Weekly News 12th February 2010

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by our parliamentary candidate David Watts.

1. Council Tax

Tory run Greasley Parish Council have decided to raise their element of the council tax for this year by £10 per person. Given that parish councils amount for only a small element of the total council tax this represents a pretty big increase. Other town and parish councils will be announcing their council tax rises over the next few weeks, before Broxtowe and the County Council settle on their figures.

2. Vandals Target Church

Thieves and vandals seem to have targeted St Mary’s Parish Church in Eastwood, smashing stain glass windows and causing several thousand pounds worth of damage. If anyone knows who is responsible for this please pass this on to the police or to Crime Stoppers.

3. Oaks Medical Centre

I was disturbed to read that the Oaks Medical centre in Beeston has thrown 120 of its patients off their register. They say that they need to reduce patient numbers to maintain care, but frankly it seems to me that this is a poor way of going about things, with patients simply being given 28 days to find somewhere else.

4. Tesco’s

Work starts this week on the new Tesco for Beeston. Whether you supported or opposed the store, I’m sure that everyone will welcome the end of having a large patch of derelict land in the middle of Beeston. Removing that is an important part of the redevelopment of Beeston Town centre. However Tesco’s have also applied to build a new store in Sandiacre. Although this is in Erewash it is close to Broxtowe and would impact on business here. Broxtowe have formally objected to this new store being built.

5. Housing

The councils latest consultation on where new development might take place will be launched publicly next week. The council have also arranged for two public meetings where people can have their say and ask any questions that they have. These have been arranged for Roundhill School, Beeston on Thursday March 4th at 7pm and for George Spencer School, Stapleford on Wednesday March 10th , again at 7pm. There will also be a further meeting arranged for Trowell but the date for this hasn’t yet been confirmed.

6. Toton Trees Meeting

May I remind people that a public meeting is being held tomorrow at the Greenwood Community Centre in Toton at 4pm to discuss the chopping down of the trees on Toton Sidings. Anyone interested is welcome to attend. Nick Palmer, Anna Soubry and I will all be attending.

7. Geoff Hoon

Ashfield MP Geoff Hoon, whose constituency includes Eastwood and Brinsley, has announced that he will not be seeking re-election. Although the press are suggesting that this is because of the internal warfare going on in the Labour Party (and his attempt to force a leadership vote last month didn’t make him popular with many of his own party members) I suspect that the growth of support for the Lib-Dems in Ashfield, which has been very significant over the past few years, also contributed substantially to this. Ashfield is now one of our most significant target seats, and I confidently expect voters there to return a Lib-Dem MP after the next election.

8. Bramwell Nursing Home

As you may well be aware the Tory County Council have proposed selling off this nursing home to private business (as well as others in the county). I am totally opposed to this. I think that it creates fear and uncertainty for the residents, and demonstrates the uncaring nature of the new administration at County Hall. Tory candidate Anna Soubry also says that she is opposed to this plan, but Anna really can’t have it both ways. She cannot in all honesty stand on a platform saying this shouldn’t happen whilst at the same time urging people to vote for the party who are making it happen.

9. Bramcote Hills Primary School Family Fun Day

May I thank all the parents and children who made this event such a great success, and especially those who voted in the family photograph competition. The challenge was to take a picture of the family engaging in a hobby, and I’m delighted to say that the Watts family picture, showing us playing guitars or singing (not me singing as I can’t carry a tune in a bucket) was voted as the overall winner. Although I’m a keen photographer I think this is the first time I’ve ever won a photo competition, so thank you all for your votes. (I hope I’m saying that on May 6^th as well.)

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter. Any feedback is very welcome.

David

Changes to this blog

Sorry that there hasn't been much on this blog recently but instead I've been editing a weekly newsletter. I'll now be posting that on here each week as well.

Iraq Inquiry A Farce

So Gordon Brown has decided to have an enquiry to "answer the questions" about Iraq. This is designed to restore the public's confidence in the Government, from the man who promised a more open and transparent form of politics. The members of the enquiry team are hand appointed by the prime minister, the enquiry will sit in closed session, the terms of reference do not permit it to apportion blame or express a view as to any potential criminal or civil proceedings against any person, no witnesses will be compelled to attend and evidence will not be delivered under oath. Does the word "whitewash" spring to mind. If Brown believes taht people will accept this he is even more misguided than I thought.

TV Discussion

I will be appearing on the Politics Show on BBC1 this Sunday along with a representative from the Green Party to discuss the new Tesco store in Beeston, which was given planning permission last night. I chaired the meeting and voted in favour of the scheme. It seems to me that having a store so close to the High Street, with free parking, may well attract more shoppers into the town. Afetr all, people park at Sainsbury's and visit other shops as well. By ensuring that Tesco's provide free parking for all shoppers for a minimum of 2 hours, which they will sign a legally binding agreement to do, and by removing a shop from the High Road to open up access to the car park, which they have done, I think that the store can be a benefit to the town.

It is however only part of the work. We desperately need to renovate the Square and get new facilities built there. We don't have enough large shop units in Beston to attract the range of retailers that we need, and as a result many companies who would like to have come to us have stayed away. We need to bring them in.

As well as major traders we also need to ensure that there are still spaces for local traders and speciality shops. We don't want to lose the chacater of Beeston so that it becomes just another identikit town.

Issues like this illustrate the genuinely difficult decisions that local politicians have to make week in and week out.

The Ineffective Labour Party

This weeks developments show just how ineffective the Labour Party in parliament is - they can't even organise a coup properly. It was obvious on Thursday, with a number of ministers resigning, that there was a plot against Gordon Brown. However it's been botched. All that has happened is that it has left the Prime Minister with a considerable weaked power base and resentment running large through the Labour Party. The Prime Minister has been briefing against his close colleagues, and they have been briefing that they were going to get rid of him. In the end it has all been a farce. throughout all the public have wanted is for there to be a general election so that we can get this lot out of office, but it has never been forthcoming.

Public Good or Private Gain

Labour MP's today need to ask themselves what they value more, doing the right thing for the country or getting the best for themselves. If they want to do their best for the country then they must force Gordon Brown to either quit or call an immediate election. Their all time record low of 15% of the vote in the Euro elections shows that they no longer have any mandate to govern. If they believe that the British people really want them to carry on as they are then let the British people have their say on this.

However these same MP's know taht if there is an election huge numbers of them will lose their seats. They may therefore decide taht it is better to cling on to the bitter end and milk every penny out of the system they can before the public give them the boot.

Apparently the Parliamentary Labour Party have a meeting tonight. We should know very quickly whether they want to do what's right by the country, or whether personal self-interest is their overriding concern.

Election Results

Well done to all our Broxtowe candidates in yesterdays elections who gave us our best ever set of results. We won five of the ten seats in the borough and polled 29% of the vote, above the national average and well above Labour's 19%. The Tories polled 35% so we've got 6% to make up on them.

Nick Palmer has worked hard as an MP but he supports Gordon Browns Government. Labour have come third in Broxtowe now in the last two elections and it is clear that Nick will not win a fourth term as MP. The only question for voters is whether to elect a Tory who doesn't line in the constituency or me, a long term local resident who even Dr palmer himself said would make a very good MP.

Resignations

To lose one minister is unfortunate.
to lose two ministers in careless
To lose three ministers in appalling.
But now, to lose four ministers in the period of 24 hours is unprecedented.

Anyone who thinks that the Gordon Brown's government is not falling completely apart is fooling themselves beyond measure.

If Mr Brown really thinks that he has the support of the British public then he can prove it - call the election now. If the public support him they will vote him back in and his authority will be considerably strengthened. On the other hand ....

D-Day

President Obama has said in an interview with the BBC this evening taht he is doing all he can to ensure the Queen is invited to the D-Day commemerations on 6th June. Two thoughts immediately leap to mind. The first is that many thousands of British soldiers fought and died bravely on D-Day for the liberation of Europe, and for the French not to have ensured that the Queen was invited as a matter of course is a national insult. Second Gordon Brown, as Prime Minister, should have ensured that she was. His failure to act is lamentable. He eventually agreed to go himself, only after pressure from vetrans, but never botehred to ensure that Her Majesty was invited. That it falls to the American President to arrange this represents a serious dereliction of duty by Mr Brown. It's yet another sign, if any more were needed, taht he is not fit for office and that he should call a general election now.

I myself am a pacifist. However I recognise fully the bravery and sacrifice of my grandfathers generation, who fought against the tyrrany of Hitler. Their self-secrifice and what they endured is something that all of us should keep strongly to mind. Not inviting the Queen is an insult to all their memories.

Youth Debate

Earlier this year Nick palmer, Anna Soubry and myself took part in a series of debates around the constituency, setting out the case for our respective parties. I'm delighted to announce that they have both accepted my invitation to run a further debate in the autumn aimed specifically at young people. We'll need to work out the details but with all three of us in agreement there shouldn't be any reason for it not to go ahead.

Call The Election

Two more MP's have been forced to announce that they will not seek re-election at the next general election after what were, in blunt terms, fraudulent expenses claims. this is however unlikley to satisfy most people and I find myself agreeing with David Cameron (not something I've said often) that the only way forward is to call a General Election now.

Vote Match

I've added a new button on the left to Vote Match, a new tool by the movement For Democracy (forermly Charter 88). I took it and fortunately it did suggest that I ought to vote Lib-Dem as they best represent my views, followed by the Green party, which is what I would expect and with UKIP trailing in last.

Good Riddance To Bad Rubbish

The first BNP councillor elected to Broxtowe has been thrown off the council for failing to attend meetings. In a six month period she did not attend one meeting. Is this how the BNP believe that democracy should work? Good riddance to the racists and lets hope we have no more of them.

Mr Speaker Should Go

Commons speaker Michael Martin has once again shown that he is not competent to fulfill the role he holds. Not content with throwing away crucial rights and privileges of parliament by allowing the police, in an operation driven wholly by the wishes of the Labour Party, to search the offices of a Conservative MP, he now attacks MP's who have criticised their colleagues for having snouts in the trough. Does the man not realise that it is not the disclosures in the newspapers which damage Parliament but the fact that he and his team have allowed MP's to pursue such self-serving greed in the first place? It's no good blaming the messenger when the message makes him uncomfortable. Parliamentry staff should have stopped these abuses before they ever began, and Mr Martin cannot escapte the fact that this all happened on his watch.

Previous Speakers of the House have risked imprisonment and even death to protect the integrity of Parliament. Mr Martin seems to be pursuing a one man crusade to drag it into the mud. If he had any integrity whatsoever he would have resigned over his previous errors, but his latest outburst today must surely convince even his closest friends that he has to go, and to go now.