Well, the three of us having greatly enjoyed a pleasant, if rather random bit of time off with "Constituency Week" last week, it's back to the coalface today! Last week basically involved the house rising for a week so MPs can (in theory) spend a bit more than the customary long weekend in their constituency and the many issues it involves. Damian returned to Ashford a week ago last Thursday and I headed home for a few days for a bit of R&R.
Dom and I particularly enjoyed our jaunt over to Berlin - definitely the home of the best kebabs in the world - so much so that I even spotted a few sober people eating them! I explored a fair bit of the city's communist past, with many an example of soviet-era high rise housing and office blocks, complemented by some particularly chilly communist weather. In fact, great though the city was next time I book a holiday I think I'm going to try and head somewhere just a touch warmer! But particularly nice to be in a city that is very clean, doesnt seem too busy or congested, and where a 45 min train journey from the airport costs 2 euros (compared to £25 for in the UK on the Stansted Express)!
Coming up in this stretch of half term we have a visit of the two Brussels interns, Adrian and Rhiannon, to the UK, where we shall be hosting them in Westminster, and the trip will involve visits to the Foreign Office and the Cabinet Office - coming up in early March. And hot on the heels of these events are the Lib Dem and Tory Spring Conferences - which both Dom and I shall be attending. Both have a northern theme, perhaps in solidarity with the poor plight of Northern Rock (nationalised today by the Chancellor) - the Lib Dems will be partying in Liverpool, and the Tories hit Newcastle-Gateshead, the latter an interesting choice given the scarecity of Tories in that area. We hope all this will change soon though...
Will
Monday, 18 February 2008
Tuesday, 5 February 2008
February at last
It is certainly with a great deal of joy that I now walk to work in noticeably more clement weather, and a fair bit of sunshine as well. Indeed, it does appear that after the bleak January, Spring is truly bouncing onto the scene this month!
The business of parliament is slowing a little at the moment, as MPs prepare for "constituency week" which begins when the house rises on Thursday. For Dom, John and myself, this means a very welcome breather! Im heading home for a few days, which will be great to chill out, catch up with some old friends, and see my dogs again. Plenty of walks out in the fresh air of rural Dorset required methinks - im afraid I dont believe the London version of "fresh air" is up to much!
Dom and I are then heading off to Berlin for a few days, and John is jetsetting through the brand new St Pancras Eurostar terminal for a break in the city of lurve, gay Paree.
I am very keen to see the new terminal actually, and must confess that its relaunch has forced a bit of the closet anorak out in me - Damian went to the grand opening a few months ago, and i am very keen to check out the building restored to its Victorian splendour. Apparently, the inspiration for the shopping concourse is inspired by features of New York's Grand Central Terminal, which i have visited, and is staggering in its scale and grandeur - like Grand Central, St Pancras will soon be boasting a Farmer's Market!
Before I sign off for my half term break, I feel that the Newman House 1st XI Footie Squad deserve a mention on their glorious first victory on Sunday afternoon, featuring the CPI's very own Clare Mary Groom and Dom Berner, who acquitted themselves very well Im told! I shall leave the post-match analysis for another day... im certainly no Alan Hansen.
Will
The business of parliament is slowing a little at the moment, as MPs prepare for "constituency week" which begins when the house rises on Thursday. For Dom, John and myself, this means a very welcome breather! Im heading home for a few days, which will be great to chill out, catch up with some old friends, and see my dogs again. Plenty of walks out in the fresh air of rural Dorset required methinks - im afraid I dont believe the London version of "fresh air" is up to much!
Dom and I are then heading off to Berlin for a few days, and John is jetsetting through the brand new St Pancras Eurostar terminal for a break in the city of lurve, gay Paree.
I am very keen to see the new terminal actually, and must confess that its relaunch has forced a bit of the closet anorak out in me - Damian went to the grand opening a few months ago, and i am very keen to check out the building restored to its Victorian splendour. Apparently, the inspiration for the shopping concourse is inspired by features of New York's Grand Central Terminal, which i have visited, and is staggering in its scale and grandeur - like Grand Central, St Pancras will soon be boasting a Farmer's Market!
Before I sign off for my half term break, I feel that the Newman House 1st XI Footie Squad deserve a mention on their glorious first victory on Sunday afternoon, featuring the CPI's very own Clare Mary Groom and Dom Berner, who acquitted themselves very well Im told! I shall leave the post-match analysis for another day... im certainly no Alan Hansen.
Will
Tuesday, 29 January 2008
Casework madness
As we near the end of a rather challenging January, us interns are starting to look forward to the sunnier, more cheerful climes of springtime. The half term parliamentary recess is just over a week away now, so we're certainly looking forward to a bit of a break from the challenges of the internship - I am particularly chuffed at the moment on a couple of counts. One is my ability to get a bit of a bargain train ticket home to Weymouth for the end of next week - making me a saving of over £11 - which will certainly come in handy for the months ahead!
The second is an email I received from a constituent yesterday thanking me personally for all the help I had given her in resolving a very longstanding dispute with the Tax Credit Office. I shalnt bore you all with the details of the casework, but suffice it to say that MPs are often approached by people who have run into severe difficulties and delays with various government agencies, whose vastly complicated and enlarged bureaucratic systems mean that many cases - eg chasing up maintenance payments through the CSA or obtaining benefits from HMRC - are simply shunted from one office to another without resolution, or are simply lost somewhere in the system. Needless to say these delays are usually very frustrating for those affected, and can lead in many cases to acute distress, especially for those living on or close to the poverty line - £40 or so a week really can be the difference between affording school uniform, decent food, and furnishings for one's home.
This "casework" MPs or their staff undertake can also be very frustrating as it usually takes a while to get the case prioritised - it requires a lot of patience, attention to detail, and a determination to keep the pressure on to see the case resolved. But eventually, after many phonecalls, emails and plenty of delays, these cases can be cracked, and receiving the thanks from those you have helped really does give an immense feeling of satisfaction and achievement.
Team Intern is off to Brixton Prison on Friday, the oldest gaol in the country, and currently serving as a remand prison for the area. Let's hope none of us are detained at Her Majesty's Pleasure... more details to follow.
Will
The second is an email I received from a constituent yesterday thanking me personally for all the help I had given her in resolving a very longstanding dispute with the Tax Credit Office. I shalnt bore you all with the details of the casework, but suffice it to say that MPs are often approached by people who have run into severe difficulties and delays with various government agencies, whose vastly complicated and enlarged bureaucratic systems mean that many cases - eg chasing up maintenance payments through the CSA or obtaining benefits from HMRC - are simply shunted from one office to another without resolution, or are simply lost somewhere in the system. Needless to say these delays are usually very frustrating for those affected, and can lead in many cases to acute distress, especially for those living on or close to the poverty line - £40 or so a week really can be the difference between affording school uniform, decent food, and furnishings for one's home.
This "casework" MPs or their staff undertake can also be very frustrating as it usually takes a while to get the case prioritised - it requires a lot of patience, attention to detail, and a determination to keep the pressure on to see the case resolved. But eventually, after many phonecalls, emails and plenty of delays, these cases can be cracked, and receiving the thanks from those you have helped really does give an immense feeling of satisfaction and achievement.
Team Intern is off to Brixton Prison on Friday, the oldest gaol in the country, and currently serving as a remand prison for the area. Let's hope none of us are detained at Her Majesty's Pleasure... more details to follow.
Will
Tuesday, 22 January 2008
Return of the bar
Another mid-week post from me - live inside the corridors of power (well, at the time of writing anyway!) A fair bit of news from the interns coming up...
I appear to be on the road to recovery, after a protracted length of abstinence from alcohol, which shows that the powers of detox are obviously something to be reccommended. Although not for too long.
Dom has some very exciting news - he played in his debut match this morning for the Parliamentary 1st 11 football team, joining IDS and the lads in a 5-1 thrashing of the opposition! Sounds very much like a session at PMQ's these days. His boss, John Pugh, was so impressed with his intern's achievement, that he offered to videotape the match - so watch this space for CPI Match of the Day!
A few of us are hoping to visit John's home in the rural bliss of Buckinghamshire this weekend, which will be a welcome break from the city. I am also very much looking forward to meeting the goats...
And finally, all the interns are very pleased indeed to see the return of the Cardinal's Arms to fully operational status - Dom and Clare are particularly enjoying contributing to the team, and Im sure the bar will act as a real social magnet within the house.
Will
I appear to be on the road to recovery, after a protracted length of abstinence from alcohol, which shows that the powers of detox are obviously something to be reccommended. Although not for too long.
Dom has some very exciting news - he played in his debut match this morning for the Parliamentary 1st 11 football team, joining IDS and the lads in a 5-1 thrashing of the opposition! Sounds very much like a session at PMQ's these days. His boss, John Pugh, was so impressed with his intern's achievement, that he offered to videotape the match - so watch this space for CPI Match of the Day!
A few of us are hoping to visit John's home in the rural bliss of Buckinghamshire this weekend, which will be a welcome break from the city. I am also very much looking forward to meeting the goats...
And finally, all the interns are very pleased indeed to see the return of the Cardinal's Arms to fully operational status - Dom and Clare are particularly enjoying contributing to the team, and Im sure the bar will act as a real social magnet within the house.
Will
Wednesday, 16 January 2008
January blues
A post from a distinctly grotty-feeling and rough-sounding Will here. Have been labouring for two weeks under what feels like the worst bout of man-flu I have ever experienced... nasty cold and headache, but alas not nasty enough to keep me from work! I must confess to only having come across this concept of ailment in the last year or so, and was initially sceptical, but I can honestly say it's as bad as it sounds - must have something to do with my age.
Anyhow, we've all settled back into the swing of things now, returning to work and play with renewed vigour after our break. Seems like I havent been away though - have been ploughing through a fair bit of casework recently, learning in depth all the various problems of the Child Support Agency! It is time consuming, but actually very inspiring to take on cases of people who are at their wit's end, and have turned to their MP as their last hope of resolving some particularly pressing and unpleasant issues. It doesnt happen often, but it is also a fantastic feeling to receive a letter from a constituent thanking us for our time and dedication to resolving their problems. Go interns!
The parliamentary term is a rather odd one this term - we have a half term recess in about a month's time, which makes for a lovely antidote to any new year blues one may be feeling (mainly due to the austere regime of cold showers we've been experiencing recently), and some of the interns are planning a little jaunt abroad for a few days to make the most of the break. And we're all looking forward to future trips to Brussels and Rome in the coming months! Quite the jet-setters aren't we!?!
Anyhow, we've all settled back into the swing of things now, returning to work and play with renewed vigour after our break. Seems like I havent been away though - have been ploughing through a fair bit of casework recently, learning in depth all the various problems of the Child Support Agency! It is time consuming, but actually very inspiring to take on cases of people who are at their wit's end, and have turned to their MP as their last hope of resolving some particularly pressing and unpleasant issues. It doesnt happen often, but it is also a fantastic feeling to receive a letter from a constituent thanking us for our time and dedication to resolving their problems. Go interns!
The parliamentary term is a rather odd one this term - we have a half term recess in about a month's time, which makes for a lovely antidote to any new year blues one may be feeling (mainly due to the austere regime of cold showers we've been experiencing recently), and some of the interns are planning a little jaunt abroad for a few days to make the most of the break. And we're all looking forward to future trips to Brussels and Rome in the coming months! Quite the jet-setters aren't we!?!
Monday, 7 January 2008
2008 begins!
First post of the new year - all four of us have returned to Newman House fully refreshed after a Christmas break and a fair bit of rest, relaxation and perhaps a little too much over-indulgence... well, on my part at least!
Here we go for another parliamentary session - the house returned today and we're back into the thick of it. Dom's MP John Pugh was moved the to the treasury team by new Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg today, from the health team, which means Dom has a fair bit of reading to do to familiarise himself with the new brief!
Looking forward to a trip to the Westminster Children's Society on Friday - our fully rounded experience continues!
Great to be back in Newman House - lots of friendly faces to catch up with, and we're all looking forward to a big, beginning of term night out on Friday hopefully!
More from me soon...
Will
Here we go for another parliamentary session - the house returned today and we're back into the thick of it. Dom's MP John Pugh was moved the to the treasury team by new Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg today, from the health team, which means Dom has a fair bit of reading to do to familiarise himself with the new brief!
Looking forward to a trip to the Westminster Children's Society on Friday - our fully rounded experience continues!
Great to be back in Newman House - lots of friendly faces to catch up with, and we're all looking forward to a big, beginning of term night out on Friday hopefully!
More from me soon...
Will
Monday, 17 December 2007
Just another quick post from me - now in our final week, us interns are finding the pace slowing down a bit... with the exception of poor old Clare, who went into hospital today for an operation on her hand - hopefully by the time this post is published she will be well on the way to recovery!! (Just dont ask her how it happened...)
I had my team Christmas lunch today with colleagues, in the swanky "Adjournment" restaurant, and Damian spoilt us with a bottle of champagne! Christmas cards exchanged, we all feel very festive!! The work however, continues apace - lots of letters still to deal with, seemingly as the government lurches from one crisis to another!
All the interns are hoping to get together for a dinner sometime this week to have a good opportunity to come together and review the term, hopefully Clare will be back on her feet by then!
I had my team Christmas lunch today with colleagues, in the swanky "Adjournment" restaurant, and Damian spoilt us with a bottle of champagne! Christmas cards exchanged, we all feel very festive!! The work however, continues apace - lots of letters still to deal with, seemingly as the government lurches from one crisis to another!
All the interns are hoping to get together for a dinner sometime this week to have a good opportunity to come together and review the term, hopefully Clare will be back on her feet by then!
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