http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/ Off the Record with David Sudworth – Analysis, news and whispers from the corridors of power! en Copyright 2008 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 18:42:14 +0000 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss SADLY this is my final posting on this blog. I officially left the Advertiser today as I'm off to pastures new. I'd like to thank everyone who has read and contributed to my blog and the Battle for West Lancs election blog I set up last April. It's been great fun covering the local politics of West Lancs but decided (alert - horrible cliche ahead!) it's now time to seek out other opportunities. I'm still living in West Lancs and will as ever maintain a keen interest in local politics - I may even turn up to a few council meetings (depending what's on the telly of course). Seriously though, I've met some brilliant people along the way, got into a few scrapes (all part of the job) but hope I've managed in some small way to stoke some interest in the workings of local government in West Lancashire. It's the duty of every newspaper, especially local ones, to keep its readers abreast of what decisions are being made in their name and how their hard-earned cash is being spent. The Advertiser, in this respect, has always set the standard for others to follow, long before I arrived and hopefully this will continue to be the case in the future in the future. All the best, and thanks for reading my rambles. ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/235707798/logging_off_with_off_the_record.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/logging_off_with_off_the_record.html Fri, 15 Feb 2008 18:42:14 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/logging_off_with_off_the_record.html I FOUND these pics during a bit of a sort out today at my desk, showing both Conservative and Labour functions in West Lancs over recent years. I recognise a few from the Tory, namely Geoff Roberts (leader), Don Burns, and Margaret Edwards, both ex councillors plus a few others./ With the Labour pic, it's obviously David Blunkett visit West Lancs while Labour was still in control, which would make it around the mid 1990s, including the late Cllr Walter Brown as well as a few well-known councillors of today, Alan Bullen and Bob Pendleton... ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/235243819/political_blasts_from_the_past.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/political_blasts_from_the_past.html Thu, 14 Feb 2008 16:44:02 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/political_blasts_from_the_past.html IN this week's Advertiser there's an indepth, behind-the-scenes look at life in the House of Commons. It comes after West Lancs MP Rosie Cooper kindly allowed me to shadow her for a day - and what a day it turned out to be, as I ended up meeting the PM Gordon Brown and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, as well as many more famous names. Hopefully the write up will give you a taste of what life is really like in the corridors of power away from the media scrum where MPs of all persuasions - shock, horror - actually share a laugh and a joke with each other once the serious business is out of the way. Hope you find it of interest, I know I did. ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/234555698/man_about_the_house.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/man_about_the_house.html Wed, 13 Feb 2008 20:24:07 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/man_about_the_house.html THE Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams is a victim of serious misreporting. There, I've said it. No excuses on behalf of the media, he's truly been hauled over the coals for no apparent reason other than seemingly wanting to start a debate (full text can be found here). I think alot of the problems are that basically there's some people in this country who think men of the cloth should stick to dishing out bread and wine and leave the politics to politicians. To think that though is to ignore the fact the two are closely linked (Northern Ireland is a classic example). Coming down so heavily on Rowan Williams for speaking about it is an insult to the notion that this is a free country, which is what is was the last time I checked. Not only that, it stops others from debating other issues of a sensitive nature, for fear of being pilloried. ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/233326962/is_it_really_necessary_to_bash.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/is_it_really_necessary_to_bash.html Mon, 11 Feb 2008 19:37:35 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/02/is_it_really_necessary_to_bash.html HOPE you've all managed to read the Big Interview by now. If not, click on the image above. Here's the Q&A from tha interview which I've saved as a treat to my loyal blog reader(s). McKENNA ON... ...GORDON BROWN “I think he made a mistake not calling a General Election last autumn. He should have done because we’d have won and Cameron would have been finished. “He’ll prove over the next 12 months that he’s a very good Prime Minister.” ...DAVID CAMERON “He’s certainly no Tony Blair because he got the party to drop Clause Four. Cameron has yet to take his party with him when it comes to change, with the grammar schools row being a good example.” ...DONATIONS “We’re in danger of seeing all of politics as corrupt, and actually it’s better here than a lot of countries this world. “The business of politics is expensive and the rules for donations are extremely complex, as we’ve seen with what’s happened to Peter Hain, David Cameron and George Osborne.” ...WEST LANCS DISTRICT COUNCIL “I’d like to see it go for unitary authority status. I think Bill Taylor (chief executive) and Les Abernethy (deputy chief executive) deserve the chance to show what they can do on a bigger scale.” ...COUNCILLORS “They should be paid more but have fewer of them. Afterall, I’ve never had anyone come to me asking more more bureaucracy and yet that’s what we give them.” ...ADRIAN OWENS “Adrian is a very able public debater but he’d feel more comfortable in a Thatcher-led party. It’ll be interesting to see the differences which appear between him and David Cameron. “The last West Lancs Tory MP, Ken Hind, was very consensual so Adrian is the best candidate for us fight.” ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/222191934/frank_mckenna_qa.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/frank_mckenna_qa.html Thu, 24 Jan 2008 09:35:12 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/frank_mckenna_qa.html IN this week's Addy (Jan 24) we've got an exclusive interview with Frank McKenna, ex-leader elect of Lancs County Council. It's now five years since the fraud charges against the ex-Labour councillor and colleague John Fillis were dropped. It promises to be an interesting read... so don't forget to pick upt he Addy this Thursday. Also, tomorrow morning I'll be uploading a special Q&A session from the interview where Frank gives his views on Bill Taylor, Adrian Owens, Gordon Brown and party funding.]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/221728930/frank_mckenna_exclusive_interv.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/frank_mckenna_exclusive_interv.html Wed, 23 Jan 2008 16:21:25 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/frank_mckenna_exclusive_interv.html I STUMBLED across the UK Polling Report website's report for the West Lancashire which makes for interesting reading. There's certainly some debate going on as to whether this is a natural Conservative or Labour seat, with points being made about Labour having a county council seat in Ormskirk and a district council seat in Bickerstaffe despite these now being seen as Conservative areas. There's also a strong feeling that Skem will completely out-vote other areas, with one contributor saying it would need a 'landslide' to remove Rosie Cooper while another saying it could become the 'Solihull of 2009'. Interesting stuff... I'd be keen to hear your predictions for the seat. ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/215047689/wholl_win_west_lancs.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/wholl_win_west_lancs.html Fri, 11 Jan 2008 15:37:24 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/wholl_win_west_lancs.html MY colleague, Sarah Gaffney, has done a fantastic interview with West Lancs chief exec Bill Taylor in this week's paper. It really gives a flavour of what type of person Bill is, talks about his upbringing and how that spurred him on to be, in my opinion, one of the best council bosses in the land. Enjoy it here or click on the image above. ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/214302498/the_big_interview_-_bill_taylor.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/the_big_interview_-_bill_taylor.html Thu, 10 Jan 2008 09:42:45 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/the_big_interview_-_bill_taylor.html WLDC is urging people to snap up tickets for the annual council assembly meeting Council meeting as an assembly - reserve your tickets now! Tickets for 2008's 'Council Meeting as an Assembly' are now available - so make sure you reserve yours today. This popular annual event, which gives local people the chance to air their views on issues that affect the area in which they live, will be held on Wednesday 30 January at 7.30pm at Banks Leisure Centre, Greaves Hall Avenue, Banks. This year two topical subjects are up for debate, these are: 'Ormskirk Bypass' and 'Creating a Sustainable Rural Economy'. To reserve your free tickets or for more information visit our Assembly pages or call 01695 585016/585017. Cllr Geoff M. Roberts, Leader of West Lancashire District Council, said: "The Council Meeting as an Assembly is always a very popular event, drawing a full house each year, so it really is important that people reserve their tickets early. "The Assembly is a great opportunity for people to have their say on current issues that affect the local community and the items on the agenda have been chosen because of their district-wide importance."]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/213109491/tickets_available_for_council.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/tickets_available_for_council.html Tue, 08 Jan 2008 10:48:31 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/tickets_available_for_council.html Just received this press release about School's Question Time for those who are interested in entering... REMINDER: LESS THAN TWO WEEKS TO GO FOR PUPILS TO ENTER THE SCHOOLS QUESTION TIME CHALLENGE All UK secondary schools still have time to get their entries in to win a chance to produce a BBC Question Time programme with David Dimbleby Students in secondary schools nationwide have less than two weeks to enter the Schools Question Time Challenge and win a chance to work with David Dimbleby to produce an edition of Question Time for BBC ONE in 2008. Now in its fourth year the competition has been a success within schools, and involves pupils aged 14 - 18 staging their own debates based upon the popular BBC Question Time format. Entering the competition is easy, schools simply need to complete an online form at www.schoolsquestiontime.org describing the issues they would discuss during their ideal Question Time and the panel they would choose to discuss those issues. The deadline to enter the Challenge is 18 January 2008. From all the online entries 12 finalist schools will be selected and given a £500 grant from the Institute for Citizenship, supported by BT, which must be used to run their Schools Question Time events. Each finalist school will also receive professional support in staging the event by taking part in a Schools Question Time communication skills workshop. A team of judges will travel to each finalist school to evaluate their Question Time event and assess how they applied the principles of citizenship. Four award winners will be selected to collaborate with David Dimbleby and the Question Time production team to produce a real BBC Question Time programme to be broadcast in the summer of 2008 on BBC ONE. They will be involved in all aspects of production, from making editorial decisions to researching and taking on production roles for the programme. David Dimbleby, chairman of BBC Question Time, said: “Last year’s Schools Question Time Challenge demonstrated, once again, that young people are passionate about politics when they are given the opportunity to play their part in serious debate. Given the rapidly changing environmental, economic, political and media landscape, it is more important than ever that we involve young adults and get their views and input into the decision making process. The challenges that young people and future generations face in all these areas are significant. Giving young adults a voice on subject matters that affect them is vitally important and I look forward to working with the winners of the current Challenge.” ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/213101442/schools_question_time_reminder.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/schools_question_time_reminder.html Tue, 08 Jan 2008 10:27:46 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/schools_question_time_reminder.html IN the absence of any local or even national politics in recent days, I've been following the US elections. Now let me make it clear I know sod all about American politics except that there's Republicans and Democrats and they have something called the House of Representatives (or is it Congress?) The thing I do know is that come November I'm betting that Hillary Clinton, the well-groomed missus of Arkanasas' most famous cigar loving politician, is sitting in her hubby's old chair at the Oval Office. I've been impressed with Barack Obama but despite all of rhetoric about being the Land of Opportunity, America hasn't exactly come across as a country where the underdog emerges victorious (they save that for Hollywood, Rocky being a case in point). And also, a country which elects George W. Bush twice hardly has much sentiment, does it? I reckon Hillary will win for the following reasons: 1) She appeals to both the left and the more moderate right wingers 2) Her closest opponent, Obama, is too inexperienced 3) Everyone wants to see Bill Clinton back at the White House, even if it's just to make tired and crude jokes 4) The best Republican, Rudy Gulliani, will not even make it to the final two Am I right? ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/209988073/going_stateside_with_hillary_c.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/going_stateside_with_hillary_c.html Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:34:35 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/going_stateside_with_hillary_c.html THE so-called expert pundits are already writing off Gordon Brown and Labour's chances of winning the next election. It seems they've decided that David Cameron will maintain his lead in the polls and at the end of the year be ready to breeze into Number 10. Fools, fools, fools the lot of them. Although it has undeniably been the most testing time for Labour since they came to power, the one thing they still possess above all else is a membership which is supportive both in practice and ideology to its leader. The same cannot be said of the Conservatives. It's true to say Cameron has won over the ciabattering classes in the likes of trendy Notting Hill, but he is still viewed with a massive degree of scepticism both in the country and within his own party. West Lancs is a prime example as a place where, if the truth be told, the traditional Tories still yearn for Maggie or even Hezza (the best Tory PM they never had). Labour can turn that to their advantage because even some Tories admit to admiring Brown's values and political nouse which is very much a key strength and yet very much underestimated of late. But his team needs to do what Blair was a master at and get a grip of the news agenda. Yes, the economy isn't looking as rosy as it was 3 years ago but it's a helluva lot better than it was 16 years ago. The employment figures aren't sky high and there isn't rioting in the streets. The front benchers need to make it their new year resolution to sell the party better to the country. Many have portrayed the last six months and the time when Gordon Brown and the Labour government lost it. If I was them, I wouldn't worry unduly given the fact there's still time to turn it around But if the same is being written about them this time next year... ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/209545693/why_2008_can_be_gordon_browns.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/why_2008_can_be_gordon_browns.html Tue, 01 Jan 2008 20:05:57 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2008/01/why_2008_can_be_gordon_browns.html I WAS shopping in Ormskirk this week for ingredients for an Italian dish. The recipe called for fresh basil and, as I happened to be in Tesco at the time, I checked out what they had on offer. I was alarmed to find that they did indeed have fresh basil, but it had come from Israel. Now I know damn well that basil can be grown in this country so I decided to go to Park Fresh down the road where I found a nice batch of basil which had been grown in England and, moreover, it was cheaper than the stuff at Tesco. Now I know supemarkets have taken quite a hammering in the press over the past few years and every time this happens some bland company spokesweasal gives us the usual rubbish about: "Our customers tell us they like to have a choice.. blah blah blah." Sorry, but I shop at Tesco sometimes, as do my family, and we have NEVER demanded Israeli basil. I would understand if it was tomatoes, given the time of year, or pineapple whch cannot be grown here at all, but basil? Come off it. This is all because 'choice' is good, apparently. We all want choice, so the captains of industry keep telling us. But I'd actually like it if they turned around and said: "No, you can't have that because it's it's out of season and if we flew it in it would taste rubbish, cost a bomb and ruin the environment. You'll just have to wait, won't you?" Politicians are the same. They say we can choose which hospital we're treated in. But do they honestly think someone who needs urgent medical attention gives a fig where they are treated? No, they just want to stay alive. Unfortunately, because it has been, ahem, 'decided' that choice is so brill, we now have schools in poorer areas closing because parents are obessed by catchment areas, global warming because of food being jetted in from all four corners of the earth and small, independent grocers forced out of business all because local authorities roll over at the sight of moneybags supermarkets with their teams of hot lawyers ready to take them to the Planning Inspectorate if local councillors have the temerity to tell them to hop it. Still think 'choice' is such a great thing?]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/208079826/why_choice_isnt_aways_a_good_t.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/12/why_choice_isnt_aways_a_good_t.html Sat, 29 Dec 2007 15:27:59 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/12/why_choice_isnt_aways_a_good_t.html A STORY on page 2 of today's Daily Mail caught my eye, headlined "Brown's 'Stalinist' rewrite of history". It tells of how a review of the Prime Minister's first six months in office, published on the Number 10 website, fails to mention what the Mail says is "a catalogue of embarassing scandals, failures and blunders". It reminded me of West Lancs District Council leader Geoff Roberts 'review' of the year which had "lots of good news stories". He mentions that "customer services are stronger than ever and our Customer Service Point in Skelmersdale was named 'Front-Line Customer Service Team of the Year' in the recent National Customer Awards." Strangely, he (or whoever wrote it) omits the fact that the poor souls who staff the cash office at the Point only found out that the facility was being axed after reading it in the Advertiser just a week before Christmas Also, there's no mention of the fact that local tenants are now threatening to the council to the Ombudsman because they did it with no consultation and voted on it behind closed doors. Sticking with Skem, Cllr Roberts says "progress has been made on a wide range of key initiatives including the Skelmersdale Vision." But then again, there's no mention to the mass public outcry of Firbeck residents whose homes are under threat from this development. The statement also omits the fact that more than 1,000 people have refused to back the controversial idea of building on the Tawd Valley. Both of these have dominated the coverage of the Vision project this year. Other points of interest which were missing from this round-up included: - The highly embarassing chief officers pay review (also done in secret) which saw the council's two top men frozen out at the last minute. The review was carried out by consultants at a rumoured £16,000. - Knocking down perfectly good homes next to the council's offices in Abbotsford, Ormskirk, (at a cost of £500,000) only to replace them with... err... a 'temporary car park' even though there's a shortage of affordable homes in the district - The climbdown over the Aughton Street artwork scheme after huge public pressure Downing Street, Derby Street... it's all the same when it comes to spin. ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/207724125/putting_a_spin_on_a_difficult_year.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/12/putting_a_spin_on_a_difficult_year.html Fri, 28 Dec 2007 20:24:48 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/12/putting_a_spin_on_a_difficult_year.html I WAS as surprised as anyone when I discovered that Cllr John Baldock had resigned from the cabinet. Certainly when I spoke to his Conservative colleagues they all appeared to be singing from the same hymn sheet as to his reasons for going. But others aren't so sure, pointing out that it is very rare for anyone to quit half way through a civic year. Anyone considering stepping down usually does so after the May elections reshuffle. Some Tory sources reckon he'd quite simply had enough, and that this was beginning to show through - with the October full council meeting being a case in point. You may remember my blog posting which referred to sparks flying between Cllr Baldock and his cabinet colleague Adrian Owens (finance) over an environmental health spending issue. Just a few weeks later he'd resigned. It's also being hinted at that the Tory rift which we reported on in May may have something to do with that as I'm reliably informed the tensions haven't subsided between the Young Turks (Thatcherites) and the Old Guard (One Nation Tories). I wonder what the end game will be...? ]]> http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/co/glKq/~3/206964940/cllr_john_baldock_quits_the_cabinet.html http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/12/cllr_john_baldock_quits_the_cabinet.html Thu, 27 Dec 2007 10:49:53 +0000 http://Offtherecord.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/12/cllr_john_baldock_quits_the_cabinet.html