QUEEN'S SPEECH A DISSAPOINTMENT FOR SOLIHULL - BURT

2.25.00pm GMT Tue 6th Nov 2007

"A disappointing string of announcements with no vision" - that's the verdict of Solihull's MP, Lorely Burt as local residents digest the contents of the Queen's Speech, the government's plans for the coming year.

In a message to residents, Lorely Burt said, "Solihull has suffered from extreme weather and some flooding this year, a result of global warming caused by carbon emissions. The government's response is to bring in a weak Climate Change Bill that lacks targets and the real action needed to tackle the problem.

"Thousands of residents in Solihull are hit hard by Council Tax, the unfairest tax around. But there was no mention of scrapping it and replacing it with a fairer system based on ability to pay.

"Many people are unable to live in a home of their own because the government has failed completely over the past decade to ensure there is enough affordable housing. Yet the measures in the Queen's Speech on housing will only scratch the surface of the problem in Solihull.

"Gordon Brown has been at the heart of the Labour government since it came to power over ten years ago. He has now been Prime Minister for four months. Yet there is little in the way of a vision in the Queen's Speech of where he wants to take the country.

"Much of it is a collection of knee jerk reactions, and much of the rest is about grabbing headlines by trying to look as if problems that Labour has failed to tackle over the past decade are now being taken seriously.

"Many people locally will be disappointed by this Queen's Speech from the government. What could have been a great stride forward for both Solihull and the country has turned out to be a timid mishmash that will get us nowhere."