by Paul Scully | May 2, 2009 | News |
Full Council last Monday turned out to be the usual bunfight but confirmed that meetings of all 54 councillors have as much influence on council decisions as Gordon Brown does on his facial muscles.
Two main items were discussed, the future of leisure provision, where the LibDems confirmed that Cheam Baths would close by 2015 and the controversial £8.5million Sutton Life Centre. Councillor Tim Crowley, Conservative Spokesman for Finance & Value for Money requested more financial details the previous Wednesday having discovered that contractors were due to start on site, the day after the decision to build was made. What was the point of pretending to make a decision when it was clear that it had already been taken. We were told that even delaying the decision may lead to Sutton Council having to pay financial penalties to the contractors. The requested information was supplied to me and Cllr Crowley at 4.10pm, less than three hours before the start of the meeting. 52 councillors had to vote on whether to spend £8.5million (astoundingly, the equivalent of 10% of all of the Council Tax raised in the Borough), without full details of the consequences of their actions.
After a 20 minute stand-off, the LibDems forced through a vote to debate the issue, without full disclosure to all councillors. Conservative councillors questioned the need for the Centre in the first place, but majored on the fact that we didn’t actually have the money to build the place, instead relying on diverting money from the reserves and schools repairs budget amongst other smash and grab raids to cover the costs. It is clear that this is another case of the LibDems spending money to justify their existence. Residents were up in arms when they were asked to pay £35 for green garden waste bags. Well, guess what, you’ve just had your pocket picked of £44 each for a project that many will not use. Only one LibDem councillor even bothered to mention finance in the debate.
Yes, but we’ll be getting spanking new community facilities won’t we? – Undoubtedly; a new library that is smaller than the one that it is replacing, youth facilities to replace the youth club that was flattened to make way for the centre, a climbing wall that is more expensive that privately-run “Craggy Island” at Oaks Park and the multimedia area to teach citizenship at three times the price of the existing facilities at nearby Sutton Junior Tennis Centre. Even Vince Cable has been to Sutton to tell us that we are in the middle of the worst recession since Sean Connery found a few hairs on his pillow. However, we seem to be splashing out residents’ cash whilst they are cutting back for fear of losing their jobs. The LibDems used their majority to push the thing through, supporting it to a man. The builders are on site. Work has started on the mausoleum to the LibDem’s reign in Sutton.
by Paul Scully | Apr 25, 2009 | News |
Email smears, the unravelling of the budget and the mess made of MPs expenses. Just three things illustrating the fact that we face a year-long car crash in slow motion waiting for the end of this very tired government. Surely best to put the poor chap at the helm out of his misery, which is clear to everyone despite his best attempt to smile. Why not join me (and 7088 others at time of writing) in signing the petition asking him to resign.
Guido Fawkes makes the point that over two million people watched Dan Hannan MEP tear a strip off the forlorn PM in Brussels recently. If just half sign the petition, the message will be clear.
Thanks to Beau Bo Do’or for the picture.
by Paul Scully | Apr 23, 2009 | News |
I didn’t have my camera with me when admiring the flag of St George flying above the Civic Offices this afternoon, but the picture to the right reflects the same sunny background that is lighting up the national day in Sutton today.
St George’s Day has been lost somewhere along the way. St Patrick’s Day is celebrated more in many parts. It was disconcerting to see the flag hijacked by the British National Party whilst surfing for a picture to accompany this article. Even the many football fans who fly the flag see it as a tribal symbol of a game that in all reality has lost the club versus country debate some years ago anyway.
I’m off to a celebration dinner in Sutton this evening. Nothing to do with the Lib Dem Council who have restricted the marking of the day with a small event in Worcester Park Library. I’ll leave you with a message from the Mayor of London, Boris:-
“Right now, without thinking, can you say what day it is today? For the (I suspect) sizeable majority who said Thursday, feeling rather smug at their mental sharpness, I am sad to say you are wrong. Well, not technically. Today is indeed Thursday. But the real point missed, is that it is St George’s Day.
“Living in such a vibrant, cosmopolitan city you end up celebrating all manner of national and religious days. Some you celebrate as heartily as those to whom they apply. St Patrick’s day is an obvious one, where every pub in the land is decked out in green.
“But St George’s Day is still without fanfare, either forgotten or tucked away in a cupboard somewhere. This year, I want London to wholeheartedly celebrate. That is why the flag of St George will fly above City Hall today. I will be getting on a Routemaster bus and going across the river to the famous Leadenhall Market to join traders and Londoners in celebration.
“Last weekend, the Globe Theatre held a celebration event to mark Shakespeare’s birthday. This weekend, there will be an English music festival in Trafalgar Square.
“St George’s Day has been ignored in London for too long. We have much to be proud of in this great country. England has given so much to the world, politically, socially and artistically. There are many who feel that London is not just the capital of the United Kingdom, but also the capital of England.
“So I am calling on all Londoners to don silly hats, step out into the sunshine and celebrate England’s great patron saint.
“Let me know what you think by commenting on the Blue Blog. It would be great to hear from you.”
by Paul Scully | Apr 22, 2009 | News |
Entitled ‘One Man, One Vote’, the BBC has got a great story on their website. Not about electoral reform or Robert Mugabe’s latest twisted bid to retain power, but about the forthcoming Indian elections.
This man is Guru Bharatdas Darshandas who looks after a temple in a forest in Western Gujarat. He has a polling station to himself for next week’s General Election. On 30th April, five polling officials accompanied by two policeman will travel to the Gir Forest to pick up his ballot. I know that the Indians took to bureaucracy like ducks to water when the Civil Service system was introduced under British Colonial rule. However, it is amusing to see that they have kept up with current British practices of public sector job creation. I await a new rash of “How many … does it take to change a lightbulb?” jokes. I wonder if Mr Darshandas refuses to tell intrepid canvassers, who brave the resident Asiatic lions, which party he supports?
by Paul Scully | Apr 16, 2009 | News |
I’ve left so-called Smear-gate to the Westminster Village experts until now but there are a couple of points that don’t seem to have been picked up by the political mainstream.
Firstly, one point from the unlikely political analysts popbitch.com; a website more used to throwing muck around about celebrities.
“The News of the World landed the McBride-Draper Tory smear email story so it was weird to see on Sunday they didn’t run with it on the front page. Instead the tabloid had a bizarre headline, “Obama’s brother in sex quiz”, which sounds like something Jacqui Smith’s husband would watch on TV, but was in reality a random story about Obama’s half-brother being refused a visa to enter Britain.
Even more weirdly, the story was not written by a NOTW journalist but bylined Gloria De Piero, GMTV’s Political Editor. De Piero is a close friend of Derek Draper, a colleague of his wife Kate Garraway, and an ex-flatmate of Damien McBride’s then-boss Tom Watson.
So, surely a coincidence that this was the front page story? Otherwise I guess we’d have to assume that the uncalled for and unnecessary smearing of the family and reputation of the world’s most popular politician is acceptable to the Labour Party now?”
Secondly as a footnote, it is ironic that Gordon Brown has been caught out by the release of the content of personal emails just a few weeks after a law has come into effect allowing the Government access to the contents of every personal email sent in the UK for up to a year.
Finally Gordon Brown seems to be taking media lessons from John Prescott. He finally gave an apology of sorts today and said “I take full responsibility for what happened. That’s why the person who was responsible went immediately.” It surely doesn’t take a Cambridge PPE graduate to find a hole in that reasoning and wonder why Gordon Brown is still Prime Minister. I’m afraid it is just symptomatic of another statement of empty words drafted without thought.
This is the second worst cock-up of Gordon Brown’s Premiership, the first being the bottled election. Both have been caused by his biggest fundamental weakness, his hatred of political opponents. He can play the big stage, whether it be terrorism, floods, foot and mouth or economic crisis. However, when he has the Conservatives in his sights, he is like a child in a sweet shop and cannot help himself. I was only 11years old when James Callaghan lost the election but despite the Winter of Discontent, this seems even more like someone who needs to be put out of his misery. Please, someone spare us and find him a soft exit now.
Full Council last Monday turned out to be the usual bunfight but confirmed that meetings of all 54 councillors have as much influence on council decisions as Gordon Brown does on his facial muscles.
