Former Big Brother contestant, journalist, academic and businessman, Derek Laud, has joined the General Election campaign on the Island. Derek Laud has been campaigning in Isle of Wight East with Conservative MP hopeful Joe Robertson. The former political speechwriter was seen leafleting and campaigning in Shanklin’s Regent Street and Ryde High Street last weekend. Mr Laud is Chairman of the Foundation Board of Lucy Cavendish College at the University of Cambridge and Pro Chancellor at London South Bank University and visiting Professor in the School of Law and Social Sciences. During his time on the Island, he met with a group of young people over lunch to discuss improving further education opportunities on the Island. Joe Robertson said:
“I was pleased to be able to introduce Derek to a group of young Islanders to discuss further education. I want to see degree-level courses taught here on the Island. A good way to achieve this would be through a partnership between the Isle of Wight College and nearby universities like Portsmouth or Winchester. “I want to see more opportunities available to young Islanders but also encourage others to come to the Island as a place for education and future careers. We need to be able to offer residential student accommodation to make the Island a realistic alternative option to the mainland.”
7 Thomas Sheath – who went to school at Christ The King and has just finished a degree in Psychology at Winchester University – added:
“It was really good to meet Derek Laud. I chose to study at Winchester because it is close to home but if my course had been available on the Island, I would have been able to study here rather than commute. “If young people don’t have more opportunities on the Island they will move away and the Island will miss out.”
Derek Laud also visited Nunwell House open gardens in aid of the Brading Church Bells and talked about issues as diverse as gardening, volunteering and agriculture. 
Hardly a great endorsement is it….. Robertson is on a loser along with his pal Seely, but then the entire tory party will be decimated by July 5th.
Vote Reform.
How entirely appropriate! Nonentity “celebrity” supports political nobody. Now all we need is Farago to come and look important.
But it ticks the most important box, an orchestrated stunt under a subtle brainwashing of ‘their not all so bad’ agenda, be it this, or posters, or tv ad’s, talent shows, or any modern made TV prog, where they are never now the crim, but the chief of police or other high power positions. One would think that they were, as they will be, the majority here now.
Governments know that immigration is high on the minds of people as we enter the election, and as both Labour and Conservatives have allowed in so very many, they have to keep a lid on the issues such are causing, and portray, with the help of race laws and the media any ‘good’ that they can, whilst limiting public exposure to the negative effects.
Vote Reform
Let’s hope the Tories or Labour don’t get in
Reform UK is our only hope.
If that’s our only hope then we’re all damned.
Our only hope if you want a Putin like dictator running the country.
Farage took over Reform in a coup, he’ll do the same to the country if he gets any power.
Pathetic. The tories are finished and no amount of gimmicks will save them.
Full marks for visiting Shanklin instead of keeping mainland guest restricted to Ryde….
But.
a. Who the hell is Derek Laud (Might has well brought a Britains Got Talent performing Dog given the relevance to the IW and the level of celebrity he has)
b. The degree on the Island arguement misses the point, Joe’s basically saying “Lets get the Lecturers and Professors onto the boat instead of the students”.University is a culture, and a concentration of minds into one location, it is not simply ‘a place to sit and learn’. The Conservatives are trying to encourage students to take up higher value degrees. These cannot be delivered without modern, well equipt facilities. How would Joe deliver Law without a Library?
The island’s population is far too small to support a university of any size and mainland students would not want to attend what would be the worst university in the country, with no accommodation, expensive ferry costs, and no nightlife or arts scene. What a silly man to even suggest the possibility.
What a joke !
Every sensible youngster always leaves the island anyway because of the lack of investment and opportunities on this island.
We need a fixed link to drag this island into the 21st century not back to a Victorian retirement home.
Exactly. Stop the boats or erm……. something.
Give it a rest. There will never be a fixed link because it would cost billions with no economic benefit for the country.
It’s not just a case of saying we want the Isle of Wight College to offer degrees. There’s a whole infrastructure investment that comes with this, notably including accommodation for students. The Isle of Wight is completely unprepared for this. Any political party should focus on improving social care accommodation as a priority on the Island not adding fuel of fire.
If we have a university,it will just get overrun with uneducated,pink haired,i think im a cat this week,palestinian flag waving,queers for palestine dorks.
Sitting on the fence then?