Delivering for Penistone and Stocksbridge

A strong voice for people across our constituency

Representing the residents of Penistone, Stocksbridge, Chapeltown, Dodworth, and every one of our wonderful villages in Parliament is an immense privilege and one I have been proud to undertake.

Since my election in 2019 I have worked hard to deliver on the priorities of our local communities - I have stood up for the steel industry, campaigned to keep our children safe, fought for investment in local policing, put forward better policies to control immigration, whilst all the time lobbying the Government for more investment in our wonderful region, in our towns and in our villages. 

On the 4th of July there will be a General Election, and electors will have a choice. You can either use your vote to choose a Labour candidate, who will follow Sir Keir Starmer in scrapping the Rwanda deterrent, raising taxes and burdening businesses, overturning RSHE on schools, and letting activists hold our country to ransom.

Or you can use your vote to re-elect me, Miriam Cates, to continue to speak up for you boldly and courageously in Westminster, and to keep pushing ahead with the important work I've been delivering on locally.

Working closely with the Government, I've helped deliver:

• The £24.1 million Town Deal for Stocksbridge and Deepcar, which includes a transformation of Manchester Road, upgrades to sports and leisure facilities - already underway, a new community hub, and a local hopper bus network which gets underway this summer.

• Massive expansion of superfast and gigabit broadband, with work completed or underway across Penistone, Stocksbridge, Dodworth, Ecclesfield and Chapeltown. Incredibly 99% of our region has access to speeds of 30Mbps or more, gigabit 86.7%, Whilst locally we have 96.91% superfast and 63.21% gigbabit coverage. 

• A commitment to fund upgrades to the Penistone Line serving Barnsley, Dodworth, Silkstone Common and Penistone, using money from the Levelling Up Fund.

• A new Community Diagnostic Centre in Barnsley, making it easier for people in Barnsley and Penistone to access health tests and screenings and reduce waiting times. If re-elected I will campaign for a new centre to serve Stocksbridge and North Sheffield too.

• Transport funding for trains, buses and roads including:

  • A £570 million multi-year transport funding settlement for South Yorkshire - funding to deliver improvements in our buses, trams, cycleways and roads

  • A £48 million investment in upgrading the Penistone Line 

  • Post pandemic bus recovery funding to get passengers back up to make our bus routes viable again

  • Accessibility upgrades at Chapeltown, Dodworth and Penistone railway stations

  • Feasibility funding and a commitment to restore passenger trains between Stocksbridge and Sheffield on the existing freight line, using money reprioritised from HS2

• Funding to upgrade or rebuild school buildings at Windmill Hill Primary in Burncross and St John The Baptist Primary in Dodworth

• COVID Recovery funding for important local attractions like Penistone Paramount and Cannon Hall Farm.

Working here in the constituency I've delivered and supported:

• New bus routes such as the #26 and #34 connecting villages like Wortley, Thurgoland, Cubley and Stainborough to local towns

• The new Town Deal hopper bus service serving Stocksbridge, Deepcar and Bolsterstone - launching Summer 2024

• Upgrades to sports facilities at Oxley Park in Stocksbridge, and improvements to the local football and cricket clubs.

• Changes to parking rules in Silkstone and Thurlstone to make access easier for residents and businesses.

• Working with local policing teams to make our roads safer and tackle speeding in Ecclesfield, Chapeltown, Wortley, Hoylandswaine and Ingbirchworth.

• Helping setup broadband voucher schemes to deliver faster and more reliable internet connection in some of our smallest villages such as Bolsterstone and Langsett.

• Major work to bury electricity cables underground at Dunford Bridge, removing the unsightly pylons from the beautiful part of the Peak District.

• A successful campaign to prevent boundary changes from separating the villages of Silkstone and Silkstone Common.

• Supporting the work of local community groups including the High Green Development Trust, the 105th High Green (Sheffield) Scout Group, and the Friends of Grenoside Park.

• Opposing unsustainable housing development of important green spaces such as Hollin Busk, whilst supporting building on suitable brownfield sites where this brings additional improvements to local infrastructure.

• Opposing Sheffield City Council's van tax, brought in through the badly designed and costly CAZ system.

• Engaging with local schools to support important initiatives, including at Horizon Community College in Barnsley, Keresforth Primary in Dodworth, and Tankersley St Peter's Primary.

Working in Parliament, I've campaigned and voted for:

• Major changes to our immigration rules to reduce the number of visas issued and bring down levels of legal migration.

• The toughest possible laws on illegal migration to ensure we have a strong deterrent to stop the boats.

• Tax cuts for working people that will save the average worker £900 this year alone.

• Changes to Child Benefit charges that will mean more families are eligible for support.

• More money for vocational educational and apprenticeships.

• Additional support for our manufacturing industries.

• Protection for the UK steel industry from cheap foreign imports.

• A fair deal for pensioners that ensures the state pension increases by more than inflation each year.

• More support for families with young children to choose the childcare options that are right for them.

• New laws to protect animal welfare and tackle pet theft.

• More affordable housing for families.

• Changes to RSHE in schools so that children are only taught age-appropriate content.

• Protections for single sex spaces and the sex-based rights of women and girls.