21/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Shades Of Green
While I was in Norwich at the weekend I was surprised by a striking sight.  Juddering its way along one of the main streets a bright green double decker bus presented quite a spectacle.  Loudspeakers mounted on the behemoth blared something about: “Vote Clean, Vote Green” or some such propaganda.  I was struck by the sheer hypocritical gall of a party that drives that beast along the roads, disturbing a pleasant sunday with self-congratulatory distorted announcements, noise pollution and air pollution wrapped up in one vehicular monstrosity. 

Ah, but don’t worry.  It runs on Biodiesel made from cooking oil (apparently).  So that’s all right then.  The fact that biodiesel comes mostly from corn, soybeans, and palm oil plant all of which require large spaces in which to grow to produce decent yields is neither here nor there. These ingredients may be good for producing biodiesel but they also happen to be a major food crop for people and animals - but let’s not let that concern us.  It’s not like anybody is starving in the world, is it? The increase in demand for these raw ingredients has surely contributed to rising food prices and adversely affected the poorest. So, should we grow food or fuel? The greens seem to think that the answer is fuel, particularly where it might win them a vote or two in Norwich. 

Perhaps they will address this and make the battle bus’ next upgrade even greener?  I don’t know, to be honest.  Maybe green activists will be strapped under the hood, peddling with all their might to power its groaning engine?  You’ve gotta love ‘em.  

Meanwhile, the sole green member of Cambridgeshire County Council, Simon Sedgwick-Jell, is quite another story.  Intelligent, concise and thoughtful he has been impressive in every committee I’ve seen him in.  It would be fair to say that where Policy Development is considered he has actually done more on his own than the entire Liberal Democrat contingent.  This mostly due to the fact that he does turn up once in a while to take part.  If I had voted in a Lib Dem (unlikely, I grant you, but this is a flight of fancy) and then discovered they weren’t doing the job I had elected them to do (mostly out of a fit of pique for not getting their way over making the meetings public as far as I can see) I’d be pretty angry about it.  But perhaps Lib Dem voters don’t mind their representatives spending their time sulking instead of working? 

Still, its a full council meeting tomorrow (or today - I should probably go to bed.) I will finally see something of my yellow-hued colleagues.  That’s great.  I’ve missed them.  Particularly Cllr Moss-Eccardt.  I can’t wait to see what wonderment of procedural joy he has in store for us this time.  Somebody pass the popcorn!
  

How to be clean and green.  Double-Decker style!
(Look in the grill at the front!  There really are
Green activists in there peddling for power!)

Posted in Green Party, Liberal Democrats | No Comments »

19/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Please excuse the lack of a decent blog entry over the last few days. I’ve been in Norwich assisting in the Conservative By-Election campaign there along with an absolutely huge number of other political activists. I would imagine, by the time all this is over, the poor folk of Norwich will be heartily sick of politics of every persuasion. Blue, Green, Yellow, Red-White-And-Blue and even a little Red (believe it or not) has descended on Norfolk in a flurry of frantic activity.  The maelstrom will resolve itself, one way or the other, by the end of the week.  I suspect we’ll know a lot more about the direction of UK politics thereafter.  But for now I’m going to bed.  My feet hurt.

Me, Chloe Smith PPC, Stevo Brunton, Theresa May MP.

And there we are again…

Posted in Liberal Democrats, Labour Party, Election, Conservatives | No Comments »

19/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Iain Dale puts a “top 100 blogs” list together this time of year. There’s very little chance of me getting on it, but you never know! If you are a regular reader and enjoy this blog can you email your “top 10 blogs” to him at toptenblogs@totalpolitics.com and it would be very nice if I was somewhere in the running (or even near the top)…. But obviously only if you like my blog and feel it deserves a ranking.

The rules are simple.

1. You must vote for your ten favourite blogs and ranks them from 1 (your favourite) to 10 (your tenth favourite).
2. Your votes must be ranked from 1 to 10. Any votes which do not have rankings will not be counted.
3. You MUST include ten blogs. If you include fewer than ten your vote will not count.
4. Email your vote to toptenblogs@totalpolitics.com
5. Only vote once.
6. Only blogs based in the UK, run by UK residents or based on UK politics are eligible.
7. Anonymous votes left in the comments will not count. You must give a name
8. All votes must be received by midnight on 31 July 2009. Any votes received after that date will not count.

Posted in My Campaign | No Comments »

16/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Who Ya’ Gonna Call?
If you’ve been following the Ghost Passage shenanigans on this blog then there’s no need to read this or this, but if not those posts make a good preamble to this one.  This afternoon I attended a meeting which had managed to morph from the original small nucleus into a something more like a public gathering (there were more people there than there were at the last police panel meeting I attended…)  The purpose of the meeting was to clarify positions on all sides of the debate and try to agree some way forward.

The meeting was chaired very ably by Cllr. Simon King and featured Myself and Val Bolem (on behalf of the residents), Sgt. David Bax and two PCSOs (on behalf of the Police) and representatives from the Freemasons and The Spiritualist Church (which both adjoin the alley.) 

Now those who have read this blog will know I have not been a big fan of the whole idea of closure.  When I first shot off a couple of emails about it I suspected this might be a lonely position to take.  ‘Turns out that wasn’t the case.  In fact, almost everybody was opposed to the police plan - albeit to different degrees.

I wont go into the detail of what was quite a long meeting.  I found it very interesting but I strongly suspect the old adage “you had to be there” holds true for this and I have no wish to bore readers to sleep. Suffice to say the “compromise plan” involving only two gates did indeed meet with the approval of pretty much everyone.  The police position is that this was always the plan and that the idea of three gates was only put out there to “encourage discussion.”  Indeed.  Well - if that is the case then I’d say they achieved their goals.

I still stand by my original contention that the way to deal with trouble is not to wall it off and pretend it isn’t there.  But it was clear that the “people on the ground” including the two eloquent PCSOs were earnest in their belief that some closure was needed.  I think it would be incredibly arrogant to hold on to my ideological position with an iron grip while ignoring the people at the business end of the problems.   The compromise retains the passage as a public right of way while taking the pressure off the police and, more importantly, the residents who have been most harmed by the antisocial behaviour.

I did manage to get the police to make some important statements which went a long way towards allaying the concerns of many residents.  For the record, Sgt. David Bax committed to the following:-

a. There is no plan to keep the alley closed any longer than 3-6 months. 
b. There is no plan to close the oft-used passage between the Crescent and Love Lane.
c. There are no “other targets” in the form of alleys elsewhere in town to get the same treatment.

With these statements made I can support the new plan and believe that the other residents who protested will agree (although I will, of course, take the time to ask them.  Just to make sure.)

What started out as a worrying development which did nothing to enhance the reputation of the local police has turned out to do quite the opposite.  I cannot fault the way the police have responded to the issues we have raised.  Sgt. Dave Bax was exemplary in his engagement with us.  He was frank, fair and confident.  The PCSOs were a credit to the force too.  Residents were forthright and involved at all levels.  Meanwhile, Cllr King, who had initially been a little difficult on this issue was a vital ingredient in its resolution.  In short, all the cogs in the wheel worked just as they should and everybody came out of it looking reasonable and fair.  A breath of fresh air, all in all.

I suspect that for the time being that’s the end of the tale in regards this particular haunted corner of Wisbech.  The issue of Ghost Passage is hopefully now well and truly exorcised.  So next time there’s something strange in your neighbourhood, who ya’ gonna call?

Pandemonium
As far as I can see there are several schools of thought on the Swine Flu Pandemic. 

There’s the: “I’m not scared of a glorified cold - In fact I’m going to a swine flu party to try to catch it.” 
This is all very well until you discover you’ve got some lurking underlying health condition.

There’s the paranoid: ” The Government / The Press / The Freemasons / The Twilight Zone (Circle One) are out to get us - government made this disease in a test tube” brigade who probably shouldn’t be allowed to play with sharp things.

There are people like my wife who are relaxed and quite fatalistic about it.  “We’re all going to get it sooner or later.   No point worrying about what you can’t prevent.”  (Very wise, my wife.  I should listen.)

And then there’s people like me, who don’t have a clue how bad it is, how bad it might get or what the consequences might be - and who find that lack of control over events nerve-wracking (primarily for our family’s sake.) 

The doctors are keen to tell us not to worry. “It’s no worse than seasonal flu” they say, “people die of that every year.” 
Yes, that’s true.  But we don’t see the government planning to ship in enough vaccine to cover the whole population at Christmas each year, do we?  When you treat something differently, people wonder what is different about it.  I suspect the doctors are quite right, but they really need to start sending their message more clearly.  A climate of fear is not a healthy climate to live in.  We aren’t there yet, but if the predicated 100,000 cases a day reaches fruition I suspect we may see a polarisation of public opinion.

Now I suspect that we’ll get through this just fine.  That many of us will get it, lay in bed for a few days, then get on with our lives.  But the press have done a good job of making people nervous on this one.  Or maybe its more than the press.  I’m not suggesting that we’re in Stephen King’s The Stand here.  There’s no need for a soundtrack of Blue Oyster Cult’s Don’t Fear The Reaper to rattle ominously in the background.  But we should pay attention to the progression of events.  This is a pandemic, after all and the virus itself is very new - almost unique - in its structure.  The way to keep people safe is to be vigilant - not complacent.  And please - if somebody invites you to a swine flu party, tell them where to get off.  Whatever else it is, this isn’t a game.

The Figures (according to Department of Health via The Times newspaper on 3rd July)

7,447 cases of H1N1 swine flu confirmed in Britain so far. Three 29 (update:16th July)  people infected with the virus have died
100,000 new cases predicted each day by the end of August
35 per cent of the population may become ill at the peak of the pandemic
£800m cost of antiviral drugs stockpiled to treat 80 per cent of the population
£155m cost of contracts for vaccines for the pandemic flu strain over four years
12,000 deaths annually due to seasonal flu, likely to be far exceeded in a pandemic

More Blue Please
I spent this evening in Ramsey campaigning on behalf of the Conservative candidates for District and County.  I was pleased to find that our vote seems to be holding up well, that our pledges remain secure and that the people of the area seem to know the colour they want to paint their politics.  I didn’t see much yellow on that canvas tonight. And not a drop of red.

Mostly, the opposition appears to be UKIP (very much as it was for my own campaign recently.)  Interestingly, the results of our canvassing seem to suggest that (for once) the UKIP vote is coming from the Lib Dem camp.  Everywhere I go people seem to be expressing their feelings for the European Union (and they aren’t feelings of love.)  I wouldn’t want to be canvassing on behalf of a pro-European party in this environment!

For the County election on July 23 our Conservative candidate is Susan Normington, a very nice local lady with bags of experience and dedication to spare.  Labour, The Lib Dems and UKIP are all fielding candidates. 

For the District election on the same day the Conservative is Angela Curtis, facing opposition in the form of the Lib Dems, UKIP and an Independent Candidate.

Now I know the people of Cambridgeshire have already blessed the county with that gorgeous blue in a very healthy majority and I have no right to ask any more of you, but I will anyway.  You have two excellent candidates in Susan and Angela.  Tick the right box.  More Blue Please. 
  

Posted in Ramsey, Swine Flu, Ghost Passage, Cambs. County Council, Wisbech | No Comments »

10/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Black Spots
I was at my first committee meeting for the Fenland Traffic Management Area Joint Committee today in Fenland Hall, March.  On the agenda was an issue which I’ve blogged about before, namely the A1101 Blackspot.  The local action group were at the meeting to present a petition, with a presentation by one of their strong team - Virginia Bucknor. 

And what a presentation it was! 

I found the statistics chilling.  Even though I knew some of this information already, when you see it laid out before you so clearly and starkly I cannot see how anybody could not be ready to pay serious attention.  Which is precisely what the committee did, I’m pleased to report. 

I had my chance to speak on behalf of the people who elected me and I did my best, pointing out that all the residents really want is a speed camera, some clear signage and some trees removed.  It’s not rocket science and it doesn’t have to be too expensive. 

Among the statistics presented was the cost thus far over the last few years to the public purse of accidents on the black spot.  Twelve Million Pounds.  What is the cost to put in a speed camera?  Twenty thousand pounds.  Like I said, it’s not rocket science.  When you do the math you can see that six hundred cameras could be installed for the same amount as the current cost of this death trap to the taxpayer.  Or we could just install the ONE camera we need and save Eleven Million Nine Hundred and Eighty Thousand pounds for other worthwhile projects.  (When I say ‘we’, I mean the nation rather than the council, of course.)

I must add that on principle I’m not a big fan of speed cameras.  I think they are a lazy way to avoid proper policing, do nothing whatsoever to combat careless driving (a more serious cause of accidents than speeding in many cases) and are often just a great way to sting the motorist for a few easy bucks.  But there are exceptions and this is certainly one.  As Cllr. Jonathan Farmer said at today’s meeting: “If the conditions necessary to install a speed camera are not found at this location then somebody needs to look seriously at those conditions - because they are wrong.”  He was right about that.  This junction’s problem is speed and overtaking.  Tackle those two things with a speed camera, some signs and ’no overtaking’ markings and lives can and will be saved.  It doesn’t get much simpler than that!

Sidenote: Regular readers (both of you) might be interested to know I met Cllr. Mark Archer today.  He seemed a very nice guy.  We shook hands.  He didn’t seem to be too upset about my occasional blog criticism of him.  In fact, all in all, I would say he seemed very reasonable.  I’ve said before I suspect he is a nice guy (or else why would so many friends rally around to defend him?)  Seems that was right.  It was nice to meet you, Mark.

Misrepresentations Galore
Val Bolem has given me an ear-bashing (a “virtual” ear-bashing, anyway) about my previous blog post Ghost Passage Revisited.  Val feels that when I used the word “misrepresented” regarding his comments to me about the police I was, in fact, misrepresenting him.  (Confused?  Yeah, me too!)  Since I have no wish whatsoever to do anything like that I immediately amended the blog as he advised and apologised if I had misunderstood our conversation. 

There followed a brief email debate about the dictionary meaning of the word “misrepresented” and the content of our original conversation.  I must point out that where I am quoting somebody verbatim I use “quotes” to show it.  Otherwise, what I write is my personal interpretation of something rather than a blow-by-blow account. 

It is true that Val never used the word “misrepresented” in our conversation, although I would add that I never said he did.  I felt (and this was purely my take on it) that the fact that the original plan Val told me about was different from the final plan the police put out was fairly clearly a misrepresentation as per the dictionary definition of the word.  Val doesn’t agree, which is entirely his right.  Since he doesn’t agree, I amended the blog post immediately rather than have Val unhappy with it.  I hope that seems a quick and reasonable response to Val and any other readers.  Bloggers have a reputation of being difficult and contrary, and while I don’t mind being branded a maverick at times I have no wish to offend anybody.

Posted in Mark Archer, A1101, Cambs. County Council, Leverington, Newton, Tydd St. Giles | 5 Comments »

08/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

A Little Sunshine
I’ve been getting all sorts of good news this week and I thought it would be fun to share a little of the sunshine. Surrounded as we are by recession and gloom so often it doesn’t hurt to highlight the places where things have gone well. First of all, perhaps blog readers will remember Lisa Goddard? She was the lady who featured on the front page of the local newspaper a couple of months ago, furious about the state of her road and the way vibrations and noise were affecting the quality of life for her and her neighbours. 

I took the case up, joining Lisa’s campaign and talking to the leader of the council, Jill Tuck, about the issue.  To her credit Jill took immediate action, bringing forward planned repairs to the road.  I kept on the case, nudging gentle reminders, but really there wasn’t a lot I needed to do.  The council roads team dealt with the matter swiftly and professionally. 

I’ve just spoken to Lisa Goddard on the phone who expressed her gratitude for all the assistance and support she had been given and was effusive in her praise of local government in this area.  She said that the road repairs were fantastic, that she was surprised by how quickly action was taken and expressed how happy she was to: “Finally get a good night’s sleep.”  Lisa is right, the council reacted very effectively in this case, but she must also take credit for the positive outcome.  She worked hard and was a powerful advocate for her case.  It’s an example of council and residents working together as a team and a brilliant one at that!

Interesting to note, though: When Lisa was unhappy about the state of her roads she got the front page of the local paper in short order.  When she phoned up to tell them how well the job had been done they apparently said they would “return her call”.  She’s still waiting.  Ho Hum.

Meanwhile, another well-known local resident Tony Kiddle has had an ongoing problem with his streetlights.   None of them were working and the council seemed to think the road was “unadopted”.  I took the case up on his behalf and I promised him I would make sure the lights were fixed.  And this week - guess what - the lights were fixed! Yay!  Tony is passionate about a number of local causes and I know I’ll be working with him again on other issues.  But here’s another case of something that needed doing and then got done, thanks to teamwork and a responsive council.

Finally, rumour has reached me that the PCSO’s in Wisbech have been visiting residents of The Crescent and telling them about this “new plan” the police have to avoid full closure of Ghost Passage and only use two gates instead of four.  It sounds very familiar to me.  But never mind.  The important thing is that they’ve listened and are rethinking the idea to meet the resident’s concerns. 

Some people have called me naive because I believe in “local people working together for the good of the community” as expressed in my council candidate leaflet before the elections.  I suppose it does look a little “apple pie and ice cream” if you want to be cynical.  But you’ve just read several cases of exactly that happening in the last month.  These may be small matters in the grand scheme of things, but they matter to people here and isn’t it nice to read good news once in a while?

Posted in A1101, Cambs. County Council, Wisbech, Leverington, Conservatives | No Comments »

07/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Hard To Please
My council colleague from the Liberal Democrat side, Nichola Harrison, has written a new blog post: “Very good is not green enough.”  As usual it is well-written, interesting and cleanly-presented.  But its basic premise is that the council is not being ambitious enough with its ‘green’ agenda because it is planning to build a new school using an eco standard that is very good.  Not “poor”.  Not “lacking”.  Not even “could try harder.”  Very good.

Huh? 

You might be forgiven for re-reading that and wondering if I had mis-typed.  “Surely a ‘Very Good’ Eco Standard is an achievement?” you might ask. 

If my young son came home from school with a report card that said he was “Very Good” my wife and I would be cracking open the champagne (he can be a little <ahem> naughty boisterous, you see.  But he’s a wilful four-year-old boy and you know what they are like!) 

If, having just cooked dinner for my family, I asked: “How was it?” and they rubbed their tummies and said: “Yum yum, very good” I think I’d consider it a job well done.

But not Cllr. Harrison.  Not a bit of it.  Nichola you are one very hard to please lady!  I suppose you could generously look at it as demanding higher standards.  As part of the opposition party that is her job.  But really, would it kill the Lib Dems to be positive once in a while?

Just imagine a young lad coming home to his mum after sports day and telling her he’d won a gold award for achievement after winning three out of his four events.  “Look at my trophy!” he says, brandishing it enthusiastically.
“Only three out of four?” Comes his mother’s stern reply.  “That’s not an achievement son, that’s failure in my book”. 
“But Mum, my gym teacher said it was Very Good?”
“But not excellent, boy.  Not outstanding.  Only very good!  Now to bed with you and no supper for a month!” *see note at bottom

Nichola’s argument, you see, is that although we went for the “Very Good” standard, there is a higher “Excellent” standard.  Apparently they have even now introduced another level “Outstanding”.  Presumably next year there might be “Astonishing”, “Super-Human” and “God-Like” for people who are prepared to build houses out of regurgitated straw and heat them with starlight and fairy-breath.

Now I accept I’m poking a little fun here.  Climate change is a real issue and one that concerns many people.  But so is the recession.  If it were cheaper and easier to reach high eco-levels then even the most difficult stuck-in-the-mud petrol-heads would do it.  But it isn’t, it’s generally more expensive in the short-term. 

Since we are in the middle of a deep recession there isn’t a lot of money floating about.  It doesn’t grow on trees (and even if it did the Lib Dems would certainly want to protect those trees).  Pay extra money for one project and you must take it from another.  It’s not our money we are spending, it is the taxpayer’s money, so we have to balance ’saving the world’ with paying for vital services and find some sensible middle ground.  No matter which way you look at it, upside-down, diagonally, or from behind, Very Good is Very Good.  It’d be nice to see that recognised, though I wont hold my breath.

*Note: For the record.  I do not condone or approve of withholding food as a means of punishment.   It was a metaphor for goodness sake.

Posted in Global Warming, Liberal Democrats, Cambs. County Council, Credit Crunch | No Comments »

06/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Hurrah For The Police
I went to the neighbourhood panel meeting last week with a view to working with the police to deliver a better service for the people of my division.  This was one of my manifesto promises and I was keen to be proactive on it.  I wasn’t sure what to expect since this was the first panel meeting I’d been to - but I was really impressed! 

The officers who were there were helpful, responsive and clearly very dedicated to their jobs.  Of course there’s no reason to presume otherwise, but the cynic in me can’t help the occasional dark turn of thought.  No need in this instance, they were exemplary. Better yet, I managed to secure two of the three new ‘targets’ they set for the good folk of my division.

The new targets were:-

• Inconsiderate parking outside Elm Primary School and Friday Bridge Primary School.

• Anti-social behaviour in Troughton Way, Leverington, and Goodens Lane, Newton.

• Organise an engagement activity to help to protect the vulnerable.

The second item was a response to a number of complaints I have had from Leverington and Newton.  I explained the problem to the police and managed to achieve these areas the special status.  Both the streets where the problems have arisen have been given top priority and will be the particular  focus of the police for the next few months. 

Hopefully this will help solve the problems that were reported to me.  I’ll look forward to tell the residents (who had initially been sceptical that they would get the help they needed) that we had made a significant step towards solving their problems.  Chalk one point for the good guys!  Now we just have to make sure that the new focus achieves its goal.

Posted in Leverington, Newton | No Comments »

03/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

Note: Sections of this blog post were updated with new information on 6th July 2009 and where there have been changes they are marked (Update)

Note: A second update has taken place on 10th July 2009 following an email from Val Bolem.  My records have been adjusted accordingly.

Ghost Passage Revisited

Before I start: Can I once again stress that I am not the County Councillor for the division in which Ghost Passage resides (Cllr Simon King is) and so this post is written as a resident and business owner and not in my capacity as a councillor.  Can I also say that I respect the opinions of those on the other side of this debate and that my comments are made because in this instance I do not share those opinions and feel obliged to speak out for myself and the many other residents who apparently feel the same way.

Since I last posted about Ghost Passage and the police plan to close it there have been some developments in the matter.  Since the previous posts elicited several comments and a whole bunch of emails I thought it was worth writing a brief update on where we are now. 

As some readers will know I hand-delivered letters to all the local residents to research their actual opinions rather than just presuming the police view of the matter was correct.  I’m glad I did.  Of the people who have responded so far not a single one has been in favour of the police plan exactly as stated.  Most have been against the plan completely.  Two have been for the plan in a limited form - but against full closure. Not a single person who has responded liked the proposals by the police as they currently stand 

Here is a sample of some of the pertinent comments received:

John Anker emailed a lengthy letter to tell me he opposed the plan.  An extract of the email included: “I do not agree with the closure of Ghost Passage and consider that the consultation is based on a few ‘’special constables’’ or the like talking to a few people. If we are to have a consultation let’s have an open meeting to discuss the matter at a pre-arranged date!!” 

Cllr Michael Hill confirmed to me in person at the mayor’s function today in St. Peter’s Church that he was opposed to the idea of closing Ghost Passage and asked to be kept in the loop so that he could contribute to the discussions.

Janet Stott said that she had signed up to the original idea (the first person who had even heard about it during the much-vaunted ‘consultation’) but that the final plan bore significant differences to the original suggestions - and that she did not support the current plan for complete closure.

Juliet Cairns also emailed me in support of my position saying: “Thanks for your letter regarding the closure of Ghost Passage.  I am in complete agreement with you that the passage should remain open.  I certainly have not received any communication about this so they cannot state that everyone has been consulted. So if they are going to close the passage, won’t that lead to an area which is perfect for the actual activities like drinking, drug taking etc,which they want to stop.  What we actually need is more of a police presence just walking through and actually doing something about the problem, not just shutting it off, so no one can see it, because it certainly won’t stop it. I use the passage daily.  It is needed for the car park at the rear and for access into the town.  There are always little ‘hotspots’ like this in every town, but shutting the passage is not the answer.”

Rupert Wilkes is one of the people who supports the plan in a limited form, but not the plan as outlined by the police.  He said: “If you are right that the police’s draft closure order means that the passage is closed in its entirety, this appears to us unacceptable.  The direct route from under 7 The Crescent to Love Lane is an important pedestrian thoroughfare.  Closing it leaves inbound foot traffic either to pass along Love Lane to the Museum (equally unpoliceable and detrimental to the former almshouses) or to walk against the traffic, with virtually no pavement, up Post Office Lane.  Conversely the path behind the Masonic Hall and your property, which ends up in York Row, does not strike us as too significant a route.  Going via the front of The Crescent and York Row is no major detour.”

Cllr Jonathan Farmer (who has been very supportive and helpful on this matter and whose ideas form most of our alternative proposal) is completely opposed to the police plan saying: “I could not agree with you more. This is a classic example of a consultation being highly selective in who it consults to verify the pre-conceived judgement already decided at.”  His lengthy email went into some detail as to his considered objection to the present plan. 

Cllr Simon King seems a little isolated right now but remains supportive of the original idea: “The police have put in a huge amount of work to try to improve the Ghost Passage area but because of the layout of the alleys it has proved impossible to achieve this other than by gating.  All those who have access onto the alleys were consulted and were very enthusiastic about the proposals, as, indeed, am I.”

(Update) Philip Stokes was one of the minority who supported closure but with the following comment: “You somewhat miss the point when you suggest that we all love the idea of closing Ghost Passage. Ideally it would be far better if it was policed properly. But like the rest of Wisbech this is not going to happen. Alternatively they could put CCTV cameras there – too costly so I’ve found out, so that’s not going to happen either. This leaves what?”

(Update) Jane Coates seems to agree with the compromise plan saying: “I agree that it’s sad to lose the character of Wisbech in the process. Is there a half way solution in gating between A and B on the map hence allowing usage of the passage from Love Lane to the Crescent? Also why couldn’t security cameras be sited in the passage? Just a couple of thoughts and a bit of support.”

(Update) Jeff & Robi Harper sent a brief text saying:  Sorry 4 delay in reply 2 letter re ghost passage , we both agree with your reasons not to close.

Apparently there is a local resident with whom I have not yet spoken who is very taken with the plan.  Luckily, I am at a function on Sunday where I will be sitting at the same table as this individual, which will give me a chance to discuss it over a nice meal (always a good way to get to the heart of things, I find!)
(SECOND Update) The mystery person was Val Bolam with whom I had an interesting chat on Sunday.  Val felt that the police had misrepresented the original idea and agreed that partial closure as per our compromise suggestion was more in keeping with the original plan - and preferable.  Val has emailed me to say that he does not, in fact, feel the police have misrepresented him and has asked me to remove that statement.  Although the original idea was (according to other residents, at least) only two gates and the final plan was for three, Val does not agree with my view of this or feel that any misrepresentation has taken place.  I appreciate Val taking the time to correct me on this and apologise if I misunderstood his original comments to me.

A Way Forward:
Having discussed all this (at length) with most of the local residents now there seems to be a concensus position becoming clear.  A compromise which is acceptable to most of us and is more in keeping with the original idea that the few people who were consulted on this were “sold” in the first place and less like the blanket ban the police seem to have decided will make their life easier.

The current police plan involves three gates which will prevent access to most of the alley and close down the important route from The Crescent to Love Lane.  Our amended proposal would involve only two gates, one at the location the police call “Gate A” exactly as per their plan.  The other on the same length of alley just after the entrance to the Masonic Lodge. 

The effect of this would be to cut off the section of Ghost Passage which is unlit, known to be a “problem area” and which residents frequently complain about, while leaving the well-lit main pedestrian route from The Cresent to Love Lane accessible by all.  This would mean the most attractive and historic section of the alley would be open, but the more standard ‘back alley’ section, which is also seldom used by pedestrians, would be closed except for residents.  This would preserve the right of way for people using the St Raphael centre, the Car Park and the Masonic Lodge without hindrance.  All in all, as compromises go, this seems pretty much perfect.  Every resident I have spoken to agrees this is an excellent way to address the concerns on both sides of the argument. 

But will the police and the Powers That Be go for it?  I suppose that depends on whether they are open-minded enough to accept they misjudged this a bit and are flexible enough to adjust their plans to suit the residents and users of the passage.  I’ll be having a meeting next week (accompanied by Cllr. Jonathan Farmer) to argue the case and then we’ll see!

Posted in Ghost Passage, Wisbech | No Comments »

02/07/2009 by Steve Tierney.

The Little Wooden Boy
Just imagine for a moment that Pinocchio were a Labour Parliamentary spokesman for North East Cambridgeshire.  (A stretch, I know, but stay with me.) 

The little wooden fellow would want to demonstrate that his party would be a force for good in the area, right?  That they were most certainly not naughty boys and that his mentor and creator Geppetto Brown had everything in hand. 

But what a terrible day it would be if the local college had suddenly and “inexplicably” lost its funding.  He would know that the reason the money had run out was because Geppetto had no idea how to manage his finances.  He would also know that what money there was had (also “inexplicably”) all been given to places which didn’t vote for Geppetto’s main rivals. 

“I promise you,” The Little Wooden Boy might cry in his best falsetto voice: ”It is not politically motivated.  Really, truly with sprinkles on top!”  He might ignore the fact that all those other funded colleges are in Labour areas.  Or he might try and suggest that poverty in those other areas was to blame, while utterly dismissing the large pockets of deprivation in the place he is supposed to be a spokesman for.  (With friends like this…)

Whatever he chose to say The Little Wooden Boy would be unable to hide the truth because the whole time his nose would grow and grow and grow.  Sooner or later, a rhinoplasty would be necessary.  I believe Bupa offer the service, Mr Roberts.

Posted in Labour Party, Wisbech | 3 Comments »