Kent Lib Dem backs the coalition

The Lib Dems and Tories seem to be growing closer together. The recent Oldham by-election showed the willingness of the parties to work together as the vote defied the polling data and was tactically switched from Tory to LD. Last week in the Independent, more news of the tactical voting plans were revealed:

One Tory Cabinet minister told The Independent yesterday: "One scenario is an informal pact in which the two Coalition partners would help each other where they could. Voters aren't stupid. They can work out who is best placed to win in their constituency – as they did in Oldham. It wouldn't have to be a formal, top-down pact, which would be very difficult to impose on local associations in any case." 

In Kent, Lib Den Cllr Trudy Dean has given her backing to the coalition "I would give the Coalition Government a seven or eight out of 10 so far". As she leads the opposition on the County Council, this is a strange position to take and highlights just how much support they will lose at this year's local elections.

Coalition politics are the right way to go but it has a lot of learning to do. Not just at the point of the coalition, but by the voters and by the parties in other tiers of government that are not in coalition. It works well in many countries, but fundementally parties must make sure they know who they are aligning themselves with.It came as no surprise to me that the Lib Dems saw themselves more right wing than left, but it may have come as a surprise to Lib Dem voters in Kent after year's of rhetoric trying to position the LDs as the opposition to the Tories.

Cruel Britannia

More right wing imperialism killing people in India.

In the 19th Century it was the British bringing starvation to millions - despite what Niall Ferguson may claim. He has been appointed to rewrite history for the ConDems. Expect our children to have to learn how great the British Empire was, rather than the enslavement and death of fellow human beings that was the reality. Oh well, Orwell said that governments would rewrite history. Double speak anyone?

In the 21st century, it is the actions of the carbon emitters, i.e. the west again, that are killing people. India is suffering its worst heatwave on record. No wonder when global temperature averages are through the roof and last month was the highest April ever.

Meanwhile, Kent County Council continues to back road building and airport expansion. It's alright though, they are gonna give away £10k to some 'green' projects to make up for it. Gosh that's almost enough to employ someone for 6 months - that will really make a difference.

HT: Johann Hari

Sustainable Communities Act - Kent gets it so wrong

The press release from Maidstone Greens two days ago welcomed Maidstone Borough Council's announcement that it wants residents views before making a submission under the Act. Of course putting out the press release calling for suggestions just a few days before the closing date was a bit of a poor show but it is hoped that there will be a chance for a further submission later this year.

The reason that I think think that their timing is poor is because they have had plenty of time to get underway. I raised the lack of action on the SCA at February's Council meeting and was told by both political groups that they supported its use and wanted to see action on it asap. But action just didn't happen. The LibDems put a formal motion to Council a few months later and there was still not discernible action.

With the elections over I spoke directly to the director in charge of the process who informed me that letters had gone to parish councils but no suggestions had been received. So I pushed for more engagement with individuals and was told that they would publish a piece in their August edition of their magazine.

It was very clear from watching a recent OSC meeting that there are people in Maidstone that care and want to have a voice but unless the council engages with them directly, how will they know about this important piece of legislation?

Which brings me on to Kent County Council. Did you know that they launched a consultation on the 1st April inviting suggestions under the Act? No neither did I, and no it is no April Fools. The consultation was launched online among the other 50 or so. Unless you regularly visit KCC consultation website you will have missed it.

So guess how many external suggestions they received? None. One of the most important pieces of legislation asking for suggestions from £1.4 million people and not one person outside of the council made a suggestion. I wonder why... perhaps I'll have to change my home page from Google to KCC consultation website.

8% is obscene

Letter to the Kent Messenger in response to Kent County Councillors giving themselves an 8% allowance rise:

Dear Editor, Our County Councillors ought to be ashamed. To give themselves an 8% rise just a few weeks after being elected, just a few months after they turned their workers down for a cost of living pay rise and just a few months after they lost millions in the Icelandic fiasco is, frankly, obscene.

Personally, I would refuse to take the additional allowance until at least KCC workers had received a cost of living rise. Perhaps if there are any county councillors with a conscience out there they will be giving back this extra money until they have proved to their electorate that they have earned it.

Stuart Jeffery

Credit Union for Kent - Letter to the Kent on Sunday

Letter to the Kent on Sunday

Dear Editor,

It is good news that Kent County Council is finally going to set up a Kent wide Credit Union. Publicly owned and democratically controlled banking is the only way forward for banking. We have all witnessed what happens when you let profits and greed take control of an unregulated economic system and KCC has first hand experience of this with its huge losses in Iceland. Let us hope, therefore, that they have learned their lesson on how to look after public money when they open the credit union.

Of course, KCC should do a lot more good than just providing savings and loans. A fully functioning, local government run bank for the people of Kent would be useful to many and hopefully more safe that most of the high street ones.

KCC should also move many of its own investments away from unethical companies such as those that manufacture arms and tobacco, and invest in green industries. Investing in energy saving schemes, producing renewable energy, effective public transport and local food production will not just provide a more healthy return on investments but will also ensure a better future for us all while providing much needed jobs now.

Stuart Jeffery
Green Party general election candidate for Maidstone and the Weald

Carfull Maidstone

From Kent News (aka Kent on Sunday): "Maidstone Green Party has handed in a 347-strong signature petition to the council calling for road safety improvements."

Ian's letter was also in the KM as the star letter yesterday and the KM also showed a picture of me handing the petition to the Kent County Council Chair, Peter Lake. Last week I was on KMFM talking about this petition.

Thanks to everyone who supported it and those who came door knocking.

Let's hope the councillors listen!

Kent County Council investment woes will hit services

Kent County Council has investments of over £50 million in three Icelandic financial institutions. The Government is suggesting it will not compensate local councils for any losses incurred as a result of such investments (1).

Stuart Jeffery, Kent’s Green Party’s Campaigns Officer, comments:

“Kent County Council should have been more careful. The £50 million in investments in three Icelandic financial institutions is the largest exposure of all the UK local councils and other public bodies which invested in Iceland’s collapsing banks. Unfortunately, Kent council tax payers may now have to suffer for the County Council’s mistakes, since the Government may not be willing to cover all of the shortfall. Bearing in mind, Conservative pledges not to increase council taxes, taxpayers are likely to suffer through severe cuts to services. Kent’s people may lose out even further as the financial crisis continues to impact upon spending and employment. To move quickly away from recession, we need a ‘Green New Deal.’(2) This would require:

• Massive investment in renewable energy and wider environmental transformation in the UK, leading to,
• The creation of thousands of new ‘green collar’ jobs
• Reining in reckless aspects of the finance sector but making low-cost capital available to fund the UK’s green economic shift
• Building a new alliance between environmentalists, industry, agriculture, and unions to put the interests of the real economy ahead of those of footloose finance.

“Kent County Council needs to clean up its investments in general. It is still investing in tobacco and arms sales. A sustainable investment programme based on the Green New Deal ideas must include a commitment to ethical investment for the long-term.”

Ends

Notes:

1. KCC, according to the Guardian, have investments in three Icelandic financial institutions of £50 million in total making them the most exposed of only 20 local councils to have Iceland-based funds.
See also Times: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article4910126.ece
which notes: Kent County Council said that it had £50 million deposited in Icelandic banks £15 million with Glitnir Bank, £17 million with Landsbanki and just over £18 million in its British subsidiary, Heritable.
ditto the Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/3162204/Financial-crisis-Turmoil-in-Iceland-puts-councils-funds-at-risk.html
2. Caroline Lucas MEP participated in the team which created the Green New Deal report, available at the New Economics Foundation website: http://www.neweconomics.org/gen/

20mph outside schools spurned by KCC

Kent County Council lack imagination and political will. There should be a blanket 20mph speed limit across all urban areas, not just outside schools.

The fact that no children were killed outside schools during the last 10 years is good to hear, but reinforces the need for a blanket urban speed limit of 20mph.

29 children still died while being pedestrians in the last 10 years, this is 29 too many. Urban speeds need to fall dramatically, there is no need to do 30mph in town.