Hell's Kitchen at the Sunniside History Society

Sunniside History Society, of which I am the chairman, held its monthly meeting last Tuesday and our speaker was Freda Thompson who gave a presentation about characters from the past 200 years of Geordie history. One of the characters lived 200 years ago on the Newcastle Quayside. He was a regular at an establishment called Hell's Kitchen, an aptly named public house with a riotous reputation. I pointed out at the end of the presentation that Hell's Kitchen obviously predated Gordon Ramsay by 200 years!

On a slightly different subject, the society is organising a trip to the Bowes Museum on 1st September. The cost is £16 and we will also be calling into Barnard Castle where people will be able to make their own lunch arrangements. Anyone interested in coming on the visit should contact the society's secretary, Alan Guest, on sun1h1st@gmail.com.

Not in the money

We paid the Potters Wheel a visit on Friday evening. The pub in Sunniside, my home village, reopened a couple of weeks ago under new and (according to the poster outside) "good" management. While enjoying a pint of George and the Dragon ale, the barman persuaded me to enter the pub's World Cup sweep stake. I am not a follower of football but I made the comment that I would enter but I hoped not to draw England as their record at the World Cup is not a resounding success. No victories in half a century despite all those vast pay packets which are bankrupting the game suggests drawing England would not leave me in the money.

Alas, I drew England.

Planting Up Whickham

On Sunday I was in Whickham to help the volunteers from Planting Up Whickham to plant the flower beds on Church Green. Job done by midday. In a few weeks' time, the flowerbeds will look great.

Gateshead Full Council Meeting

A bit late but this is the video of the last full council meeting in Gateshead on 24th May. As Leader of the Opposition I raised issues about EU funding, housing strategy, electric car charging points and devolution.

Gateshead annual council

The annual meeting of Gateshead Council on 18th May was a slightly strange affair as the retiring mayor, Pauline Dillion, was absent due to health problems, as was Martin Gannon, leader of the council. The meeting went ahead anyway. One of the points that irritates me about Gateshead Council is that the mayor is always Labour, but as Leader of the Opposition, I am asked to second the vote of thanks to the outgoing mayor. While I have no problem with seconding a vote of thanks when the mayor has done a good job, I do not like the fact this has become institutionalised into supporting a party political appointment when the appointment itself is denied to us. Labour like unity, as long as it is a united front supporting them. This is going to have to change.

In the meantime, here is the video of the annual meeting, so that everything is on record.

Video - council response to Regent Court fire

Earlier this month, Regent Court in Gateshead experienced a significant fire. Residents were evacuated. Most have now been able to return but 14 flats remain damaged. At Gateshead Council's annual meeting last week, deputy leader Catherine Donovan and I (as leader of the opposition) led the tributes to the services involved in tackling the fire and helping the displaced residents. I also raise the issue of the promised review of council housing which so far has not seen light of day.

Whickham eFocus no. 108

Our next eFocus for the Whickham area was published tonight. It covers the local election results, the plans for the new buildings at Whickham School and the open day at the Whinnies Community Garden. You can view the newsletter on this link.

Taking the goats to school

Huge thanks to Cllr Jonathan Wallace for Blaydon & volunteers for bringing lovely Coal, Perky and Whinney along for our final activity for MHAW18.  We all felt  the calming properties of petting animals as part of #WhickhamSixth 's #MentalHealthAwareness Raising#SixthFormFriday pic.twitter.com/DJHehArLFl

— Whickham School (@WhickhamSchool) May 18, 2018

Last Friday I was invited to take some of my goats to Whickham School as part of a project by sixth formers into addressing mental health issues. The aim was to see if petting animals would help improve people's mental health. I took Coal, Perky and Whinnie Too. Hundreds of children and lots of staff came along to visit them. The experiment was a success.

Above is the school's Twitter report on the visit.

Planning the Sunniside community fair

The plans for a community fair in Sunniside to raise funds for the village's Christmas tree are moving forward. We had a meeting on Monday evening at the Whinnies Community Garden where the fair will be held on Saturday 14th July. This will be the first community fair in Sunniside but hopefully it will be an annual event. There will be more information to follow as the details are sorted out.

Video diary - Sunday 13th May: visiting the Hop Garden

The Hop Garden is a community allotment in High Spen. An annual seed and plant swap event is held there and the most recent one was on Sunday. I attended but took quail and duck eggs with me to swap.

Lighting Up Whickham Race Night

Lighting Up Whickham are holding a race night on Saturday 26th May at Glebe Sports Club, from 7pm to raise funds for the Whickham Christmas tree. To order tickets go to the Lighting Up Whickham Facebook page.

Dunston Community Fair

On Saturday I visited the community fair at Dunston. A pleasant afternoon and a burger consumed as well.

Get well soon Martin

Last Thursday, members of Gateshead Council received an email informing us that Martin Gannon, Labour leader of the authority, had gone into hospital for urgent treatment. When I received the news I called Martin on his mobile. He was comfortable but very bored! So Martin, get well soon and get back to leading the council. It's a good cure for boredom!

Boozy winnings at the Bay Horse

On Friday evening, the Whickham and Swalwell Music Society had a pub quiz at the Bay Horse in Whickham to raise funds. My brother Andrew suggested we attend. Since our record in pub quiz music rounds is catastrophic, I had my doubts. We went anyway. We came 4th out of 10 but won vodka, gin and chocolates. So not so catastrophic after all!

Video diary - Wednesday 9th May 2018: Trump, hair and leadership

My video diary from Wednesday: my thoughts on Trump's decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal; the delayed haircut and being re-elected Leader of the Opposition on Gateshead Council.

Re-elected as Leader

Last night was the AGM of the Lib Dem group on Gateshead Council. I was re-elected Leader of the group. This stunning victory came courtesy of an unopposed return! My contingency plans for what to do if I were defeated - cleaning the muck out of the henhouse, planting vegetables and making more jam - have had to be shelved yet again!

Thank you to my colleagues for putting their trust in me.

Well done Marilynn

I was not up for election this year but my ward colleague in Whickham South and Sunniside, Marilynn Ord, had a superb result. Marilynn scored 1970 votes, the highest for any candidate in Gateshead. She had a majority of 1314, which in itself was bigger than 12 of the 19 winning Labour candidates' actual votes. With two-thirds of the votes cast in the ward, Marilynn has a result of which she can be proud. I'm up for election next year. Assuming I am both willing to stand again and party members are willing to adopt me as candidate, I hope I can achieve a result as good as that of Marilynn.

Whickham Volunteer Library 2nd hand book sale

Yesterday Whickham Volunteer Library held a 2nd hand book sale. The books had been donated by members of the public (I have a large number to pass on). Alas, there were already lots of helpers there when I arrived so I was given the job of getting people to fill in survey forms about the library.

Video diary - four counts and a funeral

My video diary from Friday - off to the count in the morning. Two wards were of particular interest to me - Ryton and Dunston Hill and Whickham East. On the way to the count I was concerned about Ryton but was confident we would gain Dunston Hill. Pelaw and Heworth was always going to be an outside chance but I was pleased that we were only 102 votes behind. Low Fell was a top target for Labour who threw everything including the proverbial kitchen sink (indeed a whole warehouse full of them) at the ward and there barely dented our majority.

Ryton went to a recount but I was not able to stay for it. I had the funeral of my late friend Peter Angus to attend in Blyth. I got the Ryton result later in the day. Labour had scraped in by 28 votes.

Video diary - polling day

Slightly late but this is my video diary for polling day. It started in Ryton, moved on to Ryton and finished in Sunniside where, at the last moment, I was reminded I needed to vote!

Whickham eFocus edition 107

Our most recent edition of eFocus for Whickham was published on Wednesday. Due to the election battle, I didn't have time to post it to the blog so here it is on this link.

Labour's letter cock-up in target seat

Labour's struggling campaign in Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward of Gateshead has had its eyebrow-raising moments. Firstly, Labour's candidate and defending councillor Allison Thompson issued a leaflet in the Whickham part of the ward which was all about what she was doing in Dunston. Whickham barely got a mention. Then, a Labour leaflet announced that a planning application for nearly 600 executive houses in the ward will be submitted this summer. The application was actually submitted last year and again, earlier this year, raising questions about whether or not Labour know what is happening in a ward they are defending.

Today, Labour's cock-up comes in the form of a letter that is being delivered to people who vote at polling stations, rather than by post. The problem is that what has been delivered is the same letter that went to postal voters two weeks ago. Indeed, the letter begins by advising people that their postal vote will arrive shortly!

This will no doubt cause some confusion but one possible outcome is that Labour voters will stay at home on Thursday waiting for non-existent postal votes to arrive. Everyone else hopefully will go to the polling station to vote!

Allison scraped in by 78 votes back in 2014. Hopefully the result this time will be a bit more clear cut, and not in Allison's favour! I never however count my chickens before they have hatched.

In the meantime, a quick request to Allison (who is a reader of this blog). Time is running out for more Labour cock-ups in your ward. Could you get any remaining ones done asap as I am busy and need a bit of time to write about them on my blog!

Where are the hordes of Corbynistas?

It is always a challenge to deliver literature. My shoe leather and legs know the cost of so many deliveries. The challenge face all parties. It's hard work and a hard slog to get everything through people's letterboxes.

We are constantly being told by Labour that their ranks have been swollen by youthful Corbynistas. In my ward, I have to ask, where are they? Labour started to deliver an A3 leaflet in the last week of March. Two weeks later the same leaflet was still being delivered. A week ago, Labour started to deliver another A3 leaflet. Last night I discovered that in Fellside Park, both leaflets were still being delivered and they were arriving through letterboxes together.

There is a similar picture in the neighbouring ward of Whickham North which is Lib Dem held. Labour are struggling to get out their literature. As recently as 2014, this ward was Labour's top target in the whole region. Now they have melted away. While I have no reason to doubt Labour's claims of a greatly increased membership, it seems that most of the new members seem content to join, pay the inflated membership fees (easy for most of them as they tend to come from well off backgrounds) and spend their time sniping at Tony Blair on Facebook. Helping in an election campaign is for others to do. And they certainly don't want to dirty their hands with a bit of manual effort to get leaflets through doors.

Ryton and Blaydon eFocus

We recently published our next edition of our Ryton/Blaydon eFocus. It's mainly about the local elections but you can read it on this link.

Video - Whickham canvass

Canvassing in Whickham on Saturday was relatively positive, towards the higher end of expectations. But in Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward, the battle is still on for first place.

Gutting Labour's leaflet

In Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward of Gateshead, Labour have circulated a leaflet which contains a few statements that don't quite fit with what's actually happening. In this video I gut the leaflet.

Enjoy!

Tackling the motorcycle menace in Marley Hill

One of the meetings I had this week was with highways officers and I took the opportunity to raise the on-going battle over the use of the area to the south of Marley Hill and Byermoor villages for illegal, off-road motorcycling. We are working with police and the council to tackle this and I'm pleased to report that the next action is to place signs (see above) around the site, the content of which speaks for itself.

I was recently in Byermoor on a Sunday morning to look at flytipping and while I was there, the police arrived to do one of their spot checks to look out for illegal motorcycling activity. The owner of the site has also been told by Gateshead Council to take action to stop the use of his land for this activity.

We hope this will lead to a successful conclusion of this issue.

Door knocking in Watergate

Much of our canvassing in Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward in recent weeks has been in parts of the ward where Labour are normally relatively strong. So yesterday we headed into the Watergate Estate. I was pleased with the responses we received. Generally, our support is holding up and the biggest moves were from hard to soft Labour. The Lib Dem vote was towards the higher end of expectations, Labour's towards the lower end. Though this is helpful, it does not mean a certain victory, though a repeat of the result last time in 2016 will give is a gain this time (hence the good news about our vote holding up.) I think there is all to play for but the result will be close, whoever wins.

Video diary - Sunday 15th April: delivering in Gateshead

Postal votes were about to arrive so I delivered lots of letters in Ryton and Dunston Hill and Whickham East wards.

In the Daily Star

It appears I am in the Daily Star today, quoted about the £5000 food bill for Labour Council Leader Martin Gannon. Martin successfully managed to turn Gateshead Council into a personal version of his very own food bank by claiming for lunches from 2014-17. It turns out that over those three years, over half the subsistence claims were made by Martin. He ate just over half the budget.

The last time I was in the Daily Star was on Friday 13th March 1992. My Conservative opponent in Hexham constituency, Alan Amos MP, had just been arrested with another man on Hampstead Heath. Two days later, he was replaced by another candidate and my being gay was suddenly an issue right at the start of the general election campaign. So I came out and got enormous coverage for a story that nowadays no one in the media would bother with.

Peter Angus RIP

I discovered on Saturday morning that Peter Angus, former Lib Dem Councillor in Castle Morpeth, had died. Peter was a friend of mine who provided me and David with our first home, 32 years ago. We lived in his house while we bought our first home in Swalwell.

Sadly, Peter was an alcoholic and his illness eventually caught up with him. He passed away last month. The funeral is at 1.45pm on Friday 4th May at Cowpen Crematorium in Blyth.

Labour Councillor missing her "goal"

Labour Councillor in Dunston Hill and Whickham East, Allison Thompson, has announced in her election leaflet that her "goal is to give the people of our community a voice on Gateshead Council." After 14 years on Gateshead Council, I'm not yet sure she has managed to score that goal. I've only heard her speak twice at full council meetings, an average rate of once every seven years.

In January she had put in objections to a planning application for a chippie to open for longer hours. Allison the Chip Snatcher asked to speak at the planning committee, no doubt "to give the people of our community a voice" and persuade members to bin the longer opening hours. Alas, there was no sign of Allison at the meeting and no apology for absence. The application was approved.

Meanwhile, the Council's website now gives details of councillors' attendance at meetings. Since October, Allison's attendance was expected at 13 meetings. She attended 3. That's one every two months, an attendance rate of 23%.

Not exactly a strong voice for the community.....

Are Labour asleep in Dunston Hill and Whickham East

It is very nice of the Labour Party in Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward to set aside a fair chunk of their main leaflet in the local elections in Gateshead to respond to the Lib Dems in the ward. It has been clear from the start of this campaign that we, rather than Labour, have set the agenda in the ward and Labour have been forced to respond.

One of the key issues is the plan for nearly 600 executive houses to be built at the top of Dunston Hill. Despite the Lib Dems having led the battle against these plans, and the Labour run council coming up with the plans in the first place, the Labour leaflet circulated this morning tried to make out that Labour were opposed to the house-building plans and that they were the fault of the Lib Dems! Perhaps Labour's campaign slogan should be "Vote Labour because we are opposed to Labour policies"!

Alas for Labour, they have included a monumental error in their leaflet that well and truly shows that they are completely out of touch with what's actually happening. Their leaflet claims, "A planning application is expected to be submitted this summer for the development of homes on land south of Whickham Highway close to Lobley Hill." The reality of the situation is that the planning application was submitted last year and resubmitted earlier this year. This is a live planning application and I am staggered that the Labour Party in the ward are completely unaware of this as this is the biggest planning issue to hit the area in decades.

Dunston deserves better.

eFocus Whickham edition 106

Our latest eFocus for the Whickham area, edition 106, was published tonight. It leads on the work being done at the top of Dunston Hill where Labour are pressing for nearly 600 executive houses on former greenbelt. There is also a number of stories about the local elections. You can view it on this link.

Video Diary Sunday 8th April 2018 - flytipping

On Sunday I was invited by residents of Byermoor, the smallest village in my ward, to have a look at the flytipping taking place next to the school. The amount of dumped waste is staggering. I have since taken the issue up with officers.

Video diary - Saturday 7th April 2018 - delivering and printing

There are bits of my life that feel like groundhog day, especially when it comes to printing and delivering Focuses.

Who is standing where in Gateshead

A short video I put together about which parties are standing where in Gateshead, what happened in the last elections and which seats could change hands. Only 1 min 38 seconds long.

Who ate half the pies?

Labour leader of Gateshead Council, Martin Gannon, is in a bit of a pickle at the moment. It looks like he has bitten off more than he can chew but I hope he isn't going to make a meal of it. It has come to light that subsistence allowance claims by Martin from 2014-2017 amount to £5003.64. In those years, the Council spent a total of £9623.06 on subsistence for all councillors. So, in a budget for 66 councillors, over half was spent on pies and sandwiches for one member. Most councillors (regardless of party) claim nothing.

The allowance is meant to cover the cost of food while on normal council duties. Half the budget being spent on food for one member is a bit hard to swallow. We could chew this over for a bit and no doubt residents who pay for Martin's meals may want to pick a bone with him. As Leader, Martin already has a lot on his plate. He should feel a great pudding over this issue.

It seems Martin has turned the council into his own food bank, I told the local media. If you want to sink your teeth into the story, follow this link.

Letters delivered

Another trip down to Whickham and Dunston this morning, this time to deliver about 100 letters. Job done by midday. Tomorrow I shall return - to deliver our next Focus.

Whickham East annual report

We are currently delivering our annual reports to constituents in the wards we represent in Gateshead. I was out recently delivering in Whickham East. The issues covered include Labour's attempts to sell part of Chase Park, battling against housing plans on local countryside, litter, council tax and Gateshead's budget.

Dunston Hill and Whickham East action day

Saturday last week saw our latest action day in Dunston Hill and Whickham East. A day of deliveries and door knocking.

Negotiating to get what we've already got

So, Liam Fox, the globetrotting Secretary of State for International Trade, has expressed his hope that after the "transitional" period is over (quite what we are transitioning to is not clear), we will be free to negotiate our own trade deals around the world, and he expects 40 agreements with 70 countries to be made.

Except, these are 40 agreements with 70 countries that are already in place, put there by the EU. As we are constantly being told, the "will of the people" is being followed by the government. So why, therefore, are we "rolling over" existing agreements which the Brexiteers tell us are bound up with EU bureaucracy and red tape? We were told that we would be free to negotiate "better" trade deals. So all this negotiating activity as we use our new found freedoms and it delivers us.....nothing more than we already have.

As I have said many times before, the UK needs to accept the consequences of the decisions we make. The "will of the people" dictated by a small majority is that we leave the EU, which means we do not continue to enjoy the benefits of EU membership. So surely, to deliver the "will of the people", all those EU trade agreements should be abandoned and Liam Fox should then have to do some work and come up with new agreements rather than copying someone else's homework.

Given that the EU carries vastly more economic and political clout than the UK, quite what "better" deals Fox can negotiate is the big unknown.

And of course if the people don't like the consequences of the decision they have taken, they should have the democratic right to change their mind.

Video: Sgt Bill Forth's memorial service

On Wednesday last week, police and residents of Sunniside gathered for a memorial service to Police Sgt Bill Forth who was murdered in the village 25 years ago while on active duty.

The will of the people: Britain's Brexit Star Wars

According to the Financial Times, Theresa May is battling to keep Britain in the EU's Galileo space programme and Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson "hit the roof" when he was informed of moves by the EU to exclude Britain. It seems to me that all the EU are doing is following the often-repeated mantra of the Brexiteers that Britain is "taking back control of our borders" (admittedly these are borders in space), "freeing ourselves of EU red tape" (we will have to invent and launch our own rockets) and "controlling our own money" (it will of course cost vastly more than we save to design, build, launch and maintain our own equivalent of the Galileo project - which has a crucial role to play in defence and security operations.)

The space industry is an area in which the UK has already built up a share of international business, fueled to some extent by the UK's involvement in European space programmes. Pulling out of those programmes is a significant setback for Britain's prospects in this sector but that is the "will of the people". The people voted to leave (by a very small majority) so when the people (and our own Brexit government) don't like the outcome, they need to understand there are consequences to the decisions they take. Some believed the Brexiteer claims of a pain-free divorce from Europe in which we were told we could have all the benefits of being in Europe with none of the costs and rules. The reality is that UK "independence" from the EU comes at an enormous price and with few of the benefits promised by the likes of Boris Johnson.

The alternative to going ahead with Brexit and accepting its consequences is to remain in the EU. That would require an opportunity to show whether or not the people have changed their mind - a referendum. This is a fundamental part of democracy. Just don't expect it to happen under this government or one led by the Theresa May Brexit echo chamber otherwise known as Jeremy Corbyn.

Dunston Hill and Whickham East Action Day

We had another action day in Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward in Gateshead on Saturday. In the Dunston part of the ward we were delivering the next Focus (I had already delivered a patch on Thursday). In the Whickham part of the ward, we were delivering the Focus Team's annual report. It was printed by colleagues through the week but I headed to the office on Friday to fold it.

Most of the ward was delivered on the day though some took patches to do this coming week. We also did some canvassing in the afternoon. We deliberately chose the area where Labour's vote was strongest. Admittedly, we excluded from the canvass known hard Labour supporters. However, as our historic canvass in this area is less than the rest of the ward, we still called on lots of doors and I went in with an expectation that we would find lots of Labour voters. We did, except for the fact that a very large number of them are very disillusioned with Labour over local issues. There is a modest shift in voting intention from Labour to Lib Dem. I came away satisfied that we were getting a higher level of support that predicted. When looked at simply in terms of numbers, Labour were only ahead if every polite but otherwise non-committal canvass response was transferred to Labour's column.  Add in those previously canvassed as hard Labour and they move ahead of us. Don't forget however that this is the strongest area for Labour in the ward. That means there is all to play for as this is a ward in which, just 3 years ago, Labour held on by a mere 23 votes. If Labour are struggling in this part of the ward, they will have a real battle to hold in the local elections on 3rd May.

But there is no room for comlacency.....



Lib Dem campaigner Kevin McClurey and me in Poplar Crescent in Dunston.

Delivering in Ryton

On Friday I was in Ryton to deliver our latest Focus about the council budget. My colleagues very kindly gave me two patches to do which contained lots of houses with lots of steps to front doors. My legs hurt when I got home!

Delivering in Dunston

Our latest Focus is hot off the press in Gateshead and I was out in Dunston delivering it this morning. I did a patch of 180 before going to council. It leads on Labour's neglect of Dunston. The old Dunston Hill Primary School building has been left by Labour run Gateshead Council to stand unused and derelict for ten years. And people are understandably getting fed up.

I am hoping this is a mistake

I arrived at cabinet at Gateshead Civic Centre yesterday and discovered that the usual china cups for teas and coffee were nowhere to be seen. Instead, we were to use disposable paper cups that were "green" because they were "100% compostable". This is of course a factually accurate claim. Paper is compostable. Indeed, in my household, all waste paper either goes straight into the compost bin or is shredded and used for livestock bedding and then goes into the manure bin. Yet just because paper is compostable, does not mean it is green. Resources are required to produce it and paper production uses large amounts of chemicals and bleaches which can damage the environment. Resources are also required to dispose of single use paper cups though the plus point is that, when they are not dropped as litter or dumped in landfill, they can be burnt to produce a tiny amount of heat that can be converted into electricity.

The amount of resources used to manufacture, transport and reuse china cups across their lifetime is far less than those used to manufacture sufficient single use paper cups. A china cup can be used thousands of times. A paper cup is used once.

I had words with Martin Gannon, Leader of the Council, after the meeting and, to be fair to him, he was as surprised as I was to find the paper cups replacing the china ones. We are both hoping that the cups were used as a one-off simply because of a problem that will be resolved (eg a dish washer breaking down). If on the other hand this is a permanent change, I will be making a great deal of noise.

By-election victor at Gateshead meeting

I attended the Gateshead East Lib Dem branch meeting last night to give my group leader's report and talk about the issues on which we are fighting the forthcoming local elections. However, I was not the guest speaker! That privilege fell to Martin Haswell, the Lib Dem victor in the Pallion by-election in Sunderland last month. He talked us through how he was able to take the Lib Dem vote from 4% to 54%. I'm pleased to report that many of the techniques are now being used by us in Gateshead.

Sergeant Bill Forth's memorial service

Sergeant Bill Forth was murdered in Sunniside while on duty 25 years ago today. A memorial service was held this afternoon at the memorial stone on Sunniside Front Street. A full set of photos of the service can be viewed above.

Gathering to remember Sergeant Bill Forth

25 years ago on 21st March, Sergeant Bill Forth was murdered while on duty in Sunniside. At 2pm tomorrow, the police will be laying a wreath at the memorial to Sergeant Forth on Sunniside Front Street. Residents are very welcome to attend.

Our recent tabloid

In January and February Gateshead Lib Dems delivered tens of thousands of copies of our tabloid across the borough. There were five editions which focused on significant local issues. Generally it was well received (except by Labour!) I've included images of the five different front pages in this post.

The will of the people - queues at our borders

One of the biggest cries from Brexit campaigners was that leaving the EU would allow us to regain control of our borders. It was one of the promises that, if implemented, would create far more problems than solutions. One consequence will be that there are more extensive checks at the borders with ramifications for businesses and the flow of goods as lorries join long queues while border bureaucracy is carried out.  This is, of course, the will of the people.

Now, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling is claiming there will be no delays at our borders as there will be no checks. Somehow all the checks will be done in the ether, in the virtual world of the internet or somewhere in hyperspace. As with so many other matters, he is offering a pain free world which in reality cannot be achieved. Nevertheless, the people voted to take control of the borders and Grayling's comments indicate that, like so many other issues, implementing the will of the people comes at an enormous price. The Government simply proceeds by pretending there is not a cost or problem.

So, to implement the will of the people, there should be extensive border checks for the whole of the UK (including Northern Ireland). Other services will have to be cut to pay for the customs officers and officials who will be needed to police our borders, but that is the will of the people.

Of course, the will of the people can change. And the people should be given the opportunity to change their mind once they've seen what needs to be done to implement the will of the people as it was in June 2016.

Dunston Hill and Whickham East Action Day

I had to miss conference at Southport last weekend due to my friend Richard's emergency heart operation (I am his carer). The good news was that I was able to help at the Dunston Hill and Whickham East action day in Gateshead where we are hoping to pick up the seat of the former Labour mayor on 3rd May. We shifted a large quantity of literature. The video was shot on the day.

Gateshead Lib Dems first "party political broadcast" - cutting councillors rather than street cleaning

This is Gateshead Lib Dems' first "party political broadcast" for the local elections in May. It features on of our "Six to Fix" campaign issues - cutting the number of councillors by a third in the borough with the savings of £250,000 a year used on street sweeping and litter clearance.

Video diary: missing conference

I had to miss conference at Southport last week as my friend Richard (I am his carer) needed an emergency operation on Friday afternoon. Thankfully it was a success. Sadly, I was not able to rescue my conference hotel booking. I had to pay for night. Happily, the hotel did not try to charge me for the 2nd.

Video diary: the best data destruction technique

Due to my friend Richard's recent visits to hospital (and two heart operations), I've been out of time to keep the blog up to date. But I've continued to record my video diaries. Now that Richard is back home, I have the chance to catch up. This video was my diary from 8th March. I attended a meeting about the new personal data regulations that come into force in May. At the meeting, the officer asked us how we safely disposed of papers that contained personal data. I have the most effective and original way. It involves a shredder and pooping animals!

Labour campaigning on the wrong issues

Julie Elliott is the Labour MP for Sunderland Central. A relatively recent arrival in the Commons (she was first elected in 2010), Ms Elliott represents a constituency which has been Labour for as long as people can remember. Such security can generate a degree of complacency and throughout Sunderland, complacency is rife in the Labour Party. They run the council with a whopping great big majority and their Parliamentary majorities are rather steep. Campaigning and communicating with voters is not a Labour priority in the city. Or at least, it wasn't until January when Labour faced the prospect of losing a safe seat (Pallion) in a council by-election.

The rather decrepit, rusting, dilapidated Labour machine therefore swung into action. A street stall was set up in the city centre and a petition was launched. People were invited to sign it. Sunderland has high levels of unemployment, poverty, poor health, low incomes, there's the impact of Brexit and so on. So which of these important, relevant issues did Labour and Ms Elliott take up as a campaign?  Errrr, none of them.

Instead, members of the public were invited to sign a petition calling for Nick Clegg to be "stripped" of his knighthood. (He hadn't even been knighted at that point!) One of our members witnessed residents parting with a few choice words about Labour's choice of campaign subject.

You will be pleased to learn that Labour lost Pallion on 1st February to the Lib Dems. Our vote rose by 49%. I'm almost tempted to suggest a knighthood or damehood for the person in Labour who came up with their campaign idea!

Vlog 27th February 2018: the Beast from the East

My 2nd vlog, filmed on Tuesday 27th February. The Beast from the East had arrived so the day was dominated with tackling snow problems - from feeding the goats in the morning to driving past road collisions in the evening.

A policy designed to fail

So, once the fanfare of Corbyn's announcement on a customs union died down, we were able to see the details of the deal he wants to strike with the EU. One telling statement made it clear right from the start that this was a policy designed to fail. Corbyn demanded that even though the UK is leaving the EU, the UK should still have a say on the trade deals the EU strikes with other nations. This is another example of politicians offering something that is not in their gift to give and which offers lots of rights but no responsibilities. Having your cake and eating it is now all the rage.

Labour's position is that we leave the EU club, retain the benefits of club membership and even continue to have a say on the rules of the club we have left. I can imagine what the rest of the EU thinks of that. They are likely to tell Corby where he can put his cake!

Vlog 26th February 2018: Covert or Overt

For the past 28 years I have kept a diary. I started off writing it by hand. After 14 years technology caught up with me and my diary was written on my laptop. Technology is catching up with me again and I'm experimenting with a video diary. This is my first attempt, filmed yesterday. Half the day was spent in the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle where my friend Richard has had a major heart operation (I'm his carer). In the early evening I was at Gateshead Civic Centre considering a report on surveillance. I was interested to know whether checking someone's Facebook activity counted as overt or covert surveillance. the answer was that it was both (depending on the circumstances).

About bloody time

So, at long last, Labour have come up with a Brexit policy that is not simply a repetition of the Tories' plans. Time to celebrate that there has been a small step away from the fence on which Labour have been sitting since June 2016. As I write this, Corbyn is yet to make his speech so we will have to await the actual details. Given his anti-EU history, expect any customs union outlined by him to be limited. It must not stand in the way of the socialist revolution and must not block the road to Utopia. Also, expect the same tone to be employed as that adopted by Tory Brexiteers: the EU will give us this, that and the other. Ever since the referendum campaign, Brexiteers have chosen to speak for the EU negotiating team and have made all sorts of pronouncements about what the EU will give Britain. None of these are based on anything the EU has said. Brexiteers are simply offering rights without responsibilities, a cherry-picking exercise in which the UK resigns as a member of the EU club but still enjoys all the benefits of being in the club without abiding by the rules. To be fair to the Brexiteers, politicians offering something for nothing has been a common theme for decades and was especially rife under Blair and especially Brown. It was an attitude that carried over big style into the Corbyn general election manifesto last year in which 90% of the population was offered everything they wanted for free, paid for by a handful of rich people.

So, watch out for this something-for-nothing attitude flowing over into Corbyn's speech today.

Come back Nigel, you're bad judgement is needed

While Lib Dems in Gateshead were running our action day on Saturday, we made the occasional check on news websites to find out how the Kipper fight was going in Birmingham. After the last tabloids went through the doors, we still had no news. I returned home, had a cuppa, switched on Sky News and there it was - Henry Bolton had succeeded in being UKIP's longest serving leader in the last 2 years but had now succumbed to the urge of Kippers to have constant leadership elections. Odd that the same people don't support a second referendum, but contorted posturing is a UKIP skill.

So, Bolton is gone, leader number 7 takes over and work begins to wash the blood from the walls of the Birmingham conference centre. But don't write off UKIP yet. They may be in a state of collapse, but they still managed to get 1400 members to an emergency conference at short notice. That said, I doubt they will be fielding many candidates in the May local elections and those UKIP Councillors who do defend their seats are likely to have more time on their hands after 4th May.

One noticeable point about the UKIP bun fight was former Kipper deputy chairman Suzanne Evans who went on tv to say Nigel Farage's judgement was seriously bad but she wanted him back as leader despite this. The Kipper comedy continues.

Delivering our tabloid

We took delivery of our Gateshead Lib Dem tabloid at the start of February. All hands to the pump to get them distributed. So far I've done 4 patches in Dunston Hill and Whickham East (one of them was this morning) and five in Whickham South and Sunniside, my ward, where I have three patches still to do (a job probably for tomorrow).

Another gain from Labour in Sunderland

Another earth tremor, if not a political earthquake, in the Labour citadel of Sunderland tonight with a gain by the Lib Dems in the Pallion by-election. But this wasn't just any old earth tremor! The Lib Dem vote increased by a modest 49%. As is now the norm, the UKIP vote went into meltdown, but Corbyn's candidate also suffered not only the loss of the seat, but a big drop in vote share. The result was:

LDEM: 53.9% (+49.5)
LAB: 34.8% (-15.9)
CON: 5.4% (-7.2)
UKIP: 4.2% (-24.7)
GRN: 1.7% (-1.8)

To be fair to Labour, everyone other than the Lib Dems suffered a loss in vote share. Those squabbling warriors of UKIP were the worst performers on votes but that does nothing to deflect from the fact Labour lost a formerly safe seat.

Labour lost a seat to the Lib Dems in a by-election in Sunderland this time last year on a similar swing. This is starting to become something of a habit.

Meanwhile, my afternoon of delivering letters in the ward and being mistaken for a Labour campaigner by a very angry voter did not hinder the Lib Dem progress in Sunderland!

Politics before patients

Without a doubt, the NHS has a doctor recruitment problem. Depending on your point of view, it can be described as anything from a shortage to a crisis. In Gateshead we have had to close at least one GP surgery because it was impossible to recruit a new GP after one left a practice which was already suffering from being one GP short. Our hospitals suffer from similar doctor shortages. Traditionally, we have recruited from abroad to fill the gaps. Sky News today reported that it is now increasingly difficult to recruit doctors from outside the EU because of the points based visa system the UK operates. The system is in place because of political reasons. Governments need to be seen to be cracking down on immigration but ministers tell us that highly skilled workers are welcome here. And then they create a system that makes it nearly impossible to bring to the UK those same skilled workers. We are told that the points based system is to protect British skilled workers, but if those same British skilled workers don't exist, what's the point of keeping out the skilled workers from outside the EU?

Given that the same or a similar system is expected to be applied to EU workers after Brexit, we are heading for a far greater crisis than the one we have now. Perhaps the Brexiteers will argue that we can recruit new doctors from the ranks of the British unemployed but it takes years to train them to the necessary standards. It seems the NHS has fallen victim to political posturing. Politics before patients.

Tabloids arrive

Our Gateshead tabloid arrived back from the printers today. I picked up 12,000 to transport them to those responsible for distribution in three wards. Other wards made their own way to the collection point in Newcastle to collect their copies. I'm pleased to say that delivery through people's doors has already started!

Incident at council meeting

We had a presentation at the start of the Gateshead Council meeting yesterday about the Great Exhibition of the North. While the presentation was taking place, I caught in the corner of my eye a man standing at the edge of the well of the chamber. My first thought was that he was there to be part of the presentation. But it quickly dawned on me that someone dressed in black leather and wearing gauntlets covered in spikes was probably not there is assist the speaker. And then, he marched across the chamber to the mayor, thrust a note into her hands and then marched off, shouting something about handing in his benefit application.

Thankfully it was nothing more serious but I suspect security on the council chamber will be stepped up in future.

Dunston Hill Action Day

Our latest action day in Gateshead was held in Dunston Hill yesterday. We shifted all the Focuses that needed to go out though one patch was collected by one of our members on Friday to deliver later this week. He was helping in the Pallion by-election this weekend, hence the delayed delivery of his patch.

Boots were needed during delivery. The snow was still lying on the ground.

MEP takes the exit door from UKIP

Jonathan Arnott, UKIP MEP for the North East of England is something of a "Nice But Dim" character who is as inspiring as the proverbial drying paint. Mr Arnott has, today, decided to declare independence from UKIP, claiming there is too much nastiness, back-stabbing and unpleasantness in his former party. I am rather surprised that that it has taken him until today to spot these not insignificant problems. To be fair to Mr Arnott, he has also pointed the finger of blame at recent shifts in the UKIP positions on cultural and religious issues. The flip side of that coin is that the UKIP position on such matters hasn't really changed much. UKIP have always viewed such issues through the social lens of the 1950s.

Mr Arnott also expresses his dismay at the failed leaders of UKIP and passes a damning verdict on the current leader Henry Bolton. He is "not the right person for the job" and those jockeying for position aren't any better.

So as Mr Arnott waves goodbye to UKIP (as do the rest of us), I wish him the best of luck in his new role as an independent MEP for the North East.

Woolly hats

On Sunday I was, yet again, out and about delivering our latest Focus. It was woolly hat weather. Fortunately there was no snow on the ground at that point. Job done in 90 minutes.

First Focus of the New Year

I was back in the Lib Dem office in Consett last night to print one side of the first Focus of the new year in Gateshead. A whole pile of them came off the printing machine and are currently sitting on the desk waiting to have the other side printed tomorrow. I expect to be walking the streets soon with a large bundle of leaflets in my hands!

Berated for being Labour in Sunderland by-election

I headed over to Sunderland yesterday to help the Lib Dem candidate Martin Haswell in the Pallion by-election. The ward is a Labour stronghold, home to the late leader of the council, Paul Watson, who died after a long battle with cancer in November.

I set off in the morning to deliver 200 letters and then, in the afternoon, I was sent to an estate to deliver a Labour squeeze leaflet. For more years than I can recall, I have knocked on doors and delivered leaflets as a Lib Dem. And once in a while I get shouted at and receive the occasional bit of abuse as a Lib Dem. All that I can cope with! But yesterday, a gentleman started shouting at me about how we haven't done anything for years in the area despite controlling the council! I explained that I was a Lib Dem, not Labour. He looked again at the leaflet and on looking at the inside, accepted my protestations of innocence. I guess the big headline on the outside of the leaflet saying "Inside: Labour's plan for our area" could inadvertently and momentarily give the incorrect impression that it was a Labour leaflet when clearly it was from the Lib Dems.

Anyway, the gentleman in question explained he had voted Labour in the past but was now fed up with them and was voting for us. He gave me back the leaflet, telling me he had already had lots of them from us and his mind was already made up to vote for us.

Let's hope this is a good omen for the result on 1st February.

Norman Lamb in Sunderland

Lib Dem health spokesman Norman Lamb MP was in Sunderland last Friday to help out in the Pallion by-election and to be the guest speaker at a local Lib Dem dinner at the Arabesque Egyptian restaurant in the evening. I was busy through the day but I was able to attend the dinner. Norman and I worked together 10 years ago when he was Lib Dem Shadow Business Secretary and I was the party's policy officer dealing with the DTI. So it was good to catch up.

Norman built up a strong and positive reputation while he was care minister in the Coalition and it is very much down to him that mental health issues are taken more seriously by the NHS. He spoke about this in his speech but also talked about the millions of people who feel dispossessed from politics because of a failure by the parties that represent them to engage with them. Sunderland is of course a classic example of this as Labour have been running the council for as long as people can remember yet outside an election, the ruling party is noticeable for its almost non-existent profile.

So, a good speech by Norman and a great event, attended by 40 people, which helped to boost the Sunderland party's funds.

Goodbye 2017. Don't ring us, we'll ring you

So how was it for you? 2017 I mean! For me it was not a vintage year. My Dad died in May and his sister, my Auntie Hazel, died on Christmas Day. My friend Richard has been in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for most of the second half of the year. He was rushed in by ambulance in early July and on his times out of hospital, David and I have been his carers. Much of what I planned for the second half of 2017 therefore simply didn't happen. And much of what I planned for the first half of the year was sacrificed to that bloody general election campaign with its worrying return to two party politics. This was meant to be the year off from elections in Gateshead. It turned out to be nothing of the sort. 

Meanwhile Brexit is all-consuming and Trump reveals his innermost thoughts on Twitter (easily done given the restriction of 140 characters on tweets.) Politics has been something like a bad dream in 2017 from which it has been impossible to wake up.

Meanwhile, on the self-sufficiency side, my beautiful billy goat Spotless died suddenly in April. Spot, one of our nanny goats, rejected one of her two babies and we ended up hand raising a kid during the election campaign. Sadly, he died suddenly in June after winning lots of fans at the Whinnies Community Garden where he lived. In January, we found all our bees had died (fortunately we have since been able to replace them but we have therefore had no honey production this year).

So 2017, thank you and goodbye. In 2018, things can only get better. Now, where have I heard that before!?

"Green crap" fuels clean energy revolution

2017 was the UK's greenest year yet in terms of generating electricity. Low carbon sources in June generated more electricity than coal and gas combined for the first time ever. In April, we had our first ever 24 hour period in which coal was not burnt at all. Since 2012, carbon emissions by the electricity industry have halved. All great news.

Go back to the Coalition and you will be reminded of the discontent in the Conservatives' ranks about the Lib Dems' green policies which we were implementing. Remember how even David Cameron referred to it as the Lib Dems' "green crap." That same "green crap" is fueling the clean energy revolution, another one of the many benefits of having Lib Dems in government.

Putting Whickham on the map

The consultation on boundaries for the new Parliamentary constituencies came to an end earlier this month. The previous proposals would have taken a wrecking ball to Gateshead and the borough would have been split between 6 (or was it 7? - I have lost count) constituencies. The new proposals create a Gateshead West constituency (covering the old town of Gateshead, Whickham and Birtley), a revised Blaydon (covering Blaydon, Rowlands Gill, Ryton and, more controversially, a chunk of western Newcastle) and Jarrow and Gateshead East (the Gateshead bits are effectively the Felling area).So, in summary, Gateshead will have one full constituency and two in which wards of Gateshead form a significant part.

These proposals taken together are a significant improvement. The issue now is the name of the Gateshead West constituency. I believe that Whickham should be included, so my submission to the Boundary Commission's consultation made a case for this. It is a view not universally held: when it was discussed at a Gateshead Council advisory group, Labour Leader Martin Gannon dismissed the proposal to include Whickham with the words, "Not on your life!"

Anyway, here is my submission to the Boundary Commission consultation:

The proposed Gateshead West constituency covers a logical and sensible geographic area and avoids communities being split. However the name could be potentially misleading. A further 5 wards of Gateshead Council to the west of the Gateshead West constituency will be in the revised Blaydon constituency. It is therefore not an accurate description. The name of Gateshead on its own has significant historical recognition in terms of the old Gateshead town forming the eastern part of the new constituency.

Furthermore, Whickham is the 2nd biggest town in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, beaten only by the town of Gateshead itself. The name "Whickham" appears in three of the 22 wards in Gateshead.

The only other town in Gateshead to appear in the name of more that one ward is Dunston which appears in two (Dunston Hill and Whickham East ward and Dunston and Teams ward). Dunston historically is part of Whickham. The historic area of Whickham will therefore constitute nearly 40% of the constituency.

I therefore propose that instead of "Gateshead West", which could be confusing to many, the name of the new constituency should be "Gateshead and Whickham".

Hilarious Labour by-election leaflet cock-up

There is a by-election in Pallion ward of Sunderland Council. At the last by-election in the city in January, Labour got an absolute kicking from the voters when their vote was slashed by two thirds and the Lib Dems went from 4th place on 4% to 1st place with over 40%. So, for Pallion, Labour are a bit more prepared....or are they?

This time, Labour have learnt that getting leaflets through doors is an important campaigning technique. Sadly (for them) they haven't learnt to check content! Have a look at the Labour leaflet above. Ignore the crassly posed photo and the unconvincing finger pointing. Read the text instead. Suggesting that one of your own "senior" councillors is responsible for the litter, fly tipping and dog fouling in the local community is probably not what they intended claiming. Labour really should have got someone to read through it before printing it and then putting it through every door in the ward.

I guess it should be a lesson to all of us!

I understand that litter and dog fouling are important issues in this by-election. Labour are posing as the saviours to sort out the problem. Residents however are unlikely to be fooled by finger-pointing poses in photos. They will, of course, recall that the council has been run by Labour since the Stone Age and they've had plenty of time to sort out the problem.

Sunniside Focus

Before Christmas, we delivered our latest Focus for the villages of Sunniside, Streetgate, Marley Hill and Byermoor. It led with the issue of the rejection of plans for the land to the south of Marley Hill to be used for motorbike scrambling and 4X4 off-road driving. Also included were articles about the Sunniside Christmas tree, Marley Hill Community Centre asset transfer, house-building at the former Marley Hill school and Vince as party leader.

Is this UKIP leaflet legal?

This UKIP leaflet was delivered with the post by the Royal Mail yesterday. Wanting a moment's amusement, I sat down to read it. Point one: it has no imprint. Is this legal, especially given that this is a leaflet paid for by the "Europe of  Freedom and Direct Democracy" group in the European Parliament, financed by European taxpayers?

Point two: on the back page is a photo of the North East's UKIP MEP next to a photo of Nigel Farage. I have a small confession - I cannot remember the name of the current UKIP leader and frankly, I can't be bothered to look it up. Farage however was 3 or 4 leaders ago (sorry I've rather lost count). It doesn't say much for the recently elected Mr Forgetable that his own MEPs won't mention him in UKIP literature.

Point three: the leaflet claims UKIP have proposed "390 ways to cut the money the European Union spends from our taxes each year." Can I suggest number 391? Don't spend EU money on UKIP leaflets such as this one! I understand this leaflet is going out across the country, regionalised as appropriate. That's a great deal of taxpayers' money that could be saved.

Point four: we live in a democracy so I have no problem with political literature coming through my door with which I disagree. Others receiving this leaflet who do agree with the contents will have difficulty contacting UKIP as there was not a single bit of contact information. No email address, no website, no phone numbers, no postal address. Nothing. This is a classic howler for any political party, though in this instance I'm not complaining!

Beaten by a couple of Corbynistas

Gateshead Lib Dem Pint was held at the Old Fox in Felling last Wednesday. I am still recovering from coming last in the pub quiz. To add insult to injury, of the 7 teams taking place in the quiz, 6 were made up of Lib Dems with the remaining team made up of people who happened to be in the pub when a bunch of Lib Dems turned up.  And it was this team that won and they called themselves "The Corbynistas"! Nevertheless, after licking our pub quiz inflicted wounds, we did a good impersonation of a bunch of gannets when we stripped the buffet bare. Note the before and after photos!

Christmas tree celebration in Sunniside

A Christmas carol service took place this evening in Sunniside to celebrate the village's Christmas tree. There was a good turnout at the event on Front Street - over 100 came along. They were joined by 2 donkeys as well!

This is the first time we have had a public Christmas tree in the village but we are already looking ahead to next year when we will need to raise the funds for the tree ourselves.

As usual I was photographer for the event. A full set of photos can be viewed by clicking on the above picture.

Labour councillor deselected

We have been informed by a friendly source of information in the Labour Party in Gateshead that Labour Councillor Anne Wheeler has been deselected by 18 votes to 6. Her tenure of Pelaw and Heworth ward will come to an end in May 2018 after 8 years in the role. This could well be the first signs of the Corbynistas on the march in Gateshead, or it could be Labour members getting rid of a rather low profile councillor whose ward was gained by the Lib Dems from Labour (by 20 votes) in the last local election there in 2016. Interesting times ahead!

Sunniside Carol Service

On Monday 18th December the first event to mark the first ever public Christmas tree in Sunniside will be held. Four local churches together will be holding a carol service next to the tree on the Front Street from 6.30pm to 7.30pm. All welcome.

Ryton Focus delivery

After helping out at the Whickham Library coffee morning on Saturday last week, I then headed down to Ryton to help deliver our next edition of Focus. As usual, I was given the Riverside patch to do. 450 Focuses and 2 hours later I was back at the home of local Lib Dem Councillor Christine McHatton. After a bowl of vegetable broth and a discussion about local issues, I was back home ready to get ready for the next Focus delivery.

Whickham Library Coffee Morning

On Saturday 9th December, Whickham Voluntary Library held its first coffee morning. I went along to help though it turned out that a large number of the volunteers came along as well to give a hand. A useful event that got people through the doors and raised a modest amount in donations.

When is an agreement not an agreement?

Answer: when it's signed off  by David Davis. His suggestion yesterday that the UK could go back on the agreement drawn up last week and, contrary to what the Chancellor has announced, we abandon our obligations to pay our bills, signal that he can't be trusted. The UK is in serious danger of being regarded by our friends abroad as one of the members of that exclusive club of international basket cases (other members include Greece and Venezuela). And yet again, we have divisions in the cabinet there for all to see: the extreme Brexiteers in the David/Johnson/Gove wing versus the more sane (on Europe) wing of Hammond with May caught right in the middle. The really big and unbridgeable issue however is still to be settled by the government - alignment with the EU or hard Brexit. No wonder the Tories have put this debate off!

Red lines disappearing down a sink hole

The red lines of the Brexiteers: control of our borders, no money to Brussels, control of our own laws, British courts supreme. What have we got: our only land border to remain open; £40 billion to go to Brussels; the UK will align itself with EU laws, rules and regulations; the ECJ to continue to have jurisdiction over the UK. It seems the Brexit extremists drew red lines on the ground and have just seen them swallowed up by a sink hole.

Months of unnecessary wrangling by the government achieved nothing. The delay they unnecessarily caused by their posturing has given the UK and EU greatly reduced time to negotiate the future relationship, particularly on trade. It turns out ministers don't even have a vision yet of what our future should be.

I read the divorce agreement document this morning. I was struck by the announcement that, in the absence of a free trade agreement, the UK will be aligned with the single market and customs union. So, we are paying £40 billion to leave but will agree to abide by the rules we were told we were leaving behind. The big difference between now and Brexit Britain is that we won't have any say over the rules in the future. This is not a case of "taking back control". It is a case of handing over control.

Marley Hill School house building plans

Constituents have been asking me recently about what's happening at the former Marley Hill School site. Work recently took place to demolish the brick-built extensions to the original stone-built school building. Planning permission has been granted for 22 houses on the site. When we were first consulted about the sale of the site by Gateshead Council, Councillors Marilynn Ord (pictured above with me outside Marley Hill School), John McClurey and I stipulated that we wanted the stone building to be retained as it is one of the oldest buildings in the village. This formed part of the subsequent planning application which was submitted by the developer who bought the site. The old school building, minus the more recent brick extensions, will be converted into two houses and a further 20 houses will be build on the rest of the site. Work is now on-going.

Crushed by a celebrity quiz

Last night, the Sunniside History Society, of which I am the chairman, held its Christmas buffet at Sunniside Social Club. About 80 people were there and a good time has had by all. Alas, the quiz was my downfall. 32 celebrities had to be named. They were all film stars from the 1940s and 50s. I managed 4 and came last! And as chairman, there was no way I could hide my performance. The winner managed to name 25.

The next meeting will be on Tuesday 2nd January at 7.30pm.

Paper chase for nonexistent reports

Just what does the Department for Exiting the European Union do? Led by Brexit cheerleader David Davis, he has bungled the Brexit negotiations and miserably failed to ensure his own governmental prop - the DUP - were on board when the divorce settlement seemed close to being signed in Brussels earlier this week. Now, we are told, his own department has not produced the impact assessments on the various different sectors of the economy which the government, and Mr Davis, had led everyone to believe were being written. The government therefore has no analysis on how Brexit, in whatever form it comes, will impact on the economy. What an utter shambles and waste of taxpayers' money this person and department are.

Shambolic surprises

When the hints in the media yesterday morning were all pointing towards a deal with the EU which included "regulatory alignment" of Northern Ireland with the EU, I began to think that Theresa May had pulled off the impossible - she had actually got the DUP to change its mind and back plans which they had previously implacably opposed. In all the media coverage last week, the DUP had made its position clear: no deal that meant a status for Northern Ireland different from the rest of the UK.

So when the deal fell apart yesterday, I was a bit surprised that everyone was surprised with the DUP's position. What they should really have been surprised about was the failure of Theresa May to get the DUP's support before going to Brussels to agree the deal that she thought was in the bag. This is an utterly shambolic approach to government.

Also shambolic is the government's blurring of its red lines. We were told Brexit means control of our borders but our only land border is to be open. Brexit was meant to let the UK make its own rules but part of the nation has been offered up as a place where the Single Market and the Customs Union will continue. Brexit promises also included £350 million a week for the NHS, not handing over £40 billion to the EU. The reality is that the leaders of Brexit have put forward impossible and unrealistic claims, drew red lines in the sand, and then spent the last year redrawing them while the government caved in to every EU requirement.

I have consistently argued that the national interest lies in being in the EU, arguing our case and shaping it to our needs. The alternative is to be a small nation bobbing along in the wake of the EU superpower. The past year has shown that we are slipping into this alternative role. Welcome to Brexit Britain.

Let the state visit go ahead

I have listened to the calls by many, including from within the Liberal Democrats, that the Trump  state visit should be cancelled. Personally, I don't think the offer should ever have been made. The haste with which Theresa May offered the visit to Trump, within days of his inauguration, was a national embarrassment. Nevertheless, the offer was made and the visit will go ahead. Public bodies in the UK will need to decide whether or not to participate. I suggest they don't. But I don't think the offer should be withdrawn. I want Trump to be aware that he will return to the USA knowing that he was the cause of the biggest protest this country has ever seen. So let him come here, and let us show what we think of him.