Last week was the first ever Colleges Week. Colleges play a crucial role in our local communities. In Hartlepool, a relatively small town, it is often forgotten that we have four educational establishments of astonishingly high quality which cater for students over the age of 16 – Hartlepool Sixth Form College, my old place where I obtained my A levels, Hartlepool College of Further Education, English Martyrs Sixth Form and, providing world class art and design, Cleveland College of Art & Design. Any other town of 90,000 inhabitants would give their eye teeth for one high class further education establishment – in our town we have four.

Given that the long-term future of the economy, not only of this town but of the entire country, will be dependent on raising our skills levels, I’m pleased that our colleges are so ambitious and so focused on providing the skills that Hartlepool needs. In the short term, during the tough economic times, colleges I believe are providing a vital role in supporting individuals and businesses.

In the next few years, we will see an exciting new chapter in our education, as Hartlepool Sixth Form College and the College of FE both undertake major new building programmes that will transform their offer and provide a world-class 21st century learning experience for the people of Hartlepool. We have never seen such an intense and ambitious building programme for our colleges ever in the history of the town.

I was also delighted to meet up with Richard McKie as he celebrated success in the World Skills UK Awards. Richard, from Seaton Carew, was part of the team which has won the Northern heat of the UK Manufacturing Team Challenge, I wish him well in the UK Finals.


On Friday evening, I had a great time at the Maritime Experience with the Roaring Mouse Drama Group. Roaring Mouse is a group of people with learning disabilities who have come together to form a theatre company and to put on plays. It seemed fitting that a bunch of actors would have their photos taken as movie stars in a variety of film settings, to produce an entertaining art exhibition and calendar. Working with professional photographer Dave Hudspeth, the group recreated their favourite films and actors in a various poses. So we had Titanic recreated, which seems appropriate given our coastal setting, Brief Encounter recreated at Hartlepool Railway Station, and Rocky in one of Hartlepool’s boxing clubs. I was pretty envious of the James Bond photo shoot, where people seemed to have great fun with a top-of-the-range Aston Martin. I also liked the Godfather pose, given that it is my favourite film.

The images are on display at the Museum of Hartlepool in the style of full size Hollywood movie posters. The calendar is really high quality, and I would urge you to consider buying one for the New Year, which isn’t all that far away.

The project was not only great fun, especially it appears with the Aston Martin, but is also linked with a bigger and more serious project, “Did you get a Life?”, which looks at the ambitions and aspirations of people with learning difficulties in Hartlepool. This project will include a performance by Roaring Mouse early next year. My thanks go to Linda Malcolm and Roaring Mouse for inviting me to the event – I really enjoyed it.


I’d just wish to end on a sad note, regarding the recent loss of Harry Hunter. Harry was a Headlander through and through. My first branch of the Labour Party was St Hilda’s, and Harry helped me a lot in my first years in the Party. He was a kind and decent man, and his death at the age of only 58 has shocked and upset me. I attended his funeral on Friday at St Hilda’s Church, and it seemed the entire Headland and Central Estate was there in force to pay their respects to Harry. He reflected all that was good about the Headland, all that I’m proud of with regards to the men and women of this great part of the town, and I’m afraid the ‘Cos’ will never be the same again. My sympathies go out to his mother Dora, and to his children Paul, Angela and Stacey.

Hartlepool College of Further Education graduate Richard McKie was congratulated this week by Iain Wright MP as the College marks National College Week by celebrating Richard’s success in the prestigious World Skills UK Awards.

Richard 22, who works for the power and process giant AMEC is a member of a three man team alongside colleagues from Wilton and Chester, which has been successful in winning the Northern heat of the UK Manufacturing Team Challenge. They are now through to the national final to be held in Coventry in January, where they will complete a sophisticated renewables energies project. If successful and the team are confident, they will go through to represent the UK next year in the Manufacturing discipline at Worldskills in Calgary Canada competing against teams from Taiwan, Japan, Australia, Finland, Brazil, France, The Netherlands and South Korea.

Richard, who lives in Seaton Carew is excited about the prospect “I am really looking forward to the finals in January, and I am confident our team can do it”, “We have some extensive training before the finals, and I’ve had fantastic support from the College in advanced CNC and CAM work”. Mr Wright congratulated Richard on his success saying “Hartlepool can be proud pf the incredible standard achieved by Richard and his team. Skills have never been more important, Richard is a fine ambassador for the College and the town”.

Supermarkets, corner shops and big food and drink companies this week joined in the campaign. Have a look at nhs.uk/Change4Life for more info.

In Hartlepool there will be Change4Life promotions around healthy food and recipes in supermarkets and activities like walking campaigns or cycling groups.

Starting in January 2009 it will be everywhere – you will see it on television, in magazines, at your local leisure centre, in the supermarket, at school or in your local GP surgery - so look our for it.

Iain Wright MP pays tribute to local campaigners

Local Post Offices received a boost today as the Government awarded the contract for the POCA service to the Post Office. The news will be welcomed by local post offices who rely on the business people picking up their pensions or benefits through the Post Office Card Account brings into branches. Around 12,580 people in Hartlepool have their accounts

Welcoming the news Iain Wright MP thanked local people for campaigning with HIM on the issue:

“This is great news for the post office. I recently met with James Purnell to discuss this issue and I am delighted that the government has listened to what I have been saying on behalf of local people. I would like to thank everyone who has stood up for local post offices and made their voices known on this.”

“With the financial crisis that started with the American banks now being felt here in Britain, people are feeling worried about their finances. Post Offices are often the only providers of banking services in local areas so this vote of confidence in the post office is very welcome

The Labour Government has decided to award a new contract for the continuation of POCA directly to the Post Office. This announcement is good news for the Post Office as the card account is an important source of income and brings customers through the doors of post offices across the country. The National Federation of Sub Post Masters had said that, without POCA 3,000 Post Offices would close.

We announced in December 2006 that there would be a successor to POCA and put that product out to tender. However, in order to support a viable Post Office network the Labour Government has decided to cancel the current procurement exercise.

Labour’s Secretary of State for Work and Pensions James Purnell paid tribute to Iain Wright MP for campaigning on this issue saying:

“I applaud Iain for standing up for people in Hartlepool and HIS local post offices. I know how important post offices are to local communities and this provides real help for these local businesses and their customers in tough times.”

“This is the right decision for Hartlepool.”

It was Remembrance Sunday at the weekend. The sense of pride and honour I have to be able to lay a wreath at the town’s War Memorial is very strong, and something which I take incredibly seriously. This is the one date in the annual calendar where I would simply refuse to do anything else – come hell and high water, I want to honour the men and women from Hartlepool who have lost their lives or who even today are protecting liberty and freedom.

I think it is important that children are made aware of the sacrifices made by men and women of their country. My eldest son Benjamin is nearly 15, and there were lads not much older than he is now who have laid down their lives for their country. With Iraq and Afghanistan in the news, I believe that young people are acutely aware of what Remembrance Sunday means in a way that is not abstract, but seems very real to them. I certainly believe that the observation of the two minutes silence is growing – both on Remembrance Sunday and on the 11th November.

This was the first Remembrance Sunday that my youngest son Billy, who has just turned 4, has attended. He held my hand throughout the ceremony and walked with me up the steps of the Memorial to lay the wreath. I was proud of the fact that, as young as he is, he understood the solemnity of the occasion. He bowed at the Memorial to remember – and I think it is important that you are never too young to start remembering the sacrifices made.

I would like to attend the ceremony on the Headland at some point, something which I haven’t yet done, because the link between that part of the town and the First World War – where the first ever part of the British mainland was bombed in World War One – is very strong. I would imagine that it is a very moving and poignant ceremony.

Hartlepool has a close and historic link with the events of the First and Second World Wars. Not only was there the Bombardment, but the first soldier to be killed on British soil in the First World War was in Hartlepool, as was the first Civil Defence worker that was killed in the Second World War. Hartlepool people sacrificed a lot in those world wars.

The ceremony which takes place on the Saturday morning in the military area within Stranton Cemetery, organised by the Royal Artillery Association, grows in importance with each passing year. This year the rain had been extremely heavy, but during the ceremony the sun began to shine in a brilliant and striking way; the light through the trees close to the graves made the place look both beautiful and peaceful.

This year is the 90th anniversary of the ending of the First World War, and the point from which we started to commemorate the horrors of war. In some respects, the First World War doesn’t seem too long ago. It might still be possible for families to remember friends and loved ones – in my own family, for example, I know of one of my Nana Bertha’s brothers – John – who went down on his ship during a battle in the First World War. John was aged 19.

This weekend I had a look at the old copies of the Northern Daily Mail held at Hartlepool Central Library (by the way, if you need any assistance, I have never known such great customer service as I received from the staff upstairs in the Reference Library. They were great).

Two things struck me as I was looking at the editions from November 1918. First, quite by chance, the week that peace was declared, a ‘thank the guns week’ campaign arrived in West Hartlepool. This was a national campaign where you could fund the war effort and help sponsor a gun. In that week, the last of the War, the people of West Hartlepool provided £1,617,286. That’s £25 from every man, woman and child in the town at that time – an astonishing amount in those days. The sense of collective sacrifice was very strong and I wondered whether this could be achieved in the town again – I rather suspect that it could.

The second thing that was striking was seeing the list of young men who had died in the last days of the War and afterwards, not through a war injury as such, but by influenza. I saw more deaths in the paper from flu than from bullets. This showed the appalling conditions that those men fought in – the sense of constant cold and damp. It wasn’t just the fear of conflict, but the horrific, hellish conditions, which these brave men had to endure. These two things – the collective spirit and the bravery amidst horrific conditions – are enduring and should never be forgotten. We remain eternally humble and grateful.

Regular readers of this column will be aware that one of the things I am really keen to tackle is the problem of rogue landlords in Hartlepool. They cause absolute misery for many people, mostly in the centre of town, through thoughtless letting of their properties to unsuitable tenants who cause anti-social behaviour and misery to the rest of the area. I have heard of cases of landlords making unreasonable charges, such as administrative costs running into hundreds of pounds, when I suspect it might have cost merely a few quid.

I have spoken in Parliament about the issue of private sector landlords. I think it is an important issue in Hartlepool, and was pleased to get responsibility for the private rented sector as part of my Ministerial duties. We in the Department for Communities and Local Government commissioned an independent review of the private rented sector from Julie Rugg and David Rhodes at the Centre of Housing Policy at York University. Julie and David have just published the report, and I was able to travel to York University to accept the report.

I was to stress that I think the private rented sector is a good thing, and vital for housing in our town. I actually want to see the private rented sector grow, so that it can help with addressing some of the housing shortages, not only in Hartlepool but across the country. I want to encourage good landlords, whilst driving out bad, unprofessional and uncaring landlords.

The report from Julie and David provides a good strong base to help us achieve that. Its major recommendation, one that I will be looking at closely, is the licensing system for landlords and the mandatory regulation for letting agencies. This would be designed to increase protection for both vulnerable tenants and good landlords.

At the launch of the report last week, Julie said that she saw this system as working very similar to a driving license. So, in the same way that you require a driving license in order to drive, and you incur points when you do something wrong, landlords would require a license in order to rent out their properties and be eligible for tax breaks. If they were seen to breach set conditions, such as causing anti-social behaviour, they would be penalised through a points system which might ultimately debar them from being a landlord.

I would be interested to hear what people think about this idea. I think it is easily understood and has a certain amount of merit. I will have to work through possible consequences and to see whether or not it is workable, and I am interested in your input.

Other recommendations from the report include tax changes to encourage good landlords to grow their businesses, including changes to stamp duty to encourage them to buy more properties. The report also looks at way for the private rented sector to be more helpful towards households on lower incomes, including providing more support for landlords who are prepared to house more vulnerable people.

It is an important and thoughtful report that pushes the debate along. I am keen to see good landlords prosper in Hartlepool. I also want to see the end of unprofessional landlords. I’ll be reflecting the contents of the report over the next few weeks to see how best this can be achieved. I’d certainly be interested in your views.

These are difficult economic times. It is almost impossible to switch on the television or read a newspaper without hearing about worsening financial conditions. Banks have been in danger of collapse – in some cases have collapsed – and stock markets around the world seem to lurch from one crisis to another. At the time of writing this, the Japanese stock market had fallen to its lowest level since 1982. It is estimated that an astonishing £1.8 trillion – not million, not even billion, but trillion – have been wiped off the value of financial firms. I don’t even know how many zeroes that is. These are truly astronomical figures, to reflect the unusual times. The Prime Minister said in the House of Commons last week that the financial markets face their most turbulent times since the First World War.

I think there are two conclusions from all of this. The first is that these problems are global in nature and scope. The difficulties we are currently facing are not the consequences of a policy decision made in London, but are the effects of a global economic downturn the likes of which we have not seen in decades. The second thing is that the so-called real economy cannot be insulated from the problems of the financial markets. I have written before of my concern that if banks do not lend, things like buying houses, decisions about buying a new piece of plant for a factory, or expanding a business simply do not take place. The fall in stock markets will have a real impact on someone’s pension. This lack of confidence and uncertainty affects job prospects and house prices.

Given that the problem is global in scale, the question is what should our government do in these circumstances? The answer will depend very much on what you think the general role of government should be. There is a school of thought that states the government should do nothing. If anything, the government should cut public spending as much as possible. This is all part of a natural cycle, as sure as night follows day. Let the market correct itself and we will see prosperity.

This very much depends on a belief that the markets are efficient and somehow sensible. I think the events of the last few weeks show that they are anything but: the herd mentality of the free market means that crisis will follow crisis.

There is another school of thought which suggests that governments should intervene to try to lessen the harsh impacts of an economic downturn. Governments should borrow money and bring forward investment to kick start the economy and retain as much as possible the skills needed to produce economic confidence.

I agree with this approach not only because I think government should intervene, but also when I look at what is happening around Hartlepool, and is being planned for the near future. We have a share of £1 billion of housing market renewal money to transform the centre of town. There are hundreds of millions of pounds allocated to transform primary and secondary schools, as well as the Sixth Form and the College of FE. I know that it is controversial, but there is a hospital planned which will be cutting edge in terms of treatment and will cost another half a billion pounds. £350 million is being pumped into the North East to retain skills in small businesses. All of this is public money: I haven’t even taken into account the potential economic benefits and skills that might come from a replacement power station in Hartlepool.

All of this investment in the next five years is under threat if you take the view that government shouldn’t intervene in an economic downturn. This is what the Conservatives are currently arguing in Parliament. I look around at what is happening in Hartlepool and believe strongly that we should borrow now to provide the infrastructure, and retain the skills needed to weather this difficulty and come out the other side better placed to compete with the rest of the world. Hartlepool will suffer as a result if we don’t.

Iain Wright helped to make a difference by volunteering his services for a children's charity.

Hartlepool MP Iain Wright spent the moring manning the tills, stocktaking and cleaning shelves at the town's Barnardo's charity shop as part of Make a Difference Day.

As Part of Make a Difference Day, children's charity Barnardo's encouraged people to volunteer in their local shop that helps to raise vital funds for families living in poverty.

Iain said:

I think the concept of volunteering is very important and a vital part of any community, especially here in Hartlepool. I was delighted to be able to give my services for the morning and they had me carrying furniture and sorting out the bookshelf.

Iain also signed up to the store's Gift Aid initiative, which sees it claim tax back from the Government.

David Abdale, retail manager for Barnardo's North East said:

Volunteering in your local Barnardo's shop is of enormous benefit to the charity. Income from these shops is vital in maintaining our projects, which offer support to so many families living in poverty in the UK.

Those unable to give time to Make a Difference Day can still participate by donating quality goods to a shop or by supporting Barnardo's volunteer charity collectors.

To find out more about volunteering opportunities with Barnardo's, people can log on to www.barnardos.org.uk/volunteering

If you have kids, and your house is anything like our house, you will spend a fair amount of energy wandering up and down turning the lights off. I often complain that it’s like Blackpool Illuminations in our house, and now sound very similar to my own dad who used to complain about me. The use of the standby on our TV really annoys me as well, because I don’t think it takes that much effort to turn it off.

I also remember a great line in the comedy ‘The Royal Family’, when they were discussing Kennedy being shot, and Jim Royale was asked if he remembered where he was when the President was shot, to which replied: “no, but I’m sure our immersion was on!”

These demonstrate the importance this week’s Energy Saving Week, organised by the Energy Saving Trust, to highlight the impact that needlessly wasting energy can have on the electricity bills of hard working people.

More and more people are contacting me on the matter of fuel bills, and I imagine that these figures will rise as we move into the winter.

People have said to me that they would like to save money on energy bills, but are concerned about the possible cost, the hassle factor, and the fact that they simply don’t know where to begin. I had a meeting in Westminster this week with the Energy Saving Trust and local councils from around the country to see what more central government can do to help local authorities in this. But Energy Saving Week shows that small steps can make a big dent in your fuel bills.

The Energy Saving Trust recommends ten quick and simple ways that people can start to save energy in their homes.

• Turn the thermostat down by 1 degree. Reducing your room temperature by 1°C could cut your heating bills by up to 10 percent. You could save around £50 per year.

• Close your curtains at dusk to stop heat escaping through the windows.

• Always turn off the lights when you leave a room.

• Don't leave appliances on standby and remember not to leave appliances, such as mobile phones, on charge unnecessarily.

• If you're not filling up the washing machine, tumble dryer or dishwasher, use the half-load or economy programme.

• Only boil as much water as you need (but remember to cover the elements if you're using an electric kettle).

• A dripping hot water tap wastes energy and in one week wastes enough hot water to fill half a bath, so fix leaking taps and make sure they're fully turned off!

• Use energy saving lightbulbs. They last up to 10 times longer than ordinary bulbs, and using one can save you around £40 over the lifetime of the bulb and only take a few minutes to install. This saving could be up to £60 over its lifetime if you’re replacing a very high wattage incandescent bulb, or one used for more than a few hours a day.

• Call the Act on CO2 Advice Line on 0800 512 012 for free, local, impartial, individually tailored advice on measures you can take to save energy. Advisers can also let people know about grants and other help that may be available.

• Visit the Energy Saving Trust website at www.energysavingtrust.org.uk for a wide variety of information on saving energy, including Energy Saving Recommended products, insulation, generating your own energy, greener transport and more.

These top ten tips are not very difficult and should make a real difference in helping you to save energy, save money and, ultimately, save the planet.

Iain Wright MP says "The decision to make tougher targets to cut harmful emissions is the right one, and I'll support it."

Labour has taken action on the threat of climate change. Our Climate Change Bill will set a long-term legal framework for reducing emissions for the first time. Labour believes a global deal will only be possible if Britain plays its part, leading the way with other developed countries.

Iain Wright MP says

"The Bill will make us the first country in the world to put carbon reduction targets into law. And we have shown that action on climate change should have an even stronger voice in Government.

"The appointment of my Labour Colleague Ed Miliband as Britain;s first Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change shows our commitment to taking on one of the greatest challenges the world faces.

But we now want our Climate Chance Bill to go further. This summer the Government looked into the long-term target for Britain’s emissions to see if it would deliver real action. They have now decided to take tougher action.

"Our greenhouse gas emissions in 2050 will not be 60 per cent lower than 1990, but 80 per cent lower. I'm pleased that the government has taken this action and that target will be set in law. I will support this and vote for it in the House of Commons."

I was arrested at the weekend. Somebody had seen me steal a jar of coffee in a shop in Murray Street. I was handcuffed, read my rights, had my shoelaces and my wedding ring taken off me and locked in the cells in Hartlepool Police Station. I was also fingerprinted and had DNA swabs taken. I spent a couple of hours in the cells and was then released on bail.

Thankfully, for me at least, this was not real, but something that the Mayor Stuart Drummond and myself had volunteered for on Sunday morning. We put ourselves through the humiliation and the public jeers (of which more later) to publicise the re-opening of the custody suite at Hartlepool Police Station and the start of the ‘Not in my Neighbourhood’ Week.

It was the first time I had ever been arrested, and I must say it was a horrible experience. I had started the day a bit flippant about it, if I’m honest, telling my kids that I was about to be arrested and enjoying the shocked look on their faces. But, as the process continued, as I was handcuffed and locked in the back of the police van, as I was left in the police cell for even a short period of time, a cell that I thought was too cold – and I never feel the cold – I reflected that freedom and liberty are very precious things and something the vast majority of us often don’t give a moment’s thought to.

The custody suite, where people from the town are detained and questioned after being arrested, has just been revamped. People might think in response to that word revamp that I couldn’t move in my cell for comfortable chairs, plasma TVs and X Boxes. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The cell had a toilet, a plastic mattress and a sheet, and that was about it. The heavy cell door, when it slammed, was a genuinely frightening experience, and I knew that I was innocent and was about to go to my mother’s for Sunday dinner. I also was given the opportunity to walk around the exercise yard, and in my naivety thought this might actually be outside with some plants and greenery. The yard is essentially another prison cell, with no roof, metal netting in the ceiling and a small plastic sheet on a quarter of this net in case it rains. It’s certainly, contrary to what people might say, not a holiday, and I couldn’t wait to get out of the place.

During the refurbishment, officers had to take suspects to the cells in other towns, like Middlesbrough or Stockton. This took officers off the streets, often for hours at a time, whilst the arrest procedure took place. Now, police officers’ time off the streets in Hartlepool is minimised.

The vast majority of people will never be arrested and will not be held in a cell. I know that the custody suite will now be in use, but I think it would be useful if people had the opportunity to see the sort of facilities that are in use, not only as a deterrent, but also to seek reassurance that crime is being tackled.

This week is also ‘Not in my Neighbourhood’ week, a campaign sponsored by the Home Office to help inform people of the action that is being taken locally, not only by the Police but by others to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour and to make communities in Hartlepool safer. Hopefully this will result in greater knowledge and reassurance, especially as tackling crime and anti-social behaviour is something that I feel particularly passionate about.

To finish, just an illustration of the razor sharp Hartlepool wit at my expense. As I was going through the arrest procedure, towards the end the officer took my handcuffs off. They’re not comfortable things and can chafe the wrists a bit. I shouted out: “They’ve left a mark”, only for somebody to shout back instantly: “More than you’ve ever done for Hartlepool!”

Ben Bradshaw MP, Labour's Health Minister, today welcomed news that the Labour Government has achieved its target of later evening and weekend opening hours in 50 per cent of England's GP surgeries three months ahead of schedule, saying:

"This is a landmark day for patients. Labour's reforms are creating a fairer NHS, one in which everyone can see a doctor when they need to and when they want to.

"Ahead of schedule, half of England's GPs now offer later evening and weekend opening thanks to Labour's deal with the British Medical Association. It means fairer, more convenient access to a doctor for people who couldn't otherwise fit it around their work or their children.

"Although they try to conceal it, the Conservatives have pledged policies which would make it harder for families to see a GP at weekends or in the evenings.

"David Cameron needs to come clean and to tell patients which GPs would stop offering weekend and evening opening under his unfair plans."

One of the phrases of modern life that is guaranteed to divide opinions is ‘Health & Safety’. This is very often seen to be a shorthand for ‘over the top’ bureaucracy and regulation, or to stop people from doing things. With children and health and safety in particular, it is often portrayed as stopping kids from doing anything, whether that is playing conkers, playing in the schoolyard or preventing them from going on school trips. Many believe more time is obviously spent on so-called risk assessment, which ultimately stops anything from being done, especially from a fear of an organisation being sued by an irate patient or parent, than actually considering what activities children or others should be doing.

The truth is, as very often, a bit different to that. My own feeling is that, simply, health and safety legislation over the last few years has saved lives and prevented injury. There are people here today who might not otherwise have been but for reasonable compliance with health and safety. There is obviously a need to have a bit of common sense, but the idea of stopping kids from being kids is a bit silly.

As a father myself, I know this only too well. My youngest son Billy is coming up to being four, and seems to have set himself a challenge to see what is the highest thing he can jump from. He is currently trying to graduate from chairs in the front room or his bed to higher and higher stairs. He is obviously pushing himself and feels a real sense of achievement when he does the jump, very much what a four year-old little boy would want to do. It is a constant battle at the moment to try and stop him from doing this – a delicate balancing act of praising him when he jumps but trying to reason as much as possible with him to show that he might break his neck if he goes too far.

Billy is our fourth child and it doesn’t seem to get any easier with practice or the more kids you have. With the older ones, it is now a question of balancing giving them their freedoms whilst teaching them to be responsible - to encourage them to enjoy themselves whilst having respect for other people, to trust people and try to be friendly whilst at the same time warning them of the potential dangers of meeting up with strangers or chatting to them on the Internet.

So as a parent I’m very conscious of the balance to encourage kids to enjoy themselves whilst acting responsibly and safely. That is why I’m really pleased that schools in Hartlepool have been able to get involved with the ‘Crucial Crew’ event that took place at the power station last week. Crucial Crew is a modern and sensible way of teaching safety or common sense to 8-11 year olds. Phil Wilson runs the event but has involvement from a whole range of partners like the Police, Fire Service and others.

I have attended the Crucial Crew event every year since I became MP. I was pleased to have been able to attend again last week and I was really impressed yet again. The workshop I attended was one on road safety, where a cyclist had been knocked over. The interaction between the children and the people running the workshop was great, and I’m sure that the kids will remember the event for a long time. In many respects, it was just common sense – things like wearing the right clothes when riding a bike at night, not going into a stranger’s house when calling for help – but the way in which the Crucial Crew did it was exciting and the kids really enjoyed it. Much of it was common sense but, as I stated earlier, I think that is what health and safety is essentially all about.

Ordnance Survey is giving away ‘Free-Maps-for-11-year-olds’ to encourage children to get out and discover the world around them, Ordnance Survey Minister Iain Wright announced today.

Every Year 7 pupil in England, Scotland and Wales can receive a free 1:25 000 scale OS Explorer Map of their local area.

Since its launch in 2002 the initiative has had an overwhelming response. Each year, Ordnance Survey distributes over 700 000 maps to pupils through their schools. They also receive a copy of the leaflet "Map reading made easy peasy”.

Today Iain Wright and Vanessa Lawrence, from Ordnance Survey, visited Dyke House Comprehensive School in Hartlepool to hand over the maps to the pupils. Head Teacher, Bill Jordan, was also presented with a special gold covered Ordnance Survey map to mark the year that the 5 millionth map is to be given away.

Pupils from Dyke House’s Year 7 then took part in a treasure hunt at the school with a special ‘treasure map’ to help them find 11 clues that spelt out the location of a grand prize.

The free maps scheme is designed to encourage geography and environmental studies – both in and outside the classroom – helping to get pupils to explore their local community with their families and learn about practical map reading.

Ordnance Survey Minister Iain Wright said: “It’s fantastic that this year the five millionth 11-year-old will receive a free map of where they live and where their school is thanks to Ordnance Survey.

“With sat nav becoming increasingly common, this scheme encourages children to learn geography in their own backyard and develop that all important sense of direction”

This year Ordnance Survey is offering a special prize for the lucky school that orders the five millionth map. The winners will receive a commemorative map site-centred on their school. In addition, Tony Robinson and the Time Team will host a day out for the eight pupils who win the annual free maps competition.

Vanessa Lawrence CB, Ordnance Survey Director General and Chief Executive added: “Interpreting geographic information – on a paper map or on the computer screen – is a vital skill that will help children throughout their lives.

“The Free Maps for 11 year-olds scheme helps support these skills and we are delighted to be running it again for the seventh year.”

The free maps scheme has won an official Big Tick for responsible business practice and has been shortlisted for the Merrill Lynch Investing in Young People Award.

Teachers should place their order by 30 November 2008 on the Ordnance Survey free maps website – http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/oswebsite/freemapsfor11yearolds.

One of Britain’s real assets is the Ordnance Survey. It is the world’s oldest mapping agency, with its origins found when Scotland was rebelling against the English in 1746. King George II commissioned a military survey of the Scottish highlands in the event of a rebellion clashing into a full blown war. By the 1790s the whole of Europe was in conflict because of the expansion plans of Napoleon, and there were real fears in this country that England might be swept up in the French Revolution. To try to combat this, the Government of the day ordered its defence ministry – the so-called Board of Ordnance – to begin a survey of England’s vulnerable southern coasts. The first accurate one-inch scale map of Kent was published in 1801, and within 20 years about a third of England and Wales had been mapped to a scale of one inch. It was done in a very primitive manner in the days without satellite and aircraft technology – I feel sorry for a certain Major Thomas Colby, who was later Ordnance Survey’s longest-serving Director-General – who walked 586 miles in 22 days on a reconnaissance mission in 1819. Rather him than me, as I’m not sure that my feet would stand that level of torture.

However, enough of the history lesson. Fast forward 200 years and I am now Minister for the Ordnance Survey, and have responsibility to explain the actions of the organisation to Parliament. I think the Ordnance Survey is a great asset with a really bright future. One of the big growth areas in the economy in the next few years will be the ongoing development of geographical positioning systems: we all know the massive explosion of satellite navigation systems in cars, and it is forecast that more personalised ‘sat navs’, ones that are downloaded to your mobile phone, will become increasingly common. In addition, a whole variety of things, from digging up the road in the correct place for gas mains, to correct delivery of goods, depends on accurate map making and map reading. The ability to read maps is an important skill that I believe is becoming more, not less important.

To help with this skill, every Year 7 pupil in England, Scotland and Wales can receive a free Ordnance Survey map of their local area. Since its launch in 2002, the initiative has had an overwhelming response, to the point where we are coming up to 5 million maps being given away.

I wanted to celebrate this achievement, and I wanted to do it in my own constituency. That is why today Vanessa Lawrence, the current Director General of Ordnance Survey and myself visited Dyke House School to hand over maps during a geography lesson. Pupils also took part in a treasure hunt to find 11 clues that will spell out the location of a special grand prize. Bill Jordan, as headteacher of Dyke House, was presented with a special gold-mounted Ordnance Survey map. I was pleased to have been able to provide this for a Hartlepool school, especially one like Dyke House which has taken advantage every year of this special offer.

The free maps scheme and treasure hunt are designed to encourage geography and environmental studies – both in and outside the classroom – helping to get pupils to explore their local community with their families and learn about practical map reading. I hope that we encourage children to learn geography in their own backyard and develop that important sense of direction, in every possible sense.