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Comments are now enabled Tuesday, 04 May, 2010
I haven’t been able to blog for a week or so because we have just been hectic campaigning. In the last week I have been in Broughton, Ulverston, Walney, Hawcoat, Roose, Newbarns canvassing. I have no idea how many doors we have knocked on in this time. We have also been leafleting and there have been two shadow Cabinet visitors. On Wednesday 28th May, William Hague joined us for his third visit since I was selected. As always he was popular on the streets and this included attracting a few protesters. William met a descendent of Pitt the Younger, which given his interest led to a lively discussion on the Pitt family. He also met at least a half dozen people who came up to him and said they used to vote Labour, but never again.
Thursday saw my attentions turn to rural affairs when Jim Paice, Shadow Farming Minister joined us on his second visit since I was selected. We chatted to market traders in Ulverston, met a guy manufacturing Cumbrian sausages (which were very nice) and then met passers by.
On Friday I did a debate with the other two main candidates in Barrow 6th Form. It was well attended and I enjoyed it. Well done to Matthew for organising it and everyone for turning up and listening to the three of us ‘drone on’.
The weekend was taken up by a final round of canvassing, getting everything ready for the big day and some admin to catch up.
Only a couple of more days to go.
Wednesday, 28 April, 2010
I was on BBC Radio Cumbria yesterday debating with my opposite numbers, during the interview John Woodcock tried to make a big thing of asking me to agree with him on the timetable for the Trident Successor. Given that the Astute programme has been delayed by 4.5 years (9 months per boat for boats 2-7) and that the Successor timetable has slipped because the design wasn’t signed off in September 2009, to say that you can definitely stick with the original timetable, which assumed these two delays didn’t happen, in my view you are either engaging in wishful thinking or being dishonest.
I try to answer questions without doing either and that is why the best answer I can give is that the programmes are in a mess, we will sort it out and build the submarines with no gap.
This is, to me an honest answer, maybe it’s not the answer you want to hear, but I’d rather that than being accused of dishonesty or wishful thinking.
Monday, 26 April, 2010
I meant to blog about this on Saturday but I didn’t get round to it. I was accused of being a Tory Toff by a Labour supporting person in their garden, who went on to say I shouldn’t be walking down the street in this ‘Labour town’. Now normally, on the very odd occasion that this happens, I walk on by, but I couldn’t resist.
I said to them that I was from a working class family, I went to a comp, they should stop shouting at people in the street, I had every right to walk down the street and that I will continue to do so, and also that they should check their facts before calling this working class Tory a Toff.
Like all people of this nature they refused to listen, uttered a few rude words and then shouted a little as I walked away.
It’s sad to see that such closed minds still exist and I do feel a little sorry for people who act like this. It must shatter their carefully constructed illusions when the Tory candidate doesn’t meet their lazy stereotypes. I hope one day this person will learn to listen, ask questions and think for themselves rather than rely on caricatures.
Saturday, 24 April, 2010
I was suprised to receive an email from someone who wondered if my use of the word ‘banana republic’ was racist. I think it is a commonly used phrase to describe a country with a less than perfect democracy where harassment of your political opponents is rife. So is it racist?, of course not and to be frank to think it is, either shows that you have (a) a keenly developed sense of what is politically correct, or (b) you have had a bit of a sense of humour failure. Let's not get to worked up about commonly used phrases we all understand instead let us turn our attention to combating real lies such as the nonsense being peddled by the Labour Party about our plans for Surestart, bus passes, winter fuel payment and many others. During the second leaders debate on 22nd April Gordon Brown claimed he had not authorised these leaflets being put out by Labour candidates, do we really believe that, and would the person who emailed like to worry about this rather than my use of a common phrase.
Thursday, 22 April, 2010
Ever since the election was called my posters have been pulled down, defaced, covered over and stolen. Today we discovered some bright spark had pasted a couple of Labour posters over one of my posters near Ormsgill. Now I don’t know if the person responsible reads this blog (assuming they can read) but covering posters like this is illegal under election law. Accordingly, I have reported it to the Police, who will also receive the posters for forensic testing. They will add this to the ones I have already submitted, and the Labour Party agent will be informed. At this stage I will not take it any further, and I am sure that Terry, the Labour Agent, will be just as angry at this immature and stupid behaviour.
This is the final warning but, if it happens again then I will ask the Police to investigate, and when you wonder why our Police are having to waste time doing this, blame the morons who deface posters, thinking it is a legitimate way of campaigning. This is not some dodgy banana republic where this is acceptable, so if you a reading this, stop doing it right now.
Tuesday, 20 April, 2010
Once again the Royal Navy has come to our aid in helping to return stranded holiday makers following the volcano in Iceland. The ships diverted are HMS Ark Royal (Aircraft Carrier), HMS Ocean (Amphibious Helicopter Assault Ship) and HMS Albion (Amphibious Assault ship). Yet more proof of the intrinsic value of big surface ships, especially aircraft carriers.
Monday, 19 April, 2010
I went along to the BARDS group today to meet people living with asbestosis. It was very moving as a member of my family has a similar condition. It isn’t really about politics and I am sure my opponents would agree with me in saying that whoever is elected, we will support this group and do all we can to raise awareness of this horrible condition.
Sunday, 18 April, 2010
A number of my posters have been defaced or removed around Barrow. Now I don’t mind a moustache or maybe a comedy beard but to pull down posters or draw something rude is beyond a joke. It seems sad to me that in our democracy this happens but that’s life I guess.
Wednesday, 14 April, 2010
Just a quick blog tonight as I have just come in from a great meeting with the Ulverston Business Alliance. I really enjoyed the debate and I hoped I explained our philosophy that it is not the Government, and by extension MP’s, who are the experts but local communities who know what they want to do. It is our job as a Government to help this and not put obstacles in the way. Before that David Cameron was in town touring BAE, he also brought Liam Fox the Shadow Defence Secretary with him. There was a rather small and pathetic demo outside with people wearing Margaret Thatcher masks, which is ironic given the DDH was built by the Conservatives and opened by Mrs T. It just serves to remind people of the real beliefs of these people, they may pretend they support the shipyard and pretend they support nuclear deterrence but given half a chance they would drop it all.
David and Liam were clear, we will build the new submarines here, any delay is because this Government have delayed Astute and the successor is only going ahead because we supported it when 88 Labour MP’s rebelled in the Commons.
Facts and truth not spin and bluster.
Tuesday, 13 April, 2010
My Labour opponent is complaining that when I twittered “"Met a couple of Labour voters who wanted to vote Green this time, I helpfully told them there was a Green candidate standing.", this shows I am a cynical manipulative person because I am trying to get people to vote for someone else other than Labour. I think his comments show just how desperate his attempts are to try and win this seat. What happened was this: whilst out canvassing a lady explained she wanted to vote Green, I obviously tried to switch her to the Conservatives but she still wanted to vote Green. She asked me if there was a Green candidate standing, so what exactly would Mr. Woodcock (Labour candidate) expect me to do in this situation. I believe in giving a straight answer to a straight question so I told her there was. This is not being cynical, it's being honest. Incidentally if I am asked for the name of the Lib Dem or Labour candidate I tell people, what do you gain from trying to hide it?
After years of canvassing in this area, no one has complained about this honesty apart from the local Labour Party, so I will continue to answer questions truthfully, honestly and to the best of my knowledge. That is what you will get if I am elected, I tell the truth, I give an honest answer and I don't spend all my time trying to run down my opponent.
This week people have said to me they support us because we won't increase the tax on jobs, they like our marriage tax proposals and they believe that the delay in the shipyard is Labour's fault and trying to blame it on us is nonsense. I am campaigning on issues not silly stunts and I will continue to do this till election day.
Saturday, 10 April, 2010
We only just got in a few hours ago from canvassing in Dalton where we had a good session and picked up plenty of new support. Included amongst these were a number of shipyard workers who know the score in the yard and know that the only threat to this yard is Labour, because they are the ones delaying the Astute programme now not some fantasy five year delay. I also had a very interesting conversation with a constituent who explained he had spoken to me this week twice. The first using his real name and the second a different name, but in both cases he asked the same question. He rang again today to say that he was switching from Labour to the Conservatives because I had answered the same question the same way, and this he said proved I was honest.
I am really quite chuffed at this, I do try to be honest and as I have said before on this blog it is really nice when someone acknowledges this. I think it is time for a glass of wine to celebrate.
Thursday, 08 April, 2010
I’ve had a busy couple of days getting the campaign working. We have been putting up posters, dealing with correspondence, handing out leaflets across the constituency and of course canvassing. Yesterday I received a call from a 92 year old gentleman who explained that he had always voted Labour, but never again. He told me about the election in 1945 and his experiences in the war. He explained that his regiment was forced to use WW1 vintage Lewis machine guns and he found it shocking that we are still sending our troops to war with insufficient weapons and equipment. I said that we probably couldn’t blame Gordon Brown for appeasement and the lack of equipment due to the under funding of defence in the 1930’s but the analogy with today was apt.
Today, we were in Ulverston canvassing with Sir Robert Atkins MEP, we covered a lot of ground and the common view was that Labour have failed to do what they set out to do and just where had all the money gone?. I then went out in Parkside this evening and we got the same message. People kept mentioning the National Insurance rise, they are not stupid they know a tax rise when they see one.
I’ve also got my twitter account working so I’ll try and keep posting.
I am on BBC Radio Cumbria tomorrow debating jobs; here are some key points of our approach:
Tuesday, 06 April, 2010
Finally after all the waiting the election has been called, this may mean a few changes to the way I blog over the election period. Obviously the bulk of my time is spent canvassing, leafleting and talking to people about why they need to vote Conservative this time. I am therefore not going to have as much time to post such lengthy blog entries and instead I propose to keep an on line diary of what I have been up to.
So to start, today I was in Ulverston Auction Market first thing and then once the election was called I joined my team leafleting in Ulverston. From there I went through to Dalton and then to Barrow.
I am really pleased by the response both on the doorstep and the street, people are ringing me up offering their support and vote, lets hope we get the result we need and the Country a new a fresh Government.
More tomorrow when I will start twittering again, if I can get my account to work!
Monday, 05 April, 2010
Gordon Brown is claiming today that our proposal not to go ahead with the bulk of the National Insurance (NI) rise planned by him for April 2011 risks plunging the UK back into a recession. Last week we announced that we would not go ahead with this rise, meaning 7 out of 10 people will be better off under our plans and instead we fund this by efficiencies within the public sector of £6bn. These are efficiencies already identified by the Government but which they do not want to deal with until another day.
So let me get this straight, Gordon claims we will go back into recession because of our NI plans, is this guy serious?
First, he claims our efficiency gains are not specific, unfunded and therefore not real. Does he expect us to believe that we cannot find £6bn savings from the public sector which spends around £700bn or so each year, less than 1% of the total?
Second, his own Government advisors have identified at least £11bn of waste that could be cut but he is just refusing to do so until a later year. Just how does spending £11bn next year on waste help the recovery?
Third, he claims that our plans would take £6bn out of the economy at this crucial time in the recovery. I don’t know where Gordon did economics, but he is just plain wrong, no money would be taken out of the economy.
Under Conservative plans we wouldn’t go ahead with the tax rise so £6bn stays with the people who earn it and are therefore able to spend and save it as they see fit.
Under Labour plans £6bn is taken from working people and spent by the Government on their behalf on what the Government already admits is wasteful activity.
In purely economic terms, and assuming that the Government can spend money efficiently, there is no money taken from the economy, it is merely transferred from individual spending to Government spending. In real life we know that a lot of the money gets swallowed up by waste and inefficiency so the ‘bang for your buck’ from £6bn spent by individuals is greater than £6bn spent by the Government. That is why the Government argued that the temporary VAT cut of £12bn was an effective way of boosting spending, because it put money into the hands of people immediately.
The simple fact is that Labour likes spending our money and they think they can spend it better than us. They don’t like plans which mean they get less to spend and leave more with the people who earn it.
Saturday, 03 April, 2010
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