Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
Graham, Tom and Ian
Your Lib Dem team for Cheadle West & Gatley Learn more
What were the local issues four decades ago?
Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
What were the local issues four decades ago?
Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
Mark Hunter MP’s notes from Westminster
by Lib Dem team on 15 May, 2014
Hello!
Thank you for taking the time to read my latest update on what I have been up to here in Cheadle and down in Westminster. Thanks to the recent parliamentary recess, I was able last month to spend more time campaigning around the constituency.
Despite wet and blustery weather, a crowd of over a hundred BMX cyclists gathered to test ride a brand new track in Bruntwood Park which I was honoured to be asked to officially ‘open’. The £300,000 project has been possible thanks to Sports England and Stockport Council, and is open to all ages and abilities. It was great to open a top-class sports facility for the local community to enjoy.
Following a visit to Parliament by the British Heart Foundation, I was delighted that the charity asked me to visit their store in Cheadle again to meet with the fantastic local volunteers. Shop manager Christine Smith and her team afforded me a warm welcome whilst working hard to process, display and sell high quality second-hand items to raise money to combat heart disease. It is thanks to their dedication and residents’ generosity that the Cheadle store is such a success.
The Children’s Heart Foundation is currently running a campaign to raise awareness of the checks parents can do with their children to spot a heart problem as early as possible. I was of course eager to support the ‘Think HEART’ slogan which stands for Heart Rate, Energy, Appearance, Respiration, and Temperature. The earlier we spot a heart condition, the sooner children can receive life-saving treatment.
Bramhall’s got talent! Bramhall Art Society kindly invited me again to preview their annual exhibition, presenting an impressive showcase of the accomplished works of local residents. I am always struck by the extremely high standard of painting and sketching produced by the clearly talented Society members.
Residents from Coltishall House, Cheadle, very kindly invited local councillors June Somekh, John Pantall, and Paul Porgess and I to one of their regular coffee afternoons. We spent an enjoyable time talking about the upcoming elections amongst many other topics, I think we were afforded a particularly warm welcome as June had brought along a homemade cake!
‘GO 20’ is a new campaign to make 20mph the default speed limit in built up urban areas in order to reduce accidents and improve road safety. As a long-supporter of 20mph zones, introducing them outside schools during my time as Leader of Stockpot Council, I was pleased to lend my support to this important campaign.
I joined Personal Finance Education Group in Westminster to support their campaignencouraging local schools to consider offering money lessons this summer term and thereby give their pupils a head start before financial education becomes a part of the new National Curriculum in September. I think that it is of the upmost importance that young people have a firm understanding of budgeting, borrowing and other financial choices open to them as they grow older.
The Department for Business announced that two wards in Cheadle constituency, Cheadle and Gatley and Cheadle Hulme North, have been targeted for extra funding to boost businessas part of a nationwide scheme. The scheme makes local businesses eligible to bid for additional funding and tax breaks to create jobs or invent in new premises or machinery. This is an opportunity that I am keen for local businesses to make the most of and I will be working with the Council to see how best to bring additional money to the constituency.
Unemployment in Cheadle continues to fall, dropping to just 854 claimants in March 2014, or a rate of just 1.9%. Whilst I am delighted that we have one of the lowest unemployment numbers in the entire North West region, I am of course very eager to see the numbers drop even further. The Coalition Government has helped to create 1.5 million new jobs since 2010, and I will do all I can to help create even more.
Last year the Coalition Government launched the Green Deal to help thousands of households pay for some or all of the cost of making their homes or businesses more energy efficient – practical help to people now that will help them stay warm, stay green, and crucially save money. Installing major energy efficiency measures can knock around £270 off the average bill for a three bedroom semi-detached home. Last month my Lib Dem colleague and Energy Secretary, Ed Davey, announced that through the Green Deal Home Improvement Fund, the Government is now offering further incentives to help pay for energy efficiency work on your home.
I was pleased to welcome Danny Alexander MP, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, to Cheadle constituency. Following a successful lunch event with local business leaders, Danny and I toured MAN Diesel’s UK Headquarters in Hazel Grove, Stockport. During the visit, the Company gave a presentation on their operations and future plans and Danny had the opportunity to speak to senior managers and apprentices.
After a visit to Manchester Withington to support Lib Dem colleague, John Leech MP, Danny was guest of honour at Cheadle constituency Lib Dem’s Annual Dinner. Over a hundred supporters and party members came together to share dinner and listen to Danny speak on a number of subjects ranging from the Scottish independence referendum to EU membership.
Major local employer, Starkey Laboratories, kindly hosted Nick Clegg and I during a recent visit by the Deputy Prime Minister to Cheadle constituency. Starkey have been producing state of the art audio equipment from their Hazel Grove base 1976, and it was a great opportunity to speak with some of their two hundred employees about the often life-changing hearing-aid products that they make.
Nick also made a whistle-stop visit to Cheadle constituency HQ to rally local Lib Dem supporters ahead of the Local and European elections on 22nd May. He took time out to rally the many supporters and members who were hard at work in preparation for polling day. It was great of Nick to find time in his incredibly busy schedule to come to Cheadle constituency again and meet with local residents and supporters.
That’s it for another month, all that remains to be said is that I do urge you to get down to the polling station on 22nd May for the Local and European elections, whichever way that you’re voting!
Yours sincerely,
Mark Hunter MP
9 Comments
Incredibly busy schedule for Clegg? Doing what precisely.
Your leader has made a science of doing b****r all. He is a puppet who contributes nothing to anything – unless it has EU stamped on it maybe.
Bruce,
http://www.whatthehellhavethelibdemsdone.com/
But I appreciate your political leanings are otherwise 🙂
Iain
I haven’t read the website but does it mention the 20% VAT – or the fees for students? He may be good at debating but the man just doesn’t cut it.
Nobody rates him outside your party – and probably very few in it either – but they dare not say anything.
Politicians of all parties, and in particular MEPs, have lost the confidence of the public – that is why the protest vote will go to UKIP.
Bruce – you’re right that the Coalition chose to carry through Labour’s 20% VAT rate, can’t argue with that one.
As for fees for students, when the Tories supported Labour’s Browne Report with it’s unlimited fees, I think the Lib Dems did right coming up with a proposal that sees poorer graduates pay less than under Labour, richer grads pay more (i.e. a more progressive system) and sees all grads pay less each year than under Labour.
The presentation has been horrendous – it’s a graduate tax in all but name and the party could have saved itself a lot of pain by calling it a grad tax, but as a result of the new system we now have more young people than ever before going to university and, importantly, more people from poorer backgrounds going to university (up 70% in 10 years).
As for the protest vote, you’re right that a party of government isn’t going to pick it up.
Do take a few minutes to look at the site I’ve linked to though.
The main issue with the graduate tax is that your party actually signed a pledge and then reneged on it. The only leader who has any gravitas/ministerial quality is Cameron (which is not saying much!) – and he only formed the coalition because this was his only chance of being PM.
That is the main problem with career politicians – they will tell you anything (and not tell us other things) to remain in office. When was the last MP to resign on a principle?
Bruce,
You’re right – that is the issue with the graduate tax. However, it’s also true that:
a) all parties have signed up to things pre-election that they’ve not done post-election for all sorts of reasons so to single out the Lib Dems on that one is purely political.
b) the reason the Lib Dems went back on the pledge was to get the best deal for students – had the party not done that, students would have ended up paying more for their education and I think that would have been a bad thing.
Of course Cameron only went into the Coalition to be PM – but that’s why political parties exist! The voters gave no party an overall majority.
The big difference is 400 Libdems , including Clegg, Campbell and Cable actually SIGNED a document – other parties issue promises etc but never actually put their signature at the bottom of any! And as for your response (b) that is just waffle, spin and sophistry – and if true why the pledge.
A further note is that I have read somewhere that the new system could actually cost the taxpayer more than the original one.
Just received your ‘Local Voice’ in which you state that hard working residents are better off. This is just not true.
Working people are on average over £1500 a year worse off since the Libdems came to office (never happened before – you in power – coincidence?), yet very high earners have enjoyed a huge tax cut.
“And on the cost of living, growth and the deficit, the Libdems have failed every test they set themselves in 2010.”
And as for that criticism of Cheshire East council – If Stockport have a traffic problem that is up to you lot to sort it out – they are entitled to do what they deem
appropriate for their constituents. He wouldn’t say a word if it was a Libdem council.
Why does Marky himself not reply ? !