My postbag over the past few weeks has been full of queries, concerns and general comment on various aspects of the current financial crisis. I am pleased to say that the Government has unrolled many initiatives to assist those who may be struggling in t

My postbag over the past few weeks has been full of queries, concerns and general comment on various aspects of the current financial crisis.

I am pleased to say that the Government has unrolled many initiatives to assist those who may be struggling in the face of the credit crunch.

Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling's announcement to inject £500 billion pounds into the British banking system has been praised as going ''straight to the heart of the problem... with stunning speed'' by Nobel Prize winner and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman.

The Prime Minister's announcement to inject £50 billion pounds cash from the Treasury into the worst affected banks, effectively part-nationalising three of the high street's biggest banks, with another £250 billion in bank debt guarantee and £200 billion in Bank of England short-term loans, is to encourage banks to begin lending to one another again.

The money has, of course, come with conditions attached, including axing bonuses for the banks' boards and top directors. And although the banks themselves are yet to see a rise in their share values, the overall effect on the market has been very positive, with the FTSE 100 closing higher on both October 13 and 14.

Gordon Brown is the man that you want to be leading the country when the pressure is on, and his financial experience and expertise is paying off globally.

In terms of specific issues, there is a great deal of help available for cutting energy bills - something I know that many of you are concerned about.

Measures such as free insulation for pensioners, winter fuel payments for pensioners and 50 per cent off the cost of loft and cavity wall insulation are just some of the things on offer.

Homeowners are also offered measures such as help from housing associations, and an emphasis on the mortgage lenders to find workable alternatives to repossessions.

Aspiring homeowners can now get interest free loans worth up to 30 per cent of the purchase prices, to help with that all-important first step.

The list goes on and on, and will continue to do so as long as the problems continue.

My office holds full details of all these schemes and more, so do get in touch if you need to.

All in all, this a difficult time, and the majority of us will be carefully watching household budgets, and making cutbacks.

But we've been here before. When I was first elected, debt and house repossessions were a massive part of my constituency casework, and this no longer happens.

Whilst this time, our problems are more global and we are to a certain extent victims of circumstance, I still firmly believe that good old fashioned strength of character will pull us through.

Glenda Jackson is

the Labour MP for

Hampstead & Highgate