Local Conservatives Pay Tribute to Baroness Thatcher

Local Conservatives have paid tribute to Baroness Thatcher who sadly passed away this week aged 87 following a stroke.

Tamworth Association Chairman, Mr Trevor Soult, said, “It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Baroness Thatcher.  She was the country’s first woman Prime Minister and arguably the greatest of the 20th century.  She shaped the political generation which followed her and she inspired many, including myself, by her passion and iron self belief in resolving the problems that the country faced at the time, transforming it from the “sick man of Europe” to one that earned respect from across the world.”

Several local councillors also paid tribute to Lady Thatcher on Twitter;

Deputy Leader of Tamworth Borough Council, Cllr Robert Pritchard, said, “So very sorry to hear of the sad death of Margaret Thatcher.  RIP.  You made such a difference and will never be forgotten.”

Cllr Michael Greatorex, said, “Saddened by the death of a great British Prime Minister.”

Cllr Michael Oates, said, “It is a very sad day.  The Prime Minister who inspired so many including myself, has sadly passed away.  It is the end of an era.”

Cllr Richard Kingstone, said, “A sad day today.  The most inspirational and significant Prime Minister since Churchill has past to the great House of Commons above.”

Cllr Andrew James, said, “R.I.P. Margaret Thatcher, the Lady put the Great back into Great Britain.”

The Prime Minister Pays Tribute to Baroness Thatcher

Today we lost a great leader, a great Briton, and a great Conservative.

A lot of things will be written about Lady Thatcher in the days and weeks to come, but for me one thing stands out above all other: her passionate belief in Britain.

As she once said: “for the Conservative Party politics has always been about something more than gaining power. It has been about serving the nation. We are above all a patriotic party” – and she was a true patriot Prime Minister.

It was for Britain that she took on the unions, privatised industry, unleashed enterprise, rescued our economy, spread home ownership and fought the Falklands war. And it was for liberty that she helped win the Cold War and freed countless people from oppression.

Her achievements were colossal. Her impact was immense. And we can be proud that Margaret Thatcher was a Conservative Prime Minister.

Today, the best tribute we can pay is to keep her values and vision alive in Government: to keep backing Britain’s hardworkers; to keep believing in Britain – and to keep making it as great as can be.

Christopher Pincher Pays Tribute to Baroness Margaret Hilda Thatcher

Tamworth’s MP, Christopher Pincher, has paid tribute to Baroness Thatcher, following her sad passing today.

Mr Pincher said, “Margaret Thatcher was our greatest post war Prime Minister.  A brave, courageous and inspirational leader, she saved our country and changed its direction.  Like it or not, we are all Thatcher’s children.  She will never be forgotten.”

Former Prime Minister Baroness Thatcher died “peacefully” at the age of 87 after suffering a stroke.

Margaret Thatcher, who was born on 13 October 1925 in Grantham, Lincolnshire, will be forever remembered as Britain’s first and so far only, female Prime Minister and is considered by many to be the UK’s greatest peace time Prime Minister ever.

Conservative Controlled Councils Helps Save Job Help Project

A scheme, which provides help and support to unemployed people in Tamworth, has been saved from closure after Conservative controlled Tamworth Borough Council and Staffordshire County Council stepped in to fund it for the next six months.

The Family Employment Initiative offers one-to-one support to people who are out of work, particularly those who face barriers, including low skills, health issues and long-term unemployment.

The project is run by the Coalfields Regeneration Trust and provides help and advice from the town centre and the Community Hubs in Amington, Belgrave, Glascote and Stonydelph.  Since the start of the initiative, it has provided help to 131 people.  48 of them found work, 10 have gone into training and 14 found volunteering opportunities.

The Family Employment Initiative was previously funded by the Department for Work and Pensions, but funding ended – leaving the project facing closure at the end of March.  But now, Tamworth Borough Council, in partnership with Staffordshire County Council, has stepped in to give the project a six-month reprieve.

Tamworth Borough Council has committed £10,000 of funding to the project, which has been matched by Staffordshire County Council.  The six-month reprieve will now allow time for a longer-term solution to be found to secure the future of the Family Employment Initiative.

The Family Employment Initiative is just one of the services in Tamworth, which provide help and support for people looking for work, training or volunteering opportunities.

Public Health Responsibilities Transferred to Conservative Controlled County Council

Conservative controlled Staffordshire County Council has taken Public Health responsibilities from the NHS from this week.

The transfer of responsibilities took place on Monday 1st April and Professor Aliko Ahmed, Director of Public Health at Staffordshire County Council, said, “The transfer of public health responsibilities from the NHS to Staffordshire County Council, offers great opportunities for us to encourage our residents to be fit, healthy and well.  We can only do this through partnership with public and voluntary sectors as well as members of the communities we serve.

“We’re working closely with local partners to ensure that there are range of excellent services to improve their health and wellbeing including physical activities and weight management support, which will influence the behaviour of local people from birth through to old age.  Our priority focus will be to enable the best possible start for every child, encourage and support people to grow, live and age well and healthily in Staffordshire.

“We will strengthen our existing programmes that are aimed at enhancing the development of sustainable communities including their abilities to promote and adopt healthier lifestyles across Staffordshire.”

Conservative Controlled County Council to Fix 300 Potholes a Week

Conservative Controlled Staffordshire County Council says it plans to repair more than 300 potholes every week to clear backlog of road repairs.

The authority said it would spend an extra £500,000 on the work.

Highways teams have repaired 3,500 potholes since the start of the year, which is 1000 more than the same period in 2012, the council said.

Ian Turner from the council said recent flooding, snow and icy conditions had “taken their toll on the roads.”  He said 20 crews would be carrying out repairs.

“Hopefully the Easter school holidays should mean roads will be quieter for the next fortnight and will allow us to tackle even more with the minimum of disruption,” Mr Turner said.

Conservative Controlled County Council Cuts Staff Absence by 8%

Conservative controlled Staffordshire County Council’s new approach to managing staff absence has resulted in 9,000 fewer sick days, equivalent to 36 full time employees or £540,000 worth of gained productivity.

The 8% reduction means that the county council’s absence rate – now at 7.68 days per employee – is the same as the private sector and below that for similar sized organisations in the public sector.  The latest figure of 7.68 per employee is lowest it has been.

A county council spokesperson said: “A fit and healthy workforce is vital for a well run organisation. While some staff sickness is unavoidable, our new approach has had a big effect. It’s about taking action to support staff to prevent sickness, or when they are absent, helping them get back to work as soon as possible.

“It is not about being harsh or unreasonable, but by focussing on early intervention, we can ensure we are getting people the right treatment that allows them to come back to work.  The counselling service has reduced psychological-related absence by 14% through concentrating efforts on early support.  Our Pilot Physiotherapy service has helped us achieve a 12% reduction in musculoskeletal absence and shown a 300% return on our investment.

“The result of this new approach to attendance management is over 9,000 more days worked by our staff, to provide the services that people in Staffordshire rely on.”

A new absence management process was launched in February last year with communication and training for almost 1,000 managers, promoting greater personal responsibility for reducing absence.  Every tier of management now receives monthly absence reports for their teams, highlighting any areas where extra support or action is needed.

A pilot physiotherapy service was established for staff with musculoskeletal conditions such as pain and stiffness in joints, muscles, nerves and soft tissues. It offers rapid treatment to help staff return to work quickly.  The new physiotherapy service is provided by local Staffordshire firm CTC Physiotherapy.  It compliments existing occupational health and staff counselling services already provided to enable employees to remain in work or return to work quickly.

Delivering Tax Cuts for Families and Pensioners

Official Government figures released this week confirm that council tax bills have been cut in real terms across England this year, thanks to the Government’s third year council tax freeze initiative.

Overall, this means that council tax has fallen in real terms by 9.7 per cent under this Government.

The statistics show there is only a 0.8 per cent average change in council tax across England this year, with two-thirds of local authorities freezing their bills.  In London, bills are falling by -0.2 per cent. A number of local authorities are going further and cutting council tax in cash terms, including Boris Johnson in London.

• Council tax doubled under Labour: Under Labour, council tax bills in England hit a record £1,439 a year on an average Band D home in April 2010. Bills more than doubled under Labour.  By contrast, the cumulative effect of the three council tax freezes is worth up to £425 compared to a five per cent rise in each of the last three years for residents in Band D homes
• Labour want higher council tax: In Government, Labour Ministers opposed a council tax freeze.  In Opposition, Labour’s Shadow Ministers still continue to oppose the council tax freeze
• Conservative councils cost you less: Analysis of the figures show that Conservative councils continue to provide lower levels of council tax than Labour or Liberal Democrat councils.  Averaged across tiers, Conservative-controlled councils charge £69 a year less than Labour-controlled councils on a Band D home, and £100 a year less than Liberal Democrat-controlled councils
• Local Conservatives supporting the freeze: A total of 131 Conservative councils are freezing council tax, compared with 51 Labour and 10 Liberal Democrat. 7 out of 10 Conservative councils are freezing, compared to only half of Labour councils.  In addition, almost two-thirds of Conservative Police and Crime Commissioners in England are freezing council tax, but no Labour Commissioners.

Commenting, Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, said, “Council tax more than doubled under Labour.  But Conservatives in Government have worked to freeze council tax for three years, helping hard-working families and pensioners with their cost of living. Over the last three years, council tax bills have fallen by almost 10 per cent.

“Ed Miliband’s Labour Party opposes freezing council tax, which shows how Labour remain addicted to higher taxes, and are on the side of bureaucracy, wasteful spending and not the taxpayer.”

12 Conservative Achievements in Government

Tamworth’s MP Thanks Beanie Hat Knitting Brigade

Christopher Pincher, MP for Tamworth, last week joined 74 hardy knitters who braved arctic conditions to take part in the handover of knitted beanie hats to the 3rd Mercian battalion (The Staffords).

The handover took place at the Staffordshire Regiment Museum, Whittington, where more than 15 boxes of hats where given to soldiers of 3 and 4 Mercian (the Territorial battalion).

Around 700 hats have been generously knitted and donated by local individuals and sewing circles to troops to wear under their Kevlar helmets during training and deployment to Afghanistan.  The helmets can be very uncomfortable in high or low temperatures so a knitted beanie hat worn inside the helmet helps enormously.

The knitters were joined by soldiers from 3 Mercian and by the regimental mascots Watchman, the Staffordshire bull terrier and Derby, the ram.

Christopher Pincher said, “I want to thank all of the knitters who have put in so much of their time, effort and money to do their bit for 3 & 4 Mercian before they begin their tour in Afghanistan.

“We have received hats from all over the county – one even came from the US.  It goes to show the profound respect and regard in which local people hold our brave soldiers.  Thanks to the efforts of our tremendous knitters we managed to beat our target of 700 hats ensuring that each soldier on deployment to theatre will get a beanie.”