I’m hearing rumours.

With only two months to go before our local elections the parties are by now starting to choose their candidates. I’m hearing that labour have chosen the wife of our newly elected councillor to contest the seat on their behalf. This is another smart piece of thinking on behalf of the labour group because in Newton we have a history of voting for husband and wife teams and with the name being foremost in the minds of people, now our new councillor is finding his feet and getting things done it’s got to be a good choice. I know Shirley and I’m sure she will make an excellent councillor if she is elected. But will the electorate agree? And who will the other parties select to contest the seat? If they would like to email me I’d be delighted to publish it on my blog. I won’t hold my breath. We can I suppose expect to see some of the early leaflets Focus 270? Labour Rose, not the Tories they usually only put one out. I’ll perhaps give a write up on what I see as main issues concerning our ward with urgent next year and low priority ratings. The Hosells will no doubt have Saatchi and Saatchi or Alistair on the editorial team. I’ll write them for any of the candidates for an enormous fee.
Have laptop will travel. Will it be as I predicted earlier Hosell V Underhill?

4 d cyba kids

Hello Lola, Oscar, Freddie & Hippy. Put down your guitars, flute and close the piano put away the karate suits, pompoms and basket ball kits take five minutes from your busy lives and text Granddad. how r u im rite in this bit in txt again so u can un stan it. Can u do me a pic to match mine. I will only show if you want me to luv grd. Tanks for d txt so far dey is good

I’ll retire to spend more time with my blog

When I retired some seven years ago I knew I wanted to do some voluntary work in and for my community but had no real idea what it was I wanted to do. Blogs of course were still in their infancy and I had never heard of them. I need not have worried though because once I started to get around and look for things to do the offers (that’s not quite the right word) came rolling in and very soon Pat & I were very busy. Since then I have had two new part time careers championing older people’s issues around West Brom and despite some health concerns for both of us we are still busier than ever and have no plans to change this situation. Being retired has allowed us to develop new interests and skills. Pat has become a very talented artist and I have been able to champion some of the wrongs that I see in the world about me. Things like the introduction of car parking charges for blue badge holders at our local hospital and of course cleaning up Sandwell. I have campaigned for better pensions for all, removal of the despised means tested benefit brought in by Gordon Brown and much more. When I came to write this bit I realised there was a long list of issues I have taken up over the course of that time. I suppose in some ways I have become a pain in the ass to some of our local service providers, our MP, some local councillors and council officers and I intend to continue to be that pain whenever they fail in their duty to our community. A classic example I suppose is our current campaign to get a clinic for Great Barr & Newton. Our PCT probably think we have gone away on this one but, Oh No We Haven’t.
My editor in chief, better known as my wife, sometimes reads the blog and although she still thinks I’m barking mad "talking to myself" largely approves.

Some good news for Sandwell residents, well for most of us.

Recently there have been two what I see as good news reports in our local press. A lady was fined 165 quid for dropping a cigarette end in West Brom. It would have been fixed 75 quid but she claimed she couldn’t pay and it went to court. The second was a guy given a fixed 75quid penalty for walking his dog in a cemetery. Not only were these people named and shamed but their pictures appeared in the local evening paper. I don’t want to go into their excuses but to give a big well done to the Express & Star for publishing the stories and to our neighbourhood wardens for getting the result and the publicity. I’ve nothing against dogs or dog owners parse only when they are irresponsible with their pets. Litter though is one of those things that can really get my heckles up because I just cannot understand the mind set of the litterers. I tacked a bloke in Hamstead village one day about dropping a paper bag, only to be severely reprimanded later by my wife who reminded me he was about six inches taller than me, a lot younger and a couple of stone heavier. I never considered the risk I only saw the offence. He picked up the bag, then dropped it again followed by a barrage of four letter expletives with me following him telling him he should be ashamed of himself. Sadly I ended up putting the offending bag in the bin.

Bloggers view two

Thought I would have a change of image. I hope you like it. The old pink background did not work for me and to be honest the picture of yours truly was not that good. The view of Sandwell Valley is just a few minutes walk from my house. I suppose in many ways we are lucky to have such a wonderful facility right on our door step. Although we have a motorway and railway running through the valley it does not distract from its beauty. I am hearing that there is talk that wind turbines are to be erected in the valley. I do hope that this is just idle gossip because that would get the locals hopping mad. On the other side of our ward we have red House Park which is constantly the subject of conjecture over its future and that of the Red House which is now vandal hit and in need of repair. I challenged the candidates at our bye election to give commitment to getting an answer on the future of the park. No such commitment was forthcoming. A worrying scenario I think.

A bloggers view

From the window at my office from home which was my youngest daughters bedroom. I can see a green area which stretches across mine and five other properties. From my property boundary to the road it is council property and should be maintained by them. Over the years my wife and I have adopted the area in front of our home and in later years our neighbours have done the same, We collectively cut the grass and generally care for the site. When a tree died Sandwell did not have a budget to replace it and we replaced it with an oak I had nurtured from an acorn. We have planted shrubs, wild flowers and bulbs which make it a very pretty place throughout the year. This year the daffodils do not appear to be doing well but I was reminded of a few years ago when we had an exceptional crop that flowered just before Mothers day. When I went to look at the front garden on Mothering Sunday the whole lot had disappeared. Some Mom had a very special bunch of daffs that year. Our oak is now a strong sapling surrounded by orange crocus and I have to say since my doggy poster appeared on the hedge in front of my house not a doggy poop anywhere.
I wonder if we can get a council tax refund for cutting the grass, litter picking, sweeping the pavements etc.? I won’t hold my breath.

Meals on wheels go into orbit

Last night our local newspaper reported that Sandwell Council’s Adult Services & Health committee had unanimously approved a massive 30% increase in charges for meals on wheels. Quite rightly some local people are disgusted by this decision and so am I. Last May Sandwell Council adopted a report from a select committee it had formed to consider the needs of older people in the borough. I gave evidence to this select committee. The philosophy behind the report was that all older people should be able to live, safe, dignified and fulfilled lives. There was a lot about reducing poverty and providing help when it was needed. A strategy document call Living Well in Later Life underpinned the select committee report and an Older Peoples Partnership Board is being formed to monitor what should be happening as the strategy unfolds.
If the newspaper report is correct it would appear from this decision that either the Adult Services & Health committee have not read the report or have ignored its findings.
There as also been discussion documents from the local government association called All Our Tomorrows which this decision seems to fly in the face of. I hope the Partnership Board will take this matter seriously and censure the committee to get this decision reversed. In the meantime I am calling on my Councillor to lobby to get this appalling decision reversed and I am calling for this uncaring committee and the officers who advise it to resign.
A 30% increase on meals after a 15% increase in fuel costs with only a 2.1% increase in pensions is an absolute disgrace. Where do they think the extra money is going to come from? It only affects 495 of the most vulnerable people in Sandwell. Shame on you.