Belated Happy St David's Day!

Firstly, a belated Happy Saint David's day for all of my Welsh friends, family and readers. The daffs weren't out yet, but at least it wasn't raining. It was good to see the Welsh Dragon flying high above the Civic on Friday as well. A long standing joke amongst my friends was that I wrote a flag policy during my time at Newham Council. Actually I think its important for community co-hesion and to be honest, I do like a good flag!

Good use of flags.

It's not been just about flags this week:

Itchen toll bridge went fully automated for the first time in the lifespan of the structure. There was a lot of scare mongering. There was a lot of media pressure. On the day itself there were some delays as people struggled to remember that today was the day. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. Ensuring this bridge functions effectively moving forward and that we can save £100,000 in it's running each and every year is vital.


Launched the new green waste service. It's now up to you if you want a service from your door to collect your twigs, branches and grass cuttings. Yes it is now a paid service, but it will be collected and the bags won't rot. If you want an early bird discount get along to www.southampton.gov.uk/garden . This is another saving which your council is making due to the budget cuts. The decision which I took saves over half a million pounds a year. I believe that it will be a better service than was offered previously.

Other activites this week have included media interviews for Jack FM, the BBC and the Daily Echo; Discussing how we might improve the council's website; Plans for energy generation projects across the city; Updates on our major roadworks across the city; Set out a clear direction for how I want the Environment & Transport Portfolio to move forward with its electronic communications.

Signing off now as I have a daughter to read some books too, before heading out to a constituent visit with Councillor Furnell. And we should get some leafleting done before starting the days chores properly. Roll on monday for a rest!

Cael wythnos dda. Cymerwch ofal.