Neighbourhood Watch

Yesterday morning we were out and about in Stanwell. We spent some time at the Clare Road shopping parade talking to locals and getting more signatures for my bankers petition. Interestingly, quite a few knew about their Labour councillors decision to run for MP in Swindon. They took this to mean that even he knows Labour are a busted flush in Spelthorne! I also went to visit a neighbourhood watch co-ordinator, who told me about some of the issues they have in Stanwell with crime and anti social behaviour. The message I got was of a lack of joint working with the police and local councils. The area used to be covered by the Metropolitan Police, but since it has been dealt with by Surrey, there is a feeling that they don't give Spelthorne any sort of priority. When residents in Stanwell are told they are covered at time by police not even based in the borough, and who take an hour to reach them, it is no wonder they have no faith in the kind of response they get. There are problems in Stanwell, and they will only be tackled if the area is given the backup of the police and other agencies. There is obviously enough support from local people, but they shouldn't be left to do it alone.

Ashford College Reprieve

It's great to see the banners up on Ashford College, as I did today, proclaiming it's staying open. When I was going round all the shops in the town centre asking them to take the petition to keep it open, there was not one that said no. Even places like banks were happy to get customers to sign. The whole community was up for the fight. Fortunately it now seems like a fight is not needed. Ashford campus is a vital community facility, and now can continue to deliver valued education to Spelthorne.

No New Answers On Shortwood

There was another public meeting tonight on the future of Shortwood infant school. As with the previous meetings, the school was packed to the rafters, and this time the parents and residents were more prepared, having had time to gather more information. The questions were superb, to the point, directly relevant, challenging and well delivered. The answers from the Council representatives were not. Despite having had 3 weeks since the last meetings to gather information that had been promised, and to cover key points of residents questions, there was nothing new tonight. With the consultation running until the 19th March, there is still time for local people to get there views heard. Then the officers of the Council will make a recommendation, and the Cabinet of Surrey, made up of councillors, will make there choice. With the man in charge of the education portfolio saying today Surrey faces huge pressures on places, and will need to build more schools, it seems that the first port of call should be to use all the places currently available, and then build as necessary. Closing Shortwood must be crazy in this context. A school that is working well will surely be able to gather more pupils with the campaigners committed to bringing numbers up.

Michael Foot

It was with great sadness that I learned about the death of Michael Foot today. He was one of the first politicians I can remember in my formative years. What I found out later was much more about a man passionate in his beliefs, true to them, and tireless in his campaigning. Whilst his politics are different to mine, he was a man of powerful argument and conviction. All of us standing in this General Election can learn lessons from his example. To hear some of his speeches played back today, you wonder whether the next Parliament will have many speakers who could silence the commons, or bring the place down with laughter in the way that he could. To this 'inveterate peacemonger' (as he described himself), goodbye and thank you.

Leaders Debates

Agreement has finally been reached on the televised leaders debates that will take place during the General Election. Pundits on the box tonight have been suggesting that of the three leaders, Nick Clegg has the least to lose. Certainly it gives our message a level of exposure that it may not otherwise have got. We know from previous elections that Lib Dem policies go down well when people get to hear more about them, because as we get some airtime in elections, our poll figures increase and we experience a bounce by election day. But I would say we have most to gain from the debates, rather than having nothing to lose. As a party we are united and proud of what we stand for. We want a free, fair society, and don't believe that is what you get from Labour or the Tories. We have well thought out, fully costed policies, and the debates will let Nick promote them. So I think this is a positive move for elections in this country, and it will be fascinating to see how they pan out.

Non Dom

I'm not going to have a huge rant about Lord Ashcroft sitting in the Lords, funding the Tories and making sure he doesn't have to pay tax in the UK on his earnings abroad. The point, I think, of making such a fuss is that at the moment it is too easy to buy seats in the House of Commons by chucking huge amounts of money at a campaign in a constituency. If you are able to seriously outspend your opponent you can influence the outcome of who becomes MP. Lord Ashcroft can do that with his wealth. So can others. Ultimately we need to move away from this if we want to restore faith in politics.

Nick Clegg And Our Education Pledge

Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg has today set out in more detail our education pledge, and emphasised the importance of early years education in tackling inequality, in a speech to the Salvation Army. Committing the Liberal Democrats to invest an extra £2.5bn in schools, Nick Clegg said that parents and schools must work together to make sure that children get the best possible start in life. Education is at the heart of our manifesto for the election, and we believe that bringing down class sizes for early years education should be at the very top of the agenda for the next Parliament. Having seen for myself the kind of school you get with smaller class sizes at Shortwood, I know it can't come soon enough.