This is the latest in ConservativeHome's new ongoing series in which each week a different PPC provides us with an insight into life as a candidate and gives us a flavour of their own campaign and interests. If you are a candidate and are keen to be featured, please email Jonathan Isaby.
This week's diary is written by Deirdre Alden, candidate for Birmingham Edgbaston. She fought the seat in 2005, halving the majority of sitting Labour MP Gisela Stuart to 2,349, and she was readopted soon afterwards. Having originally trained as an actress, she has worked in the theatre, as an English teacher at Berlitz, and as a freelance writer for over 25 years. She is currently a full-time councillor, representing Edgabston ward on Birmingham City Council. She also writes a daily blog.
Monday
As well as being Edgbaston's PPC, I'm Chairman of two Birmingham City Council Committees - one of which is Health Overview & Scrutiny. In this role I keep an eye on the work of the 11 NHS Trusts which operate in the city. Over the weekend, the Chief Executive of one trust has resigned, so Monday morning sees me heading straight for my office at the Council House to discuss the weekend's developments with officers.
From there it's on to another council office, this time in the Edgbaston constituency. We have partial devolution in Birmingham, which means each of the 10 new parliamentary constituencies which come into place at the next General Election (currently we have 11 MPs in Birmingham) has a corresponding council committee. My second council chairmanship (unsurprisingly!) is of the Edgbaston Constituency Committee.
Home from my meeting late afternoon and it's straight on to the computer to deal with casework. Then off to a local hotel for a meeting of the Edgbaston Supper Club - a branch of Edgbaston Conservative Association. The speaker, Sir Bernard Zissman, gives a talk on "The Changing Face of Birmingham". Interesting speech, good food, good company, and raising money for party funds at the same time. Can't be bad!
Tuesday
I recently launched a campaign in support of the constituency's main
shopping area - Harborne High Street. Over the weekend, letters went
out to shop keepers advising them how to find out if they qualify for
small business rate relief, and this morning I visit the High Street to
see a shop keeper who has asked for my assistance. I also take the
opportunity to pop into one of our great independent shops - an organic
grocer's - to buy something tasty for dinner!
The afternoon is spent at the Council House. Comments from me on the
weekend resignation of the Chief Executive of Birmingham Children's
Hospital are in our two main newspapers - the Birmingham Post and the
Birmingham Mail. The Mail also features another issue I've raised with
them. The tragedy of Jade Goody, dying at 27 and knowing she will never
see her children grow up, brings home to us all how cruel a disease
cervical cancer is.
We're always told cervical screening is important in helping to combat
the disease. And yet the age at which young women in England are called
for their first test has been upped under Labour from 20 to 25. When I
raised this at a recent Health meeting I was told that screening
younger women can do more harm than good. But this begs a question. If
that is true, how come they are still screening 20 year olds in Wales
and Scotland? Is it really clinically better to delay, or is this
actually about money?
On my way home I call in at a elderly persons' sheltered tower block to
admire their newly extended and decorated common room. Some months ago
I was involved in pushing to get the work done, so I'm delighted to see
the final results - and, better still, the residents are delighted too.
After a quick dinner, it's off to the AGM of the Friends of Edgbaston
Reservoir.
Wednesday
I chair the Health Scrutiny Committee this morning. As always, we have a
varied agenda with items this month including an update on the
Equitable Access Scheme and a dentist's perspective on the new dental
contract.
Tim Loughton MP, Shadow Minister for Children, is in Birmingham and
visits my constituency this afternoon. I show him two play schemes -
one in Harborne, the other in Bartley Green. He meets the designers,
persuades me to join him in trying out some of the equipment, and is
surprised and impressed with some of the more unusual features - such
as the wonderful tree carvings on Ley Hill Recreation Ground. A great
visit and I'm grateful to him for forgoing lunch to spend so much time
with us.
In the evening it's another Council Committee - this time the one for
Edgbaston Ward. Tonight we're in a local school hall. There's a
presentation about a new road scheme, I talk about an apprenticeship
scheme which the Conservative-led Council has introduced, and there's
an opportunity for members of the public to raise various issues.
Thursday
This morning I meet up with a councillor in the Quinton Ward of the
constituency. We are doing a Reg 33 visit to a Day Centre and have a
complete tour round, including the kitchens. We leave just as the
service users are sitting down to lunch. For me it's a working lunch -
over a meeting of the Municipal Bank Review Group. Birmingham once had
its own Municipal Bank and I'm on the review group which is taking
evidence to see if it is feasible to start one again.
After dealing with emails, reading committee papers, etc. I arrive home
at 5.30pm to find ten messages on my answer machine - all of which have
come in since I left at 11.00am this morning. Have a quick cup of tea
then settle down to deal with them all.
Friday
The morning starts with a phone call from my younger son Robert. He is a councillor in
north Birmingham (Erdington) and on the Parliamentary Candidates' List
(are we the only mother and son on the list I wonder?) so the
conversation is almost all politics!
Between emails, phone calls and the weekly shop, I update my blog. I've
been blogging since October 2006 and try hard to update daily. My blog
is an online diary of things happening in the constituency. I don't
have a "comments" facility for two reasons - firstly, because it is not
a discussion forum (there are plenty of them on the internet already!) but a diary, and secondly because I simply don't have the time to
moderate them. However readers can always email me and I've had
contacts from people as far away as New Zealand and the Caribbean on
particular subjects!
The afternoon is spent in my Health Scrutiny office, then in the
evening I head off to the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce's Annual
Dinner. The Chamber is situated in Edgbaston but the dinner is at the
ICC (where last year's Tory Party Conference was held) so the main
speaker, David Cameron, should feel at home. At the drinks reception I
am able to speak to David, and I also meet up with Andrew Mitchell
(currently Birmingham's sole Conservative Member of Parliament) and
Chris Kelly (PPC for Dudley South). David's speech goes down exceedingly
well and I enjoy a very convivial evening in the company of fundraisers
from "Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer" who have raised the money to buy
an amazing array of equipment for use at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital
in Edgbaston.
Saturday
On the second Saturday of the month we always run a campaigning street
stall at the Harborne Farmers' Market. Today we're asking people to
sign a Conservative petition calling on Gordon Brown to implement
Conservative policies by abolishing income tax on savings for basic
rate taxpayers, and raising the pensioners' personal allowance by
£2,000 to £11,490. Lots of people sign and our large size version of a
piggy bank attracts a lot of attention!
In the afternoon I'm a guest at a special church service at Birmingham
Cathedral. It's been organised by the Women's Hospital in Edgbaston and
is a celebration of their Neonatal Unit which will be relocating within
the Trust whilst a new purpose built facility is procured. It's also a
launch of the hospital's "Tiny Babies, Big Appeal" fundraising appeal
for the final £2 million which is required to provide the new unit.
There are some moving stories and excellent singing and music.
Home from the cathedral and there's just time to deal with the casework
picked up in the High Street this morning, before settling down with
friends in the evening for a relaxing game of bridge. The perfect end to
a busy week!
Next week's Diary will be written by Andrew Bingham, PPC for High Peak