Lib Dems Hike Sport Costs

Hedge End folk who use Town Council sports pitches for football or cricket, or Council halls for keep fit, martial arts, zumba or pilates will see the cost of hiring those facilities leap up by 3% in April. The Lib Dem dominated Recreation and Amenities committee decided in December to rubber stamp the Town Clerk's recommendation of an across the board 3% increase in charges.

Three percent might seem a small increase but it comes after a year in which inflation has been more or less zero. What is the justification in hiking charges to the people of Hedge End when the Council's own costs are much the same as they were twelve months ago?

The increase undermines the credibility of the Lib Dems' attempts to encourage people to take on more physical activity on the Borough Council web site. It is another example of the Lib Dems saying one thing and doing the opposite.

Since last May's elections there are four Conservatives on the Town Council, but they chose not to challenge the Lib Dem increases, and at full Council in December seemed happy to nod through all the Lib Dem decisions. Perhaps they kept their heads down in case the Lib Dems tried to put the blame on the Conservative government's cuts.

New Boss for Berry

Hedge End's Berry Theatre is getting a new boss. See Daily Echo Story here: http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/12954916.New_director_appointed_to_Hampshire_theatres/

Let's hope Mr Wright really is Mr Right for our local theatre which has been somewhat neglected by the council in the past: http://hedgeendblogger.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/berry-disappointing-act-ii-does-not.html

That's Democracy Folks!

Thursday's elections have affected three of Hedge End's four levels of government. Only at county level have there been no changes.

Mike Thornton was swept away along with 48 other Lib Dem MPs to be replaced by newcomer to Eastleigh, Conservative Mims Davies.

At Eastleigh Borough Council,  Lib Dem Derek Pretty kept his seat in Grange Park and colleague Emma Norman took the Wildern ward seat left vacant by Jenny Hughes' mysterious resignation. Tory Jerry Hall took St Johns ward. With the Lib Dems also losing Hamble-le-Rice and Butlocks Heath ward, their majority at the Borough reduces marginally from 40-4 to 38-6.

Before Thursday Hedge End Town Council comprised 20 Lib Dems and one Independent. It now has 17 Lib Dems and four Conservatives. The Tories' success has forced out some experienced, hard working Lib Dems: Sheila Baynes, Margaret Allingham and Rupert Kyrle all lost their seats and newcomer Antony Marsh failed to win a place on the council.

With Councillors Louise Bloom, Nathan Khan, Richard Effeny, Dan Clarke and Ray Worley opting not to stand for re-election, there are nine new faces on the Council. Conservatives Jerry Hall, Stephanie Arnold, Georgina Jenks and Chris Yates join new Lib Dems Stephen Carr, Michael Lyons, Ian Corben, Connor Burgess and James Mitchell.

Another consequence of the changes is there is no longer a place for me as an Independent on Hedge End Town Council, so I understand a little of what some of our defeated Lib Dems might be feeling. I am grateful to those Hedge Enders who supported my candidacy by signing my nomination papers and voting for me on Thursday. But there were not enough of us, and that's how democracy works.

Hedge End (Wildern) Ward

Name of Candidate	Party	Votes
DAY, Keith Philip	Independent	286
HELPS, Andrew	Labour Party	296
JENKS, Georgina Alice	Conservative Party Candidate	656 E
JUPE, John Malcolm	Liberal Democrat	585 E
MARSH, Antony Charles	Liberal Democrat	521
NORMAN, Emma Jayne	Liberal Democrat	669 E
	% Poll	67.58%

The full results are available at http://www.eastleigh.gov.uk

Will the Lib Dems Fix their Flooding Path?

The dry weather so far in April has hidden the Lib Dems' embarrassment over their "all weather" cycle path which flooded every time it rains. Eastleigh Council do seem to have improved the problem in Greta Park, but the section between Greta Park and Turnpike Way is still under mud and water after even a moderate shower. With rain in the forecast for later this week there could be an unwanted reminder of this mess in the week leading up to the local elections.

The Council have agreed the extra drainage they put in has not fixed the problem and are investigating what can be done. But there are mutterings about whether there is still any budget, which suggests the Council's contractors have been allowed to get away with substandard work. And highlights the Lib Dems' questionable decision to divert £360,000 away from countryside improvements and donate it to the Ageas Bowl boxing club when some it could have been used to fix this problem for local people.

Disclaimer: Keith Day is standing as an independent candidate for Hedge End Wildern in both Borough and Town Council elections on 7 May.

Least surprising stakeboard ever?

It would seem that the plush Conservative club in Hedge End are supporting the Conservative candidate. It's nice to see they know who the candidate is at least.

Strong Economy or Fair Society?

The shameful legacy of five years of Lib Dem / Tory government. According to the Trussell Trust, nearly a million people had to rely on charity food handouts last year.

Hedge End has not been immune to this consequence of ideologically driven austerity. Our local food bank is not run by the Trussell Trust, but by Kings Community Church in Upper Northam Road.

General Election Hustings Announced

Hedge End's Kings Community Church have organised general election hustings to take place on 29th April, starting at 7:30.

The Town Council has been told that candidates from "all the major parties" have been invited. It is understood that these are the only hustings to have been announced in Eastleigh for the general election.

A representative of the church came to this week's council meeting and asked us to publicise the event and encourage people to attend.

Hustings are a traditional part of election campaigns dating back to the eighteenth century. Let's hope all the candidates turn up and give Hedge Enders a chance to to question them. Much as I support the use of Twitter, Facebook and other online methods to connect people with their representatives, you can't beat a good face to face once in a while.