Lo and behold, Teignbridge MP – who’ll be fighting for the re-drawn and re-named constituency of Newton Abbot come the next election – Richard Younger-Ross has launched a website… was it something we said?

The site provides detailed information about the MP’s work in Teignbridge including his involvement in local issues and campaigns, as well as a record of his work in Parliament. There is also information on how to contact him and details of advice surgeries.

We’ll wait to see if he still panders to the local press with his weekly column. Depending which paper it’s going in, it’s written on Monday or Wednesday, and for those of you who want to part with your hard-earned just to catch up on his weekly doings, you can read it on Wednesday (Dawlish Gazette) or Friday (Mid-Devon Advertiser et al). We hope that’s when he’ll put it on his site, too.

If not, well, it might come through to us, or thisissouthdevon might run it – you never know. But he has so far insisted on pandering to the papers. And him being a shadow culture and media minister… you’d think he’d know better.

Still, it’s good to see another South Devon political type creaking into gear in terms of communication.

• Do you want to know what your MP gets up to… or would you prefer not to? Comments below, please

Related posts:

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Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross (he who panders to the local paper, where you probably wouldn’t find this story) has secured an apology from the managing director of First Great Western, Mark Hopwood, about the schoolchildren were stranded on Torre station for two hours.

Mr Hopwood accepted that leaving the children on the platform for such a long length of time (many of them under 16 years) was ‘unacceptable’ and has said he will do everything he can to make sure this does not happen again.

The delay had been due to a mechanical failure on one of the trains which meant that some services were cancelled, but he admits that road transport should have been provided.

Richard said: “Stranded on an unmanned station meant the children had no way of knowing what was going on. It was only through worried parents ringing them on their mobiles that they got to know what was happening. I welcome Mr Hopwood’s apologies and hope this situation will not be repeated.”

Last November Mr Younger-Ross met with First Great Western’s Managing Director to discuss a number of local concerns regarding school services, one being overcrowding on school trains to and from Torbay.

The MP has been informed that First Great Western are close to an agreement with the Department for Transport that will see the class 142 fleet replaced by Class 50 trains which can carry a lot more passengers.

First Great Western has been working hard to improve its service to young people. In December the company agreed to turn off the Mosquito device it uses at Teignmouth Station – its indiscriminate use was targetting children and young people throughout the day, including the school run.

(from a press release)

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With people power on show in Dawlish on the issue of the sale of the Manor House, and a Question Time at Newton Abbot College, it was a week of democracy in South Devon for Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross. Take it away Richard…

Newton Abbot’s Question Time
For those who wait for Thursday night and Mr Dimbleby, Devon had its own bit of Question Time fun on Monday. OK, it was not Dimbleby, there were no national political celebrities and OK it wasn’t on the television, but Newton Abbot was host to its own Question Time. Hosted by Newton Abbot College, BBC Radio staged its own show. Michael Chequer was in charge of the inquisition and two MPs and one hopeful were in the spotlight. Labour’s hardworking MP for Plymouth Devonport, Alison Seabeck sat to the right with former Conservative MEP Neil Parish (and candidate for Angela Browning’s Tiverton and Honiton seat) next to her. And to the left of Michael was my seat.

Some 80 students made up the audience and Jordan had the task of moving the boom mike around so everyone could be heard. It was a good range of questions from Afghanistan to school funding, from youth services to policing. Good questions and good responses from the audience should have made for good listening on Monday lunchtime when it was broadcast. Interestingly, the audience felt there were too few policemen on the beat and one lad described how when he was out in Newton Abbot, he was attacked for no obvious reason. Another gauge of opinion showed that nearly all of them were opposed to war in Afghanistan. Of the six that supported going to war, two wanted to join the army. It was a good debate which I enjoyed.

If you missed it, you can find it at the BBC’s Interactive Lunch show on the iPlayer which will be available until 1.02pm Monday, February 8

Schools Cash Shock
As any teacher in the country will tell you, schools in Devon are under funded. Indeed each school receives £375 less per pupil than the average grant allocated to schools in England. This is a historic problem going back to the 1980s when the then Conservative Government devised a formula for school funding that gave extra money to schools in authorities with high social deprivation. While this is right, it did not recognise the problems of diverse rural poverty or the problems of sparsity in large counties such as Devon. The Labour Government looked at the formula in 2005, but changed it not a jot. Now as Labour has put a lot more money into education, the funding gap has grown from £145 in 1996 to £375 today.

On Wednesday, I secured a half-hour adjournment debate on this issue. I raised these points and others noting that Devon was 3rd from bottom of the education funding league. Having failed to recognise the problem for the last 12 years, the penny seems to have finally dropped and a review of the funding for schools is due to take place this spring. The Minister said it was needed to create ‘a fairer system’. Sadly, it will not be completed before the election but constant pressure has worked and I am sure that there will be more money for Devon. The question will be how much and when.

Shaldon Traders
Friday was my birthday, 21 again, and I knew my wife was planning a surprise in the evening. The game was sadly given away when she first said she would come to a Shaldon Traders meeting with me and suggested we get a taxi over. This meant only one thing, we were going to one of my favourite restaurants (and there are several) Ode in Shaldon. The traders packed into the Sail Loft at the back of the London Hotel for their meeting, which covered a wide range of problems, but particularly those associated with the building work on the flood defence scheme which is going to take away parking in an already congested area. Meetings and representations will now follow.

The Manor House
There are moments when democracy stands up and shouts, and last Thursday a mighty roar went up in Dawlish. For years the Town Council has penny-pinched on the repair of the building and now the cost of false economy has caught up with the council. As maintenance bills mounted there was growing pressure to sell the Manor House and move somewhere more affordable.

Some 350 residents packed into St Gregory’s Church for the Parish Meeting to debate this. I attended and gave out my own survey with, I hope, balanced questions on the future of the listed building. The mayor and councillors were ill-prepared for such a forthright audience who doggedly persisted in asking questions. In the end the meeting voted for a referendum which would stop the Town Council from ever selling the Manor House. To do so they would need another referendum. It was a good night for democracy and most of the bruised and battered councillors will fight another day.

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The Newton Abbot Liberal Democrats have announced their key players in the team to fight the next General Election, expected to be Thursday, May 6.

Teignmouth Councillor Terry Falcao will chair the campaign to seek to re-elect Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross for a third term. The agent for the campaign will be former Mayor of Dawlish, Tom Bush, and the constituency organiser will be Bovey Tracey Councillor Sally Morgan (whose leaked emails about party subscriptions caused a minor ruckus in the summer, and lead to her standing down as Lib Dem PPC for Central Devon, a role that has only just been filled). David Cox will be a constituency organiser with special responsibility for poster sites.

Other members of the team are expected to be announced shortly.

Terry told the PRSD: “Richard has been an excellent MP and our task is to ensure he is re-elected. Fighting the new Newton Abbot constituency is a two-horse race between the Conservative candidate and Richard. The outcome in Newton Abbot will not determine the Government, for the Labour Party need to lose MPs for the Labour Party to lose power.

“The fight here is about who is the best person to represent the constituency. Richard will be fighting on his outstanding record as a constituency MP.”

• Newton Abbot Conservatives have already spent shed-loads in Newton Abbot. Any predictions on the forthcoming General Election, and why? Comments below, please

(image: from left to right: Tom Bush, Terry Falcao, Richard Younger-Ross, Lord Paddy Ashdown, David Cox, Sally Morgan)

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Teignbrige MP Richard Younger-Ross has secured an adjournment debate on Wednesday (January, 27) to highlight the under funding of Devon’s primary and secondary schools.

Richard the PRSD: “This is an issue that I have been fighting ever since I was elected in 2001.

“The funding gap was created when the previous Government put in place the grant system, which unfortunately the current Government has done little to change, leaving schools in Devon seriously under funded. I recently attended a F40 group conference on this issue and fully support Devon County Council’s call this year for fairer funding.

“However, there is some hope as pressure has led the Government to review the way in which grants are calculated and change may finally be on its way.”

• Each pupil in the City of London receives £7,603, whereas in Devon the figure drops by nearly £4,000 to £3,842

• Why are Devon children short-changed on their education? Comments below please

(image: School Room by  Rob Shenk, used under Creative Commons)

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Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross has been against the war in Iraq right since the get-go, but while the Chilcot Inquiry’s in full swing, others are changing their original story. Politicians, ehh? Difficult to pin down, or what? This week’s column also includes a defence of marriage – but without the tax breaks – and nearly getting to ask the Prime Minister a question! (Better luck next time, Rich!) Still, he has been catching the speaker’s eye… Take it away Richard…

Prime Ministers Question Time – Nearly!
There are two ways of getting called to put a question to the Prime Minister, the first is to put your name in a ballot to appear on the order paper, the second is to ‘catch the Speaker’s eye’.

Round about 250 MPs put their name forward every week. The ballot opens at 1pm on a Thursday and remains open for seven days for a question to be put the following Wednesday. Fifteen names are randomly picked and they appear on the order paper in the sequence that their name comes out of the bag. Two other people are certain to be called, one is David Cameron, who has up to six questions and Nick Clegg has two. Technically there is a written question and a supplementary. The written question can be specific like “will the PM visit ‘X’ in my constituency”, but MPs usually opt for the open question “What are the Prime Minister’s engagements for the day?”. This is abridged to the letter ‘E’ on the form requesting the question.

The Speaker will call the name of the first member who will say “Number One Mr Speaker” and the Prime Minister will then state broadly what he is doing, “After meeting my colleagues etc…”.  The Speaker will then balance the questions from Government to Opposition benches fitting in Clegg and Cameron. Members stand to catch the Speaker’s eye when two members on the same bench follow each other on the order paper, hoping to be called as the Speaker balances the debate.

Wet Macular Degeneration
Last week I was number 10 in the ballot and after consulting my email contacts, selected a question on Wet Macular Degeneration which leads to sight loss and the refusal of NICE to approve funding for its treatment until the eyesight is almost gone. Most weeks we get down to number 10 on the order paper, but not this week, the House only reached number 9. This is only the third time that my name has appeared on the ballot paper and each time the questions have stopped one question short of mine. Thankfully I have caught the Speaker’s eye a few times.

Chilcot Inquiry and Iraq
Listening to the radio on a further update of the Chilcot Inquiry into the war in Iraq, I was disappointed to hear history rewriting itself. Not in the evidence given, but in the comments of the politicians commenting on the radio. I will save my comments on the evidence until Tony Blair has given his, but what shocked me is the number of MPs now saying, and yes, I did underline now, that they never believed WMDs (weapons of mass destruction) existed in Saddam’s Iraq. Yes they did and they told me so. We all believed it was likely they existed.

The difference between those who supported the war and those who opposed it was simple. Some believed they existed as a matter of faith and did not care that any invasion would be illegal and the others; every Lib Dem MP (myself included), a handful of Tories and a good number of Labour who said, there is no evidence and there is no legal justification.

The war happened because Bush wanted it and we joined in because David Cameron and most other Conservative MPs voted for it. I have worked hard to support our troops since they went in because 1) they are our troops and 2) we created the mess, we need to sort it out. All this is the simple truth and is verifiable. The victor always writes history, but first let us remember we have not won yet for there is yet to be peace in Iraq.

Marriage
Old battle lines are being drawn in the election campaign. Should married couples receive a tax break I believe in marriage, I believe we should promote it, but are tax breaks the answer? The Conservatives argue that extra money for married couples will keep them together.

Nice idea but there is absolutely no evidence for this. Divorce soared in the 1950s, settled down for a while and soared again in the 1980s, all when couples had a tax break. Often people do not get married because they cannot afford it, this is helping drive up the number of unmarried couples who never quite get round to making their vows. So would not a one-off grant, repayable if they divorce in five years, not be the better answer to promote marriage rather then an incentive for a ruined marriage to limp on. Marriage is good and helps people stay together but our money is best spent protecting and helping children and helping these people prosper.

Surgeries
Monday, January 25;  Mary Rose Centre, Buckland, 9.30am-10.15am

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Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross celebrates the power of politicans with success on a road safety issue in Keyberry, Newton Abbot. But politics is powerless in the face of bad weather – what’s needed is better planning.

Cold and Crisp and Even
There is a longing in many to get back the Christmases of their youth to the days of Bing Crosby ‘dreaming of a white Christmas’. Certainly the transformed countryside looks spectacular with its white blanket and children across the land have enjoyed tobogganing, building snowmen and throwing the odd snowball. The reality for many, however, is rather different from this ideal view of our wintry weather. Many people cannot get out of their homes, the roads are slippery causing many accidents and food supplies are running short as lorries struggle to get to the stores and farmers battle to get some crops out of the ground.

Blame Gordon?
The first reaction of the tabloid newspapers is to blame the Government for our lack of preparedness, usually with the line “they cope in Sweden don’t they”. There is, however, a big difference between snow for two months every year to snow for three weeks every 20 years. In snowy climes you drive on studded tyres, but these don’t work on cleared roads so wouldn’t really help here. They also have a fleet of snow ploughs at the ready and some industries close down during the wintry blasts. None of these are needed here, the cost would be prohibitive.

Better Planning
There are, however, lots more that could be done to keep our roads moving and pavements safe and most of what can be done is down to the county council, which is responsible for local roads. No council should run out of grit and salt, stock piling that (as Devon actually does) is not a great cost. There is, however, little co-ordination between the county and local communities. Grit bins that exist are abused – why can they not be locked with a couple of local volunteers to open them in time of need and then local people can use them. Grit is needed in town centres, why not distribute grit bags to local shops for them to spread. I know that councillors like Gordon Hook are raising these issues at County Hall, so hopefully next time we have severe cold weather, life will be a bit easier.

Keyberry Light Success
I was approached by Newton Abbot Councillor Ken Purchase, along with County Councillor Gordon Hook to look at road safety on Keyberry Road near Sainsbury’s in the town. I met with them and residents a couple of months ago. They were concerned that trees and hedges make it hard for drivers to see pedestrians, particularly school children who use the crossing regularly, and as the bridge is single lane, vehicles speed up to get through before meeting possible oncoming traffic. Gordon’s and my representations have worked and the county engineers are now to put in temporary traffic lights to see if this works and to cut back the foliage.

The Devil of a Time
January and February 1855 were exceptionally cold with the Exe nearly freezing over. On February 9 there was a series of hooved footprints running from Exmouth to Teignmouth across fields, roads and over buildings. There were many theories at the time as to what caused them, a large bird, a kangaroo, even a donkey. How the latter cleared a 14 foot high wall being ignored! Many, however, saw this as having a more sinister source and they are to this day still known as the devil’s footprints.

Snowman Joke
I heard this on the radio. Two snowmen in a field, one asks the other: “Do you think Gordon Brown’s got long to go!”

Surgeries
Friday, January 15: Oakford Hall, Kingsteignton, 5pm-5.45pm
Monday, January 18: Meadow Centre, Kingsway, Teignmouth, 9.30am-10.15am
Monday, January 25: Mary Rose Centre, buckland, Newton Abbot  9.30am-10.15am

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Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross reckons there’s plenty of scope for change for politicians in the new year – but will it be in the right direction? Find out what the South Devon MP got up to over Christmas and the New Year, and check out his resolutions.

Happy New Year
The new year started well, an end to a decade, goodbye ‘noughties’ and welcome the ‘teenies’ or whatever else it comes to be called.  New Year’s Day itself was great. The sun shone and the sea shone in Teignmouth, taking on the feel of an Edwardian promenade as the whole town seemed to be out for a stroll.  It’s 20 years since we moved to Teignmouth from Exmouth and most of the people I have met since then seemed to be there. It was a lovely day.

New Year’s Eve
Seaside towns in Devon are getting a reputation for being the place to be on New Year’s Eve. Four years ago the Guardian put any Devon resort as the fourth best place to be in the UK to see out the old year. Again this year another national paper quoted by the BBC put Teignmouth in its top 10 places to be on the eve. The whole town seems to get into a party mood and don fancy dress. Perhaps with the bitter cold wind there were slightly fewer this year and the costumes were often covered as people went from one place to another, but that does not take away from the fun of it and the friendliness. We were back home for the chimes and watched the pipers on Jools Holland’s Hootenany but as we made our way up Higher Brimley, more people descended into the town centre. A great night.

Resolution
Of course New Year is a time for new year resolutions and with an election coming, politicians are in the fore of making promises. Of course resolutions are to stop doing something we should not do, smoke, drink too much, eat to much etc and perhaps to do good things more often like, remember to say please and thank you. Resolutions for the new year are simply changing our lives for the better. So what should politicians resolve? With politics in such low regard there is plenty of scope for change. Of course if the tabloid media were also to make a few resolutions too! With the likelihood of Fox style TV news coverage in the UK, that one is certainly going in the wrong direction.

Resolution 2, 10:10
And what of my resolutions. One of course I have already made last year when I signed up to the Guardian newspaper/Age of Stupid filmmakers 10:10 campaign to cut my carbon emissions by 10 per cent in 2010. Extra insulation and extra double glazing at home are part of that plan. Cutting down on car use and greater use of public transport will also help as will an extra jumper at home rather than just turning the central heating up.

To move this forward, I am also determined to cut my carbon emissions when I have to drive and so my MG will be in the garage and to get around I have a five year old Toyota Prius. It is a remarkable car, a hybrid with a small petrol engine and an electric engine which is charged by kinetic energy. The new Prius is so carbon low that is has a zero car tax (mine is £15). The electronic display also keeps you up to date on how many miles per gallon you are achieving which is certainly making me more mindful when I drive. I will keep the MG for emergencies and Sundays, for it will always be fun to drive with hood down on a summer day.

Punch and Judy
Only a hermit living on a remote island could be unaware of the impending election as claims and counter claims between Labour and the Conservatives filled the new year day’s air with the odour of low politics.

Officially the election campaign has started as the law changed last year on election funding which limits local election funding not just in the three week ‘short’ campaign but also in the six months before the latest date for the end of a Parliament. So there is now a spending cap on what candidates can spend from January 1 until the beginning of June. If the election is called early, then only a proportion of this can be used. There is also a limit on national spending but this is ridiculously large at £18 million, making it possible for parties to spend £25 million in total.

Certainly the Conservatives are budgeting to spend the full monty, having sold off their Smith Square offices to pay off their debt from the last election. Labour are estimated to have about £3 million in the war chest and are predicted to raise a further £2 million. The Liberal Democrats will spend less than half of this.

The problem with the national figures is that it includes direct mail shots from Party leaders to individuals. Such mail shots target ‘swing’ voters and they can expect up to 10 letters between now and election day from David Cameron, fewer from the other party leaders.

Like 2007 when John Major fought a long campaign, starting in the January with an official six weeks in the run up to polling day, many electors will be heartily sickened by the whole process. In addition to this excess from the top, will be the affect on the ground. So expect phone calls, door knocking, leaflets, letters and the letters’ page of the local paper filled with bile as campaign managers coerce party members to write letters slagging off the opposition.

It is no worse now than it was 100 years ago and certainly better than 200 years ago but really can’t we regulate our elections better to at least get a sensible cap on spending and stop the £millions being wasted on negativity.

Surgeries
Friday, January 8: 26 Queen Street, Newton Abbot, 5pm-5.45pm (no disabled access)
Monday, January 11: The Manor House, Old Town Street, Dawlish 9.30am-10.15am
Friday, January 15: Oakford Hall, Kingsteignton, 5pm-5.45pm

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Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross has been sending out his specially designed Christmas cards and popping along to carol services as well as noting his contribution to the Pre-Budget report – most notably on the boiler scrappage scheme. Over to you Richard…
Christmas Cards
Having visited the Royal Mail sorting offices last week, I have been keeping them busy this week with my Christmas cards. As in previous years, the design of the card has been by a primary school pupil and as a change this year, the verse has also been written by a school pupil, this time from a secondary school. Some 12 primary schools entered the competition with nearly 300 entrants for a design based on the theme of ‘giving’. The winning design of the Three Kings was by Kitty-Mae Fallon of Trinity School with four runners up, George Choules of Oaklands Park, Ellie White of Kingskerswell Church of England Primary School, Alexia Morris of Stover School and Sophie Moran of Rydon Primary School.

The verse:
This Christmas I will give you:
A warm open fire,
A joyful snowball fight,
A choir of merry singers,
A daily opening of a door,
An angel watching from above,
A wreath hanging proud,
A room filled with the scent of mulled wine,
An excitable sleepless night,
A white bearded smile,
A house full of Christmas spirit,
A lazy after-Christmas dinner doze,
A tipsy uncle’s dance,
A kiss under the mistletoe,
A merry Christmas!
And maybe even a present or two…
was written by Emily Holding and Holly Sames of Stover School, also on the theme of ‘giving’.

I am very grateful to them and some 2,000 cards are now in the post. Am Afifi, an international sculptor who lives locally, and Alan Gibbons an award winning children’s author did the judging for me and again I am grateful to them. The cost of the cards and postage is always paid for by the MP.

RNLI Carols
As we get closer to Christmas, the carol services are racking up. One not to miss for me (though clearly not for some others) is the RNLI’s, now yearly service at St Michael the Archangel in Teignmouth. Piped in, the RNLI crew and Ian Parkes Deputy Mayor with Eileen his wife processed through a packed church for the traditional seven readings and seven carols finished by the hymn, For those in Peril on the Sea. The Revd Gordon Stone, in his usual cheery manner, led the service and for a second year the dinghy sailing Revd Sue Asbury gave another thoughtful sermon. I always enjoy it partly because it contains some of my favourite carols but mostly because it is a true town event.

A Tax on Bankers
At last the Government has signalled that bankers should not get away with large bonuses while the rest of the country suffer as a consequence of their errors. In July I put down an early day motion (EDM 1847) calling for a 90 per cent tax on excessive bonuses. On Wednesday, Alistair Darling announced a 50 per cent tax on bonuses over £25,000. However, when I questioned him, he could not say how he would stop them simply raising their salaries or rolling it over till next year. Without such measures, it is a useless gesture barely better than the Conservative proposal that they should be paid in shares that they have to hold for one year!

Boiler Scrappage Scheme
One good measure from the pre budget statement, however, was the boiler scrappage scheme. Again a measure I had led the debate on in the House by tabling EDM 2070 on October 19. This scheme will help us cut CO² emissions and help the construction industry by providing extra work for plumbers.

Surgeries
Friday, December 18: 26 Queen Street, Newton Abbot, 5pm – 5.45pm (no disabled access)
Monday, December 21:  Kingskerswell Community Centre, Dobbin Arch, 9.30am – 10.15am

• Read more of Richard Younger-Ross’s weeks

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Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross has been doing the traditional run-up to Christmas – off to sorting offices, school parties, art shows, tree lighting events, Victorian fayres, and stocking up on green chutney. Over to you Richard…

Dutch Auction – Winds of Change
The climate change debate has generated an awful lot of heat over the last few days. E-mails claiming that research showing global warming were ‘rigged’ has given a fillip to the climate change sceptics. The core problem appears to be that the researchers were just simply lousy computer programers and so had to take short cuts to get the program to work. It does not mean that the research is wrong, merely that it cannot be trusted. It is not, however, the only research and most other studies indicate that global warming is at least partly made by mankind. The simplistic idea that it doesn’t matter, “we will just get a little better weather”, doesn’t work, you only have to look out of your window to see that.

Teignmouth Sorting Office
MPs’ visits to sorting offices in the run up to Christmas are now part of the tradition. When mail was dealt with by the General Post Office and the Post Master General was a Government appointment, then MPs went to thank public servants for their work. Post privatisation, there are fewer public sector workers, telephones were separated off and then privatised in the 1980s. Royal Mail, however, escaped. Maggie saw that as a step too dangerous. Labour have not gone there yet but the Post Office is now very much ‘a business’ and the Government very much ‘hands off’ in the day to day running, although Mandelson is forever in the shadows.

I visited Teignmouth sorting office on Friday morning to talk to the posties and thank them for their public service. Our postmen and women go more than the final mile and provide a service TNT and others will never compete with, for they will never deliver to rural areas, they rely on the Royal Mail to do that for them.  This rural service may be at risk.

Saturday Fairs and Shows
December Saturdays are always fun as everyone appears to be getting ready for Christmas! My Saturday included three fairs, two shows and a Parksie and a fir tree!

Newton Abbot’s Bearnes School had their fair over the lunchtime, with special visits from Santa and the Grinch! In Teignmouth, the RNLI, Families for Children and other charities gathered for a fare in the Methodist Church Hall while further up the hill in the Richard Newton Hall a wide range of other charities Tombolared and raffled and found other ways of raising funds for their causes.

In between this I visited the Teignmouth Art Society’s winter show at the Carlton Theatre and over the water at the Victory Hall in Shaldon, a new group of artists, Teign Artists held their first exhibition. All excellent work.

And finally there in Teignmouth Triangle was the Deputy Mayor Ian Parkes singing for the Rotary Club and their tree of light. And all this is just a fraction of the events on the day!

Stokeinteignhead’s Victorian Fayre
A firm date in my diary is always Stokeinteignhead’s Victorian Christmas Fayre. This year was even bigger and better than last year, with stalls now in the grounds as well as the hall. The smell of roasting chestnuts greeted us as we arrived which I resisted but only because my eyes had then lit on the spit roasted hog! Well, it was my breakfast. Again I cannot praise this event too highly. Jars of green tomato chutney for £1 were a real bargain and a family favourite and therefore a must buy.  As were several jars of marmalade and… we’ll leave it there. A good place to stock up for Christmas, buy presents, from wooden bowls to jewellery or simply just enjoy. All this for local causes, too good to miss.

Surgeries
Friday, December 11: Bishopsteignton Community Centre, Shute Hill 5pm – 5.45pm
Monday, December 14: Meadow Centre, Kingsway, Teignmouth, 9.30am – 10.15am
Friday , December 18: 26 Queen Street, Newton Abbot, 5pm-5.45pm (no disabled access)

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Teignbridge Lib Dem MP Richard Younger-Ross has had a watery week, what with South West Water charges, Stover Canal restoration and all that rain as he was out and about meeting credit unions, Dawlish Community Transport and Transition Newton Abbot. Over to you Richard…

Dawlish Community Transport
There was a 1960s hit song by Mister Murray where the catch phrase was Down Came the Rain which for some reason kept popping into my mind over the weekend, I can’t imagine why!!! It could of course have been the rain which seems to have settled on the UK for most of the year. It was certainly raining in Dawlish on Sunday when I arrived at the opening of the new premises for Dawlish Community Transport. By lunch the photographer from the paper was held up in traffic and arrived 10 minutes late at which point the rain ceased and we could all go outside for the official opening.

John Adcock has been a driving force for years and he officiated, praising their hard working staff, Jan Green, Jenny Apps and Denise Vanstone, as well as three councils, Dawlish, Devon and Teignbridge.  He gave particular credit to Councillor John Clatworthy for his work in securing the funding and it fell to him to officially open the centre, his wife cutting the ribbon. It is a great asset for them to have their own premises, tucked in behind the museum at the top of the Barton Hill Car Park. Both the Ring-and-Ride buses and Shopmobility are based here which is far better than being at the Manor House. They show what can be achieved with persistence and a bit of Bruce mentality, to try and try again.

Water Justice
The press this week picked up some good news that the cost of water would come down. Sadly it was not by as much as was expected and in a way deals with the problem of the South West having the highest water charges in the UK. On Saturday, when thankfully the rain held off, I was in Newton Abbot collecting signatures for my water justice campaign. The Walker Review of water charges should report in the next couple of weeks and it is essential we show to the Government how angry we are at the injustice of our water charges.

Two days earlier I had a meeting with the chief executive of South West Water, Chris Loughlin. We went through a number of issues and of course one of his concerns was the cut in water charges which means a cut in revenue to SWW and delays in their work programme. So schemes to reduce the smells at Buckland Sewerage Works may now be at risk. Of course as I have argued in the past, perhaps they could reduce the dividends to their shareholders?

Stover Canal
Work on the restoration of the Stover Canal is progressing steadily but it should get a major boost soon when the Stover Canal Society obtains the leasehold. This will enable them to apply for major grants to help with the work. They asked me to join them for a couple of hours on Saturday to help clear some of the growth blocking the towpath. So after a quick change into a pair of jeans, I drove over to WBB East Gold Works where I was met and taken up the towpath to join the team. It was good fun and they are making great progress. It you want to help call George Whitehead on 01626 775498.

Credit Union
Earlier on Saturday I had popped into the new Scouts Hall in the Wolborough Street Car Park with Councillor Gordon Hook to see the Credit Union team. They apparently have 253 members in Teignbridge which is great progress. The Credit Union movement is a non profit making bank run by volunteers. It provides small loans and is an easy way to save. It is of particular benefit to people on low incomes and you are certain of a real person to talk to, well worth looking into.

Transition Newton Abbot
The Transition Town movement is growing fast as groups of people join together to affect change, not by campaigning for new loans but by leading by example and helping people to be more self sufficient and less polluting. I met the Newton Abbot group twice in the last week, firstly in my office when they came to see me and secondly in Courtenay Street on Saturday when they had a stall in the shadow of the Clock Tower. A great idea that we should all support. The Newton Abbot group can be contacted on 01626 337642 and the Teignmouth group on 01626 870964.

Surgeries
Friday, December 4: Exminster Victory Hall, 5pm-5.45pm
Monday, December 7: The Manor House, Old Town Street, Dawlish,  9.30am-10.15am
Friday, December 11: Bishopsteignton Community Centre, Shute Hill,  5pm-5.45pm

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There’s a positive note on railways, says Teignbridge Lib Dem MP Richard Younger-Ross, who has been out in Newton Abbot, Abbotskerswell and Teignmouth Docks, this week. Over to you Richard…

Town Centre
Having my office in the centre of Newton Abbot does make life easier and I do not understand how my predecessor coped with having an office on Brunel Road! As my office is on Queen Street, it also gives me a fairly good idea of what is happening in the town as well. Over the last few weeks I have been asking people about the future of the town centre and how they believe it should develop. There are a wide range of views, but one of these is constant and that is they see the town centre as very important and want to see it flourish. The recession is having an impact on local trade but the town does seem to be faring better than other shopping centres in Devon. There are fewer closed shops than Torquay for instance. If we wish it to continue to prosper then we need to continue to use it and perhaps use the supermarkets a little less often.

Exports
One local business that is prospering is International Dance Supplies, whose offices and warehouse are on the Brunel Estate. Run by the dynamic Anne Walker they are continuing to expand and have just opened up an office in the United States to start exporting their range of dance supplies over there. On Friday night she hosted an International Markets Forum for local businesses looking to export. It was a fascinating seminar and good to see so many local businesses looking to grow.

Teignmouth Docks
The character of Teignmouth is certainly determined in part by having a Port. It transforms the town from just another West Country seaside resort into something a little more earthy. The Harbour Commission is responsible for running the port, dredging the channel etc. I see them about once a year although we correspond far more often than that. The commission has changed radically over recent years and undertakes more tasks itself rather than using sub contractors. One new change is the port using satellite radar to see ships coming into and out of the estuary. I was being shown this new piece of equipment and looking at the tankers and cargo ships moored in the bay when I had a phone call from a London radio station asking to interview me about these ships in the bay as they had featured in a national newspaper. Strange coincidence or what!

Abbotskerswell
Friday afternoon is always busy and I always seem to try to cram in more than is possible to do. Abbotskerswell Parish Council came over to see me at lunchtime to talk about various concerns including the problems residents have with Ruby Farm. It is an on-going saga that the county council and Environment Agency are involved in sorting out, including taking them to court for various breaches of regulation.

Passing the village hall in Bishopsteignton the other night, a few notes of a familiar tune drifted on the breeze. As the notes came together to form a tune, I heard the definite clunk of timber on timber leaving me in no doubt Grimspound Border were close at hand. Sure enough, on sticking my head through the door, eight men turned and clattered wood on wood hoping not to get any flesh in between.

Morris dancing has a bad name in some circles, Sir Arnold Bax joked that you should try everything once but incest and folk dancing! But travel abroad and British holiday makers pack into coaches and travel for miles for a ‘local’ folk dance. Little men with big bellies even queue to join a ‘line’ in Greek taverners, but that is when we are abroad. We applaud them for keeping alive their traditions but think ours started in the 50s with the ‘Twist’.  The Grimspound Border are well worth supporting so do go and see them and perhaps give it a try. They have great fun. Call Gill or Phil on 01626 779795 or 07796 414313.

Bill Millin
One of the events I attended in Dawlish last week was a reception in the Manor House for piper Bill Millin, who famously piped the commandos ashore on the Normandy beaches on D-Day. It is now proposed to raise a statue to him in Normandy and a group of French pipers and the sculptor came over to launch the appeal to fund the project. They hope to have it ready for next year’s D-Day commemoration on June 6 which is a tall order but quite possible. I wish them every success.

Railways
On a positive note, I had a good meeting with Mark Hopwood who is the newish Managing Director of First Great Western. He made a special journey to Newton Abbot to see me which was very beneficial as we could look at some of the issues.

The good news is that the dreadful local trains (142s) which were dumped on us by the Department of Transport are to be replaced next year by 150s which apart from being a bit smarter also have greater capacity. The other positive is that FGW will provide a service in lieu of the South West Trains (SWT) service that is now to terminate at Exeter. It is still not as convenient as the SWT service, but at least there will still be a service even if people have to change. The SWT ‘s cut was again a requirement of the Department of Transport, who wanted an increased service between Exeter and Waterloo and the only way to do that with no new rolling stock being available, was to terminate the service at Exeter.

Some issues are still on-going such as overcrowding on the trains in the morning and afternoon, particularly those taking school children to and from Torre, as is also the reduction of service during the winter period which has filled my post bag in recent weeks. The resolution to both of these rests with the Government who have just cancelled an order for 202 new diesel trains as they are now committed to further electrification of the network.  So our new trains will be second hand and will only come when other parts of the country go electric in about 2016!

Surgeries
Friday, December 4: Exminster Victory Hall, 5pm – 5.45pm
Monday, December 7: The Manor House, Old Town Street, Dawlish, 9.30am – 10.15am
Friday, December 11: Bishopsteignton Community Centre, Shute Hill, 5pm – 5.45pm

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