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Showing posts from May, 2015

RoboCop? RentaGob!

After just two press statements I’m already becoming rather bored of Ray Mallon the former RoboCop and twice Mayor of Middlesboro – now suddenly the spokesman for Messrs Cartner, Musgrave and presumably Gloag for redeveloping Manston Airport. And bizarrely the childhood waterpolo(!) friend of Cartner. Now no longer RoboCop, merely the press spokesman he seems to think his remit extends into demanding some unquantifiable “respect” for Cartner etc. And decrying anything other than their ludicrous plan for Manston. RoboCop Ray is rapidly becoming merely RentaGob Ray. Perhaps he could provide some advice around the Manston plans though either as an ex-Chief Constable or Manston spokesman: 1. Is he a Director of the Manston JV or similar or just salaried spokesman? Either way I think we can all assume surprise, surprise he’s in favour of it. (He's confirmed as a NonExec Director apparently). 2. What was his involvement if any in Cleveland Police taking offices at Cartner’s ...

Garbutt for KCC Leader 2017 and MP 2020

April Kent Public Sector Review Best down to worst. Funded by you. 1. Kent Fire Brigade – rather excellent The Byrnes public safety comms programme and excellent Road Safety Experience Project that should be a Kent tourism programme. 2. Kent Ambulance – excellent response times as always. Points deducted for variable paramedics forward-stationed in the towns and comms programmes like The Byrnes or pub kits. Weak on 999 Cup. 3. Kent Police – excellent drugs den raids: £20M in Margate for example also two trawlers seized off Ireland and Scotland each with some of the largest ever cocaine hauls. Points deducted for dithering over machetes, Tramps, seafront parking, pretty trousers, stolen property and £1.2M in PR for a monopoly service. 4. Kent universities: CEO of Universities UK but points deducted for weak CCU performance and EKC reductions. 5. Kent schools: OK 6. Kent GP’s: OK 7. KCC: OK but very expensive at £2BN per year – the most £100k salaries in local governmen...

A Jockowi not Farage election in Contaminated Kent

What surprising election results - to some extent. At a national level though, the flurry of excitement around the Tory victory, on reflection, seems somewhat exaggerated. The majority is the weakest since 1974 and a vociferous SNP clique will be demanding both independence and anti-austerity measures for Scotland. And quite right too. So much for Ukip’s 25 seats forecasted. And now the UK largely run by the Jocks and Welsh and Belgians. The majority victory surprised everyone even the victors – but to some extent is understandable in three areas: • The over-reliance on polling a few hundred people - and where the 5% variance would mean a surprise winner from the tied result anyway • The weakness of Labour under Miliband • The punishment of the Libdems for reneging on tuition fees You can flesh out your own detailed views around those points. But already it seems incredibly foolish to ditch reducing MP’s from 650 to 600 as pledged in the manifesto, and wasted and spuri...

Me and Farage and Manston corruption and Thor today

By one of those quirks of fate I bumped into Nigel Farage today about 10am outside The Goose pub on Harbour St and then Shipshape café on the seafront. He was surrounded by about 20 press and TV journalists from BBC and ITV: Nigel holding a pint, Nigel drinking a cup of tea, Nigel shaking hands with a few passersby. You know the sort of thing. Yawn. So I shouted a few questions to him: • Manston is in your manifesto to reopen – but it’s on the aquifer: when did you know that? • Is it a good idea given Manson is contaminated? • Will you call for a Police inquiry into Infratil and TDC and KCC removing the monitors? • What about Thor mercury contamination? • Where have you been Nigel – when will we see you again? • What about the TDC corruption – a Police inquiry? • Your senior politicians: Latchford and Wells were involved in many of these issues weren’t they? I'm annoyed I forgot to ask him about the Manston Parkway airport rail station - without an airport. Or the...

Broken Election. Scared Cops. Corrupt Council.

What a dull election. And what flimsy candidates. With no clear majority no party will have a mandate to lead in Kent or elsewhere. And at District it's even worse with not one manifesto published: a few random people filling in forms to stand for something other for the next 5 years. Here are some wider principles for District/Town candidates if you want to vote: a. Avoid doublehatter candidates: desperately trying to crowd out dissent by standing in multiple seats b. Avoid candidates who aren’t standing in their own town c. Avoid turncoats – scraping around just to be elected d. Avoid candidates who’ve served 10 years or more: they’ve had their chance e. Avoid candidates without a manifesto for Thanet – you’ll struggle on that one again just 10 days to go f. Vote Other ie Green/Reality/Ind/Lib to end Corrupt TDC g. Avoid family team members in the same party - again essentially duplicate votes Rascals to vote out: i. Latchford – repulsive, and failure at K...