Category Archives: Wokingham and West Berkshire Issues

         Yesterday I rang the Leader of Wokingham Borough Council to check they had all they needed from central government and were able to keep the main roads gritted and open. I was happy to learn that they planned a couple of gritting runs on the main roads.         I got up early this morning [...]

        Yesterday I called in at the consultation on the construction of new homes in Shinfield.         I raised several issues with the representatives of the developers. These included         whether they would build homes in a style which harmonised with the existing village, as their display boards showed very different designs with no local reference [...]

              This morning I spoke to the Maiden Erlegh Sixth Form as part of their General Studies. I was assured that Labour and Lib Dem representatives have been invited in to speak at later dates to provide balance.             I spoke to them about the changing landscape of work, where more jobs will have to [...]

            For all too many years I have been trying to persuade people to build a new railway station for Wokingham, and to sort out the traffic chaos at the station roundabout and level crossing.  The Council has been supportive. Many constituents have agreed. First Railtrack, then Network Rail damned my proposals with faint [...]

Today I spoke to a well attended Thames Valley business lunch in Reading. I explained the good prospects for business in Asian and Latin American markets, and the opportunities that the internet presents to establish new businesses and to remodel older ones. I also took them briefly through the growing tragedy of the Euro and [...]

Over fish pie, beef pasta,pork with rice and a vegetarian flan, Wokingham Conservatives talked of how we can restore our democracy as it falls within the growing grasp of the EU. Hilary Pollock produced a great menu with choices for the hungry campaigners on Saturday evening. As we got to gips with apple and blackberry [...]

On Monday after surgery I went to Tesco to visit the Giving Tree, and to provide a gift. Once again this initiative has been successful, with many local people buying gifts to put near the tree to make sure children will all have something to open this Christmas. I would like to thank all involved [...]

On Monday morning I called in at the Brodd Street office to meet the postal staff sorting the mail ready for their morning rounds. I thanked them on behalf of the local community for handling all the mail, and wished them all a Happy Christmas. The trend to more packets continues, with more and more [...]

Wokingham is in good voice this festive season. Last weekend I went to the Loddon Valley concert, given by the Maestros youth orchestra and the massed primary schools choirs. James Baker led it well, getting a strong sound from the singers, and a great performance from the instrumentalists. One of the highlights of Christmas is [...]

The Autumn Statement confirmed that the Reading Station improvements will be completed a year early by 2015. By the following year there will electric train services to Oxford, Newbury and Bristol. The Coalition government has announced a plan to expand capacity on the M3 in Surrey which serves people to the south of the Wokingham [...]