IN this week’s column, Labour Warrington North MP Charlotte Nichols discusses multiple sclerosis.

Last month I was elected chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on MS (multiple sclerosis), to be a voice on issues related to MS and highlight areas where more can be done.

This week is MS Awareness Week, and so it is a good opportunity to do just that.

Readers will know that MS is a lifelong condition that affects the nerves in your brain and spinal column, often causing fatigue, problems with eyesight and memory, and walking difficulties. There are different types of condition, some of which come and go, and others which get progressively worse.

There are around 130,000 people with MS in the UK, and this is personal for me because my granddad had MS, which he was diagnosed with when my dad turned three. By six years old, his father was unable to work anymore and my grandmother cared for him full time. Other people close to me have also been affected by MS, and so this is something that I care deeply about.

There is a lot more that we can do to support people with MS. A survey in 2022 found the UK ranked 44 out of 45 European countries for number of neurologists per head of population. With over 13,000 people are currently waiting more than a year for a neurology appointment, we need to train hundreds of more neurological specialists so that people get seen and have treatments prescribed.

People living with MS often face increased costs for their treatments and therapies, and many are unable to work and depend on inadequate benefit payments to sustain them. PIP assessments often do not accurately capture the needs of people with MS where the impacts may fluctuate daily or get progressively worse, as shown by 1 in 10 people with MS who have claimed PIP since it was first introduced who have submitted a mandatory reconsideration and had their decision changed: it wasn’t right the first time. The government should review these assessments so that they truly find the needs of such people.

We have seven MS charities (MS Society, MS Trust, Overcoming MS, Shift.ms, MS-UK, MS National Therapy Centres and MS Together) who do fantastic work in this area supporting and advocating for people with MS, and I urge any constituents who have any questions to contact them or look here https://www.mssociety.org.uk/get-involved/ms-awareness-week.

One in six people in the country have a neurological condition, and there is far more that we can do to recognise them and give them the help that they need.