Following problems with phpbb, I activated plans last week to upgrade the discussion forum at www.wharfedaleforums.com, which is used by around 3,000 people each month to discuss local issues.

Site relaunch completed, with new look, new software, and new facilities. Please let me know if you find it useful!

Some residents obviously do – daily page views jumped from around the 5,000 mark to a record 21,999 pages on the 19th June. Just as well the new software can cope!

My thanks to Burley in Wharfedale Community Trust, whose prominent link to wharfedaleforums.com generates more visits than any other source apart from Google.

Regards,

Matt

A change from the usual here.

What happens if you spend you life pursuing a dream, only to fail because it was the wrong dream?

I went this evening to see Arthur Miller’s play ‘Death of a Salesman’ at West Yorkshire Playhouse, in which Willy Loman is a man whose dreams never came to pass. He had a dream – but it was very much the wrong one – he seemed to have adopted the dream of another man and taken it for his own, without questioning whether it was right for him.

Perhaps there is a parallel here with Bradford? It is increasingly a city of unfulfilled aspiration.

It’s residents are more likely to want to set up a business than almost anywhere else in the country – but they are less likley to do so.

It’s City fathers built momuments to success that they no doubt thought would last for many generations. If they could but see where the city has been for the last half century.

It’s a city that wants to do the best for it’s children – it invented the school lunch, and today is a city in which no end of education experts invest entire careers on trying to give our children a better chance. Yet today we have some of the least healthy kids in the country and our schools are still fighting to make a difference.

It’s a city with gret potential – diversity is often trotted out as  a strength without a lot of thought, but it really is – or rather can be – the reality can be altogether different for many.

It’s a creative city – art, music, literature – Bradfordians are up there with the best, try a night out with University students – they know this.

For all the yorkshire grit it’s a caring city – perhaps because it’s people know life can be hard.

It is a city that wants to succeed, but a city whose ambition remains unfulfilled. The entrepreneurialism of Bradford people is hard to reconcile with streets of vacant, abandoned shops and unloved frontages.

Perhaps that’s because we’ve been aiming for the wrong things. Bradford is often compared (negatively) to Leeds, but it it not Leeds. Leeds is good at being Leeds. Why not let Bradford be good at being Bradford, instead of bad at being Leeds? Of course, we’d need to start seeing our City differently.

The Westfield shopping centre scheme is a good idea – until you look at other cities that have build shopping centres in their city centres – Reading for example, where the shopping centre is an excellent one but still leaves you feeling sometimes that planners left the City’s heart beating but took away it’s soul. Until, also, you look at other places defined by shopping centres – back to Leeds again. Leeds is an attractive proposition for shoppers, as long as you’re looking for the same thing whether you’re in the city centre, the White Rose centre, or indeed other cities – try Meadowhall. A mid-sized shopping centre with a smaller selection of the same stuff will never bring people into Bradford. Nor will it ever be Bradford. It will be better than the mess that was there before, and better than a hole in the ground – but if not aspirational enough, if it does not connect the city together and connect with the city around it, it runs the risk of being the same mistake made in the 1960s when much of horror recently demolished was erected.

Perhaps the current economic crisis provides an opportunity to rethink.

Perhaps it offers a chance for crossrail, perhaps a chance to bring some of the creativity that runs throughout the City into it’s centre. Perhaps an opportunity to reconnect Little Germany with the City Centre. Or perhaps that is a ‘dream to far’, and we need to settle for Westfield, or something like it. If we must we must, but I’d like to think we can do better.

Likewise, the Odeon development – New Victoria Place – will be better than what is there now, as long as you don’t too hard look at which City you’re putting it in to, and where you’re putting it. As soon as you do, the absurdity of it is evident. It takes away an iconic skyline and replaces it with an identikit office block, and one in all the wrong proportions at that. I may have said all along it was the wrong thing to do, and to have voted against it, but still we seem to be stuck with it. Why can’t we have something more suited to Bradford? Something that will complement it’s surroundings and inspire Bradford’s children as the Odeon and Alhambra did? Because Yorkshire Forward says we can’t? Not good enough, our children will say in 20 years time.

The good bit though is the City Park – unpopular though it may be at the moment, it connects the city and offers something unique and special. It will be excellent when complete, giving people a reason to look again at the City Centre, and a reason to enjoy it – a reason to be part of it. It just won’t be enough by itself.

We should have a centre that is distinctly Bradford, a city centre that helps the city understand itself. Most of all we need a city centre that inspires our children.

15 years ago right here in this district a teacher inspired me to read Arthur Miller. I’ve waited those 15 years to see Death of a Salesman – I don’t think I’ve waited quite that long for anything else! I’m glad I did – the performance was well worth the wait, and it is a small part of a dream fulfilled.

But can we do the same for Bradford?

All the attention on the Council this week has been around the change in Leadership.

However, equally significant constitutional changes have been rushed through in a sneaky lib/dem amendment as part of the deal between Labour and the Liberal Democrats, that could create gridlock at City Hall and put front line services at risk.

Under the ill thought out changes rushed through on Tuesday in order to secure a last-minute deal, all decisions made by the executive will have to be second-guessed by a scrutiny committee. This will at best hold up decision making for months and at worst make it completely impossible.

It will cause total gridlock at City Hall, with any decision, however minor, having to go to at least two committees and possibly on to full council for a decision to be made – a process that can take up to six months.

It also undermines the independence of Scrutiny, which we have carefully developed over many years, and will bog down the work programme with minor issues that do not need to be discussed and do not add value for the people of Bradford.

Another part of the decision – to stop officers moving small funds between budgets without an agreement by full Council – is just as damaging. It is hard enough to make difficult decisions as it is. This proposal will prevent officers from responding to changes in funding and costs and could put at risk front line services if there are budget pressures in areas such as social care or education. By the time a decision can be made it may well be too late – it will now take 90 people up to 3 months to make a decision that could previously have been made by 2 people in 24 hours.

What Bradford district needs is clear, decisive leadership from someone with a clear mandate to deliver, not bureaucratic gridlock.

Hardly an example of local democracy at it’s best. I’m not sure who disappoints me most – the Lib/dems who came up with such a daft proposal, then sat on their hands and refused to vote – or Labour who fell for it.

The amendment to the constitution in full – see sections 1 a) and 5.

To be moved by Councillor Sunderland

Seconded by Councillor Middleton

That the amendments to the Constitution listed in the Appendix to Document “AH” submitted to the Corporate Governance and Audit Committee on 5 March 2010 be adopted and implemented as proposed subject to the inclusion of the following additional recommendations.

1.        That Article 6 (Overview and Scrutiny Committees), the Executive Procedure Rules and the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules be amended to include

a)provisions which require all recommendations to the Executive to be considered by the appropriate Overview and Scrutiny Committee in advance of inclusion on the Executive agenda.

b) provisions that the chair of the Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Committee be a member of the group forming the Executive and all other overview and scrutiny committees be chaired by members of the opposition.

2.        That Article 12 (Area Committees and Neighbourhood Forums) be amended to include a power for Area Committees to undertake consideration and scrutiny of the delivery of local services and to make recommendations on service delivery to the Executive and/or full Council including the voluntary sector commissioning process.

3.        That Part 2 (Articles of the Constitution) be amended to include an additional Article: Group Leaders’ Briefing setting out a requirement that the Leaders of the 3 largest political groups shall attend regular briefings with the Chief Executive and Strategic Directors.

4.        That Article 7 (The Executive) be amended to include a requirement that each member of the Executive shall undertake a monthly briefing for the spokespersons of each of the 2 largest political groups in opposition.

5.        That Part 3C (Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules) be amended to:

5.1.   Prohibit the virement of resources where the transfer of resources is from budgets for capital charges and/or statutory taxes and levies.

5.2.   Authorise the appropriate officers to transfer resources within a revenue budget up to a maximum amount of £25,000.

5.3.   Require requests for virement of revenue budget over £25,000 or which result in a change in the level of service provided to be submitted by the Assistant Director Finance to Council for approval where there is disagreement.

6.        That the City Solicitor be given delegated authority in consultation with the Leaders of the 3 largest political groups to make all the necessary amendments to the Constitution of the Council to implement these additional amendments.

A big thank you to everyone who voted for me on Thursday. We didn’t get there this time, but we have made an impact. We cut Labour’s majoroty from 9,167 to just 4,162, and showed up their appalling track record in Bradford South.

Thanks in particular to all those people who volunteered to help with the campaign – I hope you will stay involved and be part of the change we will see in the coming days.

I may not have been elected, but I will continue to work hard for Bradford.

Dear resident,

You will have received a number of leaflets from candidates at this election. However, on polling day I wanted to write to you directly to explain why this election is so important, and why Bradford is so important to me.

I understand that people feel let down by politics and politicians, and tired of broken promises. That’s why over the last few months I’ve been out meeting as many residents as possible rather than putting up posters and putting leaflets through doors. I know leaflets and speeches are no longer enough, so I’ve been out with local residents and Conservative council candidates, doing hnds-on things that make a real difference throughout the constituency – such as cleaning up streets in Great Horton and parks in Queensbury, working on plans for Odsal with residents and dealing with litter in Wibsey and pot holes in Wyke. You shouldn’t have to rely on promises, you should be able to see your future MP in action in your community and meet him face to face. That’s what I’ve tried to do. If we haven’t met yet please get in touch, I will be happy to talk to you.

I know your expect a lot from your MP, and you have a right to honesty. That’s not just honesty about tough issues like immigration and the economy, but honesty about politics, too. That’s why I’m making it clear right now – if you elect me I will only claim for expenses I’ve actually incurred in doing the job and will post the lot online, backed up with receipts. I won’t claim £400 a month for food just because I can, and I’ll be straight with you from day one.

You have a right to someone who will stand up for your interests, not tell you why things can’t be done. That’s why I’ve said I will live in the constituency if elected, not in Bingley like the current MP. What’s good enough for you is good enough for me and my family. Only by living locally and sharing the issues you face can I represent you properly.

You have a right to seen results. We can’t afford to let things slide. I know that some issues, such as Broadway, are caught up in global problems that will be tough to solve, but there are answers. It’s time to sort out our city centre, and if elected I will seek an immediate meeting with the Prime Minister to kick-start progress. Hopefully that will be David Cameron – Conservative Policy on regeneration is built on work I led for the Cities Task Force, when I brought David to Bradford to see the problems first hand. Our proposals will get things moving, and I’ll work with colleagues of all parties to deliver the jobs and investment we need.

It’s time politicians took people seriously and faced up to the difficult issues. That’s why I’m not just talking about investing in the NHS, which everyone supports – I’m determined to deal with the tough stuff too.

On the economy, we all know that when times are tough at home you have to cut back on extra spending or earn more money to balance the household books. That’s what we need to do as country too. It won’t be easy, but we can do it. Too many people here in Bradford know the cost of rising debt, and we all know we can’t borrow our way out of it, even if that’t what Gordon Brown would like to do. In a few years we’ll be spending more money on debt interest than on education. That’s just not right, and we can’t let it happen.

On immigration, we’ve heard the economic arguments but we also see every day the impact on our communities when immigration is out of control. I support the Conservative plans for a proper border force, and a controlled reduction in immigration. We can do that to, and do it fairly for all.

On crime, it’s time to deal with the day to day crimes and bad behaviour that put fear in our communities. We also need to end early release and make sure real criminals are tried and convicted, not released back into the community. Too many people are scared to report criminals for fear of retaliation. That’s wrong.

You may have received a very negative leaflet from the Labour MP complaining about the state of our city and our country, and blaming the Conservatives for everything. I say it’s time to stop complaining and do something about it. I say it’s time to stop laying blame and time to take responsbility for our future.

Bradford can be an amazing city. There is plenty of work to do, but we can do it together – we just need to start. We can deliver regeneration in the City Centre. We can deliver new investment and new jobs. We can and will deliver Broadway and a City Centre we can be proud of.

I’m proud of our city and our country, and I want to work with you to make it better. I do hope you take the time to vote at this election, and if you do choose to support me – thank you.

SIR – In the last two weeks, Bradford South has been described in your paper as a safe Labour seat.

It is not. Mr Greenhalf suggested that Conservatives have ‘given up’ (T&A, April 23). We have not.

I worked hard for the opportunity to stand for Bradford South at this election and in recent weeks and months I have been out every day meeting and talking to local residents. I cannot guess the outcome of this election, but I can tell you it is not a ‘safe’ seat.

If conversations I have had are anything to go by, the outgoing Labour MP may just be in for a surprise!

Regardless of the outcome, after this election local residents will still be here, and so will I.

If anyone still believes the Conservatives have ‘given up’, let me set them straight right here and right now – I have not given up on a single street or a single person, and I will not do so now or later.

I am fighting to win for the Conservatives and for Bradford. It really is time for a change.

Matt Palmer, Conservative Candidate for Bradford South

From the T&A website

This weekend Conservatives in Bradford South held an action weekend, getting involved and cleaning up parts of the Constituency.

We visited Great Horton with Conservative council candidate Qurban Hussain and cleared up several back-streets of litter with help from local residents:

Matt's community clean-up in Great Horton

And we visited Queensbury with Conservative council candidate Allan Shepherd, clearing up a local park:

Queensbury Park clean-up

This will make a small but real difference to local residents. People are sick of broken promises – so rather than making promises, we’re getting down to to real work in local communities. Do you want a visit from your local Conservative team, before or after the election? Please get in touch!

Having put a lot of work into the literature I’m sending to people at this election, it was gutting to find that the printers had copied some text from someone else’s election leaflet into mine, and sent it out without my having a chance to see it before hand.

Unforunately, the first I heard of the error was when a number of local people kindly pointed it out. I am investigating how they managed to do this, but it it too late to fix. Fortunately, most local residents have more sense that to base their vote on printing errors!

For the record, the paragraph about ‘guisborough and saltburn’ should not have been in the leaflet, it is someone else’s text! I do apologise.

Matt

It seems Bradford South MP and Licensing Minister Gerry Sutcliffe is now supporting community run pubs – and choosing to make a fussa bout it.

Only earlier this month he was effectively fired as pubs minister after bungling the implementation of the Licensing Act. He has done so little for our local pubs that Gordon Brown has even had to appoint a seperate Pubs Minister to get the job done.

Now it seems Sutcliffe is leaking his colleagues ideas early in order to claim he has the answers to Bradford’s pubs crisis.

Community run pubs are nothing new, but it is absurd to think that hard working people and local communities can pick up the management an running of large scale local businesses across the city and replace an industry that is being decimated by punitive taxation and unfair competition from cut price beer sales by supermarkets.

Instead of messing around with old ideas that will only help a very small number of pubs at best, we need a real plan of action to put all our pubs back in business for good.

That means reforming the punitive taxation that is driving publicans out of business, reviewing the rules that tie landlords to high prices, abolishing the extra red tape brought in by Sutcliffe’s constant tinkering with the Licensing Act, and bringing in legislation to stop supermarkets driving pubs under by selling alcohol below cost price.

We also need a strong economy and that means a realistic plan to deal with the gorwing national debt, and a plan to reduce the burden of tax and red tape that ties local pub companies in knots.

Labour has run out of ideas and is driving more local businesses under every day.

introducing my new campaign web site at http://www.mattpalmer.net