Staffordshire Newsletter, June 11 th 2009, Blue is the colour as Tories sweep to power
THE Conservatives will this week be putting their plans in place as they prepare to take over the task of running Staffordshire County Council after their huge landslide victory.
The party took control last week with a massive majority after winning a whopping 49 seats, in what one Tory member described as a "bizarre day". The Labour Party, the controlling group for the past 28 years, faced a spectacular defeat, losing 29 of its 32 seats and failing even to become the opposition party. Leader John Taylor, deputy leader Robert Simpson and long-standing councillor Mike Poulter, chairman of the police authority, all lost their seats. The Liberal Democrats and the United Kingdom Independence Party each have four seats and are now the joint opposition. Robert Simpson was ousted by Ray Barron in Stafford North, while Ivan Jennings swept to victory, beating Mike Poulter in Stafford West. Councillor Jennings said: "I would like to thank everyone who worked in my team and those who voted. I have got some very big shoes to fill." Mark Heenan beat sitting Labour councillor Maureen Compton in Stafford Central, while John Francis won the seat in Stafford South East from Jack Barber. He said: "I know there have been some protest votes but the party that has won through has done a lot of work. I think the people of Stafford will see a big difference." The party plans to limit council tax increases and spend money on improving roads, social services and youth services. Ian Parry, who held his seat in Stone Rural, said: "I have been fighting local elections for 30 years and today is the most bizarre experience I have ever had."The electorate have been put off by things which have happened elsewhere and bear no relation to this area."We hope to bring a fresh start to this county council. Staffordshire is a great county and we cherish it. We will put forward the policies set out in election campaign."I would like to pay tribute to those councillors leaving the county today. Many on all sides, particularly Labour councillors, will have been victims of this election but they have been hard working, honourable people who will be sadly missed." Two other independent candidates won seats and there are now questions as to whether they will join with UKIP to create a bigger majority and ensure their place as the opposition party. UKIP councillor David Nixon told the Newsletter it was a consideration."Nothing has been discussed. We will have a meeting to talk over various matters." Meanwhile, Christina Jebb, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said she was thrilled the party had doubled the number of their seats from two to four. And former Labour leader and chairman of the county council Terry Dix added: "There will be a lot of inexperienced councillors coming in and having to manage a multi-million pound budget. The council has lost a lot of experienced people in this election."I am surprised at the enormity of what has happened."
Staffordshire Newsletter, May 14th 2009, Poll hopefuls are unveiled, By Gail Atkinson
STAFFORD is being targeted by the British National Party in next month’s Staffordshire County Council elections. The controversial party is fielding candidates in four of the five Stafford wards. Deputy leader of the authority, Councillor Robert Simpson will defend his Stafford North seat against the far right group. In Stafford West existing member Mike Poulter will also have to defend his seat against the BNP along with Stafford Borough councillor Ivan Jennings. The only Stafford seat the BNP are not contesting is Stafford Trent Valley where the incumbent Len Bloomer faces challenges from the Independent Party, Green Party and Labour. Former SBC member Brendan McKeown is looking to make a return to high profile politics when he represents the Liberal Democrats in the ward. Labour’s holder of Stafford South East Jack Barber will also have to fight off a challenge from an SBC member, John Francis, along with former Labour Mayor Mike Shone who is representing the Green Party this time around. In Stafford Central two more SBC members are hoping to win a county seat when Chris Baron (Lib Dem) and Mark Heenan (Con) stand against Maureen Compton (Lab), defending.
Four years ago there were no BNP candidates in these wards. For the first time the Green Party has candidates standing in all nine Stafford and Stone borough seats. One key face missing from next month’s polls will be cabinet member Councillor John Wakefield who has decided to stand down. The Stone Urban ward member, who is also the authority’s economic prosperity portfolio holder, will not be standing. Harry Brunt, former Stone Town Mayor, will replace Councillor Wakefield as the Labour Party candidate in the seat. Also standing down is fellow Labour Councillor Gwilym Roberts who has been a county councillor for 12 years in the Brereton and Ravenhill seat. He is also a former Cannock MP and leader of Cannock Chase District Council. He will be replaced by Labour’s Thomas Anderson who will contest the seat against Cannock’s Brereton and Ravenhill parish councillor Ray Easton (Lib Dem). Voters across the county will go to the polls on June 4 and the council elections coincide with those for the European Parliament. The county council candidates for wards covering Stafford Borough, Rugeley, Brereton, Penkridge and Brewood are listed right.
Staffordshire Newsletter, May 14th 2009, Letters to the Editor Section, Anger at MP's vote
OU correctly stated last week that Stafford’s Labour MP, David Kidney, had signed a parliamentary motion asking the Government to allow Gurkha soldiers with a service record of less than 20 years to be allowed to settle in Britain. On the day you went to press, however, he actually voted with the Government to stop this very proposal, which was carried with the support of 168 Conservative MPs, 71 other opposition MPs and 27 Labour rebels. All 245 opponents of the proposal were Labour MPs. This is a subject very close to my heart and I have written about it before in these columns and have also stood up in the council chamber and spoken on the matter. Stafford is, of course, home to a contingent of Gurkha soldiers 248 Gurkha Signal Squadron which moved into MoD Stafford in 2007. It is an understatement to say that I am livid that Mr Kidney, a supporter of the Labour government that has an open border policy, could vote against such a proposition after indicating his support. This is not the first time he has done this, one other example was the post office closures made by Labour. If readers wish to see his record they can go to www.publicwhip.org.uk or www.theyworkforyou.com.
Staffordshire Newsletter, April 16th 2009, Petition call to bring back bus service, By Gail Atkinson
RESIDENTS in two Stafford estates have launched a petition to bring back a popular bus service. They have enlisted the support of a prospective county councillor who says there is demand for the number 10 bus. The service was run by Arriva but was withdrawn leaving no way to get from Highfields to Wolverhampton Road where there are doctors’ surgeries, a church and shops. It followed a route down to Rising Brook, along Barnes Road and into Wolverhampton Road. Now residents in Highfields can only get a bus to Stafford train station. Anyone wanting to go from Highfields to Wolverhampton Road to get to their GP’s surgery, church or chemist then has a 15 to 20-minute walk. Wilf Trevis, 79, who has osteoarthritis and has also had a quadruple bypass, has already spent £97 on taxis to and from the doctor this year. He has written several letters to Arriva calling for the service to be restored but the company has said it has no plans to reinstate the number 10.
Ivan Jennings, who is standing as a Conservative in the Stafford West ward in the forthcoming county council elections in June, has handed out a petition for residents in Highfields and Rising Brook to sign. Mr Trevis said: "We want them to bring it back. From here to town the service is still a good service but a lot of people need to get to Wolverhampton Road." Mr Jennings said: "There’s a demand there. The fact that there are doctors’ surgeries on that route means it should be considered for having some form of subsidy. It’s like a mini town."Arriva is a private company and if something is not commercial and the county council refuses to subsidise it, a private company won’t run something at a loss." A spokesman for Staffordshire County Council said: "It was never subsidised by the county council but when someone submits a petition it’s given full consideration."
Staffordshire Newsletter, March 12th 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
RECENTLY, I was lucky enough to be invited, with others to the first of a number of days of the Midland Soldier event. It was an absolutely spectacular day with a talk about their ongoing operations. We had the opportunity to meet some of the soldiers and learnt about their experiences and the roles of their units. Stafford has a great history, which is linked closely to the military. There are many brave members in our society who are deployed to any part of the world that our government asks, putting their lives on the line on a daily basis. I would like to join those congratulating Mr Terry on his actions, offering a free night out at Casa to the men and women based at Beaconside Barracks and furthermore making a donation to a charity of their choice. This appreciation was also shown by the splendid turnout of people at the parade on Saturday. There will be another opportunity for the public to display their support on April 24 when the 3rd Mercian’s (The Stafford’s) practise their Freedom of the Borough again.
Staffordshire Newsletter, March 05th 2009, Councillors' 'golden goodbye' idea slammed
TWO PROSPECTIVE Conservative county councillors have reacted with fury to proposals to pay redundancy-style payments to members who lose their seats in Staffordshire County Council elections.
The idea was investigated by the authority's independent remuneration panel after they were asked to look at the issue. Their report was given the backing of the authority's cabinet last month but deputy leader Robert Simpson says he doesn't agree with the idea.
Members are paid allowances to undertake their duties, with leader John Taylor claiming more than £45,000 in 2007/08 and his deputy Councillor Robert Simpson receiving more than £33,000 in the last financial year.
The report suggests the government could introduce legislation to allow authorities to follow recommendations of their independent panel and set up compensation payments for loss of office.
Ivan Jennings, who will stand in the Stafford West seat this year, said: "The expenses are there so it doesn't cost a person to do their duties. That's why they're called allowances."If they're not doing the job of a county councillor they shouldn't be affected because they haven't got extra expenditure to meet."
Mr Jennings, who is already a member of Stafford Borough Council, said the allowances were not a salary. "Robert Simpson works for the borough council. He has a job and it's a pretty well-paid one and he gets time off work for his county council duties because it's a public service so he's not losing anything from that."For some people (the top allowances) are several times their salary and they are getting it on top of their salaries for allowances to do their job as county councillors. For other people who do it because they want to help people for them to come up with this scheme where they get money for failing it's a slap in the face."
Ray Barron, prospective county councillor for Stafford North, said: "Now I have heard it all. People in our area have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. For them and many others this is a time of uncertainty. How can the Labour administration stand there smugly concerned only for their pockets and have such a lack of respect and complete disregard for all their constituents - this is completely outrageous and unacceptable."The sums of money that the Labour county councillors have been claiming as allowances have in one case exceeded £45,000 in one year alone. As taxpayers we feel like we have been mugged."
Councillor Simpson said: "I don't believe there should be any loss of office payments. The payment you get as a councillor is an allowance it's not a salary so why should you get a redundancy payment as such."
Staffordshire Newsletter, March 05th 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
I would like to congratulate Mr Kidney for speaking out against the rent rise by SARH ( Stafford and Rural Homes), which in the current economic times is higher than is defendable. Stafford and Rural Homes are to make a rent increase of 7.55 %, an indefensible decision, which is another kick in the teeth for people, including to those most vulnerable in our communities. According to research done by Help the Aged and British Gas in November, in the Stafford constituency there are already 1,877 individuals who have to choose between eating and heating in the winter. The survey also reveals that in the area 6,257 people live just in one room and 4,693 people stay in bed to keep warm. On March 20th Parliament will be debating the Fuel Poverty Bill and I will expect the Stafford MP to be a leading light on this. It is imperative that we make a change to help these individuals. If elected to the County Council in the Stafford West division I will be doing all I can to help these and other people, which is of course the reason to be elected. I will fully back the Conservative party policy of a £50 refund on council tax for the 85’s and over.
Staffordshire Newsletter, February 17th 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
It is that time of the year again and the different authorities are publicising what increases they are proposing for their section of the council tax. The Labour controlled County Council as readers will be aware have had a big increase in their government grant, however they are still putting forward a council tax increase of four per cent (for their section, which is the largest and so has the biggest impact on council tax payers). The residents and council taxpayers of the Staffordshire area have had over a decade of Labours tax hikes with cuts in services along the way. One recent cut of course effected the provision of retirement homes and among other services, the youth services for example have also had to face cuts. So is there another option to this cycle of tax hikes followed by waste followed by cuts?
The Conservative Group on the County Council put forward an amendment to the Labour increase of four percent. Conservatives proposed to have only a 2.5 percent increase in their section of the council tax and also proposed a package of efficiency savings worth £7.5 million so that an extra £3.5 million could be pushed into frontline services (this includes an extra £1.5 million into road maintenance, £1 million into schools and reducing anti-social behaviour and a further £1 million into funding more community support officers).
So what happened? Well it was very close with the vote coming in 30-23, Labour only defeating the amendment by 7 votes. For people thinking, well there are more than 53 councillors in the county, yes some were not there but also as normal the Liberal Democrats took their position and sat on the fence, abstaining from the vote. What I believe this shows us is that it is pointless voting Liberal as they can’t make the important decisions and if you believe you are paying to much in council tax increases and getting less and less each year from the County Council for what you pay then a Conservative vote at the next elections is your way of stopping the cycle.
Staffordshire Newsletter, February 08th 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
You can now get the dates of your new waste collection, information on planning related to your property, who your local councillors are and where your local polling station is by following the link provided on the Borough Services Page of www.ivanjennings.co.uk no matter where you live in the Borough.
Just enter your postcode and house number and you can find information about the day your bins will be collected and a link to the bin collection calendar for your property
Staffordshire Newsletter, February 03rd 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
The letter entitled “This is no time to spend £23million on council offices” by E Butron brought forward some very valid points. I am informed that the County Council, as part of the preparation for this office development purchased a retail property for in excess of a million pounds, which it intends to knock down just to provide a better view of the proposed offices on the current Tipping street car park.
One point however that I would like to extend on from that letter in your paper of the 29th January is that of the County Councils town presence. The County Council already have a large presence in the town in buildings mainly around the Martin Street area. I would like to extend the point made by adding that in addition to this they also own a number of buildings that are currently not in use and have been allowed over the years to fall into a very bad state. This includes two buildings/sites just a stones throw from tipping street, one of which could actually provide a site for a bus station approximatley the same size as the one at Newcastle-under-lyme . Use of these buildings would mean needed parking would be kept at tipping street, which must be a recognised need for the town as it is also proposed to build a multi-storey car park in the town.
Even if the Tipping street development were to go ahead surely it is about time that the county invest in buildings that it currently owns, therefore saving tens of thousands of pounds in rent. After all it is taxpayers money they are spending not their own.
Stafford Post, April 09th 2009, New Petition Launched To Revive "Vital" Bus Service - Front Page
A petition has been launched to reinstate a vital bus service in Stafford, following complaints from local residents. Borough Councillor Ivan Jennings is helping to launch the petition to reintroduce the number 10 bus route, which runs from Highfields, through Rising Brook, and past the doctors surgery on Wolverhampton Road. Cllr Jennings told us he is calling on Staffordshire County Council to help revive the service, after it was axed several years ago. The County Council Candidate for Stafford West said: "For many people this will be an invaluable service. For example, the number 10 bus route will, if reintroduced, be a more direct link for those who, like myself, are patients at the Wolverhampton Road Surgery. It will also assist those who need to get to similar facilities at Rising Brook, as well as the shops. I was contacted by a gentleman in Highfields who is finding it difficult to get to the surgery because of the loss of this service. He is having to either get the number nine, and walk the rest of the way or get a taxi. This is not an ideal situation, especially for elderly people to be having to walk a long distance just to get to the doctor's surgery. We want the County Council to possibly look at subsidising the bus service with a view to, hopefully, bringing it back."
Cllr Jennings has started to hand deliver a copy of the petition to people's homes in the Rising Brook area. He added: "Just a day after going out and talking to people, we have already had a positive response. we want to collect as many signatures as possible. I am more than happy to help, and firmly believe that what Stafford West needs is for us to start putting people first."
A spokesman for Staffordshire County Council said: " The number 10 service was not origionally subsidised by the county council. However, once the petition has been presented to the council, it is something that we would consider."
Note on this article: Other similar articles were written including "Boost for protest on bus route cut" also in the Stafford Post April 30th, The Stafford Express and Star ran a number of articles on the campaign including a front page on 03/06/09 "Anger over bus route changes" and "Bus station call in centre" in the Friday edition on 10/04/09.
Stafford Post, March 06th 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
I would like to congratulate Mr Kidney for speaking out against the rent rise by SARH ( Stafford and Rural Homes), which in the current economic times is higher than is defendable. Stafford and Rural Homes are to make a rent increase of 7.55 %, an indefensible decision, which is another kick in the teeth for people, including to those most vulnerable in our communities. According to research done by Help the Aged and British Gas in November, in the Stafford constituency there are already 1,877 individuals who have to choose between eating and heating in the winter. The survey also reveals that in the area 6,257 people live just in one room and 4,693 people stay in bed to keep warm. On March 20th Parliament will be debating the Fuel Poverty Bill and I will expect the Stafford MP to be a leading light on this. It is imperative that we make a change to help these individuals. If elected to the County Council in the Stafford West division I will be doing all I can to help these and other people, which is of course the reason to be elected. I will fully back the Conservative party policy of a £50 refund on council tax for the 85’s and over.
Stafford Post, March 02nd 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
Last week I was lucky enough to be invited, with others to the first of a number of days of the Midland Soldier event. It was an absolutely spectacular day with a talk about their ongoing operations. We had the opportunity to meet some of the soldiers and learnt about their experiences together with the roles of their units. Stafford has a great history, which is linked closely to the military. There are many brave members in our society who are deployed to any part of the world that our government asks, putting their lives on the line on a daily basis. I would like to join those congratulating Mr Terry on his actions, offering a free night out at Casa to the men and women based at Beaconside Barracks and further more making a donation to a charity of their choice. This appreciation was also shown by the splendid turnout of people at the Parade on Saturday. There will be another opportunity for the public to display their support on April 24th when the 3rd Mercian’s (The Stafford’s) practise their Freedom of the Borough again.
Stafford Post, February 03rd 2009, Letters to the Editor Section
The letter entitled “This is no time to spend £23million on council offices” by E Butron brought forward some very valid points. I am informed that the County Council, as part of the preparation for this office development purchased a retail property for in excess of a million pounds, which it intends to knock down just to provide a better view of the proposed offices on the current Tipping street car park. One point however that I would like to extend on from that letter in your paper of the 29th January is that of the County Councils town presence. The County Council already have a large presence in the town in buildings mainly around the Martin Street area. I would like to extend the point made by adding that in addition to this they also own a number of buildings that are currently not in use and have been allowed over the years to fall into a very bad state. This includes two buildings/sites just a stones throw from tipping street, one of which could actually provide a site for a bus station approximatley the same size as the one at Newcastle-under-lyme . Use of these buildings would mean needed parking would be kept at tipping street, which must be a recognised need for the town as it is also proposed to build a multi-storey car park in the town. Even if the Tipping street development were to go ahead surely it is about time that the county invest in buildings that it currently owns, therefore saving tens of thousands of pounds in rent. After all it is taxpayers money they are spending not their own.
Express and Star, June 3rd 2009, Anger over bus route changes (see notes above) , Front Page
Express and Star, May 6 th 2009, Top Tory in pledge on courts, Front Page
Shadow Justice Secretary Dominic Grieve today arrived in Stafford promising a Tory government would get more police on the streets and "streamline" the court system. The Conservative frontbencher arrived in town this morning and paid a visit to Stafford Crown Court to see the local legal system in action. He said one of the key targets of a Conservative government would be to tackle the backlog of cases that often build up in the criminal justice system. He also said Tories would aim to get more police officers freed up from desk duties and out onto the streets. Mr Grieve was then set to hit the doorsteps of residents in the Stafford West ward on a canvassing trip with Conservative County Council hopeful and current borough councillor Ivan Jennings. Councillor Jennings said he believed the visit from the shaddow Justice Secretary was in order as local residents in the area are increasingly concerned over crime and anti-social behaviour. Fears have also been raised that Stafford Borough will be hit by an increase in recession-fuelled crime and Stafford Borough Council is set to debate the issue tomorrow. The visit from another top Tory MP means five frontbenchers from the shadow cabinet, including Conservative leader David Cameron, have travelled to the town in little over a month.
Express and Star, April 10th 2009, Bus station call in centre(see notes above), By John Corser