Council must rebuild confidence

3:45pm Friday 18th July 2008

Since the Audit Commission published its damning assessment of Harrow Council this year, branding it as the worst-performing borough in London and the third worst in the UK, I have been advocating the need for a clear strategy to be adopted by the council to enable it to provide the high quality of services we Harrow residents deserve.

Time to avoid hysteria

3:41pm Friday 18th July 2008

Holiday times are approaching and I know that many people will be looking forward to a rest from the hurly-burly of their normal lives and I certainly wish everyone well in whatever form their holidays take, but we should all be aware of those for whom the summer means business as usual. Out of a sense of duty and public service, many people will simply carry on working to protect us and to carry out their usual duties.

Campaigning for parents

10:51am Thursday 5th June 2008

An extra four-and-a-half million parents in Britain will get the right to request flexible working, including many in Harrow, following the publication of an independent review prepared for the Government.

Congratulations, protection and disappointment

10:45am Thursday 5th June 2008

I want to discuss three very important areas in brief in this month's column - each of them strangely interlinked.

Departments must communicate

10:06am Friday 9th May 2008

Last week I met with Mr and Mr Aveyard, an elderly couple who live in Pinner, who were recently threatened with legal action by Harrow Council if they didn't remove a fence which Harrow Council itself put up.

A monument to Thatcherite excess

10:05am Thursday 10th April 2008

The Civic Centre should be sold and the site redeveloped. It is far too big, encourages inefficiency and bureaucracy and is symbolic of the problems at Harrow Council which the Audit Commission so graphically highlighted last month.

Juggling local and Government duties

9:56am Thursday 10th April 2008

One of the most intriguing poltical questions, amongst many at the moment, is when a Government minister is allowed to also be a local MP? I have had the great pleasure and privilege of being the MP for Harrow East for nearly 11 years and have been a Government whip for almost eight of those 11 years.

Willing to assist the council

10:01am Thursday 6th March 2008

THE recent Audit Commission report rated Harrow as the worst performing local authority in London and the third worst in the UK as a whole. I am sure Harrow Times readers will agree that this is an unacceptable situation.

A pleasure to get involved

9:58am Thursday 6th March 2008

I THOUGHT that it would be useful if I gave everyone a flavour of a not untypical day in the constituency.

Investment for future learning

10:57am Friday 8th February 2008

HARROW'S schools rightly have an excellent reputation. The hard work of pupils, teachers and parents has meant we've seen excellent results year after year. But I want to see reform and further investment to keep our schools among the best in the country.

Consent key to healing divisions

Updated 10:16pm Friday 25th July 2008

The Archbishop of Canterbury said he aimed to heal divisions among the 77 million-strong Anglican Communion through "consent, not coercion" as he sought to gain unity.

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