Monthly Archive

• You can vote between 7am and 10pm at your local polling station. 
• If you need a lift to take you to vote call 639 4195
• If you haven’t received a polling card from the Town Hall, don;t worry - just turn up as usual and give your name and address.
• For any other queries, call the Town Hall on 638 7070

First, thanks to everyone who has contacted me about tomorrow’s election.  I’m hopeful we can win but not over confident!  Leasowe and Moreton East Ward (as it is now called) has had:

• Three Labour councillors for 34 years
• A Labour-dominated council for 22 years
• A Labour MP for 16 years
• Three Labour Euro MPs for nine years

Time for change!

It seems that Labour has, once again, decided that where I live makes me unsuitable to be the Councillor for Leasowe & Moreton East.  Presumably that also applies to Cllr. Iris Coates, who also lives ‘miles away’ and near me?

If that’s the only reason they can come up with to vote Labour then I’m afraid they don’t deserve to win tomorrow.

I’ve just heard that New Labour have called the day for the Crewe & Nantwich by-election, following the sad death of Gwynneth Dunwoody.  As the poor woman hasn’t even been buried yet, am I the only person who finds this in poor taste?

As there are just a couple of days until the election, I thought I would publish the email below, received from a resident of Oakmere Close.  Someone who, as a trade unionist and Labour supporter, is clearly now as fed up as the rest of us…

Ian,
I felt that I had to contact you to show my support for you and your party something I never thought I would ever do or say!

I have always voted Labour since I was 18 (I’m 52) and I have been a trade unionist since 1975 and I’m sorry to say that I have become disillusioned and very disappointed with them both nationally and locally. 

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re passing TESCO over the next week, please consider buying a tin of pet food.  The RSPCA is asking people to drop in a tin of food at their collection points in TESCO throughout the week.  There have been some pretty horrific stories lately about some pet owners mis-treating their pets and the RSPCA needs all the help they can get on this.  Pedigree Chum anyone? 

Last night, I attended a meeting in Liscard, called by the Mersey Tunnel Users Association.  Their proposed ‘manifesto’ was discussed at length and feelings were running high in the audience.  The manifesto can be seen here.  The meeting was chaired by Chris Johnson and the panel comprised Cllr. Chris Blakeley, Cllr. Leah Fraser, Stephen Hesford MP, Cllr. Simon Holbrook  and Cllr. Lesley Rennie.  Oh, and Cllr. Kate Wood.

The proposals in the manifesto, including scrapping the tolls altogether, must be worked on and the great coverage given in the likes of the Wirral Globe and Daily Post must be repeated with regular news on this issue.

It was noted that only one of Wirral’s MPs turned up.  Quality not quantity it seems!  Cartoon reproduced from the MTUA website here

Last night, while the Councillors were talking to themselves in the Town Hall, our new team in Seacombe was starting work.  They were keen to deliver a leaflet highlighting our opposition to the doubling of Income Tax on the low paid.  Led by two new members, the team carried on delivering, long after the Council meeting had ended. 

Well, you can if you are a councillor in Wirral.  A councillor from another Party is set to receive a whopping 400% pay rise this month as one of the many ‘gainers’ in the decision to increase councillors allowances.  This, by a Council that ‘can’t afford’ the 175 volunteers who deliver ‘Meals on Wheels’.

I’ve been asked already and I am happy to confirm: if I am lucky enough to be elected on Thursday 1st May I will NOT take the increase.

Today’s Daily Post has an interesting analysis of what the local elections mean for Wirral.  It seems I am a ‘hard campaigner’ - I’ll take that as a compliment as I am the least-threatening person you could meet!

Most of the weekend was spent delivering a leaflet about the disgusting tax rise for the low paid; I couldn’t believe that within minutes of Wallasey’s MP telling everyone to ‘watch this space’, other Labour Ministers were saying ‘no change’ to the policy.  Talk about all over the place!  In the meantime, thousands of low-paid families in Wirral are going to be worse off.  Tell me again how Wallasey benefits from having an MP in the Treasury?

In election campaigns, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that everyone who helps is a volunteer.  Everybody who is giving up their time, or who is making a donation towards the cost of our campaign, is really helping to make a difference.

I’m really pleased to announce that Ian McKellar has been appointed as my Election Agent; Ian was the last Conservative Councillor in Birkenhead and is a former Chairman of a nearby Conservative Association.

Thanks also to those 30+ LOCAL people who help to deliver our newsletters and door-to-door surveys.

This is the regular sight at the Leasowe Park & Ride on Reeds Lane.

Flooding, even after a light shower, means that many car park spaces are frequently out of use.  Unless a driver has wellies.

Thanks to Merseyrail and Merseytravel, this is set to be tackled.  I met with officers last month, along with Cllr. Chris Blakeley.  The work will include repainting of the market lines as well.

I’ve just dropped a note to people living around the entry beside Poppy Close, off Reeds Lane.  I’ve been in touch with the Council for some time, to try to have the entry cleansed more often.  The email from the Council officer, confirming the arrangements, is below.

Good afternoon Ian

Catering assistants are £161 worse off thanks to the doubling of Income Tax for the low paid.  Nursery nurses, sales assistants and home carers are also being hit.  Cleaners, cooks and caretakers are also going to be paying more.

There is ‘huge resentment’ at these tax changes.  They’re not my words; they are what the General Secretary of the TUC says, speaking at their conference in Liverpool.

I’m pleased that the Conservatives have pledged to oppose the tax rise on the low paid and have, instead, set out ways to ease the buden on hard-pressed families.

Due to the persistence of the Police and Anti Social Behaviour Team ,backed up by residents, the ‘family from hell’ I’ve been writing about are set to be evicted on May 8th.  That’s really good news as they have caused nothing but trouble for people living nearby. 

I’m tempted to make this my ‘end of week’ report but there’s probably more waiting for me tomorrow.  Some of the issues I’ve raised for residents have been tackled, in varying degrees this week:

Nice email from a resident of Poppy Close saying the passageway by the side of her house has finally been swept.  Great….but what about the damaged fence at the end?  I’m trying to find someone who will pay for it to be repaired.

Spoke to an elderly couple in Sedgefield Close to let them know Wirral Partnership Homes are sending an inspector round to see the poor drainage problem for himself.

Resident of Lyons Close, hacked off with the neglect of the area.  Couldn’t agree more and it will take more than one of our Green Action Days to sort it.  I’ll see if we can get someone from WPH out.

BIG NEWS on the problem family near Leasowe Station but can’t say too much yet…

It seems that being a disabled, throat-cancer suffering pensioner is not enough to get your bins emptied.  Ruby Wheatley, one of the nicest people you could meet, was paying for neighbours to take her rubbish away because the Council couldn’t.  I’m pleased to report that, at last, with a little help from the Globe, it looks like Wirral Borough Council has finally listened.  How many others are there like Ruby I wonder?

This morning was spent on a bridge over the tunnel approach road in Wallasey.  It was part of a protest organised by the Mersey Tunnel Users Association.  The 10p rise in tunnel tolls starts today (along with the doubled rate of income tax for the low paid).  There was a good turn out although the Wirral Labour councillors who made their token protest by voting against at committee didn’t turn out.

Loads of drivers honked and waved to us, unhappy with this latest stealth tax on the motorist.

This morning was spent delivering the latest issue of Newsline.  Along with the team, we delivered all those areas where we don’t currently have a nominated volunteer.  It was great weather and we got them all out. 

I also called in to see a resident of Fordhill View, unhappy with plans by Wirral Partnership Homes to landscape the area in front of his home.  Sadly he was out, I’ll try to make contact again.

After a couple of beers in Moreton Cross, I walked back to the car park at Leasowe Station, grabbing some chips from Reeds Lane.  Walking back to the car park, I was struck by the amount of litter on this road - in gardens, undergrowth and the car park.  Another green action day is coming up!

Sadly, New Labour is delivering what they probably think is a very clever leaflet slagging off one of the Conservative councillors.  They really have sunk to the gutter.  I won’t be doing that - there are too many issues in Leasowe and Moreton which need attention, I don’t have time!

I’m not a Telegraph reader but there is a really shocking report on the number of people who at risk of losing their homes due to the credit crunch.  The link here takes you to the story.  The map isn’t very clear but it looks like there are many families in this constituency struggling with the rising cost of living.

New Labour.  I just don’t get it.  Everyone knows the cost of living is going up - higher Council Tax and fuel costs to name two.

So, in response, on Sunday, the Government abolishes the starting rate of Income Tax.  For anyone earning less than £15,000, their rate of tax doubles.  Cleaners, waiters, shop assistants, home carers….among others.  The tax rise that means many people, particularly young mums working part time, will actually be better off not working at all and claiming tax credits instead.

I’m not sure what high-flying Angela Eagle thinks of this, as a Treasury Minister.  Frank Field is certainly worried and has asked ministers to explain why some of his low paid constituents will be paying extra tax of £3 a week or more.

It seems the people who have the least are going to be paying the price for Gordon’s bungled budget.  More on this here