Frank’s Blog

Cliff Darley, who had been Wirral Council’s chief executive, would have been pleased with his memorial service at St Saviour’s in Oxton last Wednesday. There was a huge gathering and I guess many of us were there because of the contribution that Cliff had made to Birkenhead. My memories flowed back to my first meeting with him during my first days as an MP. Cliff was then running Wirral’s housing department. It was his enthusiasm that struck me…

Before Christmas I spent a morning with students at the University Academy. We were discussing what they want from their school and how this might be made part of the school contract. My starting point is that behaviour generally across society has become worse. There are lots of reasons for this. It is now more difficult to parent than it was. Society has also become less concerned about ensuring that each young person has some idea of what is expected of…