One of the things I most enjoyed during my time as a Tynwald member was the connection with the electorate many of whom became friends over the years.

Now I have more time it is my intention to try and catch up with as many as I can just to say hello and see they are doing OK.

I have a particular feeling of guilt when I have promised to call around and see an old friend but it becomes too late.

We all lead busy lives these days and my poor excuse to myself in the past was because I was so busy as a Tynwald member, constituency representative, minister and so on. None of which are good enough.

Recently a lovely elderly lady who I have known for many years passed away.

I had been determined to call and see her again and had failed to do so. I had been a close friend of her son who lost his life in a motorcycle accident 49 years ago aged 17.

This mother had to suffer the tragedy of losing two other sons in the time since.

I contacted one of her other sons to pass on my condolences and he said that she had followed my career and he had found a photo of his mum and me of which she was so proud.

Another situation came up in the last week when I had reason to call on a long-time friend whose husband had recently passed away.

I was really touched when she told me that, even though he was so ill, he had tried to find a way to use his vote at the recent election.

What an example to me in my effort to call on those who have been friends for so long or on those who sadly do not participate in the democratic process for whatever reason.

My dad came from a large family and I clearly recall Christmas time and the long autumn and winter nights as being a lonely time for him.

So I think there is a message for all of us who lead busy lives to try and set some time aside to call on older family members or a nearby neighbour who may not have family members in the time ahead.

Despite the wealth that exists on our island the divide between rich and poor is growing rather than the reverse.

I remember as a young man hearing about the soup kitchen in Myrtle Street, the Coal F und, which I believe still exists in amended form, other such funds existed to help people in need long before and indeed after the establishment of the social security system.

I welcome the work of the Tynwald poverty committee which reported to the court with recommendations prior to the General Election and look forward to its recommendations becoming reality.

In an island such as ours we should be eliminating the necessity for food banks and accommodation for homeless persons.

We still don’t have any legislation to cover the circumstances and support for people in this distressing situation.

I remember lobbying a Minister for Local Government and the Environment about homeless people 30 years ago.

His answer was there is no such thing as a homeless person on our island only Ted the tramp, who is content with his lifestyle. He was of course wrong.

A little later I started a campaign to improve the living conditions of people who lived in lower Pulrose.

The properties were of prefabricated construction with metal single glazed windows.

They had been built in the 1920s and were no longer in an acceptable condition.

There had been two failed attempts at refurbishment of the properties but I witnessed first hand the draught issues.

The properties were so cold that some older residents slept downstairs with a blanket over them in front of the coal fire. There was ice on the inside of the windows.

I held public meetings, sought feedback from residents and established tenants’ associations in Pulrose, Spring Valley and Anagh Coar and worked with residents in Hillside Avenue with the support of Willie Kneale.

All the estates needed attention but the first priority was lower Pulrose.

I had a supportive minister in Tony Brown and after some hard campaigning where residents thought nothing would happen as they had heard it all before, we obtained the funding from Treasury to demolish and rebuild the estate.

This took place as a phased programme over several years but resulted in much-improved living conditions.

My only regret was that some of the older residents who had supported my work were no longer with us and were not able to enjoy these important improvements for themselves. But what better legacy to future generations than fit for purpose housing?

Surely things are better today? My contention is that this is certainly not the case in some estates.

Refurbishment schemes have been undertaken in some areas at a considerable cost but is it money well spent? In some areas there is no doubt that this is not the case.

Whilst it may have been cheaper in the short term the authorities may well have to revisit this situation in the time ahead.

I am told it was at the behest of a government department that a decision to not demolish and rebuild was taken.

Yes of course government makes up any housing deficiency but a more thorough oversight may have indicated it was not necessarily the correct long-term decision. I do hope a more in-depth analysis of costs will prevail in the time ahead in relation to some long overdue work to local authority housing.

All the time I was a Tynwald member housing dominated my postbag.

At the recent election candidates island wide made reference about a number of key issues around the subject.

In particular young people not being able to afford to get on the housing list, overseas interests buying up properties which should be for first-time buyers, the need to build more local authority houses, the need to further support the installation of energy conservation measures in housing, the need for more emphasis on brown-field development, the provision of adequate accommodation for older persons taking on board the increasing age demographics which in turn would free up some more family sized units and so much more.

My plea is to add to the list the need for existing local authority housing to be fit for purpose.

l Thanks to those people who contacted me about their memories of the TT after my piece a couple of weeks ago. Your kind comments are really appreciated.

To those who asked about the signature deal, I advise contacting the Attorney General who will confirm it was the minister after me who signed it.

To those who questioned why I felt it was a shame we didn’t get to a deal in my time, for donkeys’ years some businesses were ripping off the TT brand and not paying anything for the rights to use it.

The Isle of Man must have lost millions to off-island business interests as a consequence of not having proper protection of the brand.

David's next column will be in Tuesday's Isle of Man Examiner.