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newton rigg, walking and penrith new squares

Today, Tuesday January 17th, I went with the Conservative Party group of Penrith and the Border to announce our support for the Newton Rigg campus and to oppose plans to close the site. Newton Rigg is vital to Cumbria both in terms of the training it provides and because of its broader contribution to the […]

more thoughts on my walk through penrith & the border

  January 1st. I can imagine no better way of beginning the new decade than this: walking past Askerton over a broad snow field, under a full moon. I had ended the old year with a dance at Caldbeck village hall on the 29th . I was beyond Brough on the 30th. and saw in […]

walking makes it through when cars fail

When Monday’s blizzard drove a gritter into a ditch, blocking all vehicle traffic from Penrith to Alston, I was lucky to be on foot, as I managed to do the whole journey from Alston to Castle Carrock. It was extraordinary to come up onto Hartside and see the lights of the police car, shimmering in […]

observations on walking with rory

  So on day one I meet Rory. And on day two I join him on his walk. And we walk as it happens from Morland to Penrith, through the mid grey of a winter morning with hardly a breath of wind and just the touch of a sneeze of rain. For the morning, we […]

orton farmers’ market

On Saturday December 12, I had the opportunity to visit the Orton Farmers’ market on the third day of my two-month walk across the constituency. It was great to meet local farmers and shoppers, and to see the range of high quality food produce from Cumbrian farms. Penrith and the Border is really leading the […]

walk through the constituency

Between 9th December and 23rd December I will be walking through the constituency – this will present a unique opportunity to develop a detailed understanding of Penrith and the Border. More importantly will provide a chance to meet local people and hear views on the problems and challenges facing the community. The schedule for the […]

selection as the conservative candidate

On Sunday 25th October 2009, I was delighted to be selected through an open primary to be the Conservative Party’s candidate for Penrith and The Border. I’m unbelievably happy and honoured to have this opportunity. This selection process and to be chosen as the candidate for such a beautiful constituency has been a life-changing experience […]

Expert: Afghanistan Policy Bound to Fail

First Published as a conversation on National Public Radio Transcript GUY RAZ, host: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I’m Guy Raz. This hour, we’ll check in with the biggest pop star in Italy and get an update on the mass protest movement in Iran. But first, to Afghanistan, where in these first […]

Turn to Tolstoy

First published in The New York Times, March 13, 2007. Politicians have taken to publicizing “reading lists.” President Bush, we were told, last summer was to read a comic historical novel on the first Afghan war and Camus’s “The Stranger.” The Tory members of the British Parliament were issued weighty books on Middle Eastern politics. […]