Golden tickets are up for grabs

March 2012

Willy Wonka may have thought his chocolate factory was the perfect prize when he gave away his golden tickets, but in Newham our golden tickets will get you into the Olympic Games.

We have 50 pairs up for grabs to watch some of the very best events of the Games, including the opening and closing ceremonies. Winning will feel as good as my home town team Kilmarnock beating champions elect Celtic in the Scottish League Cup Final.

We'll be choosing the lucky recipients at random in June. To enter you must be already paying your Council Tax by direct debit or have signed up before 15 May.

The 50 residents who are selected will be able to experience the magic of the Games up close, but we don't have to be at the Olympic Stadium to experience the once-in-a-lifetime event.

There will also be a huge number of parties and events organised by local residents and businesses with help from the council, which will not only add to the fun but demonstrate to the world what a warm, welcoming and resilient community we are.

If you want to find out more about how you could be chosen for Games tickets visit www.newham.gov.uk/directdebit.

Children will prove good sports

Over the next 12 months one of my promises is to help every young person in Newham to be a sportsperson. Every year 7 student in our schools will get to have a go at a range of sports from rugby to trampolining.

Many of those activities will take place at the University of East London's new £21m SportsDock which I helped to launch at their campus in the Royal Docks

Every young person who enjoys a taster of different sports will be encouraged to keep up their chosen activity and we will do everything we can to support them into clubs. It will also introduce them to university life and sports science.

The state of the art facilities at SportsDock, unveiled by Paralympic medal winner Ade Adepitan, Teresa Edwards, the Chef de Mission for Team USA who are based there during the Games and marathon runner Mara Yamauchi, are truly fantastic and will be a wonderful legacy of the Games for our community

Painful reminder of real bravery

The incident that saw five police officers injured after being attacked by a dog as they executed a search warrant in Stratford was truly shocking.

Our police officers risk their lives on a daily basis to protect us and some pay a painful price to ensure our safety. We should never forget that bravery and commitment.

I have spoken to the police Borough Commander to express our thanks for what they do and our hopes that those concerned recover quickly.

If nothing else, the incident highlights the need to encourage sensible dog ownership. It's also why we have Dog Control Orders designed to tackle irresponsible owners and nuisance dog behaviour.

You tell us that dogs not being controlled in public is a concern to you, but the majority of dog owners are responsible people.

Therefore we will continue to target the irresponsible few. Only that way can our police officers and our enforcement officers feel safe when they go about their duties on the streets on our behalf

Services on the doorstep

I officially opened the refurbished Beckton Globe Library, which has a whole range of new services and activities available under one roof.

The improvements at the library are part of our drive to provide the best quality services for residents that also represent value for money.

As well as all the traditional library services on offer in bright, modern facilities, there are now easy to use self-service kiosks to carry out a range of transactions from paying council bills online to reporting abandoned vehicles, fly-tipping, anti-social behaviour, missed bin collections and much more.

While I was in Beckton I also dropped in on the spring festival organised by local residents with help from the council. It was great to see so many people out together in the sunshine.

Over the past 12 months, almost 22,000 people attended community events like these. This year we will offer the biggest local community-based Olympics and Paralympics activity programme in the history of the Games. Something for us all to enjoy!