Open letter to Henley constituents
Boris has posted an open farewell and thank-you to his constituents in the Henley Standard. The full text is now repeated here (click on the following line):
Boris still here!
Despite his massive London commitments, Boris is still (somehow) fitting in his constituency work. See this week’s Henley Standard where he is reported at two quite different Watlington events: one reopening the Watlington Memorial Club and the other welcoming the new M40 Watlington-London bus route that should ease the daily commute for many.
Rural post offices
Checkendon Post Office and shop is, as reported, safe for the next few years but elsewhere in the constituency the fight continues. Boris joined Danny Goffey, the drummer of Supergrass, to support the post office at Stanton St John and, at Crowmarsh, he told a crowd of about 200 protesters that they need their Post Office and “I will do everything I can to help you keep it”. The Post Office consultation period ends on March 17th so do send Boris (or the Post Office) comments and ideas soon if you are in the affected areas.
Protecting the Green Belt
ThamesNews.net has a report on the clear letter of support that Boris recently sent to Parish Councils in his constituency affected by the Government proposal to expand Oxford and build on Green Belt land. Boris is pursuing this matter within Westminster, calling for the protection of the Green Belt to be maintained and for an end to the delay in making a decision that is affecting so many.
Supporting the village shop – update
This afternoon, Boris stopped in Checkendon, in his Henley constituency, to inaugurate the combined village shop and Post Office which was taken over by Bal Budesha in 2007. Despite the biting wind and the hour of the day, over 70 local people of all ages turned out for the occasion. After cutting the inaugural ribbon and viewing the wide range of local, organic and staple, everyday produce in the shop that, like so many others around the country, also fulfils functions as the surgery transport waiting room, newsagent, information centre and more besides.
Some of the children presented Boris with some excellent ‘Save our Post Office’ posters for his office and Boris selected Isobel Willis’s well-written defence of the shop as the one to read to the assembled crowd. Boris then gave a short speech recognising the vital role of post offices and shops in communities such as this.
Jane Barker of the Oxfordshire Rural Community Council presented Bal with its Best Independent Retailer award before Boris moved on to a meeting with various local officials.
February 07, 2007 Update
Much to the delight of all, the post office and shop has been reprieved. Thank you, Boris, for your support.
boris-johnson.com is back online!
This is an open thread for anyone wishing to leave messages of support, but we ask you to consider the circumstances under which the site was removed before commenting; Boris was an innocent bystander in this affair, and we’d like to keep it that way until he sees fit to intervene beyond this statement:
“This is London, not Uzbekistan. It is unbelievable that a website can be wiped out on the say-so of some tycoon. We live in a world where internet communication is increasingly vital, and this is a serious erosion of free speech.”
The strongest level of comment moderation has been enabled (all comments must be read and approved prior to publication), but we hope to soften this line, at least to the point of immediate publication for trusted commenters, within a few days.
Thank you.
Tim Ireland
