Nadine Dorries Voted off I'm a Celebrity. 22/11/2012

Nadine Dorries Voted off I'm a Celebrity

22/11/2012
Adam Desmonde

As she left the Jungle Nadine Dorries was quoted as saying;

''I think it is important that MPs realise that you need to go where the public go''
Nadine Dorries

The public were not in the jungle Ms Dorries. The public are waiting in your constituency from where they voted for you to represent them and their needs. 

You left the public in order to gratify your own need for fame by entering this TV show and I don't doubt this is what you were looking for when you became an MP.

Recently a business which I am closely associated with went through an incredibly difficult time and it was with the support of our MP, Sarah Newton, that we were able to survive and continue to employee local people and they in turn care for their family.

This support in turn inspired me to get involved in voluntary public service and since that point I have been working in my community doing my best to help local people. 

That Ms Dorries is the role the public, your constituents, put their trust in you todo. You have betrayed that trust and have done damage to the office you hold. I only hope you did not do damage, through your absence, to the people of Mid-Bedfordshire.

It is my hope that the Conservative Party dismisses Ms Dorries immediately and she issues a written apology to her constituents so that others can start the hard work of rebuilding trust in the honoured role she has disgraced.

BACK TO COLLEGE. DIGITAL BUSINESS IN CORNWALL. 22.11.2012

Back to College. Digital business in Cornwall

22.11.2012
Adam Desmonde

Meeting with Stephen Harrison at Cornwall College

Last week I took some time out of work (and my Birthday!) to go back to Cornwall College. 

This was inspired after I got in contact with Mr Stephen Harrison, the course leader of an HND in Games Design at the College. I have always been very interested in the Games Industry and was excited to see a flyer for such a course available in Cornwall. After a chat over the phone Stephen kindly invited me to meet with him and take a look at the what he was working on.

I jumped at the opportunity for two reasons;

1. As a former student of Cornwall Colledge  I was eager to go back and take a look at the recent changes which have taken place at the campus
2. I have believed for some time that Cornwall is an ideal location for digital business such as the games industry

Nigel started by showing me around the incredible facilities he has available to the students before we sat down to look at some of the work they have been producing and the syllabus forming the course. The scope of study includes not just the artistic/creative side of Games Development but also commercially important modules which would help any graduating student to find employment. 

It is incredibly important in a manufacturing industry such as Games Development, in which a game can earn in excess of £315,000,000.00 in the first 24 hours of release, that graduates understand not only the creative tools but also project management, business management and the process of production.

It is my beliefs that Cornwall is an incredibly attractive prospect for any digital manufacturing company. Along with centres of educational excellence we also can offer;

1. Commercial office space which is highly competitive in price
2. A business environment which is competitive in relation to other countries
3. High speed, fiber optic data links currently which are currently being installed
4. Sites in Cornwall (e.g. disused military facilites) which would be ideal for locating servers for disaster recovery use
5. Cornwall has a tradition of Creative excellence in art and design
6. Cornwall offers a quality of life and environment which is surpasses that of many cities and is a draw for creative motivated individuals

It is my hope that we can attract A list development companies to Cornwall as the perfect location to site their European development base and this is something I intend to promote and work towards

The Money Group, Truro. An Issue Regarding Litter. October. 07.11.2012

The Money Group, Truro. An Issue Regarding Litter

07.11.2012
Adam Desmonde

I'm currently in training for an event called Tough Mudder;

This is a 12-mile obstacle course and run, which I’m doing partly for charity, and partly for my stag do before I get married early next year.

I've already started training and as someone who is much happier in the water than long distance running have been hitting the road around Threemilestone and Truro slowly getting myself in shape.

It was whilst training in Truro, running my way out of the center and building up a head of steam that I ran past Falcon House, home of the Money Group. As I stopped to take a quick stretch before hitting the hill climb I noticed all around the grassed area beside Falcon house and Moorfield car park were cigarette butts, indeed the litter was so bad in some areas you could hardly see the grass.

I called the Money Group a couple of weeks ago and expressed my concern regarding the state of the area. To their credit they held their hands up and recognized it was an issue, indeed they have already spoken to their staff and asked them to desist from littering outside the building.

We talked about a number of options and agreed that a solution would be the installation of cigarette bins in which employees could dispose of their litter and keep Truro tidy. We agreed I would raise the issue with the City Council, ask for their views on how to address the situation and write back to the money group with a recommendation.

I await the city councils findings

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Council Business, October. 07.11.2012

Council Business, October

07.11.2012
Adam Desmonde

Its been a good month in October. Personally i've been busy at work with a couple of new projects, green shoots I hope, and also with council business.

This month I have;

• Attended a spacial meeting of the parks committee to look at how we can invest in Truro for the future.
• Attended an evening planning meeting to review new applications
• Attended a full parks meeting to review general progress
• Attended a training course in planning policy
• Attended a full council meeting

Crescent Rise, Truro. Update. 07.11.2012

Crescent Rise, Truro. Cleaning up the Camp - Update

07.11.2012
Adam Desmonde

Just an update re Crescent Rise and the clean up of the disgusting camp which had been set up in the local park and used drug taking, amongst other things.

Before

After

Thanks once again to the Richard Budge and the Parks Department.

Crescent Rise, Truro. Cleaning up the Camp 11.10.2012

Crescent Rise, Truro. Cleaning up the Camp

11.10.2012
Adam Desmonde

Earlier this month I paid a visit to Crescent Rise, Truro, to deal with a complaint a constituent had sent to me regarding the poor state of a path leading from their area to Chapel Hill. It was whilst I was walking around the area that I got talking to another constituent who raised a further problem in the area.

It would appear that the park to the rear of the crescent had been the source of antisocial behavior in recent months with 'youngsters playing music late at night' and in addition 'making a serious mess in the park’. 

I took some time to go to the park and have a look and was shocked at the state in which the area had been left.

Crescent Rise Camp, Truro.

After taking some pictures I wrote to Neighborhood Services to report the problem and my concerns regarding the bottles, rubbish and general state of the area.

Within just a few day Richard Budge (Truro City Parks) got in contact with me and reported that not only had he and his team cleaned up the area they had also discovered evidence of drug use.

Richard did a fantastic job of dealing with the mess and I'm hopeful that now the area has been cleaned up it will no longer be used for antisocial behavior. 

That said I'm going to keep an eye on the situation and should there be evidence of the problem raising its head again will contact the local authorities.

Portsmouth To Parks - A good day. 08/10/2012

As usual its been a busy start to the week.

As everyone who runs a business in Cornwall knows its a challenging environment at the moment and we have to be prepared to go that little bit further to keep out businesses prospering and moving forward.

This week work has taken me to Portsmouth Navel Base where I've been working on an a very interesting project involving one of the key buildings used by our forces. I drove up last Sunday and stayed in the Travel Lodge close to the base (which was in a bit of a state!) before heading on to the base early on Monday morning and getting cracking on the project.

The work involved conducting a reconnoitre and a brief visual inspection of the building in need of some TLC before putting together a photo record and preparing a report and recommendations before taking a more detailed analysis on Thursday and Friday this week.

Once done I then had to high tail it from Portsmouth at 1:00pm to get back to Cornwall in time for a City Council meeting on Parks at 7:00pm. The Parks meeting was fantastic, the main focus was discussing what plans the Parks committee has got for the future for Truro. What we want to focus on is delivering substantial, realistic projects which are affordable and which can really have an impact on our beautiful city and the lives of its citizens.

We also had the opportunity to again thank Richard Budge and his Parks team for the fantastic job they do keeping Truro looking so beautiful and their incredible success in winning South West In Bloom Champion!

Below is a video the team put together along with Brett Harvey which I was shown at the parks meeting. It perfectly captures what I love about living in Truro.

Obama v Romney, Round 1

Expectations for Obama were so high in last nights (3/Oct/2012) all Romney had to do was turn up and not make another embarrassing gaffe to exceed expectations. Everything about Obama from his choice of tie to his adequate performance says to me 'here is a top level politician performing a pitch perfect Rope-a-dope, in full knowledge there are still two rounds to go'.

I eagerly look forward to seeing the next two debates, I think Romney has yet to see the Presidents A game!

Special Parks meeting. Future planning, 1st October 2012

I attended a special Parks meeting last night (1st October 2012) focused on identifying a realistic and ambitious plan of projects, for the future, in and around Truro.

The meeting was chaired and driven by Councillor Miss Constance Fozzard, and following on from the fantastic success of Truro in the Britain in Bloom competition. In this initial meeting the focus was on;

Discussion of potential projects which would benefit Truro and those who visit our city.
The need to prepare business cases for those projects which are considered most realistic.
The requirement to show a real need for any projects identified.
The importance of risk and change management.
The need for a delivery timetable.

As someone experienced in commercial project management I am always driven to deliver a high quality product whilst managing value for money, risk and a realistic delivery time/programme.

The enthusiasm at the meeting was high and the ideas were fantastic. I'm excited to see how we progress.

Neighbourhood meeting plan. 27th Sep 2012

Took some time out of work this morning (Thursday 27th sep) to attend the Strategic Planning Committee meeting at County Hall, Truro.

This is an incredibly important issue for Truro, Kenwyn and the associated area.

Whilst it is of course important that we provide housing for our young people and those looking to get onto the housing ladder I wanted to learn more about the councils plans and any concerns regarding the project.

Fair Trade

I've been out delivering leaflets this week to local business promoting Fair Trade and requesting information regarding Fair Trade product use.

For further information see;

http://www.truro.gov.uk/Community/Fairtrade.aspx

You can also contact Councillor Charlotte MacKenzie (01872 261675 )
who is a champion of this important work.

September, Overview, council, Cornwall Dyslexia Association

It's been a busy month both at work and as a councillor in Truro. Work wise I've been both in and out of the county working on various projects and looking closely at contracts coming up in the southwest, hoping that Cornish companies are being given the opportunity and proper consideration that their geography and excellence demands.

On the council side I have been busy over the last month with meetings of the full council, planning and parks. These usually finish late in the evening, around 8/9pm, and involve lively debate over important local issues.

I've also been working with the Cornwall Dyslexia Association who are an excellent organisation offering assessment and support to individuals who require that extra bit of help.

Cornwall Dyslexic Association - helping out

Just been to meet with the Cornwall Dyslexic Association (CDA) whom I'm working with and leafleting for.

The CDA are a fantastic Cornish resource, offering advise regarding learning challenges and support and assessment for those with Dyslexia.

I faced what felt like were impossible challenges in my academic life until I discovered I was dyslexic and finally was given the tools to overcome the obstacles in my way.

If you would like information regarding getting in contact with the CDA or if you'd like to talk to me regarding Dyslexia my contact details are on my website

A frustrated Flybe user

In my opinion Newquay airport is a vital part of Cornwall's future plans for growth and development. I use Flybe to travel up to London and love the feeling of flying out and back into my home county.

Unfortunately while trying to book a return flight to Edinburgh, today, I was again confronted with one of the many archaic transport obstructions that Cornwall's tourists and residents regularly face.

The purpose of the flight was pleasure. I'm a big surfer and always wanted to surf in the Scottish outback. A few days before booking the flight I called Flybe to check on the reason they didn't have surf boards included in their online booking system. I was told all I needed to do was book the flight online and then call back and book in a surfboard.

Fair enough I thought.

Today was booking day. I went to Flybe's online system, filled in all of my details and was about to confirm when I thought, "let's just double check the surfboard reservation policy".
I called Flybe and after nearly 10 minutes on hold was connected to a rep.

When I asked if I could book in my surf board I was told I couldn't. Apparently far from allowing customers to book in surfboards (& long boarders beware there is also a length limit!) I was told I could only turn up on the day of the flight with the boards and Flybe would include them, at a charge, IF there was room on the plane. If there wasn't room they would put the board on the next flight.

When I pointed out that this was not what I had originally been told, not to mention that the next flight would be TWO days latter I was met with a stone wall.

Forgetting for a moment my personal frustration at this insane policy just consider what that means for Cornwall. One of our greatest commercial resources is our stunning beaches and often excellent surf. The surf industry and tourism are vital providers of jobs and income, how is it possible then that Flybe don't transport sports equipment in a modern and customer focused way?

I plan to write to Flybe to ask why and get them to help us solve this problem

Meeting-Truro High School re Daniell Road Parking

I met this morning with Bryan Login, the bursar for Truro High School, regarding the potential for making parking spaces available to residents in and around Daniell Road, Truro.
This will of course involve a fee, however given that this option has been suggested by residents I think appetite is there.
We discussed the difficulty residents are having with parking and a number of options for a parking plan.
This is still at a very early stage and it goes without saying that allot of work, approval from the school and resident interest will be required before this is considered viable, however the meeting was certainly positive and productive.