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The Prosser Perspective.... a weekly column from Dover and Deal MP Gwyn Prosser

18 September 2008

On Friday night I’ll be heading north to attend the Labour Party Conference in Manchester but there’s lots to do before then.

If you believe everything you read in the Sunday papers you could be forgiven for believing that all of the Parliamentary Labour Party are spending all of their time plotting and scheming – nothing could be further from the truth. Most of us are far too busy working away in our constituencies.

The 12 or so Members of Parliament who have been calling for a “debate” on the Leadership don’t represent the views of the other 348 MPs who make up the PLP and they certainly don’t talk for the members of my local Labour Party in Dover and Deal. I hesitate to dub the plotters as the ‘dirty dozen’ but they are doing damage to my Party beyond their numbers.

Their indiscipline is particularly objectionable because many of them have served in the Government’s Whip’s Office and when MPs like me refused to vote for the Iraq War, they were the people who dared preach loyalty to us.

I spent last Saturday, like most Saturdays knocking on doors with my Labour Team and asking people what problems they wanted help with and what issues they wanted to discuss and not a single person I talked to mentioned the Labour Party Leadership or Gordon Brown’s performance.

My Constituency Office has received a fair smattering of calls about the price of fuel and the credit crunch but the only person who rang in about the Leadership debate was a constituent who wanted my assurance that I was “not one of the back stabbers”. Those were his words not mine and, yes, I was able to reassure him.

This week, before getting away to Conference I’m meeting with the Primary Care Trust to hear what progress they’re making on Dover’s new hospital, visiting some local schools to discuss their successes and getting together with local councillors to do some campaign planning.

Last week, shop stewards representing the employees of the Port of Dover whose jobs are up for grabs, took their fight to the TUC Conference and this week I’m taking their union delegation, led by Garry Puntin to meet the Ports Minister so we can tell him why everyone opposes DHB’s plans to hive off their loyal workforce.

Tomorrow morning I’ve got a busy, fully-booked Advice Surgery in Deal followed by a couple of house calls, a briefing from the Area Police Commander and last, but by no means least – a meeting with Kathy, who edits our Dover Express.

It’s going to be a curious conference if all our proceedings are overshadowed by the media’s obsession with plots and personalities. For my part, I will be using the week to sound out Ministers about all the pressing issues which affect my Dover and Deal Constituency.

I’ve got far more good news stories to tell than bad, but either way I’ll be far too busy to indulge in the dirty dozen’s non productive navel gazing exercises.