Remembrance Sunday – 8th November 2009

Lest we Forget

Jenny and I were privileged to attend today’s Remembrance Ceremony and Church Service held at St Anne’s Church in Bewdley. We were joined by hundreds of other local people to remember the sacrifice made by our Armed Forces. We mustered on the Wribbenhall side of Bewdley Bridge with dozens of service people, Scouts, Guides, Boys and Girls Brigades, Police, Fire, Ambulance personnel, civic and community representatives. The parade marched into Bewdley and assembled outside St Anne’s Church to wait for the service proper at 11am, and the two minutes silence with the Vicars Team and Mayor of Bewdley.
I laid a poppy wreath on behalf of Bewdley Labour Party. The Flag Standards were presented in Church and the service lasted until midday.
Everyone is very well aware of the service given by our Armed Forces, particularly now in Afghanistan. Like many other people, I sold poppy’s in Bewdley and Kidderminster (Franche Co-op). People have given generously.The welfare of our Armed Forces personnel is paramount.

Freedom from Fear

On 6th November I was very pleased to have been able to have helped USDAW the shop workers Trade Union, with their campaign called “Freedom from Fear” at the Co-op Store in Stourport. The campaign seeks to tell the public and shoppers that staff have the right to respect and to work in peace, without verbal or physical harassment and abuse. Jacqui and I gave out dozens of cards and leaflets to Co-op shoppers. Most people of course, hardly need reminding that being abusive to shop staff is wrong. But a minority does. Staff try to do the job to the best of their ability, and in a customer friendly manner. We can help by being patient and polite. So good luck to all USDAW members and thanks to Bernadette for giving me the opportunity to particiapate and meet so many friendly Stouport customers.

A Discordant Note!

This is a difficult piece for me to write. But unless we are honest and explain how we feel and how we measure issues, then what is the point?
The Shuttle has offered Parliamentary Candidates space on its Website to post comments etc. My very strong preference is to write in The Shuttle newspaper itself. I prefer to have my letters published and articles concerning what Labour is doing and believes in, also published.
The Shuttle Editor has the whip hand. Recently, I have offered letters and information to him on Wyre Forest Labour campaigns. None has been published. He informs me that he is disappointed I have not submitted items for his Website. I perhaps wouldn’t mind doing that if he published my letters,articles and Press Releases in his newspaper.
I am going to headline exactly what I have sent to The Shuttle over the last couple of weeks and the Editors response for not publishing any of them.

1. Information on my Bus Pass Petition and campaign to restore concessionary travel for people over 60 and people with a disability.
2. My Press Release calling for more allotments in Wyre Forest – Bewdley and Kidderminster (Puxton).
3. My call to change the bye-law on Car Park Season Ticket holders in Bewdley.
4. My letter concerning the need for a Traffic Survey in Bewdley to improve Pedestrian Safety and safer traffic flows etc.
5. Wyre Forest Labour Dinner at The Brasserie – Ian Austin MP, Minister for the West Midlands and my Press Release with photo.
Clive Joyce’s response to me as to why none of the above was published was to say, “No reason at all Nigel, just how it goes sometimes”.
I am particularly angry that the item concerning Ian Austin and the photograph of him and myself was not published. Why particularly? Firstly,because what he had to say was important. Secondly, a photo item had been published in The Shuttle recently of the Conservative PPC with Ken Clarke MP, former Chancellor, and ours ignored. Thirdly, and for me this sums it up, over the last three years, we have submitted photo items of senior Labour Politicians visiting Kidderminster (at The Brasserie and The Polish Club) of Pat McFadden MP and Minister, Michael Cashman MEP, and Sylvia Heal MP and Deputy Speaker of The House of Commons, and now Ian Austin MP, Minister for the West Midlands.None were published by The Shuttle.
The Editors decision is final! Yes I am well aware of that. So perhaps he would like to explain 1. his voting choice at elections  2. why he gives fantastic coverage to Dr Richard Taylor MP 3. why his editorial team appears to prefer giving column inches to other political parties, but not Labour? The Shuttle Editor still has the whip hand, but only in the confines of  The Shuttle.

Long Stay Car Parking in Bewdley

I have been approached by residents in Bewdley in their effort to help them change the rule concerning long stay parking in Bewdley Car Parks.
Residents currently pay £125 a year for a season ticket. They are now getting a parking ticket from Traffic Wardens and being fined for leaving their vehicles for the full day duration unless they move their vehicle for one hour out of every 24! Wyre Forest District Council has acted upon a small print rule which forces residents to move their vehicles after 23 hours. Allowing 24 hour parking has been the norm for many years. The reason being given for the change by the Tories is that 24 hour parking  “implies ownership”! In practice this now means that residents who have a season ticket and leave their vehicle in either of the town’s two main car parks can now be fined unless they move it for an hour in every 24!! This is a ridiculous rule, and anyone with an ounce of common sense knows how difficult it is to find a parking space if they live in the town centre. There just aren’t any alternatives!! One does not consider one has achieved “implied ownership” when one books a long stay car parking space at an airport!  The Tories on WFDC are NOT on Bewdley residents side about this issue!! I say, drop this unfair catch-all rule and let residents who have a season ticket continue to park for 24 hours without being fined. A petition initiated by Bewdley Labour Party and residents is now collecting signatures to rescind the bye-law.

Wyre Forest Labour Party Annual Dinner -Ian Austin MP Guest Speaker

We held our annual dinner on Friday 23rd October at  The Brasserie Restaurant in Kidderminster. Seventy members and friends of the Labour Party attended.The guest speaker was Ian Austin MP for Dudley North who is the Minister for the West Midlands. He set out Labour’s financial and economic programme to beat the recession. He told the audience that many businesses had been helped to ensure they come through the recession stronger and that workers kept their jobs to pay their bills and mortgages.
He acknowledged the work I was doing to ensure that Labour’s message to invest in businesses and public services during the recession opposed to the Tories do nothing policy. This included my campaign to get the proposed new high speed rail  link with Kidderminster and the new Birmingham hub.I also urged him to consider investing in Worcestershire for the new science technologies which were the key to the future by ensuring that government invests in apprenticeship schemes and higher education is expanded – Worcester University being a good example.

Helping Businesses and families through the recession

I attended an excellent political meeting yesterday in Worcester with two Ministers and a Euro MEP – very well attended. Mike Foster set the scene with an excellent presentation of how Labour is helping businesses and families in Worcestershire. Our new schools building programme is succeeding in Wyre Forestand will help improve standards with a £180 million spending programme.Many local companies are involved and they use local materials and local workers. MEP -  Michael Cashman explained how the Tories in Europe are reactionary and choose to sit with representatives from the far right, and they vote against progressive legislation.
Ian Austin -  Minister for the West Midlands spelt out what the Labour Government is doing to end the recession by supporting the banks, businesses, public services and working families. Job protection and new Business Start Ups are vital to success. Companies like Qinetiq are essential to our Worcestershire economy in developing high tech business. I have asked for specific information on businesses in Wyre Forest and will follow this up with him next week when he is our guest speaker at the LP dinner at the Brasserie.

Labour Jobs and Services or Tory Cuts

According to the media, the General Election Campaign has already started. The three main political parties have finished their Conferences and Parliament is about to resume. In Wyre Forest, I am going to take the fight to Labour’s opponents. My platform is our Governments defence of jobs and living standards. The Tories have made it clear that Cameron and co will stand for cuts to welfare and public services. Our Independent MP will have to decide whether to support Labour’s policies or not. Every vote in Parliament from now on will either be in favour of jobs and services, or to support the Tories.
We will make sure that the people of Wyre Forest have enough information about the local economy to take  judgement on Governments performance and that of our opponents. And we will let everyone know how our Independent MP votes.

Disability Action Wyre Forest

I was pleased to have been asked to speak  to a meeting of Disability Action Wyre Forest on the issue of Concessionary Bus Passes.I explained that 18,500 people in Wyre Forest, including the disabled, had had the right to travel on buses before 9.30am removed by the Conservative controlled District Council. The cost saving is £40,000. No doubt, this money will go towards the Conservatives new Headquaters? I have now provided Disability Action with my Petition forms, which call for the Conservatives to reinstate the right for pensioners and the disabled to get on buses before 9.30am. Let’s not forget the Conservative Cuts Budget was supported by the Liberals, one of whom had sent his apologies to the Disability Action meeting.
A sad irony also, was that a Liberal award for “No Barriers” against the disabled was obviously the opposite of the Liberal supported vote to cut the right for the disabled to get on a bus before 9.30am. It might have been instructive, had he been able to attend, to have listened to his explanation of justification for the Liberal supported cut to bus usage. Labour did NOT support the cut!

Hospital Petition

In just one hour until noon today outside Kidderminster Town Hall, five Party members collected 90 signatures calling on the Worcestershire NHS Trusts to increase services at Kidderminster Hospital – a Birth Unit, Palliative Care Unit and Radiotherapy Unit. Over 10,000 people have now signed up, but it seems to me that now is the time for more ‘Democratic Accountability’ in the NHS. There is a potential storm brewing in Shropshire regarding the transference of A&E from Telford to Shrewsbury and inWorcestershire we could lose Cancer Head and Neck services to Gloucester. I say again that NHS service provision and location needs to have a democratic input! Let’s have elected NHS Boards now!!

Stourport Bye Election – Democracy?

I quite enjoyed the Stourport Bye-Election though the result was not good for Labour. A 24% turnout is also not good! Our team canvassed and delivered thousands of leaflets. Our spirit and moral remains very high. Given Dr Taylors declaration to stand again (if he ignores the 68% of Shuttle respondants who said he shouldn’t), I believe the next election will be crucial for politics in Wyre Forest. Whatever happens, if and when the Doc goes, that will be it for his party.

How about compulsary voting? I would vote for that. If Kabul or Baghdad had a 24% turn out, critics would complain that democracy wasn’t working. It is a citizens right not to vote and a politicians duty to analyse why they refuse to do so in such large numbers. We know the reasons why, but it doesn’t make it easier to tolerate such low turn outs. If electors across the country consider politicians to be corrupt or useless or both – we must address that issue and put it right.