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| | A view from Westminster |  |
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- 22 October 2010 Linkages Project a Success in Gloucester
Gloucester received a fantastic boost this week, as the government confirmed that our city will receive £7.7million of investment to complete the linkages project. I’ve campaigned long and hard to get this money into Gloucester, holding two parliamentary debates on the issue and lobbying the government whenever I could. I believe the linkages scheme is absolutely vital because it will ensure that people visiting our fantastic new Quays Retail Centre will have easy access to the city centre. This will mean that tourists visiting Gloucester spread their spending money throughout our city. This will be good for businesses and great...
- 15 October 2009 Looking at the Big Picture
I think we saw the best and the worst of Parliament this week. On the plus side I think we moved closer to getting a £30 million investment from the government in to education in the City of Gloucester for a new-build Academy Secondary School. It’s something I’ve been pushing for - for ages. Education Secretary Ed Balls gave my question in the Chamber on Monday a very positive response which leads me to be very hopeful that it should now happen. On the downside, I’ll bet you probably didn’t notice the story about me trying...
- 8 October 2009 Targeting Unemployment in Gloucester
It is a vital task for any politician to battle unemployment. People in work contribute taxes to our public services and feed more money back into the economy. Perhaps more importantly, they often feel more fulfilled and have greater self-esteem. Whilst we can never become complacent, Gloucester can be proud of the innovative ways we have targeted government investment to make a firm, positive impact on levels of unemployment. Throughout the country unemployment has unfortunately been rising. But our city has bucked the trend in recent months. In August the number of Gloucester people claiming unemployment...
- 23 September 2009 Alternatives to Incineration
Let’s try to restore some reasoned debate to the issue of waste. Right now it is a shrill, pink in the face Tory defence of a u-turn from this position: “We will oppose incinerators. Conservatives have already worked to stop incinerators being built in Gloucestershire and we will continue to do so.” Well they don’t anymore.Yet in Britain today, through better kerbside collections we have seen St Arvans in Monmouthshire divert 73% of household waste from landfill. Gloucestershire recycles just 36% of its waste. Back in 2003 the Netherlands was already achieving 65%, with Germany...
- 7 September 2009 Gloucester Day
Last Saturday was a day for Gloucester’s unsung heroes. We celebrated Gloucester Day and we also held a procession to mark the Mayor making ceremony for the Mayor of Barton and St Mary. Although Gloucester Day in many ways is a tribute to Edward Massey for, against the odds, keeping tens of thousands of Royalist troops out of Gloucester for nearly a month in the year 1643, it was also a chance to see some of our more recent heroes. The procession for Gloucester Day included members of our brilliant local Civic Trust, it...
- 27 August 2009 Safer Streets in Gloucester
There aren’t many TV shows than can attract an audience of over 500,000 at 11.20pm on a week night, but the hit US cop show The Wire is one of those privileged few. Its convincing, gritty depiction of urban crime has captivated people across the UK – but surely this isn’t because it reminds them of home? Unfortunately this is what Chris Grayling, the Tory Shadow Home Secretary implied, when he compared Britain to the set of the fictional TV series. It may have been a good sound-bite, but I don’t think it was a fair depiction of...
- 20 August 2009 Time Well Spent in Gloucester During Summer Recess
“What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be on holiday?” is a comment MPs are likely to hear over the summer months. Well, it is mid August and if the newspapers are right, MPs are on a 12 week, or 82 day vacation at the moment. Just flicking through my diary of events for today, Friday, I see I’ve got a meeting in the morning with Gloucestershire First to discuss the local economy. Then I’ll have a regular update meeting at North Warehouse with the leadership of the City Council, followed by a visit...
- 13 August 2009 Redcliffe College - One of Gloucester's Hidden Gems
Gloucester is home to a diverse range of venues where our young people can get a great education and find the course or courses that are right for them. I’m not just talking about our improving schools, or our new £35m College in the Docks, or the Oxstalls Campus, which I was delighted to open in 2002, to bring University status to our City. There are other places of learning that you may not even know about. The other day I was delighted to be able to visit one local college which does not tend to feature...
- 5 August 2009 Have Footballing Institutions Gone Mad?
As our rugby and football seasons are about to kick off, I can’t help but wonder whether the world has gone ever so slightly mad. I can remember as a small boy clustering around an AM/FM radio with my big brother as it was announced that somebody called Trevor Francis was about to become the country’s first ever £1 million football transfer – as he moved from Birmingham City to Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest. This week, as I flicked through telext at home I learned that Aston Villa signed a player who is just...
- 23 July 2009 Keeping Politics Proper
Although Paul James and I have very different political beliefs, I think he is a gentleman who puts Gloucester first and the two of us have always got on, regardless of the fact we have fought two general elections against each other. Politics should be a battle of ideas, not a personal battle. In recent weeks the man who has succeeded Paul as my general election opponent has used a four letter swear word on his website beginning with the letter ‘c’ - most neutrals say in reference to me and without word of apology to me. Well,...
- 16 July 2009 -- Support for Fox Hunting Ban
Are the Tories right to bring back fox-hunting if they win the next general election? I voted to ban hunting with hounds, but not out of a narrow prejudice against the countryside, and not with a desire to carry out class war either. Before I made my decision to vote for a ban on fox-hunting I went out and spent a whole day with the Cotswold Hunt. I tried to keep an open mind. Members of the Hunt themselves confided in me that chasing foxes through fields with hounds was not the best way to keep...
- 24 June 2009 Reflections of a Rollercoaster Week
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster week. I stood for the Speakership of the House of Commons, and although I didn’t get the dreaded ‘nil points’ - I didn’t win either. What’s been really good about the whole campaign though is the way I’ve been able to raise some fundamental issues on a national level – and time and again at hustings meetings, for Newsnight, for the Hansard Society, for The House Magazine and in the Chamber itself on Monday, people of all political persuasions felt the arguments I made were strong. Twitter (for the...
- 9 July 2009 Practicality Can Curb Pain of Recession
In these tricky economic times household budgets are tight for many. Although you may be able to find savings here and there, unfortunately certain things in life are just not up for negotiation and have to be paid come what may. Paying for rent if you live in the 4,600 council homes in our city is one of those non-negotiable costs - and keeping up with the rent can be a real struggle. This is why in March the government announced that it would increase the subsidy it makes available to local Councils to help them reduce...
- 2 July 2009 Bingo! Sustaining Enjoyment and Community in Gloucester
Bingo is important to many people in Gloucester. During each of my visits to the Mecca bingo club in our city, I have been struck by how bingo games provide a sense of community, and lifelong friendships, for many regular players. This is because it is a simple game, with widespread appeal. Additionally, Bingo has always been the most gentle form of gambling and has been a pastime that is affordable to everybody in our community. It is also large employer in Gloucester and across the UK. It was for these reasons that I recently got involved with the...
- 18 June 2009 Family Matters
Sunday will be a very special day in the Dhanda household. It will be my fourth Father’s Day as a dad, and so I’m looking forward to being able to relax and put my feet up! Or perhaps not, I’ll have to see what my wife and two youngsters have got in store. No doubt everything will be put on hold until I get round to mowing the lawn. Jean Jacques Rousseau described the family as “the oldest of all societies, and the only natural one”. Two centuries later this idea that the family and wider society are closely...
- 3 June 2009 Britain's Got Talent
Susan Boyle seems to be the one person attracting more headlines than Gordon Brown in the newspapers this week. I must confess to being one of the 2 million people who first saw her audition on YouTube and I was mightily impressed. But when we watched ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ at home last Saturday night, I couldn’t decide whether I preferred her or the eventual winners, the street dance group Diversity. The fact that Diversity won should make us all feel good about ourselves though. So much had been said about the BNP and whether they will...
- The House of Commons - A Vision of Change
The House of Commons - A Vision of Change 20-5-2009 In a few weeks time the House of Commons will be choosing a new Speaker. I don’t like the way that a mild mannered gent was bundled out of the Speaker’s Chair, but whoever replaces him has a historic opportunity to usher in an era of change. I hope they take it. This is a chance to re-energise Parliament and to involve the public. Parliament’s structures are too rigid. Why is it that Party whips, ministers and shadow ministers decide on issues for ‘topical debate’ in...
- 13 March 2009 Gloucester's business resilience - the Space Business Centre
There’s no getting around it, we are facing tough times. The recession has affected people across the country. We’re feeling it here in Gloucester too. But despite the challenges, local businesses and residents refuse to be defeated. In recent weeks I have seen for myself how they are trying to buck the national trend and lead Gloucester’s fight back against the recession. I recently attended the launch of the ‘Space Business Centre’, a major new initiative containing 53 business units in Quedgeley. With only one month’s advanced notice required for them to leave an office unit, the...
- 06 March 2009 Support for local businesses - the success story of Target Catering
It’s so important that when times are tough, local businesses get the support they need. In recent months I have been to visit small and medium sized businesses across our City. I wanted to see for myself how they are coping in the downturn and offer any support that I can give. I recently visited the factory of Target Catering, a specialist kitchen equipment business based near the Bristol Road. The business is an impressive one. Over the past twenty years it has gown from strength to strength and is now a leading supplier of specialist...
- 20 February 2009 What next for Gaza
Israel’s military assault on Gaza last month left over a thousand Palestinians dead and thousands more injured and in desperate need of humanitarian aid. I spoke out at the time on the floor of the House of Commons and addressed a rally of nearly 300 City residents who came together on the streets of Gloucester to show their solidarity with the conflict’s many victims. Lasting peace in the Middle East still feels like a distant hope. While Hamas continue to launch rockets into Israel and while the Israeli government responds with disproportionate and deadly force it will...
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