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Aung San Suu Kyi to guest-direct Brighton Festival
In taking inspiration from the Nobel Peace laureate, the Festival really puts Brighton on the map as a city committed to freedom and tolerance, as well as promotion of the arts. I think it's fair to say that our Festival is at the cutting edge of the arts in the UK and internationally,...
Supporting local pharmacies – and warning over waste
On a recent visit to Fields Pharmacy in Eldred Avenue, I was shocked to learn that around £100million of waste medicines are returned to the UK's community pharmacies for waste disposal every year. In order to better understand this issue, and the hugely important services which pharmacies...
Which way did I vote on student tuition fees?
Yesterday I voted against the Government's proposals to treble fees for university students. As students gathered in the streets of Westminster ahead of the vote last night, it was clear that the level of public feeling against these plans had reached fever pitch. It is incredibly unfair...
Vital to fight the corner for those in social housing
Enjoying the hospitality of the Phoenix Community Association Since my election I've made a point of trying to get to as many community group meetings as possible. They're where you get a real feel for the issues that are on people's minds. They're also places where you see a tremendous...
Bright Start Nursery – dropped into say I’m backing them
Me with Bright Start worker David Jones. How government cuts are having a devastating impact on frontline community services. Bright Start is a city council-funded nursery for six months to five years old children based in North Laine in the city centre. The...
Housing crisis – the biggest issue for my constituents
One issue that's causing immense distress is the housing crisis in the city (and across much of the country). The Coalition Government has announced £1.8 billion cuts to housing benefit, and I'll be making it a front line campaign priority in the new Parliamentary term. In my constituent...
Unfair and unwanted. City council should stick to the business of frontline services rather than setting up speculative commercial ventures
In these challenging economic times, local councils should be focusing even more determinedly on what they are best at and what people expect them to deliver on the frontline. So I was surprised to learn recently that Conservative-led Brighton and Hove City Council, which has been ordered...
Brighton and Hove Pride: let’s salute the great heroes for LGBT equality
Pic (c) JJWaller.com Yes, I was a 'sailor' (right) at last year's Pride. Have fun, be safe and.... yes, celebrate a political day. Why am I saying that? Yes, of course, Pride's about having a great time but as many activists explain, it's much deeper than this. This...
‘Big Society’ means public investment in our community networks
Last week I met around a dozen representatives from community groups (pictured above) from Brighton and Hove. We put the case to the Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd, that the government's public sector funding cuts could have a devastating impact on some of the most vulnerable...
‘Big Society’ means public investment in community networks
Last week I met around a dozen representatives from community groups (pictured above) from Brighton and Hove. We put the case to the Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd, that the government's public sector funding cuts could have a devastating impact on some of the most vulnerable groups...
More NHS shake-up is the last thing patients and our wallets need
This week, Coalition Government health secretary Andrew Lansley has announced yet another re-organisation of the NHS in a Government White Paper. Under his proposals the NHS, already weary from years of restructuring under Labour, now faces the prospect of reorganisation on an even bigger scale....
Job losses – Brighton needs Keynes not Cameron-Clegg
You may have heard of the planned 150 job losses at Lloyds Group in the city - unions say far more. It shows how vulnerable our local economy is to the on-going economic crisis. We also face the bleak prospect of job losses in front line local public services such as education and social...
My first question to the PM
To watch me put my question please forward to 16 minutes in. This was my first question to David Cameron at PM's Question Time on Thursday. The first of many questions I'll put to challenge him and the Government: Me: Homecoming parades...
Tesco troubles – will meeting them achieve anything?
Pics: (c) JJWaller.com What the community garden has been - until this week - (above) and what it looked like before (below)... While the national media has understandably focused on the potentially devastating impacts of the recent Tory-Liberal budget,...
