Neighbourhood plan
One of the decisions made at the first meeting of the new Town Council was to elect the new Chairman of the Council, and the new council selected Martin Lovell. I was selected as the vice chairman, I am alongside the chairman serving on all committees.
One of the key pieces of work for this council is to deliver the Neighbourhood Plan, this a planning document that fits below the Local Plan.
Originally the Town Council decided that a referendum should be held on the first Thursday in May, but the reason given why this referendum could not take place was that it would clash with the general election. It is now promised for October, however it would appear that there is still a tremendous amount of work outstanding.
Currently I can find no evidence of a project plan for the completion of the Neighbourhood Plan or an effective timescale for consulting and then to write the plan and examination before the public vote.
The Neighbourhood Plan's Vision and Objectives should have been put out for public consultation last February and so far as I can see this has not been done or any date for this to be carried out.
I personally am not happy with the Vision and Objection, in particular the housing section is particularly weak, the objective of Neighbourhood Plan should be delivering housing that local people need, it is obvious that we need more one bedroom properties and homes for an ageing population. We should be stipulating the highest environmental standards of these new homes.
Affordability of housing is a particular issue for local people, the objectives of the Neighbourhood Plan should clearly state how much affordable housing Shepton needs.
The failure of the plan's objectives to address the health needs of the town including the development of the well being centre and further developments in public health is a serious flaw. Serious attention needs to be given to the low take up of further education by sections of our community and how as a community we take life long learning.
The Town centre strategy is seriously under prepared, the plan as we stand has not identified significant employment land for the jobs of tomorrow.
The Neighbourhood plan fails to state the need for sports and leisure opportunities.
For me the policy gaps are quite fundamental to a quality plan.
The other consideration about the Neighbourhood plan is the way it is being compiled. Whilst speaking to people during the recent election campaign, the community seem not to know of the plans existence and it has no community traction, yet the Neighbourhood Plan is a very important document informing policy decisions for the next decade and allocation of public money.
The Neighbourhood plan needs to grab the attention of Shepton people and needs the residents participation, we cannot allow such an important piece of work for the Town to be so anonymous, the neighbourhood plan needs invigorating, it needs to excite and involve the residents of the town.
The reporting back to councillors on the Town Council ( the commissioning authority) has been patchy at best, for example, minutes not being distributed to councillors was one example of the lack of information being shared.
As a Town Councillor I know nothing of the paid consultant, her terms of employment or time allocation to this project or the cost of her time, this has never been reported to me as a councillor.
Last Tuesday the Town Council decided to elect a new team to lead the Neighbourhood plan, the hope for an October referendum is wildly optimistic, we have an opportunity to relaunch the Neighbourhood Plan, this new team has new energy, that will work for a Better Shepton
Tuesday, 19 May 2015
Sunday, 17 May 2015
New Council - New Start?
Its true to say 2015 has been a truly difficult year, certainly a year I would not choose to fight an election, whether District or Town Council elections or the parliamentary one, this not because of the Labour party weakness but the profound loss in the early months of 2015.
It is obvious to say I have neglected this blog, but some things take a higher priority and they put your political activity into prospective and in some ways underline the importance of my political beliefs.
The Parliamentary election was invigorating, giving time to think about why you want to be in politics and speaking on the need to develop a new economy based on production, innovation and technology, how to harness capital for business investment and education and training to increase the skills and productivity of economy.
Too many jobs in rural Britain are low paid, unskilled and flexible and so insecure, too many businesses use cheap labour to hide gross inefficiencies and working practices that make high productivity impossible and make good wages a distant dream.
I loved to talk about the education of our young people, the failings of the first 1000 days of a child's life, Labour introduced Surestart, but much more needs to be done from health visitors and preschool nursery education, equality of opportunity in our area is a slogan, if every child matters, the more has to done to prove it.
We need a housing revolution, one where we recognise that a safe secure home is the best family policy, the foundations for life, why is it that buying a home for local people is out of reach, why the only option is high cost privately rented property? The home owning democracy is now rationed, rationed by years of neglect by our politicians.
On the 7 May I received 6.6% of the vote here in Wells, lost my district seat by 80 votes and was re elected to the Shepton Mallet Town Council.
I look forward to blogging in the coming period on my views for the Labour Party renewal and the updates on the Town Council.
It is obvious to say I have neglected this blog, but some things take a higher priority and they put your political activity into prospective and in some ways underline the importance of my political beliefs.
The Parliamentary election was invigorating, giving time to think about why you want to be in politics and speaking on the need to develop a new economy based on production, innovation and technology, how to harness capital for business investment and education and training to increase the skills and productivity of economy.
Too many jobs in rural Britain are low paid, unskilled and flexible and so insecure, too many businesses use cheap labour to hide gross inefficiencies and working practices that make high productivity impossible and make good wages a distant dream.
I loved to talk about the education of our young people, the failings of the first 1000 days of a child's life, Labour introduced Surestart, but much more needs to be done from health visitors and preschool nursery education, equality of opportunity in our area is a slogan, if every child matters, the more has to done to prove it.
We need a housing revolution, one where we recognise that a safe secure home is the best family policy, the foundations for life, why is it that buying a home for local people is out of reach, why the only option is high cost privately rented property? The home owning democracy is now rationed, rationed by years of neglect by our politicians.
On the 7 May I received 6.6% of the vote here in Wells, lost my district seat by 80 votes and was re elected to the Shepton Mallet Town Council.
I look forward to blogging in the coming period on my views for the Labour Party renewal and the updates on the Town Council.
Friday, 12 December 2014
On the Buses, but not longer if Somerset county council have there way
My letter to the leader of Somerset County Council
Dear Councillor John Osman,
It is with very real concern that I write to you concerning the threat to our beleaguered bus services in Shepton Mallet, if these proposed cuts to our bus service are made it would effectively cut Shepton off at weekends.
Shepton Mallet is a growing town and it needs a public transport system that allows residents who do not have access to a car to travel at a reasonable cost, this to get to work, or visit friends and family, to visit hospitals, arts and leisure facilities that Shepton so badly lacks.
Shepton suffered badly in the last round of cuts with the loss of buses on a Sunday, this latest round of cuts reinforces the view that Shepton Mallet is treated much worse than any other Mendip towns, this is both unacceptable and unfair, for you not to intervene would amount to a betrayal of your responsibility to treat all residents of the County fairly.
The current substandard bus service needs improving to encourage people to use the buses, it is essential that the current minimum service is maintained, Shepton Mallet has no cinema, no theatre, no indoor swimming pool, very little in terms of culture and the cuts would deny the means for none car drivers to access these basic facilities on a weekend. This would affect those families with children whose only access to travel is through the bus services.
Cutting off of Shepton is unacceptable, I hope you will accept this and reconsider the proposals to remove bus services on a Saturday, these cuts will have a very real impact on real people lives and have a disproportionate impact on residents of Shepton and its surrounding villages.
I hope you will reconsider these cuts to our buses.
Best Regards
Dear Councillor John Osman,
It is with very real concern that I write to you concerning the threat to our beleaguered bus services in Shepton Mallet, if these proposed cuts to our bus service are made it would effectively cut Shepton off at weekends.
Shepton Mallet is a growing town and it needs a public transport system that allows residents who do not have access to a car to travel at a reasonable cost, this to get to work, or visit friends and family, to visit hospitals, arts and leisure facilities that Shepton so badly lacks.
Shepton suffered badly in the last round of cuts with the loss of buses on a Sunday, this latest round of cuts reinforces the view that Shepton Mallet is treated much worse than any other Mendip towns, this is both unacceptable and unfair, for you not to intervene would amount to a betrayal of your responsibility to treat all residents of the County fairly.
The current substandard bus service needs improving to encourage people to use the buses, it is essential that the current minimum service is maintained, Shepton Mallet has no cinema, no theatre, no indoor swimming pool, very little in terms of culture and the cuts would deny the means for none car drivers to access these basic facilities on a weekend. This would affect those families with children whose only access to travel is through the bus services.
Cutting off of Shepton is unacceptable, I hope you will accept this and reconsider the proposals to remove bus services on a Saturday, these cuts will have a very real impact on real people lives and have a disproportionate impact on residents of Shepton and its surrounding villages.
I hope you will reconsider these cuts to our buses.
Best Regards
Wednesday, 19 November 2014
NHS Bill on Friday
This is my statement in regard to the private members Bill on the NHS on Friday in parliament
The NHS is one of our greatest achievements and our most important institution. But it’s under threat from a Tory-led government which puts privatisation before patient care.
Now more than ever we need action to save our NHS. That’s why I’m backing Labour MP Clive Efford’s Bill which would scrap David Cameron’s new market framework for the NHS and ensure NHS patients will always be put first.
The NHS has never been more vulnerable than under the present government. The Tories wasted £3 billion on an unnecessary and damaging top-down NHS reorganisation. The new rules allow hospitals to earn up to 49 per cent of their income from private patients, which risks pushing NHS patients to the back of the queue. And their new competition rules force doctors to open up services to competition from the private sector.
Labour will ensure that the NHS once again puts patients before profits. We will invest the millions of pounds saved from scrapping competition red tape in ensuring people can get a GP appointment within 48 hours, or on the same day if they need it.
I have no hesitation in backing this bill as it will make sure patients in Wells Constituency are put first once again. Unfortunately the same can’t be said for our current MP. That’s why I'm asking Tessa Munt to back the Bill and vote for it in Parliament on 21st November.
Patients in the Wells Constituency are relying on her to do the right thing by backing this Bill so that we can put an end to market forces being put at the heart of the NHS. Tessa Munt MP is fond of saying how she always puts her constituents first; its time she backed this up with action by voting for this Bill on 21st November.
The Tories haven’t just destabilised our health service; they’re holding it back from meeting the challenges of the 21st century as well. We need to pass this new Bill so we can end the creep towards NHS privatisation, bureaucracy and red-tape, and instead put patients back at the heart of the NHS . Labour will rescue the NHS with our £2.5 billion Time to Care package which will fund new staff including 20,000 more nurses – investment the Tories will not match
The NHS is one of our greatest achievements and our most important institution. But it’s under threat from a Tory-led government which puts privatisation before patient care.
Now more than ever we need action to save our NHS. That’s why I’m backing Labour MP Clive Efford’s Bill which would scrap David Cameron’s new market framework for the NHS and ensure NHS patients will always be put first.
The NHS has never been more vulnerable than under the present government. The Tories wasted £3 billion on an unnecessary and damaging top-down NHS reorganisation. The new rules allow hospitals to earn up to 49 per cent of their income from private patients, which risks pushing NHS patients to the back of the queue. And their new competition rules force doctors to open up services to competition from the private sector.
Labour will ensure that the NHS once again puts patients before profits. We will invest the millions of pounds saved from scrapping competition red tape in ensuring people can get a GP appointment within 48 hours, or on the same day if they need it.
I have no hesitation in backing this bill as it will make sure patients in Wells Constituency are put first once again. Unfortunately the same can’t be said for our current MP. That’s why I'm asking Tessa Munt to back the Bill and vote for it in Parliament on 21st November.
Patients in the Wells Constituency are relying on her to do the right thing by backing this Bill so that we can put an end to market forces being put at the heart of the NHS. Tessa Munt MP is fond of saying how she always puts her constituents first; its time she backed this up with action by voting for this Bill on 21st November.
The Tories haven’t just destabilised our health service; they’re holding it back from meeting the challenges of the 21st century as well. We need to pass this new Bill so we can end the creep towards NHS privatisation, bureaucracy and red-tape, and instead put patients back at the heart of the NHS . Labour will rescue the NHS with our £2.5 billion Time to Care package which will fund new staff including 20,000 more nurses – investment the Tories will not match
Friday, 14 November 2014
The working persons lot
I remember when I started work being a political hot head and one of my older colleges telling me, that it doesn't matter who is in government, we'll still have to work in the morning, as a 17 year old I thought that rather uninspiring.
My father was a hard working man, first dug coal and later dug graves to buried people for a living, the later was low paid work he also was a retained fireman as well as low paid weekend jobs to pay the bills, mum worked as well with a multitude of part time work, they also were active in the community, running a youth club, being a school governor and PTA, raising money for the scouts, this list could go on.
My parents shaped my view on the world; everyone had a duty to work and pay their bills, you did your best for your family, you played an active part in your community, but more than that, they taught values,
I remember an old tramp that visited our home a couple times a year on his travels, mum always gave him food and drink, even new socks, as a young boy I said to my mum, why do you feed a stranger when we had so little ourselves? Mum said because we have bread and cheese and the man was hungry and showed a little human kindness that you would expect from one person to another, my mum was her brothers keeper, excepting responsibility towards another human being less fortunate then her, even for a short period.
We were fortunate that we grew up in a council property, this allowed us to have a secure upbringing, before 'the right to buy' when council estates where genuinely mixture of people our
neighbours were mechanics, shop manager, factory workers and retired people, all in work and regular families.
I left school in the first Thatchers recession, made in Downing Street, Mrs Thatcher used our country as an economic experiment, history will judge this point in our history when we throw North Sea oil revenues down the drain on welfare benefits, with a huge growth of incapacity benefit, instead of reshaping our economy so manufacturing had a larger place in our country, instead we saw economic growth in the service and financial sectors, with lower skills in our economy.
After 18 months of job schemes I finally got my job with a local company, a closed shop, but I happily joined the TGWU and to this day a proud UNITE member, Showerings were a good company, good wages, good conditions a happy company to work for, until the mid to late 1980s when an Australian chancier launched a takeover bid, causing Allied Domeq, the mother company to cut costs and the company was disposed. A good local company affected by activity in the City of London, the good news for the Australian chancier was he made a shed load of money.
Thirty years of work has seen the economy liberalised, less secure, poorer pay and less social benefits, with a bigger share of the economy going to profits whilst incomes shrink, less collective bargaining on pay with fewer smaller pay rises.
This uber liberalisation cannot be satisfied demanding zero hours contracts, the demand to reduce employment protection and companies avoiding tax, this liberalised economy demands that business owe no responsibilities to their employees.
How it's all has changed in thirty years.
I was reading the other day that 38% of those in work earned less than £7.45 an hour in this area, with large sections of young people not entering further education, it is clear low pay and people whom
do not achieve good qualifications go hand in hand, why do our elected MPs vote (or fail to turn up to vote) to scrap the Educational Maintenance Allowance that supports young people into further education?
The prevailing mood is we have government that supports corporate business against the working person, supporting a low pay insecure employment market, underpinned by sanctions on people whom claim benefits, this government are even considering sanctioning people in part time work, if the government think they can work for longer and the person cannot find that work, they could lose tax credits, further tipping the balance against the worker.
Of course people should work for a living, as most do, our parents taught us so, we were taught responsibility, to do the right thing, we see bankers playing fast and loose with laws, with no police action against them, too many MPs with outrageous claims on expenses with too few prosecuted.
The perception of one law for one and another for the rest of us, we should demand decency in public and corporate life.
So, yes it is true, I will have to work who ever is in government, but I expect government that is decent, that reflects values that is kind to the weak and tough on those who abuse their power, what I have learnt is, the values that my parents taught me allows me to be outraged at the unfairness of our times and disgusted by those whom rig markets in the banks and the utter impotence of the authorities to prosecute wrongdoers.
My father was a hard working man, first dug coal and later dug graves to buried people for a living, the later was low paid work he also was a retained fireman as well as low paid weekend jobs to pay the bills, mum worked as well with a multitude of part time work, they also were active in the community, running a youth club, being a school governor and PTA, raising money for the scouts, this list could go on.
My parents shaped my view on the world; everyone had a duty to work and pay their bills, you did your best for your family, you played an active part in your community, but more than that, they taught values,
I remember an old tramp that visited our home a couple times a year on his travels, mum always gave him food and drink, even new socks, as a young boy I said to my mum, why do you feed a stranger when we had so little ourselves? Mum said because we have bread and cheese and the man was hungry and showed a little human kindness that you would expect from one person to another, my mum was her brothers keeper, excepting responsibility towards another human being less fortunate then her, even for a short period.
We were fortunate that we grew up in a council property, this allowed us to have a secure upbringing, before 'the right to buy' when council estates where genuinely mixture of people our
neighbours were mechanics, shop manager, factory workers and retired people, all in work and regular families.
I left school in the first Thatchers recession, made in Downing Street, Mrs Thatcher used our country as an economic experiment, history will judge this point in our history when we throw North Sea oil revenues down the drain on welfare benefits, with a huge growth of incapacity benefit, instead of reshaping our economy so manufacturing had a larger place in our country, instead we saw economic growth in the service and financial sectors, with lower skills in our economy.
After 18 months of job schemes I finally got my job with a local company, a closed shop, but I happily joined the TGWU and to this day a proud UNITE member, Showerings were a good company, good wages, good conditions a happy company to work for, until the mid to late 1980s when an Australian chancier launched a takeover bid, causing Allied Domeq, the mother company to cut costs and the company was disposed. A good local company affected by activity in the City of London, the good news for the Australian chancier was he made a shed load of money.
Thirty years of work has seen the economy liberalised, less secure, poorer pay and less social benefits, with a bigger share of the economy going to profits whilst incomes shrink, less collective bargaining on pay with fewer smaller pay rises.
This uber liberalisation cannot be satisfied demanding zero hours contracts, the demand to reduce employment protection and companies avoiding tax, this liberalised economy demands that business owe no responsibilities to their employees.
How it's all has changed in thirty years.
I was reading the other day that 38% of those in work earned less than £7.45 an hour in this area, with large sections of young people not entering further education, it is clear low pay and people whom
do not achieve good qualifications go hand in hand, why do our elected MPs vote (or fail to turn up to vote) to scrap the Educational Maintenance Allowance that supports young people into further education?
The prevailing mood is we have government that supports corporate business against the working person, supporting a low pay insecure employment market, underpinned by sanctions on people whom claim benefits, this government are even considering sanctioning people in part time work, if the government think they can work for longer and the person cannot find that work, they could lose tax credits, further tipping the balance against the worker.
Of course people should work for a living, as most do, our parents taught us so, we were taught responsibility, to do the right thing, we see bankers playing fast and loose with laws, with no police action against them, too many MPs with outrageous claims on expenses with too few prosecuted.
The perception of one law for one and another for the rest of us, we should demand decency in public and corporate life.
So, yes it is true, I will have to work who ever is in government, but I expect government that is decent, that reflects values that is kind to the weak and tough on those who abuse their power, what I have learnt is, the values that my parents taught me allows me to be outraged at the unfairness of our times and disgusted by those whom rig markets in the banks and the utter impotence of the authorities to prosecute wrongdoers.
Friday, 7 November 2014
More support with childcare
A Labour government will give 25 hours per week of free childcare to parents with 3 and 4-year-
Today, many families are faced with difficult choices about how they balance work and family life. In some families, parents who want to work are being prevented from doing so because the rising cost of childcare makes it unaffordable - while others increasingly struggle to find decent before- and after-school placements at all.
Under the Conservatives, the problem is getting worse. Too many parents are struggling to cope as the cost of childcare soars and the availability of places falls. David Cameron has broken his promise on Sure Start, with 628 fewer children's centres across the country since 2010. By 2015, the Tories will have taken away up to £15 billion in support for children and families.
Families need more help with childcare: it’s good for families and good for the economy. But with no plan to tackle the rising cost of childcare before the election, it is clear the Tories don’t recognise the pressures that families face today.
Labour has a plan to give families the support they need.
We will extend free childcare from 15 to 25 hours for working parents with three and four-year-olds paid for by an increase in the bank levy. This will benefit nearly half a million three and four-year-olds and their families and help parents overcome the barrier to getting back to work or working more hours.
We will introduce a primary childcare guarantee - a legal guarantee that parents of primary-aged children can access childcare from 8am to 6pm through their local school, helping families tackle the logistical nightmare that before- and after-school childcare can become.
We will renew and reinvigorate Sure Start, reforming the way local services work together to shift from sticking-plaster services to radical early help, to provide good quality support to all families that need it.
A Labour government will give 25 hours per week of free childcare to parents with 3 and 4-year-
Today, many families are faced with difficult choices about how they balance work and family life. In some families, parents who want to work are being prevented from doing so because the rising cost of childcare makes it unaffordable - while others increasingly struggle to find decent before- and after-school placements at all.
Under the Conservatives, the problem is getting worse. Too many parents are struggling to cope as the cost of childcare soars and the availability of places falls. David Cameron has broken his promise on Sure Start, with 628 fewer children's centres across the country since 2010. By 2015, the Tories will have taken away up to £15 billion in support for children and families.
Families need more help with childcare: it’s good for families and good for the economy. But with no plan to tackle the rising cost of childcare before the election, it is clear the Tories don’t recognise the pressures that families face today.
Labour has a plan to give families the support they need.
We will extend free childcare from 15 to 25 hours for working parents with three and four-year-olds paid for by an increase in the bank levy. This will benefit nearly half a million three and four-year-olds and their families and help parents overcome the barrier to getting back to work or working more hours.
We will introduce a primary childcare guarantee - a legal guarantee that parents of primary-aged children can access childcare from 8am to 6pm through their local school, helping families tackle the logistical nightmare that before- and after-school childcare can become.
We will renew and reinvigorate Sure Start, reforming the way local services work together to shift from sticking-plaster services to radical early help, to provide good quality support to all families that need it.
Wednesday, 29 October 2014
I want real recall for MPs, elected representatives and members of Quangos
l believe elected and unelected public represents should be accountable to their communities that is why I support recall.
I support the principle of right to recall when an MP has done something wrong. Labour has long championed this, and it was in our last manifesto. I think it is one of the ways we can empower the electorate, and help restore public trust in politics.
The Government has now brought forward its Bill, but it is not strong enough. It would still fail to hold to account MPs for certain serious acts of misconduct like the Tory MPs who took cash for questions in the 1990s.
Labour supports Recall where an MP has done something wrong, but we are worried about a model of Recall that would give too much power to well-funded interest groups to pressure MPs into supporting their agenda with a constant threat of recall petitions. It is critical that MPs are able to vote with their conscience on the issues of the day and then face the electorate at a General Election. A balance must be drawn between giving the people the opportunity to recall an MP for misconduct and allowing MPs to make difficult decisions that might anger certain organisations or groups.
We will give the Government’s Bill a Second Reading. At Committee stage, I would of voted for amendments that strengthen the Government’s proposals
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