At Thursday’s local committee, Neighbourhood Police Inspector James Norbury, of Surrey Police, presented an update on community safety in Surrey Heath, including the latest crime statistics.  The trends are generally in the right direction, although theft shows a troubling rise.

In Thursday’s Letters to the Editor in the Daily Telegraph [not online], a reader enquired of the correct formal address to women who have not indicated their marital status in a letter or email.

In today’s letters to the editor they variously suggest,

• Presume the title ‘Mrs’, as a mark of respect. Hmmmm, I don’t think so.
• Use ‘Ms’. Not sure this is quite so fashionable as once it was.
• Reply with first name, and apologise for informality. The best course of action.
• Try using Madam. Best not go there, eh.

It’s an issue that’s concerned me, more than once. The Office of National Statistics states that in 2006 only 50% of women in the country were married. And so, if no marital status is provided I use the first name, e.g, ‘Dear Mary’. Certain to be right half of the time.

I still use the male ‘Esquire’, abbreviated to ‘Esq’ after a name, e.g Tom Jones Esq, though now only when sending birthday cards and the like to my brother.

There’s much more to Surrey Heath than Lightwater, although that wouldn’t have been the impression gained by listening to last night’s Surrey County Council local committee for Surrey Heath.

I managed to get in first during the public question and answer session, and presented my report on car parking in Lightwater. Also, catching the chairman’s eye, I got in another question about land ownership on a small piece of land in Riverside Avenue, where a broken branch of a large willow tree is hanging dangerously close to a footpath and the Lightwater Stream. That was my lot.

Two items, both in Lightwater, the deletion of a public footpath across land in High View Road, and making High View Road a public highway open to all traffic, consumed a lot of the committee’s time. The former was turned down and the second item was deferred.

The committee discussed some changes to its protocols to allow for greater public engagement, including a longer time for informal questions. Some members said that sometimes there were occasionally few questions from the public, so a flexible committee start time was preferred – though that would never be the case if Cllr Tim Dodds was there. Oh, how they chuckled to themselves – me smiling demurely.

Having my head buried in report writing over the past few days has meant little time to observe political comings and goings.

I did, however, catch Prime Ministers’ Questions, during a rest break and cup of tea. Hoping for some humour from Hague, which didn’t come. Harriet Harman performed well, which makes me think that Alan Johnson isn’t the shoe-in as the next Labour leader that everyone thinks. Anyway that’s a whole other story.

The big news for me is a splendid new development from Guido Fawkes’ blog, where he’s begun using Mindtracker to gauge audience response to the exchanges at PMQ’s. The following day, Guido published the analysis of the Mindtracker exercise.

Wonderfully illuminating stuff. Gaining insight into public opinion is always useful. Having your own opinions confirmed is also just as pleasing. Good work from Paul Staines, aka Guido Fawkes.

Picked up a copy of  The MJ, the management journal for local authorities being sent to me for a trial period, and am surprised by the front page.

No, it’s not the pay restraint that grabbed my attention, much needed though that is, but the first lines of the article,

“Chief executive’s union ALACE has backed down on a 3% pay rise amid the financial crisis, ….”

Local government chief executives have a union, cripes, what on earth for?

I thought chief executives are supposed to be drivers of transformational change, leaders and innovators. I’m sure you know the sort of person you’d be expecting to lead Councils. How depressing that some of them think they need a union to argue their case. I thought that’s one of the key skills for which they were selected for the job. 

Read the ALACE home page and be profoundly depressed.

Phew, all 47 pages printed out in neat piles waiting for binding. They’re of my report on car parking in Lightwater village centre, seeking improved car parking provision and an enhanced street scene.

I’ve just spoken to the chairman of the committee to reserve a slot in the public discussion that takes place at the beginning of the meeting. Ah, the pleasure to come in handing over copies of the report.

First part of job done – making the case. Now the hard part – obtaining support and securing priority action. Wish me luck.

Blogging will be light for the next few days as I’m writing my final report on the need for improved car parking provision in Lightwater village centre. I intend to present the report to the Surrey County Council local committee for Surrey Heath, which is meeting this Thursday evening.

The Conservatives look as though they’ll be tough on Quango’s and it’s overpaid quangocracy. About time. You’ve only to do a little bit of digging into these organisations to be filled with horror at their size, bloated pay rates, and self importance. Of those that are retained, their functions need to be taken back into civil service control, with the resulting benefit of democratic oversight.

Here’s part of what David Cameron said about controlling quango’s to the BBC today on the subject,

“Too many state actions, services and decisions are carried out by people who cannot be voted out by the public, by organisations that feel no pressure to answer for what happens, in a way that is completely unaccountable.”

“But in too many cases these organisations have got bigger and bigger. They spend about £64bn a year, they start having their own communications departments, their own press officers; they start making policy rather than just delivering policy – and their bosses are paid vast amounts of money.”

This is good management of our nation, and also good politics. If Cameron can really achieve this, when in government, it will bring about an enormous change in our public life.

I’m becoming more optimistic by the day that Conservatives, when in office, will transform the country. Michael Gove’s truly excellent grasp of the reforms needed in our education system being one aspect for optimism, and this quango quashing agenda is another. Cameron’s Conservatives are building an impressive head of steam.

Lightwater was a busy place on Saturday.

Here’s what visitors could see in the village centre: Budgens Food in the Square including the Lightwater Business Association’s tombola, Hammond School choir, and the Terri Jayne dancers; Surrey Heath’s recycling roadshow; and Surrey Heath’s Mayor attending Lightwater Working Men’s Club Help for Heroes event. Here’s my picture montage of the events:

No, not us. I’m helping my brother move home today. So, light blogging to follow.

Oh, don’t forget, if you’ve any questions on the new ‘wheelie bin’ recycling system, council officers will be at Food in the Square in Lightwater on Saturday with samples of all the bins, and, hopefully, answers to your questions.