At 10 AM this morning, the fate of Wyre Forest's Post Offices was announced. As expected, Gordon Brown's Labour Government will be closing 4 local post offices. They are: Comberton Hill; Queen's Road, The Walshes; Wolverley; and Stone. Mark Garnier has been campaigning against these closures for some time and will continue to do so during the consultation process.
The UK's annual rate of inflation has hit an annual 4.4% rise - the highest since the new CPI index was introduced in 1997. But looking deeper into the figures, food inflation is running at a massive 13.7%. Meanwhile, the older measure of inflation, the RPI (more commonly used in pay negotiations) hit 5%.
Cancer patients in Wyre Forest are to benefit from a new radiotherapy unit to be based in Worcester City's Royal Hospital. At yesterday's Three Counties Cancer Network meeting, the board unanimously agreed to locate one of the proposed linear accelerators at the Worcester Royal Hospital, with the second being located in Hereford. The two sites will form satellites of the existing oncology department at Cheltenham.
I read with interest Howard Martin's letter on these pages last week. In it he is very disparaging about party politics. No one would deny that politics in Wyre Forest is both interesting and unique, but experiment of a single issue political party campaigning on just one agenda is one that has not been repeated elsewhere. In saying that party politics is, in general, a bad thing, I feel hat Howard is missing out on one very important lesson from history - that Parliament has also evolved over time to produce a system that is based almost entirely on political parties.
Wyre Forest's Conservative parliamentary Spokesman Mark Garnier has joined Harriett Baldwin, Conservative Candidate for West Worcestershire, in calls for a review of the allowance paid to volunteer drivers. These drivers give their valuable time and the use of their car to charities and the NHS to help (in many cases) patients get to NHS facilities so they may receive their treatment.
Worcestershire's Conservative Parliamentary team for the next general election, made up of MPs Peter Luff and Julie Kirkbride, together with Parliamentary Candidates Harriett Baldwin, Mark Garnier, Karen Lumley and Robin Walker, are reiterating their call for a new radiotherapy unit to be based in the heart of Worcestershire at the Royal Hospital in Worcester.
Robin Walker, Parliamentary Candidate for Worcester joined fellow Worcestershire based Conservative Candidate for Wyre Forest, Mark Garnier, on Friday to walk the Worcestershire Way for St Richards Hospice. Over 100 people took part in the gruelling challenge and raised over £50,000 for the charity.
Mark Garnier, Wyre Forest's Conservative Parliamentary Spokesman, welcomed important new proposals announced by Conservative leader, David Cameron, this week. These new proposals are designed to help boost the work of charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups that will benefit organisations across Wyre Forest.
Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Philip Hammond visited Stourport yesterday to meet with local businesses. The event was a networking lunch organised by the Hereford and Worcester Chamber of Commerce and kindly hosted by Thomas Vale at their educational facilities in Worcester Road Stourport. 35 people attended the event
Dear Sir One of the topics of conversation that arises from time to time in Wyre Forest is the subject of whips used by political parties. This is the mechanism whereby parties of all flavours and colours strongly encourage their elected members to vote along party lines to support the policies of their parties. The debate rages as to whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, but when the whip is used correctly, it is good.
