Monday 30 July 2007

Normal service is resumed

Sunday’s newspaper headlines: “Flood defence chiefs given big bonuses”; “Official: doctors do less work for lots more pay”; “Home Packs - a tool to raise council tax”. So, it’s back to more stories of this Government taking increasing amounts of money in tax only to waste it on extravagant spending which provides no better a service to the taxpayer. Even worse, on the issue of flood defences, it seems to be rewarding failure rather than success. With this approach typical, I’m pretty confident that the Brown bounce will be short lived.

Thursday 26 July 2007

Town Centre CCTV

Along with Councillors and other guests on Wednesday I visited the control room of the new Rugby BID CCTV system. I don’t suppose many criminals or people involved in anti-social behaviour in the town centre regularly read this blog, but if they do, having seen the 40 plus state of the art monitors that are checked around the clock, my advice to them would be don’t do it. They are bound to be seen on camera, recordings are retained, and the information has already led to several successful prosecutions.

Friday 20 July 2007

Town centre developments


I spent Thursday afternoon with Robin Richter, MD of Rugby First who manage Rugby’s town centre. Robin brought me up to date with new developments. These are exciting times for Rugby with development about to start on the new ASDA development and additional units in the town centre, which we have waited for over more years than most people care to mention. Robin is also working hard to attract new quality shops to Rugby to keep our more affluent shoppers in the town and we can see the effect of this in a resurgent Regent/Albert Street area, styled the “independent sector”. We also spoke about the need for Rugby to make more of is principal attribute as the home of Rugby football. As a keen former Rugby player myself and knowing people who have come to Rugby because of the connection with the game, it is clear that we need to offer more. It also turns out that Robin’s and my career paths overlapped over 25 years ago in the catering trade and we were able to reminisce about characters we both used to know.

Tuesday 17 July 2007

Indoor event


On Friday I attended a summer supper held by Ansty & Shilton branch where the guest speaker was Alastair Burt MP, member of the Conservative Frontbench team in the Dept for Communities and Local Government. By now he is in Rwanda, where David Cameron will shortly be launching a policy review document on international development, and where Alastair is making his mark by training young lads how to play soccer. Also at the supper were Malcolm Harbour MEP and Kevin Foster, Parliamentary Candidate for Coventry south, all pictured indoors & on the stairs as it’s been the kind of summer where outdoor events have been a washout.

Friday 13 July 2007

Alastair Campbell's Diaries

Has any one else watching the BBC's homage to Campbell noticed that he is always proved right?

Ealing Southall Campaign


I spent yesterday in Ealing Southall helping in the by election campaign. There is a real buzz there! I expected to be delivering leaflets and canvassing, both of which I did but I also ended up joining George Osbourne’s visit to the Gurdwara Sri Singh Sabha which is the Sikh place of worship in Southall, an impressively large building in itself and where were offered and enjoyed a meal in the Pangat. This is a community kitchen where a free meal prepared by volunteers is offered to everyone and yesterday George helped by serving the food. We were made to feel very welcome. Later I joined candidate Tony Lit’s entourage on a walkabout in the main shopping area of Southall. Tony is a very popular and charismatic candidate with many people eager to shake his hand and wish him well. With lots of people including former Labour Councillors committing their support, the result next Thursday will be very interesting. I also met Syeeda Warsi, with whom I was once on a candidate training course and who has just been appointed as Shadow Minister for Community Cohesion and fellow candidate Mark Clarke who is also Chairman of Conservative Future and who will contest Tooting at the next election. Tony Lit wasn’t available once I had got hold of a camera, so the photo, taken in the campaign centre, is with Mark.

Monday 9 July 2007

Thoughts on Social Policy Group proposals

Conservativehome have an interesting article here on just one of the proposals contained in Iain Duncan Smith’s Social Justice Policy Group Report, namely that of higher taxes on alcohol. Having spent some time with IDS when he was in Rugby a few weeks ago, I know just how seriously he takes the need to address our broken society and any ideas his group bring forward should be listened to. The Sun’s response today was predictable; any increase in tax on is bound to be unpopular and particularly when it is on a product that people see as enabling them to enjoy themselves. Also the libertarian argument that people should be free to spend their money as they see fit is a fair one.

However there is a time when politicians should not fall for the populist option. When I was the Conservative candidate in Nuneaton I spent a Friday night out with the police and witnessed the mayhem caused in a town centre between midnight and 3 am caused by people who had drunk too much. I saw violence, damage and many scared people frightened by what might be about to happen outside the kebab shop. Luckily a heavy and good-natured police presence prevented anything major that night. Later I went onto housing estates to see what happened as people arrived home drunk and started domestic arguments, one wielding a machete. When I visited the local hospital, I was told about the extra staff that are needed on a Friday and Saturday night and some of the unpleasant incidents they had to deal with, many fuelled by drink.

The article set out some statistics of the harm caused by alcohol and points out that prices have fallen in real terms with the young (who cause a large proportion of the problems I saw) are particularly sensitive to price changes. For these reasons I don’t see a difficulty in raising the tax on drink. I was astonished a couple of budgets ago when the duty on cider was left untouched because the main consumers of strong cider such as the 7.5% White Lightening are youngsters wanting to get drunk, as evidenced by the empty bottles that can be seen in underpasses, in parks and other places they meet.

If the decision is taken to increase alcohol taxes, responsible drinkers can legitimately feel that they are being penalised by the appalling behaviour of a few. I am also concerned by the view that if the price of alcohol is increased, more people will turn to illegal drugs as an alternative; and the effect on local pubs currently having to deal with the smoking ban should not be underestimated. But on balance I believe that there is merit in the idea that IDS is bringing forward. There is much work to do in improving the state of our society and this can be a step in the right direction.

Friday 6 July 2007

Letter to Editor - Rugby Observer

Far be it from me to intrude on private disputes within the Rugby branch of New Labour, but I would just like to share my agreement with the sentiments expressed by Nick Mathews of Hillmorton in his letter dated 5th July published in your paper concerning Andy King’s interest in the Parliamentary seat.

Along with “many in the (Labour) party”, I am also “not looking to disturb his political retirement.”

Tuesday 3 July 2007

Terrorist suspects

I can understand that the terrorists who placed bombs in London & attempted to blow up Glasgow airport were known to the security services (according to Sky today). I can just about accept that they were employed by the NHS. But known to the security services AND employed by the NHS?

Sunday 1 July 2007

Standing up for rural communities

I spent today dodging the rain. Firstly at Bulkington where I attended the annual carnival which I last did when Bulkington was in Nuneaton constituency and I was the candidate there. Now it's in Rugby and despite the downpour, people were just as enthusuastic. I then went to the Royal Show where I joined volunteers on the CRAG (Conservative Rural Action Group) to collect signatures on a petition calling for support for rural communitites. With Post Office closures, shortages of rural affordable housing, the shutting down of A&E units at local hospitals, increasing levels of Council Tax and the rural payments crisis, those living in rural areas are having a tough time. We met many people, and heard their thoughts on rural problems, while standing up to our knees in mud.