Tuesday 20th July 2010

08:45 I visited the Isle of Sheppey Academy (East) this morning to present a £3,000 cheque on behalf of Southern Water. Students from the Isle of Sheppey Academy had been highly commended in a pioneering new programme to reduce water waste and inspire people to use water more wisely. The Water Design Challenge which was run by Southern Water and the Design Council, challenged students from five schools across the south to use design techniques to come up with innovative ways to save water around their school and in the wider community. It was an excellent project that I was pleased to endorse.

09:45 A quick visit to Periwinkle Court to exchange mail bags and then I was on my way to London. I was seduced by my easy journey on Monday to try the Blackwall Tunnel again. A big mistake!

11:30 After a frustrating journey I arrived at Westminster and spent an hour working on our strategy to try and save Sittingbourne Magistrates Court which is threatened with closure. I have asked for a meeting with the justice minister and this is scheduled for next week.

13:00 To the Home Office for a working lunch with the Home Secretary, Teresa May. I am part of a backbench team supporting ministerial colleagues and the lunch was an opportunity for us to be briefed on the Coalition Government’s reform programme for this session of Parliament. I was impressed. They mean business!

16:00 I spent a couple of hours in the office on paperwork and strategy. I have a meeting next week with two Vice Principals from The Manchester College and I spent some time with Carol, my caseworker, deciding what questions I should ask.

18:00 Over to Portcullis House for a meeting with Eric Pickles only to discover that I was in the wrong meeting room. I found out later that the venue had been changed but for some reason the information had not filtered down to me. I was not alone, because at least two colleagues were caught out in exactly the same way. I decided to go back to my office and press on with the backlog of emails and other correspondence that doesn’t seem to get any smaller.

19:20 I was rescued by the Division Bell which summoned me to vote my acceptance of the Third Reading of the Finance Bill, which I did willingly. After the vote I took the opportunity to have dinner and then sit on the Terrace for half an hour to get some fresh air. I felt better when I eventually went back to my paperwork.

22:27 That was the time of the last vote of the evening and I was able to escape to my car. The journey home was even worse than the trip in and I didn’t get home until just after midnight.