Article For Folkestone Herald

22 October 2003

Human joys and anxieties overshadowed political concerns at Westminster this week.

First there was the welcome and joyful news of the birth of a son to Gordon and Sarah Brown. After the tragic early death of their daughter this happy event gave much pleasure to all in Parliament.

This news was, however, followed very shortly by the heart condition suffered by the Prime Minister. The genuine wishes of a speedy and full recovery came from all quarters of the House and transcended party boundaries.

Outside Parliament, the news was much better.

First came the agreement of the Government to the plan to build a new sports centre in Hythe and to refurbish the existing sports centre in Folkestone. This plan was originally put forward by the previous Conservative administration of Shepway District Council with my strong support. It also has the support of the current administration of the Council and I am delighted it is to go ahead.

Next came the consultation paper issued by the Strategic Rail Authority which confirmed that the high speed rail link would indeed serve Folkestone. This project, which is so crucial to the future of our community, is one which I have worked hard to bring about, taking delegations to see both the Transport Minister and the Strategic Rail Authority. We are not quite there yet. We still need the final decision from the Government. But this week’s announcement is good news and I am hopeful that the final outcome will be what we all want to see.

Not such good news came with proposals which would curtail the availability of GP’s in Hythe. Other parts of Shepway are already suffering from the shortfall in the number of GP’s we have.

There is no simple cause – or solution – to this problem. But undoubtedly one of the factors at work is the tendency of doctors to retire earlier than they might have done, complaining of increases in their workload and in the volume of paperwork with which they have been afflicted.

Political will is needed to change this state of affairs. Meanwhile I shall keep a close watch on the situation and shall continue to urge the Shepway Primary Care Trust to do all it can to ease the problems which undoubtedly exist.