Reasons to be Cheerful About Bedford Borough and its Future

Pints in the Parishes at Corner 5 in Kempston Rural tonight!

The latest 'Pints in the Parishes' event is taking place tonight, at Corner 5 in Kempston Rural from around 7.30pm. If you're in the area, please come along and let me know about any issues or concerns you have about your local area, Council services or anything at all you want to discuss.

A Year as Mayor

This week marked a year in office after my election as Mayor following the sad death of Frank Branston. It really is a huge honour to serve as Mayor of Bedford Borough. I have sought to seize the opportunity and through our commitment to protecting services and cutting out waste, we've made huge strides in turning around the old County Council's years of high taxes and poor services.

Cautious optimism over one or two emerging signs for the local economy

Last week I wrote in the Times and Citizen newspaper about my cautious optimism over one or two emerging sings for the local economy. Clearly, with households struggling in the very difficult economic climate, there is a long way to go before we can talk of a significant recovery, but the unemployment figures over the last year or so do give cause for some cautious optimism. Even though there is only so much the Council can do, I am determined that it will do all it can to help foster conditions in the local economy which help create and retain jobs in this Borough. In case you missed it, here's the article from the paper:

River Festival 2010 is here!

After a huge amount of preparation, including by numerous volunteers, River Festival 2010 is upon us! We should be very proud that the celebration first held in 1978 to mark the opening of a navigable route from Bedford to the wash has grown to become one of the most popular free events in the country. Around 300,000 people are estimated to be heading to our town this weekend, and I cannot wait to join with the vast numbers of volunteers, community groups, sponsors and local performers in showcasing the best of what Bedford has to offer.

Get Down to the Athletics Stadium Tomorrow and 'Run with the Stars!'

A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity presents itself tomorrow, as the world class Kenyan athletes who have been here in Bedford this week taking part in a range of community activities give local residents the chance to 'Run With the Stars.'