Popham - Lib Dem Policies in Action

3.11.30am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 5th May 2009

Speaking on current issues facing Bristol, Lib Dem Prospective Member of Parliament Mike Popham said, "The biggest local issue of late has been the continued crisis in primary school places in Bristol. The Lib Dems have met with several local parents and many more have written to us. We are pleased to hear that since the administration of the Council passed back to the Lib Dems just 2 months ago, at least parents feel that they are being listened to and that the Council realises the seriousness of the problem. My colleague in the City Council's Cabinet, the new exec member for children, Cllr Clare Campion-Smith has brought back our plans from 2007 to build a new school in Ashley Down. Other sites are being looked at for extra places in 2010 and 2011 to solve the shortage. This year two schools, Sefton Park and Bishop Road, have agreed for a temporary extra reception class. This sorry saga is perhaps the most obvious reason why the Lib Dems need to win a secure majority in the elections on 4th June.

We have supported large and small scale local environmental initiatives. Definitely on the large side was the launch of the Lib Dem proposals for harnessing the power of the Severn. For several months a group of Lib Dem MPs from the English and Welsh sides of the estuary, along with Welsh Assembly Members and local councillors have been hearing expert evidence. We've decided to support a short barrage, roughly in alignment with the existing Severn bridges. This will limit ecological damage and safeguard the Port of Bristol. There is also potential for a new rail link across the top as one day the Severn Tunnel will need replacing.

We have supported Bristol's Sikh community by attending two Vaisakhi events. We also spoke at the Punjabi association dinner and several of us went on a long march from the St George Gurdwara (Sikh temple) on Church Road to College Green and spoke to the thousand people there. Our Lib Dem Bristol West MP, Stephen Williams met with the artistic director of the St Pauls Carnival to discuss this years event. And on the cultural front we were pleased to be at the ceremony to mark the completion of the Colston Hall extension.

Bristol's Lib Dems continue to support our growing number of social enterprises. We presented a social enterprise award to Bristol Wood Recycling and Stephen Williams, MP was the guest speaker at the launch of a new network for Bristol's black community enterprises.

Up in Westminster the highlight of the month was the defeat of the government on a Lib Dem motion calling for British citizenship for Ghurkha soldiers. Nick Clegg has been pressing this issue for about a year and has always been given the brush off by Gordon Brown. The Lib Dems are allocated a handful of Opposition Days in each Parliamentary session, so we used one of our debates to highlight the issue. Usually the Tories disdainfully abstain on our motions. This time even they saw it was a good issue, as did a large number of Labour backbenchers. We won the vote by 20, the first time the government has been defeated on an Opposition motion and only the fourth time the Labour government has lost any votes. We went outside to meet a large crowd of jubilant Ghurkhas and their families....and Joanna Lumley! A good day for Parliament and for Nick Clegg and another bad day for Gordon Brown.

Indeed, it's been a really bad month for the Prime Minister. The Lib Dems supported a reform of MPs' expenses and several times gave evidence to Commons committees and external consultants. It's a serious issue about restoring dignity and trust back into Parliament. It certainly is too serious for a Prime Minister to make a gauche and frankly demeaning (to his office) appearance on You Tube to announce some half baked proposals. His proposal to replace a system of claiming for accommodation expenses that is backed by receipts for the money spent (bath plugs and all by some...) with a flat rate daily allowance requiring no evidence of expenditure could only come from a man and an entourage detached from the real world. In the end he had to stage an embarrassing climb down. We did vote on some more sensible proposals, in particular for MPs to disclose non Parliamentary earnings.

Mike Popham, Prospective Member of Parliament

Bristol East, Liberal Democrats