political commentator * author * publisher * bookseller * radio presenter * blogger * Conservative candidate * former lobbyist * Jack Russell owner * West Ham United fanatic * Email iain AT iaindale DOT com
Thursday, October 14, 2004
School Governors & How to beat a LibDem
Spent a lot of the day at school governors meetings. I am a governor at Cromer High School. This gives me a great insight into the problems facing our schools today. Talked to several people today about the ridiculous Shoreline Management Plan, which effectively abandons large parts of the North Norfolk Coastline to the sea. More on this anon. This evening I hosted a function at the Feathers in Holt at which we heard from the Conservative MP for Taunton, Adrian Flook, who beat a LibDem MP, Jackie Ballard in 2001. The title of his talk? How to beat the Liberal Democrats. And very illuminating it was too.
I think you'll find the answer to how to beat a Lib Dem is simple: get the Countryside Alliance, with its huge funds and hate of animal rights campaigners, to fight the election for you. They detested Jackie Ballard, and threw all their resources at it, yet Flook won by only a few hundred votes. Sadly, your MP voted against (from what I can see), so no help for you then Iain!
ReplyDeleteSad to say that Taunton looks like a LibDem pick up next time, I’m a Labour member myself from Leicester (currently at Uni and with a deep dislike of the Liberals and all their ilk) but I have family in Norwich and friends at the UEA so I like to keep up to date with what’s going on…
ReplyDeleteBut the last comment about the Countryside Alliance’s impact in Taunton is partly true and this time around the impact of the CA will be much stronger as they seem set on making themselves available as leafleters and canvassers for pro-hunting candidates up and down the country in somewhere like your own area they could be a great help… problem with Norfolk North for the Conservatives is that over the last few years places like Burnham Market and other “resorts” on the north Norfolk coast have seen a influx of more left leaning yuppies (the same kind of people that will make Islington South, Cardiff Central, Bristol West etc… tricky for us next year)
but you stand a good chance from what I hear so all the best…
Yes, it isn't as if Tony Blair has built his political career on appealing to "left leaning yuppies" (or my prefered term, "stripped pine socialists").
ReplyDeleteIt's a good job for Iain that Burnham Market isn't in his consitituency really, although he must be pretty worried about champagne Trotskiests like John and Norma Major invading Weybourne!
Left leaning yuppies? Well they must be in Burnham Market as I certainly haven't come across any of them. The thing about second home owners is that the Council tell them they can't vote. Which is not strictly true. You are only allowed to vote in one place (or two in local elections). If you have a second home you pay almost full council tax nowadays. And I'm a great believer in no taxation without representation. The Council say you have to be resident for 6 months of the year to be on the electoral roll, but other councils have no policy at all. Strikes me that the Electoral Commission ought to issue an edict on this so we can avoid confusion.
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