Post election re-action; further thoughts

As a first-time Campaigner, who failed to get elected under the Lib-Dem banner in Thursday's local elections, I must now go on record as saying that the Coalition for me is not working.

The Lib Dems have been used as a shield to allow the Tories to make unpopular choices and cuts that have under-mined the public sector in particular and allowed unscrupulous private sector employers to revert to the 'big-stick' method of control seen so often under the dreadful Thatcher years. The party, and Nick Clegg in particular, has also taken all the flak for a tuition fee policy that was always part of the Tories agenda but never the Lib Dems.

Why teflon Cameron never gets any comeback is beyond me- after all the Coalition is Conservative LED and the Lib Dems are, at best, junior-partners only.In order to stop the haemorrhaging of Lib Dem Councils, Councillors and grass-root activists and supporters, I urge Clegg to pull out of the coalition now, stand up to the Tories and say enough is enough by recapturing our unique identity. Lib Dems would NEVER have raised tuition fees in Government alone; Lib Dems would NEVER have made such savage and severe cuts in Government alone. 

The party has been hood-winked by the Tories due to its own naivety and suffered dramatically as a consequence.

Post election reaction

Thank you to the 630 of you that voted for me in Herontye district election (I have left the count before the Town results have been declared) and congratulations to the two Messrs Belsey and Sweatman for their success.  A special thanks to my running mate, Chris Jerrey, who has helped me cope with the occasional rude person  who assumed that people wanting to do their best for the town deserve less respect than the stuff one tries to avoid standing in when walking in the country!

Besides this Chris,(who has so superbly served Herontye for 4 years at Mid Sussex District Council and who will be sorely missed), has been a great mentor and despite the very disappointing result, has become a person whose friendship I value tremendously.

As for the result then it is clear to me that I will no longer be able to sustain any support for the coalition agreement.  The Lib Dems have been used, at national level, as whipping boys by the tories and I now firmly believe that we should have entered a coalition with the Labour party - who can be trusted - rather than got into bed with a party that has never been known to listen to anyone other than their own grass root support......

Nice to see Mr Soames at today's count; the landed gentry keeping in touch with 'his' public wearing a 1980's double breasted suit.....the retro look is after all back in fashion!

Final Day of Campaigning!

Campaigning in 2011 is very different to that in 2001; blogs, Twitter and Facebook have all changed the way that candidates interact with the electorate and, coupled with traditional means of engagement, this surely promotes the democratic ideal.

It is with this in mind that we can further enhance democracy within the United kingdom by taking the next step towards Proportional Representation and voting YES to the Alternative Vote tomorrow at the ballot box.  For Labour voters in seats where the contest is normally between ourselves and the Tories, then YES tomorrow is very likely to improve their return and number of MPs.  This is due to the fact that it is my belief that the majority of Lib Dems have values which are more left of centre than right…..thankfully!

Whilst driving into the office today I was staggered by the choice of headline news that BBC Radio Surrey decided to run with.  Declaring that a prominent statistician had pronounced that YES would make little difference in the South-East, they actually failed to mention that the referendum is a national one and not being voted on constituency lines.  A YES vote tomorrow in Edinburgh, Belfast, Cardiff, Newcastle, Manchester and London will carry the same weight in a two-horse contest.  It is future elections where the sensible proposal to return MPS with at least 50.1% of constituency support, will mean that the reliance on tactical voting is reduced and people can start to base their vote on their political leanings.

If you are still in doubt about tomorrow’s vote, I urge you to try the various calculators on the web including the one on Sky News’s site which can be found at http://news.sky.com/skynews/Interactive-Graphics/avcalculator.

For the Country’s electorate I say vote YES for AV on the 5th May; for the residents of Herontye I say vote YES for Jerrey, Barnett and Joannou-Coetzee!

Best quote of recent days.....

Thanks to Guardian reader Blair Mcpherson who stated "who says men can't multitask?  Cameron manages to be both smug and condescending at the same time"

Have the media got it wrong?

Don't let the media fool you!  The positive reactions that we have had in Herontye ward continue to suggest that once again the right-winged press have got it wrong!   On the doorsteps the feeling is very much more considered and even if people don't particularly support the Lib Dems, the good news for East Grinstead is that most of it's citizens are savy enough to make their own minds up in an articulate manner!

There is none of this anti-Clegg hysteria that Murdoch et al have whipped up nor is there a sense of impending doom which according to most of the press is about to bestow our party nationally.

Issues that are relevant are discussed of course; lack of choice and concern over the number of shops closing down in the Town, car parking chaos and worries about the future, given the country's continuing perilous financial state, are familiar topics with residents from Herontye Drive to Dunnings Road and all in between.

What is clear though is that the media are wide of the mark!  People want decisions made that affect their everyday lives and those of their children and/or elderly parents.  Tittle-tattle may sell a few tabloid newspapers but the quality and incisive opinion making is made on the doorsteps of Britain and not behind the laptops of Fleet Street.

Hope for cerebral palsy sufferers

Met a very nice lady on Saturday morning whilst out canvassing.  Ellie Thompsopn told me all about her campaign to deliver affordable Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy  (SDR) treatment to the UK.  SDR is a technique designed to improve walking and/or increase the range of motion and improve body positioning for cerebral palsy sufferers.

Ellie’s charity, HUGS, concentrates some of its efforts on raising funds to cover the substantial cost of putting a child through treatment.  Even so, sadly, the success rate in the UK is significantly lower than over in America where pioneer Dr T S Parks, using less invasive surgery, is able to enhance mobility in virtually all the patients he treats.
HUGS, along with other interested bodies, now want the UK to follow Dr Parks lead whilst at the same time securing financial support for patients and/or their families to cover the costs of treatment since NICE (National institute for Health & Clinical excellence) have said that there will be no NHS funding for this procedure.  The good news is that from May Dr Kristian Aquilina will be performing SDR surgery using Dr Parks’ techniques at the Frenchay Hospital in Bristol – but at an anticipated cost of £24,000 per patient.  Additionally only children over 6 years of age will be treated in the UK yet statistically Dr Parks has proven that the surgery is more successful the younger the child.
If anybody would like to know more about HUGS then please visit their website www.hugs-uk.com
and for further information on selective dorsal rhizotomy then visitwww.scope.org.uk/help-and-information/z-therapies/selective-dorsal-rhizotomy
Without making any political point, it is the responsibility of anybody representing the community to highlight issues such as these that affect the disadvantaged in society irrespective of the party umbrella that they work under.  Personally I do think that funding should be made available to help subsidise the cost of treatment at the very least and that the rules governing the minimum age of treatment be re-visited given Dr Parks’ research.

« Policing in East Grinstead

ALTERNATIVE VOTE

AV OR NOT AV – THAT IS THE QUESTION…..

04.18.11

It’s dirty tricks time…..”none of your taxes have been used to print this leaflet” claim the Conservative funding and supporting big businessmen in their expensively produced glossy!  News to me that the YES campaign have had public funding….which of course they haven’t!  Talk about corporate manipulation of the ordinary man or woman in the street!
The arguments have been made – it’s clear!  First past the post only results in an MP who, in the overwhelming majority of cases, most of the electorate do not want!
If you take 5 candidates and assume under FPTP the person coming first got 21% of the popular vote with the remaining 4 candidates getting the split of the 79% balance….tell me how can the ‘winner’ be truly representative?
Not only does this latest Tory propaganda rubbish the idea of AV but it is quick to blame Nick Clegg for “broken promises”.  No acceptance of shared responsibility but another attempt by Cameron’s toffs to put all the blame for the cuts on the Coalition’s junior partners.  Shame on the Tories!
In every aspect can YOU really trust the Tories…..?  Same old, same old….always passing the buck!  This is why AV is important – there will be nowhere for MPs to hide and every opportunity to make their actions more accountable and representative for ALL their constituents.
Make sure on 5th May you vote yes for AV and in East Grinstead Herontye ward vote yes for Barnett, Jerry and Joannou-Coetzee!

Policing in East Grinstead

Over recent weeks Lib Dem Councillor Chris Jerrey, the Town Mayor Steve Barnett and campaigner Tony Joannou-Coetzee, have listened to the concerns of residents in Herontye  ward and repeatedly the question of more bobbies on the beat comes up.  

Whilst the station at East Court is to close, as Sussex Police attempt to save £52 million by 2015, there will actually be a greater uniformed presence throughout the Town according to Mid Sussex District Commander, Chief Inspector Ed De La Rue.  Our Lib Dem colleague, and Herontye resident, Ginnie Waddingham was one of the first to react to this news by stating "knowing that there will be more officers around the town makes me feel safer".  

Chris, Steve and Tony are all acutely aware of the need to keep neighbourhoods throughout the Town safe and crime-free and you can be sure that with a Lib Dem Administration returned to East Court in May, this objective will remain firmly on the new Council's agenda.

A nation of animal lovers?

Whilst my 'boy', Fonzo the bulldog, is hot on the campaign trail with me (see picture below), I listened with dismay to a report from BBC Radio Surrey this morning which reported on the cruelty inflicted on some cats in the Aldershot area.  The content of the story was actually too graphic for me, as an animal lover, to be able to convey back now suffice to say that the impression is that the torture appears to have been undertaken by human hands.  This of course comes on the back of  a weekend when another aspect of animal cruelty was highlighted at Aintree.

The 164th Grand National event in Liverpool will go down in history for all the wrong reasons.  Two horses killed (yet the race allowed to carry on; how money talks), the winning jockey disciplined for excessive use of a whip and at an earlier race in the day, a fall suffered by Peter Toole riding Classic Fly, has led to the 22 year old jockey fighting for his life in hospital.

As a firm believer in animal welfare and rights, I will do everything I can to promote well-being and continue to campaign against cruelty at every level.  I am blessed to share my life with my faithful canine and 4 cats too and, no matter what political persuasion, this is an issue that surely unites all parties.

Spring Traders Day - East Grinstead

 Councillor Ginnie Waddingham and candidate for Herontye ward, Tony Joannou-Coetzee at the Spring Trader's Day - 10-04-11

 Candidates Julie Mockford, Catrin Ingham, Tony Joannou-Coetzee supporting the East Grinstead Traders

Catrin Ingham at the Traders' Day - Lib Dems supporting the local economy

What a glorious day!  Sunday in East Grinstead with traders operating street stalls, the sun shining and Lib Dem councillors out and about sharing the experience with their fellow town residents.  These events, put on with the support of the Town Council, are a fantastic way of supporting community engagement whilst, at the same time, giving a boast to shop keepers in these times of austerity.

With the campaign now in full swing, the Lib Dems are continuing to actively engage with the electorate across town and events like today are sure to be repeated and on a regular basis with the return of a Lib Dem administration to East Court on May 5th!

Internships and Social Mobility

I thought that slavery had been abolished in this country in 1833 so I was dismayed to hear more this week about the growing practise of businesses and organisations offering internships ostensibly on the grounds of providing experience and training to University and College leavers.

This means that the 'successful' applicants (and let's be clear here it is free will; a fundamental difference I am willing to concede to the past) are given an opportunity within industry to hone their skills by undertaking unpaid labour where often travel and subsistence costs are not met either.

In an era where we proudly point to National Minimum Wage (currently £5.93 per hour) for all workers aged 22 or over, isn't it about time that the provisions of the Act that introduced the NMW was extended to include internships?

Social mobility has made big headlines this week but it is clear to me that whilst industry has the potential to exploit youngsters, the current arrangement is also elitist since without family financial support, how many of us (at whatever age) could afford to work for no pay?  The danger is that internships will train and develop children from upper and upper-middle class backgrounds and this will make it even more challenging for working class kids to break into the establishment.

Let's end this awful practise before it becomes an even more acceptable path to employment and lets stop propping up the economy in this way.  Nobody should be allowed to undertake any work (unless truly voluntary thus covering areas such as charities etc) in the United Kingdom without at least earning £5.93 per hour.

Think NHS? Think Lib Dem!

Great news today that the Government has announced a period of extended consultation before steamrollering fundamental changes to that beloved, of all our public institutions, the NHS!

This backtrack by Tory Lansley follows on the back of the success of a motion at the recent Lib Dem Conference in Sheffield where, overwhelmingly, delegates registered their concerns over plans that could see groups of doctors spending time bogged down with budget and procurement issues at the expense of dealing with patient care.

So today, safe in the knowledge that he has party backing, Lib Dem Leader Nick Clegg alluded to "substantive changes" in the proposal.  Importantly this statement finally gives the electorate the opportunity to see clear light between the caring, compassionate Lib Dems and the money-centric Tories whose primary concern is profit even if this does compromise the health of the Nation.

So the message is simple - if you want to ensure an enviable standard of free medical care for all, make sure that you don't vote for a party who clearly want to dismantle this important provision.  Instead think NHS, think Lib Dem this May!

Undercover Police Plan Pub-Chat Clampdown

Despite the hard earned success of the Lib Dems in forcing Central Government to perform a U-turn on the invasive introduction of Identity Cards, it would appear that the new Chief Inspector of Police in the Surrey borough of Elmbridge, David Hollingsworth, is proposing a course of action that strikes at the very heart of civil liberty.
Announcing with great gusto recentlyy his intention of allowing plain clothed officers to mix-in, undercover, with ordinary pub and club goers does raise concerns.  Predominantly the idea that the guy sitting on his own in a corner nursing half a pint of shandy yet listening in on private conversations assumes that we are all guilty until proven otherwise.  Whatever has happened to habeas corpus?
 Hollingsworth defends his plan by stating that it is not about “monitoring private conversations” yet many think otherwise.  Indeed Bill Sharp of the Guild of Master Victuallers believes the proposal will ”undermine professional licensees” and suggests that this will allow the Police to act in “Stasi-like” fashion.
 Whilst I greatly support the work that our Police force do, I think that the growing tendency of assuming guilt over innocence amongst certain of our boys in blue is a worrying development and action such as this does nothing to enhance relationships between the Country’s law enforcers and her citizens.

LIBDEM/LABOUR COALITION – THE ROAD TO AV

Nice to see the Labour Party join up with the Lib Dems in what many would normally regard as the more natural coalition.  Today Ed Miliband joined with the upper echelons of the Lib Dems and Green Party leader, Caroline Lucas, to promote the case for the Alternative Vote.

Whilst Nick Clegg was absent from the stand, evidently on a trade visit to Mexico, rumours have done the rounds in Westminster that Miliband would only appear if Nick didn’t.  Not normally one to attack the Labour party, given my left of centre leanings, I can’t help but feel this was rather an immature response, if there is any truth in the allegation. 

Nevertheless whether Miliband  (“the tragedy for progressive politics historically has been that the division on the centre and the left has handed a united right victory after victory”) and Clegg are friends or not – it’s great to see the two Party’s working together in the Country’s common interest.  Saying ‘Yes’ on 5^th May is vital if we are to move away from the practise of first past the post which repeatedly fails to reflect the views of the majority ie one can win with less than 50% of the overall vote.

In an article he wrote for The Guardian in May last year, leading campaigner Peter Tatchell explained “every government since the 1950s has taken power based on less than 50% of the popular vote. None has won majority public support at the ballot box”.  Tatchell went on to say “Thanks to the unfair voting system, the anti-Tory majority have frequently ended up with a minority of MPs”.

It is no surprise therefore that the landed gentry of our current times, including Conservative MPs like Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex), object to voting reform.  They know that if the new system is introduced they will have to work harder, and represent all their constituents (and not just the privileged few) if they are to have any chance of retaining their seat going forward.

So on May 5^th go out there and vote!  Vote ‘Yes’ to AV; a fairer way to reflect the views of the electorate.

Today's March

It is fantastic that we all live in a democratic state where freedom of speech is permitted and healthy debate encouraged between people holding differing views.  What a shame therefore that some people feel that they only way they can get their voice heard is to undertake anarchic action.  Staging a sit in at Fortnum and Masons, throwing light bulbs filled with ammonia at the police and generally causing mayhem has no place in our society.

Whether Lib Dem, Labour, Tory or Green, there is no excuse for this type of behaviour that undermines the essential infrastructure that keeps our society together.  We will never all agree on an issue but the way to deal with disagreement is by sensible consultation, compromise and acceptance that democracy allows people to have different priorities in life but who can still live side by side with each other.

Anarchy undermines the fibre that keeps society cohesive and no responsible citizen should support or participate in actions that could promote this.  The coalition have a tough job - cuts have to be made unfortunately and some will sadly suffer.  Lets look at constructive ways to lessen the impact and help those most affected instead.

Fantastic News for Alarm Clock Britain!

Using Nick Clegg’s description of those hard working individual on a mediocre salary, never more than one pay cheque away from an overdraft, the Lib Dems in coalition have secured a fantastic tax concession for ‘alarm clock’ workers in Britain.

From 6^th April this year, the threshold for which basic rate tax is collected will rise to £7,475 (from the current £6,475) meaning that in West Sussex alone 1,750 people will no longer pay any income tax at all whilst a further 58,300 will pay £200 a year less!
As the concession is restricted, unlike tax breaks introduced by previous administrations, this one really is designed to benefit those on low or average incomes; putting money back into the pocket millions of workers across the Country as a whole.
This was of course centre-piece to the Lib Dem General Election manifesto and credit must be given to Nick and the team for persuading the Tories, not traditionally a party to look after the interests of the less well off, to go along with this!

Nick & Tony - In Conversation!

Local Campaigner and prospective Lib Dem Councillor for Herontye ward, Tony Joannou-Coetzee, recently met up with the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, at the Party’s Spring Conference in Sheffield.

It was clear during this event that Nick supports the work of Lib Dem councils up and down the Country and is aware of the issues that face communities in their daily lives.  Indeed he made the comparison between two north-west cities; Sheffield and Manchester citing how the former, run by a Lib Dem authority, had achieved far greater success in managing the impact of the Comprehensive Spending Review than their Lancastrian neighbours led by a Labour local administration.
In Sheffield there will, unfortunately, be 270 jobs but this is a far cry from the loss of 2,000 positions (17% of the workforce) in Manchester.  Clearly a Lib Dem run council is much more likely to be able to protect jobs and front line services in these times of austerity.
Back to East Grinstead, Nick was particularly interested in the ward Tony is standing in and enquired as to how these were going.  It is refreshing that the Deputy Prime Minister can show a positive interest in our town and it is the same ‘man of the people’ type of approach that Tony will adopt if he is returned as one of your two Lib Dem District Councillors on 6^th May.
Dame Shirley Williams definition of what it is to be a Lib Dem sums up Tony’s style of politics succinctly – “somewhat left of centre, in favour of public services, not against the market but see(ing) the market as being there to run part of the scene but not all of it.  And above all, people who are extremely conscious of inequalities in society”.

Tony is standing alongside existing Lib Dem Councillor Chris Jerry and many of you will already be aware of the tremendous work that Chris has done for Herontye over the past 4 years.

In Government; On Your Side!

The strap line for the Liberal Democrat's in conference in Sheffield and how accurately that sums up the Party.....

Nick was totally engaging this weekend - comments like "I genuinely think what you do in local government is remarkable" went down well with the Party faithful including first time campaigners including me.

Despite running the gauntlet of several hundred protesters, who misguidedly ranted "sham on you for turning blue" (my goodness how little they know me!), as delegates entered Sheffield City Hall, the mood was up beat and in typical Liberal fashion, open debate was positively encouraged.

Issues raised were wide and varied and included a discussion on the (lack of) effectiveness of short term custodial sentences for youth offenders; restorative justice winning the day. Party distinctiveness, fighting elections as part of a coalition were also considered along with tuition fees and how the p;arty needs to position itself as a separate,and distinct, entity to the Tories.

However it was the Q&A session with Nick which was the most energising event of the weekend (although acknowledgement of the newly elected and charismatic Party President, Tim Farron, must be made).  With a smooth diplomacy, Nick came across as a warm 'man of the people' type of guy.  Indeed he even had time to ask me personally "how is it going?". It is clear that despite going into coalition with "the other lot", Nick and the other Lib Dem MPs have had a positive impact at keeping the right wing elements of the Conservative party at bay.

Pupil premiums, taking thousands out of paying tax, abandoning the recommissioning of Trident, abolition of ID cards, triple lock pension guarantees are several of the successes that the Lib Dems have helped introduce which probably would not have happened had the Tories had an overall majority last May.

On tutition fees Nick was candidly honest; "we were stuffed" but he did explain that had they gone into coalition with Labour then fees would also have gone up.  Both party's had recommended an increase previously.  Interestingly Nick mentioned that in recent days the National Union of Students have acknowledged that students will actually be better off under the new system than the one it will replace.......where is Aaron Porter now?

More to come but wow.....what a party, what a leader and what a chance the Lib Dems have to positively influence national and local policy - in Government; On Your Side!

Positive Spin - Public Share Ownership

Following the disasterous showing in the Barnsley by-election, it is encouraging to see prominent Lib Dems supporting a radical scheme which could see up to 46 million UK residents owning shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds banking groups. 

The idea would be that each person on the electoral role would receive shares, which based upon current market conditions could be up to £1,000 in value.  Then the Government would set a floor price and it would only be at a value above this that these give-away shares could be sold with individuals retaining any profit made (subject to usual trader fees) over their starting value.

The proposals supported by Stephen Williams, Lib Dem MP for Bristol West, are likely to go down well with the public and put an end to the popular culture of 'banker-bashing'.  Seeing a return on their investment, via an injection of public money, and preventing shareholders from directly benefiting from the current position certainly provides a positive spin on things.  Indeed as Stephen says "this plan would recoup the public's investment and allow the taxpayer to get the benefit from any increased value in the banks."

Whether or not this becomes Government policy it is important that great initiatives like this, which are supported by prominent members of the party, are communicated back to a sceptical electorate to demonstrate that coalition or not, we are still the party of fairness!

Campaigning in Herontye Ward - East Grinstead

Spent a very encouraging Saturday morning canvassing in my ward with six other Lib Dem colleagues.  Whilst the Coalition continues to be battered by the right and left winged press who, following Barnsley, have started writing the Party’s obituary, the feeling on the doorsteps is much more upbeat!

Members of the public were happy to engage and some key issues, affecting the local community, were discussed.  Pot holes, the lack of cycle racks in the town centre and inadequate toilet facilities (recently addressed and resolved by the Lib Dem Town Council) were common themes.  It was apparent that the people of Herontye ward care about their community and the town and, if elected in May, I will be honoured to serve and represent them.