The Jubilee celebrations begin

Today an elegant but small pensioner, who is also a grandmother, will celebrate her 60 years as head of state by going racing to the Derby. I speak, of course, of the Queen. You cannot find anyone who would reproach her. She is an example to all of us.Yet if one thing shines through above all others it is her sense of duty and pride in her job.

Yet she works harder than almost anyone I know; for her, I get the impression that doing a good job for the benefit of others is the most important thing. Her dignity derives from her invariable respect for the role that birth and fate have given her. The Queen is religious, but accepting of all faiths. She also has grace - both generally and under pressure. We are very lucky to have her.

Hope she enjoys the Derby - my tips are in todays Journal, where I am the guest racing correspondent - am having a go against the hot faourite Camelot.

The path to a local Bank of Northumberland gets easier

I have long campaigned for the banking system to be transferred back to its traditional community role. Slowly this is becoming a reality, as a series of incremental steps take place in Westminster, Europe and the North East. In Europe the ever worsening demise of the Greek and Spanish banks is testament to easy credit, loans without thought or consequences, and the steady flight of capital from these two countries banks. Whatever the leaders say, the voters simply do not believe that their banks in thse countries will survive. Speak to any property expert in London or a London banker and they will both tell you that it is clear that many Greeks and Spaniards are depositing their money in London property and banks.

There are two solutions emerging from the car crash that is the banking crisis.
i). Firstly, you have to wonder why the German economy is doing so well and they have no property crash or failed infrastructure "bridges to nowhere"? It is simple. 70% of all German business lending is done by way of the local community banks. In most countries the lending is done by big superbanks, which are impersonal, and dominated by a London knows best attitude. German SME lending is done by local people to local people. It is a model that we would be well advised to take note of because we can replicate it here.
ii). Secondly, both in Westminster and in the North east people are beginning to take notice. Interest in local banking has grown to such an extent that the BBC's Sunday Politics Show is focusing some time on the issue next Sunday June 10th. For my part I was pleased to get the chance to speak on this issue in the House of Commons recently. The key extract of the speech is as follows:

That is why I support wholeheartedly the competition objectives set out in new Financial Services Act, clause 5, states that there should be an emphasis on:
“the ease with which new entrants can enter the market, and…how far competition is encouraging innovation.”

I am grateful for what Hector Sants, the present chief executive of the FSA, told me in a letter dated 12 March:


"We are conscious of the balance to be struck between ensuring high standards at the gateway, and the importance of allowing innovation and appropriate levels of access for new firms.”


The letter continues:
“there has been public debate about the potential advantages of new entrants in the area of small, regional banks focused on servicing the SME sector. In such cases we will be proportionate in our approach and would invite all firms with a viable business model and appropriate levels of resources to a pre-application meeting to help guide them through the application process”.


The Bill will, I suggest and sincerely hope, make it easer to establish local banks, which can only be a good thing.

The momentum is growing: a local community bank run by local people for the investments of local people will happen in the North East, and not before time. I hope the BBC programme on Sunday week shows more on why this is such a good thing.

Jubilee Plans this weekend

In Westminster still but everyone now going completely Jubilee! My key plans for the Northumberland weekend are:
- Humshaugh Fete and events at Wylam and Slaley on Saturday
- The Abbey on Sunday morning followed by Prudhoe Street Party and the Bywell Jubilee party
[making a short speech to 1800 people there - I promise you it will be 20 seconds long max!]
- Monday sees the County Show and the various Hexham Beacon events
- Tuesday I am trying to get to several of the smaller Jubilee parties but definitely going to Henshaw / Bardon Mill and trying to head out west to Gilsland / Greenhead

Haydon Bridge Beer Festival - Friday July 6th, 6pm

I am to become a barman! On Friday July 6th at 6pm I will be serving pints at the Haydon Bridge Beer Festival. I cannot wait and would urge everyone to put it in their diaries. The beer is outstanding and covers a huge variety.
Northumberrland is rightly becoming famous as the Beer capital of England - with outstanding breweries at Wylam, Matfen and Allendale to name a few. The causes the festival supports are numerous and worthy - including the Air Ambulance, which we are campaigning for in the House of Commons, and Tynedale Hospice =which I did the charity walk for last year.
The event features:

- 36 local Ales

- 14 Ciders from around the UK

- & Wines from around the world in our the gloriously named wine lounge.

and delicious food!

The attached link shows some of the fun but otherwise visit the main website:

 http://haydonbeerfestival.co.uk/july-2011-photographs/

 

My thanks in particular to all the local organisers and the key sponsors = WMH Farm Fresh Meats and ACIS Renewable Energy Ltd.

http://haydonbeerfestival.co.uk/home/

You might want to find a very teetotal friend to act as the designated driver [or take the train].

It will be a great night and worth putting in your diary. It also goes all day Saturday July 7th - when I shall be working at the real job!

Oil Buying Groups, the Office of Fair Trading Report, and the involvement of WHICH.

On Wednesday in Westminster the message was clear: Remote Communities need special attention. The OFT were in Westminster, where they gave a taster of their upcoming report into Remote Communities - which featured Hexham and the Upper North Tyne so significantly. Publication is expected in a month. It will look not just at fuel but at all aspects of rural living, including access to public and other services.
Separately, I recently received a helpful report by Mike Murray, who runs the North Tyne valley oil buying group.
His report is fascinating:

"You probably know that there are now six groups in this area (at Allendale, Hamsterley, Haydon Bridge, Humshaugh, in the North Tyne valley and at Slaley.) The groups probably have 700 or 800 members. Members are mainly householders. But a number of farmers, churches and village halls, a pub and several SMEs are members. It is likely that several thousand people now benefit from the work of the buying groups. Each group has a co-ordinator. The co-ordinators stay in touch and have recently been able to consolidate monthly orders. Last week the group at Humshaugh ordered some 18 500 litres. Earlier this week the remaining groups ordered some 90 000 litres. In the past four months we have taken our business to three different suppliers. In addition to the six groups there are three potential groups in the area. I called on a potential group at Scots Gap earlier in the week. And I have been exchanging messages with a potential group at Capheaton. These two potential groups are now in touch and will, I think, see if it may be wise to work as a single group. I am off to Haltwhistle next week to talk to a potential group there. Any new group in the area would be welcome to consolidate orders."

I cannot praise the work of these pioneers of people power highly enough. To watch their enthusiasm and work to battle the iniquity that is fuel poverty [which is 24% in the North East] is very impressive.

The effect of this consumer led revolution is not lost on the wider world and I am pleased to say that I have been working with the magazine "WHICH", who are also behind the Big Switch campaign, to see if we can share good ideas and both spread the message on oil buying to a global audience, whilst also tackling an attempt at a larger purchase of electricity supply - which seems a natural extension and expansion of the oil buying groups efforts. These plans have been delayed by the demands of day job, but I am resolved to tackle the work with WHICH very shortly and will report back.

Opposition to Green Belt Building grows

I am stongly opposed to building on green belt land: so I am pleased to report that the plans of the Labour Newcastle Council to build at Callerton, on our boundary edge, have taken another hit, as reported in todays Journal:
http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2012/05/25/green-belt-delight-as-newcastle-house-building-plans-slashed-61634-31041692/
Their plan is amazing - given that there are countless brownfield sites in central newcastle which they have chosen to ignore - so that they can bulldoze over Callerton Green fields, and treasured parts of Gosforth.

Similar plans to build a possible 1000 homes on another site on the edge of Ponteland are also opposed, as reported in yesterdays Morpeth Herald:
http://www.morpethherald.co.uk/community/local-information/infrastructure-fears-of-homes-expansion-1-4579219

My view is simply this: I am in favour of local community housing that supplements and does not impinge on the community infrastructure, and which provides the local housing for local people. Such housing should be fundamentally on brown field sites, unless there is an overwhelming local desire for this not to happen.
However, as I am required to do so, I will wait for the upcoming explanation in the proposing company's open day demonstration of their plans. However, I am certain that this proposal is unlikely to find favour with local people - particularly when there are brown field sites available.
This view is also backed up by the effects of the Localism Bill and the new National Planning Policy Framework, and the comments of the Planning Minister to me recently in the House of Commons. I will be looking to Northumberland County Council to ensure that they enforce the provisions of the governments work to provide green belt protection.

Prudhoe Community High School gets its rebuild - Back The Bid is successful! A good birthday present for Dr Iain Shaw!

Good news for PCHS [pictured]
It is with great pleasure that I can welcome the announcement today that the Government have decided to “Back the Bid” and allocate funding for the school in Prudhoe. Regular readers will know that this is something that I am very passionate about, not least because the school desperately needs work. I have been able to get Michael Gove to meet the School's headteacher and it is fair to say that our campaign has been amongst the most vigorous ever mounted for school funding. My commiserations to those schools who have missed out in these difficult times but I am so proud of everyone who has backed the bid.

I took the opportunity in November to ask the Prime Minister at PMQs if he would support our campaign:
Guy Opperman (Hexham) (Con): Schools in rural Northumberland were largely ignored by the previous Government. With the schools budget rising from £35 billion to £39 billion in 2015, will the Prime Minister welcome the finance bid put forward by Prudhoe community high school in my constituency?

The Prime Minister: I will certainly welcome that bid. It is important to note that, because we are protecting the per-pupil funding, even at a difficult time for the economy and public spending, the education budget will be rising and not falling.... As well as the extra investment in the schools budget, there is also the opportunity for free schools, which I think are going to be a major reform in our country, to bring in more good school places.

I cannot say much more than express how delighted I am for everyone, but most of all the headteacher Dr. Iain Shaw, all the teachers, governors, councillors and students of Prudhoe, who should be very proud; everyone has been very patient, so I want to thank you all for this. I think we can all agree, however, that the result has been well worth the wait!
There was also success for schools in Bedlington and Alnwick.
The full ministerial statement is set out here:
http://www.emcsrv.com/prolog/PG/Docstore/WMS-FINAL.pdf

The last word should go to the school's inspirational headteacher, Dr Iain Shaw who emailed me this afternoon after telling the schools staff:
"Dear Guy,
Many thanks for all you support with this bid. Just been with all my colleagues at an ‘extraordinary’ staff meeting to tell them the news, they left slightly dazed! I know that this is the beginning of a new set of challenges but feel so relieved that millions of pounds of repairs needed here will be addressed. Do you think Michael Gove knew it was my birthday today?"

Energy - the House of Commons debates nuclear, petrol prices and shale gas

The House of Commons has seen a series of debates and statements to the House this week, as to how we keep the lights on, how we heat our homes, and how we run our cars.
Various governements have dithered about nuclear energy policy in the last 20 years but we learned in this week's energy statement that the UK can carry on running its existing fleet of nuclear power stations for longer. The safety case will be examined reactor by reactor, but the mood is to lengthen their lives. It’s certainly a cheap and immediate answer to the short term problem of how to keep the lights on.
I have been struck by how the people who live near a nuclear reactor are all very keen to have a second one built to replace the old. This is surely the biggest advert for their inherent safety. The government has found a way of paying investors and operators more to generate power from future new nuclear stations that does not fall foul of EU subsidy rules. We are clearly right to look to a mix of different power sources as fossil fuel reserves, particularly oil, begins to decine. This should include renewables, albeit like many in Northumberland, I have grave reservations about the efficacy, productivity and cost of onshore wind farms. They are very unpopular locally - not least because they divide communities.

Into this context I debated this week the issue of shale gas and petrol prices:
I have been impressed by the data and reports in to Shale Gas, which has transformed the American economy: if we can find an enviromentally acceptable way of extracting shale gas then this will go a long way to energy security, as shale gas is added to the North Sea natural gas deposits. I spoke on Tuesday in the shale gas debate brought by a number of Lancashire MPs, which can be found here:
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/whall/?id=2012-05-22a.49.0&s=speaker%3A24962#g50.0

Separately yesterday I debated the issue of Fuel Prices and called for an Office of Fair Trading Investigation into the oil companies and petrol prices generally. The full debate led by my friend the member for Harlow Robert Halfon can be found here:
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/whall/?id=2012-05-23a.135.0&s=speaker%3A24962#g136.2

Good news on Charlotte Straker Nursing Home

I am pleased to report for certain that the Charlotte Straker Home in Corbridge will defintely retain its palliative care facility. The full story is reported in todays Journal:
http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2012/05/23/corbridge-nursing-home-reaches-agreement-on-end-of-life-beds-61634-31025721/

As the local medical director has put it: "this is good news for the local residents, as it is extremely important that end of life care is proivided in the community."
There is also a plan that this formula could be replicated across Northumberland as Charlotte Straker is a shining example of Nursing care.

Open Cast Mining - Halton Lea Gate and Whittonstall Applications

Northumberland has a long tradition of mining. Some look back to it with great fondness for a bygone age. Others argue that it was an inherently dangerous, unhealthy and poorly paid way to make a living, that in the process despoiled our countryside. It is true that our history of lead, tin and coal mining has shaped the local area significantly - indeed I have over 100 former mines in my constituency alone. But the mining methods have moved on and now it is dominated by open cast mining for coal. This is a different type of mining, and a lot safer for the miners. The constituency I represent has numerous open cast mining sites. I have visited them all - from the huge expanse of the Shotton mine, to the proposed sites at Halton Lea Gate [pictured] and the UK Coal application in Whittonstall.
As the MP I have no power over the decision to grant or reject the application, because it is controlled by the Northumberland County Council. I also have to stay out of the matter, not least because I am required by the very nature of my job to represent, to the best of my ability, both sides of the local argument: this applies on the one hand to the simplest planning application for an extension, which only one neighbour might object to, as compared to large applications that impact on a number of people both from a positive and negative standpoint.  I have been a parish and local councillor before and all councillors know that every application can attract support and opposition. So it is with applications to the Council for open cast mines.

From a constituency MP's point of view what is significant is the way in which the different companies have engaged with the relevant local communities. People are inherently distrustful of significant change that they cannot control. Companies that wish to get community support for open cast mining have a major hurdle to overcome. However, it can be done - I have visited the Shotton Mine and the local area: by and large there is support for the mine, the many local jobs it brings, the wages that are paid, and the way in which the company engages with the community. There is also a significant tourism benefit in the long run with the creation of the Northumberlandia earth sculpture [see below] - the biggest ever of its type. Full details on this can be found in the report from the Journal:
http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2011/08/11/northumberlandia-sculpture-taking-shape-near-cramlington-61634-29215915/2/

There are presently two applications before the Council for open cast mines. I campaigned against the Halton Lea Gate mine from a very early stage of being the candidate, long before the general election [see the blog post for late 2008]. In many ways I was freer to act as an activist as the candidate, as compared to the MP, who is restained by the obligations and requirements of the job. However, I have recently written to the Chief Executive of the County Council ensuring that local peoples objections, as expressed to me, are heard. It is fair to say that the objections are almost exactly as they were before I became the MP when this application was turned down by the County Council. It has also concerned me that there were possible problems with objectors having their say at the recent public inquiry - it is patently vital, and a fundamental part of natural justice, that all voices should be heard. That is the foundation of democracy. For my part I was in Westminster and unable to attend the inquiry, which was midweek.

I have also recently met with the representatives of the objectors to the Whittonstall open cast mine. This was the latest in a long line of meetings with local representatives, and on one occasion in 2010, UK Coal, who make the application. It is clear that there are many hundreds of objections to this scheme, and that the majority of the local people, parish councils and businesses surveyed are against the proposal. The objectors are eloquent, organised and passionate about their cause. They have set out their objections in detail on their Community website: http://www.whittonstallactiongroup.co.uk/home.php

Again, I have written to the Chief Executive of the County Council to stress, in particular, the need for the impacts of the new Localism Bill to be fully understood by the relevant planning officers when assessing such an application. It is also wrong that these applications should take so long and be submitted on a repeated basis - it creates a blight upon the homes and businesses in the local area which is manifestly unfair.

It is not for me to decide these two applications. The whole point of the Coalition Government's approach to localism is that local people should have a real influence on how their local area is managed, developed and run - on all levels from housing to planning. One thing is clear to me. Neither of the 2 companies who seek to put forward applications for open cast mining have been able to persuade the majority of the local population that their plans are good for the community. On this issue the companies need to ask themselves why?

The land of Maybe, Maybe ....the giving of gifts to Greece is about to stop

Once again there is a gathering storm over the Euro. Greece is losing money from its own bank accounts and quite clearly Greece cannot form a government. New elections will lead to more extreme parties seeking ever more demands from the ECB to solve their problems. The Greeks do not want to leave the Euro - why would they? The Eurozone keeps bailing them out.
There are only a few outcomes in the months ahead:

i). One is that the EU say they can give no more. They have been here before and have already accepted one large write down of Greek state debt owned by banks and other private sector individuals, companies and funds. They could take the perfectly sensible view that allowing another lapse in conditions of the loan would simply lead to other countries demanding the same treatment. It would undermine the discipline the zone needs, and would send a signal to all that there is no need to meet solemn requirements entered into. Either Greece has to back down and try to do implement the agreement, or they need to move quickly to arrange an exit from the Euro on this option.

ii). We could have another temporary fix. Maybe more debt could be written off. Maybe the timetable for meeting the requirements for reform and budget deficit cuts could be extended. Maybe the ECB might issue yet more money to other worried banking systems to support other states in trouble. Just enough cash would be released for Greece to pay the basic bills and stave off full bankruptcy. Maybe this time Greece would do the right thing and pay its bills and live within its means.
Maybe we would not be back in the same position in 6 months time or less.

iii). The third option is that the Euro area moves more swiftly to fiscal union, with the richer areas accepting their responsibility to send much more money by way of transfer payments to the poorer parts like Greece. It is difficult to believe Germany would be willing to do this. Mrs Merkel has just suffered a bad regional election defeat and is unlikely to want to have to tell her electors in the run up to the German General Election next year that they are going to have to pay a lot more tax to subsidise the weak parts of the Euro zone.
Maybe Merkel and Hollande will make up and bring fiscal union of the Eurozone. But Hollande is thinking only of France right now, which means that this last scenario will not happen. And there is no appetite in Germany for vassal states, particularly one as dysfunctional as Greece.

Maybe.... Maybe
Whilst the Euro politicians squabble a two speed Eurozone seems inevitable. Noone in Europe wants Greece to leave the Euro but as its capital flees from its beleagured banks they will be forced to leave. The time for a negotiated exit has long gone. This will not be a simple death but a bloody one I fear.

Maybe this will not affect us here in the United Kingdom, but I am afraid it will. When many of your customers go bust your own business suffers. That is what will happen here.

Finally the world is getting tired of giving yet more gifts to the Greeks.  But then again Maybe ....

The County Show - "from cakes to combines, and everything else in between"

There is only one place to be on Monday June 4th
The County Show in Corbridge is the place to be for a fun packed, all action extravaganza of everything that is Northumberland and beyond.  I have agreed to be a Judge of the Light Horses at the Show and the Indoor Tradestands. This may be an error. Judges have to make decisions as to who wins and loses: this is a difficult task as it is subjective. Judges are never popular, but I am looking forward to the day. The organisers are doing an amazing job at getting everything ready and I am badgering Northern Rail to ensure that there will be a plethora of long and regular trains to get people from Newcastle to Corbridge and back.
The main arena is packed all day with heavy horses, the Blazing Saddles Equine Stunt Team and Jason Smyths Adrenaline Tour – stunts with quads and motorbikes, but the highlight for many is always the Grand Parade of winning livestock at 3.15, from which the Champion of Champions is awarded. In celebration of the Queens Diamond Jubilee there are fancy dress classes with the theme Rule Britannia at 12.30 in the Cumberland wrestling ring. Free to enter, just turn up in fancy dress and judged by Jaws from the James Bond movies, sounds like fun! Also to mark the Jubilee, Champion of Champions sponsors, JS Hubbuck, agricultural merchants of Hexham have offered a limited edition, Border Fine Art figure of the Queen on horseback Trooping the Colour, to be raffled in aid of the Great North Air Ambulance. The winning ticket will be drawn after the Grand Parade and the hope is to raise £10,000 for this vital service for rural communities.

My jobs are twofold:
There is a huge entry for the livestock sections but particularly in the light horses with loyal competitors keen to be part of the day that marks the end of an era. This year sees the last show at Tynedale Park after more than 60 years before the move to Bywell in 2013. As Light Horse Champion judge the unenviable task is to choose a Champion from ponies, coloured horses, side saddle, show ponies, moorland and mountain working horses and ponies, and all manner of hunters. The judging takes place at approx 4.30 in horse ring 2 and the Champion is awarded the prestigious AC Silver Loving Cup.

Beforehand, my other judging commitment is the massive ‘indoor tradestands’. The show has over 350 tradestands: - ‘from cakes to combines and everything in between’ is the boast from the show office.
‘Indoor’ covers the craft and the indoor shopping marquees, artists, soap makers, jewellers, home accessories; the list goes on – another unenviable task!

I will be at the show all day and urge you to come along. There is nothing like it, and there is something for everyone, and good money being rasied for great community local charities. If you see me, please say hello!

Debts: how do you deal with them?

My Labour opponents in the House of Commons have opposed every single cut in public spending these last 2 years. This talk of too far too fast is a catchphrase for keep spending

When this Government entered office, there was no acceptance that we had borrowed too much and were hock deep in debt. We lacked a credible plan to convince the bond markets that Britain was serious about dealing with its debts. Recently, some people have been arguing that the deficit reduction isn’t happening fast enough.
As we all know, Ed Balls’ answer to the debt crisis is even more spending, more borrowing and more debt. He has learnt nothing from the mistakes he made as Gordon Brown’s right-hand man and is consequently isolated in the international debate on deficit reduction.

The IMF, the OECD and every business organisation in Britain believe the Government has the right plan. Mervyn King said recently that it was ‘a textbook response’.
  
The Coalition cut £6 billion from the deficit in 2010-11. The deficit is continuing to come down, and there are good news out there - like the jobs figures for last month which show an increase in employment. Apprentice numbers are soaring and slowly there are signs of change in bank lending.

 But it would be niave if I did not accept that some people do not like the medicine. Noone likes the person who tells them that they cannot spend or that their pet project is just too expensive. But I remain absolutely convinced that getting our debt under control, whilst boosting infastructure and job creation is the key to this crisis. We are all going to have to accept that the days of easy money, easy credit and endless public spending are what got us into this mess in the first place. There is no magic wand out there. I fear that the failure to accept its responsibilities will spell disaster in Greece, with extremists, civil unrest and a totally dysfunctional economy. I for one do not want our country to disintegrate like theirs.

When Boris met the BBC Art Critic makes a good read

When Boris met the BBC Art critic makes a fascinating backdrop to an assessment of the BBC. My experience has been nothing but good locally but he makes a very good point. On the subject of the Olympics he also is able to deal with the issue: should sponsors help to pay for the Olympics or should it come out of the pocket of the man or woman in the street? Worth a read:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/borisjohnson/9263772/The-statist-defeatist-and-biased-BBC-is-on-the-wrong-wavelength.html

Opening of the National Hospitals Neuro Imaging Analysis Centre - my thanks to all the fundraisers and hikers.

Very proud of all the hikers, and sponsors, who helped me raise over £3000 for the National Hospital for Neurology and Neuroscience at Queens Square in London. A couple of weeks ago I attended the opening of the new Neuroimaging Analysis Centre with the Chief Executive, Theresa Dauncey, and Professor Tarek Yousry- Professor of Neuroradiology at the Hospital.

The Centre is groundbreaking in its ability to diagnose and assist surgeons operating to remove brain tumours and will clearly save lives. Many congratulations to the National Brain Appeal for all their hard work. It was a very moving day.

Meeting our Ambassadors to Sweden and Norway to discuss how we can bring business to the North East

With our ambassadors Jane Owen [Norway] and Paul Johnston [Sweden] in Portcullis House.
Tuesday of last week gave me the opportunity to meet Her Majesty's ambassadors to Sweden and Norway. Both are formidably bright and passionate about their jobs.
All our ambassadors attend London in the first week of May for a Leadership Conference, with a chance to brainstorm both together and with top officials / government. I took advantage of their proximity to set up a meeting to discuss how these 2 key countries can boost business in the North East. Our ambassadors and their staff are now being specifically instructed by the Coalition Government to be both the trade envoy and the shop window for all the great business opportunities that Britain both offers and provides. I was very pleased with our discussion and am sure we can work together to try and promote trade. Certainly this is something I am discussing with the North East Chamber of Commerce and local businesses in Northumberland. Indeed, in the North East our nearest neighbours, in so many ways, are the Scandinavian countries, as opposed to the French or Italians. We also stand a better prospect of getting investment into the North East and similar export of our goods to these countries, given that the Scandinavian economies are in a far better financial state than the core members of the Euro.

Sweden is also the home of SCA, which employs over 400 men and women in their fantastic factory in Prudhoe, so I was doubly keen to meet with our man in Sweden. There is huge scope for our exporters to go to these countries and I hope to lead, or be part of, a trade delegation to Scandinavia in the next year, if possible.

Early start radio interview and the Queens Speech

We do pageantry so well - saw these gents waiting for the Queen outside Westminster. All along Whitehall there were guaredsman ready to escort her back to the Palace.
Aside from reducing the deficit and boosting growth the Queens Speech legislative programme will help small businesses and
- start a Green Investment Bank
- reform the electricity energy market
- increase state pension
- make it easier for parents to be able to work
- improve disability suppoort and help children with special education needs
- reform the House of Lords
My radio interview today on the programme can be found on this link =53 half minutes in  http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/radio/bbc_radio_newcastle/20120509

Westminster quiet today but a very early radio call in the morning

Westminster very quiet today - but have got a lot done as the phone was not going mad! Big day tomorrow with the Queeens Speech and a lot happening.
I am doing BBC Radio Newcastle at 7.20am LIVE tomorrow morning! I think Alfie and Charlie are conspiring to get me out of bed, and wide awake, earlier and earlier! Sorry if I am serious whilst you are all eating your cornflakes or driving to work.
95.4FM for the enthusiastic, interested, or curious.

Arch Cru Compensation - more encouraging news

Very pleased to see significant developments for the thousands of people who have lost money in this terrible scandal. I have several constituents who have lost all, or some, of their life savings.
Full report in todays paper: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/investing/article-2140047/FSA-payout-plan-fails-appease-Arch-Cru-victims.html

I am quoted. My view remains that our job is to try and esure that there is the maximum possible recovery for our constituents. The case bears all the savage hallmarks of Equitable Life, although fortunately it is not quite so bad.

My opinion is that there will be recovery as follows:
- the £54 million negotiated package from Capita and others
- the moneys recovered by the effective administrator of Arch = Mr H Aldous
- the moneys recovered by the litigation brought against former executives [both of these are ongoing processes]
and lately the FSA has got involved in proposing a £110million package of compensation from independent financial advisors.
It is important to note that some advisors are clearly blameless. It all depends upon the individual relationship and advice given. But this package must be welcomed in broad terms, although I would want to see the details before giving a definitive opinion, and would struggle to advise on specifics. The full document from the FSA is described in detail at the end of the Mail's piece today.

One thing is clear: the fight goes on and those who have not put their hand in their pocket will soon have to make some compensation - as the list of negligent bodies in this sorry mess has not been finished.

I wish all the losers in this matter well. They need to hold their nerve, do their best to preserve their health and sanity in a difficult time, and understand that everyone in the House of Commons is right behind them - indeed the All Party Group on Arch Cru is the largest new APG in the new House of Commons - we have gone from 0 to over 85 in no time. It is a particular source of pride that it is all party - I work hand in glove with my labour colleague Tom Greatrex, MP, and representatives from all the other parties.

Local Elections 2012

Well with the Boris result in just before midnight that brings the Local Elections to a close for 2012. There have no doubt been some tough results for the Conservatives across the country this year. I have been especially disappointed to see some excellent local Conservative Councillors defeated in North Tyneside and Sunderland. The No result for a Newcastle Mayor was a disappointment too but I hope the Council takes notice that 25,000 Geordies feel the current system isn’t delivering. There was of course one really fantastic result for the Conservatives - Boris Johnson winning another term as Mayor of London with a million vote mandate. We can all be proud of that. I want to say thank you to Conservatives up and down the country; councillors, candidates, activists, members and supporters, who stuck by the party after a tough couple of months. We move on now with a renewed focus on delivering jobs and growth for our great country. Well done to all candidates, of whatever party, who took part in the elections this year.

Campaigning for Boris on Election Night - London needs a "Low tax, cost cutting, One Nation, Eurosceptic, bendy bus hating, bicycling Conservative"

Yesterday I spent a significant amount of time in Conservative Central Office campaigning for Boris. Today the votes are going to be counted and my prediction is that he will win. I thought that readers would like to understand the scene at CCHQ.
Generally the place was packed with well over a hundred supporters, many staffers, Sayeeda Warsi and 2 MPs -  the other one was Stephen Phillips, who was almost never off the phone for 4 hours. All of us were on the phones, trying to persuade voters to get out and vote as the clock counted down to 10 o'clock. At around 8pm Boris came in and thanked everyone personally and gave a short 3 minute speech before heading off again on the campaign trail. I phoned a multitude of areas including several West London suburbs, Worcester Park and Chingford but nowhere was left out.
I arrived with boxloads of chocolates [Heroes and Celebrations were a big hit], jelly babies and lots of jaffa cakes from the Tesco in Westminster, but then at around 9pm I headed out and bought some Lockets, a couple of crates of beers and a couple of bottles of wine to ease the throats of the volunteers who never ceased working until the end.
Huge admiration must go out to the staff at CCHQ who worked tirelessly, with real discipline and total focus - even though many were out on their feet. Sayeeda was there throughout until she had to go off to do the live TV post election debate.
You can never tell with elections and turnout was clearly down with the rainy day but in my view Boris wins. I spoke to several Labour voters throughout the day who simply would not back Ken. There was also a lot of support for Boris's plans, the fact that he is clearly pro businesses, jobs, and cycling, and most importantly his way of telling it like it is.

The Eurozone Crisis and the French Election

As France goes to the polls this weekend, and the European Central Bank meet today to assess the state of the Eurozone, it is worth reminding ourselves what is at stake: our country is in difficulties, with 8% unemployment, albeit this figure is coming down, and we are on a slow journey back from the possible bankruptcy we were heading for. Noone likes the medicine but in the long term it will make us better. Anyone doubting the present course need only look to Europe and study the unemployment and debt situations in the Eurozone.
An analysis of unemployment shows that total unemployment rates in March 2012 were as follows:
- Spain: 24%
- Greece: 21%
- Portugal 15%
- France 10%

It gets more frightening when you look at youth unemployment:
In Spain and Greece this is 50%+
We should take pride in the fact that our apprentice figures have doubled and that slowly the jobs are coming in the private sector to fill the public sector squeeze. Manufacturing in the UK is holding up well, and locally in Northumberland there are signs of well built, locally wanted, mixed use housebuilding projects at Stannington, for example, that will make a huge difference.  

Into this context I put the French Election: Hollande, the French Socialist Candidate, looks like winning, notwithstanding a typically combative performance from Sarkozy in the only French TV Debate on Wednesday night. The key issue is how do you get out of a debt crisis. Many will recognise Sarkozy's attack on Hollande for not being serious about the task of cutting the deficit.
"If you want to control your destiny, the first task is to bring down the debt," he said.

This is also the crucial debate that frames Britain. When you are in debt does the state borrow significantly more to fund its way out of a debt crisis?
I believe that we need to live within our means. That means making tough decisions. But I do see signs that the medecine is working. In the House of Commons there is a simple opposition by the Labour party to every single effort the Coalition has made to cut the deficit. Not one time have they agreed to cut the bills paid by UK PLC.

In France, Hollande clearly wants and intends to borrow much more, at high interest rates, and try to spend his way out of a debt crisis. He may win the election. The issue will be whether his economic approach works. As a fiscal Conservative I think he is wrong. The issue is whether by his actions he brings down the Eurozone as their fragile debt agreements spiral out of control. That would affect us in Britian dramatically.

Vote for Mayors - Newcastle and London decide

A simple message today: Mayors have been shown to work in the great cities of London, Paris, New York and San Francisco. If you are happy with the way the great city of Newcastle is run then so be it, but I have a vision of a city that is:
- regenerated
- with thriving business opportunities
- genuinely competing with London, Manchester and the Scottish cities
and Boris Bikes, cycle lanes and a city that is genuinely open to all.
So when you go the polls in Newcastle I urge you to vote for a Mayor and our Conservative candidates who have worked so hard to give local voters local representation.
For my part as several thousand people from the South East read this blog my simple message is Vote Boris! He has done a good job in London and anything is preferable to the awful Ken Livingston

May 2nd opening of Neuro Imaging centre - my thanks to all those who walked and fundraised with me

Today sees the opening of the new Neuroimaging Analysis Centre at The National Neurological Hospital in Queens Square, London.

This hospital saved my life and it is a wonderful place - I am pleased to have been able to raise money in the form of over £3,000 for it and know this work and the new centre will help save lives. The Hadrians Wall walk raised money both for Tynedale Hospice and this Hospital.
Looking forward to seeing the doctors and nurses [as always I will be taking in armfuls of chocolate for the ward nurses - night shifts require the ultimate endurance food!].

Building on the Green Belt in Newcastle and Northumberland

Monday saw questions to the Dept of Communities and Local Government Minister for Housing and Green Belt, and I got the chance to raise local housing and our plans to protect the green belt:

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Guy Opperman (Hexham, Conservative)

What steps he is taking to promote the refurbishment of empty and vacant homes in Northumberland.

 

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Andrew Stunell (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Communities and Local Government; Hazel Grove, Liberal Democrat)

I have allocated £150 million to bring empty homes back into use, and £160,000 has already been committed to a project in Northumberland, subject to contract. In addition, of course, Northumberland has received a reward of £630,000 through the new homes bonus for bringing 256 long-term empty homes back into use.

 

Guy Opperman (Hexham, Conservative)

I thank the Minister for that answer. Does he agree that Northumberland county council, in drawing up its local development framework, should promote and maintain brownfield sites for development before any greenfield sites?

Andrew Stunell (Parliamentary Under Secretary)

I certainly agree with my hon. Friend, and I draw his and the council’s attention to the publication, two weeks ago, of the national planning policy framework, which sets out the importance of making sure that all such plans are founded on the principles of sustainable development. Of course, the Government want to encourage every local authority to focus on land of the least environmental quality, and that, of course, includes brownfield sites.

Good news for green belt protection and our plans to bring empty homes back into use

Mayoral and Local Elections this Thursday

Last Friday I appreared on BBC Radio Newcastle - you can listen to the show here - I was on 1 hour 50 minutes in: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00qr093
My hope is that Newcastle votes for a Mayor - we need strong leadership to turn the city around after years of neglect. I would like to see no building on local green belt, Boris bikes in Newcastle, and some real urban regeneration of the great city.

St Georges Day in Northumberland and much to report

A blustery, sometimes rainy, occasionally sunny, day in Hexham was the venue for Saturdays St Georges Day celebrations, the Market, the Book Festival and so much more: I spent several hours chatting and buying everything from one of Andy Bates Hexham made belts, to local books from the History Society stand, to local cheese and a Kielder Organic Bacon Butty. Brian Sewell, the London art critic and journalist for the Spectator and Evening Standard wandered around, as well as hundreds of locals, enjoying the efforts of the stall holders and the organisers.
Then went on to Haydon Bridge Community Centre where I popped into the coffee morning and bought too many books and yet more cheese scones [some were to be given away later as a present] and agreed to try and make their Jubilee celebrations on Tuesday June 5th.
Then on to Bellingham where a group of us enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Cheviot Hotel and met the team behind the Friends of Bellingham Surgery, and the barrister who fought their case for them in the High Court. Had time to pop in also to the Bellingham Heritage Museum, and the new cafe which is next door in a railway carriage ... where more cheese scones were purchased. All scones - those munched and given away as presents were delicious.
A great day

The influence of China and School Funding

Parliamentary debates are rarely the high point of oratory, but I wanted to highlight the debate on school funding that is set out in detail here: http://www.theyworkforyou.com/whall/?id=2012-04-24a.189.0&s=speaker%3A24962#g203.1

Given that Ponteland High School is now teaching Mandarin and taking school trips to Beijing I enjoyed this exchange with my Foreign Office Colleague the MP for Gloucester, Richard Graham:

GO: "We know that this is a debate about schools because everybody has started quoting famous names. By my account, we have had Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Martin Luther, Martin Luther King, and Reagan snuck in at the end. I prefer to take the Minister back to the ancient Chinese proverb of Lao Tzu who—as our eminent Education Minister will know—was the founder of Taoism and said that the longest journey begins with a single step. Is not the essence of this debate that we are all seeking that first step? It is not a large step; it could be a short step."

RG: Since my hon. Friend introduced Lao Tzu, he will no doubt also be aware of the more recent Chinese philosopher and statesman Deng Xiaoping’s great remark, “Yi bu yi bu”—one step at a time. Does my hon. Friend think that that is appropriate for the way in which we might resolve the issue of fair funding for schools?

GO: I do, and I will reply with words from Sun Tzu who, when he talked about the art of war, said, “Know your enemy.” That is interesting given that there is no enemy present today, but does not the absence of Opposition Members—save for the shadow Minister, Ms Buck, who will no doubt act robustly in defending the 13 years during which we all endured a funding gap—speak volumes?
I will move on from the happy badinage in which I and my hon. Friend have been engaged to say that like other hon. Members, I represent schools in Northumberland that look enviously at counties and cities that have a greater degree of funding. To put it simply, no change is not an option.

I would recommend the debate to anyone interested in the school funding issue: the Journal also has a piece today on the amazing Headteacher at Prudhoe Castle First School

Thank You to the NHS - 1 Year On

A year ago today I collapsed in the Central Lobby of the House of Commons, with a brain tumour. I am fully recovered after my operation, and a great deal better than I was - the surgery has been a complete success. I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all the staff at the NHS hospitals who looked after me. Forever in your debt.

School Funding

A good day in the House this morning as I got the chance to speak briefly in the School Funding debate. Just off now to meet with the students of St Josephs School who have come down to the House. Have also been told that the decision on Prudhoe High School is now not allowed to be made until after the May 3rd elections - the reason is that the govenrment are prevented from any announcements that may influence in either way the elections up and down the country: this is called the purdah period. Apologies for those waiting but I am assured we will find out very soon after that date.

24th April 1932 - the Mass Trespass that brought about the Peak Park and Rights of Way

80 years ago today on Sunday April 24th 1932, 400 men and women, largely from Manchester, assembled in the Peak District with a view to trespassing on to Kinder Scout, the Highest Point in the Peak District. They did this to proclaim that "that God gave the land to the people". At the time they knew that if they wanted the moors to be free, they had to take action. Some were arrested and went to prison. The world changed however: in 1951 the Peak District National Park was established.

For my part I look forward to celebrating their achievement in August when I walk the Pennine Way - Kinder Scout is en route.

The French Presidential Election - is Sarkozy down and out?

Today the first round of the French election takes place. President Sarkozy is trailing his rival Francois Hollande by a signiificant amount and I do not see Sarkozy winning either the first or second ballot in 2 Sundays time. Sarkozy is a wily short fox and it is a brave man who writes him off. However, he is a victim of his own character and his indecisiveness as a President - he has not reformed the French economy or addressed their significant lack of competitiveness. Change is always difficult but the French banks, business and economy are clearly really struggling - particularly as the Euro staggers from disaster to disaster.
Does this election affect us in the United Kingdom? The answer is yes.
It is vital for our side of the Channel that we have a French President who will open France up to trade and who will help combat the Euro Economic Crisis. I fear that the Socialist candidates programme will be short term popular but a disaster economically. This is an election worth watching - but the clear implication is that the French public have both fallen out of love with Sarkozy himself and simply do not wish to address their economic problems. They are voting for Hollande because he is both not Sarkozy and because Hollande promises them an ever larger public sector of in excess of 60% of the population and economic apple pie.

Matthew Ridleys Memorial Service at Newcastle Cathedral

I have never seen Newcastle Cathedral so packed: I sat with my Northumbrian colleague Ian Lavery MP and we marvelled at how Matthew was a man without a single enemy and so many friends, from every walk of life from miners to royalty. I took some notes of Professor Oliver James's address which featured how,
- aged 19, Matthew had driven his tank from Normandy to Germany in the second World War: my favourite wartime story was a description of how they took over a French town which featured a giant Camembert Cheese Factory, whose smell was powerful and all pervasive over the local French town. As the rationed British troops did not know of such cheese delights the explosives team were sent to blow the cheese factory up, in case the cheese was some deadly weapon!
- He described how Matthew was a legend amongst the mining community for his role in ensuring that 700 homes for former miners were provided to local Northumbrians
- Matthew was a famous gardener, arborist, naturalist, fisherman, collector, Chair of the County Council and an apolitical force for good.
- Professor James described how after the war Matthew had gone to the Seychelles with 2 others and that they had successfully stopped the extinction of the famous Sooty Tern from these islands. Matthew loved birds but above all he loved Red Squirells. As Professor James remarked: "Matthew ensured that public fiunds were spent to such a degree on the Northumbrian Red Squirrels that they might as well have been gold plated by the end!" Their ongoing legacy in Northumberland is further testament to his great work.
But finally here is an extract from one of the poems read at his memorial service. This was a man born to great privilege - and a family who for centuries have been intrinsic to the way of life of this part of the world, but it sums him up well:

Not - how did he die? But how did he live?
Not - what did he gain? But what did he give?
Not - what was his station? But - had he a heart?
And - how did he play his god given part?
Not - what was his church? Nor - what was his creed?
But - had he befriended those really in need?

These are the things that measure the worth
Of a man, regardless of birth.
It was a privilege to have known this man who mad us all feel humble.

Gilesgate Byelection

As mentioned earlier here are the figures from last nights by election in Gilesgate, Hexham: Lib Dem: 43 votes, 13.3% Cons: 132 votes 40.8% Inp: 56 votes   17.3% Lab: 92 votes 28.5%   Total votes cast were 323, which represents a very healthy 38.73% turnout. All three main parties put a fair amount of work in, for the Lib Dems to go from 2nd to 4th must be a real hammer blow. Well done to our candidate Trevor Cesseford and to Terry, Nick and all the Hexham team who helped make this a win for us.

Rainy days in Northumberland

Viscount Ridley - a great man, to whose funeral I am going to today.
Came up late last night on the train to a wet and windy Northumberland. Sadly had to miss yesterdays by election in Hexham, where the Council seat was retained by the Conservative candidate, with Labour second, Independent third and Lib Dems fourth.
Have surgeries this morning, and meeting care home representatives, then off to Newcastle Cathedral for the memorial service to Matthew Ridley: a great Northumbrian man who crossed all political divides. I am sure the Cathedral will be packed.

Prudhoe Castle First School in the House

Great morning in the House today as we welcomed the School and many of their teachers and parents. Answered questions on everything from a typical week, to fuel poverty, how long a parliament lasts and where we sit in the House. Full details and a picture will follow.
Had to sprint to make the House in time but managed to get in my 2 questions on fuel poverty and competetion on heating oil.

The Oympics - 100 days and counting!!!

Its a wet morning in London but the numbers do not lie: we have less than 100 days until the Olympics start in East London.
Very excited at all the events - the torch gets here in a few weeks and then spends 8weeks going round the country. Recently I spoke on the Olympics in the House of Commons: the highlights of the speech is here:

"The feature of this debate has been that Members of Parliament have attempted to do two things.
First, they have attempted to persuade their constituents that they do not have any Olympic tickets. I, too, can assure my constituents that I have no Olympic tickets, despite having made great efforts.
Secondly, all of us have tried to show an Olympic discipline in which we could be proficient. I was very impressed by the speech by my hon. Friend Richard Harrington, who is, sadly, no longer in his place. I understood his description of how for him a “marathon” was a large bar of chocolate to be eaten regularly. I once ran the New York marathon for Children with Leukaemia. Most people experience “the wall” during a marathon. Some reach it at 10 miles, but I did so at 20 miles. When I hit the wall and approached the point where I felt like stopping, I was told by a gentleman in the Bronx, “Don’t stop there man. They’ll only steal your shoes!” Nothing could have encouraged me more to start sprinting at that stage.

I am pleased to discuss the north-east tonight, as it is seeing a great deal of the Olympic torch and of the Olympic movement. I agreed with almost everything that the Chair of the Select Committee said, but at one point he said that the eyes of the world will be on London. I accept that that the eyes of the world will largely be on London and its surrounding regions, but if London is the hub, the spokes of the Olympic wheel are going to various other parts of the nation. There is no question but that the north-east will participate in a great deal of the work in terms of the Olympic flame.

As we know, half the world’s population will be watching the Olympics; 83% of our schools are involved in the Get Set programme, with 508 schools games taking place thus far; 40,000 journalists—we greatly welcome them all—will be covering the games and would expose every one of the Minister’s errors but for the fact that none will be made; and the torch relay is to cover 8,000 miles around the country. I greatly welcome the fact that Newcastle will host nine football matches, including the men’s quarter final. I can assure hon. Members that that will take place at St James’ Park, not in some place that none of us have heard of called the “Sports Direct arena”, although we gratefully accept the sponsorship of the Sports Direct brand.

However, this is not all just about sporting events. Obviously I will be cheering people on, as will my constituent Steve Cram, the man who started the Kielder marathon—a man who has won Olympic medals and now lives just up the road from me in Hexham. We will be cheering on Matt Wells and other members of the Hexham community who are in the Olympic squads. But we must celebrate not only the sport but the business element, about which many have spoken.

I stress that it has been a fundamental feature of both the previous Government’s approach—to their great credit—and the present Government’s approach to buy British and to support local organisations. I pay due tribute to: Sotech in Durham, which has provided the roof cladding for the aquatics centre; Hart Door Systems Ltd, which has provided the roof shutters for the Olympic stadium; Hathaway roofing in County Durham, which has provided roof cladding for the international broadcasting centre, keeping all those 40,000 journalists nice and dry and warm; and International Paint in Newcastle, which has supplied the paint for aquatics centre.

The other good thing is that the north-east will see the torch almost more than any other region. We will have it for five days, when it will take in things such as the angel of the north in Gateshead, the Penshaw monument in Sunderland, and Hadrian’s wall. Friday 15 June will be a spectacular day—I recommend this to people above all else—because the torch will travel from the Tyne bridge to the quayside by zip wire. I have doubts about this, because I am nervous that the torch might fall into the water or get otherwise extinguished. However, I am sure, as the organisers have assured me, that that will not happen. That will be a memorable event, and then on Saturday 16 June, I and many of my constituents will be welcoming the torch—indeed, many of them will be carrying it—as it travels across the Hexham constituency and down into County Durham.

We will also have the great benefit of the hundreds of cultural events, which will be based not only in London and the regions around it but in the north-east. I welcome the fact that the north-east band Folkestra,which I heard play fantastically well when the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport came to Newcastle on 26 January, will be playing as part of the cultural Olympiad. I respectfully submit that that is another wonderful example of making the regions part of the main Olympic movement.

The long and the short of all this is that there has to be a wider element, and I wish briefly to discuss the business impact on tourism, which will be huge. I understand that approximately £39 million is being spent on the advertising campaign that will promote Britain as a tourist venue. That is an excellent thing, because we have the chance to showcase this great country. Although the Olympics and the Paralympics will last for just six weeks, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase Great Britain. I warmly welcome what the Government and the previous Government, to their great credit, have done in this respect.

We also need to play our part in supporting tourism, because with the 20.12% discounting scheme and the 2012 tourism initiatives this is surely the year, above all others, when we should be “staycationing”. I shall be walking the entire 270 miles of the Pennine way, starting in Edale, in the great county of Derbyshire. We will travel all the way north through South Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, Cumbria and Durham and into the great county of Northumberland, where we shall journey the Pennine way through my constituency for five days and then finish up in Scotland. We will be doing that for charity, but on the way I will take advantage of many bed and breakfasts, restaurants and, of course, the odd pub or two. We should all invite our respective organisations to “staycation” and to support tourism in the best way they can, because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Pre-Olympic training camps are coming to the north, so we will welcome, for example, the Sri Lankans and the Colombians to Newcastle and the north-east. We will also be in a position to have our own games, as multiple local schools are holding multiple local games - I am a big supporter of the East Tynedale games.
Get Involved!

Human Rights: Abu Qatada arrested and will face deportation. Abu Hamza on his way to America

There are 2 significant developments in the recent weeks on the issue of Human Rights and the Rule of Law:
Abu Hamza:
Firstly, last week the courts ruled that Abu Hamza, serving a seven-year sentence in Britain for soliciting to murder and inciting racial hatred, can be extradited to a USA prison to face separate charges of terrorism there.
The Court ruled that transfer to a high security American prison, with its televisions, and facilities a lot better than many a Premier Inn I have stayed in, did not breach the terrorist's human rights.

Egyptian-born Abu Hamza is wanted in America on 11 charges related to taking 16 hostages in Yemen in 1998, promoting violent jihad in Afghanistan in 2001 and conspiring to set up a jihad training camp in Oregon, America.
The American authorities have described him as a "terrorist facilitator with a global reach".
Full report of the story is here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17657814

Abu Qatada:
Successive governments have fought for more than a decade to deport Mr Qatada, and he has cost the taxpayer more than £1.5 million in legal bills and benefits.
Yesterday, I was in the House to hear the news from the Home Secretary that he will ultimately be deported to Jordan to face terrorist charges. He still has some rights of appeal to exhaust but, given the concessions and developments that have taken place recently, I now believe that the former right hand man to Osama Bin Laden will stop being both a drain on our resources and a thorn in our side.
There was an overwhelming groundswell of support from all across the House for the removal of this evil man. Mrs May told MPs she was confident she had enough assurances to allow for his deportation, including guarantees that no evidence obtained by torture will be used against him.
I spent a long time as a lawyer, and believe absolutely in Human Rights. But the sooner these two evil men are far from our country and facing trial abroad for their alleged crimes the happier I will be.

The green deal and fuel poverty

On Monday myself, and my Liberal Colleague Ian Swales, the MP for Redcar who successfully ensured the blast furnace is firing once more in Redcar [note the fact that the famous smelter closed under Gordon Brown and Labour and opened again under the Coalition] went to the Department of Eneregy and Climate Change to meet Greg Barker,MP, The Minister in charge of the Green Deal.
This meeting is part of our ongoing attempt for Hexham to be the pilot for the Green Deal, given that we are working with the excellent charity The Green Alliance. We met the Minister for 30 minutes and continued for a further hour and a bit with his key official David. It was a really helpful meeting.
The important point was that all agreed that the Green Deal will most definitely go ahead. Some Councils are very far ahead of the game in their state of readiness - Birmingham springs to mind. Northumberland and Newcastle are clearly lagging [forgive the pun] but I am sure that with the assistance of the DECC officials this can be rectified. I hope to progress this in the near future but the key issue will be to ensure that local builders, plumbers, and small constuction companies are accredited as providers under the Green Deal. The scheme whereby you receive free home improvements, thereby addressing climate change and creating jobs and cutting household energy bills is unquestionably the right way ahead. But, we do unquestionably have to have community firms involved to ensure the community buys into the scheme.

On a separate note I am getting the Scottish Minister to answer questions shortly before PMQs this Wednesday morning at 11.45, on whether he agrees that there is a lack of competetion in fuel pricing in the Scottish border region. Given the eveidence we have presented to the OFT last month I hope he agrees. On this issue I really feel we are making progress.

Parliament has returned

The House of Commons sits again this morning after the Easter break. I have a packed week in Westminster which includes:
- Education Questions today and will be trying to get a decision date or an updated timeline on the decisions on Prudhoe School funding / rebuild, followed by a 2 hour meeting with Greg Barker the DECC Minister and the Green Alliance.
- Foreign Office Questions tomorrow, where I hope to question the Foreign Secretary on behalf of a constituent whose case I raised in India last week [of which more to follow this week when I blog about the short trip last week to India]
- Wednesday at 11.45 I will be raising the issue of fuel poverty in the border regions with the Minister in the House and welcoming one of the Prudhoe schools that is visiting the House.

There are also debates in the House on the Economy of the North East on Tuesday and a number of others where I hope to speak, if called. Will be heading north either Thursday night or Friday first thing.

All of these issues are important but my hope above all is for Prudhoe High School and its rebuild programme. I know that the decision is needed soon. I will update the moment I know.

Hexham Book Festival

There is just a week to go until the famous Hexham Book Festival kicks off:
The full programme can be studied here: http://www.hexhambookfestival.co.uk/2012programme/

but the reality is that it lasts from Monday April 23rd, 2012 until 3rd May 2012.
Hard to pick a stand out must go to event in a sea of talent as this year's seventh festival is back with its most vibrant line up yet.
- There's the brightest and best of new fiction;
- a rich mix of gardening, food, and travel writers;
- trenchant views on art, politics and philosophy with Brian Sewell, Polly Toynbee and AC Grayling;
- the importance of truculence from seasoned politician Tam Dalyell
- and swashbuckling words from former poet laureate Andrew Motion.
There are still tickets left to some events at the Queen’s Hall if you have not already booked. The literature and workshop events are the key events for me but as to the stand out speakers if I get the chance I will defintely go to hear the great Tam Dalyell - the iconic Labour MP from Scotland who was a giant of parliament in the 70's-90's. Polly Toynbee I hear too much of in Westminster but Motion and Grayling are both masters of poetry and prose.

As always we must pay tribute to the amazing team who are putting this event on, the sponsors, and marvel at the way a town of barely 10,000 in Northumberland can put on such an event

RIP the fallen of both sides in the Falklands War

30 years ago we were at war with Argentina - who are once again indulging in a new wave of rhetoric about how the Falkland Islands should be Argentinian. Their intellectual argument is utterly flawed.
The only menacing colonial power as far as the islanders are concerned is Argentina, not the UK - who is standing up for self determination. All of us should pay tribute again today to all those UK service personnel who gave up their lives, and the Argentinians who also fell.

The full debate that we conducted in parliament is set out on the attached link
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201212/cmhansrd/cm120131/halltext/120131h0001.htm

Egger Investment in Hexham

There has been some great news announced this week which I have been wanting to blog about for a while. Northumberland’s largest manufacturing employer, Hexham based Egger UK, is making a £20 million investment in new production equipment that will help the company retain its crown as Europe’s most-advanced chipboard manufacturing plant.

I was given the news during my discussions at the headquarters of the family-owned Egger Group in Austria when I went out to brief co-owner Michael Egger on moves in Parliament to address the issue of subsidies to biomass electricity generators that are damaging the wood panel industry.

For some time I had wanted to meet the man who is responsible for so many key jobs in Hexham and decided to pay for a trip to meet Mr Egger and his team at their base in Austria.

I was delighted to be given the exclusive news that significant investment is planned at the Hexham factory which will help to secure jobs and safeguard the company’s future in what are very challenging trading conditions for their industry.
 
Michael Egger is a fascinating man who lives right next to the factory in Austria, and who has built up a great community-based company that is a world-leader in its field.
 
This is good news for Hexham and all the associated industries. But, most of all, it is great news for all the employees.

An Egger spokesman told the Courant: “We were keen to meet with Mr Opperman – and pleased to give him the good news of the latest plans for the Hexham factory.

“We are investing in new lamination and impregnation equipment that will ensure our chipboard products continue to meet the exacting quality standards demanded by the furniture sector.
 
“This equipment helps us to add value to our standard chipboard product by using printed decorative papers, such as walnut, oak and maple, which enable our customers to make the kitchens and furniture of tomorrow.”

Assisted Suicide Debate in the House of Commons - to whom does your life belong?

To whom does your life belong?
Is the state right to say that you can not have the death of your choice?

I was lucky enough to make a brief contribution to last weeks debate on assisted suicide in the House of Commons. It was my first "issue of conscience" speech in the House, and it was probably the best debate I have heard in the House - with many fine speeches. I was deeply impressed by the speech of Paul Blomfield - my Labour colleague from Sheffield, which clearly spelt out why the law must change.

If you are interested in parliament then the whole debate is well worth watching. If you are interested in my speech the Democracy Live Channel has it here. My contribution is 1 Hour 4 minutes and 50 seconds into part 2 of the debate:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/democracylive/hi/house_of_commons/newsid_9709000/9709037.stm

I remain of the view that
- we need to do more to support and develop specialist palliative care
- but that ultimately the law must change so that we have both the life of our choice and the death of our choice.

Obama's speech last week on the Budget debate

I am serious Barack Obama fan - on so many levels he is a transformative politician. He would get my vote every day in the American election.

His speech last week was outstanding and I quote a few key points below: so much of what he says applies to the issues we have to wrestle with in the United Kingdom.

"There are also big fundamental issues at stake right now, issues that deserve serious debate among every candidate, and serious coverage among every reporter. Whoever he may be, the next president will inherit an economy that is recovering, but not yet recovered from the worst economic calamity since the Great Depression.

Too many Americans will still be looking for a job that pays enough to cover their bills or their mortgage. Too many citizens will still lack the sort of financial security that started slipping away years before this recession hit.

A debt that has grown over the last decade, primarily as a result of two wars, two massive tax cuts and unprecedented financial crisis, will have to be paid down. And in the face of all these challenges, we’re going to have to answer a central question as a nation.

What, if anything, can we do to restore a sense of security for people who are willing to work hard and act responsibly in this country? Can we succeed as a country where a shrinking number of people do exceedingly well while a growing number struggle to get by or are we better off when everyone gets a fair shot?
And everyone does their fair share. And everyone plays by the same rules. This is not just another run of the mill political debate. I’ve said it’s the defining issue of our time and I believe it. That’s why I ran in 2008. It’s what my presidency has been about. It’s why I’m running again.

I believe this is a make or break moment for the middle class and I can’t remember a time when the choice between competing visions of our future has been so unambiguously clear. Keep in mind, I have never been somebody who believes that government can or should try to solve every problem.

It doesn’t make us weaker when we guarantee basic security for the elderly or the sick or those who are actively looking for work. What makes us weaker is when fewer and fewer people can afford to buy the goods and services our businesses sell."

He speaks at length but I like the way he describes his American policies as being based upon a principle of One Nation...
If I am anything I am a representative of the one nation centre ground: I hope he wins in November.

Happy Easter and the thoughts of Martin Luther King

Easter is a very important moment in the Christian calendar, so I would like to extend my best wishes to everyone at this special time of year. This applies to all faiths. Although I am Christian I strongly believe that it is the presence of faith, coupled to tolerance, that best defines us.

Everyone knows that I am a huge fan of Martin Luther King for his ability to translate religion into the parlance of the everyday man and woman. So at Easter I will simply share one of the great mans attempts to explain faith:
"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."
Martin Luther King, Jr

Big Society Capital

I am a big believer in the concept of the Big Society - if you come to Northumberland you see it every day - and we were practising this long before the last election: I had a good example last Sunday when in Humshaugh - I arrived to buy the Sunday papers at the Village Shop to find Ray and Sally - who are both volunteers - busy running the shop. They are not paid. They are simply part of a community who are prepared to step in and get involved where traditional models have failed. However, I accept that not everyone can do as Humshaugh did although they are doing all they can to spread the message.

But ... as governments across the world take a lesser role in the state there are going to be different ways in which society steps in to address peoples concerns about their commnuity - and new ways of financing such plans.

There is a clear role for investors to see a genuine return on an investment that also provides a community benefit. This is the ethos behind Big Society Capital, which will create a whole new culture of social investment that is not charity or philanthropy. Those encouraged to invest under the new models developed by Big Society Capital will be expecting a return. Charities will not apply direct for loans. BSC will put its £600 million into specialist investment funds such as Big Issue Invest, which will in turn invest in charities and social enterprises.
Creating a Community based return on capital can only be a good thing in my view
For fuller details see: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17602323

The Washington Miners Monument targetted by Metal Thieves

Metal Thieves have struck again - attempting to steal the Washington Miner's Monument, a beautiful sculpture of a miner and his family, which was only opened to the public on Front Street, Concord, last Saturday.
Northumbria Police have said that someone had attempted to cut through the leg of the boy figure early on Tuesday. The statue has been left damaged by the attempt and police have appealed for information.
Two comments apply: these criminals who target church ornaments, war memorials and statues to members of a local area are the lowest of the low. I am really pleased that the governement has brought in severe punishments for such offences. Before I did this job I spent 15 years prosecuting criminals, and all crime is wrong, but it is offences like these that upset you almost more than any other.
For details on the new sentences and change to the law see: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9036121/Curbs-on-scrap-metal-dealers-to-be-announced-to-stop-theft-epidemic.htm

Northumbria Rail

Anyone who has read this blog will know that the local railways, particularly the line between Carlisle and Newcastle, is one of our key concerns. Fortunately the craziness of Torchgate is behind us, but there are promising developments with the proposal of the Transport Secretary that a local group could conceivably take over control of local Northern Rail train services.

There is no question that local people are getting increasingly disappointed by the standard of the rail service on a number of different levels: it is not just the quality of the trains, carriages, and frequency. It is also a question of service.
I have persistent complaints as to
- the frequency and number of carriages that are laid on when there are match days at St James Park or in Sunderland or Middlesborough
- yearly disasters at the County Show
I have raised the issue of a local franchise in the House of Commons by way of Questions and will be meeting with the Transport Secretary, Justine Greening, MP, later this month to go over the possibility of setting up a Northumbria Rail.

There is a precedent: Ministers have already had preliminary discussions concerning the devolving of rail rights to local groups in Cornwall and Devon, who want to set up a West Country service. Such a move in the North East would need the backing of councils and almost certainly see Metro bosses on the Tyne and Wear Integrated Transport Authority asked to take on a bigger role.
Officers there are already considering the impact of the Government’s rail decentralisation consultation, with meetings held last week to assess the cost implications.

For me the next two months are key: we have the end of the football season and then the County Show, when the world comes to Corbridge. I have written to Northern Rail urging them to ensure that a sufficiency of trains are laid on for these crucial events as all too often there is a simple lack of trains and carriages on these crucial local days. This will be their acid test.

Visit to No.28

Write up on my recent visit to the No.28 project courtesy of ISOS:

Hexham MP Guy Opperman has lavished praise on the regeneration work being done on the Hexham East estate - and promised to return to lend a hand.

Mr Opperman, who has represented Hexham since the 2010 general election, was given a tour of the estate by regeneration officer Grace Burke and her colleague Claire Heaviside, alongside long time resident Margie Mennim.

Grace and Claire’s work is based in the No28 community house on the estate, operated by the Hexham Community Partnership. Their salaries are co-funded by social landlord Isos, which owns and manages all the 364 social rented homes on the estate, and Northumberland County Council.

Mr Opperman has spoken in parliament before now about his admiration for the regeneration work done on the Hexham East estate, and has taken an interest in how Grace and Claire work alongside the local Sure Start Centre, the Hexham East Residents Association and the Police to help improve the fortunes of the area.

Mr Opperman said: “This is really the most impressive community organisation who are slowly but surely helping to transform the East End of Hexham .

“It is led by dynamic, warm and very focused people who have nothing but good ideas.

“I could not have learnt more in the time we had – I already knew the area very well, but when you see what they are doing on the ground, it’s fantastic. Everyone here can be very proud of themselves.

“People talk about the big society, but this community has been doing this for years. This model works with the community partnership, No28 itself, Sure Start, and the residents association – all very active community organisations collaboratively transforming the East End. Essentially, it’s about people taking ownership.

“I shall be coming back to do a multitude of things here – including a litter pick at some stage in the summer.”

One of the recent developments on Hexham East seen by Mr Opperman was a £1m development of eight new family homes by Isos.

On an estate of mainly smaller homes, predominantly two and three bed properties, there has been an acute shortage of larger homes.

So Homedale Court represents the first new affordable family homes to be built on the Hexham East estate for decades.

Grace said: “It’s great that our MP sees it as important to come here. He recognises there is good work coming out of here and we’ve been able to show him the amount of organisations involved in this project – and what we can achieve when we have the opportunity to work together for a number of years.”

Councillor Tom Brechany, executive member responsible for housing, planning and regeneration at Northumberland County Council said: "Both Northumberland and predecessor authority Tynedale have been heavily involved in plans to make positive improvements in the Hexham East area – in which the No 28 project plays a key role. “We are very pleased to see the recently developed new family housing complete in the area, and look forward to working with the Hexham Community Partnership and Isos to see further improvements in the future.”

April Madness - the bluebells are out and the snow is coming

Back in Westminster - where the weather is still springlike - with bluebells and wild flowers all over the parks, as friends tell me it is snowing in Northumberland.
There is no question that the climate is changing - we are clearly in a drought, albeit we are probably heading for a wet summer. My plan is to hike the Pennine Way this August as part of my holiday and also as the summer tour of the west and south of Northumberland. Doubtless it will lash down with rain and snow!
If you want to see bluebells check out the bluebell website:
http://visitwoods.org.uk/en/visit-woods/things-to-do/nature/pages/bluebells.aspx?gclid=CMuPhcCWmK8CFQITfAodpGpxzA#.T2m2oBE0Ulc

Grand National Tip - Seabass to beat Mon Mome and State of Play

Seabass - my tip for the National
It is a tradition on this blog dating back several years for me to try and give a Grand National Tip. Some years this has been successful, others not so. I have still to ride at Liverpool, although my father rode in the 1966 Grand National as an amateur.

Whilst accepting it is a lottery I will give two tips:
- Seabass to win [although always back each way in the national] - he will shorten up now that Ruby Walsh looks likely to ride him
- Mon Mome is a great outsider, as is State of Play - both are 33-40 to one and likely to be placed

I wish everyone good luck and a safe journey for each horse and jockey.

The formal opening of Kielder Garage ... and the nice Dutch Tourists who jumped the gun!

Photos by our own David Bailey = Philippa Craig, Technical Funding Officer of Leader.
The opening of the Kielder Garage was a wonderful event last Friday but whilst we were all about to make speeches about how great it was a nice Dutch couple turned up in their camper van looking for petrol ... so the grand ceremony had to stop for some actual petrol provision. My thanks to Tom, Cameron and all the many people [too numerous to name] who did so much to make this happen, and the Anglers Arms who entertained us afterwards.

The Calvert Trust in Kielder

On Friday I was lucky enough to visit the Calvert Trust in Kielder. It is a long overdue visit although their success and good work are well known, not only in the north but all across the country - they have centres in the northern Lake District and Exmoor. They provide disabled men, women and children an incredible opportunity to engage in sports that would normally be beyond them. They are also outstanding at providing individual respite care and the chance for supported holidays for families. They are also a significant local employer. If you have not seen their website I recommend it wholeheartedly:
http://www.calvert-trust.org.uk/kielder/kielder

In the meantime I must credit all the local supporters of the Calvert Trust - not least Egger in Hexham who have chosen to continue to support Calvert Trust Kielder as their charity of the year for a further two years.
PS:
This blog also likes to provide a little more for its 15,000+ readers so to understand why this groundbreaking charity has its name we have to go back over 200 years, to the Calvert Family, who previously owned the Lake District site that was the first site of the Lake District location of the Calvert Trust. Raisley Calvert had grown up with William Wordsworth, the famous poet and writer, and this childhood friendship continued into adulthood.

It was Raisley Calvert’s desire that his friend be able to continue his writing and he encouraged him all he could. However, by the age of 21 Raisley had developed tuberculosis and was dying. As he faced death, he wanted Wordsworth to fulfil his writing potential and a legacy, including Old Windebrow Cottage, in the Lake District was arranged to allow Wordsworth to continue with his poetry full time.
As we all know, Wordsworth went on to fulfil his own potential and leave his own literary legacy - he even wrote a poem dedicated to his friend Raisley Calvert.

So when the Trust was proposed in the last century - a name was needed to represent friendship, support and the desire to help somebody to fulfil their potential: unsurprisingly they chose the name Calvert, given the links and the desire to help make a difference. It is an impressive organisation run by dedicated and special people.