I was born and raised in Sunderland, and after ten years in Leeds and London, I’ve moved back here with my partner Laura – and we’re both loving it.
I started this blog when I was a Liberal Democrat councillor representing Lee Green Ward in Lewisham, south east London between 2006 and 2010. Most of the content up to May 2010 concerns that role, and is probably only of interest if you have an SE12 or SE13 post code, or share my irritation with faulty street furniture! However, I’ve left it up there in the hope it proves useful to someone, and as a reminder of my early blogging. Someone must have liked it, as in September 2009, I won the Lib Dem Voice Tim Garden Award for the best blog from a Lib Dem holding public office.
Now we’re back where I belong in the north, I’ll be blogging about politics, the north, my love of Europe and anything else that takes my fancy. Here’s why:
Politics
I joined the Liberal Democrats at university and have been an active member pretty much from day one. I was chair of what was then called Liberal Democrat Youth and Students in 2003-4 and spent four years as a Lib Dem councillor. I’ve also at various points been a parliamentary researcher, agent/organiser, and Westminster Day organiser.
The north
It’s good to be home. I don’t know whether it’s the people, the landscape or the weather, but I feel at home here. Obviously it’s also great to be a lot nearer my family, and in terms of quality of life it’s been a massive gain for us. Sunderland’s a city with a proud history, and our location on the coast with beautiful countryside surrounding us is second to none.
I work in Sunderland for the Northern Housing Consortium – the voice of housing in the North – as a Policy & Strategy Manager. Previously, I’ve worked at the National Housing Federation and at The Hyde Group. None of the views expressed on this blog are my employers (past or present!) though.
Europe
I rashly decided back in 2005 that I was going to visit every EU Capital by the time I turned 30. Five years on, I’ve turned 30, and I did it! I actually got to Bucharest (the final capital) on the day before my 30th – nothing like cutting it fine! I’ve done a fair amount of travelling outside the capitals, too, and am grateful to the various travelling companions who’ve indulged my silly tick-box approach to discovering the continent. My travels are recorded with stickers on the French-language map of Europe which I (drunkenly) bought from the Charing Cross Road branch of Borders back when this whole thing started.
Contact me! If you want to get in touch, you can find me on Twitter @BrianR0bson or on email at brianrobson [at] hotmail.co.uk
