Adrian Sanders

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

It would be pointless to write about the Paignton swine flu case when the news changes by the hour. I am posting any new developments on my website www.adriansanders.org and sending out information to subscribers to my monthly updates - phone 200036 to receive a copy by email.

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The controversy over the expenses system for MPs and Peers is having a hugely damaging effect on public confidence in MPs and politics. The behaviour of a small minority of politicians has played a major role in this collapse in confidence, but there has also been a collective failure to agree on a system that is seen as fair and transparent.

In recent years MPs from both the Labour and Conservative parties have voted against proposals made by the Members' Estimates Committee to toughen the expenses regime, or have attempted to block Freedom of Information regulation that would see MPs' expenses subjected to public scrutiny.

What some MPs seem to forget is that taxpayers pay us to do our job and we should account for every penny that we claim.

Gordon Brown weighed in last week to propose a system that would give MPs a no questions asked cheque just for turning up! Fortunately this was withdrawn from the table before we voted on other proposals yesterday.

My party leader Nick Clegg rightly says that MPs should not be able to make capital gains from the sale of properties bought with a taxpayer subsidised mortgage.

If we were taxed on the capital gain it might encourage more MPs to rent as I have always done. But I would go much further than Nick and ban MPs from renting properties from persons or companies the MP has a connection with. What I would not wish to see is MPs transferring ownership of their properties to family members or companies they have a stake in and then claim rent from the taxpayer.

We have got to get this right and whatever happened yesterday will I hope be the start, not the end of a process. It should lead us to a set of principles under which a lasting system can be agreed.

That permanent solution should be based on the idea that:

• Taxpayers have a right to know how their money is being spent.

• All expenses have to be justified on the basis of enabling MPs to do their job.

• Reform should not increase, and should ideally reduce, the total cost of politics to the taxpayer.

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There's a really good and imaginative new proposal from the Conservatives for improving household energy efficiency that it proving popular among the voters of other parties, but not among Tory supporters!

A poll of a 1,000 adults asked whether they thought the idea of every household being offered a loan of up to £6,500 for energy efficiency improvements to their homes was a good idea.

The results published on the Politics Home website showed that overall voters thought the scheme was a good idea, but a majority of Conservative supporters thought it a bad idea.

Fifty one per cent of Labour and exactly half of Lib Dem supporters thought the scheme was a good idea.

The question was:

A new proposal for moving the UK towards a greener economy involves every household in the country being offered a government-guaranteed loan of up to £6500 to make energy efficiency improvements to their home. This amount will be repaid by additions made to fuel bills, over an average 20 year repayment period. The debt would stay with the house, rather than the individual. Overall (and accounting for repayments) this method is expected to save families £160 per year. Does this seem to you to be a good idea or a bad idea?

It sounds like a perfectly sensible idea to me and I hope the Tories won't drop it just because their own people don't support it.

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What a life Paddy Ashdown has had. Growing up in Northern Ireland, serving in the Royal Marines Special Boat Squadron, becoming a diplomat/spy, a parliamentary candidate, getting elected as an MP, leading his party in Parliament and the country, becoming the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, then the UN representative for Afghanistan and finally an active member of the House of Lords who has just published his autobiography 'A Fortunate Life'.

The Torbay Bookshop arranged a lunch where Paddy read extracts and signed copies. It was great to meet up with him again and be reminded that he was responsible for my meeting his office manager Alison and marrying her, something for which I will always be in his debt.

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Torquay United are in the play-offs again and this time we can't afford to lose out. Next season is going to be much tougher in the Blue Square with Luton Town coming down and AFC Wimbledon coming up.

The club's decision to offer discounted season tickets is a very clever, and given the economic situation, thoughtful move right now. I know of a least two people who will be buying season tickets for the first time ever regardless of which division we will be playing in next season.

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After last Friday's advice surgery I went to a politics supper, only it turned out to be something different.

The local Liberal Democrats organise regular politics suppers where a guest speaker is invited to talk on a subject of importance and members then discuss the issue over some food.

Friday's subject was going to be Torbay's ageing population. The irony that colleagues had chosen such a subject for discussion on the eve of my 50th birthday was not lost on me until I arrived and discovered members had arranged a surprise birthday party to me.

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

For many people, particularly those who live alone, a silent phone call can cause distress. The phone rings, you answer, and no one is there.

The communications regulator Ofcom, consumer champions Consumer Focus and Age Concern, have joined forces to raise awareness of silent calls and how to avoid them.

Although silent calls can seem intimidating, they are usually just marketing calls and not malicious. However, they can be a cause of great anxiety. Knowing how to avoid them is one way consumers can take control.

Silent calls are caused by automated calling systems known as diallers which are often used in call centres to generate and attempt to connect calls. If there are not enough call centre agents to handle the numbers of calls the dialler makes, it may result in a silent call.

Ofcom guidelines state that call centres using diallers should play an information message if a call is abandoned to prevent the call being silent. In many cases this is not happening, and results in consumers receiving silent calls.

Ofcom receives over 1,000 complaints a month from consumers worried and frustrated about this issue.

Consumers can take steps to avoid these calls by registering for the Telephone Preference Service (TPS), which makes it illegal for companies to call them for marketing reasons.

A guide with details of how to register for the TPS and complain about silent calls is available on the web sites of Ofcom, Age Concern and Consumer Focus, or phone the TPS Registration line on 0845 070 0707.

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The recent launch of the Post Bank coalition holds out the prospect that it could save the UK's Post Office network and bring back public confidence in the banking system.

Banking through the Post Office would bring back the community bank, providing reliable and responsible services for local people without the risks of profit-oriented banks. Such schemes work successfully in France, Italy, Germany and other countries.

Although we were able to save two of the three working post offices threatened with closure in Torbay, the South West was hit very hard in the last round of Post Office closures.

By bringing more financial services to the network we can ensure the safety of existing branches. All we need now is support from local councils, regional bodies and central Government to make the scheme a reality.

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We might not have the sunniest climate in the world but ours is still good enough to make use of solar power and I have joined 90 other MPs to support a new campaign to advance its use.

The campaign is targeted at government to ensure that solar owners are rewarded for the electricity that they generate. This is known as a 'Feed-In Tariff' (FIT), and when it is introduced by the Government in 2010 it could mean being paid approximately three to four times more for the solar electricity you generate from solar photovoltaics (PV) than you pay for the electricity from your supplier.

So, you would be paid both to protect the environment from CO2 emissions and yourself from rising electricity bills. A FIT is encouraging thousands of people to install solar PV on the roofs of homes and businesses across the rest of Europe. The same could happen here from April 2010.

Solar PV has proven to be a very effective way of generating clean electricity in the UK as it relies on daylight not heat, requires little or no maintenance and will generate power for forty years plus.

Many new homes are now being built across the country with solar electric roof tiles; a new and innovative way of replacing traditional roof tiles with solar power that can be installed by local roofers with minimal training and are virtually unnoticeable on buildings.

Many thousands of new green jobs will be created in the solar power and roofing sectors in Devon and throughout the south-west if the feed-in  tariff is set at an effective rate to encourage greater take-up of the technology.

For more information, or if you would like to show your support as an individual or business, please see www.wesupportsolar.net 

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Hardly a day goes by without someone contacting my office about their concerns about the fall in their income.

Thousands of my constituents and tens of thousands of people across South Devon rely on their savings to supplement their incomes.

As interest rates plummet further, the Government still refuses to lend a helping hand to those who are being hit hard by the reduction in income this brings.

Over 8 million pensioners gain an income from savings, bringing in around £3-billion a year in tax revenues for the Treasury.

With rising utility and water bills, and with lower savings income, many people will no longer be able to support their standard of living.

The Government seems to be sticking its head in the sand. When I have raised this issue the Minister can only point out help for pensioners that is being totally dwarfed by the impact of the recession.

Nothing new is being done to help pensioners in the face of the downturn and with one of the worst basic pension levels in Europe, British pensioners will soon be suffering further.

Many of my constituents are dismayed seeing the banking executives receive massive pensions and bonuses while billions are wasted on an ineffectual VAT cut. The least the Government can do in the Budget on the 22nd of this month is to provide a real increase in the state pension as well as reducing the tax burden on savings.  

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They say good as well as bad news comes in threes, so after two little victories in Parliament this week I'm wondering what the third will be.

On Tuesday I raised the contentious issue of data sharing with the Justice Minister. The proposed Coroners and Justice Bill contained a clause that would allow for information to be shared beyond public bodies and could be given to private companies in any country.

There is a good case for some sharing of data to catch criminals and prevent terrorism, but this Bill contains few restrictions or safeguards on data at a time when most people have little confidence in their details remaining secure.

Given the number of lost databases and personal details going astray the public have good reason to be concerned about how information is kept and the circumstances under which it can be shared between Government departments and agencies.

Having been contacted by constituents worried about their details being shared without their permission I raised the matter in questions on Tuesday.

In answer the Justice Minister Michael Wills MP told me: "I hope it will give your constituents some reassurance that we have now withdrawn the clause that they are worried about."

At Prime Minister's Question Time I asked if the PM would look at the funding blockages that are delaying South Devon College's expansion plans.

With a monthly increase of 800 people on the dole in South Devon the college's role in training and helping people into work is critical.

I was very pleased to receive a helpful answer from the Prime Minister who said he would look at the specific case.

If only it was always this easy to get positive replies from Government!

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There was a study undertaken a year ago that showed that on average members and supporters of the Greens and the Liberal Democrats had the highest IQs and educational qualifications while those of the British National Party had the lowest.

Of course there were plenty of exceptions to suggest the opposite and it was only a bit of fun, but almost as if to confirm it BNP bosses have just been caught out using a Polish Spitfire to front a campaign calling for Eastern European immigrants to be banned from Britain!

The fascist party's 2009 European Elections poster shows a nostalgic picture of a Second World War fighter plane under the slogan 'Battle for Britain'. RAF experts have identified the iconic plane as belonging not to Britons but to a group of Polish pilots instead.

It was actually flown by the RAF's 303 Squadron - made up of Polish airmen rescued from France shortly before Nazi occupation.

It seems that the BNP have got a bit confused because they haven't done their research. This is just another example of them getting it wrong.

I've had my say on Eastern European immigration in the past where I observed that the majority of jobs being created locally were not meeting the needs of people who live here whom we have spent a great deal of money educating and training.

I still say our local jobs strategy is falling and we shouldn't be an employment agency for Eastern European migrants. We should create the right employment opportunities that local people are looking for and that anyone can apply for irrespective of where they come from.

As you might expect the British National Party has a different view. A spokesman has been quoted as saying that the Polish piloted plane was a symbol of the Battle of Britain and represented the economic struggle the country is facing at the moment.

"It's not like the BNP are against Polish people as a nation. We are against Polish people coming over here and undercutting British workers," he said in the Telegraph newspaper.

He clearly didn't realise that No 303 Polish Fighter Squadron claimed the highest number of enemy kills during the Battle of Britain of all fighter squadrons then in operation through September to October 1940!

I think the real problem facing the BNP's intelligentsia is that if there were no immigrants at all in the UK, they still wouldn't get a job.

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I received some very interesting feedback from my questioning whether The Who actually played Torquay town hall that confirmed Keith Moon, Roger Daltry, Pete Townsend and John Entwhistle had indeed graced the stage in the Assembly Rooms.

A reader emailed me to say there were two concerts in the mid sixties while another sent me a photo of a poster advertising a Who gig at Torquay Town Hall on Saturday 17th July. Unfortunately the poster didn't give the year.

A third thought the band had played Torquay around Easter 1966. If that's the date then I would have been 6 going on 7 at the time, which is probably why it passed me by.

I wonder if any of the lucky readers who got to see the late Keith Moon on the drums can recall whether the band stayed locally and if so, did 'Moon the Loon' as he was known behave himself?

On the rock music theme it was a great pleasure to do the honours and cut the ribbon at the opening of Abel Music in Winner Street, Paignton last weekend. With one shop closing every week in Torbay it was great to support a new family owned local business opening in the bay.

Having cut the ribbon local band Vivid Sky, minus their vocalist, struck up a cover version of one my favourite rock bands instrumentals and while the horses took flight a small corner of Winner Street rocked.

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

I was on the losing side when MPs voted 235 to 176 for a motion to end the condition that a candidate for election to Parliament should have their address on the ballot paper. This has been a requirement since 1872.

I understand the concerns about security, not only from terrorists but the much more likely threat from a person who cannot distinguish between an MP communicating bad news and those who took the decision they disagree with.

That risk is the price we pay for the job we have asked the public to allow us to do. So why the change now?

Following a recent freedom of information judgement some MPs may be concerned that their accommodation expense details will reveal the address declared as their main residence. When you are elected you are asked to declare which is your main home. This was easy for me as Torbay is my home and Westminster is where I work.

It had never occurred to me that the answer could have been the other way round in order to claim the interest costs of a mortgage on a property in the constituency were this higher than the rent (or a mortgage) in London! Nor that within the rules I could change the declaration to maximise the financial advantage to myself.

Unless there is a U-turn these details will be secret, but how MPs voted this week will remain a matter of public record.

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Every year, almost without fail, Torbay Council's tourism promotion campaign comes in for criticism from some local people, and every year they are wrong.

This year's 'Punch and Judy' campaign isn't aimed at persuading the people of Torbay to consider visiting the area for a holiday. We already know what a wonderful part of the world we live in. The campaigns, from the original tickling stick through the lollipop, and Ayres Rock posters, are all aimed at catching the interest of people who don't live here.

The proof of the pudding will be in the eating, but if past campaigns are anything to go by this will be another winner for the tourism trade in Torbay. Why? Because I don't like it either.

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Business rates are unfair for town centre businesses compared to out of town superstores. Town centre traders pay a higher rate for their shop frontage and a lower rate for the area behind it. Out of town superstores don't have shop fronts so overall pay a lower business rate per square foot of sales area. Add to this the advantage the out of town superstore has of offering free parking and the tax the town centre business has to pay becomes the straw that can break their back.

Business rates are set nationally and collected by local councils on behalf of central government. The total amount collected is redistributed back to local authorities according to a formula that takes into account social need and the level of economic activity in the area among other factors.

The good news is that traditionally Torbay receives back far more in business rate levy than is collected from businesses in the area.

Councils have the discretion to re-schedule business rate payments or reduce them altogether for either an individual business or group of businesses. The grant formula from central government assumes councils will exercise this discretion, but just like the disputes over grant funding for concessionary bus fares, identifying a clear audit line in the formula is near impossible. Hence some councils hide behind this lack of transparency and say no to any request for help from a business that just might keep its head above water were it to be granted some leeway.

I have argued with administrations of both political colours in the past that the Council should at least consider the case put to them by a local business facing difficulty. It is in no ones interest for shops to remain empty or businesses to lay off staff. But Torbay has steadfastly refused even to consider the possibility of using its discretionary powers in this area.

I was therefore please to read the words of the Deputy Mayor that in regard to business rate payments the Council would listen to businesses in trouble. This is a major policy shift and if the powers that be in the town hall want help setting the criteria for support they might consider starting off with whether the firm spends its profits in the local economy, or passes them on to shareholders. That would allow help to be given to the locally owned trader or shopkeeper but not to the out of town superstore that already enjoys a business rate advantage over the town centre.

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I know David Bowie played the town hall as I recall the difficulty getting a ticket, a task in which I failed. I also remember this was despite him playing two performances in order to satisfy the demand. But did 'The Who' really play at the Assembly Rooms? I've read this twice recently but don't recall having heard about it in the past. No doubt someone who was there can verify that it happened.

I do remember a famous band who played the venue as I was there, and it was one of the worst live sets I've ever heard.

'The Clash' were never the best band to hear live - the late Joe Strummer's vocals always struggled outside the studio. Bit it couldn't have been worse than in the acoustically challenged Torquay town hall.

The idea of bringing the hall back to life as a venue for live performances is a great one but I do hope someone makes sure they get the acoustics right this time.

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

Half-term recess and I've enjoyed a packed week meeting people and organisations across the bay.

 

I've met with two of the new 'Commissioners' of Torbay Council services and concluded that even though I have no idea how their jobs differ from Directors or Department heads, other than in their job title, I do not envy their tasks, although I do feel confident they are more than up to them.

 

Another name change is in the offing, the proposal that the Torbay Development Agency becomes the Torbay Development Company. I fail to see how a change in name, letterheads and stationary contributes to improvements in services. In the case of the TDC all it seems to do is reduce the number of Councillors accountable through the ballot box from the decision making process.

 

I've also met with Carol Schneider in her new role as Chair of the Torbay Care Trust together with her acting Chief Executive Anthony Farnsworth and discussed some of the budgeting challenges they face and plans they share. Despite the changes at the top the Care Trust is in very capable hands and remains a model for the delivery of social and health care that other areas are looking to replicate.

 

A cup of coffee was enjoyed with the hard working folk at the Coalition of Disabled People in Lymington Road who want to meet the ever increasing demands on their expertise and services, but need a little extra support in order to do this. I promise to try and help.

 

A tour round Job Centre Plus to meet some of the managers and staff whose workload increases with every job loss ended optimistically in the knowledge that they are geared up for the challenges ahead. As is so often the case with government departments the problems are with the system, rarely with the staff who do their best to help the people who come through the door.

 

I was very impressed with the Torbay Enterprise Project that holds out the promise of bringing new life to a run down part of Torquay town centre. It's a true partnership of statutory and community bodies with a plan to achieve urban regeneration through a social enterprise. It's an exciting project with a real chance of being realised unlike some pie in the sky schemes that make the front page one day and get wrapped round your fish and chips the next.

 

There were more exciting developments at the new Innovation Centre at Torquay coach station that is hoping to replicate the success of the original centre at South Devon College.

 

And I was able to attend a gathering of local licensees who expressed their concerns about the Licensing Act, trade matters and Torbay Council. I was there primarily for the former while Councillors Addis and Phillips very ably answered questions concerning the latter. All of the views expressed will be shared with the powers that be.

 

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The Channel 4 political awards are always an enjoyable occasion to mix socially with the media, political opponents and celebrities.

 

In the past I've sat at a table with one of the greatest comediennes of our time, the late and very sadly missed, Linda Smith. Another year I sat next to Lady Howe - Geoffrey Howe's wife and a Member of the Lords in her own right where she sits as an Independent. She was one of the brighest and friendliest of people I have ever shared an evening with. This year I was overwhelmed with interesting people as unusually, I was the only politician on my table.

 

With me were the veteran Parliamentary report Chris Moncrief and his wife, Sky TV political correspondent Jon Craig, Jo Bunting the producer of Have I Got News For You, Julia Hartley-Brewer from the Sunday Express, and I should be so lucky; lucky, lucky, lucky; Pete Waterman of Stock, Aitkin and Waterman the team behind the early hits of Kylie Minogue and countless other chart toppers.

 

To cut a long story short it was a great table to be on and as we were well out of ear shot of the recording - well I hope we were - some very naughty tales were shared about some of the award nominees: Not I hasten to add about my friend and colleague Vince Cable who won two awards and received the loudest cheers of the night.

 

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Is it just me or is everyone finding reasons to complain more often? I'm used to complaining on behalf of others - that's my job - but lately I have had cause to make several complaints on my own behalf.

 

What really gets my goat is the impossibility of getting through on the telephone to someone who can actually resolve your problem. Multiple choice switchboards particularly infuriate me. It's as if the organisation is taking the Michael making you listen to a whole series of possibilities delaying the point where you get through to a person to whom you can make your complaint. They are basically saying their time is more important than yours even though you are often the one paying their wages.

 

I have read a number of articles recently about the increases in stress being reported to GPs. My guess is that automated switchboards have something to do with this. The smoking bans may also be a contributing factor but it would be terribly politically incorrect to suggest that some people might lead happier, if shorter, lives smoking, than reaching a grand old age stressed and temperamental.

 

Some say life should be about the pursuit of happiness and I wonder what would happen if we elected a Government with that as its sole aim. I suspect multiple choice switchboards would be one of very few things such a Government would ban. 

 

 

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

While looking out of the window at the sun shining down on the blue waters of the Teign and the Exe estuaries it was hard to believe that the rest of the country was grinding to a halt.

Yet the train manager on my London bound service asked if any passengers with laptop internet access could update him on what was happening! Presumably this was to inform the driver of what conditions lay ahead and what time we could expect to arrive in Paddington.

Monday morning’s snow induced transport chaos in the capital and the South East prompted the office of the new Managing Director of First Great Western to phone mine wanting to know if I was going to be delayed for our meeting that afternoon.

They should know, was our response, as I was on one of his trains!

In the end the journey took 15 minutes longer than normal. The train was only a few minutes late because it made a couple of unscheduled stops to pick up passengers whose services had been cancelled, and I struck lucky with the tube trains that were running.

I met with the new MD Mark Hopwood on time and was able to congratulate his company for doing their best on a very difficult day. Other train operators cancelled far more services than FGW.

We discussed the ongoing problems of obtaining more rolling stock, how to protect our links with the capital and even increase the number of services between Torbay and London, and the desirability of seeing rail electrification across all main lines and the likelihood of better capacity at Reading to reduce delays to and from the west country.

There is some good news likely on rolling stock over the next few years and on the number of services FGW might offer across South Devon and I shall continue to lobby the Government on removing the barriers to improved services for the area.

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I was actually rather impressed with a ministerial reply to a written parliamentary question I tabled the other week.

While I have no doubt that Torbay’s small unitary authority has the desire and will to face the challenges that confront it, I am concerned that we lack the capacity to make an impact on child poverty.

I asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what factors the Government has identified as the main causes of child poverty.

The reply contained a number of factors that some might say are obvious, but it was good to see a Government response encapsulating the problem in one coherent paragraph.

The Minister said that children raised in workless households are at a far greater risk of poverty than those in working households. Other causes of child poverty are a lack of skills and educational qualifications, parents or children with a disability or poor health, low aspirations and living in deprived communities and communities with higher crime rates.

These are the factors that ought to drive local responses to reducing child poverty.

While Torbay as a whole has a below national average crime rate there are parts of the bay where we share all of the ingredients for high numbers of children living in poverty.

Torbay was losing jobs even before the economic downturn became official and we will inevitably see a further rise in child poverty unless we can turn the tide and keep people in work.

Part of the answer is what I wrote last time. Torbay’s priorities ought to be to improve our transport links to help diversify the economy in order to attract higher value jobs, constantly improve our education and training offer to attract higher quality investment into the local economy, and ensure the supply of secure affordable housing.

The Government has set a target of 2020 for the eradication of child poverty. In my opinion this is not ambitious enough for the world’s fifth largest economy as it condemns an entire generation of children to remain in poverty.

Even without the current recession delaying progress towards the Government’s target none of these things are possible without committed political leadership locally and coordinated Government effort across the tax, benefits, education/skills and local government sectors nationally.

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Peers who break the rules and the law should be expelled from the House of Lords.

It cannot be right that there is one rule for the vast majority of us, and another for Lords.

Local Councillors couldn't get away with 'bending the rules', or breaching codes of conduct, because they are subject to legislation. Guess who passed this legislation over them. Members of the House of Commons and House of Lords, that’s who.

Every elected Councillor in the country signs up to the Local Government Code of Conduct 2007 on their election.

The Code of Conduct covers areas of individual behaviour such as members’ not abusing their position or not misusing their authority's resources.

In addition, there are rules governing disclosure of interest and withdrawal from meetings where members have relevant interests.

Members are also required to record their financial and other interests. If they breach this they face being reported to the Standards Board for England, and the ultimate sanction if a complaint is upheld, is to be removed from public office.

I think its right that elected members are subject to these rules, although the Standards Board outside of Torbay has had some flack in the past for acting too zealously.

But compare this to sanctions to legislators on the House of Lords: they cannot ever be removed even if they break the law!

It’s crazy. MPs, and Lords should be subject to the same level of scrutiny and probity as local councillors.

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

I always think it is great news when someone says they want to invest in Torbay, but talk is cheap and it isn’t always right that whatever they propose should be agreed to. Nevertheless I wouldn’t want to be the one to rain on anyone’s parade here but in my near 50 years I have lost count of the number of knights in shining armour coming to Torbay’s rescue. Perhaps this latest one will be different and actually deliver something sustainable and of value. Certainly something more than the dashed hopes and dreams of the people of Hayle in Cornwall who heard similar words from Mr de Savary when he appeared to offer them their way out of the doldrums.

Just maybe, this time, it really is going to happen and not be a repeat of his unfulfilled interest in past development plans in Brixham. And who knows, it might be possible to achieve it without pricing out the people who live here from the assets they have enjoyed and paid for throughout their lives and that add value to everyone’s quality of life.

Fact is the past has shown that no one person, organisation or industry can sustain Torbay’s needs for continued infrastructure investment, new employment and the maintenance of our quality of life. Before selling off the family silver on the promise of a future undefined bonanza perhaps we ought to be focussing on helping our existing small and medium sized businesses through the economic down-turn. By using the £12 million extra Torbay now receives from the Government there are three immediate measures that could be taken that would lead to economic improvement for the area’s main employers and wealth creators – our small businesses.

Firstly to launch a buy local campaign to support local producers, traders and small businesses, secondly abandoning parking meter charges until we are out of this recession to encourage trade back into our town centres, and thirdly to use the council’s discretion to reduce the business rate where a clear case can be made for help. Our wider priorities ought to be to protect our natural environment - the areas most precious asset. Improve our transport links to help diversify the economy in order to attract higher value jobs. Constantly improve our education and training offer to attract higher quality investment into the local economy. Ensure the supply of secure affordable housing.

I’m pleased that some of these things are being championed by local government and its regional partners and agencies. History shows that it is our own efforts that successfully regenerate our communities and the economy, but if someone can add the icing on top then I say welcome. But don’t mistake the topping for the cake.

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The Israeli Government’s official spokesman, Mark Ragev, recently admitted on Channel 4 News that between the ceasefire of July 2008 until the time that Israel broke the ceasefire on 4th November, Hamas did not fire a single rocket. One might draw the conclusion that the Israeli Government has acted illegally and is responsible for horrendous, ongoing war crimes. Saturday’s announcement of a ceasefire by the Israeli Government turned out to only be the cessation of aerial bombing. The continued presence of occupying troops on the ground is not what most people would consider to be a ceasefire. And within hours Israeli armed forces began bombing Gaza again.

Then Hamas announced a ceasefire on the condition that Israeli troops would withdraw from Gaza within a week. The world waits to see whether this offer will lead to an end of the killing on both sides. There is no justification whatsoever for the firing of rockets into Israel by Hamas, or anyone else, but the bombing and invasion of Gaza on the orders of the Israeli Government is never going to help resolve the bad feelings in the region, and if anything is more likely to breed a new generation of terrorists who view the people of Israel and the west as legitimate targets. Whether you view what the Government of Israel has been doing as an action or a reaction it has not contributed to making the world a safer place.

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This week has seen a strange battle over MPs expenses and how much detail of these can be released to the public. Having agreed to increase transparency and release more information than ever before, the Government suddenly had second thoughts and proposed a change to not release individual receipts. According to the Guardian newspaper - "Harriet Harman, Leader of the House, is understood to have pressed for the change after being lobbied by the Conservative 1922 backbench committee and the parliamentary Labour party committee, which both wanted to stop the release of the information."

My view has always been that MPs should be treated exactly the same as others who are paid out of public funds. In advance of the proposed vote I co-sponsored a parliamentary motion calling on Ministers to repeal the order. In both the Commons and the Lords the Liberal Democrats made their intention known that they would fight tooth and nail to defeat the proposals. Although the truth was without the Conservative opposition MPs on side it would be unlikely to happen and the Tories initially planned to abstain.

Not overturning the proposals would have done further damage to the reputation of Parliament and the often good efforts of MPs of all parties who are not on the make and only in it for what they can get out it. Strong pressure from the public forced the Conservatives to reconsider and with the prospect of Labour rebels guaranteeing a defeat the Government cancelled the motion. Members of Parliament and Peers should now, thankfully, be subject to the same rules as everyone else.

Fortnightly Herald Express Article

Adrian's Herald Express Article for Friday 9th January 2009

A very happy new year to all readers.

During the Christmas break I became more than a little tired of hearing and reading the opinions of so-called ‘experts’ predicting what 2009 holds for the world.

I lost count of the number of such interviews and articles proclaiming knowledge of how the financial system, world economy, political fortunes will shape up in the coming year.

Of all the millions of predictions the only guarantee we have is that someone, somewhere, will pop up in twelve months time and say I told you so. It’s just we don’t know who that someone is today.


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My priorities for 2009 will be to respond as best I can to the fears constituents are expressing to me.

More and more people are worrying about the security of their incomes whether through work, pension or savings.

It is especially challenging for people in Torbay because our economy lags behind the rest of the country.

During booms and busts our local economy has historically been slow to enjoy the good times and one the first to feel the effects in a downturn.

I have been working hard on gaining Government recognition for the funding problems Torbay has faced and for the fourth year running have helped obtain an inflation busting grant settlement from central government to fund local services.

Torbay Council has moved from receiving £57 per head less, to £33 per head more in grant than the average all purpose council. That’s worth an extra £12 million this year.

We have also had another record breaking settlement for local health services with the Torbay Care Trust receiving a cumulative cash increase of 11.5 per cent over two years, well above the national average and a reflection of some of the social realities that are at last being recognised by central government.

Indeed in this last year the Torbay PCT spent more per head of population than any other PCT in the whole South West region.

But much more needs to be done to speed up improvements to our transport connections, the vital link to attract higher quality investment and jobs to the area, and to further improve our education and training system to give people the skills they need to secure employment.

Away from the economy and public services I shall be stepping up my campaign for a 999 emergency text messaging facility, getting involved in some international work on diabetes, and championing any number of causes that are likely to present themselves over the coming months.

Many centuries ago a Chinese philosopher was recorded as saying: "May you be condemned to live in interesting times.” No predictions for 2009 but I sense we are all condemned to live in interesting times.


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There are many theories about the origins of the current global slow-down/recession/depression or however you wish to describe the current mess we have got ourselves in.

I subscribe to the one I have written about in the past which is our failure to tax land values in place of taxing incomes and enterprise in order to reduce the risks of boom and bust.

This global economic catastrophe arose because of the illusory speculative value of land that fuelled an economic boom to unsustainable heights.

Those countries with the least regulation and tax on land exchange and development activities are suffering the biggest bust.

The worst thing any government could do now would be to prop up land prices.

Sadly, there is no way out now that is not painful and unfair.

Economic activity will pick up again when land value has dropped to what sites are worth in their best current use. A fact that does not auger well for the mayoral vision to sell-off our land and property to developers.

It is a hundred years since a Liberal Government tried to introduce a land value tax, a move blocked by largely land-owning members of the House of Lords.

Perhaps now is the time to have another look at this idea, otherwise this whole sorry story will yet again repeat itself.


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I can’t understand the fuss BBC Radio Devon and BBC South West made of Plymouth Argyle’s FA Cup Third Round tie against some north London team.

It wasn’t as if Argyle had done anything to reach the third round. Unlike Torquay who had won through two rounds plus an initial qualifying round they were automatically in the draw and were picked to play against a club only 24 places above them in the league pyramid.

Torquay on the other hand had battled through to be drawn against a former cup winning club 62 places above them. This presented a much more daunting, and in my opinion newsworthy, prospect for pulling off a cup shock.

And United did it while Plymouth got stuffed. But even then the local BBC devoted more air time and space to the pilgrim’s failure to progress than the Gull’s magnificent travels towards a fifth Wembley appearance.

The fourth round draw is a good one for Torquay. Better to play the Sky blues at home than be sent to Coventry again. I made it to their old Highfield Road ground twenty years ago – it really was that long ago – to see the Gulls lose 2-0.

This Coventry City side is on a par with Blackpool whom we beat last week so all things are possible.

Perhaps now our local BBC will start to give Devon’s only premiership team the coverage they deserve. The Herald on the other hand have been magnificent in their coverage of all things Plainmoor.