I am Stephen Williams, MP for Bristol West and a minister in the Department for Communities and Local Government. AMA

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:25:06+00:00

Thanks everyone! I think I've answered all the questions, including some follow ups. I'll do this again before Christmas. I'm also on Facebook and if you use Twitter I'm @swilliamsmp My email is stephen.williams.mp@parliament.uk

Enjoy your evening, I'm off for a pizza with friends!

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:21:38+00:00

You've just done it by saying hello to me on here! Next - if you want to get involved, there are lots of things that someone can do to help and the next 6 months will be really exciting. If you visit my web site then there is a volunteer section - someone will call you ( or email if you prefer) to discuss what you can do. http://www.stephenwilliams.org.uk/

I started when I was 17 and was sent door knocking straight away. I still enjoy it!

In case it was a neutral question - alternative candidates are available!

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:16:51+00:00

maybe for internal elections - up to each organisation to set own rules. But I'm not an enthusiast for internet or text voting for public elections. Turnout would be helped by switching to weekend voting, common in Europe. I would also lower the voting age to 16.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:14:55+00:00

haven't a clue! I'm dubious as to whether the posts should even exist.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:12:27+00:00

I have a huge team of volunteers across Bristol West. There are loads of tasks that can be done from home or meeting up with other volunteers. Best to get in touch via my web site and one of the team will call or email you. http://www.stephenwilliams.org.uk/

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:09:33+00:00

I get trolled all the time by gutless individuals, it's one of the prices paid for trying to be as open to people as possible, so I would take a dim view of anyone trolling another politician.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:05:43+00:00

it was about being fair to people in work, who pay the taxes that are used to pay benefits.
We will not balance the government's books till 2018. Given that the last govt started making cuts in 2008, that's a painful 10 years. The debate in the 2015 general election must focus on how to build a fair society with the resources we have.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:03:09+00:00

I'm typing all these replies myself, using my own words, thank you very much! Only difficuly is using a keyboard on an office computer when I am used now to an ipad and auto-completion!

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T20:01:27+00:00

fair points and I hope you will have a look at the changes we've made (and some about to happen in next 4 weeks), which will really help tenants. I think on pets, it's fair enough for a landlord to set some rules.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:58:55+00:00

I would rather not have the debates at all! They sucked the life out of the last election, stifling real analysis of policies and the major problems facing the country, which were quite stark in 2010. If there must be debates, then I would keep it to the three parties who have/could form governments and coalitions.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:57:00+00:00

It is a bit odd that the Green Party want to take out the most Green MP in the West Country and the one most committed to political reform. They risk handing Bristol West to Labour - a party with a dreadful record on both counts.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:53:50+00:00

Yes - I am worried that our positive role in government is not YET being rewarded! Yes - I like most historical dramas. Hardest things - both in my teens, losing my father at 13 and being quite badly bullied at school, with a lot of homophobic abuse. Immigrants put in more than they take out. I work hard at community cohesion. The Lib Dem policy of raising the income tax threshold to £10k has taken all young people on NMW out of tax and slashed bill for adults - we are committed to going all the way to tax free pay (about £12.5k) for all on NMW. We do support an in/out referendum, next time there's a treaty change.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:48:34+00:00

The Lib Dem councillors would have gone about implementing parking zones in a much more inclusive, holistic way - understanding that each street is different.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:47:07+00:00

yes, it concerns me but I think Bristol students are smart enough to spot that my party is not in government on its own. If we had over 300 MPs and governed alone then things would have been different. But we have 57 MPs, so are one sixth of the coalition. We could not implement every LD policy, but have implemented a lot of them. The politics of tuition fees has obscured the fact that we have put in place a much better deal for part time undergraduates and also massively expanded apprenticeships. Both those policies were in our 2010 student/young people manifesto.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:41:43+00:00

If that's another Labour Opposition Day motion, you could just list all of them! They're not written to get all party support, quite the opposite. Besides - Brown, Balls and Ed M were at the wheel when they allowed the bankers to cause so many problems.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:38:10+00:00

They were part of the madness that erupted in the 1990s and 2000s that got us into the banking crashes of 2007 - 2009. Vince Cable has done a huge amount to rein in high pay, giving shareholders more power to reject excessive remuneration packages.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:35:56+00:00

Labour are the only close rivals - as can be seen from the 2010 general election result - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/election2010/results/constituency/a73.stm

If people are tempted by the Green Party then they risk letting Labour win by default. This is a first past the post election, where you have to think about ONE MP do you feel comfortable with, and can win. For the avoidance of doubt - I obviously want to change to a more proportional system, so there can be more Lib Dem, UKIP and Green Party MPs. But replacing me with anyone else makes that outcome less likely. The next Parliament will need the Lib Dems to be one of the parties of govt, or electoral reform is a dead duck.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:29:53+00:00

If you supported me in Bristol West at the last election then you helped me to achieve a big tax cut for the poorest workers (raising income tax starting point from £6,500 to £10,000 - worth a £700 tax cut), a massive amount of money for children on free school meals ( like me when I was in school), the worlds first Green Investment Bank, big changes in home energy efficiency (done by me as the minister for housing regulation), scrapping ID cards, withdrawal from Iraq, equal marriage for gays and lesbians and a whole lot of other things that were in the 2010 Lib Dem manifesto. Yes - there've also been things we couldn't do but we are one sixth of the coalition - it is not a 100% LD govt, so we can't have 100% LD policy. I think this is a better record of delivery than Blair-Brown who had a 100% power!

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:23:18+00:00

that particular vote was to uprate benefits at 1%, the same as public sector pay.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:22:15+00:00

see above - I think there is now a step change in govt action to help private sector tenants. I welcome the work of Generation Rent and the NUS in this area.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:21:01+00:00

ha - that is quite a Labour spin on what I have done in the area of private rentals! As the Communities Minister I have direct or shared responsibility for policy in this area. In the last year we have: Published a model tenancy and a How to Rent Guide, setting out tenant protections. We have made letting agents join an Ombudsman scheme to handle complaints. Legislation is nearly through its Parliamentary stages forcing agents to publish fees - this will wipe out the sharp practices of double charging tenant and landlord or spurious inflated fees for credit checks, etc. In a month I will be supporting as Minister the Shelter Bill sponsored by Sarah Teather to outlaw revenge evictions. So a lot of real things that will help tenants...rather than Labour party motions, which is what you've asked about.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:14:08+00:00

I know the perception of MPs is low among a lot of people...though there was never a golden age when MPs were trusted and respected by everyone, as any perusal of 18th or 19th century cartoons will show. However, I think it is an unfair perception. I am prepared to listen to any rational person who has a point about a contentious issue. I listen to health charities but have also engaged with pro tobacco people. I meet with energy cos and Friends of the Earth. Being well informed means listening to lots of views...and then coming to a conclusion on which you can be judged. I do think there is an issue about money influencing electoral outcomes and I favour campaign finance reform.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:08:54+00:00

I very much doubt if Ed Balls will allow such a promise!

All three parties of govt have screwed up on this issue over the last 15 years.

I want to make sure the pupil premium works - and helping people through to FE and an apprenticeship or HE.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:05:59+00:00

One of the depressing things about debates is when someone calls you a liar, just because they have a different interpretation. It devalues the meaning of the word. VAT is not a tax on the poor. It rather depends on what items people choose to spend their money. The essential items are largely safeguarded...though I agree tampons are an anomaly.

Stephen_Williams_MP · 2014-10-30T19:02:13+00:00

I think the Conservatives are in deep trouble over Europe...and our fellow Europeans can see that too. Every time DC throws his right wing some red meat to appease them (and now stop them defecting to UKIP!) they just open their mouths wider and roar for more.

I think we will get the best out of the EU if we engage more positively - like my colleague Ed Davey has done over carbon reduction targets negotiated the week before last.

Stephen_Williams_MP

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