Hedley Village phone and internet meeting with BT

The village of Hedley is idyllic, has one of the finest gastropubs in the country, and is full of people of character and resourcefullness. Yet they continue to be denied any proper phone and internet connection - something that has been going on for years. I had a fairly stormy meeting with BT yesterday after their key representative came to the House of Commons.
The village’s situation is unacceptable and dangerous, especially in cases of emergency. I have met with locals, eaten in the pub, and spoken to the Parish Council representatives. We have also surveyed the village. They have provided a litany of dozens of complaints, with broadband being almost non-existent, and constant disruptions to phone lines. All of these have been given to BT.
BT Openreach needs to invest in upgrading the old telephone cables, something that I know their own engineers want to see.

The Journal today gave a full report of the story: http://www.thejournal.co.uk/news/north-east-news/hexham-mp-demands-action-villages-6326045

The Journal wrote: "One of those complainants is Helen Greer, who runs the village’s award-winning gastropub The Feathers Inn, recently named among the top 20 in the UK.
She says poor connection has had a huge negative impact on her business.
“Our business relies on us taking reservations over the phone,” she said. “But we often can’t take bookings because we can’t hear people. Our broadband connection is slower than dial-up so relying on internet bookings is no better. Earlier this year we had no phone connection for up to six weeks, which was unbelievable. We have people from far and wide wanting to visit us as we’ve won many awards for the quality of our food, but what’s the point if they can’t get in touch?

“There’s a BT Openreach van in the village every week patching up a problem somewhere but it would be money better invested if they just replaced the old telephone cables.
I’m hugely grateful to Guy Opperman for tackling this problem head-on and taking it to the House of Commons. I just hope he can help us get this finally sorted."

For my part, I will update as the campaign continues, but I did ask their representative, why anyone would stay with BT given its woeful service, in the absence of improvements. In the meantime I cannot recommend the Feathers Inn more highly.

Westminster this week

The Crime, Anti Social Behaviour and Policing Bill is up for debate for 2 days on Monday & Tuesday in the Commons. I will be helping in this Bill, but have a variety of key meetings as well:
- I am the chair of the All Party Group for Air Ambulances, and we have a meeting this Tuesday,
- I also have key constituency calls to action by phone, notably with Northumbria Police officers on a couple of ongoing cases in Hexham and Haltwhistle,
- I hope to be meeting key representatives of BT on Wednesday, where I will be raising local phone failures we have suffered in parts of Tynedale, particularly Hedley, where the campaign goes on for a better service.
- I have question 9 on fuel poverty and credit unions at 11.30 in the Commons on Wednesday and will be hoping to catch the Speakers eye at PMQs
- there are also a number of other smaller debates I will keep an eye on

Thursday I really hope to be slipped to come north, albeit the House is still sitting, where I have a number of appointments and meetings on Thursday, Friday and all day Saturday. The EGGER academy opening is the key event on Friday. The evening diary is yet to be confirmed but I know I have appointments / events on Thursday and Friday. With a little bit of luck I might make the pub quiz in one of my local pubs down the road on Friday night.

Like Railways, trains, engineering, endeavour, community spirit? Wylam was the place this Saturday.

Yesterday was train central in Wylam. Dwarfed by the mighty Puffing Billy train we all enjoyed both the celebration of the first steam railway engine and so much more: hundreds visited the wonderful railway Museum in Wylam, saw the incredible Elaine Milbourne Dancers, watched the first perfomance of the new silent movie "Just in Time", and witnessed the modern day version of a Waggonway race as the Heddon and Wylam Brownies and Guides fought it out - this time using converted shopping trolleys.
It was an amazing day and full credit to all the organisers, activists, Beamish Museum, supporters, local engineers and the sponsors: special praise to Tom Martin and the Wylam Parish Council, without whom this would not have happened.
If you missed it do not despair: take a drive to Wylam and park your car by the river and walk the waggonway down to George Stephensons cottage. As you do time passes and you are back in tough days, and tough times, where the industrial revolution was formed. William Hedley was the man behind the Puffing Billy [his ancestors were there yesterday!] and his need to haul coal from Wylam Coliery to Lemington Staithes; but the story is linked by the Waggonway that takes you barely a half mile down to the one room in a small cottage where George Stephenson grew up. It is 12 foot by 12. His father, mother and 3 siblings lived there, on the site of the Wylam Waggonway. The hardship and struggle are palpable and humbling. In those days coal was king and life expectancy short. The Puffing Billy train was the transformative engineering breakthrough of its time but Stephenson took the dream and the change a further step. In those days the North East drove the economy of Britain and the coalfields of Wylam and the surrounding area drove that change.
Yesterday Stephensons home was packed with tourists, an incredible local guitar based band played in the grounds and visitors flocked eager to see where so much started. It is a National Trust site and well worth the visit: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/george-stephensons-birthplace/
The all day celebration of the Puffing Billy train was a testimony to Hedley, and the effort by so many local people. But the legacy lives on Wylam. If you like trains, railways, engineering and a real sense of community this is the pace to visit. It would not be this blog if I did not mention a cracking local pub to visit at the end of your journey and the Boathouse at Wylam will not disappoint - http://www.boathousewylam.info/
It has won dozens of awards and is a good place to consider what made this country great; and so much starts in Wylam.