Theresa May and the Butterfly story

I was extremely impressed with our new Prime Minister today, She kept to our overall strategy of self responsibility, keeping within our means and answered questions on struggles of today.

I congratulate her on not only completing her first PMQs with grace and dignity but also wiping the floor with Corbyn, who is certainly no match for May. I don't feel the need to describe what I saw with any graciousness. His inexperience was evident and he has brought it upon himself.

It's also satisying to see my great party united as I always said it would be, and seeing that all are signed up to making Brexit a success. It reminded me of one of my favourite stories about struggle and how it is not always a tragic notion. It confirms my belief that there is no light wthout dark, no lesson without failure and no confidence without endeavour.

Ahead are the real struggles we now face with terrorism growing and unbelievable upheavel across the globe, but that is why we must be grateful for the now and enjoy life with all it's ups and downs.

The Story of the Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.
One day a small opening appeared.
He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours
as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole.
Then it stopped, as if it couldn't go further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly.
He took a pair of scissors and
snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon.
The butterfly emerged easily but
it had a swollen body and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch it,
expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge
and expand enough to support the body,
Neither happened!

In fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life
crawling around.
It was never able to fly.

What the man in his kindness
and haste did not understand:
The restricting cocoon and the struggle
required by the butterfly to get through the opening
was a way of forcing the fluid from the body
into the wings so that it would be ready
for flight once that was achieved.

Sometimes struggles are exactly
what we need in our lives.

Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us.
We will not be as strong as we could have been
and we would never fly.

Domestic Violence, Jobs and Calais

Briefing for today from the Conservative Government:

New figures today show that a record number of people in England and Wales are being convicted of violent crimes against women.

We have made protecting women and girls from violence and supporting victims and survivors of sexual abuse a key priority. It is therefore encouraging to see more victims and survivors reporting these terrible crimes and the perpetrators brought to justice.

 Since 2010 we have allocated £40 million to help victims of domestic abuse and violence and have extended this funding for another year. Funding for female rape crisis centres has been put on a more sustainable footing and we continue to support those organisations which work with victims of sexual abuse, including child sexual abuse.  

 We hope that this increase in convictions will give victims of these terrible crimes greater confidence to come forward and to speak out about hideous offences that have too often been ignored.

Today, the Environment Secretary, Elizabeth Truss, will announce that over 8,000 datasets will be made publicly available to help create jobs across the whole country.

Our beautiful countryside is a central part of the economy and we are determined, as part of our long-term economic plan, to secure its future.

 We want farmers, rural businesses and entrepreneurs to be able to benefit from the developments in new technology so that it is easier for them to grow and create new jobs. To support this, the Government will make more than 8,000 datasets publicly available for the first time – the biggest data giveaway Britain has ever seen.

 By seizing the opportunities this will provide we can help farmers and rural businesses and entrepreneurs to flourish, creating a truly One Nation economy that gives people in every part of the country the chance to get on in life and enjoy a brighter, more secure future.

There is continued coverage of the migrant situation in the port of Calais.

As the Prime Minister said yesterday, the scenes we have witnessed in Calais are totally unacceptable. 

 We are putting additional resources into the port of Dover to enhance screenings and detections there. We have also been advised the French authorities are sending further policing to deal with law and order issues, and we will be keeping in close contact with them. This action builds on the additional investment we have already been making in Calais and other ports – which includes an extra £12 million to reinforce security, a £2 million upgrade of detection technology, and a £1 million extension of dog searching capacity.

 This action is about maintaining the safety, security and integrity of the border, which is our absolute focus.

Greece.

We continue to urge our euro area colleagues to act swiftly and responsibly to resolve current uncertainty and ensure economic and financial stability

 Given the present risk in Greece of a potential default and a potential exit from the euro, we are taking all steps to prepare and protect ourselves from such eventualities.

Good Luck Giles - I Know Who I Want Steering The Ship

Much is made of Nigel Farage's disposition and the way he portrays himself as 'one of the lads'.

People talk about how he has a pint in his hand and goes to the pub, like it's akin to a first class degree in relationships. Whoopee - Cameron goes to the pub too but he doesn't use it as a badge that says 'I'm normal'!

When I get on a plane, I don't want to be greeted by a pilot who's 'one of the lads' and gives you a wink as you enter his den. I don't want to listen to an incoherent accent that I might not understand when it comes to any emergency instructions.

No, I want a composed, poised, confident, well educated, well spoken, well trained experienced pilot who focuses on the destination and when things go wrong he or she knows exactly what to do in a calm and effective way, making decisions that could save lives.

If people want Nigel Farage they'd better know what he would do when it comes to landing in a storm, with one wing dipped downwards and the other upwards requiring an emergency re-take off feet from the ground of Luton, whilst passengers are screaming that we're all going to die. (Sorry, just reliving a dreadful experience - but gratitude to a wonderful pilot who didn't speak for 15 minutes while he focused on saving all our lives).

I don't want a captain of a ship who decides he is 'one of the boys' by doing a sail-by to salute onlookers in an endeavour to impress the ladies, resulting in hundreds of people dying.

I just don't want 'one of the boys'. I don't need someone who shows us he drinks, burps and calls everyone else a politician when he is the biggest one of all, an MEP, no less and rakes it in more than the next guy.

People have said to me that I'm a 'real' person as a politician and would make a great PM.

No, I wouldn't! I'm far too outspoken, cockney, maverick, passionate (not a bad thing but has to be in small doses - I don't do small doses). Once the novelty wore off, people would be screaming for me to step down. I'd probably end up causing a riot somewhere! I know my limitations.

Be careful what you wish for people of Clacton - I was there Saturday in Wheeley and you were fantastic.

I was invited in for a cup of tea, more times that day than the whole of my canvassing years in Ipswich put together.

And Giles - if you read this - go and see that lady called Joy whose details I gave to the campaign centre in Wheeley. Fantastic woman who needs help and gave me a lovely big hug when I left her house.

I am trusting the people of Clacton to understand what they really are voting for when they vote UKIP - it will not be a UKIP government or even more than a handful of UKIP MPs but you might just let the worst of all scenarios be a reality next year.

Milliband is not even 'one of the boys'. In fact is he even of this planet? Clegg is a nice enough guy but not half as clever as his beautiful wife.

And as much as I love Boris, Theresa May is now looking more of a leader and PM in waiting than he is.

There's only one man who fits the description of the Captain who can steer the ship in the right direction.

Luckily, that's who we've got.

Diary and Snippets from the Ipswich Conservatives

We've been busy - hence a bit behind with the blog posts - so I thought I would do some snippets from the last week.

First of all I attended the annual Local Government Association in Bournemouth, last week.

There were 2 subjects up for debate that I was the most interested in - How we can make our High Streets work again and Universal Credit. I will be doing separate blog posts on both of these items.
The time I spent there for networking, checking out the exhibitors and catching up with colleagues made it worthwhile, but it did take a lot out of my week and then only having the weekend to read the executive papers caused more build up of incoming work.

Talking about the executive - Spy was not there to film this time - but I can report that I voted against the Labour portfolio holders on only 1 paper - the buying of Arts building in Argyle street for a community group that wishes to move out of Tower street.

This was because I didn't think it fair that other groups were not given the chance to participate in a competitive process and because I feel that taxpayers money is at risk if the rent is not able to be paid. I also fear that the group - the Bangladeshi centre - who do some great work in the community - will struggle to repair the building if they do not get the lottery money the labour group seem so confident will be given - nothing is certain.

I had several questions surrounding this and I'm not satisfied that all of them were answered fully.

I would be interested to know what you think.

The conservative group had a visit to Iceni last week, to find out more about the great work they do with addiction and I have written a piece about this for the next Angle.

A group meeting this week showed that we continue to be united and focused on what needs to be done to give the electorate an alternative at local level. We have these once a month now so that we can be out in the community more, on the other 3 Mondays.

We canvassed in St John, Gipping and Rushmere in the past week discussing national as well as local issues and some of us joined Ben Gummer at his regular Ben in The Pub evenings, talking to the local community.

Today sees a press release about the Waterfront - Ben Gummer was asking for possible compulsory purchase orders 2 years ago -  and now Cllr Ellesmere seems to think the time is right after being 3 years as leader of the council, so I will be onto them if they allude negatively to the previous administration  - as suggested by a local paper. It logically follows that it most certainly wasn't right 4 years ago - and as this is an important development - everyone needs a say in this.

Case work is massive for me at the moment - as the only conservative from 12 in the SW area, Tory voters always come to me of course and I love it. Case work is the most important part of my work and it will never be sacrificed for the ivory tower type work at Grafton house.

Many of you know I run my own business and look after my grandchildren on a Wednesday - it is a full and rewarding life that takes me up to 8pm most evenings.

However I always find time for some things and my cookery lesson on Sunday, near Chelmsford, with Ann Hood, a previous masterchef quarter finalist, was an absolute joy as usual. And I will always find time for good dramas. If you haven't caught up the The Honourable Woman, then do so - its brilliantly directed, written and acted.

Ben Gummer sticking up for Ipswich

Below is Ben's latest article and I think it's excellent and speaks for many of us who love Ipswich. I agree entirely with his sentiments and know myself when people visit us here in Ipswich how pleasantly surprised they are with what they see and experience. 

Read on and spread the word!

'I grew up in the Suffolk countryside, first in Fressingfield, near Diss, and then after I was eight years old, just outside Debenham, in the little village of Winston.  I remember, when I was very little, going to Norwich with my family for Christmas shopping but my real memories as a boy are of Ipswich, which was our local town.  We shopped in Ipswich, went to church in Ipswich, and all of us seemed constantly to be at Ipswich Hospital, with some broken bone or tending on an ailing ageing relative.  I sat for hours in the car park of the old County Hall, waiting for my father to finish meetings, counting the ramparts that run along the roofline.  I first went clubbing in Ipswich - something I remember not too well, and I had my first date in Ipswich - at the Odeon - an experience that I can recall as clearly as if it were yesterday.  Ipswich has been a place of my growing-up, therefore, and I felt emotionally attached to the town long before it consumed much of my waking day.

So, it struck me, long before I was duty-bound to give a reaction, strange and upsetting that people in Suffolk outside Ipswich could be so irrationally unpleasant about our county town.  Let's be blunt: many of those who live in villages near us seem happy to insult Ipswich and have for some time.  Now, I think, people are careful what they say in my presence, as they know they will get a sharp response.  But I know it goes on, as do you: you only need to hear what people say on BBC Radio Suffolk when Mark Murphy periodically decides to stir the pot and get people talking about their county town.

What's this all about?  Well, I think the roots of this run deep.  Ipswich has never had a cathedral and it was, until within living memory, a manufacturing town.  It was not a 'normal' capital of a southern shire, therefore.  We need not apologise for that: our character is unique, something I explain to everyone who asks me about my constituency, and something also that newcomers remark on within weeks of arriving in the town.

But some of the criticisms that are levelled by outsiders are also made by people who have lived in Ipswich all their life: the quality and range of shops is not what it used to be; the planners have made a mess of large parts of the town; parking is expensive; and so on.

I've written about all these problems before, at length, so will not talk about them here - save to say that I know they exist and am doing what I can, even though I have few powers to do anything, to fix them.

But what I do want to say is that whilst I feel fiercely defensive about Ipswich, I feel sadder still for the Suffolk people who criticise our town.  Because they are missing out on a town centre that could, with some love, be one of the most beautiful in the country, parks and museums beyond compare in any similarly sized county town, and restaurants and boutiques that are increasingly good and increasingly numerous.  That is their loss.  What is more, if they do not support us, then they will never get the county town that they and everyone else wants.  So: stop carping and come here instead.  

Everyone I know who has done so comes away wishing they had ever said a bad word about us in the past'

Ready for the Ride

The yearly ceremony for bringing in the new mayor and confirming the executive, committee members and outside body commitments, took place last evening and as usual was a fine occasion.

Bill Quinton will make a good mayor and is liked by all members across the parties. I sincerely wish him well and hope he as a fantastic year, as it seems all the mayors do.

The difference this year is that I have accepted the seat on executive, offered every year by the Labour leader and I do not do this lightly.

Councillor Ellesmere will tell you that he offers this in the interest of openness and of course, it does help us to see what's going on.

BUT, The labour group (and I mean as a group, not any particular individual) never do us Conservatives any favours, not even if it helped the people of Ipswich. Like the Unions they are protectionists and they will not be making my life easy. I will not win any vote where I disagree with them and they will see this as an opportunity to scrutinise everything I say.

But I will not make their lives too easy either and it will be an interesting ride.

I don't believe the people of Ipswich enjoy the childishness that goes on, although I will say that there's not a grown-up in the entire world that doesn't behave in a childlike way at one point. Football, politics, relationships, hobbies, debate, social media can all make us resort to silly stuff.

But I also don't believe that people would find total collaboration that interesting either. While on the campaign trail someone asked me why we couldn't just get together and do what needs to be done.
I replied that we do - but here's the rub - we want roughly the same things but it's HOW we get there that makes us fall into different camps.

No, you would definitely have the right to say we all look and sound the same if we were to totally collaborate. How could we possibly show you our differing values, beliefs, plans, desired outcomes if we just 'all got along and agreed'?

I intend to make it interesting - being on the executive will make it interesting - having to be at my best while I am scrutinised and vice versa - will make it interesting.

When my group agrees, we will say so. When we don't we will give you reasons why.

Over the coming weeks I will continue to use social media to take our council to the people of Ipswich. I intend to dispel the myths of what a Conservative is and why I have always been one, despite growing up in a council flat until I was 11 in the East End of London and being a single parent with no help from the government whatsoever, during the fantastic Thatcher years.

I will show you that we do not adopt the unionistic method, in which Labour group always cherish, but that we are a team with a common sense of duty, compassion, teamwork, values, beliefs and fondness for each other, even if we have the odd disagreement. We are family. Small but powerful!

We are going to make some mistakes - but in the words of the great Maya Angelou:

'I've learnt that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel'.

I intend to show the people of Ipswich, that if you want to be proud of Ipswich, see the people empowered with confidence, then you need to vote Conservative.

We believe in empowering the people, the officers who run the council and giving residents what they want, not what we think they want.

I'm ready for the ride!

Delivering the best schools and skills in Ipswich

Not usually my area of expertise but a great interest of mine, especially as my day work within my business has often been in schools. So I asked for some information and I share that with you, regarding Ipswich.

There's also been a lot of negative publicity by Labour councillors without really giving any facts and figures, as is their want, on anything much at all. So I felt it important to look into this.

Labour failed our young people as we plummeted down the international league tables for school performance. Between 2000 and 2009 England fell from 7th to 25th in reading, 8th to 28th in maths, and 4th to 16th in science in the PISA league tables (PISA study, DfE Press Release, 7 December 2010)

So what are we doing?

Academies – giving schools more freedom

·         Academy status gives schools more freedom, allowing them to help each child reach their full potential. Over half of England’s secondary schools are now benefiting from Academy status, including 6 in Ipswich.

Free Schools – innovative, community-led education

·         Free Schools let talented and committed teachers, charities and parents respond to local demands, raising standards and improving education in their community. There are now over 300 Free Schools in England, but there are none in Ipswich yet.

Capital Spending – investing in schools

·         We are ensuring that Local Authorities have the money they need to provide enough school places because nothing is more important than investing in the next generation. Between 2011 and 2015 schools in Suffolk will receive over £59 million of extra funding to provide new school places.

·         We are making sure school buildings are repaired so that children can learn in the best environment possible. Between 2011 and 2015 schools in Suffolk will receive over £48 million for repairs.

In addition, in Ipswich:

·         Suffolk New Academy is being rebuilt under the Priority School Building Programme:.

·         And, Coppleston High School received £46,500 from the Academies Capital Maintenance Fund.

.

EBacc – the core academic subjects

·         Thanks to our EBacc more pupils are taking the key subjects that they need to get a good job. The EBacc incentivises schools to encourage more pupils to take core subjects at GCSE. It recognises pupils who achieve A*-C grades in English, Maths, 2 sciences, a language and History or Geography.

• In 2010 only 21.1 per cent of pupils in Ipswich studied for the EBacc, but this rose to just under 40 in 2013, with nearly 22 per cent achieving the qualification, a rise of over 8 per cent.

Under Labour the number of pupils studying an academic core collapsed. The EBacc encourages more pupils to take core subjects at GCSE. It recognises pupils who achieve A*-C grades in English, Maths, two sciences, a language and History or Geography.

Ipswich (National Average)	2010	2013	% rise
% entering a combination of EBacc subjects	21.1 (21.6)	39.5 (35.3)	87.2 (98.0)
% achieving the EBacc	14.1 (14.9)	21.7 (22.5)	53.9 (82.3)

 

Pupil Premium- supporting the poorest children                 

·         The Pupil Premium gives schools extra funding to raise attainment for disadvantaged pupils and close the attainment gaps between the most disadvantaged pupils and their peers. Between 2011 and 2015, schools in Ipswich will receive over £12.1 million through the Pupil Premium.

Ofsted – expecting the highest standards

·         We have toughened up the Ofsted regime to ensure that all schools are giving the best possible education to our young people. In 2010, 27 schools in Ipswich were rated good or outstanding; this has fallen to 23 schools in 2013.

Ipswich	Aug 2010	Dec 2013
Outstanding	7	5
Good	20	18
Requires Improvement	11	8
Inadequate	1	5

Apprenticeships – getting our young people into work

·         Apprenticeships give young people the chance to earn a salary and gain a qualification whilst gaining valuable workplace skills and experience. 630 people started an apprenticeship in Ipswich in 2012/13. An increase of over 62 per cent compared to 2009/10. In total, 2,930 people have started an apprenticeship in Ipswich since 2010.

Ipswich – Ben Gummer MP

Academies

Ipswich (National Average)	May 2010	Feb 2014
Number of converter Academies	0 (0.0)	2 (4.2)
Number of sponsored Academies	0 (0.4)	4 (1.3)
Total number of Academies	0 (0.4)	6 (5.5)
% primary schools that are Academies	0 (0.0)	3.4 (7.3)
% secondary schools that are Academies	0 (6.8)	50.0 (50.2)

Pupil Premium

Ipswich	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	Total
Eligible pupils	2,440	3,980	3,980
Amount (£)	1,181,000	2,451,000	3,535,000	4,864,000	12,013,000

Capital Spending

Suffolk	2011-12	2012-13	2013-15	TOTAL
School repairs (£)	18,733,328	15,397,812	13,925,925	48,057,065
School places (£)	19,916,234	17,241,395	21,880,233	59,037,862

.

Latest from Ben - Democratic Change in Ipswich

Herewith a message from Ben in it's entirety and my comments in response at the bottom!

Earlier this week I had a great meeting with an architect with red trousers who is now one of the most famous men in Bristol.  George Ferguson, a man few people in that great city would have heard of a few years ago, is now the directly elected mayor of Bristol - the first of a kind outside London.  He's quickly made a name for himself, crafting a bold vision for Bristol, exuding a passion and a belief in what the city can do to prosper in the future, and for being instantly recognizable for always wearing red trousers.  He has won plaudits from people of every political colour and none.

I admitted to him I am jealous of what he's able to do.  He provides what local government so singly fails to do in so many of our towns and cities: passion, breadth of vision and intelligence of leadership.  In part it is the man, of course, but it is also the position: putting power in the hands of one directly elected person, identifiable and accountable to the people.

Now, let me ask you three questions.  Do you know your councillor?  Do you know what they can and cannot do?  And when did you last vote in a local election?  Readers of the Ipswich Star will score well, I am sure, but if you asked that question across the population you would get some very low numbers, I am sure.  On the last point, elections, we know the figures: fewer than 1 in 4 people thought worth their while to vote in this year's elections.

Ask anyone in London who the mayor is and almost all will know: for that matter, ask most people in Britain - and, it seems, in China - and they know too.  Granted, London and Boris are special cases, but George Ferguson is getting to be very well known in Bristol - not just for those trousers but because of what is doing and plans to do.

Imagine the same in Ipswich, and what a directly elected mayor could do.  Not only would the position have power, they would be recognized by the people and more directly accountable for what they do or don't do.

Two problems get in the way.  First, we need to combine the councils that run Ipswich, and draw the boundaries of the town to reflect its actual area rather than the one that described how it was in Victorian times.

Secondly, it would require councillors to vote to give up power - and, as we know, turkeys seldom vote for Christmas.

That is why I am very pleased to see the Borough make a first step in the right direction.  One of its suggested savings is to reduce the number of ward councillors from three to two and stop the silliness of having elections every year and have them every four years instead.  People get fed up of constantly campaigning rather than doing - as do councillors, who should be working for the community rather than delivering leaflets.

I wholeheartedly support both these proposals.  And why not go a bit further and have just one councillor per ward - giving them greater profile and power amongst their constituents?  By giving them a bit more administrative support, I am sure they could deal with the extra work and costs would come down nonetheless.

And if we go that far, then it is a bit closer to having a directly elected mayor.

My response: I will leave the question of directly elected mayor because I haven't made my mind up about that!

On the question of reducing councillors. I have often said cutting from 3 to 2 is the way to go and would vote for this in a heartbeat, even if it meant I was the turkey at christmas! However going from 3 to 1 is just not viable.

I don't think many understand how much work is involved in being a councillor. It's obvious that Tory voters call up a Tory councillor and Labour start with a Labour councillor when they need help. If one person were to do all the case work, then they could kiss goodbye to any day job they have! In fact I might choose not to stand again if I were to have all the responsibility, even if I had an assistant. There is only so much an officer can do - it is the councillor who visits residents in the first instance, who knocks on door, who attends events, who reads all the reports for council meetings and I make no bones that it costs me financially because my business suffers. 

But not only that, if I felt I couldn't do council case work properly and thoroughly, then I'd rather not do it all and concentrate on other things.

What do you think?

On the Buses - (Yes our own comedy version)

Last night we had our full council meeting at the Town hall in Ipswich where I invited residents to hear questions from me about Ipswich Buses and subsidy for route 16.

Following the petition I instigated in my ward, Ipswich Buses went from taking out the service altogether, to a reduced service starting at the end of July.

Despite the confirmation of Councillor Smart and Ellesmere, at executive Tuesday, that the route would be fully subsidised and that the service would run 'as it does now', this is not true at this moment.

From trying to clarify that the service would have exactly the same timetable as it does now, I have ascertained and they have confirmed that there are options on the table and that Councillor Smart feels there will be a 'positive outcome'.

My husband asked a couple of questions in order to extract an apology from the leader of the council for misleading the residents about the Conservative position. Of course he never expected one because Ellesmere would prefer to joke around and poke fun at people rather than be serious about the fact that the Labour group had put out nasty literature.

What they need to know is that their letter bombed with the residents - they hated the political spite and many of them sent me a copy in the post with their comments of how disgusting it was. But this is their style and they were never going to admit that the petition prompted Ipswich Buses to change their mind or that they have absolutely no idea what we did or didn't know about route 16. Councillor Smart certainly had some 'smart' comments ready (they do receive the questions beforehand) including one about me still being a councillor next year after I asked to be kept fully informed. At least he confirmed something - that the situation with bus 16 will not need looking at again for nearly a year (strange how the solution at executive was for only the next 6 months though).

So we wait to see the final 'option' that is decided and I will be keeping a close eye and ear so that my residents can be informed professionally and in a proper manner.

I think the labour group must take masterclasses on how to behave in council. It probably goes something like this:'Think of a time when you were back at school - see what you saw then, hear what you heard then and think about the times you so enjoyed making a lot of noise, like blowing raspberries or hectoring the teacher. Perhaps you enjoyed walking around in a pack making these noises. Yes that's right, remember how you felt.Now apply all that to the full council meeting.'

As a resident said to my husband about the labour group as she left the full council meeting - it went something like this:-

That's my first and last time I attend one of these, they behave as if they are still in the school playground.

Anyway. the following is from Ipswich Spy who summarised it nicely.

'Cllr Lockington was concerned that the new bus route 39, introduced to replace services 22 and 31, both deregistered by their commercial providers, didn’t give the same coverage for residents of St Margaret’s Ward, and Cllr Smart agreed, explaining that Ipswich Borough Council were hoping that Suffolk County Council would split the 39 service returning both the original routes – which IBC would be prepared to help support. And Cllr Smart also pledged to support service 14/14A at the current level of service.

But the real row broke out over the contentious route 16, where Tory councillor Nadia Cenci has been attacked by Labour councillors over a leaflet she distributed as part of a petition. Her husband used public question time to demand an apology and retraction from Cllr David Ellesmere, Labour leader of the council, over allegations made in a letter from Labour councillors to residents, but none was forthcoming.

As for Cllr Cenci herself, she tried in vain to tie Cllr Smart up in knots. At Tuesday night’s Executive committee meeting, Cllr Smart had told councillors that the “existing situation” on the routes 14/14A, 16 and 19 would be achievable for £30,000 which he obtained approval for. This position was summed up by Cllr David Ellesmere, who said “all the existing routes should be able to be kept.” So far, so good for residents.

Yet one line from Cllr Ellesmere caused confusion and led to last nights requests for clarification, which still didn’t shine a lot of light. Cllr Ellesmere implied that the service 16 would be maintained by a commercial service off peak, hourly, and supplemented by a peak time service supported by Ipswich Borough Council.

This follows what was expected, following a letter from Ipswich Buses managing director Malcolm Robson, sent to right wing blogger James Spencer.

Because of this confusion, Cllr Cenci attempted to get a firm declaration from Cllr Smart in the meeting, yet from the public gallery the situation appeared less clear after the questions than it had before. Cllr Smart told us that he would give as firm an assurance as he could, for legal reasons, that the service 16 would continue as it is now. But when asked to commit to the current half hourly service, he prevaricated.'

Yes indeed. In fact the flavour of the whole meeting was obvious. the portfolio holders barely asked one single question we put to them and the mayor lost control of the meeting at one point.

Not one of IBC's finest full council meetings.

Saving Our Bus Route no 16 by Ipswich Buses - Petition

Residents started to call me at the beginning of the week to enquire about the stopping of bus 16, a route that picks up many of our most vulnerable and aged.

I knew nothing about this and didn't believe it at first so I called Ipswich Buses myself where it was confirmed that it would indeed be ceased sometime in July, as an estimate.

I was incensed to learn it was for financially reasons as I know other routes are less popular but it is because most of the users are old aged pensioners and so the income on this service is challenging.

The first question I have to ask is why Councillor Smart, Transport portfolio holder, or his colleagues, some of whom are on the board at Ipswich Buses, did not think to send out a letter to residents, or to me for that matter to keep me advised?

I have started up a petition to ensure that no private company takes over this route - as we know what will happen to the service if they do - and to ask Ipswich Buses to change their mind & work with Ipswich Borough Council to find the funds.

Labour councillors are now upset that I have sent out a leaflet to the residents on the relevant route in Stoke Park, because they say they are sorting it out. however I would like to point some things out to them.

1) the petition is for IB to keep the route, no other solution will do
2) to ensure that IBC consider funding the route for IB, NOT a private company
3) It is my duty, especially as I am the only Tory councillor in the SW Ipswich, to hold the Labour group/the administration to account and that is what I am doing.

The residents are queueing up at my door, telephone and my e-mail. Most of them have checked for themselves with IB and have been advised that the cessation is going ahead.

THIS IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH.

Some of the residents have not been into town for ages because the route has been suspended due to roadworks. Some can just about make it to the bus-stop but will not be able to walk the distance to an alternative stop in Fountains road, although this will be an option for younger people.

Our old should be the most valued in our society and whether it's from face to face chatter or my leaflet, it has upset a few of them - but they deserve to know what's going on and if Labour had cared about it enough  in the first place, they would have already done that job for me.

If you use this bus to come to Stoke Park and have not had the petition leaflet through your door then please feel free to contact me below with your comments.

Strengthening Families Parenting Programme Ipswich

This is a high recommend from me - please pass on

Strengthening Families
Parenting Programme


Starts 5th June, 3.30pm – 6pm

At Pipers Vale Community Primary School Raeburn Rd, Ipswich, IP3 0EW

Refreshments provided


Strengthening Families is a seven week programme for parents and young people aged between 10 and 14 years. It is a DVD and activity based programme, which supports families to have a positive outlook as young people approach their teenage years.

Parents aim to improve their nurturing and support skills while considering effective discipline and guidance strategies. Young people build skills for resisting peer pressure and dealing with stress. During the sessions the families work together to reflect on the strengths of their family.










Please call Carole Williams for more information: 07921941620

The Step by Step Guide to Leaving Europe - by David Bannerman MEP

Previous posts on my blog have seen me post comments on Europe myths and truths as expressed by Bannerman MEP in his book The Ultimate Plan B.

I met David a couple of years ago when he presented this discussion, in Ipswich, and also chatted more to him when I gave him a lift to Ipswich station. He is a credible, intelligent guy and had been speaking to us about the virtues of leaving Europe, which by definition will mean him losing his job! He was party chairman for UKIP for 7 years before returning to the conservatives in 2011 (he had previously served for 20 years with the Conservatives including as a special advisor on the Northern Ireland peace process)

Now if I'm going to fall down any side of an argument, when I am still undecided, it will be down the same side as those who are willing to speak the truth, even if it cuts off their own nose to spite their face. David is on the inside and knows a lot more then most people in this country or in Westminster.

David sent me an up to date version of his book recently and so I wanted to expand my posts to complement the previous ones and to share what he says about the practicalities of leaving, should we decide to in the referendum.

I will update my previous posts but in the meantime, I would like to summarise his chapter 3 - Why leaving is Easy.

I have spent many years undecided about Europe, going backwards and forwards depending on whose points of view I was listening to. It is not a decision to take lightly but I have finally made up my mind, mainly through an intuitive reason built on all the pieces of information I have gathered (& also some forgotten on a conscious level)over the years.. I am willing to see what David Cameron can do in Europe to allow us to take back our power and introduce caps on  immigration of European members, because it's only fair and honest that we should all have as many choices as possible in the debate leading up to the referendum. However if I am not happy with their concessions, I will be voting OUT.

So here are the steps:

1) The government to announce an immediate halt to implementation of new EU directives or enforcing new EU Regulations. Open negotiations for a UK/EU Free Trade Agreement with the EU and start the drafting of an ECA Repeal Bill

2) Repeal Bill introduced and passed by both houses to become the Repeal Act.
Continue to honour certain regional grants and other payments until the Special Independence Budget is announced. A draft EU/UK Free Trade Agreement would be produced and Deregulation committees established

3) The Trade Agreement would be presented for approval to UK Parliament and ratified. Withdraw representatives from the European Parliament and all financial contributions ceased.
Once free of EU, measures to be introduced to reassert control.

4) Establish key areas of co-operation in the new Trade Agreement with EU such as sea navigation, telecommunications, air safety, respect for property, intellectual rights, transition time-scales.
Following public consultation, the Deregulation committees would present ongoing legislation to Parliament which allows time for UK citizens to plan for the changes and this would be supported by Transition committees in each govt department. Funds normally dedicated to EU membership could be re-allocated to individuals and companies to aid the transition.

and I quote fully the last paragraph:
'Once this procedure is complete, Britain will have restored full sovereignty and total control over British laws to the British people and their representatives in Westminster. Moreover, the relationship with the EU would now be mutually beneficial as it will be based on friendly trade, not political control by remote, unaccountable EU bureaucracy.

Next time I will update previous posts and share with you some of teh EU regulation burden that we will be free of, if when we leave.

Thorington Windfarm Survey 2

The following is the latest survey for residents in Stoke Park from Ben Gummer MP and myself.

After the last survey which showed a resounding 92% against the windfarm on Thorington, Ipswich, and the campaign by SIT (Stop Ipswich Turnbines), PfR responded by consulting with the public again showing new positions of the turbines.

Only one turbine will be on Ipswich land now and it is slightly further away from Stoke Park residents with the second turbine to be situated on Aldous land and now on the other side of the railway line about 400 mtrs further away from Ipswich.

What we do not want, is the survey results to become a moot point because of the new position so we feel that residents need to give their opinion once more.

Please do not think that because you responded last time, we do not need your input now - because we do. We need an up to date consultation response from the residents of Ipswich.

Feel free to print out the survey and respond. Do not worry about 6/3 deadline - we can hold off for a week or so until I have collated them all.

Results of the Windfarm Survey by Ben Gummer MP and Councillor Cenci

Following consultation and a written survey for affected residents of Stoke Park and Sprites Wards in Ipswich, I can confirm that the following information shows results from those returned (11%). The full results will be printed and made public shortly.

In the meantime here is a summary and feel free to add your own thoughts and comments in the space provided at the end of this post. It’s not too late to have your say on the same questions we asked our residents as I will continue to collate this information to pass onto Ben Gummer MP.

Support the building of wind turbines between Belstead and Pinewood. 

92 % are opposed.  8% are for it 

Visibility from their house. 

81% are concerned. 

Greater use of non-renewable energy. 

 70 per cent of people were in favour of greater use.

The expansion of onshore wind farms in general. 

Overall, 90 per cent of respondents were against

Noise levels

86 %  were worried by potential noise levels. 

Flicker

85 % are concerned by the effect of flicker.