Page 48 - Phonebox Magazine October 2008

Out and About with Mark Lancaster
Our local MP
After last month’s travels to Rwanda, this month has been entirely Milton Keynes based and apart from a chance to catch up with case work, definitely a chance to get out and about in the constituency!
Visits
Of the thirty or so local organisations that I have visited this month, forgive me if I highlight just two:
Firstly, I would like to add my congratulations to Trakka based in Olney on their Queens award for Export, having first visited the company three years ago it really is fantastic to see how the company has grown from strength to strength in that time.
Secondly, in my quest to visit every school in the constituency, I had the pleasure of visiting Castlethorpe First School towards the end of the month. A finer example of a small rural school I am sure it is hard to find and the dedication of both parents and staff really was an example for all.
Weston Underwood Post Office
By now I am sure that everybody will be aware that despite the stirling efforts of the local community lead by Cllrs Debbie Brock
and Peter Geary, Weston Underwood Post Office will be forced to close in January. I simply do not understand this decision; especially as it will result in the Post Office breaking its own criteria of ensuring 95% of the population are within three miles of a Post Office, as will be the case for residents of Stoke Goldington and Gayhurst who now face the trek to either Hanslope or Olney. To be frank, I fear that ultimately the Government’s set target of 2,500 closures always meant that whatever the business case, small rural branches like Weston Underwood and Little Brickhill always looked likely to be forced to close.
It is a tremendous credit to the Covington family that, rather than take early redundancy, they will be remaining open as long as possible and not close until January and I am sure that I speak for everybody when I thank the family for their many years of dedicated service to the community. Whilst it looks as if the closure battle may now be lost, I view my next challenge as trying to ensure that some form of outreach service is put in place to ensure that the best possible access to postal services is maintained for the rural community.
Expansion East of the M1
There has been much media coverage of the revised Government proposal to include an extra 5,000 plus houses East of the M1 in the revised South East plan. Sneaked out as it was shortly before Parliament went into recess, I did manage to speak at length on the subject on the last day of Parliament and make it clear that the local community opposed any such move. I also spoke at well attended meetings at both Moulsoe and North Crawley and it is clear that local feelings are running high on the matter. I have written to all residents who are likely to be affected, encouraging them to take part in the consultation, and have applied for a special adjournment debate on the subject when Parliament returns in early October.
The driver for all of this is of course central Government housing targets which appear to have been increased out of the blue. I am pleased that any future Conservative Government is committed to a fundamental review of these unnecessary high targets which I am confident would result in the removal of these particular houses from the plan.
48 Phonebox Magazine