This week I have been out and about with the New Forest National Park authority, looking at some of the work they are doing around water in the National Park and the buglife within it, and accessibility to the Forest for people with disabilities. We went on a cycling tour with Pedall, a charity which provides accessible bicycles and tricycles, which can be used by both the disabled and able bodied people. The Forest is a wonderful natural asset and we were discussing how best to lobby ministers about the challenges faced by Commoners and Commoning and the benefits it brings in maintaining the historic Forest landscape.
Next week sees the deadline for responses to the Test Valley Borough Council Local Plan consultation. I was back in Stockbridge on Tuesday for the public meeting there, and also over the Bank Holiday weekend was talking to residents in Weyhill and Appleshaw about proposals for the BLP included there. It was the Appleshaw Village fete and I very much enjoyed having my pop-up surgery there all day.
One resident spoke to me about the criminal justice system and the challenges that are in our courts at the moment. So it was very timely that I had already scheduled a visit to the court in Southampton for Thursday of this week. The last time I was there it was for jury service but this time it was to see how the court operates and to have the opportunity to talk to judges and magistrates.
I have also been to see associated British ports this week to hear about work being done in the port to make it more carbon efficient. The port remains one of the significant employers in the city of Southampton and makes a huge contribution to the local economy. The cruise industry is clearly a very large part of that but vehicle export and import is still important, and the container traffic does not stop. It was good to hear about the progress made and incentives used to get more freight onto the rail network and there has been a massive increase in that over the last couple of years.
This weekend sees the re-opening of the cafe at King John's House. None of us wil forget the dreadful fire back at the start of the year, but the staff and volunteers have worked incredibly hard to get to the point they now have where the cafe can re-open.
