Why Choice Isn't Aways a Good Thing

Posted by David Sudworth on December 29, 2007 3:27 PM

I WAS shopping in Ormskirk this week for ingredients for an Italian dish.

The recipe called for fresh basil and, as I happened to be in Tesco at the time, I checked out what they had on offer. I was alarmed to find that they did indeed have fresh basil, but it had come from Israel.

Now I know damn well that basil can be grown in this country so I decided to go to Park Fresh down the road where I found a nice batch of basil which had been grown in England and, moreover, it was cheaper than the stuff at Tesco.

Now I know supemarkets have taken quite a hammering in the press over the past few years and every time this happens some bland company spokesweasal gives us the usual rubbish about: "Our customers tell us they like to have a choice.. blah blah blah."

Sorry, but I shop at Tesco sometimes, as do my family, and we have NEVER demanded Israeli basil.

I would understand if it was tomatoes, given the time of year, or pineapple whch cannot be grown here at all, but basil? Come off it.

This is all because 'choice' is good, apparently. We all want choice, so the captains of industry keep telling us.

But I'd actually like it if they turned around and said: "No, you can't have that because it's it's out of season and if we flew it in it would taste rubbish, cost a bomb and ruin the environment. You'll just have to wait, won't you?"

Politicians are the same. They say we can choose which hospital we're treated in. But do they honestly think someone who needs urgent medical attention gives a fig where they are treated? No, they just want to stay alive.

Unfortunately, because it has been, ahem, 'decided' that choice is so brill, we now have schools in poorer areas closing because parents are obessed by catchment areas, global warming because of food being jetted in from all four corners of the earth and small, independent grocers forced out of business all because local authorities roll over at the sight of moneybags supermarkets with their teams of hot lawyers ready to take them to the Planning Inspectorate if local councillors have the temerity to tell them to hop it.

Still think 'choice' is such a great thing?

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Putting a Spin on a Difficult Year

Posted by David Sudworth on December 28, 2007 8:24 PM

A STORY on page 2 of today's Daily Mail caught my eye, headlined "Brown's 'Stalinist' rewrite of history".

It tells of how a review of the Prime Minister's first six months in office, published on the Number 10 website, fails to mention what the Mail says is "a catalogue of embarassing scandals, failures and blunders".

It reminded me of West Lancs District Council leader Geoff Roberts 'review' of the year which had "lots of good news stories".

He mentions that "customer services are stronger than ever and our Customer Service Point in Skelmersdale was named 'Front-Line Customer Service Team of the Year' in the recent National Customer Awards."

Strangely, he (or whoever wrote it) omits the fact that the poor souls who staff the cash office at the Point only found out that the facility was being axed after reading it in the Advertiser just a week before Christmas

Also, there's no mention of the fact that local tenants are now threatening to the council to the Ombudsman because they did it with no consultation and voted on it behind closed doors.

Sticking with Skem, Cllr Roberts says "progress has been made on a wide range of key initiatives including the Skelmersdale Vision."

But then again, there's no mention to the mass public outcry of Firbeck residents whose homes are under threat from this development. The statement also omits the fact that more than 1,000 people have refused to back the controversial idea of building on the Tawd Valley. Both of these have dominated the coverage of the Vision project this year.

Other points of interest which were missing from this round-up included:

- The highly embarassing chief officers pay review (also done in secret) which saw the council's two top men frozen out at the last minute. The review was carried out by consultants at a rumoured £16,000.

- The climbdown over the Aughton Street artwork scheme after huge public pressure

Downing Street, Derby Street... it's all the same when it comes to spin.

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Cllr John Baldock quits the cabinet

Posted by David Sudworth on December 27, 2007 10:49 AM

I WAS as surprised as anyone when I discovered that Cllr John Baldock had resigned from the cabinet.

Certainly when I spoke to his Conservative colleagues they all appeared to be singing from the same hymn sheet as to his reasons for going.

But others aren't so sure, pointing out that it is very rare for anyone to quit half way through a civic year. Anyone considering stepping down usually does so after the May elections reshuffle.

Some Tory sources reckon he'd quite simply had enough, and that this was beginning to show through - with the October full council meeting being a case in point. You may remember my blog posting which referred to sparks flying between Cllr Baldock and his cabinet colleague Adrian Owens (finance) over an environmental health spending issue. Just a few weeks later he'd resigned.

It's also being hinted at that the Tory rift which we reported on in May may have something to do with that as I'm reliably informed the tensions haven't subsided between the Young Turks (Thatcherites) and the Old Guard (One Nation Tories).

I wonder what the end game will be...?

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Santa Loves Politics!

Posted by David Sudworth on December 26, 2007 11:15 AM

HOPE you all had a good Christmas... a time to get away from poltics and enjoy some 'normality'.

Err, well actually it didn't work out like that Chez Sudworth as I've just finished watching the BBC's excellent poltical review of the year (something to pad out Auntie's output but nevertheless very enjoyable).

Father Christmas also brought me a signed copy of Alastair Campbell's diaries, The Blair Years, which is addictive reading.

Did Santa bring you anything politics-related?

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Bill's Best Blog Yet

Posted by David Sudworth on December 21, 2007 7:28 PM

I EMPLORE you to take a look at Bill Taylor's latest video blog posting which I have to say is his best yet.

It's a compilation of out-takes during the year, and includes a fantastic on-location bit at Bill's house where the garden is invaded by what looks like some interested 'neighbours'.

It's a fantastic blog and gives you a good flavour of what Bill is like as a person, in that he takes his work very seriously but doesn't take himself too seriously.

Enjoy it - I know I did!

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Cash Offices: A Political Gamble?

Posted by David Sudworth on December 20, 2007 3:56 PM

THE Advertiser has been at the forefront of covering the district council's secret plans to close the last two remaining cash offices in Ormskirk and Skelmersdale.

Indeed, had we not covered it, the public would have been blissfully unaware that these two offices - which take a whopping £18m a year (including postal payments) - have already been axed.

At the time of writing, there has been no official statement from West Lancs on the issue and no other local paper has even given it a mention.

The truth is though that nobody was meant to know and if it hadn't been for us obtaining a copy of the confidential document then that would have been the case.

Since our exclusive last week, there's been a strong backlash against the decision, with tenants launching a petition and threatening to take the council to the Local Government Ombudsman.

But irrespective of that, the plan, which has now been passed by the Conservatives, is in my humble opinion a bit of a political gamble for Adrian Owens, who backed the closures despite severe doubts being expressed by the council's finance boss John Gardner.

Cllr Owens is the Conservative candidate for West Lancs at the next general election. In an interview with me earlier this year, he expressed concern over how the Tories could get the votes in places like Skem.

But what the cash office closure plan does is affect those very people who he needs to be able to turn the district blue.

Part of the reason is that the Conservatives are, rightly or wrongly, seen by the majority of people in Skem as the party of public service slashers.

Therefore this latest move may only reinforce that view, irrespective of whether it provides Cllr Owens with the savings he hopes it will. And if it actually loses the council money...

I doubt the effect of the cash offices saga will be felt at next May's local elections, but that's not to say it won't still be in people's minds come 2009/2010 where every vote matters, whether it was cast in Aughton or Ashurst.

If so, will it have been a political gamble worth taking?

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Yellow Peril

Posted by David Sudworth on December 19, 2007 12:55 PM

AS reported earlier this year, Mrs S is not known for her interest in politics.

But this isn't necessarily a bad thing as she can, more often than not, get to the heart of the matter without getting tangled up in all the little nuances that political anoraks like me tend to zoom in on. The problem with that is you tend miss what is glaring obvious to normal folk.

Last night we were watching coverage of Nick Clegg's leadership victory for the Lib Dems. During the extensive reports she said to me: "Wouldn't it be spooky if Tony Blair was still PM because them all the party leaders would all look exactly the same."

This is very true because let's face it Clegg and Cameron were more or less separated at birth despite his desperate attempts to show he's no poodle.

But then again Clegg is no saving grace for British politics either. In fact, just hours after being elected I heard him on BBC Radio 4's PM programme and in all the interview he failed to give one straight answer.

The reason for that is he probably thinks he can become Prime Minister sometime before the next Ice Age and had therefore better watch what he says in case it's used against him.

I wouldn't worry Cleggy, you've no chance of becoming PM because basically his party doesn't know what it stands for. As someone whose worked in an area with a Lib Dem council, I know they have this habit of trying to be all things to all men.

For instance: promoting wind turbines and then rejecting them at planning committee stage or moaning about private care homes closing and then sounding the death-knell for those very same establishments which are within their own control.

But make no mistake, Labour will be very happy about Clegg's victory, as it has the potential to distract the young affluent vote that David Cameron has been trying so hard to nurture since he became Tory leader two years ago.

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Sir Humphrey Appleby Is Alive and Well and Now a Councillor for Ormskirk!

Posted by David Sudworth on December 15, 2007 8:53 PM

WEDNESDAY evening and to full council where there was a good turnout in the public gallery of people from Skelmersdale.

They'd decended on Derby Street - much to the surprise of many councillors and civil servants - for a number of reasons, but primarily the Skem Vision/Firbeck will-they, won't-they knock it down saga.

Now the meeting, the public part of which lasted more than 3 hours, was a pretty hot-tempered affair, no doubt due to the fact they had an audience of plenty instead of just me sitting at the back. In fact, I even had to 'push up' a few spaces for some very nice elderly ladies who couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"How do you manage to sit through this?" one of them asked half way through.
"Oh, you get used to it," I replied, before adding: "I even know which parts to nod off in it's that predictable at times!" (Only joking).

In fact, I find that the most mundane looking agenda items usually bring about the most drama and laughs. The cracker came this time when Cllr Paul Greenall stood up to address the chamber of the Review of Polling Stations.

His speech (if you can call it that) went some like this: "I'd like everyone to look at Appendix C on page 290 and you'll see it directly corresponds with the recommendation made at 9.2 on page 300 but if you actually go to Appendix A which in turn points out at page 292 in paragraph 6.1..." and so on.

The whole chamber was in uproar, both councillors and the top brass enjoying a massive belly-laugh, so much so that at one point I was frightened that the chairman's chains were in danger of whacking Bill Taylor, WLDC's extremely dapper Chief Exec, who was sitting to his left.

Great stuff and proof that Sir Humphrey Appleby, of Yes Minister fame, is alive and well and is now infact a councillor for Ormskirk's Derby Ward.

It's not the first time Cllr Greenall has brought some colour to the council chamber and he breaks the Bob Pendleton-Adrian Owens-Terry Rice-Rob Bailey-Cynthia Dereli-Geoff Roberts-Terry Aldridge-Ian Grant axis very well.

In fact there even seemed to be a few councillors who have now started to remember why they were born with tongues in their mouths and actually stood up and spoke at full council.

Some said some very quotable things, for instance Cllr Jim Kay (Tarleton, Conservative) wondered why the Labour councillors were complaining about the state of football pitches in Skem when teams in his neck of the woods owned their own pitches and "don't come to the council with their begging bowls".

But other remarks were, well, surprising and to be honest unecessary. One supposed joke from Rob Bailey (Knowsley, Conservative) was met with a deafening silence all round with many - mostly on his own side - not knowing where to put their faces.

On the whole it was more interesting listening to the public's comments of the meeting. The words "children" and "playground" were used more than once.

Unfortunately, most of the public had left by the time things started getting really interesting, but more of that later...

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Sad death of Cllr Sally Keegan

Posted by David Sudworth on December 12, 2007 1:44 PM

THE world of West Lancs local politics has been stunned this week following the sudden death of Councillor Sally Keegan.

I found out this week and suffice it to say I, like many others, was genuinely shocked and upset by the news on a personal level.

I'd met Sally a few times and she was always warm, kind-hearted, vivacious and funny. In fact, she was the first councillor to congratulate me after the birth of my daughter in September.

I've spoken to many of her colleagues who have happy memories of Sally, saying she was a passionate socialist, a committed Labour Party member, trade unionist and a real advocate of women's rights.

She was also a real fighter for the people that she represented in Tanhouse. It's a real shame because she was only elected in May but was already proving herself to be everything a good local councillor should be - committed, energetic and have the ability to get results.

As Rosie Cooper MP says in her tribute which will appear in tomorrow's Advertiser: "The world and West Lancs need more Sallys."

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Little Less Conversation, A Little More Action Please

Posted by David Sudworth on December 8, 2007 7:48 PM

THERE'S a heck of a lot of huffing and puffing going on at the moment about how political parties should be funded.

The lazy answer is always, of course, for them to be state funded. In the words of Maggie Thatcher, my answer to that is an unequivocal no, no, no. Afterall, I don't want my taxes going to some of the pathetic causes which masquerade as political parties these days.

No offence, I'm sure they're very nice people but do you think we should be giving money to the likes of The Church of Militant Elvis Party .

So here's my manifesto to clean up politics. Why not simply ban all party donations over £100 (in any 12 month period) and let them survive on membership fees/subscriptions. That way, any party with enough popular support would survive by sheer weight of numbers and the others would fall by the wayside. I'd say that's pretty democratic.

At least it would stop them spending millions on election campaigns. They don't need to do that - all the main parties get free broadcasting at election time and who knows this level playing field approach my attract some real grass roots activity, instead of what we have at the moment whereby the party with the most cash has an unfair advantage.

Just a thought... maybe I'm being too simplistic.

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Bewteen The Lines - Southport Political Blog

Posted by David Sudworth on December 7, 2007 1:52 PM

A FELLOW hack colleague from the Southport Visiter, Robert Alcock, has launched a new blog called Between The Lines.

It's much along the same lines as Off The Record and gives you an interesting insight into the bizarre goings-on in the town and Sefton at the moment.

I've also become the first person to post a comment on it - the first of many hopefully!

http://betweenthelines.visiterblogs.co.uk/

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Smoking ban rebel to address UKIP meeting in Up Holland

Posted by David Sudworth on December 6, 2007 1:53 PM

BREAKING NEWS: Thursday, December 6, 2pm

A PUB boss who was fined for letting his regulars smoke in the building is the guest speaker at an event in Up Holland tonight (Thursday, December 6).

Hamish Howitt hit the headlines after being recently fined for having a smoking room at the Crazy Scots Bar in Blackpool.

He’s now been invited to West Lancs by United Kingdom Independence Party local branch chairman Alan Freeman they "speak the same language.”

He added: “We are the party of freedom and democracy and thought it would be interesting to hear Mr Howitt's views about the anti-smoking legislation which many see as another erosion of personal freedom."

The meeting is to be take place in the Britannia Inn in Hall Green at 8 pm.

Interested members of the public are invited to attend.

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Why We're Heading for a Re-Run of 1992

Posted by David Sudworth on December 3, 2007 5:52 PM

THE way Labour is completely falling apart before its very eyes is leading me ever more to believe that the next election will be like the 1992 contest, only with a role-reversal.

If it carries on much longer, we'll probably have a government clinging onto power and an Opposition looking more credible by the day - just like 15 years ago.

But it;s quite possible that again, as in 1992, the Opposition will go into battle ahead in the polls... only to be scuppered at the last minute by a fickle public who think it's better the devil you know.

Much like the Conservatives' time at number 10, we can equate Labour's successes in 1997, 2001 and 2005 with the Tory truimphs of 1979, 1983 and 1987. But by the fourth election, things were looking decidedly less comfortable.

The similarities are uncanny:

- Ruling party gets rid of a leader who's known throughout the world and replaced by someone less 'flashy'

- The England football team is rubbish (actually, that could be the same for any year since 1966)

For my money, I reckon the next general election will be the closest we've had since 1992 when, incidentally, West Lancashire dumped the then MP Ken Hind (a member of the ruling Conservative Party) and replaced them with an Opposition candidate (Colin Pickthall).

Now, I'm not a superstitious man but you've got to ask yourself; is history about to repeat itself?

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