longbridge conservatives

The New Bournville College Longbridge

2011-11-27T13:09:00.000Z

Below is a view of the new college taken from the Bristol Road.
Included is the gold coloured Conference Centre which some people had mistakenly thought was a "mosque" or prayer room. This colour scheme seems to divide opinion a bit like Marmite, you either love it or hate it.

The New Bournville College Longbridge

2011-11-27T13:01:00.000Z

New Bournville College

2011-10-29T11:24:00.000+01:00

Keith recently had a guided tour of the new building courtesy of the former Vice Principle. This was most welcome as Keith had worked for many years in supporting the proposal to bring the new building to Longbridge.
The new building is really impressive but it is not the bricks and mortar that is so important, it is the students working there and, foremost, the outcomes of those years of study they undertake. Keith was really impressed with the attitude of the College staff and the way they understand that the future of a lot of the students is tied up in the future of the new Neighbourhood Centre and the businesses which will bring new jobs to Longbridge.
One of the facilities Keith saw was the restaurant. This is an area which welcomes the public in to enjoy great food, at a cheaper price, cooked and served by students as part of their studies. There is also a hairdressing and beauty salon where the same applies, even a barber shop for us men. Also opening soon is a sports area with up to date equipment which local people will be welcome to use.
Details of prices and booking details will follow shortly.
Meanwhile thanks to the college and best wishes for the future.

Vaisakhi at Handsworth Park.

2011-04-25T10:09:00.001+01:00

A great weekend with marvellous weather.On Saturday we dropped in to the St. George's Day celebrations at St. Stephen's Church in Edgewood Rd. We sat out in the garden and although only yards from a busy road it took on the atmosphere of an English country garden.
Then we called in to a birthday celebration for Vi Cannadine in Wolverton Rd. Vi is a stalwart of Longbridge Conservatives with over 50 years in the party. This was in honour of her 84th birthday and the house was packed with wellwishers.
On Sunday we were invited to the Vaisakhi celebrations in Handsworth Park. It was a great event and what a pleasure it was to walk among so many thousands of friends.

2011-04-25T10:03:00.000+01:00

2011-04-25T10:00:00.000+01:00

Vaisakhi

2011-04-25T09:59:00.000+01:00

Pride of Longbridge at Cofton Park

2011-04-18T15:55:00.000+01:00

It was a beautiful day on Saturday and Cofton Park was at it's finest for the annual Pride of Longbridge rally.
This event goes from strength to strength and this year saw increased crowds and what looked like more entrants than ever. Long may it continue.
There was a chance to see the new MG6 and a lot of interest to the latest car to roll out of the plant.

New

2011-04-18T15:50:00.000+01:00

Old

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Extended gym at Frankley leisure centre

2011-03-15T14:10:00.000Z

Last week Keith and Sue enrolled at the newly extended gym at Frankley Community High School. This was housed in the former Lyttleton Suite but had become a victim of it's own success and needed a larger room.
Last year we decided to donate some Community Chest in order to fund the refurbishment of the room and the gym is now up and running.
Keith and Sue will be taking advantage of their leisure cards in order to maintain the high levels of fitness we busy Councillors need.

Trying out the equipment

2011-03-15T14:05:00.001Z

Cleaning up Great Park

2011-03-15T14:00:00.000Z

This morning Keith and Sue have been out with Violia's Social Responsibility Team, all volunteers, to carry out a clear up to a well used path on The Great Park.
This is close to the rear entrance to Morrison's, which generates a lot of rubbish, and goes up towards Green's fitness centre.
Many thanks to Green's for allowing us to use their car park but their customers do seem to think it is OK to throw away their empty hi-energy drink bottles over the fence.
We also removed 3 trolleys from the river as well as a lot of rubbish and leaves which Keith can be seen clearing.

Keith gets stuck in

2011-03-15T13:52:00.000Z

The Violia team

2011-03-15T13:51:00.000Z

No room at the (Village) inn

2011-03-07T15:53:00.000Z

On Sunday Keith and Sue popped over to the NEC for an exhibition. The train service is excellent and much more relaxing than driving, as well as being greener of course.
On the way back we decided to get some lunch and went to the Village Inn at Cotteridge. No such luck, there was not a space to be had in the car park. So off to the Two for One at the corner of Lickey Rd and Groveley Lane. This also was packed out. We decided to try the Barnt Green inn which we had not visited for some years. Even here, at about 3.30pm, we had to wait for a table. On the way back we took a look at the Old Hare & Hounds and their car park was very full.
Now the Village Inn is not some exclusive venue for the well off, it does a really good carvery for about £9 and is aimed more for families on a budget but it makes you think about whether all the doom-mongers amongst us are right in everything they tell us about the state of the country. Last week Keith was in Nando's just off Broad St with some friend's (yes, even Conservatives have friends) which was very busy and across the way there was a long queue of young people waiting to get into a night-club, this on a Wednesday night. It seems that despite the rise in fuels, food and energy and pay freezes lots of people still have some disposable income which they choose to use to get out and enjoy themselves.

Running around Cofton Park.

2011-03-07T15:26:00.001Z

Last Saturday was a busy one.
Keith started with an advice surgery at Frankley. Several people turned up as this is a very busy one for Keith.
Afterwards straight to Colmers School for the Northfield Constituency Convention where Ken was acting in his role as Constituency Chairman. This was well attended, mostly by community groups who do so much across Northfield as well as local politicians.
Then it was on to Cofton Park for the McCain X-Country Challenge. This is the 2nd time the event has taken place here and attracted large numbers of athletes and spectators from all parts of the country.
Keith and Sue welcomed the Lord Mayor as well as cheering on some of the competitors. A very successful event which adds to the growing reputation of Cofton Park as the place to be.

Some of the country's top athletes were there...and Keith.

2011-03-07T15:10:00.000Z

Why you shouldn't buy a Sat-Nav from a market stall!

2011-03-07T15:05:00.000Z

The athlete's village

2011-03-07T15:02:00.000Z

Strung out

2011-03-07T15:01:00.000Z

McCain X-Country Challenge

2011-03-07T15:00:00.000Z

Hard times

2011-02-20T17:20:00.000Z

These are difficult times for everyone. We know that Labour politicians are sick of us saying that they left us with a disaster to clean up but, as sick as it makes them, we have to keep on saying it. They would like everyone to forget the massive debts they built up and the deficit they left behind.
As a way of explaining it imagine a family where the weekly income is £400 per week, not unknown in Longbridge. Now imagine that the weekly outgoings are £500 per week, it would not take long for debts to mount up. First the bank loans, then the credit cards. after a while the amount having to be paid back mounts ever higher and no more borrowing is available, drastic steps have to be taken, you can decide your own course of action but first of all luxuries have to stop, cheaper food has to be bought, old clothes have to last longer. Most parents would make sacrifices for the sake of the children but eventually expenditure would be brought under control, debts would be reduced and a more stable financial state would be attained. Unless of course you were a Labour politician. In which case you could put off making the savings, continue borrowing and live the high life until your creditors pulled the plug and you find yourself without a home, without a car and without the ability to obtain credit
We know that all this debt has to be controlled at the same time prices all over the world are increasing. Oil, food, metals and raw materials are going up in price, largely through demand from China whose economy depends on them buying the world's resources, manufacturing goods from them and then exporting them to us at a time when our currency is weak due to the printing of money carried out under the Labour Government. To be fair they probably had little option due to the state their finances were in at the time.
So beware of the socialists peddling easy options and crying "Tory cuts!" They got it wrong then, they are getting it wrong now and they will continue to get it wrong because they don't know any better.
This month the Conservative/ Lib Dem partnership will present a budget that aim to save £330 million over the next 4 years, most of it in the first year. This has presented real dilemma s to all of us but it had to be done. Unlike Manchester's Labour Council it will not be a slash and burn budget but it will mean a lot of jobs will go and other staff will face reductions in their total incomes. Despite what Labour will say to paint us as cold hearted capitalists this is not a process that any of us have enjoyed and we all regret it's necessity but let us never forget who made it so necessary when we hear them talking so much Balls, Ed Balls that is.

Seasons Greetings

2010-12-24T17:51:00.001Z

Keith, Ken and Sue would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Cristmas and a Happy, Peaceful and Prosperous New Year.

Christmas is a time for family but also a time to look back and think of those we have lost over the last year. A special thought for all our servicemen and women serving abroad and away from their families whilst putting themselves in danger. As the parents of a serviceman who served in both Gulf Wars and the Falklands Sue and Keith know what it is like to have a loved one in harm's way. God bless you all!

Postman beware!

2010-12-24T17:44:00.000Z

Keith and Ian.

2010-10-11T12:46:00.001+01:00

getting on with it

2010-10-11T12:46:00.000+01:00

Cllr Tim Huxtable and Keith

2010-10-11T12:45:00.000+01:00

Frankley Centre work begins

2010-10-11T12:43:00.000+01:00

Work has started on the refurbishment of the Frankley Centre at long last.
Last week Keith joined with Cllr Tim Huxtable, Cabinet Member for Transport & Regeneration, to pose for some photos for the Birmingham Mail. These photos are always posed for, they show Tim & Keith lifting a paving slab. This should not be seen as showing that we spent all day lifting slabs but is symbolic of the fact that work is commencing.
We have some of our own photos of Tim & Keith and also of Keith with Ian Brookshaw, Chairman of New Frankley in Birmingham Parish Council. Again Ian's presence is as an illustration of the commencement of work and not, of course, any political affiliation to this blog.

Deficit deniers

2010-10-11T12:35:00.000+01:00

There do seem quite a number of Labour Members who are still in denial about the seriousness of the economic situation that they left this country in. Of course when you have left behind the biggest debt mountain in living memory and condemned the people of this country to penury for years to come the best option may appear to cover your ears, shut your eyes and sing na, na, na na, na rather than face up to what you have done. There seems to be two strands of thought within the comrades' party at the moment, the "moderate" wing think they should follow Alistair Darling's plan and try to halve the deficit within the next five years. This means we will still be living beyond our means, borrowing money and adding to our debt mountain for years to come. The other lot, epitomised by Ed and Mrs Balls, think that we should not worry about the debt or the deficit and continue to borrow as before. Either one is the economics of the spendaholic. At this time we are paying interest on our debt to the tune of £43billion per year, yes £43BILLION!
There have been enough lists of what this could be spent on but suffice to say we get NOTHING in return and this is not even paying off the debt. If we cannot pay anything off the debt we will be saddled with this payment for ever let alone increasing it.
The Labour Party is in hock to the unions, this is why they are defending public service jobs so vigorously. That is their job of course but the country has to be governed for the good of everyone and not for a special interest group.

Congratulations Mr Miliband

2010-09-26T16:36:00.000+01:00

The title of this post would of course be suitable whichever brother won. Ed Miliband is at pains to point out that he is not a left wing throwback but wants to appeal to Middle England. If that is correct then the question has to be asked "why did the unions get behind him so strongly?" After all if they had wanted a centrist Leader why did they not back his elder brother who had the support of the majority of MPs and activists? All very mysterious, you might wonder what the unions will do when they find out that they have not got Red Ed but somehow we think they know exactly what they have bought and paid for.

Welcome to politics

2010-09-26T16:26:00.000+01:00

Our local socialist seems to have thrown his toys out of his pram.
He got upset that at the Constituency Committee political points were raised by ourselves in response to attacks from the opposition. It seems strange that the Labour group are able to make direct attacks on our decisions and policies but when we respond by reminders of their legacy of a debt mountain we are deemed as making political statements. Of course it has always been the leftist way to attack anyone who disagrees with them and, as usual, revert to name calling.
We are not one big happy family, we are political opponents intent on winning or maintaining power and it is a very strange politician who does not recognise this.

2010-09-25T14:33:00.000+01:00

2010-09-24T17:03:00.000+01:00

I spy

2010-09-24T17:02:00.000+01:00

Can you spot a once familiar face?

2010-09-24T17:01:00.000+01:00

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2010-09-24T16:55:00.000+01:00

Papal visit to Cofton Park.

2010-09-20T12:54:00.000+01:00

Although the day started very early and wet it brightened up later and the sun came out as the Pope's helicopter touched down. Make of that what you will.
The coaches were streaming past before 4.00am and changing gear to get up the hill right outside Keith & Sue's house on Groveley Lane.
We were all at Wythall by 5.30am for identity checking and then boarded a coach for Cofton Park.
Instead of a commentary we have loads of photos and will try to upload videos for you to see.
A truly wonderful day for the city, for Longbridge and for Rednal.

2010-09-20T12:39:00.000+01:00

2010-09-20T12:37:00.000+01:00

Opening of Edgewood Hall

2010-09-12T13:52:00.002+01:00

Recently we saw the re-opening of Edgewood Hall in Rednal.
This was a facility that served a lot of people in the area but after the old committee disbanded we have made various efforts to keep it open but finally the decision was made to close it as it was costing Northfield Constituency £5000 pa.
Here in Longbridge we have been trying to find someone to take over and finally settled on an organisation called BLISS (Better Life Inspiration Support Services) who work with young people to help them into work. They are pledged to help other organisations to make full use of the hall and bring this much loved building back into public use.
Keith was delighted to be asked to perform the opening ceremony and did so with an, as usual, short speech.

Sue & Ken with stage and choir stalls in the background

2010-09-12T13:36:00.000+01:00

2010-09-12T13:33:00.000+01:00

The stage

2010-09-12T13:32:00.000+01:00

A very wet day.

2010-09-12T13:31:00.000+01:00

Ken & Sue with Cliff the Site Manager for WRG.

2010-09-12T13:28:00.000+01:00

Keith behind the stage area

2010-09-12T13:26:00.000+01:00

Second week

2010-09-12T13:24:00.001+01:00

That was after the first week, now for some photos of last weekend.

The canteen

2010-09-12T13:22:00.000+01:00

turning area

2010-09-12T13:21:00.000+01:00

the road way to the stage area

2010-09-12T13:20:00.000+01:00

We're back!

2010-09-10T15:08:00.000+01:00

It's been a few months since our last posting but we think it is now time to start up again and let you know what's been happening.
Sadly Sue lost her seat in May, this being due to the increased turnout for the GE. Although we lost Longbridge at the GE by approx !000 votes Sue only lost by 117, a built in majority of nearly 900. In other words, if there had been no GE Sue would have walked it. Sue has received a tremendous amount of calls and e-mails from people expressing their disappointment at the result and she has been very grateful for them all but as you will see it's "never say die".
Since then Sue has undergone her postponed Hip-replacement and has recovered well, so well in fact that she has become a Parish Councillor in Frankley to replace the veteran Sid Grey OBE who gave such massive service to the people of Frankley. He will be a giant act to follow.
The big news of course is the Papal visit to Cofton Park. As soon as Keith heard the news that the Coventry site was in site he started ringing everyone he could think of to lobby for the park with it's connection to Cardinal Newman, not that he is claiming any credit of course. The park was the logical replacement.
We have made a couple of visits to see the construction project and very impressive it is too. On the first Saturday we went they had started to put down aluminium roadways for all the vehicle movements needed and had installed the shell of the canteen. They will be feeding approx 200 people at the height of the work and apparently the food is excellent.
On our second visit a week later the stage and the 2 stands for the 2000 strong choir were in place and roadways had been laid for vehicles to carry equipment all over the park. The beauty of the roadway is that it will support the heaviest trucks without damaging the ground. After it is taken up the grass greens up after a short while. Any damage that is caused will be indemnified by the Catholic Church. More as it gets nearer the visit. We will put up some photos for you to look at.
Keith has been quite busy with the visit, he is the local lead on this and was interviewed by BBC Midlands Today and also did a telephone interview with Shine Radio. The BBC interview took about 3/4 of an hour of film for about 15seconds of broadcasting. So much for Andy Warhol.......

H'tip to Ollie Cromwell

2010-04-10T19:28:00.000+01:00

2010-04-10T19:27:00.000+01:00

Keely in action

2010-04-10T19:26:00.000+01:00

The team at Tay's Square

2010-04-10T19:25:00.000+01:00

A great day, and then Wembley, ah well.

2010-04-10T19:23:00.000+01:00

A terrific day, the team were at the Farmers Market at Kings Norton Green. The comrades seem to think this is their fiefdom but we like to remind them that there ain't no such thing.
Later at Tay's Square in Northfield for a street stall with Malcolm Harbour MEP. Malcolm is a great supporter of Northfield. The event was a great success with no-one admitting to voting Labour.

Treat with suspicion

2010-04-08T17:06:00.001+01:00

Our opponents seem to be intent on spreading a few lies in an abortive attempt to shore up their crumbling position.

Lie 1. The Tories will end Tax Credits.
The Truth: No we won't if a family earn less than £50.000 a year.

Lie 2. The Tories will steal your buspass.
The Truth: No we won't.

Lie 3. The Tories will end Winter Fuel Allowance.
The Truth: No we won't.

Never forget you can't believe a word they say.

Today they talk about our plans being drawn up on the back of a fag packet, a typical slur which diverts (they hope) from the complete mess they have made of the economy. Always remember you can't believe a word they say.

Ken, Kath, Sue & Helen at Egghill.

2010-04-08T16:57:00.000+01:00

Cutting the 1st sod.

2010-04-08T16:56:00.000+01:00

Egghill

2010-04-08T16:55:00.000+01:00

The second event was at Egghill where we are building 58 houses, 17 for rent. Firstly we show Keely, Ken & Sue with John Lines cutting the first sod.
The second photo is of Sue with some long term residents welcoming the building work.

Barbara, Jackie, Keely & John.

2010-04-08T16:50:00.000+01:00

2010-04-08T16:48:00.000+01:00

As we said this is a very busy time but we thought we would try to catch up.
Last week saw us a a couple of events with Cllr John Lines marking building projects, one in Kings Norton and one in Longbridge.
The first was off Hillmeads Road in Kings Norton were Birmingham Municipal Housing Trust are building affordable homes and Council houses. John came along to lay a golden brick in company with Keely, Barbara Wood and Jackie Fear, the new candidate for Kings Norton who is hoping to take over from Margaret Sutton.

Busy, busy, busy....

2010-04-07T18:40:00.000+01:00

We are sure you will understand if there is not a lot of activity on this site for the next 4 weeks as we will all be extremely busy trying to get rid of this deadweight government and attempting to lift the appalling burden from around our necks that it has come to represent.

2010-04-05T19:09:00.000+01:00

Diary notes

2010-03-24T12:16:00.002Z

This evening we will be at the Frankley & Cock Hill Housing Liaison Board at 6pm at Frankley Community High School followed by a Neighbourhood Tasking Meeting at Colmers School at 7.30pm. This is your chance to raise issues with your local police officers. Ken will be attending his first Governors meeting at The Meadows.

Promoting Neighbourhood Watch

2010-03-23T13:59:00.000Z

On Saturday there will be an event taking place at Colmers School (East Hall) from 10am-3pm to show people the benefits of joining a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme. We would recommend that you get along and see police sniffer dogs, crime prevention etc and see for yourselves how NW can help protect you and your property.

Up, up and away....and the sooner the better

2010-03-20T11:06:00.000Z

2010-03-19T16:51:00.000Z

Mr Tetsu Arita.

2010-03-18T15:28:00.000Z

Ward Committee

2010-03-18T15:26:00.000Z

Last night we held the Longbridge Ward Committee at Colmers School. There were 6 members of the public there and we heard about the City's bid for the title of City of Culture and the progress of the City Trainees Programme which takes people who have been out of work for 6 months and puts them on a training scheme which we all hope will lead to a permanent job at the end of it.
Today Sue has been at the Adoption Panel whilst Keith has been doing his usual daily quota of 400 leaflets interposed with an interview with Mr Tetsu Arita who is a reporter with Asahi Shimbun, Japan's second biggest selling daily newspaper. The subject was the closure of MG/Rover and it's impact on local people. Keith took him on a tour of the site and introduced him to some local business people who told him of their personal experiences.
The photo is of Tetsu outside Q Gate on Lowhill Lane.

2010-03-17T16:22:00.000Z

The Governor

2010-03-15T09:32:00.000Z

Ken has been to The Meadows School were he has been appointed a Governor. He already does an Advice Centre there on the 1st Wednesday of the month and is looking forward to making a contribution to the school.
Sue is of course a Governor at Colmers Junior whilst Keith is at Rednal Hill Infants where Keely is also a Governor.

Reach for the sky!

2010-03-14T16:19:00.000Z

At the winning post.

2010-03-14T16:17:00.000Z

Sue & David Moorcroft

2010-03-14T16:16:00.000Z

The Lord Mayor, Cllr Mike Wilkes

2010-03-14T16:15:00.000Z

National Cross Country Chapionships

2010-03-14T16:14:00.000Z

2010-03-14T16:11:00.002Z

This has been a quiet week for Keith Council-wise. He has been working on the Guns & Gangs Review report which he will present to Council in April. Otherwise it has been a case of on with the campaign. He has been delivering on average 400 leaflets a day, both for Keely and Sue. There have also be a couple of Flying Squads in the constituency, one in Longbridge & one in Kings Norton..
Sue has again been busy with a series of meetings but also had to fit in a visit to the ROH to see her Consultant. It seems a hip replacement in required but Sue has asked for it to take place after the May elections as she is determined to hold onto her seat and not allow the socialists back in.
On Monday we were the guests of New Frankley in Birmingham Parish Council at their delayed Christmas meal. An enjoyable evening was had by all but we all enjoy working with them as they have the well-being of the people of Frankley at heart.
On Tuesday we were at the Kings Norton Ward Supper Club at the Kings Norton Golf Club. There we were able to see a presentation from the West Midlands Air Ambulance and they received a cheque for their efforts.
On Saturday Sue & Keith followed the Flying Squad in Kings Norton by going to Cofton Park for the National Cross Country Trials. This was a great event with about 10.000 people turning up to watch. With plenty of car-parking on the site of the old MG/Rover Foundry there was minimal disruption for local traffic and coaches came from all over the country. The Lord Mayor turned up to present a trophy and we got a photo for you. It was very cold and he had to send for his overcoat. Sue also got a photo with David Moorcroft and met up with one of our daughter's former teachers, Bob Boldero who was doing the commentary.
Later that afternoon we all met up in Billesley to watch Moseley earn a great win over top of the table Bristol.
Next Wednesday we have the Longbridge Ward Committee at Colmers School at 7pm.
Sue will be at Licensing and Adoption whilst Ken will be at the Housing Committee. Plus lots of leafleting of course.

2010-03-12T16:55:00.000Z

fun with Elvis.

2010-03-12T16:54:00.000Z

All work and no play etc.
Last we we took a break and spent the evening at the Toby-Rubery to see Nick Jones the Singing Vicar from Longbridge Methodist Church.
Nick does a great Elvis and a mean Dean Martin. The room was packed and everyone had a great time with lots of dancing.
Nick does not charge for his services but takes a collection for his church. That night he raised £150.
We can recommend him and his singing so if you see him advertised again get along and enjoy a great night out.

Keeping busy

2010-03-08T16:19:00.001Z

Another busy week with lots of meetings as usual. Some of them we all go to, especially local ones, and others reflect the different positions we hold or interests we have.
Keith started the week at the Council House working on a report into guns & gangs in Birmingham. This will be presented at full Council in April. On Tuesday it was time for the Equalities & H.R. O & S Committee which he chairs. This included a report on the use of consultants by the Council.Most of use resent any money spent on consultants as they get a high rate and we don't always understand what they do for the money. They do however provide the Council with expertise it does not itself have. The trick is to keep the spend to as low a level as possible and learn as much as we can from them so that we do not need them in the future. Over the last year we have halved the amount spent on them and are working to continue this trend. One thing that did come up was the fact that former Councillor Steve Bedser is a consultant. He is now of course standing in Kings Norton for a Council seat, having been rejected as the PPC for Erdington. Thats 2 rejections now for Steve and he is going for a hat-trick in May.
Also said at the committee was that the Council employs a multitude of Press-Officers. This is another fallacy, we employ 6, the rest include copy-writers, printers, admin staff etc. The number is to be reduced by one as he has been tempted to join Halfords with an increase in salary of £20.000 pa. So much for over-paying staff.
Sue has attended meetings of the Licensing Committee and Adoption Panel as well as meeting of Ward & Constituency Chairman, Sue is Deputy Chairman of Northfield Constituency. She has also been at meetings about young people, worklessness, the police and others. Ken is busy with Housing, he is the deputy Chairman of the Housing Committee and very involved with the regeneration of Longbridge.
Two of the meetings when we all attend is the Ward Advisory Board when we seek advice on how to spend Community Chest money, the Housing Liaison Board and this week the Egghill Development Group. This has been overseeing the plans to redevelop the estate. These plans collapsed when the credi crunch came upon us but there are now plans to build 58 houses in the first phase. These have now received planning permission and Cabinet approval but the residents will believe it when the JCB,s roll into action. The sooner the better.

Hurry up, its cold!

2010-03-02T21:53:00.000Z

Lets get started

2010-03-02T21:52:00.000Z

2010-03-02T21:51:00.000Z

River Rea

2010-03-02T21:50:00.000Z

Messing about on the river.

2010-03-02T21:49:00.000Z

On a very cold Friday Morning we found ourselves in Lismore Close litter-picking. This is the site of part of the river Rea. One of the projects the Ward Committee has been funding is work to clean up the river in conjunction with the City's drainage engineers. They have been dredging parts that were overgrown with bushes and trees growing within the river bed which could cause backing up and flooding when debris gets caught up.
The photos we have show the newly dredged river, a party of Council workers and volunteers starting work and Sue with local stalwart Terry litter-picking.

Ward Committee

2010-02-25T12:53:00.000Z

Last night we were all at Frankley Community High School for the Housing Liaison Board at 6pm. This all went quite smoothly, the figures for repairs and the Housing statistics were very good. The only disappointment was in the gas repair figures. Last year our contractor JD Heating, which was very successful, was taken over by a company called Eaga Heating. This is a very large company with contracts across the country. During the cold weather we have been inundated with people without heating or hot water and who could not get through or could not get a service. We were kept extremely busy trying to sort all this out. Needless to say our concerns were passed on to Cllr John Lines (Cabinet Member for Housing) and the contract has been ended. A new contractor will take over on the 1st of April. They are holding a Jobs Fair for heating engineers and when we find out the details it will be put on this site and on Keely's website.
At 7pm it was into a different room for the Longbridge Ward Committee. There we had a presentation on the plans for the refurbishment of the Frankley Shopping Centre. This centre has been looking very tired for some time although most of the units are let and the Costcutters is successfully attracting customers to the centre. The plan is to open the area up and make it brighter and more attractive. This will start about June. The money has been in place for about 2 years and the wishes of local people for it to be done has been there even longer.
Another presentation was about the "YES" Group which came out of the Frankley Summit. You may remember we gave £10.000 from the Community Chest to young people and let them get on with it. It is no good us telling them how to spend it, we have to trust them to use it wisely. Thankfully they are doing a great job and we want the scheme to continue and expand to bring in even more young people.
Checking the numbers for yesterday it appeared 19 people viewed the site but no-one clicked on the adverts. We can't believe they were all Labour trolls so come on people, click on the adverts and raise money for Keely's campaign.
Today Sue is at Forestdale School and then on to a meeting with the local Police Inspector, this evening she will be at a Governors meeting at Colmers J & I and then on to meet Keith & Keely at Frankley High to discuss the future of the school.

Budget meeting

2010-02-24T14:52:00.000Z

Yesterday was the full Council meeting to discuss the budget. The meeting is dedicated to the budget and nothing else although the Lord Mayor does allow some leeway.
Once again the Labour Group failed to present an alternative budget. This is their chance to say what they would do differently to the partnership but once again they failed in their responsibility to the electorate. Instead they moved an amendment asking for the budget to be delayed so that the Co-Ordinating Committee could have a look at it line by line. As the budget has to be signed off very shortly this would have been extremely difficult for a committee that meets once a month and usually has a full agenda. This was merely a device for the Labour Group to say they had tried to do something.
Sir Albert Bore started by saying that Mike Whitby had said in his speech that there would be no compulsory redundancies. This was repeated by at least 5 more of the comrades and in his closing speech Mike accused a Labour member of lying on this point. What Mike actually said was that every effort would be made to avoid CR through natural wastage, not filling vacancies and moving people into other jobs. There is an annual turnover of about 4,000 employees per year and there must be scope for some people to retrain etc.Last year we lost about 1500 full and temporary jobs with very few CRs. However, try as we might, there could be no guarantee that there would be no CR.
This is a typical trick that the comrades use. They say someone has said something and then accuse them of breaking their word later.
Ken made a good speech as the Deputy Chairman of the Housing & Constituencies Overview & Scrutiny Committee whilst Keith presented 2 petitions on behalf of St. James School & Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Church parishioners calling for yellow lines on the junctions of Leach Green Lane.
Some of you will know that we are wary of what we put on this blog as the opposition keep a close eye on Conservative blogs to find out what is happening. One trick is to see an issue on a blog, get a few of their cronies to sign a petition and when the issue is dealt with claim credit for getting action.
Sue had a difficult day as she has an advice centre at FrankleyPlus Children's Centre on the last Tuesday of the month. This meant being at the Council Meeting at the start, going to Frankley and coming back for the rest of the meeting. It was a good job she did as 3 people turned up and Sue would not have wanted to let them down. This meant Sue had to get permission from the Chief Whip to do this and managed to get back for 4pm.
There was supposed to be a "Noisy" demonstration in Victoria Square during the meeting but not a sound was heard. Cllr Deirdre Alden took a look and counted about 100 people out there. On the BBC Midlands new this morning they showed a very tight shot looking packed with people but when they showed an aerial shot (very briefly mind, don't blink) there was less a crowd, more a group.

By the way, if you want to help out with election expenses, when you visit this site please click on the adverts at the top of the page. This pays small amounts of money which goes into our Election Account. Labour trolls are excused.
Many Thanks.

Hattip. MyLabourPoster

2010-02-19T10:32:00.000Z

Labour letting people down.

2010-02-18T16:31:00.000Z

News today that due to reductions in public expenditure Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has to save £30million resulting in the loss of up to 200 beds in 2 hospitals. The Chief Exec has said it is all right because he knows they are inefficient and they don't need the beds anyway.

Labour letting people down

2010-02-18T16:19:00.000Z

This is a quote in the Metro News today attributed to Yvette Cooper (Mrs Ed Balls).
"The continuing growth in the number of long term unemployed shows that Labour is failing to support the people who need their help the most. Unless Ministers wake up and stop treating these people like a statistic we risk losing a generation to a culture of worklessness".

Kung Hei Fat Choy!

2010-02-18T15:58:00.000Z

Chinese New Year

2010-02-18T15:47:00.000Z

Last Sunday Sue & Keith were at the Arcadian Centre at the invitation of the Chinese community to celebrate the Chinese New Year. This was again a stunning series of displayed which were enjoyed by everyone there.
It may be a victim of it's own success as the crowds became too large to get into the centre and a lot of people had to wait outside until someone else came out. It may be that a change of venue is needed.