Gary's views

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

SALIENCE

The experts call it salience, which I guess has got something to do with saltiness. In short it is what we politicians are told by the pollsters are the issues considered most important by voters. It varies a little from region to region and from time to time a really big issue can blow up from nowhere and swamp everything else.

But by and large for the last few years we are told that the pecking order is as follows:
1. The economy – by a mile.
2. Health
3. Education
4. Crime
5. Asylum and immigration

There is then a gentle tapering off through tax and environmental concerns until you get to Europe, which tends to hover around 10th or 11th place.

If you care passionately about Europe you will never accept this. You will tell me that all of your friends agree with you that this is the most important issue facing our country, and maybe it is. It could also be that we all tend to surround ourselves with a small handful of people who think the same as we do!

It is perfectly possible to have the best policy since sliced bread on a certain policy and campaign on it like mad - only to find that it has no real cut through with the electorate because only a handful of people care much about that issue. I fear that my own party was more than a tad guilty of this at the last election.

So as we start the countdown to the next general election (only the PM knows when this will be – but we all expect it to be next May 2005) you will find politicians talking more and more about the top 3 issues that we are told you care most about.

In days of yore the best politicians were those who knew instinctively what issues resonated with the public. We now have an army of pollsters and sephologists beavering away with clipboards to tell us.
That’s all very well, but the experts often get it wrong.
So I thought that I would conduct my own poll. I would greatly appreciate it if you send me in your own top 5 issues – the things that matter most to you. The things you want people like me to focus on. I will then publish the results. Let’s see if we can confound the pundits!

posted by Nigel on Monday, June 28, 2004

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

TEENAGE YEARS

In this job, nothing should surprise you, but it frequently does. My attention has been recently drawn to a website which advises young people how to commit suicide. Have you ever heard of anything so gross?

I dug deeper. To my horror I discovered that around 19,000 young people attempt suicide every year, 700 of them succeeding. Suicide is the second highest cause of death amongst 15-24 year olds. 14 young people a week end their own lives somewhere in our country.

But why? Aren’t these meant to be the best years of your life? A time when you are slowly turning into an adult without any of the burdens and pressures that adult life brings? Certainly that is how I remember my teenage years.

But life for a teenagers today – as every parent knows – is very different to even twenty years ago. From the very first day in primary school to the passing out parade for those who go on to university, the stress of constant examination and assessment stalks every day. Many teenagers, rightly or wrongly, feel that not doing themselves justice in a single examination, could impact the rest of their lives. This burden is often added to by pressure from home, government, schools and peers.

And the pressure to look good has never been greater. Image is probably more important to you as a teenager then at any other stage of your life. Youngsters are bombarded with images of what they should look like. But making friends and ‘fitting in’ is often determined by things over which a teenager has no control: such as acne or height or shape. Although the government is right to try and tackle the serious problem of child obesity it must be careful not to become yet another voice adding to the pressure. Another voice of disapproval.

And there is so much choice and opportunity, often bewildering in its complexity. And just around the corner lurk the new evils of binge drinking and drugs.

The teenage years are always going to be confusing. At this time you experience a wider range of emotions, form deeper relationships and start to think more independently. It would be surprising if this time wasn’t turbulent. But the shocking figures on suicide rates are utterly unacceptable.

I would be interested to hear from parents and young people alike what more can be done to smooth the path to adulthood and remove some of the life-threatening pitfalls.

posted by Nigel on Monday, June 21, 2004

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

D-DAY

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings I had the privilege of attending the remembrance service on Plymouth Hoe. As I imagined the horrors of that dramatic day I was struck at how young some of those that lost their lives were. So many promising futures were sacrificed so that our democracy – our free way of life – would be saved.

Such events are always moving, but this year was particularly special. For obvious reasons this will almost certainly be the last anniversary of it’s kind for the brave and proud veterans involved. We owe them so much.

Last week I visited Syria on a parliamentary fact-finding tour. While there we met the president, the prime minister and others to discuss terrorism, Iraq and the middle east peace process. I met a number of interesting people, but one conversation I had with a man sticks out in my memory.

Casually I asked him what his favourite country in the world was. Given the height of anti-Americanism in that region I was taken aback by his answer: USA. As we continued our discussion it turned out that he has spent a few years living in America and marvelled at the freedom that was there, speaking (in hushed tones) of how he wished it existed in his own country.

In Britain we have the same freedom, and I worry sometimes that we so easily take it for granted. It was not achieved without cost, and D-Day is one of several reminders of how great the sacrifice for our liberty was. The D-Day anniversary was a chance to remember the past, but also a challenge. A challenge to guard our freedom against those who want to take it away, be it extremist political parties or foreign powers.

But there is another challenge. People in Britain tend to be understandably critical of America at the moment. But it is important to remember that whatever else they may be they are a free land attempting to promote that concept to the rest of the world. The motivation behind such an aim may never be completely pure, and the way it is put into practice may sometimes be flawed. Nonetheless we must never forget that freedom is the ultimate prize. We must work toward a world in which our Syrian friends can one day celebrate the same freedom in his home land that he enjoyed overseas.

posted by Nigel on Monday, June 14, 2004

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

PURPLE POWDER

I know ‘cos I was there. I saw the man lurch towards the edge of the gallery and start throwing his missiles. It all seemed to happen in slow motion. I saw him get away his one, two, three throws before the security officer, presumably just as startled as the rest of us, wrestled him back from the balcony. He was a good shot. I saw the purple powder hanging in the air and the look of stupefaction on so many faces. The Speaker immediately suspended the sitting and we all trooped out.

Most of us were very relaxed about it and trickled out chatting. Our Chief Whip started to bawl at us to get a move on. Nothing new there! Tony Blair and Michael Howard were as cool as cucumbers, the stuff, perhaps, that Prime Ministers are made of. After all we had seen it all before. In my time at Westminster we have had leaflets, lesbians on ropes and plenty of verbal incursions from the gallery above.

But as we started to amble back to our offices ten minutes early, the conversations and emotions became more serious. What if it had been some kind of toxic material, anthrax, sarin or ricin, say? Presumably, half the cabinet and plenty of others would now be struggling in intensive care?

There have always been protestors – fair enough. There have always been a troubled few, intent on their deluded missions. That’s a risk we all run and you can’t really guard against it. But since nine-eleven, everything has changed.

Now we KNOW for certain that there are out there a large group of people who have the motive, capacity and the intent to destroy our way of life. They brought down the twin towers, they brought down a Spanish government and they would be thrilled to do the same to us. As Bin laden recently said: “you love life but we love death.”
We all want to think that it will never happen to us, but what happened last week was a wake up call.

So what happens next? I expect that the professionals will now want to cloak us in even more security.

But it is vital that free access between the elected and those who elect is maintained. I do not want to do my job behind a plate glass screen. There must be a balance. But have we got it right?

posted by Nigel on Wednesday, June 02, 2004