Follow that man

I've just found Paul Uppal MP's Twitter feed. It's truly saddening. 1 entry (February 2010). There's a man who's not keen on communication.

Can't believe the snow in Wolverhampton. Will the Wolves match be on tonight?

6:48 AM Feb 10th via web

Incisive stuff from a first-class mind.

Even more sad are the feeds he's following, presumably to tell him what to think: Sky News (which is owned by Murdoch, just like the Tory Party), the Tory Press Office (heaven forbid he thinks of something for himself), Iain Dale (very rightwing Conservative website owner) and his own Tory Party agent, Kerry Buist. Lovely Kerry has 8 followers, despite not posting a single tweet.

I could weep for the man, were I not laughing.

Still, he hasn't been idle: his website's up and running again, with footage of his maiden speech, and important developments. While other MPs have been trying to help their constituents during the biggest recession ever, Paul's nominated a local curry house for an industry award.

Good sense of priorities, that man. Those of you with Twitter: get stuck in.

But that's not all. He went to an Olympics event. This is what happened:

Paul said: “It was great to meet the team behind delivering the London 2012 Games to mark ‘2 Years To Go’.  It’s important that the benefits of the Games are felt across every nation and region, including Wolverhampton South West, but it’s just as important that people grasp the opportunities that are already taking place now.  There are lots of ways for people to get involved and I really want to make sure that communities are aware of what’s out there – across sport, culture, education and business.”

Seb Coe, Chair of the London 2012 Organising Committee said: “I was delighted to meet Paul Uppal at our event.  It is important that MPs across the UK help us get the message out about the opportunities generated by hosting the world’s greatest sporting event on these shores.  At the Organising Committee, just as with the athletes themselves we are now accelerating our planning, and we want the public to start planning their Summer of 2012 – signing up for tickets, or applying to be a volunteer.”  

Very inspiring. Imagine, Seb Coe taking time out to talk to our very own MP. I'm impressed.

But what's this? He talked to Nick Raynsford too - and they had very similar things to say:

Nick said: London 2012 will be a fantastic experience in which Greenwich and Woolwich will feature prominently. There are all sorts of ways people can get involved, not least through the volunteering programme. Anyone who’s interested can find out more by logging on to London2012.com. There are lots of ways for people to get involved and I really want to make sure that communities in Greenwich and Woolwich are aware of what’s out there – across sport, culture, education and business.” 

Seb Coe, Chair of the London 2012 Organising Committee said: “I was delighted to see Nick at our event.  It is important that MPs across the UK help us get the message out about the opportunities generated by hosting the world’s greatest sporting event on these shores. At the Organising Committee we are now accelerating our planning, and we want the public to start planning their Summer of 2012 – signing up for tickets, or applying to be a volunteer.”  

He also met John Hammond MP - guess what they said:

Stephen Hammond said: “It was great to meet the team behind delivering the London 2012 Games to mark ‘2 Years To Go’. It is important that the benefits of the Games are felt across London and in every nation and region, including Wimbledon, but it’s just as important that people grasp the opportunities that are taking place right now. There are lots of ways for people to get involved and I really want to make sure that communities know how to make the most of them – across sport, culture, education and business.”

Seb Coe, Chair of the London 2012 Organising Committee said: “I was delighted to meet Stephen at our event. It is important that all MPs help us get the message out about the opportunities generated by hosting the world’s greatest sporting event on these shores. Just as athletes are getting ready for the Games, at the Organising Committee we are now accelerating our planning and we want the public to start planning their own Summer of 2012 – sign up for ticket information, or apply to be a volunteer.”

What an amazing coincidence. You don't think that the LOCOG press office is fabricating quotes for lazy MPs to cut and paste for their local newspapers do you? That would be terribly cynical!