I'm delighted to report that my old university friend Chris Whiteside has been selected for the redrawn seat of Copeland. He fought the seat last time and moved his family there and has shown a real commitment to the area. He's also got a very good
BLOG.
24th - 25th March.
ReplyDeleteThe weekend that
i. person/persons un(?)known got away with an act of murder.
ii. a country got away with an act of war.
What's the government and the MSN said about this?
Stuff all.
Iain, if you have any influence with David Cameron - please ask him to reconsider ordering "his MPs to oppose Labour's proposals for a super-casino in Manchester when they go before the Commons and Lords on Wednesday" (Telegraph, 25.3.2007). Please don't fall for this - you are exposing us in Greenwich to having the wretched supercasino imposed upon us as a "solution" to the (wholly synthetic, in my view) row about Manchester and Blackpool.
ReplyDeleteRemember that Anschutz has already built the supercasino at the Dome (without planning permission), in expectation of getting the licence. But the people of Greenwich were not consulted: I personally know of three large stake-holder groups in whose name unqualified support for the supercasino was submitted in writing WITHOUT THEIR KNOWLEDGE. (In one case - the faith groups - we found out about it in time; but there were two other groups whose members who learned only afterwards, long after the EiP Greenwich last August, that their name had been put to the warmest possible endorsement of having the supercasino at Greenwich.)
Anyway, giant casinos do not regenerate - they do the opposite. (See www.nosupercasino.com for the published research and reports of the experience of other countries.) Manchester are in a good position to demonstrate that forever more - to do the rest of the UK a huge favour and kill the idea of any more regional casinos stone dead.
Is Chris Whiteside really an old University "friend", of yours Iain ?
ReplyDeleteI knew him at school and his brother who was in my year.
We were not the same age nor were we the sort of personalities that would have been very likely to be close chums at the time .
I have followed his career since however with considerable admiration and I think he would make a fine MP. I have always assumed that he would not fit the requirements on presentation. Lets hope he is working on that and that he will win.
He certainly deserves to and is a good man . I wonder if he will ever return to Question time when I recall him squeakily piping up many years ago.
Good Luck Chris and all the best
And he faces a fantastic local MP in Jamie Reed. I can say that because I'm from Copeland and Jamie beat me in the Labour selection to replace Jack Cunningham;)
ReplyDeletePleased to hear the news about Chris. He was a legendary figure at Bristol when I arrived, having been one of the few Tories to gain election to a sabbatical post. He has always been thoroughly committed to the idea of politics as service, and is indefatigable in pursuit of necessary detail to make his case. He will hopefully join his several fellow Bristolians - including, just slightly later, the rottweiler Mark Francois, who should certainly be used in more high profile roles!
ReplyDeleteJamie Reid is a smarmy 'barsteward' without an original thought in his head. and who toes the party line at all times. However, as the electorate of Copeland would return a monkey if it wore a red rosette, I don't suppose that matters much
ReplyDeleteThe very best of luck to you Christopher.
ReplyDeleteIt was a pleasure campaigning with you when you as a councillor in St Albans.
Hope you win next time.