Tony Colman
MP for Putney writes
In this week's diary for PutneySW15.com our
MP covers the aviation debate, lighter hours, communication masts and
the threatened Post Office closures......
Aviation
debate
Continuing my campaigning on aviation issues I spoke in a full-scale debate in the Commons on the Aviation White Paper on Tuesday 8 June.
In my speech I raised the most current issues for Putney issues as raised in the recent Putney Society meeting on Aviation: the cap on traffic movement, night flights and alternation. I again stated for the record that I oppose any increase in traffic movements and oppose night flights and that I will completely oppose any attempts to end alternation at Heathrow'.
Lighter Hours
Also on Tuesday 8 I supported Nigel Beard MPs ten-minute rule bill on lighter hours which calls for time in England and Wales to be advanced by one hour a day to increase daylight in the evenings.
This would mean that during the winter time would be Greenwich Mean Time plus one hour instead of simply Greenwich Mean Time as it is now. And in summer, time would be Greenwich Mean Time plus two hours instead of Greenwich Mean Time plus one hour as at present. This would bring England and Wales into line with the majority of continental Europe. The power to make decisions in relation to time zones in Northern Ireland and Scotland would be devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Scottish Parliament.
Changing British time zones would lengthen the amount of daylight in the evening and would be beneficial on many fronts: reducing traffic accidents in the winter evenings; making older people feel safer through lighter evenings; increasing participation in sport as most people's leisure time is the evening; promoting tourism and facilitating business with our European neighbours.
I think there are many practical reasons why lighter evenings are a good idea - for safety, leisure and business. But also for our wellbeing - I know most of us feel instinctively more cheerful and more like playing sport or being active as the long summer evenings approach. And incidentally it would help in campaigning for common night flight regulations across Europe.
Telecommunications masts
I have been contacted by a large number of Putney residents recently who are concerned about planning applications for mobile telephone masts submitted by the Orange mobile telephone company. Causing most concern are two applications for small micro masts near St Michael's Church and on the junction of Granville and Wimbledon Park Road. However, there are also plans for six other micro masts across the Putney area.
I am very aware of the concern felt by residents about telephone masts. I would encourage those opposed to such plans to write to the Council objecting to the masts. I have written on behalf of constituents and attended a well- attended local resident's meeting at St Michael's Church about the planning applications. At the meeting I handed round a petition which I will be presenting to Parliament shortly calling for Wandsworth Council to reject these planning applications and that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister urgently re-examine planning law in relation to mobile phone masts in urban areas in order to give local authorities more power to reject such proposals in the future.
The majority of us own mobiles and find them convenient but the masts necessary for them to work must not cause problems for local residents. The Telecoms Act of 1984 Schedule 2 gives rights to telecom companies to put up masts necessary to provide services. I hope that Wandsworth Council will sit down with the telecom companies to agree where these masts can go to avoid any possible problems for local residents.
Post Offices
I am happy to report that I am in complete agreement with Wandsworth Council in opposing the threats to local Post Office. My most recent action was to present a petition to Parliament to oppose the Post Office plans to close the Post Office at 2A Mountford Place, Princes Way, Southfields.
For
more information about what I've been up to and how to contact me go to my web
site www.tonycolman.org.uk
Tony Colman MP
For Labour Party information: www.labour.org.uk
For Government Headlines: www.ukonline.gov.uk
For Parliamentary Information: www.parliament.uk
June 13, 2004
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