Ellee Seymour

We have recruited four excellent new trustees at Headway Cambridgeshire and I look forward to working with them to strengthen the board and take forward our exciting new plans  in the pipeline, including opening centres in Peterborough and Fenland.

I am strongly urging them to attend an excellent training course for new trustees to fully understand their roles and responsibilities, and four of them yesterday – two new ones and two more long standing trustees, went to London to do so, and have all said it was excellent.

The course I strongly recommend is run by Dorothy Dalton, editor of Governance magazine, and I now closely follow her model the best I can. It cannot be praised highly enough in helping boards to work more effectively.

We are now in need of a facilitator to lead an Away Day which I would like to arrange, and if anyone could help us on a pro bono basis, please let me know as we would be most grateful.

Today I am spending time at Headway Cambridgeshire, sitting in on one of the sessions with service users as I am also encouraging trustees to spend time within the premises and talk to staff and those who use it to get a good understanding of how it really works. I have to lead by example, but it is also hugely rewarding for me. I have introduced a regular item on our agenda called Your Headway Experience so trustees can report back on their visit and share their experiences.

I also have a meeting with our Chief Executive and a solicitor to review our governance documents, including our Memorandum of Articles, which is something I have never done before. I’m learning all the time in my role as chair of trustees, and I’m really enjoying it.

We are all looking forward to our gala ball on 27th February, and tickets are still available. Full details can be found at this link, and with an Abba tribute band topping the bill, I am sure it will be a fun evening.

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I was standing yesterday in the central lobby of Westminster under its magnificent gold chandelier, flanked by a statue of former prime minister William Gladstone, and with the heroic St George looking down on me, one of the stunning paintings which grace this unique place in history.

It was really hectic and there were lots of visitors and staff milling around. The busy reception staff, dressed formally in black tails, had called Eleanor Laing, Shadow Minister for Justice who I had arranged to meet, and I was waiting for her to arrive.

Suddenly, Eric Pickles walked by, and people seized their moment to grab his attention. First he was approached by a student who he listened to and then congratulated for something or other. Then a middle-aged man I was standing next to limped over to him with the aid of two walking sticks, thrust a folded piece of paper into his hand and pleaded: “Will you please read this, it’s my story and I would like you to read it.”

Eric nodded and started to read it there and then, but the man told him he could do so later. Eric then shuffled off. Intrigued, I asked the man why he wanted to tell Eric his life story, and this is what I am now going to share with you.

The man’s name is Steve Nicholls and he is a haemophiliac. He suffers from a blood condition in which an essential clotting factor is either partly or completely missing, resulting in him to bleed for longer than normal, and also resulting in internal bleeding into joints, muscles and soft tissues. Haemophilia is a lifelong inherited genetic condition.

Steve’s tragic story is summarised in four paragraphs, describing how he was born with severe haemophilia which made him dependent on NHS blood. If that was not was bad enough, his life took an unwelcome turn for the worse after he was given contaminated blood and contracted Hepatitis C. He was in his 20s and felt crumpled and devastated, keeping his infection a secret because of the stigma attached to haemophilia.

His note describes how over 2,000 people, many of whom were his friends, have since lost their battle for life with HIV, Hepatitis C and VCJD, all blood born diseases/infections contracted, like him, through NHS administered blood transfusions. This mammoth catastrophe took place between the early 1970s and the mid 1980s and has since been described as the worst ever treatment disaster in the history of the NHS by fertility expert Lord Winston.

Steve, who is 42, has a wife and two kids to support and, thanks to a small grant from the Prince’s Trust, gets by working as a washing machine engineer two days a week. He had lost his previous job in local government “out of fear for fellow workers”, and he was booted out of the tied accommodation that went with his job.

So our paths crossed in Westminster where I watched him trying to catch the attention of MPs who walked by so he could urge them to support the Contaminated Blood Bill which has its second reading in the House of Commons tomorrow; I was on the lookout for them too. It is due to be heard at the end of the afternoon, certainly not the best day and time, but I hope it somehow gets the attention it deserves.

It follows a  Private Members’ Bill drawn up by Lord Morris of Manchester, (whose niece is Estelle Morris) and who is president of the Haemophilia Society. He has championed their cause for justice. A two year  inquiry was held into the circumstances surrounding the contaminated blood disaster, which left 4,670 people with haemophilia infected with HIV and/or hepatitis C, of which almost 2,000 people have died as a result. It concluded that government procrastination led to thousands of patients becoming infected with HIV and Hepatitis C from contaminated blood, and that the infection of so many people was a "horrific human tragedy".

Lord Archer’s two-year privately funded inquiry was set up after decades of campaigning from victims and their families. His report noted: "The haemophilia community feels that their plight has never been fully acknowledged or addressed."

If 4,670 people had died or been injured in an air disaster, a rail crash, or as the result of flooding, would their families still be seeking justice more than 20 years later?

I hope Eric Pickles has had a chance to read Steve’s story and will acknowledge their suffering. And the same goes for other MPs who Steve and his supporters bumped into or met, including Jeremy Hunt (he is Steve’s local MP who he arranged to meet), Anne Milton (she was keen to meet them), Dr Julian Lewis (he discussed this over lunch with one of Steve’s supporters who was a constituent), Lembit Opik, Kate Hoey, and Charles Clarke. There is also an Early Day Motion seeking the support of MPs for the Contaminated Blood Bill.

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I’m back in Westminster today researching a project I am working on, and look forward to meeting the inspirational Lesley Abdela who I first met at a Conservative Women’s conference a couple of years ago.

Last year Lesley won the UK Woman Political Journalist of the Year Award. She is a highly regarded international women’s rights campaigner and has worked for more than 25 years in gender development (I do dislike that expression!).

I was in Derby yesterday, which meant I was unable to attend the Conservative reception  for tweeters hosted by Eric Pickles, who obviously made a quick dash to the BBC studios because I saw him on Newsnight being quizzed about a new voting system proposed by Gordon Brown. Why wouldn’t Kirsty Wark let him answer any questions? I find it so irritating when speakers are constantly interrupted or spoken over when trying to put their views across. Congratulations, btw, to Louise Bagshawe who did manage to make the tweeters’ reception and won a prize (umbrella!) for being the most frequent Tory tweeter!

I still haven’t had time to see Julie Walters’s dramatic portrayal of Mo Mowlam, or the first installment of  the Tower Block of Commons, where four MPs leave Westminster and their comfortable homes to live for eight days and nights in tower blocks on different council estates in some of Britain’s most deprived neighbourhoods. They include Nadine Dorries who experiences the invisibility of wearing a jihab. I have recorded both programmes and hope to catch up with them later this week.

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I hosted a dinner party for three Conservative PPCs last night, North West Durham candidate Michelle Tempest, Liz Truss who is standing in nearby South West Norfolk, and author Louise Bagshawe, who is hoping to turn Corby blue.

I bet you would have liked to have been a fly on the wall, but Chatham House rules prevailed. Suffice it to say that there was only one topic of conversation all evening beginning with P. You will hopefully be seeing and hearing a lot more of these terrific women after the general election, and do look out for a glammed-up Michelle in a forthcoming edition of glossy Grazia featuring Conservative women candidates.

*Michelle has written about the evening on her blog too.

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I’m just back from spending the day in Wisbech with my mother and we did a spot of shopping.  I can tell you they are very well dressed shoppers in the Fenland capital; we did not see one slovenly dressed shopper wearing slippers and pyjamas.

I was looking out for trolley pushers in their nightwear following the appearance of a bizarre notice in a Cardiff Tesco store which states: "Footwear must be worn at all times and no nightwear is permitted."

The Cardiff store has banned shoppers from wearing pyjamas, including Elaine Carmody, 24, who was refused service when the policy was introduced, and seems totally unembarrassed by her inappropriate attire.

However, I will admit that I have thrown a coat over my nightwear on a couple of occasions and jumped in the car to drive my son to the station for his early morning train when we have both overslept.

As I headed down the A10 into Ely, it felt like I was carrying a huge secret, and I hoped nothing would happen on the journey which would force me to stop.

While in Wisbech today, I was intrigued by a newish reptile shop which seems to be bucking the recession. My curiosity got the better of me and I stepped inside for a peek and was told about the customer who bought a tarantula every week for three months. Why would anyone want a dozen tarantulas? Yuk!!

They also rescue pythons which have done a runner. Apparently, when they captured a python from the engine of a car, the owner told them that as it was a sunny day, she decided to let it loose on the front garden for a good stretch…..

You couldn’t make it up!

*I’m delighted to see that Wisbech is recommended in today’s Times Weekend magazine as a great British weekend escape. Where I go, others obviously follow …..

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I never expected an apology or regrets from Tony Blair when he gave evidence at the Iraq Inquiry.  What I have always found surprising is that public fury over the war, the sexed-up dossier of weapons of mass destruction and the tragic death of Dr David Kelly in July 2003 did not cost Labour the general election two years later.

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My MEP Robert Sturdy is urging the UK government to support a ban prohibiting the sale of existing ivory stock by two African countries as he fears it could lead to the slaughter of more elephants and possible extinction.

Robert, who sits on both the International Trade Committee and the Sustainable Hunting Intergroup where this has been discussed, believes the European Parliament should strongly object to any plans by Tanzania and Zambia to offload existing ivory stock. There is concern that if sales went ahead, poachers could slaughter more elephants and pass off the ivory as old stock. Other countries led by Mali and Kenya are opposed to this.

We have issued a press release stating that as elephant numbers are already in decline across a number of African countries, and Sierra Leone’s elephant population wiped out since November, Conservative MEPs have warned that any moves to grant the sale of ivory would be a disaster and could see the near extinction of African elephants in the wild. The UK government has so far refused to rule out supporting a resumption of sales when the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species meets in Qatar in March.

Robert said: “I am very concerned that supporting these plans to trade ivory could easily lead to a rise in illegal poaching and threaten marginal elephant populations across Africa. We should be choking demand, not stocking it by legitimising the trade.

“The UK government has a chance to make a difference to the fate of elephants in the coming weeks by supporting this ban. I want the public to get behind my campaign to prevent the ivory trade being given the green light. I urge people to write to the government, or their elected representative, and asking them get off the fence and follow our lead in opposing the lifting of the ban to help African countries protect their precious but threatened wildlife heritage."

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The new Apple iPad looks amazing, particularly its price tag which starts at £310. But it’s hard to justify buying if, like me, you already own a MacBook and iPhone. One of its feature which could tempt me one day is its iBook, but as I already have a score of books on my heaving bookcase which I haven’t had time to read, I doubt I will get round to it on this super slate either. But it is certainly a fantastic addition.

I also think it’s best to wait a year for the upgraded model of any innovative device to come out so any glitches can be modified.

However, my iPhone contract comes up for renewal in June and I’m pretty sure I will be tempted to upgrade it for the iPhone 4G which, according to the grapevine,is being launched this summer. New features it may include are a better camera, an OLED screen, improved GPS, a removable battery and different casing. I’ve also heard it’s going to be priced very competitively.

I’m pretty sure my friend blogger Geoff will not be able to resist the iPad, and I know it has enthralled Stephen Fry who was at the launch and is positively drooling over it. Are you?

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This is what has been said about women parliamentarians in the Punjab Assembly. I sympathise with the struggles they  face to be taken seriously by their male counterparts. Here is the report when the derogatory remark about all female parliamentarians being “tissue paper” was made, which went unreprimanded, despite strong protests from the women. Disappointingly, support from fellow women legislators has not been forthcoming either.

LAHORE, Tuesday, January 26, 2010
By Babar Dogar

NO one heeded the protest registered by female parliamentarians on becoming the butt of male legislators’ remarks or use of derogatory remarks about women parliamentarians in media in the Punjab Assembly session on Monday.

Female parliamentarians particularly from the Pakistan Muslim League – PML-Q lodged strong protests against double-speak by their male counterparts but they could not get any support from their colleagues sitting on the other side of the divide.

The political divide among female parliamentarians in Punjab Assembly is so deep that they were digesting insulting remarks from male members of rival political parties without any support from women legislators.

Earlier on Monday, Shaikh Allaudin of the PML-Q (Forward Block) was called a turncoat by a female parliamentarian from opposition benches. Shaikh Allauddin in response said that all female parliamentarians were tissue papers and it was far better to be a turncoat then being used as a tissue paper. Remarks from Allauddin created unrest among female parliamentarians on opposition benches who protested before the Speaker against the legislator. Their protest, however, fell on deaf ears as neither the Speaker nor any female parliamentarian from treasury supported them.

Meanwhile, Law Minister Rana Sanaullah while responding to another query about Chief Secretary Javed Mahmood’s car accident claimed that he could not be dictated by a handful of females dancing on someone’s tune. Female opposition parliamentarians also lodged protest that treasury members were passing derogatory remarks about them but Speaker Rana Iqbal hushed them instead of listening to their complaints.

Afterwards, Ghazala Saad Rafique of the PML-N raised another issue, saying that a private television channel had passed derogatory remarks about female parliamentarians and they would not tolerate this. She was of the view that they had struggled and faced punishments along with their male members for revival of democracy but they were not being given due respect. She was supported by female colleagues from opposition benches who also raised voice against this. The Speaker also showed indifference and claimed that if women legislators had any grievance against any private channel they should begin a privilege motion.

Afterwards, talking with The News, Seemal Kamran of the PML-Q regretted that male treasury members habitually passed remarks about them but their female colleagues in ruling party never condemned them. She claimed that women legislators sitting on opposition benches had decided that they would not support female colleagues on treasury benches without weighing the seriousness of the matter at hand. She stated that treasury parliamentarians wanted them to boycott news channel responsible for passing insulting remarks about them but they had decided that they would not do it.

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It’s an eerie thought. Street lights switched off throughout the country between midnight and 5am to reduce carbon emissions. I wonder if this could really happen.

It’s already set to happen in parts of Norfolk, despite fears that it will lead to soaring crime when the streets are plunged into darkness. The switch off is already happening in Devon where more than 8,000 street lights will change from all night to  part-night lighting as a five-year  programme to save energy begins. It is anticipated the initiative  will cut Devon County Council’s  energy bill by £450,000 and save  up to 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

The Eastern Daily Press today reports that controversial plans to switch off up to 27,000 street lights across Norfolk between midnight and 5am have been agreed following a heated debate. It is believed to save £167,000 each year over the next three years, while cutting the council’s annual carbon emissions by about 1,000 tonnes.

Cabinet members agreed to push ahead with the plans, insisting lights will not be switched off in city centres, on major roads or in high crime areas, with a string of possible exemptions identified where lights will not be switched off. Those exemptions include streets with CCTV cameras, where lights have been installed to prevent accidents and places where police can demonstrate there will be an increase in crime and anti-social behaviour if the streets were blacked out.

I imagine other authorities across the country will be watching these two counties closely to see if this could work for them too. I expect crime levels in the blacked out areas will be monitored and any problem areas will be reviewed. I can see why this makes sense and it’s always a brave step to be one of the first to introduce new measures. Reducing carbon emissions requires drastic actions like this. At least the blackout is at a time of night when few people are out and about. Let’s watch this space!

Would it worry you? How would you feel if your street lights were switched off during those hours?

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