Articles for the past week:
News this past week:
1. Jemima Bland Selected As Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate For East Worthing & Shoreham With Full Endorsement From Her Party
2. Calling Notice: Rt Hon Paul Burstow MP To Visit Worthing
3. Worthing Lib Dems Lose Two County Seats
WORTHING LIBERAL DEMOCRATS WEEKLY NEWSLETTER 28TH APRIL TO 4TH MAY 2013
Lib Dems will keep County services local where ever possible
Lib Dems will devolve more money to be spent locally and allow local residents to decide how it’s spent
Lib Dems will ensure vulnerable people are safeguarded and support 20 mph in Worthing’s residential roads
Leader: We woz wrong
We received a wake up call at Friday’s election count as the full consequences of the UKIP surge hit home. Instead of following our heads during the campaign we followed our hearts – to put it in Sun terms “we woz wrong.” Our heads told us there would be a strong swing to UKIP but our hearts told us the good work our councillors had put in over the past four years would not be ignored. We woz wrong.
Our heads told us there is always a swing to the right in times of austerity and high unemployment – especially when the young are particularly affected. Worthing has a history in this respect having the British Union of Fascists (BUF) first county councillor – Captain Charles Bentick-Budd who defected from the Conservatives in 1933. Captain Bentick-Budd had been elected onto Worthing Borough Council in 1930 and a year later onto the County Council. In 1934 he was summonsed for riotous assembly after a Fascist meeting in the Pier Pavilion together with Sir Oswald Mosely and William Joyce (later the infamous Lord Haw-Haw). Not that we equate UKIP with the BUF of course – only that Worthing has swung to the right in the past.
Our hearts told us residents would remember what our hard working councillors had achieved over four years. Worthing Lib Dem County Councillors saved the School Safety Schemes from the Tory axe, resolved the 25 year plus flooding problem in Clarendon Road, obtained funding for the Albion in the Community football training job club at Kitty’s Field and obtained funding for both the schools’ Whole of Worthing Shakespeare Festival and to enable Glendale Theatre Arts School to attend the Dance World Cup in Paris.
Liberal Democrats repeat the mantra “where we work we win” but this unfortunately gets blown away when national politics come to the fore as they did this time. In 1993 we were the beneficiaries of the protest vote but this time we suffered for being the junior party in government. Our vote collapsed as our supporters failed to turn out – as did the Tories’ but ours to a greater extent. The Labour vote increased in vital wards ensuring a Tory victory in our marginal seats – is that really what those Labour supporters wanted?
Now we have the acid test. Will UKIP put in the work for residents? Will the new Tory holders of the Broadwater and Worthing East seats put in the work for residents? The omens are not good.
In the case of UKIP – their candidates didn’t even put their picture on their leaflets. The Tarring one who came within 150 votes of winning wished to remain anonymous. The UKIP winner of the Adur Saltings (Shoreham Beach) seat was not at the count and appeared to be a complete unknown – even to his UKIP colleagues. Not much hope there then.
In the case of the new Tories in Broadwater and Worthing East – Broadwater is infamous for the absence of its Tory Borough members (hardly seen from one election to the next). Broadwater’s new County Councillor is not only double-hatted (being a Worthing Borough Councillor) but is Worthing Borough Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Regeneration. Not much hope there then either – although with the little regeneration happening he should have some time on his hands.
We suspect the Liberal Democrats who lost will work a lot harder over the next four years than the candidates who won but we are sorry we will not have the influence we had before to get things done.
But we will be back in 2017 – the campaign for the next County elections started yesterday.
If you have any issues give us a call, send us an e-mail or come along to one of our surgeries. In power or not we will be there for you.
Worthing Liberal Democrats
NEWS FROM THE PAST WEEK
JEMIMA BLAND SELECTED AS LIBERAL DEMOCRAT PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATE FOR EAST WORTHING & SHOREHAM WITH FULL ENDORSEMENT FROM HER PARTY
Monday 29th April – The selection meeting and vote took place on St George’s Day, 23rd April, at the Sompting Abbotts School. The meeting was packed full by Lib Dem activists from all over the constituency. Lib Dem members vote by post or in person on the night to select their candidate. Jemima has worked in multinational business based in Paris, the Netherlands and London. She has worked in several roles for Shell and has also worked at the Financial Times in Madrid, for BUPA in Tunisia and for the Home Office in London. She is an established community campaigner, founder of the Air Quality Waterloo campaigning group and the Young Professionals in Procurement Network for the Energy Industry. She is also an elected Trustee of the Waterloo Action Centre, a charity providing advice and support services. She is a graduate of Oxford University and SOAS in London. Jemima has spent much of her life on the South Coast of England and is very happy to be moving back to the area to work for the community there. She will lead innovative and energetic campaigns as East Worthing and Shoreham’s Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate. She is now involved in resolving several pressing issues currently facing the residents of Worthing, Lancing, Shoreham and Southwick. In her spare time, Jemima likes walking or cycling in the South Downs, visiting galleries and exhibitions and playing tennis. She also has a mild addiction to Scandinavian murder mysteries. She lives with her fiancé Solke Bruin, who works as a consultant, and is a devoted fan of his home football team in the Netherlands, Ajax. They will get married next summer and hope to start a family.
Jemima said: “I am thrilled to have been given such a strong endorsement by my party. I just can’t wait to get started. We do what Lib Dems do best – work directly for our communities and neighbours. It is a great privilege to have been selected by the local Lib Dem party in East Worthing and Shoreham to represent them. I’m looking forward to working hard for everyone in East Worthing and Shoreham, and I can’t wait to move here.” (Bob Smytherman – Press Release)
RT HON PAUL BURSTOW MP VISITS WORTHING
The Rt Hon Paul Burstow MP visited our Guild Centre today and spoke to staff and customers. Paul said
‘It was great to have a chance to visit the Guild Care Centre and see for myself some of its innovative work with older people. Helping to keep people active and connected clearly does make a big difference.’Paul was invited by Deputy Mayor Bob Smytherman who is Worthing’s next mayor and has chosen Guild Care as one of the charity’s (along with Mind and Alzheimers) during his Mayoral Year. Bob said ‘I am absolutely delighted to welcome Paul Burstow to Worthing with his experience of working in the coalition government with specific responsibilities for care services and I was thrilled that Guild Care was so accommodating at very short notice to provide Paul with an opportunity to meet staff and customers and enjoy a lovely lunch.’
Customers in the centre were pleased the visitors took time to discuss care matters and Paul met Marion Sharville, a local poet who presented him with a copy of her most recent poetry book (pictured above).
Deputy Mayor Bob Smytherman is pictured above with Jemima Bland, Guild Care CEO Suzanne Millard and Paul Burstow MP. They tried out the new outdoor gym equipment recently installed to encourage older people to enjoy exercise in the open air.
Paul Burstow MP biography: Paul Burstow was born at St Helier Hospital, Carshalton on 13th May 1962. He comes from a family of tailors and seamstresses; his father was a Saville Row tailor. Paul was educated at Glastonbury High School for Boys, Carshalton, and South Bank Polytechnic, London. Prior to his election he headed up the Liberal Democrat’s Local Government Unit (ALDC) and was on Sutton Council – 1986-2002. Since 1991, when he was appointed to chair the Council’s Disability Forum, Paul has taken an active interest in disability issues. He was responsible for establishing a multi-agency group on disability issues and for pushing through the Council a comprehensive disability policy for the Borough. Paul is married to Mary and has three children. He enjoys cooking, reading and working out at the gym. Election: Paul stood as a Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate for Sutton and Cheam in 1992 achieving the biggest swing to the Liberal Democrats in Greater London. He fought the seat again in 1997 defeating the incumbent Conservative MP and won again in 2001, 2005 and 2010. On election to Parliament, Paul became a junior frontbench spokesman on Local Government. In the autumn of 1997, Paddy Ashdown appointed him to lead the party’s local government team in the Commons. In 1999 Charles Kennedy offered him the older people brief, outside the Shadow Cabinet. After the 2001 General Election Paul joined the Shadow Cabinet with the cross-cutting brief of older people and social services. The brief involved shadowing Government policy and performance on a wide range of matters effecting the vulnerable. From October 2003 to May 2005 Paul headed the party’s Health Team as Shadow Secretary of State for Health, and between July 2005 and March 2006 he held the position of Shadow Minister for London. In March 2006 Paul was elected by his parliamentary colleagues to take on the role of Liberal Democrat Chief Whip. As well as his front bench responsibilities, Paul was a member of the House of Commons Health Select Committee from July 2005 to 2010, and was also on this committee between June 2003 and October 2004. In 2010, he was elected for the fourth time with 25 ,156 (47.5%) votes, and a majority of 1,608. After the formation of the Coalition Government, Paul was appointed Minister of State for Care Services which he served until September 2012. His areas of responsibility were care for the elderly, adult social care, mental health services, and learning disability programmes. He was also responsible for reforming social care law and funding, and for promoting parity of esteem for mental health, in particular pioneering the development of new talking therapy services for children and young people. Paul is currently Chair of the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Party. He has just finished chairing the Joint Committee on the Draft Care and Support Bill and is now chairing a year- long independent commission on mental health with the think-tank CentreForum.
WORTHING LIB DEMS LOSE TWO COUNTY SEATS
Friday 3rd May – Worthing Liberal Democrats lost two seats in yesterday’s West Sussex County Council Elections. Incumbent Alan Rice lost the Broadwater Division to Tory candidate Bryan Turner and was pushed into third place by the national UKIP surge. The Worthing East seat was lost by Christine Brown to Tory candidate Roger Oakley – both standing in County elections for the first time. Both Bob Smytherman (Tarring) and Robin Rogers (Northbrook) retained their seats for the Liberal Democrats. UKIP gained their first seat in Worthing taking Durrington & Salvington from the Tories. Overall in West Sussex the Tories remained in control with UKIP pushing the Liberal Democrats into third place.
Alan Rice said: “Naturally I’m disappointed but I am more disappointed for the residents of Broadwater who have lost out to a vote on national issues and not ones that affect them locally.”
DIARY
Wednesday 8th May – Lib Dem Northbrook/Durrington Ward Surgery – The Durrington Community Centre, New Road 7.30 to 8.30 pm
Thursday 9th May – ADC & WBC CenSus Joint Committee – Town Hall at 9.30 am
Thursday 9th May – ADC & WBC Joint Governance & Audit Committee – Town Hall at 6.30 pm
Saturday 11th May – Lib Dem Castle Ward Surgery – St Richards Church, Maybridge at 10.00 am to 10.30 am
Saturday 11th May – Lib Dem Castle Ward Surgery – The Strand Parade shops at 10.00 am to 11.00 am
FURTHER AHEAD
Saturday 11th May – Lib Dem Selden Ward Surgery – Jason’s Cafe, Ham Road at 10.00 am to 11.00 am
and every second Saturday of the month
Tuesday 14th May – WSCC County Council – County Hall, Chichester at 10.30 am
Tuesday 14th May – WBC Extra Ordinary Council Meeting – Council Chamber, Town Hall at 6.00 pm
Friday 17th May – WBC Full Council (Mayor Making) – Council Chamber, Town Hall at 12.00 noon
Saturday 1st June – Lib Dem Central Ward Surgery – Sidney Walter Centre, Sussex Road 10.30 am to 12.00 noon and every first Saturday of the month
Saturday 1st June – Lib Dem Broadwater Ward Surgery – Muldoons Coffee Shop, Cricketers Parade, Broadwater 3.00 to 4.00 pm a and every first Saturday of the month
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Published and promoted by Worthing Liberal Democrats, 18 Woodlea Road, Worthing, West Sussex BN13 1BN
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