News from Westminster
Posted by Dawn Primarolo, MP for Bristol South, at 10:32, Mon 7 December 2009:
Welcome!
Here’s the latest edition of my regular newsletter.
HENGROVE PARK 1 - TOPPING OUT AT THE SKILLS ACADEMY
I donned my hard-hat on Friday morning, to help celebrate the ‘topping-out’ ceremony at the South Bristol Skills Academy. Topping out is an historical tradition, which occurs when a building has reached its highest point. Work on internal fixtures and decoration can now start, with the college ready for students next year. The Skills Academy is an absolutely vital part of the Hengrove Park project as a whole, and will provide a fantastic range of vocational courses. These courses will be particularly beneficial to younger people, but also for people who may have lost their job during the recession and want to learn a new trade. We need to continue to work hard to tackle youth unemployment, and I am confident that the Skills Academy will provide fantastic support for young people in our city.
HENGROVE PARK 2 - HOSPITAL WINS APPROVAL
Our South Bristol Community Hospital has won final approval from the Department of Health. A large number of people, including the thousands who signed my petitions to get the hospital off the ground, have campaigned for the hospital. Now, the start of building work is in sight. Amongst other things, the hospital will have 50 in-patient beds and offer patients day surgery and access to a large number of diagnostic tests. Final contracts should be signed early in the new year, ready for work to get underway early in the Spring. The hospital will be open to patients in 2012.
HENGROVE PARK 3 – EXTRA FUNDING SECURED FOR LEISURE CENTRE
Still at Hengrove Park, there has been good news for the leisure centre. The City Council have submitted the final business case for the leisure centre to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and is hoping to progress to ‘financial close’ by late next month. The Government has shown its commitment to the project, and has announced nearly £1 million additional funding. The leisure centre will include both an Olympic sized and learner swimming pool, comprehensive gym, aerobics studio and a number of courts for badminton, basketball, netball and five-a-side football.
MEETING OASIS ACADEMY STUDENTS IN LONDON
I was pleased to meet with students from the Oasis Academy at Parliament recently. Oasis selected eight students from their two Academies in Bristol to visit London, where they enjoyed a tour of Parliament. The young people met up with students from Oasis’s academies across the UK, to look at how they can input into their own education.
MORE GOVERNMENT FUNDING FOR BRISTOL
The Government has announced the level of funding it will be giving to Bristol City Council in the next financial year. Bristol will receive £166 million, an increase of 2.5 per cent. This injection of tax-payers money into Bristol is welcome, and should help the Council keep council tax increases very low, while still maintaining and improving front-line services. I will be keeping an eye on the situation to ensure that this funding is well spent.
VISITING THE RNIB
On Friday afternoon, I attended a briefing hosted by the Royal National Institute for Blind People. I found out about their latest campaigns, and was pleased to meet with a number of blind and partially sighted people from Bristol South. The RNIB does fantastic work in raising the profiles of issues affecting blind and partially sighted people, and I look forward to working with them in the future.
TRANSPORT PROPOSALS – HAVE YOUR SAY
When it’s possible, I do try to keep you up to date with consultations that I am informed about. I know many residents will be interested to learn that the West of England Partnership is looking at how best to link North Bristol with Hengrove via bus-rapid transit. There are plenty of ways to get involved in the consultation – see http://www.travelplus.org.uk/north-fringe-to-hengrove-package for more information.
CUSTOMER SERVICE POINTS – UPDATE
Since my last News from Westminster, I am glad that the City Council has reversed its policy on Customer Service Points (CSPs). The Council wanted to close a raft of CSPs, which provide crucial face-to-face advice and support around Council services. CSPs are often used by people who do not have access to the internet at home, or don’t feel comfortable on the phone, so they really are vital. Now, the Council has announced it they will not be proceeding with the closures. However, I was concerned to see that they are proposing to cut the opening times of Bedminster and Knowle from five days a week to three. People will rightly wonder if the Council wants to let these services wither on the vine. I’m seeking answers from the Council, and will keep you updated.
ANY QUESTIONS?
If you have any queries about these issues, or have a question you would like to ask about anything else, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Just email me at primarolod@parliament.uk , phone 0117 909 0063 or write to me at PO Box 1002, Bristol, BS99 1WH. Alternatively, for more information on what’s happening in and around Bristol South, you can visit www.bristolsouthlabourparty.org.uk.
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