Stephen's Week

Hello all

Normal service resumed this week - no foreign travels to report! This week I met up with four Bristol West schools among other things covered in this letter.

Stephen

MONDAY 18th JUNE 2007

As we had just got back from China and needed to catch up with things, there was no Education Select Ctte today. I arrived in London in the evening, in time for some votes on the Mental Health Bill.

Last night I had watched the final of Britain's Got Talent and was delighted to see Paul Potts win. I was Leader of the council group when Paul won the Eastville by election in March 1996, knocking me off my perch as the city's youngest councillor in the process! I've tabled an Early Day Motion congratulating Paul and his family. It was co signed by the Labour MP for the Port Talbot area where Paul now lives.

Tuesday 19th June

In the mornings I enter the Commons at St Stephen's Entrance, opposite the back of Westminster Abbey. Once inside you pass the vast open space that is the medieval Westminster Hall. This morning I stopped to listen to the gospel choir inside that was singing 'Amazing Grace', an uplifting way to start the day! It was the annual inter faith breakfast, though appropriately it was sung next to the exhibition in the Hall about the abolition of the slave trade that is drawing thousands of visitors.

Later in the morning I welcomed a party of children, parents and teachers from Westbury Park School, who had visited the exhibition, as well as going on a tour of Parliament. We went upstairs to a committee room for a lively question and answer session.

In the afternoon I met up with Anna Fazakerley who heads up a new higher education think tank. In the evening I went to the Parliamentary reception of the Chartered Institute of Taxation, my own professional body. While talking to an environment tax specialist I got some ideas for questions on solar panels and wind farms.

Wednesday 20th June

Morning meeting of Education Select Committee was with a couple of small business witnesses for our report on skills. They were from a motor components manufacturer and an electrical contractor. Parliament listens to wealth generators all too rarely, I feel.

At noon it was Blair's penultimate PMQs and a couple of Labour MPs were quite horrid to him, though there were the usual toadies too. I guess next week will be an emotional farewell before we all get clunked by that Brown fist. After PMQs I met a group of Bristol dentists together with some from our twin city of Hannover on an exchange visit.

In the afternoon the Chairman of the Education committee and myself met with a visiting delegation of our Polish equivalents. Their focus was on school discipline, though they are also looking at the integration of Polish migrants and their children in the UK. The Chairman was presented with a medallion showing the Sejm, the Polish Parliament, and I got a rather nice picture book.

In the evening I called in the Foreign Office for the 175th summer reception of Dods, the long running political publishers.

Thursday 20th June

Morning meeting of the Lib Dem policy review group on science and research. This group complements the group I'm chairing on further and higher education.

Rest of the day in the office before getting the 4.30 train back to Temple Meads - one of the newly refurbished HSTs and it even managed to arrive on time...

In the evening to Clifton College Prep School for the garden party of the College Fields neighbourhood watch. Due to the abysmal weather this week the event was in the hall. I had lots of interesting chats with the 100 or so people there.

Friday 22nd June

Three schools to visit today. First up was Claremont Special School in Henleaze, accompanied by local councillor and school governor Clare Campion-Smith. The school serves most of the old Avon area and caters for primary age children with profound physical disabilities and learning needs. Claremont is next to Henleaze Infants and Juniors and this proximity allows the children to mix. From September the 11 year olds will be able to progress to the new unit at Redland Green School, making shared experience easier. The teachers do an amazing job and there are now many learning aids and stimulants (lights, sounds, the pool, etc) for them to use.

Then to Cotham School to meet the head and see the new sports hall as well as the revamped Charnwood Post 16 Centre, now part of the joint North Bristol Post 16 provision with Redland Green. It being post exam time there weren't many students around!

Up to Westbury for a Q&A with the girls at Red Maids. They had visited Parliament last week, so I had missed seeing them then. Vince Cable very kindly met them in Westminster, so today was a chance for them to question their local MP about education, transport, global warming, Parliament and many other issues.

Down to the Council House for my Friday afternoon and evening surgery.

Weekend

Mainly at home dealing with correspondence and education reading but went to two Lib Dem fund raisers - the beer tasting and Pub quiz and the Sunday lunch curry club at the excellent Bombay Dreams.