THE BEFORE AND THE AFTER: THE AFTER

Thank you to all those who turned up at last nights CAF meeting at Boldon Community Centre. To see such numbers again was a clear message that the people of East Boldon will no longer tolerate their streets and businesses being blighted by Metro parking congestion. I have been attending CAF meetings for this area for two years now, and I have NEVER seen such a turnout. Not only did we pack the venue with standing room only, but residents, not used to public speaking and certainly not used to the workings of council committees, put their heads above the parapet had their say!

Two things emerged from the meeting:

1. That Nexus have no idea when they will be able to build a car park extension. They have made no progress in purchasing the land needed, and haven’t even finished paying for the land which they used for the current car park. THERE WILL BE NO EXTENSION THIS DECADE.

2. That the Council will not even look at the residents control plan which was placed before them UNTIL AT LEAST THE SUMMER OF 2007. Even then, this community will then have to go into “the pot” with about 48 other areas to see whether our case is worthy.

Clearly we have been abandoned: Nexus have misled this community for five years and the Council has neither the stomach nor the will to tackle the problem NOW.

However, if we give up then Nexus will return to their policy of doing nothing and the Council will adopt schemes for other residential areas. This community will then sink without trace. I shall therefore continue to fight for a solution to the problem of congestion in this area, and like Robin Hood, I will gather helpers as I go along my merry way. Should any one have new or novel ideas as to how we can continue the campaign outside of the normal restraints then please contact me via this blog or on the new email address below

ENDTHEMETROMAYHEM

@SHAW9452.FSNET.CO.UK

Should any council or nexus employees read this blog then this is for you:

We Won’t Give Up!

To any local residents or other interested parties this is you:

Write to your Councillors ~ Write to your MP

Write to the local papers ~ Write to the Council

LET THEM KNOW THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO WAIT ANY LONGER TO RECLAIM OUR STREETS

On a brighter note, the council plans to turn Cleadon Village into a traffic roundabout were well and truly defeated. Cleadon residents, not known for their revolutionary fervour, turned up in numbers to oppose the plans. The deliberate manipulation of statistics by the council planners was never going to get passed this lot and the pen, pencil and protractor brigade were told to go away and inflict their white elephant schemes on somebody else. The look of abject horror on the faces of the planning hierarchy was a picture to be savoured. In one fell swoop residents had ruined budget plans and work schedules for possibly the next six months. There was an aura of disbelief that tax payers had had the nerve to challenge full time council officials with such ridiculous arguments concerning protecting the community, preserving a village’s aesthetics and that to often ignored concept, ensuring that money is spent correctly. This was a well earned victory for common sense and for public participation, but for the poor council planners, it’s back to the drawing board. Literally!

On a separate but equally important note, it was a pleasure to see the enigma that is Councillor David Potts (Conservative, Cleadon and East Boldon Ward). David is clearly a gifted and articulate speaker, his arguments are coherent and he sees the issues in a larger context. His main problem is that he forgets to turn up at meetings. This was only his second appearance at a CAF meeting since May 2006, which when you consider the serious problems faced by his constituents, this is unacceptable. With only three Conservative members in a Labour dominated Borough, we need an effective voice of opposition (I don’t include that bunch of champagne socialists who refer to themselves as “independents”). By choosing to attend meetings only when the press or a large part of the public are there is no way to provide this opposition. With one ward councillor already impaled on his own sword for not going to meetings, you would think that David would have learnt a lesson. Clearly not!

After what has been a tough week, the weekend looms. For me, the history books will be dusted down and scoured for examples of peaceful public resistance. You never know, the Gazette may soon have the front page heading “SHOP KEEPER CHAINS HIMSELF TO METRO CROSSING BARRIERS”.

CHIN CHIN OLD BEAN!

Many of you may have missed a military announcement yesterday which unveiled Britain’s new secret weapon to fight the insurgents in Afghanistan; hair growth on the chin. Army commanders are recommending that new troops sent to the area should grow beards as this will ingratiate them with the locals (I assume he means the men) and encourage a degree of empathy. No wonder this little snippet has completely fallen of the news radar today, it is one of the most completely absurd government announcements I have ever come across. No wonder our over seas campaigns are in such a mess. Perhaps the best policy would be to actually remove ourselves from a war which unfortunately we have contributed to and continue to provoke by our mere presence.

In order to curtail comments that I have in fact made this story up, I have included a link below to a news site which expands on the issue.

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/uk/article_1179289.php/British_military_allows_beards_for_troops_in_Afghanistan

THE BEFORE AND THE AFTER: THE BEFORE

Tomorrow is a very important day for our Metro Campaign, as we finally present our case to the Boldon Cleadon and Whitburn CAF. I have trudged the streets with flyers, done “x” amount of local press interviews and blogged my heart out! It is now up to the public to pick up the mantle and turn up at the meeting. If we have the same numbers as the public meeting last week, we are are in for one hell of a show! If not, well at least I tried!

MORE ON THAT LATER!

South Tyneside have published the Election Notice for the regions May vote. A quick look at the wards and a little bit of research re potential candidates indicates that we should have some very interesting campaigns. Certain candidates have already put there “parachutes” on, and remain at stand by to be dropped into various wards. More on that later!

For the record, I have great respect for councillors who work hard and diligently; looking after peoples needs is no easy matter within your own household, so dealing with a ward full of thousands of different views and wants etc is very demanding. At community level the colour of your political flag doesn’t really concern me. If you can convince me that you will represent my ward to best of your ability and act on what is best for my community, then you will get my vote. Where I have issues with councillors is when they claim their allowance but cannot be bothered to turn up and represent their ward members. More on that later!

My own ward, Cleadon and East Boldon, should prove interesting. Last year produced two elections in one period, my research on the non attendance rate of a sitting councillor resulting in a resignation. The issue which will dominate on the Boldon side of the crossing is Metro parking congestion. On the other side, I suspect Cleadon may be occupied with the councils plans to turn it into a series of traffic roundabouts. Will we however, be faced once again with a second election not long after May’s vote? More on that later

PEACE IN OUR TIME

Finally, we appear to have peace in Northern Ireland. I say appear, only because I am old enough to know that Ireland never follows the ideal political model of how democracy should progress. The hate, death, emotional pain and religious wounds that simmer beneath the surface of the nation will take more to heal than two “warlords” sharing the same table. However, as Churchill said “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Mr Adams and Mr Paisley now need to set aside hundreds of years of some of the worlds most hardened religious antagonisms and work together to create a lasting democratic framework which reflects all community wishes and aspirations. I remain convinced that both players have the ability to achieve this, but I fear that the “spoilers” will come from within their own ranks. Age is a great teacher and both Adams and Paisley have seen some horrific events in their lives. Despite being at the opposite ends of the political and religious spectrum, they have both arrived at the conclusion that violence will not prevail, and the answer may only emerge through the ballot box. There exists, however, a cohort within both camps who have not yet travelled this road, and it is from them where the rumblings of discontent will emerge.

These events have also caused me to reflect on the greater issue of how we treat world leaders who have been “associated” with terrorism and political struggle. The name of Gerry Adams has been linked with terrorist acts in the past, yet he now exhibits the badge of “rehabilitated” and is poised to become a leader of his country on the democratic stage. Nelson Mandela, who by his own admittance planted terrorist bonds, is (rightly) held up as a beacon of world peace and conciliation. That perceived arch enemy of freedom, Colonel Gaddafi, is now courted by the American’s as a bulwark to Middle Eastern fundamentalism. Yet three years ago he was held ultimately responsible for the Lockerbie bombing. I often wonder how Hitler would be treated in this age; whether the Orwellian approach that dominates “1984” would have been used to shift alliances, or whether as a nation we would have had the back bone as we did in 1939 to stand up to him. Hopefully, we will never have to face such a decision again.

SHOP TALK

Kind words have been received for this blog from “Curly’s Corner Shop”. I first came across his writings last summer and have been a daily reader since. Whilst I have not always agreed with everything he has scribed, he has remained a beacon of reason in what has been a very murky sea. Don’t worry Curly, my Metro campaign remains very important to me and the community of East Boldon, but as I have indicated, this is a troubled Borough. My political journey through life has been varied and I have at times flown flags of many colours, but the trappings of youth have given way to the basic desire for the truth, equality and opportunity. I compare my passage to the “Emperors New Clothes” story; my eyes have been opened and there are a lot of politicians at national and local level who don’t have any clothes on!

Check out Curly’s link http://curly15.wordpress.com, he’s well worth a visit.

Enough analogies about rights of passage etc, and let’s get down to business. Today’s Shield’s Gazette has just arrived on the door step, and for once it has failed to generate the usual “steam through ears” syndrome. I like the Gazette, it’s not afraid to tackle issues and it is a true community paper. Mondays edition, is however, a little tame. Miliband as per usual features heavily (is the man a shareholder in the paper? If he received air miles for every column of coverage he would be flying to Australia and back free of charge). His comment on the soap opera that is the Labour leadership challenge is classic spin. “I’ve been saying for three years that we have an excellent PM in Tony Blair and an excellent Prime Minister in waiting in Gordon Brown and nothing has changed to alter my position.” Of course it hasn’t David. You’re not only just sitting on the fence, your straddling it with a foot in both gardens. When Peter Mandelson calls for a new leader to “emerge from nowhere”, it worries me. Miliband could be that “nowhere” leader and that causes me great concern; he’s too clever by half. But what causes the greatest consternation is that he claims to see equal attributes in both Blair and Brown. Now that is worrying!

I see that the Gazette has won itself some press accolades at a ceremony for Johnson’s Press, and so it should. Chris Robinson is singled out for particular praise and his award is well deserved. But come on Chris, where’s the coverage on that little issue I placed before you sometime ago. The people should be told!

PARKING ATTENDANTS: A RETRACTION

PARKING ATTENDANT UPDATE

“THE TRUTH”

South Tyneside Council have partnered with the private company APCOA to set up South Tyneside Parking Services to manage and enforce off street parking.

As a result of this, Traffic Wardens have been replaced by Parking Attendants.

The council’s own literature describes the situation as such:

“WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

Local enforcement will keep South Tyneside moving, reduce dangerous and inconvenient parking, support local businesses, support town centre needs, assist loading and unloading, improve conditions in resident parking areas, improve safety outside schools and assist blue badge holders.”

There are only 12 Parking Attendants to cover South Tyneside borough as a whole. Not only do they have to enforce traffic laws but the council wants them to act as their eyes and ears and report any fly tipping and street lights that are not working. To make matters worse, police involvement in monitoring of parking on yellow lines etc, has been taken out of their control.

I therefore believe that the literature should have described the situation more accurately as:

“WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS? – NONE!

Local enforcement does not keep South Tyneside moving, increases dangerous and inconvenient parking, offers no support to local businesses, offers no support to town centre needs, does not assist loading and unloading, neglects residential areas, ignores safety outside schools and offers no assistance to blue badge holders.

· When was the last time you saw a parking attendant outside East Boldon schools?

· When was the last time you saw a parking attendant enforcing yellow line restrictions at East Boldon shops?

· When was the last time you saw a parking attendant improving conditions in resident’s parking areas on the side streets of East Boldon?

I apologise for any misunderstanding that the council’s version may have caused and hope that my interpretation has made matters clearer.

END THE METRO MAYHEM

The decision to write this blog has it’s origins in a campaign I am currently waging against Nexus and South Tyneside Council. Since the establishment of a Metro station at East Boldon, the area within a ¼ mile radius has become a “park and ride” region for commuters. The current car park provided by Nexus cannot cope, resulting in residential side streets being strewn with abandoned cars and safety issues coming to the fore in that people can no longer cross the roads safely due to cars parked on pavements etc. On a retail level, this congestion has seriously curtailed commercial trade; if people cannot park to access their local shops they will spend their money elsewhere. My own shop, Longstaffs Deli, is located about three hundred yards from the Station, and has seen its turn over halved in the last three years.

Despite promises from Nexus, no car park extension has materialised, and despite obvious congestion problems, no help has been received from South Tyneside Council. Clearly, the time has arrived for residents to take matters into their own hands and reclaim their streets. Two months ago I devised a strategy that if implemented, I felt would alleviate the problems faced by East Boldon.

RESIDENTIAL PARKING PERMITS

The introduction of residential parking schemes in those streets directly surrounding the Metro station would relieve the congestion pressure faced by local residents.

INCREASED USE OF DOUBLE YELLOW LINES

By using double yellow lines on both sides of the roads adjacent to the crossing, the safety issues of banked up traffic and safely crossing the road would be alleviated.

LIMITED PARKING TIMES IN AREAS DIRECTLY ADJACENT TO SHOPS

By restricting waiting times to i.e. 2 hours in these areas, parking spaces will be made available to those who wish to use local shops, businesses and amenities. This will ensure the viability of local commerce and protect employment and council revenue.

METRO STATION CAR PARK EXTENSION

The degree of the current parking area provided by Nexus must be extended to incorporate both current and projected commuter use.

However, this final element has drawbacks

¨ Land must be purchased/acquired to accommodate extension

¨ People must be forced to use it

¨ The correct number of new spaces must be provided

However, what is clear is that the problems being experienced by East Boldon are not unique. A trawl of the internet and local press archives reveals that the councils through out the region are being forced to confront Metro induced traffic congestion in residential areas. This highlights two very important and pertinent issues. Firstly, that Nexus has failed over the last ten years to acknowledge its social responsibilities to the areas where it builds its stations. It is in effect operating a policy of “build and abandon”. Secondly, councils and local authorities are using tax payer’s money to clean the mess up.

I believe that a regional debate on the effects of Metro expansion is long overdue. Its current network now covers Newcastle Airport to the City of Sunderland, with further expansion planned. That equates to a lot of communities whose nature, individuality and character will be irreversibly altered. It also means that a lot of money will have to be spent to cater for Nexus lack of community responsibility.

The local regional press have given this issue a lot of coverage, and the matter has been placed before the Community area Forum for Boldon Cleadon and Whitburn for debate at its meeting on 29^th March, when a Nexus planning official will be present. This should be a very entertaining night as Nexus have been very “economical” with the truth. They have submitted no planning application for the extension, they have problems purchasing the land (and have no powers to compulsory purchase) and have neither the political of financial will to see the matter through. THERE WILL BE NO CAR PARK THIS DECADE.

This just about brings this introduction to an end. However, becoming involved in such an issue does lead to a degree of political “awakening”. My involvement with local councillors on the Metro issue has revealed a very simple fact; some councillors are very committed, whilst others basically have no intention or personal obligation to discharge their duties in a way that the public expects. This council is also a closed shop of Labour cohorts and has no effective voice of opposition. Northern Uproar will fill this gap. I won’t slander and I won’t lie; I will tell the truth and probably be damned for it. But as Alexander Jablokov said “The road to truth is long, and lined the entire way with annoying bastards.” So post your comments and have your say, but be opened minded enough to take on board what is said.

THE BEGINING

Rise like Lions after slumber
In unvanquishable number -
Shake your chains to earth like dew
Which in sleep had fallen on you -
Ye are many - they are few.

SHELLEY

THIS IS THE BEGINING