Sunday 31 May 2009

An election like no other!

Next month on 4th June the country will be asked to vote in local county council elections and European elections. Will these elections predict the outcome of the general election? The current expose on parliamentary expenses and MPs' conduct has had a profound effect on voters. Quite rightly they are angry. Some MPs seem to have forgotten the small print which says expenditure has to be wholly and exclusively for the purpose of being an effective MP - ie necessary to help them do their job. However the worst offenders are those who have in anyone else's book committed fraud - assuming what the Daily Telegraph has printed is accurate. Where fraud is proved they should be prosecuted.

And the effect on the voter? Well while the press predict a low turnout and a move in favour of smaller parties, on the doorstep the picture is a little different. Yes there are those that won't engage now and won't vote - but there are others who have grown increasingly interested in politics and who want to engage now as never before. They recognise that not voting would be a triumph for anarchy and a defeat for democracy. Making politicians more effective and more accountable can only take place if the electorate play their part. But as politicians we have to be more accessible and work to deserve the vote. It's a two way street.

It has been a busy few weeks. The Newton Abbot Senior Council is back on its feet under new chairmanship. Our focus is on transport issues and health. One particular problem we face is the availability of good home care visits to the elderly and infirm. To be effective, home visits need to be long enough to do the job - 15 minutes won't do - and the visitor needs to have sufficiently mastered the English language to be able to communicate. Right now this is not the case and this must change. As a group we are beginning to have a voice which Devon County will listen to and have made significant progress in a number of areas including raising awareness of the challenge dementia patients and their families face.

I have also been working with Transition Town Newton Abbot along with Conservative Future to begin to bring the message of sustainability to the town. We are creating a town garden on disused land just by Baker's Park. We had an Open Day and it was a real pleasure to welcome visitors - particularly young children and introduce them to the fun of planting and explain to them the role of the earth worm. You need good muscles to dig - but practice makes perfect as they say!

I was invited to a very moving event at the Langstone Cliffe Hotel in Dawlish Warren - a dinner in favour of the charity "Richard's Wish" . Richard, a young boy, had been terminally ill - and a group of well-wishers had granted him his wish to go to a fabulous football match , meeting the players and being the VIP for the day. His parents have now established a charity to provide the "dream" for other children in the same situation. It was a great evening and a handsome figure was raised. And of course earlier this month I was invited to the formal inauguration of the new major of Dawlish, Geoff Wills - a great event and a great tradition.

Our Newton Abbot Networking Group met again to discuss key issues affecting the larger businesses in Newton Abbot - and I was invited to take on the chairmanship going forward. There are a number of issues - education and development for employees, planning issues and most important the Newton Abbot brand. As you come up the A380 or A 38 you would hardly know you had reached Newton Abbot. There is very little signage and nothing to indicate what the town has to offer. The town needs a strong brand to attract visitors and to reinforce its identity. This was a key issue we wanted to discuss with Teignbridge District Council. I also had a very successful meeting with the Dawlish Chamber of Commerce to discuss the issues affecting local businesses. Branding was also an issue here.

Earlier this month I had a meeting with the Devon Pensioners Association. We talked about the plight of those trying to survive on the old age pension and agree it needed to be linked again to the average wage. We also discussed the real challenge of council tax - a sum now so huge that for many it is almost 12% of their monthly expenditure - and for others much more. Council tax needs to be frozen and the pension needs once again to be a figure someone can reasonably live on - and be easy to claim.

I visited Downing Street to present my school's petition this month - with some 2,300 signatures. David Cameron visited Decoy School with me in support of what I have been trying to do. He is as concerned as I am that every child should have an equal and fair start in life. We had a great time with the children. One class interviewed him - a very professional job done and some very good questions asked! Philip Hammond, shadow Treasury Secretary also visited at my request to see for himself what is happening here n Newton Abbot during the downturn to manufacturing. We visited Centrax together and the Barr family gave us a very clear brief of what we needed to do to get the country working again and manufacturing back on its feet.

And of course the Devon County Show which I visited on the Thursday - great weather, great event - and well attended despite the downturn! The Ram Roast however at Kingsteignton was the local highlight - not enough ram baps to go round! Never have I seen it so well attended. Lets hope this weather lasts - the farmer tell me it will and they are usually right.

Lets see what June 4th brings!