From former Ockendon councillor, Lynn Carr
Sir,
I read with interest a letter in the Thurrock Gazette from a Mr Chris Poole. It was titled “UKIP boost for Labour”.
Mr Poole ends his letter: “Had I known a vote for UKIP would let Labour in, I would have stuck to the Tories and sent my message in a different way. I wont be fooled again”.
Since being defeated by Ukip in the Mays election, I have had many people approach me asking: “Are you still in Lynn? are you still on the council ? can you still help me, can I have some advice. Of course I help if I can and point people in the right direction.
However I am really concerned that the electorate really do not understand the process for local govt and how it works.
People have said, have another go next year, not realising cllrs elected this may are in office for four years.
Another said we voted Ukip to get Cameron out! I replied, he was not up for election!!! (that’s worrying). Others truly believed that UKIP would run the council with six cllrs????.
I suppose a simple leaflet or article would help to explain the process. What I do find frightening is once that cross is cast in the box and the voting paper put into the ballot box it matters.
I understand the frustration of the electorate in Thurrock and indeed the country. I know they wanted to send a message. Did they realise local politics can not change immigration. We now have another Labour-controlled council.
Decisions will be made on all our lives across the board, with more cuts to come. I pray those decisions are well placed for all our sakes. I also pray Labour does the right thing with our money!!!.
Thurrock Council are having to manage with another £12,000000 this year.
I can see the weekly bin collections being cut along with other services that we take for granted.
And what about our chief executive revealing that Thurrock will only have one library?!
Should read £12,000000 less.
Decisions will be made on all our lives across the board, with more to come.
And these cuts Lynn will be imposed by the present Conservative government who don’t give a
toss about ordinary working class people like the majority of us in Thurrock
Do we still not understand that CUTS mean less. Blaming the Tories is always easy. We need to remember that Labour spent years throwing money at everything. Every one in Government local and national needs to achieve more with fewer resources. That is not easy. What is very easy is spending other peoples money. What we don’t want is more debt higher taxes and a fragile economy. Next April will be an opportunity for Joe Public to decide what they want. Having suffered the pain of correcting the financial mess left by the Labour Government do we really want to go back to spending money that we don’t have and kicking the financial can down the road for the next generation to sort out for us.
I wonder how many of your so called working class ticked the box for UKIP last time? These are the people the next Government will need to convince if they are to achieve a working majority in 2015. Poor old Ed is not the poster boy that will convince people that Labour has the answers to take on the challenge of National Government. I have a sneakey feeling that people might think twice before they put Labour back in number 10. Time is running out for Labour to convince people that they are up to the job.
I am really concerned that defeated ex-Conservative Councillor Lynn Carr really doesn’t understand the process for local government and how it works.
She bemoans the face people have said, “..have another go next year, not realising councillors elected this May are in office for four years.”
Lynn I have some news for you. There are local elections next year and Councillor Kielly’s seat in Ockendon is up for grabs. You can have another go next year. You won’t have to wait four year.
Better still Lynn stop moaning about UKIP. They won you lost. If Political parties want to defeat UKIP at the ballot box then have policies and a manifesto that will mean voters will vote for your candidates in greater numbers than the opposition. That’s how our first past the post local democracy works.
Lynn, we do have elections next year, is their any reason why you cannot stand for Belhus please!!
We need to remember that Labour spent years throwing money at everything.
Unlike the present Conservative government throwing it at themselves and telling us were all in the same boat
You are perfectly right Joe Public has had enough of the Eton schoolboys running the country
Who are so far out of touch with normal morality they might as well be on the moon
And your ridiculous comments about saving tax rises just what does it mean to the man in the street a couple more pennies his wage packet, of course different if you have millions it makes a big difference. What as the present government done about the situation in three years except to line their own pockets
I don’t understand the problem the former Councillor has. People have been voting for political parties for no better reason than that was who their parents voted for for decades. Why such a fuss just because people voted for UKIP?
UKIP policies, or rather their two main policies, are likely to appeal to British working class people as they are the ones that feel most in the firing line, although that is now spreading to some so called middle class people. I find it amusing when people say that local elections should be about local issues and not national issues. Surely the latter is a local issue. If it was something happening in a different country, then it shouldn’t be a concern. It’s like saying income tax or benefits payments don’t have a local effect. It’s nonsense.
Superman
You are aware that the whole Labour frontbench are all millionaires, none are working class, very few Labour MPs have working class links, over 50% of Labour candidates are from similar backgrounds and work in Westminster and the biggest millionaire of them all is ex PM Mr Blair.
There is no denying that the top Tories are all posh boys who have led a life of privilege which unfortunately has left them unable to really understand peoples concerns with the EU and immigration. There is no getting away from the fact that the Tories are too liberal which is alienating their core support, which the leadership seem to care little about….
But if you think Labour care one bit about the ‘working man’ then you are mistaken. Labours core vote consists of the non-working working class, immigrant groups and the rich liberal London based middle classes. They care nothing for the people of Thurrock.
As for Lynn I think people knew perfectly well what they were doing. Thurrock Tories offered nothing to attract voters whereas UKIP did. Time will tell if voting UKIP was a good use of the vote.
Ms Carr asks “Did they [voters] realise local politics cannot change immigration”? Most of the campaigning for the local elections, including the leaflets dropped through letter boxes, centred on issues that only Parliament can deal with. As I said to voters just prior to polling day, if local government candidates allow prospective MPs to “hi-jack” local government elections they should not be surprised if the electorate votes accordingly, some voters were further confused by the fact that elections for members of the European Parliament were held at the same time. The success of UKIP in Thurrock was based entirely on the issue of European membership, in particular regarding the problem of “uncontrolled” immigration. The UKIP slogan “Part of Europe NOT governed by Europe” resonated not only with Thurrock voters but with voters throughout the UK, but I doubt Labour or Conservative MPs will give much thought to the opinions and concerns of voters. They will be more inclined to the advice given by Cllr John Kent, to newly elected Councillors, “at all costs avoid reading the comments[of ordinary people] that are posted on web sites [such as “Your Thurrock}.
My advice to politicians, local or central government, take heed of the saying “As you sow so shall you reap”.
UKIP Thurrock had a chance blew it. Could have put Coun Ojetola in office but did not because of their prejudice. Pontificate bloggers on what might have been but Labour are in control of Thurrock. Silly Children. RESIDENTS OF THURROCK GET OFF YOUR BEHINDS AND ASK QUESTIONS OF YOUR POLITCIANS.
I do think some of the users on here like to pick holes in arguments just so they can get a somewhat irrelevant opinion across that they feel particularly passionate about.
At the end of the day, what Lynn has said is completely correct – people in this election were so blinded by the UKIP myth of ‘hey, this party with a Nazi philosophy and no experience in government can solve all of your problems by just figuring out what bugs you all the most and going to town on it’ Voting UKIP in a local election will not solve immigration, and has little influence in national issues. People do need to be made aware of precisely what the role of their councillor is so they can vote on that accordingly.
Of course I may be a little bias – losing Lynn in this election was a political tragedy.