Not all going swimmingly in Bristol - and we need your help

I was one of those who spent most of their teenage years, and those before, ploughing up and down a swimming pool in my bid to become an Olympic Champion. It never happened. The most I ever achieved was a couple of age group National Finals in 200m and 100m backstroke. ( my feet were always too small, was my excuse).
But I spent many hours at Easton swimming pool at silly o' clock in the morning ( breakfast in the car, drying my hair on the car heater-fan, and I kept a sleeping bag in the corner of my classroom where I'd grab a crafty few minutes of kip if I got into school early enough...) and many evenings at the old red brick Barton Hill Pool ( badly run and managed, and filthy towards latter years - with an array of nasty things spotted drifting along the bottom of the pool where Olympians were training. )
I swum first for Thornbury Swimming Club, then Southwold in Yate, then City of Bristol, with a truly brilliant swimming coach, Eric Henderson (who was APPALLINGLY treated by Bristol City Council in the mid-90s as an archive newspaper search will reveal.)

I have always said that my club swimming experience is one of the things that formed my identity as I was growing up, and has contributed so much to my life,taught me so much and given me so many lasting friends.

That is why I am so outraged and concerned that Bristol City Council is currently forcing clubs who are providing excellent beginners swimming lessons to give them up, in order that the council's private provider, SLM, can have a monopoly over beginners swimming.

I am campaigning with Portway Swimming Club to end this disastrous policy - which is bad for children, communities -and ultimately our Olympic Legacy.

Please sign our national petition
www.keepclubswimming.bristolpetitions.com
and please make sure you also sign the link to Portway's own petition, which is linked-to on the site.

And yes, I couldn't resist getting back in the water with Portway's wonderful young swimmers! Please keep their swimming lessons in-club, for them!

Beer duty escalator scrapped!

Pulling pints with local CAMRA campaigner, Peter Bridle, at the superb 'Inn on the Green' in Horfield. What an array of real ales!

Ok, so I declare an enormous vested interest in the success of our campaign to scrap the beer duty escalator - I love pubs and anyone who knows me will tell you that I also love a (responsible of course) pint of beer.

I've been campaigning for years to support our pubs - both locally, ( the Save the Lamplighters campaign still goes on, with efforts to re-open it again)  - and nationally.  I've banged on about the appalling unfairness of major pub companies like Enterprise Inns and the way they treat their licencees, and have also been campaigning strongly for the beer duty escalator, which sees duty on beer go up by more than inflation each year, scrapped.

I've been working with groups like CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale ) on this, and to be honest, it felt like a bit of a lost cause at times. There hasn't been a reducation in beer tax for decades. However, if I had been sitting on a bench and not squeezed into the steps in the chamber, I would almost have fallen off it as the Chancellor revealed he was scrapping the Beer Duty Escalator, AND taking a penny off a pint at the same time. Furthermore, I even got a bit of a plug for banging on about if for so long.

I've said it before, I 'll say it again, this matters because pubs are at the heart of our communities. They employ huge numbers of people - almost half of them young people;  contribute enormously to our local economy, help support the high street and other outlets at the high-street, and provide a far safer, more sociable way of drinking than 'pre-loading'.  They deserve a level playing field with supermarkets, and deserve our support. There is still much more to do, but scrapping the beer duty escalator that the last goverment introduced definitely warrents a celebratory pint.

for more info : http://charlotteleslie.co.uk/beer-duty-escalator-scrapped/

Kingsweston House - Jewel in Bristol's crown!

One of those constituency visits that really makes you realise how lucky we are to live in Bristol. Every time I go to Kings Weston House I am amazed that, unobtrusively majestic in Bristol's suburbs, is a house of real historic significance. The House and Grounds have thankfully been the focus of Kings Weston Action Group

Now, under new ownership , there is an exciting regeneration and restoration programme planned for one of Bristol's most beautiful buildings. And for anyone looking to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life, or looking for a new place to walk the dog, Kings Weston House grounds are a real escape, with a lovely tea-room / cafe to replenish energies at the end of a good walk!

For more information on how to get involved, contact Kings Weston Action Group, or find them on Facebook.

Back to the Future for Henbury Rail

There have been a few (not many) doubters about the Henbury Loop Line. But although in so many ways we have progressed in recent decades, in some ways, we've gone backwards. So I'm looking on going on a journey to the past to show that the Henbury Loop Line can indeed exist. Why? Because it has before!

There was a time when Henbury Station was alive, buzzing and steaming and taking people from Henbury over to the Severn Beach
Line and beyond.

We're looking for your recollections, old photos, memories (which we can record) about your (or your parents' or grandparents') recollections of the Henbury Loop.

If you have memories or memorabilia to share, or know anyone who does, drop us a line at henburyloop@charlotteleslie.com or write to us at:

Henbury Loop Campaign
184 Henleaze Road
Bristol BS9 4NE

And let's go back to the future! ( ... Can't promise hover boards.)

Merry Christmas and here's to a drier 2013

It's been an amazing, if wet, run up to Christmas. I never tire of eating mince-pies and celebrating across the constituency. To all those Santas whose knees I kindly didn't sit on, and everyone who put together events for the festive season, thank you - and may the New Year bring health and happiness to all.