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| I-Pod, Wash With Care ---
20 Aug 2008
Whilst getting into my car yesterday morning ready for work, I had a horrible moment when I was unable to locate my beloved I-Pod.
There were 2 options -
1. It was still in my wardrobe.
2. I had left it in my uniform pocket and it had been washed.
A quick phonecall home revealed that option 2 was indeed the case!
To make matters worse, my colleagues at work found it funny as did Mikes Colleagues when I rang him to tell him. So, I was in a decidely bad mood, not receiving any sympathy from anyone as to the loss of my beloved companion.
You see, my Pod is an important possession as I spend a lot of time in the car and listening to music is a pleasure. Anyone who spends a lot of time in their car will relate to this. The music i play reflects my mood and indeed has an influence on it.
My music collection is somewhat elecletic, I have 80s music (Adam and the Ants, Spandau Ballet and Duran Duran), Motown, Classic, Rock, Relaxation and Pop Music (Kylie, Sugababes, Coldplay, The Ting Tings, Duffy) In fact there is not much music that I dont like.
Amazingly, last night, I turned it on and it fired up. A testament to the technology and a stroke of luck to be sure.
However, at luchtime Mike had been out and bought me a shiny new 80GB Pod from Currys. Overwhelmed by his kindness, he spoilt the moment by explaining that it was only because he could not stand my complaining!
So, I now have lots of free space to download even more music and there is is a rumour that Spandau Ballet are getting back together.....
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| Bus Wars! ---
14 Aug 2008
Sadly, in Todays Echo we have been critised by our esteemed Labour Cabinet colleague Councillor Nick Wallis.
The move to suddenly challenge Arrivas decision to cut vital bus routes is another fine example of a reactive response instead of a proactive approach by the Labour Group.
They knew about the changes in April but chose not to act.
Hartlepool Borough council reacted quickly and responsibly when their residents were suffering through lack of a bus service to the Headland. So, therefore are Hartlepool Council being a soft touch by susidising this Stagecoach bus service or are they responding to the needs of its residents and prioritizing needs? You decide.
In terms of the accusation that “the Tories are fast becoming the party with apparently limitless cash to fund their pet projects”. Is Councillor Wallis suggesting that free travel before 9.30am for pensioners and vital bus services are pet projects? It would appear so. We consider them vital services that allow people to lead an independent life.
We know that residents in our ward do not think that even basic services are being provided and these cuts to bus services has caused much anger and distress to residents and their families. This Labour council has lost touch with the people it represents and makes decisions without even considering or perhaps even caring about the effects it will have on the people of this town.
It may be a cliché but we do care and we will challenge and continue to challenge decisions that we believe have a detrimental effect on the lives of the people we represent.
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| Another Proud Day ---
14 Aug 2008
Today was exam result day and as i was off work Lauren wanted me to go with her. I must admit that i didnt have a problem getting out of bed this morning, usually it takes a couple of snoozes on the alarm before i can force myself out bed. I have never been a morning person, I have always stayed tucked up under several duvets until the very last minute, leaving the minimum amount of time to get ready.
But this morning i was awake early. I think that I was more nervous than she was. It never ceases to amaze me how much confidence young people have nowadays, i was incredibly shy at her age (really).
I have to admit to feeling slightly nauseous walking through the doors of the college, as in my day exam results were posted to your home (just as well in my case, thats another story for another day). The atmosphere was, i can only describe as emotional as some students were hugging and clearly pleased with their results and others were in tears clearly suffering from massive disappointment.
The funny part was Lauren got her results but we could not understand what she had got, so there was a moment of panic until we found her form tutor who informed us that she had 4 As. Hugs and kisses all round and i had to swallow hard to stop the tears coming.
She has acheived Law, Sociology, Psychology and Politics at A/S level and is next year going on to take A Level Law, Sociology and psychology.
Well done, Lauren and all of the other students who got their results today....
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Media Whores ---
11 Aug 2008
Following an article in todays echo about the continuing saga in Harrowgate Hill of lack of buses to two areas of the ward, we have been accused by fellow blogger Labour Councillor Nick Wallis of being media whores!
nick wallis blog
My response on his blog is -
"Media whore or representing the people? You decide!
The council has a duty of care to provide a service for its residents and as your leader was quick to point at full council, Arriva is a commercial organisation which means there to make a profit. And yes John I do understand what commercial means!
In fact, it was the Cabinet report that noted that five areas in the town would be affected by the commercial decision by Arriva to change the routes and it was recommended in the cabinet report that the council should consider subsidising routes to service these affected areas. All we are simply doing is to try and make sure that these proposals are put to Cabinet sooner rather later or alternative proposals.
But it is a bit naive to even suggest that Arriva (commercial organisation) is going to put services into these areas out of the goodness of their hearts. The decision by Arriva was based on patronage figures that the council have not seen. We have to take their word for it that these routes were not commercially viable? Perhaps they may turn out to be not so commercially unviable as first thought.
As for sending a dubious message to the Post Office and Arriva, it is not them you are serving, it is Darlington residents, for whom you need to provide a service, not worry about being thought of as a soft touch by organisations. It is a shame that you did not worry as much about your reputation with the people of Darlington because you might react quicker to problems like these, as our neighbouring authority Hartlepool has.
It is a bit funny to find a Labour Councillor giving advice on how to inspire long-run confidence amongst the public given the current state of affairs with the country and the lack of confidence within the Labour Party in its leader. It you dont mind, i might just continue to do what i was elected to do and represent the people!"
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| Weekly Roundup ---
10 Aug 2008
Apologies to anyone who came to our ward surgery on Tuesday night to find Longfield School locked. We were there for 6pm but found the school locked, even though it had been booked through Democratic Services. Some quick thinking was called for and we held it at home.Thanks to the 4 people who attended and the phone calls we received.
Tintagel - We have asked for the landscaped areas around Tintagel to be litter picked and weeds removed from the beds.
Longfield Road - The issue with Motorbikes has been reported to the Police and anti-social behaviour team.
Holmwood Grove - We asked for a clear up of the backlane in the triangle of Holmwood Grove, North Road and Mayfair Road a couple of weeks ago, which was done the next day. When Mike and i checked the area on Wednesday night we found a similar situation. Streetscene came the next day and cleared the area up again, residents are going to monitor the situation. The Streetcare team has also been asked to remove the paint from the cobbles.
There has been incidents of anti-social behaviour reported in this backlane and this has been reported to the Police and ASB team to deal with.
The piece of land in Holmwood Grove between the end house and the back of Ashleigh House, after some investiagtion does belong to the council and we have been promised the area will tidied up by the end of August. Again residents will monitor and report back to us.
Glebe Road and Longfield Backlane - Potholes have been reported which have been forwarded to Highways Department.
Grass Cutting - Issues with grass cutting have been reported to Streetscene and we are awaiting a response.
Bus Services Changes - We are still receiving comments from residents and will feed these back to the council. We have been told that the situation will be reviewed. More later...
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| Hectic Harrowgate Hill ---
31 Jul 2008
I am quickly blogging to say sorry for not having had time to blog recently!
We have been on holiday and before that i was at the Arts Centre being Laurens dresser!
I have only had one evening at home in the last three weeks.
We have attended two consultations in the ward this week, one was the Bellway consultation for the proposals for the Beaumont Hill site and tonight we have been to the Banks consultation for the wind farm proposed at Moor House Farm, near Darlington. The land is about three miles east of Barmpton, Brafferton and Little Stainton.
We have information about the wind farm proposal if anyone wishes to contact us. We have asked Bellway homes for information and a set of plans to be sent to us.
As always, i welcome comments from residents about both of these proposals and will be presenting your comments to the planning committee.
Going back to our holidays, the weather was glorious and food plentiful. We had two full days on the beach and went to the airshow at Lowestoft, where we finally saw the Vulcan fly. We had travelled to Wiltshire for the Fairford Air Tattoo which was unfortunately cancelled due to the good old British weather. Mike is a sponsor for the Vulcan to the sky project and i am sure that he will publish some of the photos on his blog. The video footage is not very good as i was in charge of the camera!
It is thanks to Aunty Jen and uncle Dave for taking care of Daisy, we cant report that she behaved herself because she didnt!
We have a good amount of casework in the ward at the moment as well as the issue with the lack of bus service in the ward.
Full of busy....
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| MPs Expenses Published ---
16 Jul 2008
The Conservatives have published in full the expenses claimed by all our Front Bench MPs for the last three months.
This comes as part of David Cameron's continued efforts to bring greater openness to the issue of MPs' expenses and allowances.
The information published includes a comprehensive list of staff and their positions, an indication of any family members employed, and a breakdown of office running costs and expenditure incurred by staying away from their main home.
David said:
"Politicians need to do everything they can to regain the trust of the British people, and transparency has a key part to play in that process. We must show that we're spending taxpayers money sensibly and correctly."
And he stressed:
"We are the first party to demand this information from our members, and our MPs are voluntarily revealing a much more detailed breakdown of their expenses than official rules require them to. I'm glad that we're leading the way."
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| Shall We Dance ---
16 Jul 2008
The Tyzack Academy are performing "Shall We Dance"
Dates:
16/07/2008 to 19/07/2008
Venue:
Arts Centre
Prices:
£5.50
£7.00
I can personally recommend. I attended the dress rehearsal last night as Lauren has been dancing with the Tyzack Academy for a number of years now. Dance show week is always exciting and extremely exhausting, although this year i have taken this week off as holiday. The Tyzack Academy teaches youngsters to dance in Harrowgate Hill Methodist Church in Lowson Street and a lot of the youngsters live locally.
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| Not Connected to the Community ---
10 Jul 2008
I attended the meeting of the Cabinet on Tuesday night and delivered the following speech -
"I would like to thank the Labour Cabinet for finally doing the right thing by giving pensioners in Darlington free travel before 9:30 a.m.
However, there is also a however, I would like to put it to you that the only reason you have made this U-turn is because of pressure on you have received from the Conservative group and other organisations in Darlington. Or perhaps the decision was prompted by your leader Gordon Browns spectacular U-turn on the 10p tax.
Concessionary travel should have been a top priority when you were putting your budget together. The fact is you tried to make savings by using our pensioners as soft targets. It was a shortsighted decision by a Labour Cabinet who clearly do not understand or care about the needs of elderly and disabled residents of Darlington. If the sums had been correct in the first place, then the amount of money needed could have been found more easily by making savings elsewhere. You place so much importance on the talking together events when in fact it was the opposition group who listened to residents and acted on their behalf to challenge this bad decision.
Thanks to the Labour government's current credit crunch people are having to cut back and prioritise their own needs within their own budget. Residents of Darlington expect the council to behave in the same way by prioritising their needs and spending their money wisely on essential services. There are tough times ahead and this council needs to demonstrate to the people of Darlington that they have the ability to manage council services effectively when money is short. Sadly your original decision certainly failed to reflect that you have this skill
You the Labour Cabinet are out of touch with the people of Darlington, how people think and feel and what they want".
The Labour group are not connected to communities.
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| The Mysterious Consultation ---
09 Jul 2008
From yesterdays Echo "A spokeswoman for Darlington Borough Council said: "We were consulted on the new routes, which were drawn up following residents' consultation and other information, including ticket sales"
Residents are outraged because they are telling us that they have not been consulted. If they had been consulted then they have said that we need to maintain the service to all areas.
"The council supports Services 6a and 6b in the evenings and Sundays to allow a route into Harrowgate Farm." Not good enough, we need a full service.
An evidence gathering mission is ahead as well as getting support from local residents.
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| Henley by-election ---
27 Jun 2008
Results of the by-election
John Howell: Conservative 19,796
Stephen Kearney: Lib Dems 9,680
Mark Stevenson: Green 1,321
Timothy Rait: BNP 1,243
Richard McKenzie: Labour 1,066
Chris Adams: UKIP 843
The results speak volumes.
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Debate Over Free Bus Travel ---
26 Jun 2008
My fellow blogger Nick Wallis claims that "The Council has been listening to the views of pensioners, for example at Talking Together events, and this announcement is the result" and then more alarmingly accuses the Tories of spin. Theres more spin in that statement than the magic roundabout!
The cost of providing free travel before 9.30am for concessionary pass holders was stated in the January cabinet report as being £300,000 based on current travel patterns. The council is now claiming that figure is only £200,000 but the figure will not be confirmed until the July cabinet report is produced. This makes the original estimate over a third higher that the current figure being bandied about by the council. If the sums had been correct (or even close) in the first place then the amount of money needed could have been more easily found by making savings elsewhere.
The only reason that the Labour council has made a U-turn decision on providing free travel before 9:30 a.m. is because of the pressure it received from Mike and I, the Conservative group, as well as other organisations such as the Cycling Campaign Group, the Pensioners Forum and the protest that had been organised by angry pensioners who were still working. Let us not be naive, if no pressure had been put on John Williams about this matter, then all pensioners in Darlington would still be paying for their travel before 9.30am.
There is interesting debate between myself and Nick on the Echo web site
Council changes mind on bus concession
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| CSA ---
26 Jun 2008
I am currently doing a piece of work looking at the Child Support Agencys policies and procedures. I am going to produce a report highlighting some interesting loopholes and systematic failings within the system. This will then be used to lobby for change.
I would be interested to hear from anyone who is currently having issues with the system and would be willing to provide advice on individual cases to identify possible maladministration as well as highlighting more potential system failings.
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Our Bus Journey ---
17 Jun 2008
 This morning myself, Edward Legard, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate, Echo reporter Will Roberts and 2 local pensioners boarded the 9.28am number 21 Arriva bus at Whinbush Way.
We had met at 9.15am in Asda car park and observed 2 buses stop on both sides of Whinbush Way, one with 2 passengers and the other was empty. The purpose of todays exercise was see first hand the overcrowding on the buses after 9.30am as a result of the councils bad decision to stop free travel for pensioners before 9.30am. By the time we reached Haughton Road, it was standing room only. I stood up to give my seat to one of the pensioners boarding the bus.
The conditions are appalling with elderly people with walking sticks and shopping bags having to hang onto the straps in an attempt to remain upright.
Edward and I spoke to most of the pass holders on the bus asking them how this change had affected their lives.
One lady said “pensioners are up with the larks and they like to go about their business early”. Others were telling us that they had had to pay for travel to doctors and hospital appointments out of an already dwindling pension with food prices going up.
Another lady told me that her 86 year old Grandad had to walk to early GP appointments because he could not afford the bus fare.
Another told of embarrassment at getting on a bus at 9.27am, forgetting they could not use the pass and not having enough money to pay the fare.
We also met an ex Spitfire Pilot who had served Queen and Country. He told us that he had tried to get on an empty bus at 9.28am to be told he would have to wait for the next one or pay. This is total madness buses running empty whilst other are overcrowded and dangerous. I am sure that the Arriva bus drivers are experiencing frustration at having to turn pensioners away for the sake of a couple of minutes. But that is the fault of the council not Arriva or the drivers.
One lady travelling with us is a pensioner who is still working and travels to work and back home before 9.30am, therefore is unable to use her pass and has to buy a weekly pass from her wages.
The atmosphere on the bus was jovial and everyone appreciated our efforts to try to reverse this decision.
One passenger said “I wish John Williams would get on this bus so he could see first hand what it is like”
If you stand as I did last week on Tubwell Row and watch the buses coming in, before 9.30am most have a handful of passengers, some empty. From approx 9.40am until 10.15am the buses start arriving with standing room only.
Essentially this council has put a curfew on pensioners for the sake of £15 per year per passholder. Is this really how we should be treating the most vulnerable members of our society? It is shameful when money is being wasted by overspending on capital projects such as the Eastern Transport Corridor.
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| Some Sense at Last ---
12 Jun 2008
I left the following comment on Friday night on the blog of Nick Wallis, Labour Cabinet Member, in response to a challenge asking where i would fund the free travel for pensioners before 9.30am from -
"It has never been the job of the opposition to offer funding suggestions as they are always ridiculed in the chamber.
However, since you ask. How about scrapping the plans to refurbish the council chamber, that would provide the first 100K.
I agree with encouraging the public into the chamber, Mike and i have encouraged this during conversations with people. However, for whatever reason, there is no current overwhelming demand, therefore no need to provide extra seating. When money is short, there is a need to prioritise. We all apply this to theory to our own home life, we dont get a new kitchen if the roof is leaking etc.
So i say when there is a demand for this, that is the time to be looking to address that need and allocating money.
But refurbishing the chamber in the hope that this attracts people to enter seems a short sighted decision when our pensioners are suffering."
Imagine my surprise when i opened the Echo today to discover that Councillor John Williams, the leader of Darlington Borough Council, has said plans for a major refurbishment of the authority's chamber would be too costly.
Coincidence?
He said
"We have other, more pressing priorities so I will be recommending to my colleagues that we look at ways in which we can improve the chamber, for the public, without incurring major costs."
Absolutely agree. So theres the first £100,000 todays the "unconfirmed figure" of £300,000 that is required to give our pensioners free travel before 9.30am.
Right lets find the rest?....
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New on-line book of remembrance ---
10 Jun 2008
IT is now possible to view an on-line, digital version of the Book of Remembrance from Darlington Crematorium.
To give greater access to the Books of Remembrance Darlington Council has a digital version to view on its website at online book of remembrance
The original Books of Remembrance remain on display at the Crematorium, displayed behind glass. Any visitors can view the books displaying the entries for that day.
The Remembrance Room, situated to the rear of the Crematorium on Carmel Road North is open from 9am to 5pm each day.
For those who do not have access to the on-line versions, or who cannot visit the Crematorium on the date relevant to their loved one’s entry in the books, a special appointment can be made to view them at a time when they are available.
For more information, contact the Crematorium office on (01325) 388576.
I have tryed it and it is very easy to use. What a great idea for relatives who live out of town or find it difficult to be able to get to the crematoruim for anniversaries.
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| Walk for Life ---
08 Jun 2008
The day of the race was finally here and what a scorcher.
We were up unusually early for a Sunday but still i could not get myself organised and ended up coming back to the house for my sun hat.
As we approached the South Park we came across hundreds of women dressed in pink, some in fancy dress (i was offered a chicken outfit by a colleague at work but graciously declined!)
Mikes taxi dropped us off and he went to look for somewhere to park, no easy task.
We met up with others and joined in the warm up. I was ready for a sit down after just the warm up.
There were approx four thousand women taking part and the atmosphere was one of fun although everyone taking part were there for their own reasons. There was a minutes silence to reflect on personal thoughts which was very emotional.
We were off, Lauren was close to the front with the "runners" and i was closer to the back with the "walkers". We did our first lap to discover that someone was already coming up to the finish! I think it was about 20 mins for the winner.
We chatted our way round the course, enjoying the atmosphere, it was very hot.
I knew we werent doing too well when they started to fold up the course ribbon behind us and tidy up!
Lauren finished in 40 minutes and must have been in the first few hundred. However, i finished in approx 1 hour 15 mins (i think) and was definitely in the last few hundred.
However, whether you were first or last it is the taking part that is important, raising money for a good cause.
The marshals were great, clapping, cheering and offering words of encouragement.
We met up with Mike and Daisy for an ice cream. The battery on Mikes camera had run out so he did not get many pictures, which is a shame.
The old knees are playing up tonight and i have sunburn to my shoulders but it was a great experience.
But i wont be feeling so chipper in the morning when i am hobbling out of bed for work.....
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| Daisys Diary ---
06 Jun 2008
I have not blogged for a while about Daisys antics, so i thought that i would remedy that situation.
She is now 8 months and starting to settle down, thank goodness.
She has developed a habit of stealing the ball from other dogs whilst on the beach, even though she has her own. Much to the panic of the other owners
She ran into a game of football on Redcar beach and burst it. As i turned round i watched Mike slip the lead into his pocket and pretend she wasnt with him! It was moi who had to go and apologise, luckily they had a spare ball so it did not ruin the match.
But generally she is much better behaved and calmer. But she still steals socks from the laundry basket and does her Andrex puppy act by stealing toilet rolls.
She loves cuddles though and trys to sit on your knee all 20kg+ of her....
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| Race for Life ---
05 Jun 2008
Many thanks for the continued support for the race on Sunday.
It has been great to have cross party support.
Please keep the sponsorship coming, i will update the off-line sponsors during the weekend.
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| Bus Fare Increase ---
03 Jun 2008
As you all know the cost of fuel is continuing to rise and there is no immediate prospect of it reducing significantly in the short term.
Therefore Arriva is increasing the price of their single tickets from Saturday 14 June. This will be the first general increase on single fares for over 14 months and they are planning to keep the increase to a minimum by reintroducing 5p values.
Darlington Borough will be affected as follows:
Fares currently 90 pence will be 95 pence
Fares currently £1.20 will be £1.25 (unless they increased from £1.10 to £1.20 under the fares restructuring 30 March 2008)
Mike Cartwright (Harrowgate Hill Ward Councillor) said
“As a motorist I have seen my own fuel costs increase significantly under this Labour Government, so it comes as no surprise that the public transport providers are feeling the pinch”
“Unfortunately though I fear this latest announcement may affect once again some of the most vulnerable people in our society – the elderly. Having already lost their free early morning bus travel, this is yet another blow for any pensioners”
“Just this morning, we received a telephone call from one of our residents to say that a recent 8.00am GP appointment had cost him £5 in bus fares from his already stretched pension. With the rising cost of food and this new price increase in bus travel we are likely to witness our elderly residents suffer even more hardship.”
“So much for John Williams recent announcement and promise to ‘negotiate’ with Arriva to try to arrange a discount for our pensioners. Perhaps his time would be better spent contacting his Labour colleague Gordon Brown and ‘negotiating’ a reduction in fuel duty and funding for free pensioner bus travel”
Gill Cartwright (Harrowgate Hill Ward Councillor) said
“It would be wrong to blame Arriva for this latest increase. With ever increasing costs, they clearly have no choice but to put up the cost of fares. In my opinion the blame should be laid firmly at the door of Number 10 Downing Street and it’s current occupant Gordon Brown for allowing this countries economy to spiral out of control. “
“It is also time that the Labour controlled Council in Darlington acknowledges the bad decision it has made in withdrawing free early morning bus travel from pensioners and finally listen to the people of this town as opposed to just paying lip service”
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| Back From Holidays ---
27 May 2008
We are back from our jollies, a week on the Norfolk coast. The weather was great although a little windy, the food was fab. There is a little restaurant in Sheringham called Crofers that offer local produce and all the deserts are home made. In Cromer we favour the Lifeboat Cafe on the promenade that is about 500 yards from the cottage we stay in. They do a great full english but i prefer the veggie breaky. Fish and chips from Harry Ramsdens in Great Yarmouth after a visit to the sea life centre.
Norwich has all the high street brands that you would expect to find and i had a blow out in Lush buying far too many bath bombs as usual. Coffee in Starbucks and Millies banana and fudge cookies added to the atmosphere of over indulgence.
To add to that home made fudge, biscuits, chocolate, ice-cream and Mikes morning trip to the local bakery for scones and bread.
We did visit lots of local attractions and hired a boat for the afternoon with a picnic of course of local Cromer crab. We did not just spend our time eating as the above impression gives.
Norfolk is a beautiful county and so relaxed. Normal life seems like a million miles away.
I guess it is time to get back to my erm healthy diet that i normally favour....
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| Post Office Closures ---
13 May 2008
NOT one of the 37 post office branches in the region fighting closure plans has survived a cost-cutting cull, it has been revealed.
Post Office Limited has this morning announced its final decision on the future of branches in Cleveland, South Durham and Richmond.
All 37 of those earmarked for closure since February are to be shut despite protests in many communities during six weeks of public consultation which ended in March.
During the consultation period, Post Office bosses said they received around 2,590 responses and attended 22 meetings with customers and their representatives to understand their concerns and to ensure that all information provided by them formed part of the final decision regarding each affected branch.
So, all the consultation was simply an exercise in lip service. No surprises there. Do they really think people are pacified because they are allowed to give their opinion.
However, Redcar and Cleveland Council Leader is working with the Chief Executive to mitigate the effect of the closures by utilising mobile One Stop Shop and any proposals via LEGI (Local Enterprise Growth Initiative) if appropriate.
Council Leader George Dunning said "We believe the Post Office's decision fails to recognise the valuable roles these offices play in community life. We are committed to exploring ways in which our services can be delivered from these offices and we will be talking directly to the Post Office to investigate ways of reopening Post Office services with some degree of financial support for the Council."
But Redcar and Cleveland also provide free travel before 9.30am because clearly they care about their pensioners. I noted from todays Echo that Darlington Council has been branded as the most mean in the area.
I hope our council leader in Darlington is going to recognise the valuable role that the Post Offices play in our community and seek to investigate some alternative proposals.
Watch this space....
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| Please Gordon, Stay ---
12 May 2008
Gordon Brown has "tempers of an indescribable nature" according to the rebel backbencher Frank Field, who has become the first Labour MP to predict that the Prime Minister will not be in place at the next election.
In an astonishingly outspoken attack, Mr Field said that the public could see Mr Brown was unhappy and asserted the election would be held on the last possible date in 2010.
This prompted immediate denials from Downing Street, who insisted Mr Brown would still be in place at the next election.
Asked whether Mr Brown was confident that he would lead Labour into the next election, the spokesman added: "Of course he is."
Thats great news, we dont want you to go Gordon.
Because who better to lead the Conservatives into the next general election success......
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| Florries Birthday ---
12 May 2008
National Nurses Week is May 6-12. Not just this year, but every year, regardless of the days of the week upon which those dates fall. May 6 is the official nurse recognition day, with student nurse day on May 8 and school nurse day on May 9 in 2003. (This recognition day was previously observed during january and, unlike the others, is not a fixed date.) The week draws attention to and celebrate the contributions that nurses and nursing make to the community. The full week of recognition culminates on Florence Nightingale’s birthday, May 12.
Florence Nightingale was born on 12 May 1820, and named after the city of her birth. Her wealthy parents were in Florence as part of a tour of Europe. In 1837, Nightingale felt that God was calling her to do some work but wasn't sure what that work should be. She began to develop an interest in nursing, but her parents continued it to be a profession inappropriate to a woman of her class and background, and would not allow her to train as a nurse. They expected her to make a good marriage and live a conventional upper class woman's life.
Nightingale's parents eventually relented and in 1851, she went to Kaiserwerth in Germany for three months nursing training. This enabled her to become superintendent of a hospital for gentlewomen in Harley Street, in 1853. The following year, the Crimean War began and soon reports in the newspapers were describing the desperate lack of proper medical facilities for wounded British soldiers at the front. Sidney Herbert, the war minister, already knew Nightingale, and asked her to oversee a team of nurses in the military hospitals in Turkey. In November 1854, she arrived in Scutari in Turkey. With her nurses, she greatly improved the conditions and substantially reduced the mortality rate
She returned to England in 1856. In 1860 she established the Nightingale Training School for nurses at St Thomas' Hospital in London. Once the nurses were trained, they were sent to hospitals all over Britain, where they introduced the ideas they had learnt, and established nursing training on the Nightingale model. Nightingale's theories, published in 'Notes on Nursing' (1860), were hugely influential and her concerns for sanitation, military health and hospital planning established practices which are still in existence today. She died on 13 August 1910.
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| Dish the Dirt on Dog Fouling ---
07 May 2008
RESPONSIBLE pet owners are being asked to help stamp out dog fouling in Darlington.
Darlington Council is launching a new campaign called Dish The Dirt, encouraging residents to report people who persistently allow their dogs foul in public places.
The Council’s Uniformed Wardens can only fine dog owners if they see an offence being committed and so they are asking residents to give them tip-offs of where dog fouling is happening.
A hotline and e-mail address have been set up so people can report details, including location, time and a description, of anyone who fails to clean up after their dog.
The Council’s Uniformed Wardens will use the information, which can be given anonymously, to try to catch and fine irresponsible dog owners.
Bill Dixon, Darlington Council’s Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services and Community Safety, said: “Dog fouling is not only unattractive, it a real health hazard and can spoil residents’ enjoyment of parts of the Borough.
“Our wardens are committed to catching and fining people but they need help to know where and when persistent offenders are.
“We know there are many responsible dog owners and residents who want to see an end to dog fouling in our streets and parks and I hope they will give us the information we need to catch offenders.”
Posters advertising the hotline and e-mail address are being put on dog bins around the Borough and wardens will hand out information cards to dog walkers and other people they meet.
People failing to clean up after their dog can be given an on-the-spot fine of £50.
This is an issue we have been highlighting for a number of months now.
Clearly, us raising the issue at Full Council has inspired some action and this campaign has been actioned.
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| Local Round Up ---
06 May 2008
Heres a local round up from the local election results from Thursday.
Chester-le-street. IT was a good night for the Conservatives as they won three of the 14 seats up for grabs in Chester-le-Street.
Hartlepool. LABOUR has lost control of Hartlepool. The authority is now no overall control.
Durham City. The Lib Dems have done particularly well in Durham City, where they run the district council. They have won 15 of their 23 seats in Durham City.
Teesdale. CONSERVATIVES in Teesdale claimed a victory after winning five of the six seats up for grabs on the new unitary council.
Easington. WHILE the Labour Party was clearly relieved at securing 19 of the 24 seats in the Easington constituency there were some notable casualties.
Wear Valley.Conservative Becky Brunskill was elected in Willington.
Labour has taken control of the new County Durham unitary authority, but it has gone backwards in both Sunderland and Hartlepool.
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| Boris for Mayor ---
06 May 2008
Boris Johnson has been elected Mayor of London. He received 1,168,738 first and second preference votes compared with Ken Livingstone's 1,028,966.
Its time for a change and the people of London certainly agreed.
In his victory speech, he said the election had been good for politics and good for London.
He paid tribute to his main opponents, Brian Paddick and Mr. Livingstone, describing the latter as "a very considerable public servant" who had "earned the thanks and admiration of millions of Londoners."
Boris promised to work "flat out" to cut crime, improve transport, protect green spaces and, most of all, to repay the confidence of everyone who voted for him.
He finished by saying, "Let's get cracking tomorrow; and let's have a drink tonight."
We certainly did that Boris, cheers.
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| Cash Cow ---
06 May 2008
Thanks to the Town Liar for finding this article in the Times.
In the article about "waste crime", Darlington gets a mention as it has issued 285 fines worth £22,410 to people for leaving their bins out on the wrong day. It has also prosecuted 65 people for failing to pay the fines, more than any other council questioned.
However, it was with disappointment that i noted that during the period, January 2007 to December 2007, only one Fixed Penalty Notice was issued for dog fouling within the Harrowgate Hill Ward, which was on 23 November 2007 in Myrtle Gardens.
I know the problems related to issuing penalities for dog fouling as the wardens have to witness the incident. But, playing devils advocate, it has been suggested to us by residents that fining for waste crime seems a quick win way to make money. Enforcing dog fouling issues would be more time intensive and would certainly not bring the same monetary gain.
I am not suggesting that leaving rubbish out at the wrong time should be ignored because it shouldnt, but perhaps a "light touch" approach would be more appropriate?
What causes more nuisance a bin put out too early or the masses and masses of dog waste that resides in our communities?
We have never received compliants about the latter but have in respect to dog fouling.
Eric Pickles, the shadow local government spokesman, has accused the councils of seeking to turn rubbish collection into a cash cow by creating trivial offences. “It’s testing the public’s patience to the limit,” he said.
Read the full article and you decide.
a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article3822641.ece" target="_blank">Thousands fined for bin sins
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| Parliamentary Projection ---
02 May 2008
Parliamentary projections based on the results from the local election if there had been a general election shows -
Labour 174 seats
Conservative 401 seats
Lib Dems 47 seats
GIVING THE TORIES A MAJORITY OF 152 seats and David Cameron the key to NO 10....
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| Worst Election Results for Labour for 40 Years ---
02 May 2008
The last time Labour did this badly in a local election, the Beatles were in the charts and Flower Power was all the rage.
Gordon could do with a bit of Love!
100 0f 159 councils declared.
Conservatives gain 147 seats and Labour loose 162 seats.
More analysis later and a local review.
David Cameron was clearly resisting the urge to jump up and down when interviewed this morning. He was clearly suffering from an overload and caffeine and adrenaline!
And who can blame him.
Mike nearly crashed the car on the way to work when he discovered that Labour had lost overal control in his home town of Hartlepool.
It seems the local elections in Darlington were a year too early...
If Boris wins in London it will change the political landscape of the whole country.
GO BORIS
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| Sponsorship ---
30 Apr 2008
We have reached 18% of our target for the Race for Life on the 8th June.
So please keep the sponsorship coming every little helps. Cancer is a subject that has touched us all.
I am taking part for all my family, friends and patients.
Past, present and future.
For those that made it
For those who didnt
For those who are currently battling the disease
Cancer Research appreciates your support.
Thank you.
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| Burtree Lane Traffic Lights ---
29 Apr 2008
The issue has been raised that approx only 4 cars are able to exit from Burtree Lane onto North before the lights turn back to red.
We raised this issue with the highways department at the Town Hall.
These signals operate on their own rather than under SCOOT control. The SCOOT system works by controlling traffic from one signal set to the next. Where vehicles enter from major routes either side of the main route, they are counted in by loops in the carriageway. The Burtree and Mayfair Rd signals are not connected to the system as they are separated from it by the Salters Lane roundabout which is uncontrolled.
The green time for vehicles on Burtree lane varies from 7 seconds minimum to 18 seconds maximum depending on time of day and the number of vehicles approaching the signals. Provided that a steady stream of vehicles is detected, the green time will run to its maximum. However if a vehicle in the stream hangs back a bit, a 'gap' will be detected and the green phase will be brought to a close. This may be the reason that only four cars got out. The controller is to be checked out for faults.
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| Rave at Longfield ---
28 Apr 2008
On Friday night i attended the Max-E-Mize rave at Longfield School.
The event was well attended with approx 70 young people enjoying the music, dancing the night away with their glow sticks and whistles.
It was great to see the young people enjoying themselves and i did not see signs of trouble, everyone was to busy having fun.
Shame the DJ (sorry MC) did not have any ABBA.....
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Deja Vue ---
25 Apr 2008
THE £1.9m overspend on a town's new link road was caused by a number of management errors by a council, an independent report has revealed.
It is reminiscant of the Pedestrian Heart overspend, it is astounding that lessons were not learnt from that debacle.
How much of tax payers money has to be wasted before an end is put to this poor project management culture that clearly exists. However, i am afraid that the buck has to stop not with the officers but the portfolio holder. The tax payers deserve an explanation, not a reassurrance that it wont happen again, we have heard that before.
An apology would be a good start.
Nearly 2 million wasted and the pensioners can not travel free before 9.30am.
Shame there are not local elections next week in Darlington. What a gift that would be...
To read the full story
1.9m overspend
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Naughty Nick ---
25 Apr 2008
It seems that the Lib Dems have shifted blame from the current portfolio holder to the predecessor of the portfolio, Nick Wallis for the overspend of the Estern Transport Corridor.
It has been suggested that Nick was removed from the portfolio because they knew there were going significant problems resulting from the management of the project. It did seem a strange decision at the time to move from transport to health!
However, Nick tells us that is baloney, so thats alright.
So therefore, tell us Nick was the rationale behind the switch?....
Another Councillor Blamed
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| Princess Road/Scotts Terrace/ Old Harrowgate Hill School Site ---
23 Apr 2008
Princess Road- We have received complaints about the bad state of repair to the footpath and road in Princess Road. We have contacted Highways Department and the good news is that the work will be done later this year.
Old Harrowgate Hill School - We have reported the problem with youngsters underage drinking to the anti social behaviour team and our Police beat team. We have reported the site not being secured to buildings control.
Scotts Terrace - Fly tipping/dog fouling. I have this morning spoken to our Streetscene Team Leader who confirms that they are waiting for a delivery (3-4 weeks) of dog waste bins to mount on poles and he will make sure that are allocated to Scotts Terrace. Any problems with dog fouling, fly tipping etc should be reported to Streetscene and if persistent we will ask the Environmental Warden to investigate.
Scotts Terrace - Blocking of access to Scotts Terrace. I have spoken to highways safety and they will assign an officer to look at the site and investigate the most appropriate course of action signage/road marking etc. In the short term we have contacted our beat team to encourage the owners of businesses to discourage customers from parking there and display signs in their shops.
Please continue to contact us fly tipping, dog fouling, road issues, pavement issues and any other problems you are experiencing including bus pass problems. We are receiving enquiries about bus passes from across the town.
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