Peter Smallbone's Blog

Birmingham's Winners and Losers

2011-09-13T12:05:00.001+01:00

I've been chewing over theBoundary Commission's proposals for the Birmingham area - here are myobservations so far:

Winners

Cllr Robert Alden (Conservative, Erdington Ward). Bobby wasour Parliamentary candidate for Erdington last time and is hot favourite to beagain. The absorption of Sutton New Hall and Castle Bromwich and the removal ofKingstanding makes this a very winnable Conservative seat.

Gisela Stuart MP (Labour, Edgbaston). I'm sticking my neckout a bit on this one. Edgbaston becomes almost unrecognisable from its currentstate, with the bulk of the existing constituency going into new BirminghamHarborne. The revised Edgbaston, full of right-on students (Selly Oak) andchampagne socialists (Moseley), looks good for Labour. I'm not entirely surehow Labour selects its candidates, but as the nominal incumbent, Ms Stuartsurely has the edge in getting selected.

Keely Huxtable (Conservative, former PC for Northfield)or Cllr Nigel Dawkins (Conservative,Bournville). Keely and Nigel both came close to winning Northfield and SellyOak respectively in the last General Election. Nigel's ward goes into the newNorthfield at the expense of Weoley, making this a very winnable seat for theConservatives. Both have a claim to be selected for this constituency.

One as yet unidentifiedConservative. All-new Birmingham Harborne, consisting of Harborne,Quinton, Bartley Green, Weoley and Old Warley, should be a definite Torytarget. The PPC for this seat will have an excellent chance.

Losers

Rt Hon Liam Byrne MP (Labour, Hodge Hill). 'Dear Mr Byrne, I’mafraid to tell you there's no constituency left.' (Hopefully I'm the firstperson to make this crack, but I suspect not.)

Steve McCabe MP (Labour, Selly Oak). Selly Oak vanishesunder the new proposals; along with Liam Byrne, he will have a fight on hishands to get selected for a different and winnable seat. Mind you, he's managedit once before.

John Hemming MP (LibDem, Yardley). John can't be happy with losing Sheldon inexchange for Bordesley Green.

Neither

Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP (Conservative, Sutton Coldfield). Andrewwill rightly be aggrieved at the loss of part of Sutton Coldfield from theconstituency that bears its name, but he is a very hard-working andhigh-profile figure and I doubt that his tenure will come under seriouschallenge.

Roger Godsiff MP (Labour, Hall Green). The redrawn HallGreen swaps a fading challenge from Respect for Lab/Lib and Lab/Tory marginals.I wouldn't expect this has given Mr Godsiff either a sleepless night or reasonto open any bottles of champagne.

Shabana Mahmood MP (Labour, Ladywood). Swapping Aston and Sohofor Hodge Hill and Washwood Heath is hardly tearing the heart out of thisrock-solid Labour seat. I don't think that talk of a challenge from Liam Byrnewill come to anything.

Khalid Mahmood MP (Labour, Perry Barr). See above.

Rapid Action on Travellers on Highfield Lane

2011-09-09T14:36:00.002+01:00

A group of travellers set up camp on Highfield Farm Recreation Ground on Tuesday 23rd August. Accompanied by the Police, I visited them that evening and the following evening and demanded that they left the area. I'm pleased to say that they had left within two days and I’ve ensured that anything they left behind has been cleaned up.

Had the group kept themselves to themselves a bit more then perhaps a confrontation could have been avoided. However, a number of the group were tearing around the park and Woodgate Valley on quad bikes, which was very intimidating for local people. I have a zero tolerance approach to such behaviour and I'm very pleased that our robust stance has worked.

Fighting for Quinton Police Station

2011-08-21T18:27:00.003+01:00

First of all, I'd like to place on record my deep thanks and respect for Birmingham's police officers who put the safety of the City ahead of their own safety in the recent riots. Everyone in Birmingham owes them a debt of gratitude and I look forward to those responsible for this brief reign of terror facing the full majesty of the law.

These recent events demonstrate even more clearly the need for good local policing, and that's why I've launched a campaign to keep Quinton Police Station open to the public. The response from local people has been excellent and we've even been featured in the Birmingham Mail, which all helps.

If you live in Quinton ward, you'l be receiving a copy of my petition to sign and return very soon. If you'd rather complete the petition online, just visit this site: http://epetition.birmingham.public-i.tv/epetition_core/community/petition/1577

Under the last Labour government, 400 police stations closed - that's more than one every two weeks. Together, we can keep this one open - please sign the petition.

Quinborne Car Boot and Jumble Sale, Saturday 10th September, 9am-1pm

2011-07-21T11:26:00.000+01:00

Open Day at Woodgate Valley Fire Station

2011-07-16T17:00:00.002+01:00

Woodgate Valley Fire Station (161 Stonehouse Lane, Bartley Green) are having an open day on Saturday 13th August from 10.30am until 3pm. They'll be lots to see and do, including:

Chip pan fire demonstration
Road traffic collision demonstration
Rope rescue demonstration
Stalls from partner agencies

Hope to see you there.

Martineau Centre Consultation - More Dates

2011-07-16T16:23:00.004+01:00

I have successfully lobbied the Council to add extra dates to the current consultation on the Martineau Centre on Balden Road. These are in addition to the two consultation dates that have already taken place. The consultations will take place at the Martineau Centre itself, on the following dates and times.

Monday 25 July, 10am–8pm
Saturday 30 July, 9am–noon
Saturday 13 August, 9am–noon

If you have any questions or comments about the Martineau Centre or any other matter, I would be more than happy to hear from you.

Supporting The Pod

2011-07-16T16:18:00.002+01:00

The Pod, off Selcroft Avenue, is a new initiative to help local young people express themselves through art. I paid today's launch a visit and I was very impressed with what I saw. We talked over a few ideas about how I could help them achieve their goals, so watch this space!

2011 Elections - Commiserations to Len

2011-05-06T19:46:00.002+01:00

I've managed to have a bit of a sleep after the manic election campaign in Quinton and Harborne and thought I'd do a quick post on the result. Clearly it's is disappointing that Len Clark was not successful in getting re-elected. Len has spent most of his adult life in public service and I've learnt a lot from him. I wish him a long and thoroughly deserved retirement from front-line politics.

Looking at the votes for each candidate, it appears that the Conservative vote held up very well: compared with 2008, we lost hardly any votes. Two things seem to have happened: the turnout increased, and most of this increased turnout voted Labour, and the (small but significant) Lib Dem vote collapsed, with those voters probably either staying at home or voting Labour too.

The local Labour team did an excellent job of exploiting their own government's economic incompetence by running a largely anti-cuts message, and this appears to have resonated well with voters. But I don't believe that the Labour party, either locally or nationally, is offering a credible alternative, and that's why I'll keep fighting to represent the people of Quinton ward.

Harborne Leisure Centre Picture Competition

2011-04-15T15:25:00.002+01:00

Harborne Leisure Centre Open Day

2011-04-15T15:23:00.002+01:00

Mobile Phone Mast Outside Old House at Home, Lordswood Rd

2011-03-18T14:27:00.002Z

If you want to try to stop this, sign the petition at http://is.gd/cwknB9.

Quinborne Jumble Sale, Saturday 19th March, 10am-1pm

2011-03-06T17:24:00.002Z

Malcolm Harbour MEP Backs HS2

2011-02-22T13:14:00.006Z

I've recently been talking to West Midlands Conservative MEP Malcolm Harbour about the planned high speed rail link from Birmingham to London. Representing the whole of the West Midlands, Malcolm has to take a balanced view as to HS2's benefits versus any potential disruption caused along the route.

While recognising that some communities and individuals in the wider region will be adversely affected, Malcolm has given his firm backing to HS2. He says, 'The Government has pledged to build a new High Speed Rail network as part of its programme of measures to create a low carbon economy. I fully support this decision and believe it will be a vital measure that will help to deliver significant and long-lasting economic and societal benefits for Britain.

High Speed Rail has the potential to transform the way Britain works and competes in the 21st Century. It can also play a significant role in easing congestion and making the transport system in the UK greener, by offering an alternative to thousands of short haul flights and road journeys. Furthermore, it will also free up capacity on our existing rail infrastructure and improve frequency and service levels for passengers. The Birmingham and West Midlands economy will benefit significantly from the links to the North and South, with the planned extension to Manchester and Leeds which will continue our region’s regeneration.'

I welcome Malcolm's commitment to HS2 and agree that the benefits to Birmingham and the West Midlands will be significant and long-lasting. Bringing Birmingham and London closer together will be a great thing for both cities.

UPDATE 24/02: There's a letter in yesterday's FT from 69 business leaders and others backing HS2.

John Lewis comes to Birmingham

2011-02-22T12:21:00.002Z

The rumours are true! Scheduled to open in 2014 as part of the New Street Station regeneration project, the new 250,000 sq ft John Lewis will be one of the largest outside London. Featuring more than 350,000 products including fashion, furniture, homewares, beauty and the latest technology, it will be another great boost to the city centre and bring in much needed jobs.

West Midlands and Chilterns Rail Route Consultation

2011-01-31T13:55:00.001Z

If you want to have your say on this important rail route, you have until the end of the week. More details here:

http://is.gd/ItdxT2

Refuse and Recycling Collection in Birmingham - Update 2

2011-01-12T19:32:00.002Z

Tomorrow's and Friday's half-day strikes have been called off.
The work-to-rule by the regular crews is also off for the time being.
The Council will continue to deploy the casual crews as well as the regular crews to clear any backlog.
Further talks are scheduled for Tuesday.

If there's any more news, I'll let you know.

Refuse and Recycling Collection in Birmingham - Update 1

2011-01-10T21:36:00.003Z

Despite the snow in mid-December, the trade unions decided to press on with their strike on Monday 20th and they’ve been working four day weeks and refusing overtime since.

To compensate, we’ve recruited a casual workforce, working seven days a week, to pick up the work that the unions are leaving behind. Over the last weekend, this workforce of over 200 members of staff in 70 vehicles collected 1,410 tonnes of refuse in 282,000 black bags.

We’ve also continued to extend the opening hours at the City's five household recycling centres to 8am to 9pm, seven days a week.

The latest advice from Cllr Huxtable, who's the Cabinet Member responsible, is to put out fresh waste only on your scheduled collection day.

The unions are determined to inflict as much disruption as possible on the ordinary people of Birmingham and no-one in the Labour leadership, locally or nationally, has come out and condemned their actions. However, I’m determined that Labour and the unions won’t take Birmingham back to the 1970s.

Refuse and Recycling Collection in Birmingham

2010-12-30T14:05:00.006Z

I hope that everyone had a good Christmas and is looking forward to the New Year.

I thought it would be a good time to update everyone on the situation regarding refuse and recycling collection in Quinton ward. I have been in direct contact today with Cllr Huxtable, who's the Cabinet Member responsible, to get the latest information.

Unfortunately, we've been hit with a 'perfect storm' of industrial action by our regular workforce on the 20th December and work-to-rule since, the unusually bad weather (even for December) and the extra refuse generated due to the holiday period.

However, none of this is much consolation if your black bags and recycling boxes are still outside. To try to get around the problems, the Council has recruited a casual workforce to provide collection services in the absence of the regular workforce. This workforce is being expanded as drivers are recruited. The Council intends the casual workforce to work continuously including the weekend and to catch up on the work as soon as possible.

The Council has also arranged for extended opening hours at the City's five household recycling centres: 8am to 9pm seven days a week.

The current advice is to leave your black bags and recycling on the kerbside, even if it's not your normal collection day, and the Council will try to collect them as soon as possible.

There are also a few scheduled bulky refuse collections taking place in various parts of Quinton ward; these are all expected to go ahead as planned.

I am in regular communication with Cllr Huxtable and I will update the blog if the information or advice changes.

Timely Advice from West Midlands Police

2010-12-14T15:05:00.002Z

Letter from Eric Pickles about the Localism Bill and Local Government Finance Settlement

2010-12-13T17:32:00.005Z

A new relationship between central government, local government and local people starts today.

Like all Conservative Councillors in England, I've just received a letter from Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government, with some information about the Localism Bill and Local Government Finance Settlement. I thought it would be useful to post the letter in full. Here is is.

Dear Colleague,

Localism Bill and Local Government Finance Settlement

Today the Coalition Government has published the Localism Bill and announced the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement for English councils. I wanted to take the opportunity to outline some key political points on these two major announcements.

Local Government Finance Settlement

Local government finance is notoriously arcane and ridden with Whitehall jargon. So my department has published a plain English guide to the settlement, to help explain the detail. It can be found at: www.communities.gov.uk/documents/localgovernment/pdf/1796186.pdf

· This is all about how we raise and spend taxpayers’ money. Every part of the public sector needs to do its bit to help reduce Labour’s legacy of debt and the massive overdraft they left the nation. The Labour Government had been living a credit card lifestyle at taxpayers’ expense, and now it is time to pay off some of those bills.

· This is a progressive settlement – we are taking into account that some councils are very dependent on central government grants, and we are taking steps to mitigate the effect of spending reductions in those needy areas.

· The settlement will be fair between different parts of the country – north and south, rural and urban, metropolitan and shire. Unlike Labour, we will not play one part of the country off against another for narrow partisan gain.

· We are limiting the reduction in councils’ spending power. Making savings to grants is not the same as reducing council spending by the same amount – this is since councils raise money from council tax and other sources.

· Council tax bills more than doubled under Labour. So we are providing additional funding to help England’s councils to help freeze their council tax bills this year. This will provide real help to struggling families and pensioners.

· Councils can protect frontline services by sharing services and back office functions, improve procurement to get more for less, bring escalating senior pay under control, and use transparency to empower the public to see how their money could be better spent. Next month, councils should be publishing online their spending over £500, creating an army of ‘armchair auditors’ to cut out waste and deliver better value for money.

A Government press release with top-line local figures on spending can be found at:

www.communities.gov.uk/news/corporate/1795445

Localism Bill

· The Localism Bill overturns decades of central government interference and gives power back to local communities. We are not just devolving power to local councils – we are also giving more power to citizens, community groups and neighbourhoods, to help local people shape and influence the places in which they live and help build the Big Society.

· We are giving more freedoms and flexibilities to councils, from reducing ring-fencing to bringing in a general power of competence in the Localism Bill. By cutting the red tape and Whitehall micromanagement which holds councils back, this will give them the ability to protect frontline services and focus their spending on local priorities.

A Government press release on the Bill can be found at:

www.communities.gov.uk/news/corporate/1794946

My Ministerial colleague, Greg Clark, has also today published a pamphlet on our decentralisation agenda which is available at:

www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/decentralisationguide

Key policy initiatives in the Bill which may be of direct interest to your ward include:

· The abolition of Labour’s Regional Strategies and top-down system of planning. This legacy of John Prescott threatened environmental sustainability, and it completely failed to deliver the homes that communities wanted by fuelling resentment at development.

· A new system of neighbourhood planning to put local communities in charge of the look and feel of their locality. Parish councils and new neighbourhood forums of local people – rather than town hall officials – will lead the way in shaping their community. Incentives, such as the New Homes Bonus and a reformed Community Infrastructure Levy, will ensure that local people directly benefit from new development.

· Protection for local taxpayers from Labour’s planned tax hikes. We are abolishing Labour’s bin taxes, cancelling Labour’s planned council tax revaluations in England and Wales, and giving local residents new powers to veto future excessive council tax rises via local referendums.

· New rights to protect community facilities and build the Big Society: A Community Right to Buy will give local groups new rights to protect vital community asset including local shops, pubs, libraries and leisure centres, giving them the opportunity to take over services which face closure. An accompanying Community Right to Challenge will open the door for local community and voluntary sector groups, as well as parish councils and council employees, to bid to take over and improve local council services.

We have a strong message that the Coalition Government is championing the interests of local taxpayers in difficult times, and is putting more power and responsibility into the hands of councils, communities and citizens.

Yours truly,

Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP

Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government

Nativity Play Photos – A Victory for Common Sense

2010-12-10T12:47:00.001Z

The Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham, has recently issued some guidance on taking photographs at school concerts or plays this Christmas.

He says, ‘Having a child perform at a school play or a festive concert is a very proud moment for parents and is understandably a memory that many want to capture on camera. It is disappointing to hear that the myth that such photos are forbidden by the Data Protection Act still prevails in some schools.

‘A common sense approach is needed – clearly, photographs simply taken for a family album are exempt from data protection laws. Armed with our guidance, parents should feel free to snap away this Christmas and stand ready to challenge any schools or councils that say “Bah, Humbug” to a bit of festive fun.’

This guidance should put an end to this persistent myth, and I’ve written to all of the local schools to make sure they know about it. Now let’s all get on and enjoy Christmas!

You can download the guidance note at http://is.gd/is2Qo.

Forthcoming Events at The Quinborne Centre

2010-11-26T17:26:00.004Z

Welcoming an Irish Councillor to Birmingham

2010-11-13T17:59:00.003Z

I spent the morning at our popular Advice Bureau at the Quinborne Centre. Many local people came to see me for all sorts of help and advice, and I'm looking forward to resolving each and every issue.

I was then pleased to welcome Cllr Sean McKiernan, elected Member of Cavan County Council in the Republic of Ireland and Vice-Chairman of the Fine Gael National Executive to Birmingham.

We had a very interesting conversation about the various issues in our respective countries and localities - it was great to meet someone else who had a genuine passion for improving their area. I wish Sean well in his visit to Birmingham and I hope that I can pay a visit to Cavan at some point in the future.

Recycling Queries

2010-11-04T22:54:00.003Z

A couple of recycling queries were mentioned at the last Quinton Ward Committee - here's an update.

Recycling at Wellington Court on Brook Lane. Council officers have visited Wellington Court and spoken to the staff. The staff are are trying to identify a suitable area to place recycling bins without having too much of an impact on the grounds. They will contact the Council once they identify a suitable location.

Recycling on Barnwood Road. The Council officers are preparing a leaflet with all of the necessary information, which will go out to all properties from tomorrow onwards.

Could You Foster a Child?

2010-10-23T18:03:00.002+01:00

Today, I dropped in to support The Foster Care Co-operative's efforts in Quinton. The Co-operative is a non-profit fostering agency dedicated to recruiting and training new foster carers.

If you're interested in finding out more about fostering, please contact The Foster Care Co-operative, Penny Hall, The Haysfield, Spring Lane North, Malvern WR14 1GF, call 01684 892380 or email duty@fostercarecooperative.co.uk.

Celebrating Diwali in Birmingham

2010-10-21T21:49:00.002+01:00

The festival of Diwali is approaching, and I was honoured to attend tonight's celebration of this important date in the Hindu and Sikh calendars. Presented by BBC Midland Today's Satnam Rana, we had a splendid evening of prayer, dance and festivities.

The photo features me with Mr Mahendra Dabhi, President of the Hindu Council of Birmingham.

Thanks to everyone who made this possible, especially the sponsors XLN Telecom.

Quinton Football Tournament and Family Day

2010-09-25T13:20:00.004+01:00

The weather couldn't have been better for today's Quinton Football Tournament and Family Day. What an excellent event, enjoyed by everyone. Special thanks to those who organised it, especially former Councillor Jane James (pictured with me and Cllr Len Clark).

The Challenge In Action

2010-09-18T15:40:00.003+01:00

The Challenge's Quinton Road Safety Campaign was out in force today, advising motorists to slow down around an important and busy local roundabout. I joined them in support of their campaign, and we've come up with a few ideas as to how I can help in other ways.

Young people often have a bad reputation with older generations - this has probably been the case since the dawn of time. When I was 16, if the press were to be believed, we were all watching video nasties, ram raiding shops and going to illegal raves. Today's event just goes to show that the reputation of young people is not well-deserved; the group I met were enthusiastic, respectful and fully engaged in their community. Long may it continue.

Have You Got What It Takes to be a Games Maker?

2010-09-15T09:22:00.003+01:00

Today sees the launch of the London 2012 Games Maker programme. If you'll be 18 or over by 1st January 2012, you can volunteer to be a Games Maker - the Young Games Maker programme is coming in 2011 for younger volunteers.

This is your chance to be involved in something very special and historic. And this isn't just an opportunity for Londoners - for example, some of the football matches will be played at Coventry City's ground. Here's a map of all of the venues.

Get registering at http://is.gd/f8fMX.

Quinton Football Tournament and Family Day Coming Soon!

2010-09-13T10:45:00.003+01:00

Don't forget that the Quinton Football Tournament and Family Day will take place on Saturday 25th September from 11am until 3pm at Tennal Park, off Tennal Lane.

The main activity will be the 6-a-side ‘World Cup’ for local schools, but there'll also be:

Under 5’s Corner
Face Painting
Words on Wheels Bus
Health Bus & Health Checks

The following stalls and services will also be there:

Local Police
Local healthcare
Fire Service
Children’s Centre
and many others

For further information, please telephone Sophie Keene, Neighbourhood Manager, on 303 4989, Ken Brown, Ward Support Officer, on 303 2501 or Jo Reeves, Safe Haven Officer, on 626 6054.

The Challenge - Part Two

2010-09-12T13:14:00.002+01:00

I returned to Four Dwellings High School today to talk to another group of 16-year-olds doing The Challenge. This group wanted to campaign to reduce alcohol consumption and consequently crime in Quinton. Again, we discussed a few ideas about how I could help. So I'd better get on with it!

Supporting The Challenge

2010-09-11T16:01:00.004+01:00

Today, I was very pleased to meet with a group of 16-year-olds who are all doing The Challenge, which takes place in the summer after Year 11.

The programme consists of lots of different activities, including some you design yourself. It lasts two-and-a-half weeks full-time during the summer, plus four days over the following five weekends.

This particular group has decided to campaign around road safety in Quinton, which is something that the local Councillors and Police have been working hard to improve over the last few years. We talked for about an hour, exchanging ideas about how they could campaign and how I could help. They were also interested in what being a Councillor is really like, so maybe we'll see some of them in the Chamber in a few years.

It was great to see some young people engaging so positively in such an important topic, and I wish them well in their campaign.

If you'd like to find out more about what this group are doing, please visit their website (http://qrsc.blogspot.com/) or follow them on Twitter (http://twitter.com/QRSChallenge).

For more details, about The Challenge in general, please visit www.the-challenge.org, call on 020 7921 4203 or text on 07503 849738.

Getting It Done

2010-08-25T18:20:00.005+01:00

Local residents raised a few issues at the recent Quinton Ward Committee meeting - here is a progress update:

1. The two large bags of soil have now been removed from Quinton Road West, opposite Four Dwellings School.

2. Litter reported at the side of Tesco in Ridgeacre Lane. The Council has made two site inspections; however, nothing unusual has been identified as yet. The Ward cleaning crew have been directed to monitor this area and carry out additional cleansing as appropriate.

3. Knotweed reported at a particular address. This has been passed to the Housing and Parks Departments who are investigating, and obtaining a quote for dealing with it.

4. Alleged litter spillage and recycling crew throwing boxes around Lower White Road. The Ward Manager has interviewed the crew about their behaviour and reminded them of their obligations. The Council is performing additional performance monitoring.

5. Bin bags out too early in Hollybush Grove. The whole of the Grove was delivered a leaflet detailing their collection days and asking people to comply. If this doesn't work, the Council may need to involve the wardens and look at enforcement action. The Council also delivered similar leaflets to Four Acres, Six Acres and parts of Quinton Lane.

6. The missing litter bin on Quinton Lane has now been replaced.

7. Missed bulky waste collection at a particular address. The items were cleared on the Saturday following the meeting, and only counted as one of the occupier's three free collections.

8. Access to containers blocked by parked cars on Simmons Drive. This was passed to Housing, as they are responsible for the land where the nuisance parking is happening. Housing has written a newletter to the block's residents about the inappropriate parking. The Estates Services team will be monitoring the parking outside the block and placing notices. Ultimately, we may liaise with the local Police to find out who owns any problem cars.

Anything else, let me know!

Today's Health and Adults Overview and Scrutiny Committee

2010-08-18T17:50:00.002+01:00

Today saw the monthly meeting of the Health and Adults Overview and Scrutiny Committee. I haven't blogged about this for a while but I thought it was time that I did again...

We spent quite a lot of time talking about 'Delayed Transfers of Care', commonly known as 'bed blocking'. Something that seemed to interest everyone was the level of 'reimbursement for delayed discharges', commonly known as 'fines', that may have been levied on the Council for not being ready to accept discharges (for whatever reason). We should have some definite numbers for the next meeting.

I was interested to know what the actual consequences of bed blocking are: if someone needs a bed, does this mean that they might not get one? It seems that this happens rarely and the main consequences are that more beds are provisioned than need to be, and there's sometimes quite a lot of work involved in finding someone a bed. So the consequences are serious but apparently more financial than clinical.

We also had quite a long discussion on the white paper published by the Department of Health called 'Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS'. This proposes massive changes to the way that the NHS is organised, many of which I've blogged about before. The response must be in by 11th October, so we need to get our skates on.

We received a short presentation on mental health services for older people. This was interesting and clarified in my mind why older people need specific mental health services, and the point of a separate Foundation Trust for mental health in the first place.

But in my view, the most important comments were made by Jim McManus, Joint Director of Public Health for the Birmingham Health and Wellbeing Partnership during his presentation. According to Mr McManus, in Birmingham:

1. Last winter, there were 48 preventable deaths.

2. Primary care is one of the major contributors to avoidable deaths.

3. We do prevention very badly.

In the world of scrutiny, bad news is often couched in fluffy sentences and I was taken by the directness and seriousness of these comments. Through the Chairman, I have asked Mr McManus to furnish the Committee with further information; if we have enough time to look at joint commissioning strategies, needs assessments and the like, we definitely should make time to investigate these comments further.

Planned Mobile Phone Mast Outside Toby Carvery (aka The Hollybush), Hagley Road West

2010-08-08T17:20:00.006+01:00

I have recently been informed that Vodafone plans to install a 48-foot-high mobile phone mast outside Toby Carvery (aka The Hollybush), Hagley Road West.

I went down there today to investigate; the mast would be located between the phone box and the bus shelter on the left hand side of this photo.

The mast would be located at the following distances from local schools and nurseries.

1. Happy Days Nursery: 0.2 miles

2. Woodhouse School: 0.5 miles

3. World’s End Primary School: 0.6 miles

4. Four Dwellings Primary and Secondary Schools: 0.7 miles

5. Our Lady of Fatima School: 0.8 miles

6. Grasshoppers Nursery: 0.8 miles

7. Welsh House Farm Primary School: 1 mile

If you would like to object to these plans, please complete the petition at http://is.gd/e8PQh.

Alternatively, return a paper version of the petition at http://is.gd/e8UCa. No stamp is required.

More Hagley Road Plans

2010-07-16T15:35:00.002+01:00

If you live at the western end of Quinton Ward, you might be particularly interested in the planned alterations to Hagley Road to accommodate the proposed Netto supermarket. You can find them here:

http://is.gd/dumrJ

Ss Faith and Laurence Family Fun Day

2010-07-10T17:04:00.004+01:00

After my advice bureau at the Quinborne Centre, I went to Ss Faith and Laurence's annual Family Fun Day on the corner of Court Oak Road and (the newly resurfaced) Croftdown Road.

Politicians have a reputation, sometimes undeserved, sometimes not, for turning up at fêtes and the like, cutting the ribbon, having their photo taken and disappearing. So I made sure I visited all of the stands and talked to as many of the exhibitors as I could.

I had some interesting chats with people from Troop Aid, The University of The Third Age, Cerebral Palsy Midlands, Queen Alexandra College, Positive Parenting, Quinton Local History Society, The Crossway, Beech Lanes Neighbourhood Forum and many others. We discussed ways that the Council as a whole or local Councillors in particular may be able to help - hopefully we'll be able to take some of the ideas forward.

Well done to Reverend White and all at Ss Faith and Laurence for putting on such a great event - already looking forward to next year.

Hagley Road Improvements

2010-07-09T16:30:00.003+01:00

The Conservative-led Council has recently published proposals that are intended to reduce congestion and improve traffic flow into and out of the City Centre along Hagley Road. You can have a look at them here:

http://is.gd/dlF0Y

http://is.gd/dlF8u

http://is.gd/dlFba

If you'd like to comment, please let me know your views, or email craig.newton@birmingham.gov.uk by Friday 16th July.

Great News for Bus Users in Welsh House Farm

2010-07-09T14:48:00.000+01:00

From 25^th July, the 636 bus will be extended from its current terminus at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital into the City Centre, terminating on Upper Dean Street, close to the markets. This will provide direct access to the City Centre for residents of Welsh House Farm.

Get your bus pass out!

STOP PRESS: Four Dwellings Building Schools for the Future Scheme to Continue

2010-07-05T19:46:00.003+01:00

There has been some uncertainty lately about the fate of the Four Dwellings Building Schools for the Future scheme, as the new Government works to manage the £156bn budget deficit it inherited.

The Government today announced that the Four Dwellings scheme will continue to completion, which is excellent news. We may see some changes to the plans to ensure that best value is achieved, but the scheme will carry on.

You can read more in the Department for Education's press release:

http://www.education.gov.uk/news/news/bsf-review

At Harborne Carnival

2010-07-04T19:15:00.002+01:00

Up at eight this morning to get to Harborne High Street in time for the annual Carnival. Quinton ward includes an area that most people would consider to be part of Harborne, so it's good to support this event.

Lots of people came to visit the stall and there was a great atmosphere. Looking forward to next year already!

Labour’s Legacy – The Last Will and Testament of Labour 1997–2010

2010-06-21T18:19:00.005+01:00

To my successors, I leave no money, only waste, debt and the deepest cuts of modern times.

To the young people of Britain, I leave one in five of you without work.

To pensioners, I bequeath you lower pensions. I reduced the value of pension funds by billions. I leave you working longer for less.

In 13 years, I have wasted the inheritance left to me.

Of the gold bullion my predecessors bequeathed me, I sold over 350 tonnes at the worst possible price.

I have spent and spent and spent again - and every man, woman and child will have £22,400 to pay for my profligacy.

I have taken your hard-earned money and wasted it. I lost £3 billion in benefit overpayments and paid the dead £10 million in tax credits.

I leave Britain a bigger deficit than France, Germany and Japan, greater than Greece, Italy and Portugal.

I leave 2.47 million of you without a job.

With more time I could have done more.

I leave no apology, no regret, no comfort, and not an ounce of contrition.

I leave you years of painful and difficult decisions.

This is my legacy to you.

From the document here.

Quinton Ward Committee

2010-05-28T17:06:00.003+01:00

The next Quinton Ward Committee will take place at 7pm on Thursday 3rd June at the Quinborne Centre, Ridgacre Road, Quinton, B32 2TW.

You can find the agenda and more details at http://is.gd/ctdzd.

All change - in Quinton and in Westminster

2010-05-12T15:07:00.006+01:00

Now everything's calmed down a bit, it's time to write about the last couple of weeks.

Firstly Quinton. I'm very sad that we've lost Jane James as one of the local Councillors. Jane ran a very good campaign, and the narrowness of the overall result (just 150 votes or so) reflected this. Jane was a great Councillor and will be sorely missed. Hopefully this will just be a temporary 'holiday' away from Council and Ward business.

Our Parliamentary Candidate Deirdre Alden was also unlucky not to win the Constituency by a similarly narrow margin (about 1,200 votes). Deirdre is a very genuine and hard-working person and has dedicated herself to the campaign for many years. I do hope that we'll still see lots of her in Quinton.

Now to more positive news. Naturally, I would like to welcome the new government as it starts work on its programme of change. The coalition of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, with the Conservatives as the larger party, mirrors the progressive partnership we’ve had in Birmingham for the past six years. We’ve demonstrated locally that such an arrangement can be stable, successful and can be made to work for everyone’s benefit.

I thought it would be useful to pick out a few key policies that are particularly relevant to Quinton.

1. Council Tax will be frozen for at least one year, possibly longer. It won’t be difficult for us to meet this challenge locally as we’ve only had below-inflation rises since the current partnership entered office. The Council will also publish details of all spending above £500.

2. The local Council will be given new powers to make it much harder for people to build by ‘garden grabbing’. Unfortunately, we’ve seen quite a lot of this in Quinton and the Council has been powerless to act until now.

3. The local Police will be made more accountable and responsive to local needs through oversight by a directly elected person.

4. We will give the Council and the local Police powers to permanently close places that persistently sell alcohol to youngsters, and double the maximum fine for doing so. We will also ban the irresponsible sale of alcohol as a ‘loss leader’; that is, below cost price.

5. Communities, charities, parents and teachers will be able to set up their own local schools.

I look forward to working with the new government as it puts these policies into action.

Two hours left!

2010-05-06T19:56:00.002+01:00

Just got time to do a quick post - you've got about two hours left to vote for Jane James and Deirdre Alden. Polling stations open until 10pm and you don't need your polling card to vote!

Quinborne Open Day, Saturday 22nd May

2010-04-29T10:32:00.004+01:00

Hope you can make it!

Happy St George's Day - Birmingham's No 1 for Events!

2010-04-22T19:32:00.006+01:00

Can I wish everyone in Quinton Ward a very Happy St George's Day. I don't believe I'm alone in thinking that this particular day may have been a little overlooked in the past, but no longer, and certainly not in Birmingham.

The independent group StGeorgesHoliday.com has ranked Conservative-led Birmingham City Council No 1 in commitment to St George's Day events, beating Manchester into second place. Something else to celebrate today!

Manifesto Launched in Birmingham

2010-04-13T18:35:00.007+01:00

Today in Birmingham, as well as the monthly meeting of the Council, we also had the regional launch of the Conservative Manifesto for the General Election.

Any accusations that we're light on policy were firmly put to bed today, if they were ever true in the first place. Among the tons of policies in the manifesto, here are a few corkers:

1. We will reverse Labour's unnecessary and damaging National Insurance increase.

2. We will implement an emergency Budget within 50 days to get rid of most of Labour's budget deficit - the largest racked up by any government in peacetime.

3. We will give parents the opportunity to take over and run schools themselves. Not an 'abdication of responsibility', which is what Labour's Parliamentary Candidate thinks, but a policy to give power and control back to ordinary people, which has to be better than Labour's centralised state targets.

4. We will allow everyone to choose any healthcare provider they want that meets NHS standards and prices.

5. We will get rid of mixed-sex wards, unlike Labour who pretended to.

6. We will give Birmingham City Council the right to shut places that sell alcohol to underage teenagers.

7. We will implement a points system and a ceiling on non-EU economic migrants to the UK. Labour's policy has no ceiling.

8. We will cut the number of MPs by 10%. (Yes, the Tories do cut some things!)

9. We will reintroduce the link between earnings and the basic state pension.

10. We will start building the high-speed rail link between London and Birmingham immediately.

And here's one that might have passed you by - we will substantially reduce the amount of government advertising and use the money saved to keep your Council Tax down. Has anyone else noticed the sheer number of government adverts at the moment? I was listening to the radio the other day and virtually every advert in every break was a government one of one form or another.

So there you have it. Vote for change - vote Conservative.

Bring it on!

2010-04-06T19:29:00.003+01:00

Five more years of Gordon Brown or real change under David Cameron. That's the choice facing each and every voter on Thursday 6th May.

David Cameron's first visit of the campaign was to the QE Hospital in Edgbaston Constituency, which includes my own ward of Quinton. Not only does this show our leader's commitment to the NHS, but also to the people of Birmingham.

This is at least the second time that David Cameron has launched a campaign in Birmingham. I was there when he started his successful bid for leadership of the Party in 2005. Since then, the Conservatives have retaken the centre ground of British politics, and once again we're ready for government.

I'm looking forward to the campaign ahead. Bring it on!

This is what can happen if you don't park safely!

2010-03-19T15:23:00.002Z

The latest in Edgbaston Constituency's series of videos...

Birmingham and Edgbaston Constituency supporting Young Readers

2010-03-12T08:03:00.002Z

The second in the series of videos shows the support that Edgbaston Constituency and the Conservative-led Council give to young readers...

Park Inconsiderately and Risk a Fine!

2010-03-05T15:09:00.008Z

Quinton's in Edgbaston Constituency, which is chaired by our fantastic Parliamentary Spokesman Deirdre Alden. The Constituency has commissioned a series of videos dealing with proper issues that concern local residents. The intention is to show them on public screens (muted!) and I am also making them available online.

This the first video and it illustrates the fines you can face if you park inconsiderately - you have been warned!

If you represent a local authority and would like to have this video customised for your own use, please let me know!

P.S. Never mind the quality - feel the width! ;-)

Cameron Direct comes to the Constituency!

2010-02-07T23:01:00.003Z

Do you want to ask David Cameron a question? Perhaps you're concerned about crime in your area and what a Conservative government would do to tackle it? Would you like to know more about our economic policies, or what we would do for married couples? Whatever your question, David Cameron is visiting the Constituency this Thursday 11th February at 5.30pm.

If you'd like to come along and talk to David Cameron, just call 0121 426 6022 or email our Parliamentary Spokesman Deirdre Alden at deirdre4edgbaston@hotmail.co.uk.

Bharatnatyam Dance Performance at the ICC

2010-02-07T22:54:00.004Z

My wife Laura and I have just returned from a splendid evening at the ICC to celebrate the Republic of India's 60th birthday. We were treated to a performance of Bharatnatyam dance by Geetra Chandran and the Natya Vriksha Dance Company. Superb!

The photo above shows us with His Excellency Mr Nalin Surie, High Commissioner of India and his wife, and Cllr Mike Whitby, Leader of Birmingham City Council.

Labour’s Flagship ID Cards Policy in Tatters

2010-01-13T17:51:00.004Z

Yesterday was the monthly meeting of the full City Council. For me, the most interesting and important part was the debate on ID cards, where the following motion was put forward by two LibDem Councillors:

This council reaffirms its resistance to Identity Cards. Despite widespread political and public opposition, the Government appear intent on pursuing the implementation at a reported cost of £4.74billion for British and Irish Nationals and an additional £311million for Foreign Nationals over the next 10 years.

Abolishing this invasive scheme would save enough money to employ 10,000 more police on our streets.

The new IT systems implemented at the Post Office, Passport Office, Probation Service, Police Service, Courts Service and Child Support Agency have all run massively over budget, the ID card scheme would be the biggest and most expensive public sector project ever undertaken.

The implementation of the NHS computer system has cost billions and resulted in the reduction of frontline services as maternity and A&E departments are closed across the country.

The ID card will undermine the contract between the Police and the Public resulting in an increase in harassment and discrimination

There is no proof the ID card will help fight crime and terrorism – tests have proved that criminals have the capability of duplicating ID cards with little or no difficulty, rendering the ID card worthless.

There is no proof it will prevent illegal working, the fact that illegal immigrants will not be able to get ID cards will not change anything as long as there are unscrupulous employers and lax Home Office enforcement.

Given the UK's current financial situation, the financial loss to the individual and implications to civil liberty this council objects to the implementation of ID cards.

I agree with every word of this and wholeheartedly voted for this motion, as did all of the Conservative Group.

As the 'named' vote was called, all of the Labour members suddenly seemed a lot more interested in their BlackBerries. Not one used the voting machines to vote Yes, No or Abstain - they even abstained from abstaining!

I can't see how the government can carry on with this scheme when they don't even have the support of their own elected members - they should scrap it now.

Dates for Your Diary

2010-01-05T19:50:00.002Z

Happy New Year!

Thought it would be a good time to update everyone on forthcoming Quinton-related events:

Quinton Ward Committee:

15/2/10, 7pm, Quinborne Centre, Ridgacre Road

Edgbaston Constituency Committee:

18/1/10, 7pm, Quinborne Centre, Ridgacre Road
18/3/10, 7pm, Council House, Victoria Square
27/5/10, 7pm, Council House, Victoria Square (provisional)

Full City Council Meetings:

Council House, Victoria Square, 2pm: 12/1/10, 2/2/10, 23/2/10, 13/04/10

Police PACT (Partners and Communities Together) meetings:

Welsh House Farm School, 7pm: 11/1/10, 8/2/10, 8/3/10, 5/4/10
Quinborne Centre, Ridgacre Road, 7.30pm: 18/1/10, 8/3/10
Onnelly House, Court Oak Road, 7pm: 7/1/10, 11/3/10

Also look out for the latest leaflets from the Constituency's Conservative Parliamentary Spokesman Deirdre Alden and Quinton's Councillors (including me!).

Finally, rest assured that the City's gritting teams are working flat out to keep Birmingham moving...

New Government Scrappage Scheme Launched

2009-11-25T08:54:00.003Z

In a bold attempt to revive the government's flagging popularity, Downing Street announced a new scrappage scheme today. People will be able to trade in their old government for a new one and get a reduction in government spending.

Prime-Minister-By-Default Gordon Brown welcomed the news. 'If the focus groups are anything to go by, I'm sure that this will be the post popular policy we've ever announced. Millions of people up and down the country will benefit from scrapping their government, and it will also give a much-needed boost to our beleagured manufacturing base.'

Chancellor-In-Name-Only Alistair Darling added, 'Gordon sent me a text about this, and I'm fully behind that text. I'm already looking forward to my date with the crusher.'

Happy Birthday Quinton!

2009-11-08T15:20:00.002Z

On 9th November 1909, Quinton became part of Birmingham. That's 100 years ago tomorrow, and we're having lots of events to mark the occasion...

Saturday 14th November, 7.30-10.30pm (doors open 7pm): Concert at Christ Church Parish Hall by four-piece band Giggetty with a repertoire ranging from Abba to folk. Tickets £9 (includes fish 'n' chip supper) available from Quinton Local History Society, 15 Worlds End Avenue, Quinton, Birmingham B32 1JF, or phone 0121 422 1792.

Sunday 15th November, 12.30pm: THE MAIN EVENT. Procession led by Birmingham Pipe Band, Starting from Christ Church Rectory on Hagley Road West. The procession will go along Hagley Road West, High Street, Ridgacre Road West and The Green, crossing Meadow Road into Quinton Park where the Lord Mayor will arrive at about 1.30pm to officially mark the centenary and officiate at the planting of two commemorative trees.

Saturday 21st November, 10am-4pm: Quinton history exhibition by Dr Michael Hall at Quinton Methodist Church Hall, Hagley Road West. Admission free, small charge for refreshments.

Saturday 21st November, 7.30-11pm (doors open 7pm): Concert at Bennett Hall, Quinborne Centre, Ridgacre Road by seven-piece band Penny Short with a guest appearance from Quinton Community Choir. Tickets £5 from The Office, Quinborne Centre or phone 0121 682 7474 and ask for Linda.

Tuesday 24th November, 7.45 (doors open 7.15): Meet the authors of 'The Quinton – A History in Words and Images' (Kate Creed, Michael Hall, Andrew Maxam, Anthony Rosser and Bernard Taylor). This evening of nostalgia is only £1.50, payable at the door on the night.

Saturday 28th November, 10am-4pm: Quinton history exhibition by Quinton Local History Society at Christ Church Parish Hall, Hagley Road West. Admission free, small charge for refreshments.

For general information on any of the events, please phone 0121 422 1792.

Police Halloween Events

2009-11-01T13:30:00.003Z

I spent yesterday evening helping the local Police with another successful pair of Halloween events in Quinton. Older homeowners can feel quite intimidated at Halloween as they are often inundated with trick-or-treat callers through the night. The Police try to solve the problem by running a family event at the Day Centre on West Boulevard, to give potential 'trick-or-treaters' something else to do, and a dinner for older people at Onneley House on Court Oak Road, so they are not at home anyway.

I went to both events which were very well attended and a huge success. I was further impressed when I found out that all the Police helping out were doing so in their free time and won't be claiming overtime.

Well done everyone, and looking forward to another success next year!

Action on Graffiti

2009-11-01T13:21:00.005Z

My fellow Quinton Councillor Jane James and I spent much of Saturday removing graffiti from various places in the ward. Graffiti is highly antisocial and has a tendency to bring down an area if not kep in check. I've also passed several photos onto the local Police so they can add to their database of tags in use in the area.

Supporting the Half Marathon

2009-10-11T11:31:00.003+01:00

Today saw Birmingham host the World Half Marathon and the Birmingham Half Marathon, aka the 'Race against climate change'. The former is for elite runners and the latter for anyone - both follow the same route, which passes through the Constituency.

It was great to be able to support the event and cheer on the runners - I even saw a couple of friends run past - an added bonus! It's superb that, once again, Birmingham has been able to stage a world-class event.

Line Dancing at Quinborne

2009-10-11T11:26:00.002+01:00

Fancy learning how to line dance? The Quinborne Centre will be holding lessons from Tuesday 3rd November. Only £3.50 per session - bargain! (Click the picture for a bigger version.)

Quinton Neighbourhood Office Open Event, Wednesday 14th October, 2pm-3.30pm

2009-10-11T11:20:00.003+01:00

Quinton Neighbourhood Office is holding an open event to provide information on all sorts of important topics - see above! (Click the picture for a bigger version.)

Halloween Community Family Event, Saturday 31st October, Adult Day Centre, West Boulevard, 6pm-9.30pm

2009-10-11T11:13:00.005+01:00

The local Police have asked me to promote this event - I went last year and it was great fun. Do come along! (Click the picture for a bigger version.)

At Conservative Party Conference

2009-10-08T15:04:00.008+01:00

Phew! I've just returned from Conservative Party Conference and what a conference it was. There was such a positive atmosphere everywhere: in the conference hall, at the fringe meetings and at all the informal gatherings in and around the conference venue in Manchester. There's a real sense that we have the the right Leader, the right team, the right policies, and the support of the British people to form the next government, whenever Porky Pie Man has the nerve to call a election.

Highlights for me were a panel discussion on the first 100 days of a Conservative government and a meeting of Salford Conservatives, where we swapped ideas on campaign methods and strategies.

I couldn't stay for David Cameron's closing speech but I've just watched it on the telly. The big themes were the economy and the Conservatives' natural mistrust of big government.

Next year, Gordon Brown will need to spend more servicing the public debt than on schools. Rather than being in denial about this huge mess, we've announced policies to do what's necessary to start getting that debt down.

David Cameron also pointed out that a single mother with two children earning £150 a week has an effective tax rate of 96% for every additional pound she earns, due to loss of benefits and additional taxation. Don't be under any illusions - despite the minimum wage (which we're committed to keeping), Labour fails the poorest in our society. We will ensure that you keep more of the money you earn.

David's speech had a similar theme to the late Ronald Reagan's famous quote, 'Government is not a solution to our problem, government is the problem.' This is a longstanding Conservative philosophy - big government undermines responsibility and delivers less than just trusting people to get on with it. We will work to give power and responsibility back to where it belongs - you. I look forward to working with our excellent Parliamentary candidate, Deirdre Alden, to deliver the change that people want and expect.

A Tale of Two Saturdays

2009-09-19T17:32:00.005+01:00

Last Saturday, I visited Centenary Square to support Artsfest, Birmingham's annual festival of arts. There were many interesting sights and sounds and I had a very enjoyable time. Staging such a large event is a massive undertaking and I would like to thank everyone who played a part.

In Quinton today, we had a event promoting healthy living at the Keystone Centre in Purbeck Croft, Wesh House Farm. The event featured activities and events including children's car safety, healthy eating and tacking alcohol abuse. It was well attended by local residents and was a very worthwhile day.

And while we're on the subject, don't forget that all adult residents of Birmingham can now use all of the city's swimming pools free until March 2011. All you have to do is sign up for a Leisure Card, which you can do on the spot at any pool or leisure centre. Children and senior citizens are already entitled to free swimming. So what are you waiting for?!?

Strike a Pose!

2009-09-05T18:04:00.003+01:00

I've just been to Dimmingsdale Bank (between Simmons Drive and Highfield Lane) with fellow Quinton Councillor Jane James and our Parliamentary Spokesman Deirdre Alden. Many residents had reported litter building up under a hedge on the road, so we donned the rubber gloves and got stuck in.

We pulled out several bags' worth, and then carried on around the corner, finishing off by The Village Inn and the shops next door. We'll go on fighting the good fight to keep Quinton clean and green!

Out and About in Quinton with Deirdre and Jane

2009-08-22T15:55:00.015+01:00

I spent the morning with fellow Quinton Councillor Jane James and our Parliamentary Spokesman Deirdre Alden weeding, collecting litter and cleaning graffiti. Here's what we've been up to...

White Road: Trimmed back a hedge and cleared up the litter inside it, which unfortunately included a lot of undelivered Air Ambulance charity bags.

Lower White Road: Cut back the worst of the overgrowth in this alleyway and cleared away litter.

Simmons Drive and Moat Meadows: Got stuck in and cleared away lots of litter.

Moat Meadows: Removed graffiti from a cable TV box.

Corner of White Road and Ridgacre Road: Same again. Except this one already had the green anti-graffiti paint treatment, so we needed less elbow grease!

Post box at the same location.

Right, I'm off for a cuppa!

Street Lights in Simmons Drive Area

2009-08-16T11:25:00.004+01:00

We were recently informed that some street lights, including the two above, were out of order on the pathway that runs behind Simmons Drive. Street lighting is important to reduce crime and antisocial behaviour and I am pleased to report that these lights are now working again. Sorry for any inconvenience!

Pitching in at Pitt's Wood!

2009-08-15T18:56:00.003+01:00

Believe it or not, Pitt's Wood is an ancient piece of woodland in the middle of Quinton, off Overdale Road. I joined local volunteers, fellow Quinton Councillors Jane James and Len Clark and our Parliamentary spokesman Deirdre Alden for a session of weeding, chopping and general tidying.

It was fun and everyone was very pleased with the results.

Police PACT (Partners and Communities Together) Meetings

2009-08-15T18:30:00.005+01:00

Please find below a list, in chronological order, of all of the forthcoming Police PACT (Partners and Communities Together) meetings that are relevant to Quinton ward. There are quite a few of them, but I'll do my best to attend as many as possible.

Eagle-eyed readers will notice that two different meetings are on the same date - I'll try to get hold of a TARDIS!

Also please remember that you don't have to wait for a PACT meeting to let me know about a problem. You can come to a Ward Committee meeting, a surgery, call me (07502 102 617) or email me (peter@petersmallbone.com)

Quinton East
10/08/2009
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton East
07/09/2009
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton West
21/09/2009
19:30
Quinborne Centre, Overdale Road, Quinton

Harborne West
24/09/2009
19:00
Onnelly House, Court Oak Road, Harborne

Quinton East
05/10/2009
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton East
02/11/2009
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton West
09/11/2009
19:30
Quinborne Centre, Overdale Road, Quinton

Quinton East
30/11/2009
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton East
21/12/2009
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton East
11/01/2010
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton West
11/01/2010
19:30
Quinborne Centre, Overdale Road, Quinton

Quinton East
08/02/2010
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton East
08/03/2010
19:00
Welsh House Farm School, Welsh House Farm Road, Quinton

Quinton Ward Committee

2009-08-15T18:17:00.003+01:00

The next Quinton Ward Committee meeting will be held on Thursday 3rd September at 7pm, at the Forum building, Four Dwellings High School, Highfield Lane, Quinton.

It's an open meeting and as usual we'll be discussing some very important issues, not least how the Building Schools for the Future programme may affect the facilities at Four Dwellings School itself.

Team Tory

2009-07-12T09:52:00.002+01:00

Following on from my last post about Bobby Alden, here's the full list of Conservative candidates who were selected yesterday:

Erdington: Robert Alden
Hall Green: Jo Barker
Hodge Hill: Shailesh Parekh
Ladywood: Colin Hughes
Perry Barr: William Norton
Yardley: Meirion Jenkins

This completes the team for Birmingham, which already includes Andrew Mitchell MP for Sutton Coldfield, Nigel Dawkins for Selly Oak, Keely Huxtable for Northfield and our own Deirdre Alden for Edgbaston.

Congratulations to you all!

Well done Bobby!

2009-07-11T14:20:00.004+01:00

I've just found out that Erdington Conservatives have selected hard-working local Councillor Robert Alden as their Parliamentary Candidate. Quite right too, and congratulations from Quinton Conservatives!

Twitter!

2009-07-11T12:27:00.002+01:00

I've been on Twitter for a while now - please feel free to follow my Tweets at http://twitter.com/PeterSmallbone.

You Wait Ages for a Fun Day...

2009-07-05T10:57:00.009+01:00

...and then three come at once!

This weekend's my first back since our honeymoon - yesterday I visited three Quinton events along with other local Councillors, including Jane James and Deirdre Alden, our Parliamentary Spokesman.

First up was the Four Dwellings School Fun Day. There was a good assortment of stalls, a fire engine, a bouncy castle, a land train - plenty for everyone.

Next was the Ss Faith and Lawrence Fun Day. This included a demonstration by a kick-boxing champion - we kept our distance at that point!

Finally there was the Brownies Fun Day at Woodgate Valley Country Park. I had a go at the skipping challenge - I wasn't as good as some of the Brownies, but in my defence I hadn't skipped for at least twenty years! Northfield's Conservative Parliamentary Candidate Keeley Huxtable was also there and was central to the organisation of the day - well done Keeley.

Then off to North Quinton to do some leafleting about the next bulky refuse collection for the residents there - once again, each and every resident in Quinton will have their own over the course of the municipal year.

Well, Where Do I Start?!?

2009-06-05T18:57:00.007+01:00

OK, let's start with the Conservative successes. There weren't any local elections in Birmingham yesterday, except for a by-election in Lozells and East Handsworth. Not exactly fertile Tory territory you might think.

Well actually, we polled 1,622 votes and went from 4% of the vote last year to 23% this year. This is a huge swing and proof in itself that people everywhere are turning to the Conservatives.

Now lets look at the national picture - the graphic below shows the current state of play (thanks BBC):

Bearing in mind that we've had several successful years on the trot already, this is a brilliant result for us. Closest to home, we're now in control of Staffordshire and Derbyshire, which Labour had controlled since (wait for it!) 1981. We've also taken Devon and Somerset from the Lib Dems - we're winning everywhere.

If you look at a projected share of the national vote, we're comfortably ahead with Labour now in third place.

In other news, I've been trying to keep track of what's been happening at No 10 today, but in all honesty there's just too much madness going on to know where to start.

Apparently Sir Alan Sugar's going to become a lord and made some kind of enterprise or business tsar. This is the guy who, in last year's series of The Apprentice, awarded the job to someone who admitted lying on his CV. Hardly inspiring stuff.

And then we have Caroline Flint's final salvo as she returns to a life on the backbenches, 'Several of the women attending Cabinet - myself included - have been treated by you as little more than female window dressing.' She also points out that although she was Europe minister until today (a position that's been taken over by Glenys Kinnock?!?), she wasn't even invited to the Cabinet meeting preceeding yesterday's European elections!

Gordon Brown has transformed No 10, that venerable and internationally respected British symbol of good governance, and home to generation after generation of statesmen, into his own version of the Big Brother House. But he can't hold on forever. We will all have our say before much longer.

I look forward to the day when David Cameron and his team start restoring dignity and common sense as the next Conservative government.

European Parliament Elections TOMORROW, Thursday 4th June

2009-06-03T18:54:00.003+01:00

Don't forget to vote for the West Midlands Conservatives team tomorow!

Polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm and you don't need your polling card to vote.

If you'd like to know more about the candidates, please have a look at the following:

http://is.gd/NlMP

Harborne Pool Taking Shape

2009-05-22T18:51:00.002+01:00

On Wednesday, nearly all of the Councillors across the Constituency met to discuss important local issues.

Top of the list was Harborne Pool, which the Conservative-led Council is committed to rebuilding on its current site. The pool is very popular with Quinton ward residents, especially those who live in the 'B17' part of the ward.

I inspected the plans along with fellow Quinton Councillors Jane James and Len Clark (pictured). There are some very interesting features, including fitness rooms and a grassed roof.

I asked some questions about the suitability of the building in an urban context. A lot of wood is being used externally to improve the visual impact of the building, and I was interested to know how easily any graffiti could be removed from wood. I was informed that the wood facings would not be used on the ground floor. I also asked what features are being designed in to prevent the flat areas, kerbs and so on being poached by skateboarders, and I was assured that this will be addressed at the detailed design stage.

A lot of thought has gone into the plans, and I look forward to the day when residents of Quinton, Harborne and elsewhere can enjoy our new pool.

European Election Canvassing

2009-05-16T17:15:00.004+01:00

I started the day at the launch of the West Midlands Conservatives European election campaign, which the Party held in Edgbaston constituency (which includes Quinton). We heard from many excellent speakers, including all of our European candidates, Cllr Deirdre Alden, Parliamentary Spokesman for the constituency, Cllr Mike Whitby, Leader of Birmingham City Council, leading local businesspeople and others.

Then the real work started - I took a joint team from Birmingham University Conservative Future and City Branch over to Quinton, where we did several hours canvassing. The responses on the doorstep were very positive; we're set for a great result on 4th June, and we're ready for the General Election, whenever it comes.

Supporting Our Forces

2009-05-14T21:48:00.005+01:00

Today, I spent a very worthwhile evening attending a presentation by the Royal Air Force at the Jaguar plant. I met many serving members of the RAF and members of the Air Cadets.

I was interested to see the varied career options available to those who wish to join, and the RAF's array of aircraft and other vehicles and equipment is second to none.

I'm always pleased to be able to support any of our armed services. They have a tough and demanding job to do and deserve our support.

Pictured with me are the The Right Worshipful, The Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Birmingham and the The Worshipful The Mayor and Mayoress of Solihull.

Stop Press!!!

2009-04-21T19:55:00.003+01:00

The new pedestrian crossing for Woodhouse Primary School is NOW WORKING!!!

And the Number 10 bus is SAVED - thank you Central Connect! And thanks Cllr Deirdre Alden and others for organising the petition!

Pitt's Wood Open Day

2009-03-28T17:38:00.002Z

Today, Cllr Deirdre Alden and I went along to the Pitt's Wood open day. Pitt's Wood is a piece of woodland behind Overdale Road and there are some committed volunteers who make it a great resource for local children and adults alike.

One of the volunteers was showing the kids how to make bird and bat boxes. I helped with some weeding and litter picking.

All very worthwhile, and I got to take home a bat box too! It turns out that you're supposed to face them South - the opposite direction to bird boxes. Now I all I need to do is work out where in my garden to put it...

Welsh House Farm Off-Licence Application

2009-03-08T09:47:00.002Z

Quinton's Parliamentary Spokesman Cllr Deirdre Alden, Quinton Councillor Len Clark and I met with Welsh House Farm residents yesterday to discuss an alcohol licence application from Wisley Way News. The shop has applied to sell alcohol from 8am to 10pm, seven days a week.

The residents we spoke to were very concerned that this would lead to a rise in antisocial behaviour, just when we're starting to see improvements in Welsh House Farm. We've recently improved much of the Council housing in the area. We've coated local cable TV boxes with anti-graffiti paint. And of course, Conservative activists from all over the country renovated a local community centre in the 'We Love WHF' project.

There's a petition going round to object to the proposals and I've asked the Police to consider their views on the application too.

Bob's Got on his Bike!

2009-02-28T14:12:00.003Z

Quinton ward resident Bob Holland is cycling all the way to France to raise money for the Little Sisters of the Poor, who run a residential care home for older people in Harborne. Bob was inspired to raise money for the home after his uncle became a resident there about eighteen months ago.

Bob says, 'I have seen at first hand how, with extraordinary dedication, the nuns, their staff and team of volunteers have created a wonderful home. The quality of the surroundings and service is exceptional and I felt compelled to do as much as I could to raise funds for them.'

Bob will be taking part in the London to Paris Cycle Challenge, which takes place over three days this June. It will also be a very personal challenge for Bob, as he took up cycling only three years ago to regain fitness after surgery for cancer.

I'm very pleased to support Bob in his bid to raise thousands for St Joseph's. If you wish to sponsor him yourself, you can find out more at http://www.bobthebikeman.co.uk/.

Below Inflation 1.9% Council Tax Increase - FOURTH Year in a Row!!!

2009-02-26T16:47:00.003Z

On Tuesday, the Conservative-led Council passed the annual budget, setting your Council Tax increase to only 1.9% - below inflation for the fourth year in a row. This means that it's the fourth effective cut to your Council Tax in a row.

The Labour group looked thoroughly demoralised at the meeting and for the first time in years didn't even present an alternative budget. So the voters of Birmingham have no idea where they stand. What would they spend your money on? How would they pay for essential services? Would they cut or raise your Council Tax?

Why they've given up this opportunity to participate in the normal democratic process is anyone's guess, but the most likely explanation is that they're so riven with splits and divisions that they simply couldn't agree amongst themselves.

In the meantime, we'll get on with the job of running Birmingham effectively and efficiently.

Cable TV Box in Purbeck Croft / Moreton Close / Wisley Way Area

2009-02-26T16:40:00.004Z

If you live in the Purbeck Croft / Moreton Close / Wisley Way Area, you might have noticed some unsightly graffiti on a cable TV box. I noticed it too and arranged for the box to get the 'green paint treatment' I've mentioned before.

The photos above show 'before' and 'after'.

City Branch Interview

2009-02-14T11:17:00.002Z

Conservative City Branch, which is the branch of the Party for Birmingham's city centre professionals, has recently interviewed me. Check it out at the following address:

http://www.citybranch.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=1&Itemid=58

Cable Boxes Going Green!

2009-01-12T12:37:00.004Z

As promised, the programme to paint cable boxes in a special green anti-graffiti paint is in full swing. We're confident that this will reduce the amount of graffiti in Quinton and continue the upward trend of keeping Quinton clean and green.

Also have a look at Cllr Deirdre Alden's blog for news about new measures to reduce speeding in Quinton Ward:

http://deirdrealden.blogspot.com/2009/01/road-safety-measures-in-quinton.html

Police Halloween Events a Fantastic Success

2008-11-04T23:30:00.002Z

Last Friday, I helped out at the Police’s Halloween night event on West Boulevard. The event was attended by hundreds of local people. I was glad to be able to help in what was a triumph for the local Police and community. The event featured a disco and traditional party games including apple bobbing. The Police also ran an event in Onneley House for older people, which was also a great success – well done!

The Clangers

2008-11-04T23:10:00.002Z

I came home from Full Council a couple of hours ago and tonight was a spirited affair. Doubtless the main debates will be covered by others so I just want to point out a couple of clangers dropped by none other that the leader and deputy leader of the Council's Labour group.

Sir Albert Bore told us about someone who's apparently been paying rent on a three-bedroom Council property where only two of the bedrooms are accessible. If true, this needs to be sorted out, but he also mentioned that this has been going on for the last fifteen years. That means eleven years under the old Labour administration!

Ian Ward then admitted that his constituency of Hodge Hill had intentionally overspent their budget to avoid 'their' money being taken off them the following year! Deliberately overspending taxpayers' money to get even more taxpayers' money - appalling, but sadly a typical Labour attitude.

Anyway, I'm off to watch an election. Let's hope there might be another one closer to home before long.

At the Haven Centre in Welsh House Farm

2008-09-11T13:27:00.000+01:00

The We Love Welsh House Farm project is in full swing! One of the main activities is renovating The Haven Centre on Rilstone Road, which is a great centre for community activities. Conservative volunteers from all over Birmingham and further afield have been pitching in and the place is taking shape. We're always on the lookout for more volunteers - it's a very rewarding way to spend an evening! Let me know if you can help.

New Video about Local Post Office Closures

2008-08-01T15:50:00.006+01:00

No commentary necessary for this one - it speaks for itself. Thanks to Simon Russell for making it.

'Build it, and they will come'

2008-07-23T17:36:00.007+01:00

Before I kick off, I'd better say that these are my views and I try to represent the positions of everyone there as I saw them.

Today was my second Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee and I think everyone there would agree that passions were running high. The main business was scrutinising the proposals for the new GP-led health centres that are being planned by Birmingham's Primary Care Trusts.

I don't think that there was much disagreement on the Committee that some people do have problems in accessing GP services. I myself have had the experience of phoning at precisely 8am to try to get an appointment, only to find that the phone rang so long that BT disconnected the call. All subsequent calls were met with the engaged tone and when I paid a personal visit a few minutes later, I was told that all appointments had already gone. But that's not the point.
Why does this happen? Is it government targets creating a narrow time window that GPs are then judged against? Is it GPs not responding to patient need? Are there too few GPs?

Well, whatever the cause, the government and Birmingham's Primary Care Trusts think they have the answer. It's 'GP-led health centres'. These are something of a departure from traditional GP surgeries. They're commissioned and funded directly by the Primary Care Trusts. Any company can bid to run one. They will probably have some kind of walk-in facility and maybe a pharmacy.

So far, so good you might say. Here are some of the reservations I have.

First of all, the Primary Care Trusts have basically been told to implement them by April 2009. It was quite clear to me that exactly what services these centres should be providing hasn't been worked out first. The whole idea seems to be, 'build it, and they will come'. There's also the issue of whether April 2009 is a realistic timescale.

On a similar note, we were told that there was nothing to stop existing GPs from forming companies and bidding for the work. We were also told that there was nothing to stop GPs from expanding their existing surgeries to provide the services that are being put to tender. However, the Primary Care Trusts already seem to have decided that these will be new centres, new buildings, new facilities. They're already scouting for locations. Perhaps it was always the intention to build new buildings, because that's the easiest way of showing the public that there's been an improvement in an area. The GPs that presented to us clearly thought that there was no prospect of successfully bidding for the work to be provided from existing, expanded surgeries.

Another issue is patient records. There's an intention from the Primary Care Trusts for patient records to be available in the new centres, but no apparent detail of how they will make this happen. Clearly the government's grand Connecting for Health programme won't be finished by April 2009 so personally I think there's little or no prospect of this.

Finally, there's a serious question over whether this will really increase the amount of GP services in any area over the longer term. It doesn't necessarily take a large number of people leaving an existing surgery (maybe for good reason, maybe not) for that surgery to become unviable and to close altogether. This would force the rest of the patients, who may well have been happy with the service, to seek an alternative. In the end, all we may be left with is the closure of most of the 'traditional' GP surgeries in the area, leaving people with no choice but to go somewhere where they see a different doctor every time and which may end up being as busy as the surgeries they were supposed to augment.

It's particularly interesting that one of the new centres is likely to be built in Selly Oak, with a large, transient student population. At present, the surgeries there are dependent on the influx of new students replacing the efflux. If a brand spanking new attractive centre is built, the existing surgeries may see a decline in their numbers of patients through no fault of their own.

One of the Councillors said that she'd received an assurance from the Primary Care Trusts that no existing GP surgeries will close as a result of all of this. I don't think that the Primary Care Trusts are in a position to give that assurance. A surgery might close for all sorts of reasons - is the Primary Care Trust going to stand up on every occasion and say, 'That's down to the new Health Centre, so we'll accept responsibility and help them?'

The only 'assurance' that I could get was that the PCTs will 'work with' existing GP surgeries. I must say that I was surprised that such an explicit assurance was necessary - I would have thought that it would have gone without saying!

In the end, this is all supposed to be about choice. My concern is that, in the rush for more choice, we will ultimately end up with less.

Welsh House Farm Family Fun Day

2008-07-22T18:10:00.003+01:00

Just found time to put up a couple of photos of the Welsh House Farm Family Fun Day a week last Sunday. Great day!

Councillors Support our Troops and Help Cut Food Waste

2008-07-11T15:13:00.006+01:00

Along with Cllr Matt Bennet from Stockland Green (centre) and Cllr Gareth Compton from Erdington (right), I've asked the Lord Mayor to help us support British troops in the field by donating money that would be spent on meals for us to a local regiment.

At the end of each Full Council meeting, all Councillors are provided with a meal, whether or not we choose to eat it. We've asked that a sum equivalent to the cost of the meal (approximately £14 per head, ten times per year) is donated to the 26th Regiment Royal Artillery, a regiment with close ties to the City and which the Council voted this month to grant permission to march through the City.

We hope that by making this gesture we can, in some small way, show our gratitude to the men and women who serve tirelessly to keep us all safe.

In addition, food waste is a hot topic at the moment. Rather than dishing out lectures, we thought it only right to set a practical example.

What I've Been Up To

2008-07-01T13:08:00.003+01:00

Here's a short video of some of the things I've been up to over the past twelve months. Crank up the volume!

Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee

2008-06-18T17:13:00.007+01:00

Health Overview and what?

Today was my first meeting of the Council's Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee. Even though healthcare is provided mainly by the NHS, the Council has a duty to scrutinise what's going on in Birmingham. After the usual formalities, we got stuck in.

Health Inequalities - The Term

Cllr Deirdre Alden's the Chairman and she opened with a comment that 'health inequalities' is a government term that we're kind of stuck with. It's not all that helpful because one (unacceptable) way of removing health inequalities would be by making everyone as unhealthy as the unhealthiest people!

What are Health Inequalities?

We had a presentation on the subject. I examined the BMJ's definition of 'health inequalities' on two counts. Firstly, it uses the term '...inequalities are claimed to exist...'. The implication is that perceived health inequalities may not be inequalities at all.

Secondly, it's measured by 'when different groups... consume different amounts of health care.' This is different to a group's need for healthcare and there could easily be a disparity between the two - it's just easier to measure consumption than need. The presenter agreed with my comments.

'I live in Ladywood, therefore I won't live as long'

There were loads of diagrams that supported the presenter's general assertion that how long you live for depends on where you live in Birmingham. This is in part related to access to services etc.

I for one don't particularly like this approach - it risks creating a victim culture. I suggested that this difference really exists because location is a very good indicator of socioeconomic status, and it's this that's the real cause of the difference. For example, people on lower incomes are more likely to smoke or have a poorer diet. I didn't face any real challenge to this assertion.

Stop Smoking Services and Under-16s

I was interested to know why the graph measuring this only includes people aged 16 or over. Once we'd established that under-16s can access these services, we were told that the number doing so was 'small'. Personally I don't care how small this number is, these are the people we should be concentrating on most! I asked for future figures to include under-16s.

Speak English?

I asked whether there was any evidence that your ability to speak English affected your access to healthcare. This is a particularly important issue in Britain right now, and in Birmingham in particular. The presented told me that there wasn't much evidence above 'anecdotal' evidence. This surprised me somewhat.

New Acute Hospital

An organisation called 'Towards 2010', which is part of a Primary Care Trust, talked about many things, including a planned new acute hospital. This will be built in Sandwell but also serve the people of Birmingham.

One of the things I feel can get overlooked in hospital planning is the visual impact of such a massive building landing on people's doorsteps. As Douglas Adams once said, 'It can hardly be a coincidence that no language on Earth has ever produced the phrase, "as pretty as an airport"'. I would argue that the same applies to hospitals.

I'd be worried if in the rush to produce the best possible hospital for the lowest possible cost, this aspect were completely overlooked. I do feel that it at least should be on the list of requirements for the architectural and planning briefs. Doubtless there are requirements for the numbers of car parking spaces and other functional issues. I didn't get a positive answer that architectural merit had really been considered so far.

The architectural merit of a hospital should never be a priority for the NHS. However, there's certainly evidence that how buildings look affect our health. I appear to be in good company; my second quote comes from Sir Winston Churchill, 'We shape our buildings and afterwards, our buildings shape us.'

New Boots Walk In Centre for the City Centre - or not..?

I was surprised to find a line in the presentation that read, 'Boots Health Care Floor including Walk In Centre - July 2008'. The strong suggestion in the presentation is that the Walk In Centre is a new thing. However, I have a distinct memory of walking into an NHS Walk In Centre in Boots a few years ago. It turns out that it's not a new thing, but the 'Health Care Floor' is. Hmm...

NICE Guy

We had a final presentation from a chap from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence. This has the controversial job of deciding whether drugs are cost-effective enough to be prescribed on the NHS; in other words, whether the improvement to someone's life is worth the cost of a certain drug.

Lucentis

Cllr Jane James did a great job of getting down to brass tacks on the subject of Lucentis, which is very expensive but can prevent blindness in some people. It's approved for use in Scotland but not in England (NICE doesn't cover Scotland). Our presenter effectively said that it hadn't been approved on the grounds of cost, but there's some attempt at the moment to get the drug company to share the financial risk of approving the drug. There's certainly a risk that people will go blind by the time Lucentis is approved (if it ever is), which is bound to cost the state and society more in the long run. Or I guess you could move to Scotland...

UPDATE 19/06: Apparently the issues around Lucentis are more complex than the information that came out in yesterday's meeting, but I believe the essential fact remains that it's not available to prevent blindness in England (as appropriate), for whatever reason.

NICE's Economic Model

I asked the presenter about the economic model that NICE uses to frame its decisions. I'd heard that NICE doesn't publish an 'executable' version of its model (i.e. one in which you can change the figures), but it does publish a 'paper-based' version. Our presenter confirmed this, one of the reasons being that they don't want drugs companies and others to fiddle with the model until they get the 'right' result, and then submit their evidence accordingly.

I must say that I don't understand this approach. NICE should come clean, publish the model and stand by its decisions. I was further confused when our presenter admitted that it would be possible for someone to recreate the 'executable' model from the public information, so I really don't know what purpose this policy serves, other than potentially increasing levels of suspicion around how NICE arrives at its decisions.

Who's NICE's Customer?

Aside from the drugs approval role, NICE has a very important role in offering clinical and other guidance to NHS organisations - Primary Care Trusts and so on. I wanted to look at how it does this, so time for an analogy.

The Police IT Organisation was wound up last year because it never delivered what it was supposed to. One of the reasons given in the Home Office report is that there wasn't a customer. The Home Office paid for PITO, but individual police forces were supposed to be the beneficiaries. However, police forces weren't obliged to listen to PITO and in any case they had no incentive to because they weren't paying. It strikes me that an almost identical situation exists in terms of NICE's guidance.

NHS trusts don't pay for NICE's guidance and they don't have to take it. Does this weaken NICE's position? Our presenter thought not, but when I asked him whether he would prefer NICE's guidelines to be binding, his 'gut feel' was that they should be.

We'll see whether NICE fares any better than PITO.

60,480

2008-06-12T12:43:00.006+01:00

Just sit and do nothing for one minute. Sixty seconds, that's all.

Did you manage it? Maybe you couldn't be bothered and gave up. I wouldn't blame you.

Last night, the Labour government voted to allow suspects of certain terrorist offences to be locked up, without charge, for 60,480 times longer than that. 42 days. Six weeks.

Never mind the ancient rights that we've had in this country for so long. Never mind that such a period of detention could cost you your job or your relationship. Never mind the message that this sends out to certain, already beleagured, sections of our community.

And never mind the argument that it's in any way necessary. How many times have the police had to release terrorist suspects because they ran out of time? None. How many terrorist atrocities would this have prevented? None. Does this give terrorists something new to talk about when promoting their abhorrent cause and looking for new recruits? Yes.

The Bill now goes to the House of Lords, where hopefully the Labour members will have a bit more nerve. Let's hope that Their Lordships do the right thing.

P.S. Quinton's Labour MP voted in favour of this yesterday.

I'm Back!

2008-06-11T12:35:00.005+01:00

I'm back from my holiday and I've got right back into Quinton and Council issues.

On Monday night, Cllr Jane James and I attended a Police consultative meeting in Welsh House Farm. Amongst other things, we discussed the recent scourge of mini-scooters. The Police said that if they're used on the highway then the rider is potentially breaking all sorts of laws. I also added that if they're used off the highway then they may well be a 'statutory nuisance' anyway. The Police have quite rightly seized three of these scooters recently and can potentially crush them.

Perhaps we could do public awareness campaign on the consequences of shelling out hundreds of pounds for one of these things, only to find it posted back to you when it's been through a Police crusher. My only frustration with the current policy is that the Police aren't allowed to pursue riders for fear of getting sued - I don't think this is helping the officers on the ground.

Yesterday, it was my first proper full Council. There were some particularly brave and constructive speeches on intimidatory postal voting practices some Councillors believe are occurring in certain households. If the debate was anything to go by, I believe that we may be able to achieve cross-party support on a way forward with this.

I really wanted to speak on the ID cards issue but unfortunately we ran out of debating time. For the record, I voted against them.

Then off to Quinton to have a look at the garages at the end of Higgins Lane. As you can see, they're in a much better state than a few weeks ago - look a few articles down for the 'before' photo!