Bramhope & the Project Planning Centre, University of Bradford

The transition to Yorkshire was not easy for Dianne and I, though we both came to love the Dales and made many friendships.

When we first arrived the phone rang and the message ‘Fart face’ was delivered. More seriously, the area was still in the grip of the Yorkshire Ripper and was quite scary for Dianne at times.

As for me, I was transfixed and depressed by the very undisciplined and bureaucratic ways of the university. I wasn’t used to people swearing at their superiors or spending endless hours discussing regulations for overseas assignments.

Nonetheless, I am still in touch with some of my old colleagues from the university –Professors John Macarthur and John Cusworth and I met up with Professor John Weiss when I was in Jamaica in 1998.

More importantly though, the enterprise was infinitely blessed by the arrival of my first son Matthew Giles Edmund Johnson on 8th August 1980. The ‘Edmund’ follows Seth Shone’s son’s name in A Shiny Night. Matt the Rug / Ruggy Bug soon became a delight, followed by his wonderful brother Peter Geoffrey Kenyon Johnson on 22nd January 1983 (Peetle the Beetle).

Unfortunately, Matt was born one month early while I was undertaking a short assignment in Nigeria – very close to the 21st birthday celebration for Diane Hollinshead (Sue and John’s eldest daughter). Luckily, I was present at Peter’s birth in Otley Hospital but did not earn plaudits from the nurses as I complained that his squashed nose was ‘too big’.

Matthew used to love being carried in a pack on my back when he was a toddler. We often used to go down through the trees to the Bramhope Tunnel to watch the trains entering and exiting. On one occasion, when we went further, the harness severely chaffed his thighs but he was completely uncomplaining.

One of the really great aspects of the Bradford period was being able to spend more time with my family. We quite regularly crossed the Pennines to visit Meg in Bunbury and John and Sue at Cholmondeley. By this time Meg was becoming a little less feisty and it was sad to see her move to a smaller house. She very much appreciated and loved her beautiful grandsons.

One of her special treats was to play ‘Pooh Sticks’ on the bridge across the brook down Wyche Lane on the way to Bunbury Church. Another was to visit nearby Beeston Castle (a 13th century castle keep) and walk along and through the ramparts with the boys.

Spending time at Bankhouse Farm was also a delight and a privilege – one that I have to say, was also shared by Prince Charles who saddled up his horse at the farm for a Meet of the Cheshire Hounds at Cholmondeley Castle – and by my cousin David Kenyon Clarke who made occasional grand entrances in his Daimler.

My grandmother Gladys’ reaction on seeing Bankhouse was ‘this is more what we are accustomed to’ (though, through the buffeting of fate, the only time that my family had in fact operated such a beautiful farm was the relatively short time that Reg Salter had farmed at Old Hall, Barbridge). I was very conscious of the considerable business acumen of my brother-in-law John and always full of admiration of his husbandry and sound investments in the future. Christmas at Bankhouse was also a very special time and a great tribute to the hospitality and capability of my sister.

One of the highlights of my period in Bradford was my participation in the setting up of the local organization of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). This was formed when Roy Jenkins (who died in January 2003), David Owen, and Shirley Williams left the Labour Party over its opposition to the UK joining the EU and its commitment to unilateral nuclear disarmament.

The first SDP Annual Conference was held in Bradford and I tasted the delights of demagoguery when I gave a rabble-rousing speech on regional government that was wildly applauded. I also stood as the SDP candidate for the Cookridge Ward of Leeds in the 1983 elections but Mrs. Thatcher sank our hopes of representational success, along with the Argentine battleship Belgrano, by starting the Falklands War and calling all true Brits to rally to the flag. This scuppered any chance of me developing a political career.

However, while at Bradford University, I undertook a number of teaching and consulting assignments. One of these was with the Asian Development Bank in Manila in 1984. While there, I applied for a job and when I was accepted, it was decided that we would move to Manila – to the kind of job I had always sought in the international public service – and the possibility of easier visits to New Zealand for Dianne and the boys.

CONSULTING / TEACHING ASSIGNMENTS IN THIS PERIOD

Asia Region Asian Development Bank 1984 Development Economist Evaluated alternative approaches to the use by ADB of social cost-benefit analysis for project appraisal

The Gambia UK-ODA 1984 Development Economist / Institutional SpecialistTeam Member for Review of ODA policies and procedures for contracting / commissioning consultants - conducted on-site evaluation of nature / impact of ODA consultancy contracts in The Gambia

Tanzania FAO 1983 Development Economist / Trainer / Institutional Development Specialist Preparation (design and appraisal ) of small-holder cashew nut development project for the Provinces of Mtwara and Linde - in collaboration with Institute for National Development, Mzumbe

Italy Finafrica 1982 Development Economist / Trainer Training for middle level public sector managers on appraisal of agricultural credit / development bank provisions

Small Developing Economies Commonwealth Secretariat 1981 Development Economist / Institutional Specialist Contributor on Use of Consultants to Commonwealth Secretariat Manual on Project Planning for Small Economies

Jamaica Management Institute for National Development 1981 Development Economist / Trainer Training for middle level public sector managers on project identification / pre-appraisal techniques

Jordan Jordanian Government 1981 Development Economist Economist for Sector Study on Agro-processing in Jordan, covering subsector production and demand profiles and the selection of potential investment opportunities

Sri Lanka Institute for Agricultural and Rural Development 1980 Development Economist / Trainer Training for middle level public sector managers on agricultural, rural and community development project preparation