Blyth Valley annual dinner

We persuaded my mother to baby-sit on Saturday night, so managed to make it to the Blyth Valley CLP annual dinner at The Spartan Hotel, Blyth last night. It was a great night out - around 100 people in attendance, including local MP (and legend) Ronnie Campbell, government minister and Hartlepool MP Ian Wright (pictured above), who gave a very funny speech, and party members from all over the North East, including a good half dozen from the Hexham constituency. It feels like Xmas has arrived.

MPs expenses: Part 127 ...

The papers are reporting that files have now been handed over to the CPS to consider whether criminal charges should be brought against four members of Parliament. I hope if the evidence is there, ie, if there's a realistic prospect of a conviction, prosecutions are brought. It's difficult to imagine any circumstances in which it would not be in the public interest to prosecute MPs caught fiddling expenses. Joe Public wouldn't receive preferential treatment - why should MPs?

Is Hexham a safe Tory seat any more?

Last week independent candidate for Hexham retired GP Dr. Steven Ford ran a full-page ad in the Hexham Courant publicising his candidacy. I agreed with some of what Steven said in his ad, and said so in a letter to the Courant published on Friday. Here's a link to the letter:

http://www.hexham-courant.co.uk/opinion/letters/tory_seat_1_639062?referrerPath=home

Speaking to residents in Hexham

The Labour team were out on Sunday afternoon speaking to voters in Hexham around Priestlands Crescent and Priestlands Road. Parking appears to be a major concern of residents on Priestlands Crescent.

Flooding in Cumbria

After visiting friends in the North West this weekend I drove back through Cumbria along the M6. The rain was torrential as I got within 30 miles of Carlisle, so it must have been unimaginable on Friday when the worst of the weather kicked in. We shall have to see how much damage has been done to the bridges and other infrastructure in the Hexham constituency, the second largest seat in England.

Congrats to Hexham's 'Bouchon Bistro' restaurant

A hearty congratulations to Hexham -- and the UK's -- leading local French restaurant, Bouchon Bistrot, located on Gilesgate. I had lunch there last year and it was great. Well done!

Glasgow by-election - good for Labour

One swallow does not make a summer, but there's no doubt that the Glasgow by-election result this week was a good result for Labour, albeit on a low turnout, a poor result for the Conservatives and a very poor result for the Lib Dem candidate who managed to get a measly 474 votes - fewer than many candidates get in local council elections. Here's hoping we can maintain the momentum.

By the way, Glasgow is a fantastic city - visit if you get the chance. I was there for 3 days in February last year on a case at the Glasgow Employment Tribunal, and managed to catch The Cult at the Glasgow Academy on the last night. Some people struggle with the Glasgow accent but being a Geordie, it makes perfect sense to me.

Speaking to voters in East Hexham

Today a hardy crew braved the elements - ok, I exaggerate, the weather was quite mild considering last night's downpour - to talk to voters in East Hexham around White Cross. Generally everyone seems pretty happy, though we received the odd complaint about anti-social behaviour and one or two complaints from more elderly residents about the problems leaves cause this time of year - slippy pathways, etc. A number of residents mentioned the fact I am the first candidate they've spoken to personally in years, in some cases even decades. Leaflets are fine for getting a message across, but there's no substitute for talking to people face-to-face to hear their concerns.

Durham Cathedral - the tattooed church

Tonight we visited the Durham Lumiere, and were blown away by what we saw.

Got those ol' A69 blues ...

Monday to Wednesday spent commuting along the A69 from Newcastle to Carlisle for a case in the Carlisle Employment Tribunal. The commute is ok in the morning, even with the problems caused by getting trapped behind slow moving traffic (eg, tractors), but the commute back at night was no fun at all - pitch black, foggy, with some truly terrible, dangerous driving on display by a number of motorists who appear to have a death-wish. The A69 at night west of Hexham is undoubtedly a dangerous road this time of year. I for one would like to see it dualled along its entire length where possible, but I am sceptical that any government, Labour or Conservative, will do anything about it any time in the near future given current public spending constraints.

Arriva pull out from Hexham

Readers of the Hexham Courant know that bus operator Arriva has reached a deal with competitor Go North East under which it is proposed that a number of Hexham-based drivers and other staff will "TUPE" transfer from Arriva's employment to Go North East provided the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) does not refer the deal to the Monopolies and Merger Commission (MMC), now called the 'Competition Commission'. Staff affected are understandably concerned about the consequences on their jobs and the future of the bus depot on Burn Lane which is currently only under a short-term lease.


On Sunday I attended a meeting at the Hexham Ex-Servicemens Club to discuss the proposals with affected staff and listen to their concerns. My background in employment law gave me some insight into the issues the staff are wrestling with.