Columns

The Bedford Independent carries regular columns submitted by various political leaders and organisations that work within Bedford Borough.

For 2026, columns will be each month as follows:

Week one*

  • Monday: Bedford Borough Mayor’s office (Conservative)**
  • Tuesday: Bedford Borough Council opposition (shared between Labour and Liberal Democrats)**
  • Wednesday: Bedford Borough Council opposition (shared between Greens and Independents)**
  • Thursday: Bedford Borough charitable organisations arranged by Pritti Sagi, Creating Memories
  • Friday: Bedfordshire PCC (Labour)

Week two

  • Monday: Bedford & Kempston MP (Labour)
  • Tuesday: North Bedfordshire MP (Conservative) – offered but no response
  • Wednesday: Bedford Borough communities arranged by Queen’s Park Community Organisation
  • Thursday: Mid Bedfordshire MP (Conservative)
  • Friday: Beds GOVET (Environmental).

 

These columns are published unedited and do not reflect the views of Progress Publishing, its staff or its publications.

If you have an idea for a regular column, please email news@BedfordIndependent.co.uk.

*From the first full week of the month
**So that the number of columns reflects the size of each party on Bedford Borough Council, the number of columns per party is as follows: Conservative (current council leadership) x 12, Liberal Democrats x 6, Labour x 6, Green Party x 4, Independents x 1 (each).

Monthly column: Driving test delays – slowly but surely progress being made to tackle backlog

Anyone trying to book a driving test in Bedford and Kempston will know how frustrating the process has become. The pandemic created a significant backlog when tests were suspended...

Bedford Ian writes…

Blimey Blakey, Free flow, and Privileged parking. Bedford Ian has been looking at recent goings-on across Bedford Borough and tells us what he thinks of it all…

Monthly column: VAWG victims must be listened to, supported and respected 

Reported violence against women and girls (VAWG) is increasing across the country. Nationally, last year, one in every eight women was a victim of domestic abuse, stalking...

Monthly column: From a £1 bargain to a £50 lifeline – Madad’s Bedford homecoming

Madad began life in Bedford in 1981 as the Hira Islamic Centre. Local Muslims established the charity to create a place of worship. After its founder, Imam Irshad Ali, died in 2020...

Monthly column: Mayor has left Bedford with nowhere to go

Sometimes the biggest issues in local government are the simplest. If you take your children to the park, walk the dog, go for a run, or spend a few hours enjoying the outdoors, you should...

Monthly column: Managing pressures and planning for Bedford’s future

In recent months, Bedford Borough Council has operated in an environment that is challenging for councils across the country. Demand for essential services such as...

Bedford Ian writes…

25 September 2026: It's fixed, Culture vultures and Parking payday. Bedford Ian has been looking at recent goings-on across Bedford Borough and tells us what he thinks of it all…

Guest column: Raising foundations in the digital age  

On 20 September 2026, the Right Reverend Richard Atkinson, Bishop of Bedford, gave a sermon as part of the Sheriff of Bedfordshire's Justice Service at St Paul's Church, Bedford...

Monthly column: To nationalise or not, that is the question…

Every day there seems to be a harrowing report in the national and regional papers about the awful state of our rivers and seas, so much so that you wonder why the Government...

Monthly column: Bandhan Bedford –bringing the community together to celebrate Indian Independence Day

Bandhan Bedford is a vibrant group of women of Indian origin that has grown into a strong, welcoming community over the past eight years, bringing people together to celebrate culture...

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