Please allow me the opportunity to introduce myself, my name is Graham Pristo and I have been lucky enough to have lived and earnt a living in the beautiful City of Bath.
I was brought up in Whiteway and attended Westhill - Culverhay, from leaving school I served as an apprenticeship at The Pitman Press. After being made redundant I became a taxi driver, ending up as Managing Director of Abbey Taxis building and help founding the company from 34 to 178 vehicles. From there it was a career change to insurance. I owned the Westminster Insurance Agency that operated in Chelsea Road and eventually covered the South West, with offices in Bristol, Swindon, and Bournemouth. I have lived in Weston for the past twenty years.
I have always had conservative values, but an independent mind. My personal approach to conservatism is: ;
‘BLUE COLLAR CONSERVATISM’
A conservatism that rewards aspiration, hard work and industry, including working-class occupations, enabling the employed to attain higher wages and property ownership regardless of background, sustainable welfare, regards for workers’ rights, family life and improved apprenticeships.
MY VIEW OF BATH
Bath needs time to recover from the pandemic. Businesses, residents and alike need to regain confidence in the City. The relationship with the University’s needs to be reset.
Later living: This aspect of the city has been totally neglected. If you are looking to downsize, in all probability, you have to move out of the city. Consequently, this has an adverse effect on the housing market. Less student accommodation and more later life accommodation will help free up the housing market.