Letter from Westminster
April 10, 2006 10:11 AM
By Stephen Williams MP in Clifton Chronicle
By Stephen Williams MP in Clifton Chronicle
My week began and ended with Mr Isambard Kingdom Brunel. On Monday I went to Temple Meads to attend the launch of the new rail franchise for the region. First Great Western are the successors to the Great Western Railway that was laid out by Brunel in the 1840s. FGW promise us an upgrade in the travelling experience offered by the high speed trains that run to London.
I remember these HSTs being launched when I was in school. My father bought me a locomotive and carriage set to add to my model railway. I'm sure Brunel would be disappointed that the rolling stock on his railway has barely changed in the last thirty years. Other rail companies, most notably Virgin, have successfully introduced more modern trains. Let's hope we see some improvements on our line soon.
After seeing an HST in a new livery I took a train in the old colours up to London. But isn't Parliament on Easter recess, I hear you ask. Surely MPs are all on holiday? Well, it doesn't really work like that. Recess for me means no Commons debates and votes and no select committee work. But apart from that respite there's still plenty of other work to do. I spent a couple of days in London dealing with the correspondence that had piled up while I was off ill in the previous week.
I also attended the annual Arts & Business awards at the Barbican Centre. The Watershed and Hewlett Packard were nominated for their partnership. But another Bristol based company, Orange, was the winner for its work encouraging reading schemes.
Quite a lot of my recess time is spent meeting Bristol organisations and attending events. The most spectacular event of the week was the 200th birthday party for Brunel. It was a great local example of the arts, business and the public sector working together to create a truly memorable occasion. The fireworks sent up from the Clifton Suspension Bridge were enjoyed by the thousands of people who thronged the streets of Clifton.
It's also a busy political time in Bristol. On the same day last year that I was elected as the first Lib Dem MP in Bristol, my council colleagues achieved largest party status. Although the Lib Dems don't have a majority on the council they have notched up some notable successes in the last ten months. The budget has been brought under control. Recycling rates have increased and are set to get better still. Planning for major cultural and regeneration projects has advanced.
But more could be achieved with majority control. I have been out and about knocking on doors and delivering leaflets in order to win the four extra seats that the Lib Dems need. I first canvassed in Bristol in the local elections of 1986. OK, it's not quite two hundred years, but I hope to have every reason to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of my political life in Bristol!
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