Richard's Tory Story

Bankers Bonuses, Pave the streets with carpet?

2012-01-30T16:33:00.000Z

Bankers bonuses have surfaced again. We are justified to get angry. Bankers have been too comfortable in their risk taking and left nothing in reserve. As the saying goes "there are none as blind as those who don't want to see". And this perfectly describes the slow motion car crash of the financial merry-go-round we've seen since the Credit Crunch kicked off in 2007. The truth, though, is that banks are now performing well and better than expected in many instances. RBS has turned a thumping loss into a profit and started contributing Corporation Tax which it hasn't done since its near collapse. Other banks, too, instead of record losses and collapse we are now seeing profits and in some cases huge profits. These profits have been made by doing exactly the opposite of what they did to cause the credit crunch. Cautious lending, retaining funds and steady growth. Yes, some would argue that lending is too cautious and growth too steady but, nonetheless, their fingers were burned and there seems to be an overwhelming desire from them to keep cool. What does this have to do with paving the streets with carpet? I'll explain. As I am not (yet) in political office I still have the luxury of courting unpopularity. Let's pay the bonuses in full and be glad about it. In fact let's encourage the banks to pay more! Many years ago I asked my Dad what he would give to charity if he won the pools. He said he would give nothing but would carpet all the streets in town. He was obviously being metaphorical but this was his attempt to explain economic dynamics. The carpet fitters would get a huge amount of trade, they would have to employ extra people, they would all be paid and they would spend their new found wealth. The shopkeepers would have to buy more stock to fuel demand and factories fill their order books to supply the retailers, etc., etc. I was gobsmacked, all this because some lunatic wants to carpet the streets. With Bankers being paid huge bonuses we get double bubble. They increase their spending power and, however frivolous, the money they spend stimulates the economy. As most of these recipients will be on the highest rate of tax, we, the taxpayer, get half the bonus as PAYE. Their frivolous spending will account for another 20% to the taxpayer in VAT. If the banks continue to refuse to be persuaded to lend more money then keeping the bonuses in the bank will add to their profits and we only get 28% of that as Corporation Tax, Capital Gains Tax or Stamp Duty Reserve Tax. So withhold the bonuses and we get a smaller cut. The unpalatable truth is that the Banks MUST pay big bonuses, in cash they are the only businesses that can.

Happiness is the Little Big Society

2011-11-11T23:23:00.000Z


St Wulfrum's Church

I think I've found the happiest place in the world. It isn't a Buddhists inner sanctum of calm nor is it a enchanted woodland populated by unicorns and fairies. It is a quite unremarkable church hall in Grantham. The event was to celebrate Bob Jeffreys’ 50 years of dedicated service to the choir of St Wulfrum's Church and, as a former Choirboy I decided I couldn’t miss it. On the 3 hour drive to the church I stopped in the usual roadside services; Costa Coffee, McDonalds, etc. I was anonymous but thought nothing of it. It was only when I arrived at the church hall that I realised just how impersonal everyday life had become. Here I was, for all intents and purposes, after a 30 year absence, a total stranger and yet was welcomed as a friend and within minutes chatting with a cup of tea and all the cakes I could eat. The contrast between the impersonal commercially chained world and the friendly community welcoming any passer by was palpable. This is not to say that I'm against the likes of Costa coffee or Big Macs, I’ve had my fair share and no doubt will continue to do so, it's just that we must remind ourselves from time to time that there is a community out there which can give you far more than just calories and refreshment. Happiness and well-being is so intangible it can almost seem unreachable in today's fast-paced modern society but if we stop and look we will find that there are other St Wulfrum's Church Halls across the country which are ready to give not just the tea and cakes but also the all too elusive happiness which, in this day and age is increasingly difficult to find. As this is my Tory Story blog there is a Tory spin I can put on this. This is all to do with the Big Society and I think I’ve discovered that the reason why so many find it difficult to identify what the Big Society actually means. The irony is that it isn't big at all, it's small and difficult to see. It’s these small communities within communities watching out for each other working together to make life a little bit more bearable in these chastened times. By the way I was wrong, St Wulfrum’s church is far from unremarkable. It is the most amazing church you will find anywhere and dominates the Grantham skyline. If you’re ever in Grantham, when you’ve checked out Margaret Thatchers old shop, visit St Wulfrum’s, you won’t be disappointed.

Revealed - Labour's Economic Policy

2011-11-09T22:34:00.000Z

A Big Black Hole

Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend Spend

We must be in the EU so we’re not ruled by the EU

2011-10-12T22:04:00.000+01:00

The Eurosceptic Bruges Group

As a student I spent a great deal of time in Slaughterhouses. I didn’t have an unhealthy interest in death and butchery, I was researching the impact of EU legislation on the hygiene standards in abattoirs. The Single European Act agreed and signed by Margaret Thatcher in 1986 required, amongst a plethora of other things, all UK abattoirs to raise their game so that all meat plants across the EU were ‘harmonised’ to the same high standards. It was costing them a fortune and there were casualties along the way. The aim; so that any business in the EU could sell to any other business in the EU without border and custom controls. The real eye opener for me was that any abattoir outside the EU was also being required to raise their game to the same standards and spend the same cash if they wanted to import into the any EU country. This dispels one of many myths about our membership of the EU, i.e. that pulling out of the EU would free us from tyrannical European Directives. Of course, on the outside the UK would not be bound by treaty to enact any of the regulations which come out of Europe but any business not complying with European Directives would not be able to trade in Europe and we potentially lose 40% of our exports. The truth is that the overwhelming majority of regulations would have to be brought into law even if we never joined the EU in the first place. Another myth is that we have Brussels imposing rules and regulations on the UK. Although understood by the political classes the everyday UK citizen is led to believe by the likes of UKIP and the BNP that UK have no say in the formulation of these regulations just has happens now with members of EFTA and no EU members of the EEA despite what the Bruges Group and UKIP profess. The UK has a very powerful voice at every negotiating table and has been instrumental in tempering the desires of more maverick members in producing sensible legislation. If we left the EU businesses trading with EU member states would still have to comply in full with EU rules but would not have anyone inside Europe negotiating on their behalf. We would be at the mercy of European states able to impose their will on the UK with no UK minister being a thorn in the side. A final myth is that to want to remain in Europe mean you can’t be a sceptic. I am very much a Eurosceptic and this is consistent with staying in Europe to keep it working for us. Yes there is compromise to be had but we undoubtedly benefit from membership. As a sceptic I firmly believe the EU does need to go back to basics and be the collective trade organisation is always intended to be which means a stop to further integration and repatriation of social, political and monetary legislation which have no place and holds no bar for free trade. As the mantra goes we should be in Europe and not rules by Europe. Incidentally I discovered that very small, back of the shop, type abattoirs were just as clean and hygienic as large industrial mechanised plants.

The Future of the Conservative Party is Conservative Future

2011-10-05T21:52:00.003+01:00

At the Labour Conference last week the Conservatives were accused ad nauseam of being the same old Tories with tiresome repeats and retweets of "They haven't changed". It's true that there are long standing and loyal members of the Conservative Party, Ken Clarke is amongst us just as Denis Healy adorns the Labour faithful but the stereotype of fuddy duddy grey suited gents and blue rinse ladies could not be further from the truth. Despite the mutterings of the Daily Mail’s Andrew Pierce (tinyurl.com/64lmy5c) looking around this year's conference there is an undoubted youthful complexion to the Tory demographic. The future of the Conservative Party, a genre featuring in so many fringe events, is very much in the hands of Conservative Future (CF). Those of us old enough to remember, the Young Conservatives were once the future. Back in the 1980's the Conservative Party reigned supreme. We capitalised on the perfect alignment of being popular coupled with a catastrophically bad opposition in both Labour and Liberal parties. These were exciting times to be a Tory and the Young Conservatives got very excited. Their notoriety attracted frequent less than flattering press coverage reporting more about drunken parties than serious youth politics. The result, membership crashed as those with serious political ambitions drifted away. Without the youth at grass roots being given fertile ground to grow in experience and political expertise the average age of the Conservative party rose, the profile narrowed and we became more and more unelectable with the car crash election in 1997. The launch of Conservative Future in 1998 may well have been the saviour of the party as a whole and not just the youth wing. In fact, CF should certainly be viewed historically as William Hague’s greatest achievement. CF is everywhere. Former and Current CF are now in Councils it's only a matter of time before we have a former (or even current!) CF as Prime Minister. More importantly, CF is taken seriously by the Conservative Party at large, no longer the maverick juveniles more liability than asset. All grand institutions need their Grandees but, looking at this year's conference, the average age, anecdotally at least, looks very much on the fall. CF is very much an asset and we'd all be fools to ignore them.

Magistrates being populist - isn't that the whole point?

2011-08-29T14:17:00.001+01:00

The Magistrate is one of the finest exports to the civilised world that England has created and the Prison Governors Association aren’t happy with them. They are calling the Magistrates’ approach to the rioters a feeding frenzy of sentencing. But they have failed to understand is that the Magistrates have not bowed to political pressure but have carried out their constitutional duty to reflect public opinion handing down sentences according to the law which has been broken. Here we have a person (or people) which come from the community, from all walks of life and from infinite backgrounds who sits as judge and jury to people from the community, from all walks of life and from infinite backgrounds. In short the Magistrate is the very embodiment of egalitarianism.

The PGA would have a point if the Magistrates were hand-in-hand with the politicians and sentencing according to direct interference from on high but this is not the case. Since the beginnings of the riots public opinion was crystal clear that this was not the behaviour befitting of English Society. Seeing the masses appearing with brushes and brooms to clear up the mess left behind by the Neanderthals the night before is clearly a sign that we are, on the whole, a civilised society. With such an outpouring of community spirit it would have been wrong for Magistrates’ not to have reflected the sense of outrage and in doing so have acted appropriately and proportionately. Contrary to the PGA’s opinion we should be grateful that the Magistrates’ are free to reflect public opinion in this way. Once a case escalates to the higher courts then it is only legal opinion that counts.

We only have to look back to the proceedings against the killers of James Bulger who were handed down life sentences at the Crown Court and the judge ruled that they should serve only 8 years before being considered for parole. The then Home Secretary, Michael Howard, and the public at large, were outraged and he increased this to 15 years only to be overruled by the higher courts and the European Court of Human Rights. The result is that the perpetrators of one of the most heinous crimes carried out in the 1990s were released after only 8 years, their release being approved by the new Labour Home Secretary, David Blunkett.

The fact that the prisons are full to bursting should be of no significance to the Magistrates’ opinion. The fact that legal niceties may interfere with satisfying the public's need for right, proper and proportionate punishment of offenders should be of no significance to the Magistrates’ opinion. And certainly the fact that the Prison Governors Association isn’t happy should be of no significance to the Magistrates’ opinion. Before writing this piece I spoke to a Magistrate friend of mine for his opinion of the PGA's statement. He referred to a recent desperate case of child abuse where he was absolutely adamant that he was going to sentence the maximum possible and refered the case to the Crown Court to do so. I asked him about sentencing guidelines to which he responded "stuff the guidelines, you would have done the same if you heard case". And this to me says it all. I didn't hear the case as I'm not hearing the cases of the rioters so it is up to the plucky Magistrates’ the last bastions of the judiciary who can truly reflect public opinion.

Bill of Responsibilities

2011-07-16T18:51:00.001+01:00

Courtesy of Liberty Printers
tinyurl.com/6epcxuz

I saw something the other day which saddened me. A Blue Badge was placed on a dashboard of a car. Nothing unusual in that, there is everything right with giving less mobile members of our society a bit of break when it comes to parking. No, the saddening thing was that the badge had been padlocked to the steering wheel. There are things in life which need to remain taboo; apart from the obvious we don't queue jump, we don't say kittens aren't cute and we never steal from the disabled. It saddened me on two levels, firstly that the owner of the badge felt so insecure that they needed to padlock it but also, on a wider point, that society has become so impersonal and so devoid of any sense of responsibility that the theft of a Blue Badge is now very much fair game and in need of protecting as we now have to lock our doors even when we are in the house and we can't leave our car windows open, just a bit, in really hot weather.

Since the Coalition came to power there has been much talk about a 'Bill of Rights' in place of the Human Rights Act. An excellent move, as this will remove the whole issue of 'Rights' from the statutory arena. The Human Rights Act has done a great deal of good but its exploitation by unintended audiences has brought it into to disrepute and, like the News of the World, it has to go. My question is why stop at the 'Bill of Rights'. In fact why start at the Bill of Rights. My view is that before we publish a Bill of Rights we must first agree and publish a 'Bill of Responsibilities' and top of the list would be that everyone in society has a responsibility to respect everyone else; respect their property, their religion, their politics, etc, etc.

It's becoming a worn out phrase "you can't have rights without responsibilities" and perhaps this has never had a real meaning. But this is because there has never been anything to balance rights against. It should only be possible to exert your Bill of Rights if first you could show your regard and respect to a Bill of Responsibilities.

Bill of Responsibilities

Give me your stick so I can beat you with it

2011-06-28T18:30:00.001+01:00

I’ve been a Tory since the age of 9. It was 1979, I was in Grantham and in the town there was a buzz that a local lass was about to become the Prime Minister. Since then my support has been solid but passive. Instead of active politics I entered a profession and chose to promote and represent that profession officially ending up as a regional Chairman. I made a decision a few years ago that I wanted to be an activist for the party. I resigned my Chairmanship to avoid any conflict of interests or diary clashes. This is where we come to the scandal of Union Reps, full and part time, being paid from tax receipts. We have Dominic Raab MP (member for Esher and Walton) to thank for this exposure and we need to support his every move until the practice is no more (read more, tinyurl.com/5r2oz7e). At no time did I demand a wage or even time off to carry out my duties as a chairman of my profession, a profession entirely relevant to my day job so why should a Trade Union demand that its reps be paid by the taxpayer. The argument that some large private sector employers pay their union reps is a red herring. The private sector can spend its money how it wishes and we can choose not to buy their products and services in protest. Mr Raab needs to go the extra mile and introduce a Private Members Bill so Parliament can decide on our behalf whether or not to continue this archaic, "I'm Alright Jack" ritual.

Thanks to Mr Raab bringing this into the public domain the payment of reps is about to enter a new and hopefully more awkward phase. With the public sector strikes about to hit we will have to absurd situation that we the taxpayer will be hit hard by the strikes with the less well off hit the hardest, we the taxpayer will be paying for services we will not be receiving during the strikes yet we the taxpayer will be funding the those who want to perpetuate the strike! It's like giving someone a gun so they can shoot you. Back in June 2010 I predicted this public sector action (read tinyurl.com/6d6xf6j), I signed off this blog

“We can get the economy on track .... don't let the public sector screw it up!”

so I say again .....

We can get the economy on track .... don't let the public sector screw it up!

I call on the Government to ..... make the Sun Rise

2011-02-21T21:01:00.002Z

I was on the Labour Party Website the other day. I'm not thinking of joining in a Woodward/Davies style defection, I'd rather have my eyeballs tattooed with the words "Keep the red Flag Flying 'ere". I look to see what the opposition are saying so I can challenge my Labour Friends here in their heartland of Wigan Borough. You don't have to look in any particular detail to discover the shallowness of their policies and I have discovered their secret. Basically the Labour Party policy is to call on the Government to do what it is doing anyway (!?). Just this week we saw an attack on Andrew Lansley for treating the NHS as a commodity and many talk about NHS cuts despite the increase in spending. So a call from Red Ed not to cut the NHS budget will be answered in full. The homepage of labour.org.uk is demanding the Government spends on International Development. Again, another protected budget and another "victory" for Red Ed in getting what he calls for!

I can't wait for their next call on the Government. Perhaps they will demand that the Sun must rise in the morning!

I call on the Government......to make the Sun Rise

Bankers Bonuses or pave the streets with ...... carpet

2011-01-12T22:06:00.002Z

Bankers bonuses have surfaced again. We were right to get angry in 2007 when the credit crunch went global. Bankers had been too comfortable in their risk taking and left nothing in reserve. As the saying goes "there are none as blind as those who don't want to see". And this perfectly describes my own observations of the slow motion car crash of the financial merry-go-round. That was then and this is now. The truth is that banks are now performing well and better than expected in many instances. Instead of record losses and collapse we are now seeing huge profits. These profits have been made by doing exactly the opposite of what they did to cause the credit crunch. Cautious lending, retaining funds and steady growth. Yes, some would argue that lending is too cautious and growth too steady but, nonetheless, their fingers were burned and there seems to be an overwhelming desire from them to keep cool. What does this have to do with paving the streets with carpet? I'll explain. As I am not (yet) in political office I still have the luxury of courting unpopularity. Let's pay the bonuses in full and be glad about it. In fact let's encourage the banks to pay more! Many years ago I asked my Dad what he would give to charity if he won the pools. He said he would give nothing but would carpet all the streets in town. He was obviously being metaphorical but this was his attempt to explain economic dynamics. The carpet fitters would get a huge amount of trade, they would have to employ extra people, they would all be paid and they would spend their new found wealth. The shopkeepers would have to buy more stock to fuel demand and factories fill their order books to supply the retailers, etc., etc. I was gobsmacked, all this because some lunatic wants to carpet the streets! With Bankers being paid huge bonuses we get double bubble. They increase their spending power and, however frivolous, the money they spend stimulates the economy. As most of these recipients will be on the highest rate of tax, we, the taxpayer, get half the bonus as PAYE. Their frivolous spending will account for another 20% to the taxpayer in VAT. If the banks continue to refuse to be persuaded to lend more money then keeping the bonuses in the bank will add to their profits and we only get 27% of that as Corporation Tax. So withhold the bonuses and we get a smaller cut. The unpalatable truth is that the Banks MUST pay big bonuses, they are the only businesses that can.

Bankers Bonuses let's pave the streets with carpet

Don't Shoot the Messenger

2011-01-09T21:04:00.002Z

So today we have seen the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer making a fool of himself on Sky News. Red Ed's chosen one to lead Labour's front bench on the economy did not know the answer to a simple uncomplicated question about employer's National Insurance contributions. he obviously hadn't reached the chapter on NI in his Economy for Dummies he said he needed to read and probably didn't even know that employers had to pay national insurance. The immediate reaction is to lampoon the gaff and point fingers. No doubt he'll be getting more than his fair share of this next time he's at the dispatch box. On reflection, though, the biggest mistake Alan Johnson made was to accept the job in the first place. He is quite obviously out of his depth and this begs more questions about the man who put him there. The question in my mind is did Ed Miliband really appoint him when the smart money was on Ed Balls? The appointment of the former postman, union leader and self confessed Marxist suggests more than a light touch from the Union bosses to push Red Ed into putting him in this top position. As I predicted in my blog "Shadow Shadow Cabinet - What a Balls Up" (http://tinyurl.com/shadowshadow), the real Shadow Cabinet isn't the one full of Labour MP's, it's the one full of union bosses. And now we hear that Ed Miliband's efforts to appoint himself a chief of staff has failed at two hurdles with James Purnell and Lord Falconer. Will he be turning to his Shadow Shadow Cabinet for guidance?

I think we have seen the first signs of the Shadow Shadow Cabinet sending out the messenger but we should not shoot him, we need to aim our sights higher.

Don't Shoot the Messenger

Fiddles, Fat Cats or Felons?

2011-01-08T22:50:00.001Z

I’ve been reading the comments in the blogosphere about the recent jailing of former Labour MP David Chaytor over his expense fiddles. This was passing me by until I read one particular blog from a Journalist I have long admired and will again admire when I’ve got over it. The blog “It’s not hard not feel a bit sorry for David Chaytor” (http://tinyurl.com/38snova) has absolutely missed the point. We have no obligation to feel even the slightest bit sorry for him and shouldn’t feel guilty for not doing. Like the rest of us we were horrified by some of the fiddles going on with the MP expense system. Most MP’s were whiter that white, a few were bending rules and a few more were breaking the rules – we got angry, the scandal exposed and MP’s learned from it. A very VERY few went beyond a fiddle and were downright criminal. A nose in the trough is wrong but David Chaytor didn’t just bend rules or exaggerate claims. He didn’t just accidentally claim for something which wasn’t a legitimate expense or flip a house to max out his allowances. He lied, he cheated and he stole money from the tax payer. There are no Party Politics here, he’s a criminal, convicted by the courts and he’s being punished just as Archer and Aitken have done before him. The big difference here is that he is an MP and that does make a difference. He is not only a convicted fraudster but also an abuser of the trust his electorate placed in him and the court seemed to have reflected this in the stiff sentence and not giving him full credit for his belated guilty plea.

Three other Labour MP’s have opted for a trial and maintain their innocence. If they are found guilty they have better get used to the taste of porridge.

We are the Champions?

2010-12-11T22:01:00.003Z

The violence at the recent student protests was simply disgusting and disgraceful. The latent Neanderthals cannot muster up enough numbers to support a riot of their own so they mingle amongst the young, impressionable and naïve. They whip the crowd into a frenzy and hey presto, you have a riot and, if you’re a Neanderthal, mission accomplished. On the positive side, the Students have found their voice! On the face of it I thoroughly enjoyed watching the protests. It’s a sign of a healthy democracy and should never be discouraged. Any voices calling for protests to be banned because of the violence have to be challenged and I’ll resist the oft used Voltaire cliché.

And what of the Labour response? There was the usual attack on the Coalition but nothing in response ….. until now. It was hard for Red Ed, he wants the Graduate Tax and his Shadow Chancellor never did. It looks as though the Labour Stasi patrol have got to their beloved Shadow Chancellor and he is now ‘on message’. When challenged on the BBC Today Programme he said he was ‘inconsistent’ and tried to excuse his ‘inconsistency’ by saying the Coalition were in the Premier League for U-turns whereas he was in Champions League! I have to agree the Labour Party are in the Champions league for all sorts of things… not least maxing out the UK credit card meaning that tough decisions need to be made on student finance. The picture for this blog has a double meaning Freddie Mercury is famous for penning the rock anthem We are the Champions but also their hit "I'm going Slightly Mad". When it comes to comparisons to the Labour Party, I know which I prefer!

Happy Birthday Mrs T

2010-10-13T19:06:00.000+01:00

“Just like the best Tories my story started in Grantham living in a flat above a shop”.
This is at the top of all my blog posts and I have a sense of pride in my humble, VERY humble, beginnings. Today we celebrate the 85^th Birthday of that other Grantham Townie whose story started in a flat above a shop. Humble beginnings in Grantham for me included the regular trips to the outside privy and the walk to Huntingtower Road Primary School, at least one of these experiences I’m strangely proud to have shared with Mrs Thatcher. Enough of the nostalgia … the real Tory Story here is the often overlooked message that Mrs Thatcher can give to us all. The Conservative Party is a broad church, inclusive of all and exclusive of none. The misconception that we are a party of the rich is comprehensively rejected when you stop and see our supporters. True, we have rich and powerful benefactors but for every “Tory Toff” there is a “Champagne Socialist”. The Left Wing obsession with anti-capitalism and socialism clouds the reality that the country needs equality of opportunity and not just equality. Margaret Thatcher worked so hard to gain recognition and success and can teach us all that it’s not where you’ve come from that’s important, it’s where you’re heading.

Happy Birthday Mrs T!

I Believe that I do not Believe in the Spirit Level

2010-10-12T22:09:00.004+01:00

On the Radio 4 Program, Analysis, there was well presented and balanced report on that unlikely bestseller the "Spirit Level". This book is being read, digested and regurgitated by all quarters of the political classes. The book is a scientific study which claims to have found increasing evidence that societies which are inherently unequal are the ones which fail quality of life indicators such as levels of youth crime, teenage pregnancy and child will being. I've only had the most fleeting of looks at this book so I'm not have any place to judge but what I do know is that it has been pulled apart by statisticians and even my basic A-level knowledge of statistics can see that some of the figures stretch linear regression beyond breaking point to establish the "facts". I don't get particularly vexed about political commentators imposing their own views, although the spirit level is supposed to be a scientific analysis and not political. But where I think true blue Tories will not be able to accept the book's findings lies in some simple heartfelt beliefs which we all have and where the centrepiece of Michael Howard's 2005 general election campaign. Although this seems like 1000 years ago it would not take too much of a memory jolt to remember his "I believe" speech. The part of Michael Howard's speech which I find most at odds with the spirit level is one of his "I do not believes". - "I do not believe that one person's poverty is caused by another's wealth". In fact most of the "I do not believe" parts of his election address are at 90° to the political theory contained in the spirit level such as "I do not believe that one person's sickness is made worse by another's health". I know what I choose to believe, I believe in the "I believe" of Michael Howard (http://tinyurl.com/29xawyj). I do not believe in the Spirit Level.

Shadow Shadow Cabinet - What a Balls up

2010-10-09T13:48:00.000+01:00

Many political anoraks (including me) were surprised to see the choices made by Ed Miliband for his frontbench team. I've nothing against Alan Johnson per se, the fact that he's a former postman is not something I'd use to political advantage, after all for better or worse he has held cabinet positions over the past few years. In fact Alan Johnson is my kind of politician in that he actually had a career before politics and is one of these career politicians that know nothing of real life (check out my blog back in March, lobbyists and lobby gobblers, http://tinyurl.com/3agwwkx). Despite this nonpartisan respect for him it didn't sound good when he announced his first step would be to read an equivalent of economics for dummies. I suspect the real reason for Alan Johnson’s meteoric rise is his strong union background. We all know that Ed Miliband is in the hands of the unions without whose vote he would have lost the leadership election hands down. It’s now crystal clear that the unions have the Labour leader right where they want him and it's clear that the top jobs in the shadow cabinet are union appointments not Ed’s appointments. To the seasoned loyal Labour supporter the appointment of Ed balls to Shadow Chancellor is a no-brainer. Failing that his wife was the out and out winger by a huge margin and would also be the strongest of contenders for the top job. But Red Ed’s strings are being pulled by the Shadow Shadow Cabinet, the union bosses. To make a decision based on "I'd better not do that because it will upset the unions" or even worse "I better not do that because it will upset his wife" is, at best, flawed. Thankfully this is just a shadow cabinet and these clowns are no longer in a position to make decisions that affect our lives. If we as an electorate turn the Shadow Shadow Cabinet in to a Government, be prepared for decisions to be made based on union power and pillow talk.

Shadow Shadow Cabinet -- what a balls up!

New Labour is Dead, Long Live Ed Labour

2010-09-25T22:04:00.000+01:00

So now we have Miliband as the leader of the Labour Party. Which one of the band of Brothers is immaterial as we all know that both of them will be running things in the Labour Party from now on and not in gracious harmony. The Blair Brown pact has got nothing on Miliband of Brothers. Not only will we hear of dodgy deals on what would have happened when one or the other got elected but we’ll also have a deep sibling rivalry, after all according to at least one of them the wrong one has assumed power. This is excellent news, the infighting and backbiting and the divisiveness will keep Labour where they belong - in the political wilderness for many years to come. Ironically they've enjoyed a remarkable honeymoon period of opposition with their default leader Harriet Harman. She has proved a remarkably capable leader of the opposition in an albeit short period of office. We may have had something to fear had she decided to stand as leader, and with the Miliband vote split down the middle she may have won by the back door. With the old Harriet this would not have been a problem. The old Harriet was in government and proved very ineffectual in whichever office she occupied. In opposition, with nothing to prove and everything to gain by skilful use of words and political nails she has proved remarkably adequate. Ed Miliband, on the other hand, will give us Tories great ammunition for showing just how split the Labour Party are and always have been. Forget the Old Labour, New Labour we now have Ed Labour. We mustn’t squander this opportunity by allowing Ed to run away with the arguments over tax and spending. Let's face it, he's been put there by the Unions not by his party or fellow MP’s. The Unions will want some payback and he won't give that by backing the only possible way forward, the Conservative policy of deficit reduction. The result will be a left-wing backlash within the Labour Party with Ed Miliband as its champion promoting the all-too-familiar socialist policies or spend, spend, spend. There's never been any doubt in a socialist government’s ability to spend money and on the opposition benches with Ed Miliband at its helm will show this to be all too true once more. The mantra is clear old Labour is dead long live Ed Labour.

No Dot Com Bubble, No 3G auction, No joke, we're broke!!!

2010-06-07T22:24:00.010+01:00

It's been a while since I last blogged. I've been getting back to my normal life and get over a severe case of Election Fever, a recurrent affliction which has mild forms every year or so with a severe strain every 4 or 5 years. We have certainly come down to earth with a bump. We all knew how bad the economic situation was but a quick back of the envelope calculation of the astonishing £770 billion worth of debt would mean that if we paid the back of the rate of one pound every second we would not finish paying off the debt until the year 24,416. We may pay off the debt before the Sun explodes. The thing is we know, and have known, this for some time so there is no "new" news here. But it will be news to some people.

During the 1990’s recession I worked as at Bolton Council. Okay, so that recession was nowhere near as big or as hard as the one we’ve just had but it was tough; people lost their homes, lost their jobs and most of us found it very hard to make ends meet. The most protected people were people like me. I lived in a council house on a council rent, I had a very, very safe job with the local authority and you could say that I was somewhat recession proof... In fact, looking back, I was pretty much armour plated. I’ve spent the last 10 years working in the private sector but still keep in touch with all of my local authority colleagues and nothing seems to have changed. Even during the darkest days of recent recession none of my local authority friends really cottoned on as to how bad the situation was. During conversations about our personal economic woes comment would be made such as "yes we’ll have to do tighten our belts". It was very clear that they weren’t being affected in the least by even the worst that the recession could throw at us. I know that because it's exactly how I felt, and talked, back in the early 1990s.

This will be a very unpopular thing to say but the public sector have been mere spectators over the past 12 to 18 months. In the private sector we've had our fears and worries many have lost jobs and livelihoods many small businesses have gone to the wall (and large ones for that matter, taking many jobs with them). Now there is a very fragile recovery there is room for cautious optimism and we can breathe a little easier, but only a little. Not that I'm wishing this onto anybody but the one thing that would cripple any hope of a strong recovery, and believe me recovery needs to be strong to get us out of this hole, would be public sector industrial action the likes of which we saw in the 1970s.

The hard sell is not to convince us that the cuts are necessary as we all know, or will we should know, how much we need to cut back public spending to get the economy moving again. The hard sell will be to convince all of us, public and private, that things will have to change. The last Labour government built the economy on a series of very fortunate windfalls which happened at fortuitous intervals in the economic cycle, and not moments of the government is making. First we had the windfall tax on the privatised public utilities then we had the dot-com boom in the stock market and finally we had the sell-off of 3G Telecom licenses. The 3G sell off alone raised £22.4 billion or 2.5% of GNP or enough to build 400 hospitals. Further into the first decade of the 21st century the government saw no more windfalls and no more opportunities for a quick buck. The inevitable happened and we sank, slowly at first, then very definitely into deep recessive debt. The only option for a Labour government, with the windfalls gone, and lines of credit exhausted is to go to the last resort -- the IMF. This is what happened last time and it is almost certainly would have happened had we seen a Labour victory.

We've got our Conservative Prime Minister just in time. With no unions to be in hock to, the coalition is free to make the difficult choices that are required to make sure we go into growth.

We can get the economy on track .... don't let the public sector screw it up!

“Tory Tory Tory - Out Out Out!”

2010-05-15T20:29:00.002+01:00

This would not usually be my first choice of title for a Tory story. You may have read in my last blog that a journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step. I'm sorry to report that I still have quite a few steps to go if the Conservative party is to have any serious representation in Leigh. Notwithstanding this disappointment I'm still a committed Conservative will still be blogging the Tory story and I'll still be trying my hardest to dislodge this rather moribund Labour council we in Wigan Borough have to live under.

I'm not bitter, not twisted; I'm not seriously disappointed that the Conservatives didn't get overall majority in Parliament. In fact the way the coalition is looking I’m feeling rather relaxed at the prospects of this government to deliver solid Conservative policies, after all we do have a Conservative Prime Minister.

It is a warm comfortable feeling that we have all four great offices of state occupied by Conservative MPs and that we have Prime Minister David Cameron meeting foreign dignitaries on the steps of chequers. It’s well overdue that the squatters who have been occupying number 10 these past 13 years have finally being shoe-horned out and the rightful residents have regained occupancy.

There was a single seemingly insignificant event that really raised my hackles, gave me goose bumps and a genuine feeling of "we're back!" Watching the news the other day a Conservative MP was arriving for a meeting and was met with a large number of protesters chanting "Tory Tory Tory-Out Out Out". Having not heard this phrase from the last 13 years this, to me, was the real confirmation that regardless of any coalition agreement the public psyche, especially to the opposition, is that we have a Tory government. I'm not under any illusions, we have what we have, a coalition of a Conservative led Lib Dem / Conservative government. Yes we are the major party and yes we do have more seats in parliament than anybody else but my sensible head makes me realise that some serious concessions and had to be made. My unsensible head makes me rise to the challenge of an opposition back where it should be - in opposition - and not in government.

“Tory Tory Tory-In In In!”

72,391 steps to a Council Seat

2010-04-26T22:02:00.003+01:00

There is a saying, "a journey of a 1000 miles begins with a single step". I'm campaigning for a Council Seat in one of Labour's safest constituencies where, at the last count there was a 94.9%chance of them staying put. the title of this latest post is more than a litte prophetic. Nonetheless I managed to compose a campaign team, get 1000's of leafets ready to post and as many doors waiting to be knocked. One week (ish) to go and we've got about 4,000 leaflets out in two editions and a surprising number of pledge and thanks letters for support. We are well on track for a decent knocking up session in the final week of polling. The Tory Story in all this? Even in the safest non-tory seats it's worth hammering away at the opposition. One election might dent the solid majority, the next election might turn the safe seat into a marginal, the election after that ..... who knows.

At the beginning of all this I thought I'd try out my new pedometer and have clocked up the title figure of 72,391 steps so far. According to the Romans this is about 37 miles. I've got 963 miles or 1,926,000 steps to go. I make that about the 2014 General Election - the Tory Story will still be going, I'll let you know if I get there.

1980's .... it's good to be back

2010-04-08T10:24:00.000+01:00

The election has been called and the gloves have well and truely come off. For the first time since in a long time there is some good old fashioned politcs going on. One opening shot is the Gene Hunt Tories taking us back to the eighties poster. It is curious that Labour want us to remember the time when we won every election in the decade by a landslide (we were rather popular then!) and all they could do was write "the longest suicide note in history".

But (and here's the Tory Story), they did something else. In the 1987 election they actively campaigned to reverse a 2p cut in income tax. The figures sound alarming now but they saw a virtue (and votes?) in campaigning to restore income tax to a staggering 29%. Roy Hattersley, the Shadow Chancellor, was dubbed Count Draculabour. It is curious, then, that they have chosen a battleground, National insurance, where they comprehensively lost in the past.

To coin a phrase the National Insurance debate is opening up clear blue water between us and Labour. Yes it is a return to to the 80's. This was a time a political debate and sound ideology. The choice is becoming clear. A vote for the Conservatives is a vote to keep your money in your pay packet, a vote for Labour is a voting to have the Government raid your pay packet and they will decide how it is spent.

1980's ..... it's good to be back!

Lobbyists and Lobby Gobblers

2010-03-27T00:29:00.000Z

What a week it's been with dodgy lobbies, Strikes by land and air and the most boring ever budget where the only thing vaguely economical was the truth. So there was plenty to fill a Tory Story blog.

The one thing that caught my attention is the lobbygate scandal with Byers, Hoon and Hewitt. If they weren't so well know they would sound like a firm of lobbyists. When you live in Leigh in Lancashire, as I do, lobby has a very different meaning. Originally called lobscouse (in Liverpool it's shortened to 'scouse'), lobby is a traditional stew of corned beef and veg. Being very popular, the townsfolk of Leigh are nicknamed Lobbygobblers. The dish was popular with the hard working but poverty stricken grafters of the coal mines and cotton mills of Leigh as it was very cheap but very nutritious. This is where the politcal irony kicks in.

Byers, Hoon and Hewitt are now in the frame for selling themselves. They know they've screwed up their politcal careers and lobbying is probably the only way they are going to earn a living outside politics. This will become an increasing problem because in recent years we have seen the march of the career politician. They serve their apprenticeship working in the party research departments and then under the wing of serving MP's. They are rewarded with a safe seat and try the MP thing themselves. Once they leave (or are forced to leave) Parliament they find they have no real career to go back to and the vacancies for ex career MP's are pretty thin on the ground. The research departments are full of new young hopefuls so no vacancies in that direction either.

The finished and washed up career politician has no vocation to fall back on, no professional training or trade to do anything other than be political. The only thing they can do is lobby. Unfortunately Byers, Hoon and Hewitt all lobbied to early. They've finished their political careers and any future career they may have had ... better get used to the tase of lobby!

Sport Relief 2010 has a Tory Story

2010-03-21T17:45:00.003Z

It's Sunday 21st March 2010 and 165,000 people across the UK donning their Sport Relief Socks and running the Sport Relief 1, 3 or 6 miles. In my case this in Manchester City Centre and was the full 6 miles. Connor, my wonderful and precious son kindly "volunteered" me to run with him which hastely agreed before he told me he was doing the full 6 miles!

I was so glad he did. Not only was it very rewarding and a really good work out but I'm perfectly capable of covering 6 miles and if vulnerable people in the UK and abroad can manage to get through each day as if it were a marathon then I could manage 6 miles with nice cup of tea and cake at the end of it - simple!

Yes - we did it and raised over £200 in the process. To put it in perspective this enough to provide 40 mosquito nets preventing Malaria again and again, night after night.

But where's the Tory Story. Manchester must be the best place to run Sport Relief. the route took us down the famous cobbles of Coronation Street. and right past the house of Ken Barlow. He maybe a lily lefty Guardian reader but the actor, Bill Roache, is a firm Conservative Party supporter. For the record Ken lives at 1 Coronation Street (in the picture below) next door to the Rovers.

Wigan Conservatives Impress CCA Conference

2010-03-20T21:56:00.003Z

Over the last weekend I was happy to be the unofficial Wigan Conservative Federation representative (thanks for your support guys!) at the Conservative Councilors’ Association Local Government Conference. David Cameron opened the proceedings with his commitment to local politics and freeing up local councils to do what they do best, make local democracy work! A point he made absolutely clear is that good local political campaigning is vital to our success in the forthcoming elections (remember there are two elections going on). In other words we really need each other and failing to combine our National and Local efforts will be a course for mutually assured destruction!

His full speech is on the Conservative party website

Boris Champions Wigan!

Being a conference held in the centre of London it was obvious that there was a heavy London bias present with Westminster, Hillingdon and, of course, Merrick representing the Kensington and Chelsea branch (as well as his other minor duties!)! With virtually the whole of London present it was obvious that Boris Johnson was going to get a rousing reception, which he did. He was his usual self and did not disappoint with references to the tube, the last breeding pair of Bendy Buses

Then he mentioned Wigan! He read in the papers on the way to the conference that our wonderful Council had plans to spend £27,000 on a new car for the mayor. We all know there is always more to headlines but why let detail get in the way of a good story!

Come the Q&A session I couldn't resist getting hold of a microphone just to get Boris to firm up his support for the Conservatives in the Wigan Borough. This he did with his customary reckless abandon and told me to take his message to Wigan as a clarion call.

That Evening .......

These events should be a chance to network, get to know new people, gather Intelligence, new ideas and get a good outlook on how the party is doing across the UK. So here I was sharing a table with people from Rochdale, Ormskirk, Manchester and Grantham (where I grew up) so not much chance of pastures new here. But with a sprinkling of councillors from Wiltshire, Westminster and North Tyneside, I did manage to get some proper networking done rather than get nostalgic over old times!

Having given up alcohol during Lent I slowly watched this collection of MPs, councillors, PPC is etc get more and more drunk. What joy! But towards the end of the night when the light weights had gone to bed (and I'm still stone cold sober) we took turns to take the now empty podium where Cameron, Boris and co-gave their speeches.

Hello Local Chums

At the end of the conference, Eric Pickles gave us one last solid re assurance that the incoming Conservative government will soon be the party of local government. Reminding us that he was once a leader of a Council gave us all assurances that he knows how important it is for local government to be allowed to govern. This we would expect him to say, being a former Council leader at a Councillors’ Association meeting! The part that really struck a chord, though, was his tail about the saving election night. Remember the story that Councils wanted to delay counting til the next day rather than immediately after the count, ending a long tradition of elections in this country and the most visible demonstration of the strength and stability of our democracy. Making sure the count is done on the night of the election not only maintains the hard won integrity of our democracy but Eric also sent a stark reminder to our bureaucracy that they are there to serve the people, the tail doesn’t wag the dog!