Monday 8th October I have an Oral Question to the government on small business development: With the domestic market slugging exports could provide the turbo boost for the recovery, however only 1 in 5 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) exports its good and services overseas. How can government encourage this figure to grow? Broaden…
Friday September 21st is the UN International Day of Peace and around the world individuals and organisations are reaching out in peace. This of course may not be immediately apparent from a glance at the media which has rightly soberly covered the many instances of violence and conflict in our society and around world, but is there not…
When Professor Stephen Hawking who is confined to a wheelchair with motor neurone disease spoke through his voice syntheziser and urged that we, “look up at the stars, and not down at your feet,” he opened our minds. When David Toole who was born without legs danced with incredible movement, sensitivity and expression and then…
The newspapers and news channels are bulging with criticism of the United Nations for ‘failing to halt the bloodshed in Syria.’ They are right to be outraged but the target of that frustration which we all share should be the member states not the institution of the UN. Consider one small matter—the Olympic Truce which…
As one of the hundreds of thousands enjoying the Jubilee weekend festivities in London I wanted to offer three resounding cheers to those who made it possible: Cheer 1: The stewards who were firm, fair, friendly and helpful in suggesting alternate vantage points when sections were too crowded; Cheer 2: The technical crews who provided…
