National Federation of Sub Postmasters Lobby of Parliament

I was delighted to welcome Andrew Grant formerly of Dalrymple Post Office and Sheila Dunlop of Kirkoswald Post Office among the Ayrshire representatives on the lobby of Parliament this month. One of the biggest petitions ever presented to Parliament with over 40,000 signatures in support of retention of the Post Office Card Account was the centre piece of the day. In Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock we were already ahead of the game as I had handed over a petition on this to the Minister in July with thousands of local signatures. The Government has said it is considering an enhanced replacement to the Post Office Card Account when the contract runs out in 2010 and this provided some reassurance.

The Government provides £150 million a year for the rural post office network but this is due to end in 2008. I am expecting a Government statement on the future role of post offices before the end of the year and I will meet with the local sub postmasters again once I know what is being proposed.

Meeting with Health Minister

It is unusual for me to be in Scotland mid week but I managed to get to Edinburgh for the meeting with Health Minister Andy Kerr which was organised by my colleague Cathy Jamieson MSP. Cathy has worked hard to make sure local voices are heard at the highest level.  Carrick was well represented from both Maybole and Girvan and surrounding areas. We raised our concerns about the Health Board decision to close A&E at Ayr Hospital. Local Community Councils have proved their worth by joining with elected members and others to campaign on this in the interests of the whole community. I was delighted to hear that the Community Councils in Carrick are looking at how they can continue to work closely together where there is common cause.

Before we left the Scottish Parliament we just had time to hear Tourist Minister Patricia Ferguson announce a record number of overseas visitors last year, with tourism contributing £4.2 billion to the Scottish economy. Ayrshire has benefited from investment in direct flights to Scotland and we stand to benefit even more with the new Burns Museum and the planned Burns Homecoming events.

United Nations Day

The 24th October was United Nations Day. Since the UN was set up at the end of World War 2 there have been countless conflicts. It is ten years since the genocide in Rwanda when the international community failed to intervene to stop ethnic cleansing on a horrific scale. The United Nations is often constrained in its actions by member states with their own agendas. Last week the UN was thrown out of Darfur by Sudan, where they were trying to stop the same thing happening again. I believe the United Nations remains a vital tool in international cooperation but is in urgent need of reform as well as real commitment and accountability  from member states from rich and poor nations, if we are to stem the tide of conflict throughout the world.

Iraq Update

Nowhere is this more obvious than in Iraq. This week I met with Dr Barham Salih of the Kurdistan Alliance who is Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq. Dr Salih studied in the UK having left Iraq in 1979 after being arrested several times by Saddam Hussein.

He described the current security situation in Iraq and acknowledged the difficulties being caused by insurgency involving local militias and al Quaida. He does not accept that al Quaida were only involved in Iraq after the invasion, nor does he accept that British and US troops are now part of the problem. His view is that these are excuses used by those in Iraq with their own vested interests who want to dismantle the fledgling democracy.  He told us that there is an opportunity for the peoples of the Middle East to build a fairer region – one that is not based on the elites who have ruled for generations. His view is that this, together with the Palestinian question, are the main reasons for the rise in support for fundamentalism.

He sees progress in preparing the Iraqi security forces to take over control especially in the provinces where the UK troops are based. As a Kurd, Dr Salih comes from a particular point of view but remains determined to build one united Iraq which he believes is in the best interests of all Iraqi people.

Access to the Labour Market for Romania and Bulgaria

The Home Secretary this week outlined the Government’s policy for controlling access to the labour market for the new EU Accession States, Romania and Bulgaria. There will be a sensible balance to prevent an unrestricted free for all, while ensuring our economy has the people it needs to grow successfully. Migration from countries which joined the EU in 2004 has had a positive effect on our economy. However, I appreciate that where migration has not been a feature of life, a large number of people arriving quickly (from Poland, for example) can lead to worries about the impact on communities and public services.. The Government has therefore decided there will be no automatic right to work in this country for the new accession countries of Bulgaria and Romania.

As a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee I recently visited both of these countries and discussed migration with their Governments. They believe many people have already gone elsewhere due to the difficult economic circumstances since the fall of communism. Any others who want to leave after joining the EU are more likely to go to Greece or Spain than the UK. However they take exception to what they see as unequal treatment compared to the previous EU entrants and also the way their people have been portrayed in the British media as thieves and beggars.