{"id":139,"date":"2005-08-04T19:51:00","date_gmt":"2005-08-04T19:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/trite101.wordpress.com\/2005\/08\/04\/what-do-they-want\/"},"modified":"2005-08-04T19:51:00","modified_gmt":"2005-08-04T19:51:00","slug":"what-do-they-want","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/?p=139","title":{"rendered":"What do they want?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It’s election week and you know what that means don’t you?
\nYes there are people out there who want you to vote for them.
\nBut why the hell should you? Why should you bother to wander
\nall the way to a school or even a community centre just to
\nput a tick on a peice of paper? We wondered what it is they
\nwanted, so we asked them. This is what they had to say.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The following are in the order we recieved them rather than
\nshowing any particular bias.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nick “Leave the trees alone” Whittingham (Green
\nParty)<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the anarchist fringe of the Green Party, graduated through
\nClass War, poll tax riots, anti-roads protests, Reclaim the
\nStreets, anti-GM, Zapatismo and anti-globalisation. Currently
\ninvolved in community development and local food projects
\nas positive localism seems to be a useful counter to globalisation.
\nI am secretary of the Neighbourhood Forum and a director of
\nthe Community Development Trust. I prefer to take an active
\nrole, e.g.out there running the Farmers Market, rather than
\nmerely moaning from the sidelines.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some policies:<\/p>\n

– Devolve representation and control of budgets and services
\nto the lowest feasible level. Give people direct influence
\nover decisions that affect them.<\/p>\n

– Take steps towards environmental sustainability. This could
\ninclude: promoting reduction, re-use and re-cycling of resources;
\nadding external costs (e.g. of pollution) by appropriate charging\/taxation;
\ngetting council to purchase locally (e.g. food from local
\nfarmers) and from sustainable sources (e.g. renewable energy);
\nimprove public transport and facilities for cyclists and pedestrians.<\/p>\n

– Massively reduce crime by legalising drugs and brothels.<\/p>\n

– Stock transfer: all council houses in Moseley to be given
\nto tenant co-ops run by current tenants.<\/p>\n

– Additional resources for: preventative medecine and health
\nvisitors, programmes to support those dependent on alcohol\/drugs,
\nprojects to involve and empower young people.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thoughts on other candidates:<\/p>\n

David Jepson (Lab): Nice bloke, tries hard, doesn’t take it
\ntoo seriously. Crap party.<\/p>\n

Ken Hardeman (Con): A vote for Ken is a vote for someone who
\ndoesn’t give a fuck about Moseley. Has a certain entertainment
\nvalue, though.<\/p>\n

Martin Mullaney (LD): Campaign totally based on asking the
\nCouncil to do things they were gong to do anyway and then
\nclaiming the credit. Sad that it should come down to that.
\nNice picture on leaflet!<\/p>\n

Robert Grant (Soc All): All his policies are already Green
\nParty<\/p>\n

policies so the only point in him standing is to split the
\n‘radical’<\/p>\n

vote and let Labour off the hook – guess he didn’t really
\nthink it<\/p>\n

through. Prat!<\/p>\n

Mohammed Sharif-Malik (PJP): Not a clue what this guy or his
\nparty stands for, nor does anyone else by the sound of it.
\nStill, we all like stuff from Kashmir!<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Much Maligned Martin Mullaney (Liberal Democrat)<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>On Thursday 2nd May, you have the chance to vote for a
\nnew Councillor to represent your area -Moseley Ward.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Over the last year, you have seen how my Liberal Democrat
\nteam and me have worked non-stop to improve this area. Graffiti
\nhas been removed, roads resurfaced, overgrown trees trimmed.
\nAll done without Moseley Ward having a Liberal Democrat Councillor.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Imagine how much more we could do if Moseley Ward did have
\na Liberal Democrat Councillor.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I both live and work in this Ward, and believe in getting
\nthings done! I have been actively involved in Moseley community
\nissues for the last ten years. I was one of the founding organisers
\nof Moseley Farmers Market and the Moseley Community Development
\nTrust. In 1997, I lead a group of local residents who re-turfed
\nMoseley Village Green \u2013 we were fed-up with this prominent
\npart of Moseley looking like a eyesore for over twenty years.
\nThe resulting publicity embarrassed the council into re-developing
\nthis Village Green.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I also run a community website based on life along the Number
\n50 bus route. The website can be seen at www.50bus.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

There is so much more that needs doing to Moseley, – BUT
\nwe need a Moseley Ward Liberal Democrat Councillor to do these
\nthings. Highbury Park needs to be restored to its former glory
\nand reclaimed back for the community. The future of Moseley
\nRugby Club in Birmingham needs securing. Numerous busy roads
\nneed to made safer for pedestrians to cross. The centre of
\nMoseley needs regular clearing of graffiti, flyposters and
\nlitter, so that it doesn\u2019t look so run-down.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

These are issues that can be tackled within current Council
\nresources and finance. All that is required is better management
\nand priority of Council services.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

So on Thursday 2nd May, help us, to help you, by voting Liberal
\nDemocrat.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

David “Never Met Him” Jepson (Labour Party)<\/strong><\/p>\n

I was first elected as a Councillor for Moseley 4 years ago,.
\nI am now seeking your support for re-election so that I can
\ncontinue to work to improve Moseley<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I have lived locally for 18 years and use local shops, restaurants
\nand public transport and also am a Governor of Moseley C of
\nE School. So, I know the problems and attractions at first
\nhand. Like many people in Moseley, I want to see better services
\nand facilities, and also a fairer and more equal society and
\nI am standing for re-election as a Labour Councillor as only
\nLabour can deliver on these aims.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The years of Conservativ
\ne Government not only undermined
\nour public services and mismanaged out economy but also undermined
\nthe sense and spirit of community. Labour has made a start
\nat rebuilding this and we need your support to finish the
\njob.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the four years since I was last elected much has been
\nachieved. Through the initiative of the Labour Council, Birmingham
\nhas become a City of international standing that we can be
\nproud of.. I have contributed directly to this through my
\nrole in relation to economic development and regeneration..
\nWe have also created a top class education system that is
\nthe envy of others. Good progress has been made in decentralising
\ndecision making and involving local communities more closely.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

As Chair of the Ward Committee for the last 2 years , I have
\nworked at making the principles of the devolving power to
\ncommunities work in practise. In this respect it has been
\na pleasure working with local organisations such as the Moseley
\nNeighbourhood Forum, Moseley Society and more recently the
\nMoseley Community Development Trust.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I have been pleased to play a leading role in local initiatives
\nsuch as the new village green development, new street lighting
\nin many roads (for example, Chantry and School Rd) – though
\nmore is needed. I have seen that Moseley Community Development
\nTrust received support it needed to get it off the ground
\nand backed the street wardens who have just started operation.
\nIn addition, I have supported residents and the school in
\nthe traffic calming initiative now about to start in the Oxford
\nrd area. I have also ensured that the “Brumcan”
\nrecycling project – which will see recycling of a wide range
\nof materials – received support.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Many problems are complex and cannot be solved by slogans
\nor cliches. Rather, hard work, listening to people and careful
\nanalysis and decisive action when appropriate is needed..
\nI pledge to work with local residents, community organisations
\nand agencies in the spirit of public service to make Moseley
\nan even better and enjoyable place to live.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n

Well thanks to all our candidates (at least those that bothered
\nto write back to us) No thanks to Ken Hardman, Robert Grant
\nor Mohammed Sharif-Malik who obviously don’t want your votes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s election week and you know what that means don’t you? Yes there are people out there who want you to vote for them. But why the hell should you? Why should you bother to wander all the way to a school or even a community centre just to put a tick on a peice […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[52,89,90],"class_list":["post-139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-story","tag-ken-hardman","tag-mullaney","tag-nick-wittingham"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2okCM-2f","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=139"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=139"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyeonmoseley.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}