I have enjoyed a complete break during the last month having had a fascinating trip to Taiwan to visit my son and his family. The safety and comfort of long haul air travel amazes me but I am always pleased to return to England with its climate and food! Noodles are fine occasionally but the humble potato remains my choice.

On August 1 I enjoyed presenting the prizes to the winners of the Friends of Broadwaters young people’s Fishing Competition. On arrival I was presented with a rod and line with float, hook and lively maggots and took part - unsuccessfully. It took me back years to the first fish I ever caught, a small Perch in the Leeds and Liverpool canal. The winners thoroughly deserved their excellent prizes. All credit to the organisers for involving so many young people and kindling their interest in one of the best sports and to the landlady of The Broadwaters Inn for donating the handsome trophies for prize winners.

With local Mayors I visited some of the young people involved with Lifestyles 2004 and saw the work of groups gardening for older people, bag packing in a supermarket, producing bird feeders and litter picking in a park and joining in pet therapy at Kemp Hospice with a lop-eared rabbit, hyperactive hamster and retired greyhound. This is an excellent, annual opportunity for a glimpse into community service for our young people.

I met Kathy Gee, Chief Executive of the West Midlands Museums , Libraries and Archives organisation at Kidderminster Railway Museum and learnt of the archive of 60,000 railway photographs held by the museum in addition to its collection of railway memorabilia on display. I tested the archive by giving a random locomotive number and within seconds the computer produced a picture of this loco. Photos of Woofferton Junction were found as easily. There is immense potential for research and for attracting more tourists to our area with the Railway Museum , the unique Bewdley Museum and the Carpet Trust’s archives and items from Kidderminster ’s history. Of course we need financial backing for display of the latter. To my relief the new Leader of the Council has confirmed to me his commitment to the future of Bewdley Museum and the Carpet Trust has won an award of nearly £50,000 towards organisation of its archives.

At last real advances are being seen at the hospital with returning elective surgery. Our fight for increased emergency reception and treatment facilities has been helped by the recognition that about 2000 patients per year are going to Worcester or Redditch unnecessarily. We will press for improvements in staffing that will enable our minor injuries unit, now combined with the Primary Care Centre, to see these patients and more to minimise unnecessary journeys to other hospitals.