Robert Buckland Weblog

The last week in Parliament alllowed me to discuss a few issues in which I have either a professional or personal interest.  My first Prime Minister’s Question last Wednesday was on the admission of children with Special Educational Needs into new Academies.  The PM gave me an assurance that new Academies would be obliged to [...]

It is done! At about 4.20am on Friday morning, the result of the South Swindon Constituency came through, with the help of  live coverage on the BBC.   We won!  I secured 19,687 votes, which at 41.78% of the vote was an increase of nearly 4000 votes since 2005.   Labour’s vote went down on an increased [...]

An important feature of this campaign has been the huge number of e-mails that I have received from residents on a whole range of issues.  These come on top of the daily phonecalls and letters that have long been an essential staple of the candidate’s election diet.  Some take the view that because e-mails are [...]

At last!  A few moments of peace and quiet during which I can write a post.  Nearly a month has gone by, and as promised, I have been out campaigning daily in South Swindon.  Thousands of leaflets are being delivered by volunteers, and dozens of us have been busy knocking doors across the constituency.  The fact that [...]

My decision to get campaigning as early as possible has allowed me to concentrate on meeting more and more residents in places where the sight of a candidate on their doorsteps has been a refreshing change.  In the current climate of political sleaze, the public quite rightly want to see their local candidates.  The task of knocking [...]

The pre-election season is generating predictable heat in the media, but all too little light.  Taiwanese TV news’s decision to stage a  cartoon re-construction of the Prime Minister’s alleged behaviour towards his staff was the final straw for me.  This election will not be won or lost on issues such as this.   A plain-spoken and [...]

The date of the General Election remains a secret known only to the Prime Minister.   The smart money is still on May 6th, but there remains a chance of a March election, which is why the national campaigns began before the last Christmas decorations were taken down.  These weeks and months require unusual stamina from [...]

A freezing but bright Saturday morning made for brisk door knocking in the Lawns today.  I was out and about with local ward Councillors Brian Mattock and Fionuala Foley and a team of helpers that allowed us to talk with a large number of local residents.   We also bumped in to Alan Nix, Chair of [...]

The news from Afghanistan is getting worse and worse.  The issue is on the minds of local residents, as we found whilst door knocking last Saturday.  The Prime Minister keeps telling us that troops on the ground in Helmand mean no terrorism in the UK.  Its time that a more detailed explanation is given.  The [...]

My hopes of competing in this year’s Swindon Half-Marathon remain unfulfilled.  It was back to baggage duty for me this morning; I was gently chided by LibDem Eastcott Councillor Stan Pajak,  a marathon veteran and man of huge stamina. I reminded Colin Lovell, Swindon Council Cabinet member and Moredon Councillor, that we had agreed to [...]