Ageism hits the Rugby campaign

The local election in Rugby is hitting the big time with the leaflet put out by the Lib Dems in Dunchurch & Knightlow ward criticising the Conservative candidate because he is 21 years old making it on to the pages of no less a blog than Iain Dale’s diary HERE. This will certainly bring it to people’s attention as Iain’s readership numbers are huge. I have a special interest in this issue as the Dunchurch & Knightlow is the ward I have represented for five years and I know the candidate very well. Stuart Davenport helped me when I last stood four years ago and when he was seventeen. I saw then a capable and enthusiastic young man who has broadened his horizons since then and who will make an excellent councillor. This whole issue is ironic because the Lib Dems across the country have candidates the sane age as Stuart! I have no doubt that the Lib Dem’s publicity machine, which has always been something of a loose cannon in this ward, has once again mis-fired and Stuart will be elected, probably with a majority bigger than mine. The results on Friday morning will be very interesting.

The benefits of not smoking

Now I’ve heard everything! I run a business employing 35 people. There are a handful of smokers among them, who if they want a cigarette smoke outside as they have done throughout the 25 years we have been trading. Most are trying to give up and appreciate the support a non-smoking office & warehouse provides. Today the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has issued new guidelines for every workplace in England including the proposal that employers such as my company should give paid time off to attend a non smoking clinic. This is the nanny state gone mad. I’m happy to support those who want to give up (and do) but there is no case for the cost of disruption and absence to attend a clinic being forced on businesses. If smokers wish to stop, that is in their own best interest and the cost of doing so should be borne by them, not their employers. As you might guess, I feel strongly about this one!

Litter Pick

On Saturday as part of the Conservative's Green Action Day, I joined our councillors in Overslade ward, Kam Kaur and Fiona Barrington-Ward on a litter pick. Kam assembled a group of youngsters, I got pickers, high visibility vests, bin bags and gloves from the Council depot and we set off around the ward. It was astonishing just how much rubbish we found and with one of our local papers asking us to let them know about the most unusual item we found, Sara pulled a kids scooter out of a hedge. Hard work in the sunshine, but it was good to see the fruits of our hard work and to be thanked by several of the residents we met on the way round.

St George's Day

This afternoon I went to St Georges Day Parade and service in the Parish Church organised by the Scouts throughout the town. Strange how little we do in the country on the Day of our patron Saint and I’m not sure whether without the contribution of the Scouts whether it would be memorable in Rugby. Memorable it certainly was, as I the Church packed and that was just with Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and their leaders; no room for parents who had to wait in North St and Caldedcott Park for the march past. Two thoughts: we often hear about the bad side of youngsters when people talk about anti-social behaviour and the problems youths can cause and very little about the great things our young people get involved in such as Scouting; and also what a debt of gratitude we all owe to the hard work and commitment of the parents and adults who give up their free time to make sure that organisations such as Scouting continue to thrive. I came away feeling uplifted and not just from the rousing hymns we sang.

Wine Drive

We’re very lucky to live in a lively village where lots happens. Having been to the Group meeting of Rugby Borough Councillors of Friday night, I then joined Tracy at our wine appreciation society (GWAS). This sounds much more posh than it is, but by going over the past 15 years we have learnt about grape varieties, styles and tastes of different wines as well as having a great deal of fun with friends. Fridays evening was a wine drive, with people bringing along wines at about a fiver a bottle which have covered labels and for everyone to score the wines to give a winner. I’m afraid ours didn’t do well and with 26 wines to taste it was a good job we could walk home!

Old Laurentians meet up

I spent Saturday evening at the Annual Dinner of the Old Laurentian Society, held at the school. This gave me an opportunity to meet up with old friends and many made a special effort to be there as our year group all have a significant birthday this year. It was great to meet up with people I see infrequently and also the “usual suspects” who will turn up anywhere for dinner and a beer. I knew about the school news given by the Headmaster as my son Will is in the 6th form, but was pleased to maintain my contact with the school. I have a huge pride in having been to Lawrence Sheriff, and value the contacts I made there and the influence the place has had on my life. As a grammar school (still), boys there came and come from a broad range of backgrounds and it provides a first class education and start in life. We need more schools like it.

Roundabout planting

I’ve just received pictures of a Saturday morning a couple of weeks ago when I joined volunteers planting bushes and shrubs on a roundabout in Hillmorton near the Stag & Pheasant pub. Rugby has an excellent reputation for its contribution to Britain in Bloom and this was Hillmorton’s first attempt at the Neighbourhood category in the regional campaign, with local people doing their bit to make the local environment more attractive. Rugby Borough Council supplied the shrubs but the hard work was put in by volunteers. I was pleased to have the opportunity to help, and will make a special detour each time I’m in the vicinity to see how the fruits of my labours are coming on!

Its started

The campaign for the local elections is now fully under way with 15 seats up for grabs at Rugby Borough Council. As the Parliamentary candidate, I will be out with Conservative candidates in all of the wards we are contesting and have so far been out in three. In the attached photo I'm withMark Williams, our candidate in Admirals and the two existing Conservative Councillor there, Peter Butlin and Mike Stokes. Joining our canvassers is a great opportunity for me to meet people and get a feel of how they’re thinking. Obviously there are those people who remain loyal to the party they usually support, but I’m already getting a sense from people who weigh up the alternatives each time they vote, that Labour’s time is coming to an end. As one gentleman said to me the other evening “they’re getting past their sell-by date”. The results on the 4th May will be very interesting and a pointer to what will happen at the next General Election.

Council Babble

I see that at a teachers conference this Easter, a delegate is attacking “edu-babble”, which is incomprehensible jargon is often used as a status symbol within the profession. As I approach my last month as a councillor, I’ve been looking for example of similar “council-babble” from the many documents that pass across my desk. How about…”PA (Comprehensive Performance Assessment); NNDR (National Non Domestic Rates); BVPI (Best Value Performance Indicator); “Use of Resources Assessment”; VFM (Value for Money); MTFS (Medium Term Financial Strategy; “Member Champions” – all taken from the Audit Commissions ST&CC (don’t know!) Annual Audit & Inspection Letter in respect of Rugby Borough Council, March 2007. Councillors talk about “engaging” with the public, but how are the public meant to understand what is actually happening when so many reports are written in jargon?

Pensions black hole

There is so much that is sleazy and just plain wrong in the stories that are emerging about Gordon Brown’s raid on pensions in his first budget. Its not just that he’s robbed millions of pensioners of security in retirement through his £100 billion stealth tax; not just that he ignored civil servants' advice and destroyed what was one of world's best pension systems; not just that the Treasury's policy papers were released late in the evening of last Friday after Parliament had risen for its Easter recess – all this is what we have now come to expect from Labour. The killer for me is the impact, again ignoring officials advice, on the economy as a whole. In 1997 the stock market was boyant which meant that many pensions funds were in surplus. With the Government taking billions out of pensions, companies had to make up the shortfall which in turn led to lower profits and lower returns to shareholders, the bulk of which are…the pension funds. This contributed to the fall in the stock market shortly after 1997 and anyone with a personal pension plan knows how it’s value fell between around 1999 and 2003/4. So there was a vicious circle in which everyone was a looser. No wonder Labour supporting pensioners have vowed never to vote for the party if Brown becomes leader.

Rugby for Rugby

I have spent the entire day at a junior Rugby tournament in Nuneaton. My son, Tom, plays for Rugby Lions under 15 Rugby team and they reached the semi final, loosing by just one try. It was great to see literally hundreds of lads getting stuck in and channelling the aggression that comes naturally to boys at that age in the right way. Also from my own experience as a player more years ago than I care to remember, there is noting quite like the feeing of “pulling together” in a team sport and doing your best, not just for yourself but also for your mates. The Rugby LionsU15s clearly have that bonding which is a tribute to them and their coaches. Today they did the game, their club and the town proud.