PARVEZ AKHTAR - THE NEXT MAYOR OF BEDFORD

Parvez Akhtar, Chairman of Queens Park Urban Community Council was chosen to be our Conservative Mayoral candate by a large majority at a packed Open Primary meeting in Bedford last week, attended by over 400 local residents of all political colours. Parvez is now campaigning actively across the whole of Bedford Borough.

Today I took Parvez to a MacMillan Cancer Support Coffee Morning hosted by a keen Conservative, Pat Johnson, at her Wilstead home. We also met a group of young trainee Police Officers who were enjoying meeting local Wilstead residents.

I am delighted to support Parvez Akhtar, as he will bring a new kind of politics to Bedford, similar to the changes brought by Barack Obama in the USA. Like Obama, Parvez is a highly intelligent, thoughtful family man with high moral principles.

Parvez cares deeply about multicultural Bedford Borough and its diverse communities in the urban and rural areas. He has pledged to represent all the 153,000 residents of Bedford Borough, including the often forgotten 43 rural parishes. Parvez is also
firmly committed to getting better value for council taxpayers, cutting costs and improving efficiency, while actively listening to the views of the local community.

Bedford Borough needs a Mayor who will raise the profile of Bedford Borough nationally and revitalise the community and Parvez Akhtar will be an excellent Mayor.

SAMUEL WHITBREAD & SOUTHILL HOUSE

Samuel Whitbread 1720-1796

Today I took a short break from my Election Campaign to enjoy a Charity Visit and Tea in aid of MacMillan Cancer Support at Southill House, home of the Whitbread family since 1795. Our host was Charles Whitbread, Patron of Elstow Abbey, who lives at Southill House with his wife and 4 children and has now taken over the management of the Southill Estate from his father Sam Whitbread.

Samuel Whitbread I was born in Cardington in 1720, grandson of William Whitbread, who bought land there in 1653 and was a contemporary of John Bunyan. In 1736 Samuel was apprenticed to a brewer by his widowed mother and created the huge Whitbread brewing empire, while investing in Bedfordshire land and becoming a local Member of Parliament. He campaigned vigorously for the aboliton of slavery with his cousin John Howard, famous prison reformer. There have been seven Samuel Whitbreads in all including the present Sam Whitbread, Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire.

The Whitbread family created one of the largest estates in the country, including the villages of Southill, Cardington and Elstow and have been great benefactors to the local community, eg building Bedford Hospital. The Whitbread family donated the 15th Century Moot Hall to Bedfordshire County Council in 1959 and and the Whitbreads have also renovated several local churches including Elstow Abbey in 1880-82.

Southill House has beautiful wooded grounds and some lovely historic paintings, all by English painters such as Sir Joshua Reynolds and Gainsborough, favoured by Sam Whitbread 1. We had a delicious tea and I bought a bottle of Warden Special Reserve wine, one of five varieties produced by their Warden Abbey Vineyard.

This evening it was back to earth with a bang with an Elstow Parish Council meeting and tomorrow I am back on the campaign trail. I have canvassed over 400 houses in three days and organised the delivery of 50% of my manifestos, my third leaflet this year. An election campaign involves a lot of leg work and organisation with only a few helpers and this is my 8th personal election campaign.

KEMPSTON PERFORMING ARTS EVENING

Last week I was invited as Vice Chairman of Bedfordshire County Council to attend Kempston Schools Performing Arts Evening in aid of MacMillan Cancer Support. Pupils from 5 Kempston schools sang, danced and played music, including some pupils from St. Johns Special School who performed a A Taste of Africa, dressed in African costume. Camestone Lower School sang some lovely songs including My Fantasy Football Team, followed by a superb dance performance - Jellicle Cats by Balliol Lower School and some amazing Breakdancers from Daubeney Middle School.

The evening ended with a rousing performance of Everybody needs Somebody by the Blues Brothers by Hastingsbury Upper School Brass Band who were enthusiastically received by the large audience and gave us an encore. There is a wealth of talent in the Kempston schools and the concert raised much needed funds for MacMillan Cancer Support, a very worthy national charity which supports cancer patients and their families.

Kempston is a historic town, dating back to AD 885 before the neighbouring town of Bedford and is mentioned in the Domesday Book as "Camestone" situated in Wessex. After the Norman Conquest King William gave Kempston to his niece the Countess Judith de Balliol. In 1078 Judith founded a Benedictine Convent for Nuns in nearby Elstow village - Elstow Abbey which became a church in 1539 after the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King Henry VIII.

CANCER RESEARCH UK RELAY FOR LIFE

My daughter Sarah is a lawyer, Head of Litigation at a District Council and a busy working mother with 2 young children, Emma aged 6 and Thomas, 3. Nevertheless Sarah somehow finds the time to do voluntary work for Emma's school and has just raised over £2,500 with 7 work colleagues for Cancer Research by doing a 24 hour Night Walk. Sarah is 4th from the left in the Team photograph above.

Sarah wanted to do this walk in memory of her aunt Vivien and a close friend Jean who both died of breast cancer at the end of 2007. I am so proud of Sarah, who sent me this email:

"It was a very moving day, especially the candle of hope ceremony, where over 400 candles were lit with special messages to loved ones. I wrote a message in memory of Vivien and Jean"

McMillan Cancer Support
Congratulations to Pat Johnstone for raising £1,500 at her annual McMillan Cancer Support Coffee Morning in Wilstead village on 26 September - a fantastic result due to the tireless efforts of Pat and her team of supporters. Pat had her leg broken in several places in a car accident last year, resulting in several operations and her success in raising a lot of money yet again is due to her indomitable courage.

APSE ANNUAL SERVICE AWARD 2008
Bedfordshire County Council runs a joint partnership with MacMillan Cancer Support, called The MacMillan Welfar Rights Services. This partnership has just won a National Award, The Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE)Annual Service for the best public-voluntary partnership in the country at an awards ceremony in Nottingham.

The partnership was set up in January 2007 and has helped 700 people across Bedfordshire.