A new direction for Bury South

Tuesday afternoon saw a successul conclusion to the battle by the residents of Bradley Fold with the announcement that Viridor is to look elsewhere for a site after representations were made to them by the Conservative Leader of Bury Council. 

Wednesday night was the first full Council meeting of the new Conservative administration – which set the pace for me personally for the year ahead!  It was more like Michelle Wiseman’s question time?

Thursday night I was invited to a fundraising dinner for the Community Security Trust where I had the opportunity to meet the Chief Constable for Greater Manchester, Mike Todd, for the first time.   It was particularly interesting for me as portfolio holder for Safer and Securer communities.  The guest speaker was Vidal Sassoon.

Well the day has finally come when Tony Blair MP stands down as Prime Minister and according to speculation will also announce his retirement as an MP.  I was out at dinner the other night when there was a great debate about what Blair will be remembered for – I am sure we all have our own views.   I wish him well in whichever direction his career now takes him – and sit back and wait to see the actions of a Brown Labour Government.

My very sarcastic daughter commented yesterday on how amazing it is that I have managed to almost clear my diary of early evening meetings/appointments now that Wimbledon fortnight is here – it is a pure coincidence honestly.  I do however have some bad news for Tim Henman as he may be interested to know that no British player (male or female) has ever won Wimbledon when there has been a Labour Government.   

David Sumberg MEP this weekend announced that he will not be seeking re-election to the European Parliament in 2009.  I have met David many times over the years both when he was the MP for Bury South and more recently during his role as an MEP.  I wish him well and know that this does not herald retirement but merely a ‘change of scenery for him’.

The issue of Bradley Fold rumbles on.  Only today a Bury South Labour Councillor informed a resident that no Councillors, including the then Leader of the Council, were involved with the offer of the land to Viridor to site the in-vessell composting unit in Bradley Fold.  As this is part of a £50bn waste management contract surely this statement by the Councillor poses the question who exactly has been running the Council for the past 21 years .

Yesterday morning I had a meeting with two officers from Trading Standards in Bury to find out more about the work that they carry out.  This often goes unrecognised and has a tremendous impact on issues in the Borough such as under age drinking and anti social behaviour.   They were explaining to me how they work closely with the other Authorities who border Bury such as Salford and Bolton and the partnership working with the police.  Only last week they carried out an exercise in conjunction with the police to catch ‘rogue traders’ who often prey on the elderly and vulnerable in our community and those who can least afford to pay.   

Tonight is my first licensing meeting at 6pm and then hopefully an early night for a change to catch up with correspondence and read the newspapers.

Went to my first portfolio meeting this morning of Safer, Stronger and Confident Communities.  It was interesting, but no surprise, to learn about how neglected community safety has been over recent years and I intend to work closely with all the officers of the Council to rectify this and to get  effective and efficient systems in place.  Our Bury South MP was heard debating about the low number of police officers in Bury compared with other similar sized towns yesterday on the radio with Mike Todd Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police - remind me whose Government is it that funds the police?

After sitting in a residents’ house this morning waiting for our MP to turn up (which he didn’t without any explanation) I decided to go and spend the next hour in  the sunshine delivering leaflets.  Home to catch up with correspondence and emails before a trip out for a very late lunch!  This evening I went to a meeting at Whitefield Conservative Club with Bury North Parliamentary Candidate David Nuttall to meet some members of Bury Conservative Future.  Thanks to Mat Hague for organising the evening and to all those who came along.¼/p>

Yesterday afternoon Channel M interviewed myself and local residents at Bradley Fold regarding the proposed industrial composting unit to be sited there.  The interviews were cut down to a 2 minute slot on the 5pm news programme but thanks to all those who turned up at 2pm for the interviews. 

Last night I chaired a meeting at the Dobbies Sports and Social Club (thanks to them for the free use of their facilities) where over 230 local residents attended to air their views about the proposed in-vessel composting unit to be placed in their midst.  Two of the local Councillors were unable to take part due to a conflict of interest but the third Councillor, Labour Councillor Sharon Briggs, who used to be a representative on Greater Manchester Waste Authority until May this year and is a resident of Bradley Fold was conspicuous by her absence.  Our MP was also absent but sent Cllr Wayne Campbell as his representative.   The residents are prepared for the ‘long haul’ to fight against this development but they and I made it perfectly clear that none of us are against recycling and composting.  The story was covered by the Bolton Evening News and will be in tomorrow’s Radcliffe Times.