Hyndburn Local Elections - 5th May

[Bernard Dawson]

Originally Posted by garinda

Don't know if it was the last, but Katex was an eye-witness on Silly Cow & Gate night.

That's the one.

[Eric]

Originally Posted by cashman

was probably just as hard to work wi Caligua.

Unless you're a horse

[Ken Moss]

Originally Posted by cashman

am being the Devils Advocate here, if i was a local Tory i may just think the odds on us ever regaining control of Hyndburn may get a lot longer if the public thought P.B. was ever gonna return as leader.

It's not an unfair speculation, in fact many is the conversation that has been had with the Conservative members that they would be more respected as a local party with someone less abrasive and seemingly egotistical at their helm.

Several names leap to mind, Cllr Hayes and Cllr Roberts for starters, both of whom manage to put their point across in a non-confrontational way and without feeling the need to constantly refer to 13 years of Labour rule or what an awful man that Graham Jones is. I have had many productive committee meetings with Tory councillors but they always seem to get lost in the melee once Peter starts posturing.

Council meetings really don't need to be the war zone they have become under Cllr Britcliffe's watch.

[Ken Moss]

Originally Posted by Josie Bloggs

Tempted to go too.

Please do, it's open to all members of the public to come and sit in the gallery (although God help us if all 80,000+ ever did turn up). I'm currently unsure of how Cllr Britcliffe will adapt to not being the centre of attention in council meetings but my gut feeling is that the efforts to make his voice heard over all others will still be attempted.

He'll never get to wear the yellow ribbon again, paraded for the last time for the photographers at the Freedom of the Borough ceremony, not one picture of which was printed in the papers...

However, if you look very closely:

IMG_0745.jpg

[jaysay]

Originally Posted by Bernard Dawson

It does help. But they don't necessarily have to be from the same party. What's important is that everyone is pushing in the same direction. Egos can get in the way sometime of course.

It didn't make one jot of differance when Ken Hargreaves was MP, but the likes of Ken Hargreaves are few and far between

[lancsdave]

There's an article in the Bellylaugh about the recent election sweeteners being stopped. Interesting to scroll down the page and read GJ's comments. Maybe he could post them on here for disection, I'm not doing it I'm not his PA

Labour set to rip up Hyndburn Tory spending plan (From Lancashire Telegraph)

[Ken Moss]

The full scale of Cllr Britcliffe's election promises is about to come out, vast swathes of people offered money in order to tempt them to vote Conservative and now they are told the awful truth of what was really going on.

Jaysay, I know we've differed on many topics in gentlemanly fashion but this is the man you have repeatedly defended in the past and now he has affected hundreds of well-meaning people in community groups by offering money which wasn't really there to start with.

I wonder what his excuse will be? The previous Labour government? Graham Jones?

[g jones]

FROM LT: Graham Jones MP, Haslingden & Hyndburn says...
12:13pm Mon 9 May 11

Over the weekend the Labour Group have become aware of the full financial horror story left by outgoing Conservatives.

They racked up an incredible £5.2m worth of promises in just 12 weeks. That would equate to Labour increasing the Council Tax by over 50% to full fill these obligations. This is set against deep successive cuts in each of the next 3 years and Council debts of £10million. Yesterday the new Council Labour leader Miles Parkinson took the easy decision to suspend pending a full review all £5m of spending commitments, many of which were reckless election gimmicks.

The Tories had allocated £15k to drain a football pitch that had never been played on in years. Worse, a sizeable piece of one half of the pitch has seen a multi use games area built over it resulting in it being useless as a pitch. At my surgery and on the doorstep community activists have told me they were encouraged to turn up at the town hall, there were no criteria or application forms and just say how much they wanted and they were granted it.

The reality is two fold. The Tories knew they had lost so wanted to spend spend spend to leave nothing but empty promises Labour could not full fill whilst winning votes. One Labour voter in key seat of Immanuel told me he was voting Tory because the Council had promised in the dying days to build a brand new pavilion at Immanuel CC (they had).

Whilst housing is a key policy for Labour, there is to be a review of the £millions wasted under the previous administration. Under Labour housing investment is unlikely to be cash handouts or benefit private landlords as under the Tories. Scheme's such as any in Woodnook must provide the Council with a return.

The Conservative government have announced this morning they are putting more money into Woodnook providing the Council match funds it. Hardly a Labour only issue is it?

I have campaigned in parliament continuously, I feel led the campaign to some extent to secure funds post austerity for the housing crises, much of which is poor owners and bad landlords. I understand Council officers will be presented with a number of much lower cost options involving both the public and private sector with whom talks began last month.

The only sensible option now for the Council is a full review of each application on a case by case merit with those seeking funding submitting detailed proposals.

The days of reckless Tory spending are over.

Sent from mobile

[lancsdave]

Originally Posted by g jones

The Tories had allocated £15k to drain a football pitch that had never been played on in years. Worse, a sizeable piece of one half of the pitch has seen a multi use games area built over it resulting in it being useless as a pitch.

Thanks Graham

I didn't know wether to laugh or cry at the above issue

[Ken Moss]

Originally Posted by lancsdave

Thanks Graham

I didn't know wether to laugh or cry at the above issue

The loss of Cllr Britcliffe as Leader is something of a bittersweet victory with little surprises such as this coming out into the open. There will be more to come over the next few months.

Just make sure that you let as many people know just what was done in the name of electioneering by the Conservatives in Hyndburn, the same party that banged on endlessly about the evils of reckless spending so much that they felt compelled to try it out for themselves. Not one of them is on record as being against it, not a single Tory councillor objected.

This is comfortably the biggest act of hypocrisy I have ever witnessed first hand.

[Ken Moss]

Let's just cast our minds back:

£2.6 million for housing in Hyndburn (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Leader of the council Peter Britcliffe said Woodnook was their top priority: “This is excellent news for Barnfield because we have the funds and the relevant control as well. The government have awarded funds to us directly, so we can act on what residents and ward councillors want. In the past we had to abide by Elevate’s plans. I was never a big fan of theirs because money was spent on glossy broches and executive wages instead of where it was needed.” Barnfield ward councillor Paul Barton said he hoped the news would see more green spaces created in Woodnook.

And then forward to today:

Labour set to rip up Hyndburn Tory spending plan (From Lancashire Telegraph)

The borough’s new leader Miles Parkinson said the need to revamp boarded-up streets would see a review of the decision to give every ward at least £100,000. The plan by their Conservative predecessors to share regeneration funds borough-wide has been described by Coun Parkinson as ‘an election gimmick’.

But ousted council leader Peter Britcliffe said the news was ‘disastrous’.

[Margaret Pilkington]

Yes, well isn't it strange how a change of perspective can be brought about when you aren't the leader anymore.

[BERNADETTE]

Lets hope that money is spent in areas that badly need it and Woodnook is certainly one such area. The way it has gone downhill is unbelievable whilst other areas have improved no end. And before it is suggested that the residents of Woodnook and other areas likened to it are deadbeats and don't deserve the area to be bettered, rubbish I say there are plenty of hard working folk living there

[cashman]

agree bernie, i like the idea of what money their is being spent were its most needed, n my area aint one of em.

[Josie Bloggs]

Thankfully, who gives a toss what PB thinks any more, he's not important. Thank God. Good luck new clean council.