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David's Blog
June 09 posts
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lgilmore | 
18 June 2009 at 15:07 | 463 views
I want to start this week by congratulating one local resident whose work in the Yeovil Community has just been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday honours. Bridget Dollard - Scout Leader, Yeovil Town Councillor and staff member of Preston Secondary School in Yeovil - becomes “Bridget Dollard MBE”!
Bridget is one of the friendliest, nicest, and hardest working people in Yeovil, and she truly deserves this award. She is not the sort of person to allow this to go to her head. Indeed, nor is her family! I understand that when one friend telephoned the Dollards this week to pass on his congratulations, he was told by Bridget’s husband, Dave: “She can’t come to the phone right now – she is sowing a button on my trousers!”
Bridget has, of course, been an excellent representative of Yeovil South, and Yeovil as a whole, as local councillor and as an outstanding Mayor of Yeovil. But she and her husband, Dave, have also been leading lights in the local scouts, and have done a lot to help many hundreds of young people in and around Yeovil.
Bridget has also been a valuable member of staff at Preston Secondary School in Yeovil, where her support for and kindness to generations of pupils has gone well beyond what would ever be set down in some staff handbook or job specification. Generous, warm-hearted, loyal, community-minded, tough, mischievous, and very determined in standing up for the things that she believes in (as I have sometimes discovered myself!), Bridget Dollard fully deserves the national recognition that she has now received. I am sure Bridget will not mind me saying that she and her husband, Dave, have been a real team both for the scouts and on the Council, and Dave also deserves to bask in the shared and reflected glory.
Last week, I returned to Yeovil on Thursday afternoon, and spent a couple of hours in the office signing letters. I am lucky to have such an excellent and experienced team in my Yeovil Office, and they get through a massive volume of work each week.
On Friday, I had a “packed programme” of constituency activities – which started with a visit to Chard School. I was able to attend the morning assembly at which four students made presentations to the whole school about their favourite charities. The verbal presentations had to be linked to a visual presentation – so there was a lot to think about and to coordinate. All four presentations were of an outstanding quality, and all those involved can feel very proud. The pupils voted on their favourite presentation and charity, and money raised by a “non uniform day” was then awarded to this charity.
My next visit was to “Colin Mear Engineering”. This is a high quality engineering company which is based on the edge of the beautiful village of Combe St. Nicholas, near Chard. The company was founded in 1983, and employs around 150 staff. I met Dave Lusk, the Managing Director, who briefed me on the work of the company, whose products are exported all over the world.
Although UK manufacturing industry has been under great pressure over the last few decades, we are fortunate in our area to have a large number of high technology engineering firms who are often leaders in their sectors.
After the visit to Combe St. Nicholas, I had to set off to the “far east” of my Constituency, where I met up with local resident, Valerie Singleton. I am of the generation for whom the only REAL “Blue Peter” TV presenters are Peter Purvis, John Noakes and Valerie Singleton – so I was very excited to meet Valerie at an event at Dillington House earlier in the year. I was interested to hear about Valerie’s glob trotting activities, as well as her work in establishing a new organisation which gives discounts to people over retirement age.
In the afternoon, I held a number of meetings in my Yeovil Office. On Saturday, I held an Advice Centre in Chard before heading to Montacute to formally open the excellent Church Fete in the grounds of magnificent Montacute House. The weather was perfect and the Fete well attended.
Ever,
David.
lgilmore | 18 June 2009 at 15:06 | 382 views
Congratulations to all those elected last week to serve in local Government in our area – there were 12 County Council elections in my constituency, and three by-elections – one for Crewkerne Town Council, and one District Council by-election in each of Ilminster and Cokers. We have some excellent new people elected onto the local councils, and the return of a number of dedicated and longer serving colleagues.
Our election counts in this area now always take place at the Westlands Leisure Complex in Yeovil. I have to admit that I do my best to avoid all election counts, as not only do they occupy a lot of time, but they are always rather nerve-wracking. I like to just hear the final results!
However, by some quirk of fate, I did drop in at the Westlands Centre on Friday morning, to attend an anniversary meeting of the very successful Yeovil Stroke Club. This group has done fantastic work in our area, helping those who have experienced strokes, and indeed it often has a queue of people wanting to join. My congratulations to all those who have worked so hard to make this group a success over the last decade.
On Friday morning I also called in at AgustaWestland itself, and its main HQ in Yeovil – off Lysander Road.
I had a long conversation with Managing Director, Graham Cole, about a range of issues affecting the company. In general, Westland is doing well at the moment – particularly since the all-important confirmation of the £1bn order for the Future Lynx/Wildcat helicopters, as well as the upgrade work on existing Mark 9 Lynx helicopters. The stability of Westland has been a major positive factor in helping the South Somerset economy during this time of world recession.
One big recent disappointment has, of course, been the US Administration’s decision not to press on with the VH71 Presidential Flight order. However, much of the Yeovil-based work on this order had already been completed, and will obviously have to be paid for by the US. So the major jobs impact of not proceeding will be in the United States, and not in Yeovil.
An interesting new prospect which may be opening up domestically relates to the British Government’s plans for new medium lift helicopters. Until recently, the Government was planning to go ahead with two upgrade programmes to extend the flying life of the French made Puma helicopters, and to upgrade some Sea King helicopters. However, Defence Minister Quentin Davies recently questioned whether spending this money to patch up existing helicopters really makes sense – or whether it would not be better to buy new helicopters with the money.
In my view, it would be far better to buy new helicopters, not least because of serious issues about whether the existing, rather old, Puma helicopters are really worth upgrading. This could be an opportunity for the armed forces to acquire better helicopters, as well as being a commercial opportunity for Westland. I shall certainly be pursuing this matter.
Finally, last Friday I also dropped in to an event in Yeovil to celebrate the third anniversary of the very successful “Shopmobility” scheme, which provides portable scooters and manual wheelchairs for people in Yeovil – to get around the shops and town centre, as well as for short and longer term hire. This is an excellent scheme, and has proved very popular. Hundreds of people have used the scheme since it started. Well done to the hard working staff and committee. If you want to know more, please call Shopmobility on 01935 420889.
At this event, I was particularly pleased to see Darren Way, the Yeovil Town footballer. Darren is still recovering from the terrible road accident last year, and for a while he used the shopmobility scheme to get around – when he could not walk.
Darren is making an impressive recovery, after almost losing his life in the crash. He has been one of the outstanding and most inspirational of Yeovil players over recent years - and to borrow from Lord Mandelson he is “a fighter, not a quitter”. We all wish him and his family the very best for the future.
Ever,
David.