning on visiting the providers again in the area on a one to one basis in the near future. Such meetings are invaluable for me as the MP for Redditch and I try to ensure that they occur on a regular basis. It is extremely useful and important  that we continue to engage with those providing such an important service to our community.”

The new Abbey Stadium was completed recently and was reopened by a host of celebrities and digniaries.  Karen went along with council leader Carole Gandy and town mayor Anita Clayton.

Anita is seen trying out some of the equipment.

Karen Lumley MP for Redditch County, conveyed her extreme disappointment today at the resignation of  Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed, ‘Anni’, following days of grave unrest in the country.

“Having been involved in securing the first democratically elected leader in the Maldives in 2008, I was very sad to hear the news of the President’s resignation yesterday. I have met and campaigned with Anni many times and know at first hand, what an excellent President he was. He has enjoyed many major domestic and international achievements and is certainly respected all over the world for his tireless and passionate campaigning on human rights and environmental issues. I was delighted to welcome Anni to the House of Commons last year and would want to wish him and his family well.”

Karen Calls for a Debate on the Maldives

Karen has spoken in the House of Commons today calling for a debate on the political situation in the Maldives. She has conveyed her deep concern at recent developments in the Republic of the Maldives.

“I have worked closely with the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) since 2007 and the Conservative Party has strong and well-established links with the MDP. I worked intensively with the them in support of Mohamed Nasheed’s candidacy prior to the presidential elections in 2008 and I was lucky enough to learn from his passionate belief in democracy.

Since the news broke of President Nasheed’s resignation, I have been in regular contact with friends in the Maldives and I remain deeply concerned for President Nasheed’s safety. I welcome the comments made by the Foreign Secretary in the House today, calling for an Independent Review into the circumstances that led to these events and I echo President Nasheed’s call for calm and order in the country.”