Comment: MPs can make good use of the summer recess
Last night Channel 4, Dispatches investigated how MPs spend their summer recess, criticising expensive and unproductive trips abroad at the taxpayer’s expense. Judith Brodie, VSO UK’s Director looks at how the summer recess has been used to good effect by some MPs who have been volunteering with VSO.
“MPs have a unique and valuable set of skills learnt whilst serving the UK public - why not use them to build a fairer world and change lives?
At VSO, we send professionals with backgrounds in education, health and business to work with local colleagues to improve the public services and employment opportunities that lift many thousands of people out of poverty.
MPs have many skills to offer which is why we run a dedicated Parliamentarian Volunteer Scheme during the summer recess. Alleviating poverty is not just about addressing a lack of health care or education; it is about changing unfair practices that keep people in poverty, such as laws that prevent women from owning land or disabled people accessing education. Politicians are well placed to advise local organisations in how to develop and improve government policies, helping to ensure a fairer, equitable life for all.
Of course, it’s important to get it right. Trips must be productive, cost-effective and thoroughly evaluated to ensure best practice. VSO’s Parliamentarian Volunteer Scheme must ultimately serve the local community and be evaluated as such. We work hard to ensure that projects are challenging and we demand results. It’s not a holiday. And it is hard work.
In its second year, 20 MPs and Peers have volunteered and spent between one and two weeks abroad, tackling issues such as access to health care, HIV and Aids, social injustice and women’s rights. Bringing significant advocacy experience, MPs transfer desperately needed experience to local communities, helping them to change policies that may have a negative impact on their life and giving access to senior government figures that wouldn’t otherwise be possible.
Its impact is clear. Conservative MP, Tony Baldry, on the scheme for his second year, helped marginalised Dalit communities in Nepal to participate, contribute and amend Nepal’s new constitution. Labour MP, Sharon Hodgson helped advocate for improved access to education for disabled people living in Cameroon. As the summer recess ends, many more MPs are returning home having helped to change people lives for the better.
Crucially, MPs return motivated and committed to international development, chairing debates in parliament and fighting to end poverty. This doesn’t mean they are less committed to their own constituents, rather more engaged to build a fairer world - one that will ultimately benefit their own community.
Done well, parliamentarian volunteering is a win-win situation for all. Exchange participants build new skills and a global outlook, continuing in their UK role more effectively. Recipient organisations benefit from a fresh perspective, increasing their capacity to fight for a fairer world. Let’s hope it continues.
