The Rt Hon Malcolm Bruce MP

Mid-November Column

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Website a surprise finalist

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I was pleasantly surprised to find my website was a finalist among the British Computer Society's awards for MPs websites. It was praised for its accessibility. I was runner up in the end to Health Secretary, Alan Johnson and the only Scots MP in the finals.

I don't claim credit for myself (and nor did Alan Johnson) but for the agency which designed it and my staff, specifically Alex in my House of Commons Office who keeps it up to date.

Websites are growing in importance but to be useful they have to be kept up to date. Certainly new news items and pictures are put on every week - sometimes several times. People can therefore find out what their MP is doing and get in touch.

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Always attending Remembrance Sunday

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I have always made a point of attending a Remembrance Sunday commemoration somewhere in the constituency.

This year I joined with Inverurie, taking part in the march from the British Legion to St Andrews Church for a well attended service, then onto the war memorial in the square where I was pleased to lay a wreath.

Over the past year I have been contacted by large numbers of service veterans applying for their veterans' badge and expressing an interest in being put in touch with others who have had similar experiences.

The fact that our armed forces are engaged in active service in various parts of the world but especially in Iraq and Afghanistan gives added currency to the commemoration services each year.

Whatever your view of the actions in which we are engaged I believe it is right that we should show respect for those who put their lives at risk to fulfil the obligations laid on them by Government. I am always very willing to do so.

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Adapting to climate change must for developing countries

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As Vice Chair of Globe UK I too part in a delegation to meet DFID Minister, responsible for development policies addressing climate change, Gareth Thomas.

The Department has been criticised for not doing enough to help developing countries adapt to the reality of climate change. The Minister assured us this was now changing.

The staff involved in developing climate change strategies has increased form 3 to 20 and specific measures to tackle climate change should start featuring in country programmes.

I am still surprised to come across people who insist that climate change is not happening or if it is it is part of a cycle and nothing to with the human activities or requiring any changes in behaviour.

Of course, I accept that the changes are unpredictable and reducing our emissions may not now reverse what is happening but it seems clear to me that we have both to reduce the emissions we make by greater efficiency, changing technology and different behaviour.

We also need to help developing countries who face the biggest threats to meet them. This could be by funding flood defences, water storage and irrigation, combating diseases aggravated by climate change and finding alternative livelihoods.

If the Minister is right we should start to see some more specific measures in the next few years.

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Local health priorities changing

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Whenever there is a suggestion that a specialist medical provision in Aberdeen might be lost to hospitals in the central belt there is always heated debate. So there is understandable nervousness about the possible outcome of the current strategic review.

There is intense rivalry between Edinburgh and Glasgow that can see Aberdeen squeezed out.

We need to ensure that we can keep a range of specialist services in the north of Scotland even if that is provided by a visiting team.

It cannot be right that 4 million people in the central belt have the choice of two specialist units within an hour's journey and people in the North have no local provision.

Nevertheless we also need to ensure that the distribution of GPs and local clinics and community beds in our own area take account of changing patterns of population.

As more people move out of the city centre to suburbs or commuter towns around Aberdeen they naturally expect more of their day to day health needs to be met locally.

Plans for a new health centre for Inverurie have been knocked back but clearly will return as new provision is needed. Not surprisingly however, as Kintore grows people there would like to see more health services delivered in their community.

In all our country towns people want more local provision. Much of this makes sense as it releases space at Foresterhill for wholly acute services but providing more services locally presents organisational challenges which will stretch our health authorities.

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Transport projects need long term pressure

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My experience of local transport projects is that constant pressure is required and they always take a lot longer than anyone anticipates.

The completion of the dual carriageway between Ellon and Aberdeen at Tipperty now seems to be on track but still has a few hurdles to cross.

The Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route which is so important to people and businesses to the north and west of the city has slipped a year under the new administration and faces sustained opposition from a vocal well organised minority.

Its delivery will require political leadership and should also be run in parallel with public transport improvements which have always been deemed as part of the project.

Obstacles have been put in the way of a third Don crossing in the city and I will be seeking a meeting with the authorities to discuss how they propose to address these.

The Haudagain roundabout is a perennial bottleneck which other developments can only partly mitigate.

Nestrans has sought to provide a co-ordinated vision for the city region's transport needs and has always understood the need to integrate public and private transport developments.

Cars cannot be accommodated indefinitely but nor can we ignore that fact that cars traffic has grown. We need to accommodate where we are while trying to reduce the growth in car traffic in the future.

Do we have the vision and if we do can we find the resources to deliver it?