In three weeks' time, the last daily edition of the printed version of the
Birmingham Post will roll off our presses in Erdington, marking the end of
a publishing tradition that stretches back more than 150 years.

But it also marks a rebirth, as the Post starts a new chapter in its
evolution as a multimedia brand and its new life as a must-read weekly
title.

I have just announced to my staff that Trinity Mirror was starting a consultation process with them over the future of the Birmingham Post, the title I have edited for more than three years.

There are two options for change on the table - each a response to the fact that the Midlands region of Trinity Mirror will lose £6 million next year unless some radical action is taken now. The Post as a key title must play its part in plugging that profit gap, and I'll get to the two options later.

This consultation process is unique in my experience in that as well as seeking the views of staff - who are of course the people most directly affected by any changes - we also want the views of readers and advertisers. Launches and relaunches of newspapers always involve market research and testing, of course, but rarely do publishers open up the decision making process as early - and as transparently - as we are doing with the Post.

When I returned to Birmingham three years ago, I couldn't believe what I saw.

No, it wasn't the shiny new city centre that amazed me, but the occupants of the seats of power. When I'd last paid my council tax to the city, it was well into the long, seemingly unstoppable reign of the Labour party, with the venerable Dick Knowles entering his eighth year in power.

This is the raw copy of my second piece filed from Mumbai today, Tuesday March 24. It's here because Birminghampost.net is currently experiencing technical problems.

The consequences of continued government inaction over Jaguar Land Rover were spelled out by Tata chairman Ratan Tata in his interview with the Birmingham Post.

When Tata bought Jaguar Land Rover exactly one year ago tomorrow, crucial to its wooing of the UK government and its new workforce was the promise to maintain the company's three main UK plants.

This is my raw copy filed to the Birmingham Post from India today, Tuesday, March 24. It can't be published on the Post's website because it's broken. Normal service will be resumed soon.

An exasperated Ratan Tata, boss of the multi-billion Indian giant that owns Jaguar Land Rover, has broken his silence in the UK media to accuse the government of failing to value the manufacturing sector.

He also highlighted the potential cost to the company and its employees if the government does not come forward with the requested loan guarantees. He raised the prospect of JLR's development projects being wound down, halting progress on a new sports roadster and leading to layoffs amongst development staff.

In my speech at the Post's 150th Anniversary Gala, I rather pompously declared that what tied the 21st century title to its 19th century origins was the role of the Post as a 'place for ideas'.

What I meant was that it is the paper's job to represent and reflect upon current politicial, social and scientific thought in the Midlands, and by doing so encourage informed argument out of which comes progress. Through the Chamberlain revolution of the late 19th century, that was certainly the case, and I make no apologies for firmly believing that our move into the online world - particularly blogging - provides an opportunity to fulfil this ambition even more so.

Do you Twitter? I do. (and so do Hillary and Barack)

Occasionally I go whole days without Twittering, but then I need to get a fix and I just can't stop myself.

Sometimes I get such a severe dose of Twittorrhoea that I sit at my computer for what seems like hours, and only leave when I've got nothing left to Twitter.

What's this twit going on about now? you may ask.

I write this on the eve of The Birmingham Post's 150th Anniversary Gala Dinner, an event that celebrates exactly what it says on the tin.

We'll be celebrating the newspaper's history with just a little nostalgia, and perhaps a forgiveable amount of back-slapping, but moreover, the night sees the launch of the very website you are now reading.

Even as we look back and celebrate, the attention of my editorial colleagues, advertising staff and others is firmly focused on a future in which The Birmingham Post will be as vibrant a force online as it currently is in print.

The amazing hard work of everyone on the paper has resulted - I believe - in a truly historical advance for The Post. From now on, all the insight, news and analysis you have rightly come to expect from us is just a click away every minute of the day. We'll be breaking news and bringing you information on your sector of interest that you just can't get anywhere else - and even more than you can get in the newspaper.

Have a look around the site - our roster of knowlegeable and provocative bloggers will ensure The Post's reputation as a home for argument and debate live on into the digital age, and you can sign up for email alerts of your choosing. Even Post People has gone online, for heaven's sake!

As with any new project, sending one's new baby off into the world fills one with trepidation. Will it fulfill your expectiations? What are the services we don't currently have that you want to see? Tell me what you like and what you don't like.

I can't wait to hear from you.