Thirty years of progress

I've just got back from the Glastonbury Festival, where one of the highlights for me was seeing The Specials for the first time. I am always a little sceptical of seeing bands on reunions, but as they split back in the early 80s when I was a little on the young side for ska gigs, I couldn't be too prissy about it!

One of the things that struck me during the gig was how far British society has come in those thirty years. The Specials were one of the first bands to sing about race at the time, for example, of the St Pauls riots. The members demonstrated a new model of unity to a society that was grappling with what difference meant - a society that was being told by Margaret Thatcher that it didn't exist. Here I was now in 2009, in a crowd in an easy mix of white and black, women and men, old and young and gay and straight. The Specials (and Madness, who played the following day) were an original part of the legacy of tolerence and celebration that my generation thankfully inherited.

But, in the context of the recent Euro elections, their message is still vitally important to our society - a point that they made on stage. Music was what politicised me as a teenager and it continues to do so. We need a new generation of artists to come through and pick up where The Specials left off, not endless TV-friendly talent show washouts.

The audio on this video isn't great as it's a YouTube borrow from a bloke with a mobile phone (who, from the angle, must have been near me). For a better reflection, you can see the official BBC clip. In the context of Michael Jackson passing, I was a bit worried about old Neville Staples a couple of times - he's three years older than Jacko and still running around the stage like a loon!

Cotham School trees - anger builds!

I am still pursuing with local residents and organisations the loss of four mature trees at Cotham School. I have got increasingly angry at what is becoming evasive buck-passing between different departments in the Council, the Local Education Partnership and Skanska.

It is now clear that the line that Skanska put out in the press was a fabrication. They had no permission to remove the trees and, worse still, they did it during the bird nesting season without taking the appropriate precautions. This is potentially a criminal offence and we are investigating whether and how this might be prosecuted.

For reasons that are not clear to me, the Council seems to be dragging its feet about putting pressure on Skanska to put right their mistake. A letter has gone out to residents effectively telling them not to moan as the trees needed to go for the good of our children and I have complained to the Director of Children and Young People's Services about this.

I wrote formally to the Local Education Partnership (who contract between the Council and Skanska) two weeks ago and I have not yet had a response. I get the faint whiff of bucks being passed and backsides being covered...

8 and 9 bus routes to change

First Bus are proposing to alter the 8 and 9 bus routes that currently serve the Cotham and Redland areas.

They are planning to axe the 8A and 9A routes that go through Clifton, but this is outside my patch. The main change for around here is that they want to move the route from Redland Park and Clyde Road to Redland Hill - see map right.

The reason for this is that the buses are getting caught up in traffic on this stretch of road due to the parking on both sides. This is affecting the reliability of the services and also the number that can be provided per hour. I discussed this problem with the former Managing Director when I had 20 minutes on the phone with him a year or so ago.

The quid pro quo for these changes is that they will offer a more regular service with higher reliability. They are seeking to shift from every 20 minutes to every 12 minutes during weekdays and Saturdays and from every 30 minutes to every 20 minutes on Sundays.

I am obviously going to be taking some time to think about what these changes will mean. The improved frequency is obviously very welcome, but it does mean that those people living on Redland Park and Clyde Road and the side roads will have to walk further to get to a bus stop. On the other hand, some people on these roads will be quite keen on the changes as they get kept awake by the buses at the moment as some of the houses open straight onto the road. Also, those people living on Redland Hill would get a better service.

I would welcome any thoughts from local people about the proposals - these will be very helpful in deciding how I respond to First.

Anthony Negus elected

Back from a election-based hiatus! I didn't want this blog to turn into a 'big P' political battleground as I try to keep it mainly informative and not for down-and-dirty campaigning, so I thought it best to have a little break.

Anyway, the election on 4th June saw Lib Dem Anthony Negus elected to join me as the other councillor for Cotham Ward. Anthony replaces Roger McDermott who stepped down due to work commitments. Anthony was elected with a positive swing from all the other parties and a majority of 683 votes - the full result is on the Council website.

Anthony has been helping me with stuff around Cotham for much of the last year, learning the ropes and providing expert advice on planning and conservation issues. I am really looking forward to working with him and I am just sending him his first load of issues to get his teeth into!

P.S. No-one told me that there were going to be photos, so I look scruffy even for me here with Nick Clegg!