Alan W Collins only got the result of this ward half correct back in 2007, believing that the then incumbent Conservative councillor Wendy Purdy would retain her seat – when she in fact lost it to the Liberal Democrats – whilst also predicting that Diana Smith would take the seat then being vacated by fellow Liberal Democrat Tony Luckhurst.

Incumbent Cllr Diana Smith is re-standing, though her current colleague, Liberal Democrat Cllr Herbert Crack, is standing down. Cllr Smith, a popular figure in the ward, will be joined by a relative unknown in Tony Jeacock – although Mr Jeacock has asked a few questions at council meetings, it would appear. Indeed, in his desire to sting the Tories, he accused the council of re-branding to “Medway City Council” – which, of course, has never appeared on any council or affiliated stationary.

The Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats’ closest opponents, are fielding the same slate as in 2007, with Wendy Purdy and Phil Manning hoping to win the two seats on offer. Given the current situation, it should have been an easy task, but Alan W Collins‘ few sources in the ward have suggested that little work has been done in the ward over the past four years (unless related to Reh Chishti’s parliamentary campaign and, subsequently, work). It seems unlikely, then, that they will make sufficient headway to take both seats.

Labour are again fielding two candidates, one of whom stood in Watling in 2007 and another who stood in Watling in 2003 but in Rainham Central in 2007. They, though, are almost 1,000 votes behind, and will probably not make any significant impact. However, given the national situation, they may be a “natural” choice for disillusioned Liberal Democrat voters, and thus may increase their vote share at the Liberal Democrats’ expense.

Serial independent Barry Archer is standing in his third Watling election. Interestingly, though, he stood in 2007 under the “Medway Independent Party” umbrella which has all but disappeared. In 2007, he polled less than 200 votes, so, too, will probably not have much effect on the result.

Alan W?Collins predicts: 1 Liberal Democrat win with a lower majority and 1 very narrow Conservative gain.

Conservative: 23
Independent: 0
Labour: 8
Liberal?Democrat: 4

Needed for majority: 28

I HAVE an apology to make (yes you heard correctly, a budding politician prepared to apologise): to the residents of Allison Avenue, Darland Avenue, Hunters Way, Kingsway, Preston Avenue, Windyridge and in particular the lovely lady I spoke to in Audley Avenue less than two weeks ago.

Because this particular lovely lady had brought to my attention a serious problem plaguing residents of Darland, one which I had discussed with Cllr Chishti en route to that canvassing session and which I witnessed firsthand whilst I was canvassing Audley Avenue: learner drivers. Everywhere.

“I appreciate that they have to learn somewhere,” she explained to me, “but it can be quite annoying sometimes.”

It took only a quick glance up and down the road to realise what she meant. Darland is a beautiful estate (and there aren’t many around). It seems like a perfect place to live: little traffic (it’s not exactly on a road to anywhere) and quite peaceful, with some residents experiencing a breathtaking view of Capstone Valley (if it lasts, but that is, after all, a different matter entirely).

The trouble is, it is also a perfect place to teach learner drivers: the roads are near-deserted, and there are a whole host of manoeuvres which can be demonstrated, explained and practiced whilst on the estate.

It is a tough call to make on this one – on the one hand, residents quite rightly want their peaceful roads, but on the other hand, learner drivers need to be taught somewhere with little traffic for the safety of all road users (including cyclists and pedestrians).

However, my mind was made up yesterday, and I shall not be jumping around ready to denounce driving instructors for teaching learner drivers on the Darland estate. Why? My sister was taught to drive there. My friends have been (and no doubt will continue to be) taught there.

And from yesterday it is where I am being taught to drive.

Yesterday I realised why Darland is used for instruction from the point of view of the instructed: whilst my instructor was explaining a point parked up in Hunters Way, only around five cars passed us – two of which passed just as I was preparing to pull away – and a similar amount passed us when he first explained everything before I started driving in Allison Avenue – a dialogue of approximately twenty minutes.

What amused me whilst I spoke to the lovely lady of Audley Avenue was the way she seemed to back down upon my revelation that, in not too distant a future, that would be me driving past her house (though with my employment situation at the time, I could never have predicted how soon it was to be). For upon the aforementioned revelation, the lovely lady merely smiled and said “well it’s not that much of an issue.” How sweet of her, but surely I should be trying to get into her good books, not the other way around?

Which is precisely why I decided to write this post (that and I am actually quite pleased with myself again – in contrast to last week’s dire AS-level exam results) – to explain briefly why I would not support residents trying to prevent driving instructors from utilising this instruction gem and to apologise unreservedly for being one of those students being instructed in Darland.

One of the most important things in people’s lives is the ability to get from A to B quickly, but safely. The most popular way of doing this today is by car (present company accepted, Cllr Ward, when you read this) and people want safer drivers on the road. This can only be achieved by practical on-road instruction – but we cannot have the instructed starting their first lesson by driving in an area dense with traffic – it would be a massive hazard.

Darland is one area in Medway where this can be achieved safely and I would like to think that students in the future will be pulling away in Hunters Way like me, rather than Canterbury Street.

At least this avoids one potentially ugly mess…

FANTASTIC! Not only do I get a ten minute lecture from a life-long Socialist whilst canvassing, he actually made me think!

I mean, really, what kind of a person forces a 17 year-old to think in the middle of the summer holidays, when all they should be doing is relaxing and doing a summer job (still looking, by the way, any most offers welcome!)?

Don’t misunderstand me on this one: he didn’t make me question my beliefs. They are as strong as they have ever been (and his remarks on immigration only fuelled my beliefs further, but that is another story). He did something much worse, he made me question the origins of my ideology.

For longer than anyone cares to remember the Church of England has been described as the Tory Party at Prayer. Modern Conservatives (though more inclusive than the 19th-Century Tory Party) are still quite religious folk (well as religious as anyone in modern society). Accompanying Reh to St Mark’s Church last Sunday proved that (though they weren’t all Conservatives, a few people we spoke to were).

However, the guy who decided he would lecture me (as a young, “misguided” soul, he obviously thought he could turn me before it was too late – how wrong he was!) left a slight impression upon me, when he quite rightfully declared that we Conservatives go to Church every Sunday to worship the greatest ever Socialist: Jesus Christ.

Not meaning to unecessarily confuse politics with religion, and to state it in the simplest possible terms, the guy had a point! If one were to define Jesus’ actions using the political spectrum, then He would be the perfect Socialist: infallibly promoting true equality and helping your fellow man (the feeding of the five thousand could be considered when discussing the welfare state – a Socialist adventure – for example).

Though Jesus was not a political figure – He was the Saviour of mankind – many lessons can be learnt from His life, both religiously and politically. I won’t delve deeply into them now (mainly as I want to sleep), but it is an idea worth thinking about in the future.

The real focus for this post (the first to be posted on both my primary blog and my myspace blog) is the idea of the origins of Conservatism. Could it be argued that it was born out of Socialism (or even vica-versa)?

I would personally suggest not. There are many similarities between the ideologies, the aspects where the two meet in the middle (without turning into Liberalism). For example, one cannot argue that small “c” conservatives are monsters because they would leave a dying man to die alone when they could possibly attempt to save him.

The conservatives as Christians were morally influenced by the teachings of the Bible (though these may only be negligible now) and modern Conservatives, “Cameron’s Conservatives” embrace Social Responsibility, the 21st-Century definition of “love thy neighbour”.

So it may well be one thing to compare Jesus to Socialism, but it is important to remember that we are considering that idea based on a relatively modern political spectrum – certainly one not around at the time of Jesus Christ – so I think that it is absurd to consider one’s religious background (bearing in mind the aspect being considered was 2000 years ago) being relative to the origins of one’s political ideology (within the last 200 years).

Jesus was not a political figure and Chrisitians of all political beliefs certainly do not enter a Church and think to themselves “hmm, I wonder if Jesus would be a member of the Labour Party if he was around now?”

It is certainly not something I will be confronting Canon John Saunders with tomorrow!

One quiet Sunday in November 2006 changed all that, however, when a fairly short, Asian Councillor knocked on my door asking specifically to speak to me. Instantly I was blown away by his charisma and ability to actually answer a posed question, rather than skirt the issue like most other Politicians.

In the past nine months I have been reborn. From the moment Councillor Chishti planted the first seeds of my Political activism, to the moment just two weeks ago when, for the first time, I was able to canvas solo and the flower blossommed, I never ceased to learn incredibly vital nuggets of information and advice about local politics – and how to successfully campaign.

My step into the Political arena was fuelled by my inquisitive nature, and, by researching Rehman Chishti, stumbled accross the fascinating world of Political blogging – particularly ConservativeHome. So on December 12, this website was born.

It was still fairly primitive when I was dutifully informed by Reh that his researchers had discovered my blog and my articles about Reh Chishti’s Christmas Party and my first assessment of Paul Clark’s failures were the most prominent. Even when I wrote the article back on December 17, I stated that:

…we have a lot of key target seats in Kent, and Reh is someone who can contest them.

And win.

Although I admittedly omitted my lengthy discussion with some guy called Vaughan as I, in my fresh Political naivety, considered him a non-entity, going nowhere in the Political world. Sorry, Councillor Hewett – fortunately we all make mistakes.

In February I took my first giant leap. Inspired by a comment Reh made whilst addressing my Politics class (as it transpired, it was my penultimate lesson with Mr De Groot), I participated in a Street Stall in Gillingham High Street (a particularly nerve-wracking experience for a first-timer like me, if I remember correctly) and decided to bite the bullet that afternoon by accompanying Reh as he canvassed (I seem to remember hearing many complaints about the Howard School students on the doorsteps, so nothing new there!).

That is how the next few months continued. I stood by Reh’s side as he dealt with many awkward and varied complaints and questions, guaging his reaction and attempting to learn as much as possible.

In March another giant leap was made. I was asked by someone called Brigita Amey (now where have I heard that name from?) – who was, at the time, intending to stand for the position of Chairman of Gillingham and Rainham Conservatives – if I would consider setting up a Conservative Future Group here in Gillingham and Rainham. My answer was of course yes, and the process is still on-going.

Then came my first formal dinner with the Association. The guest speaker was the then Chairman of the national Party, the Rt Hon Francis Maude MP – and Brigita, who had been elected Chairman of the local Association the Friday before, described me on numerous occassions as the Party’s new best friend (I had only the day before taken editorial control of the Association’s website).

April brought more leafletting, more canvassing and more challenges as the election drew ever closer. The day before I flew out to Florida for the Sun ‘n Fun fly-in, I accompanied Reh and various other Councillors in escorting Peter Ainsworth MP on a tour of our green spaces (particularly Capstone Valley being overlooked from Kingsway).

The day I returned from Florida I leafletted (after nearly 36 hours without sleep) and was initially welcomed by my invitation to attend the local election count that Thursday evening – which I, of course, did.

After the count came letters to the paper on various subjects and, more importantly, our Parliamentary Candidate selection. Just six months after my first Association function, I was asked to be part of the selection panel for interviews with twelve short-listed candidates – an invitation I was only too happy to accept.

Reh being elected our Parliamentary Spokesman almost completed the process of rebirth for me. It meant that I was to be an integral part of the campaign team: being young, enthusiastic and jobless. I was raring to go when the canvassing of Watling started and I knocked on the door of number (actually, I can’t remember the number now, but it is unimportant) Beechwood Avenue, musing to Caroline (who stood at the next door along) that this was my first time solo.

At last I feel that I have a purpose, I not only feel wanted but needed as well. I cycled through the northern part of Watling ward on my way home from a morning’s work in the Constituency Office and saw for myself the deprevation afforded by this Labour Government. I could stop where I was and take it all in – the graffitti, the boarded-up windows, the neglect.

It filled me with a sudden realisation of why I wanted to get into Politics in the first place – to change the world, to make it a better, wealthier, more prosperous place to live in. Seeing through my own eyes the state of some of the properties in Watling ward served only to fuel my determination.

I wanted to enter Politics to change people’s lives – and the people of this Association gave me the headstart most in my position nine months ago could only dream of. It is a golden opportunity to start to make a difference – and I promised myself, as I promise you today – an opportunity which I will not permit to pass me by.

Or so I thought. Because whilst my faith in the electorate’s ability to select a suitable candidate on merit isn’t entirely dead yet, one of the little darlings of the RMGS Year 13 darlings decided who he was going to vote for based on the name. Or, to be more precise, the name Crack.

Yes, Herbie Crack, veteran Liberal and even bigger darling of Watling Ward (who lives one road up from Rainham Central Conservative Councillors Barry Kemp and Mike O’Brien) had the all important “X” marked next to his name because of some kind of infantile sense of humour.

Ironically, this Year 13 darling is the frowned upon extreme right-winger in a class comprising mainly moderate right-wing students – we are the lucky year, with a Tory activist, Socialist member of the Labour Party, BNP sympathiser and Communist amongst our seven students, a class gripping the Year 13′s interests for the last year with our amazing diversity.

Of course Herbert Crack got elected in Watling alongside Diana Smith, but were all his votes the product of people with a similar level of maturity?

Looking back to 2003, I would safely say that the answer is no, and that people in Watling remain as intelligent as people in Rainham. In Luton and Wayfield, Herbie polled just 234 votes – 110 votes less than the BNP candidate Simon Brown

Looking even deeper, I found that Herbie is even a family friend (unsure of my moral standing of admitting such an afilliation with a Liberal), so I should probably be careful how I write the ending of this post.

I believe that Herbie got his 1304 votes mainly by party, but also by being seen to be doing things in the area – their visibility was far more prominent than the failed trio in Rainham Central – but it is clear to me that the other factor was also present.

It is a sad state of affairs if politics has come to the stage where people are handing out votes because a candidate has a funny surname, because candidates may as well start delivering leaflets asking people to vote for sex!

Friday, June 1, 2007

Day of reckoning

Medway Council is cracking down on illegal parking in Medway’s main routes by issuing fixed-penalty notices without the normal five-minute parking attendant observation.

This zero-tolerance policy is in response to calls to get Medway moving, and not as a result of the two-way system in Chatham, according to Medway Council.

Great Expectations unfulfilled?

Dickens World (River), the new £62 million theme park based on Dickensian London, has received a mixed reaction on its opening weekend.

Although most people seemed to like it, some complained about the admission price and the long queues and some got turned away altogether, because everyone decided to visit it on the opening Bank Holiday weekend.

High hopes for Tour de France

Council chiefs predict that the Tour de France should bring in 10 times the £150,000 it has cost in Tourism revenues when it comes to Medway in the summer.

The cyclists would take 22 minutes to pass through Medway, going through Strood, Gillingham, Chatham and Rochester, but as usual, the Liberals have decided it is a bad idea to raise Medway’s profile nationally and internationally.

Fight to save Municipal Buildings

Former Gillingham Mayor of 1962-3 Freddie Cooper is spearheading the fight to save the Municipal Buildings (Watling) if and when the Council moves into the former Lloyds building in Chatham next year – a move backed by all three Political Groups.

The move would be made in order to save taxpayer’s money, and invest it in public services, but Mr. Cooper doesn’t want to see the buildings go for sentimental reasons.

Lib Dem Backs Tory

Former Liberal Mayor Dai Liyanage (above, right) is backing River Ward‘s Craig Mackinlay (above, left) in his bid to become a Conservative Parliamentary Candidate in one of Medway’s constituencies.

Both have a long history through the local Round Table, and Dai says that “Craig is the best candidate that the Conservatives could select,” whilst assuring us that he remains a committed member of the Liberal Democrats.

Expect my comment on this last story later on today.