http://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/news/local/resident-throws-hat-into-ring-to-stand-for-hartlepool-mp-almost-two-years-before-election-1-5797536
Interesting. Moore, presumably Iain Wright.... who could be next? Brash? a PHF?
In the context of this town, a tory vote is a wasted vote, too much negative baggage, a political gesture that can never reach the necessary critical mass to unseat the Labour party. You have to tackle the Labour Party with an independent, with no baggage, the local electorate will vote against the entrenched encumbents if you give them the right party free candidate to have a go back at them..... pitch your vote at the right part of the electorate.
like riddler says a tory vote is a waste,sorry shane you come over ok.
but mr riddle what about yourself?
Me? I think I've been asked that before on here. I doubt I could handle the lack of autonomy, putting my family through it, life in 'the village' etc. I like the job I currently do and that's important to me.
Also, I don't have the profile in the town that an indy would need to pull it off.
Personally, in my opinion Alan Wright cutting the Labour majority to just a few thousand was as much to do with it being HIM that stood (and being well known via The Mail etc.) as it was to do with him being a tory.
Shane's a nice lad and he clearly cares about the town, but I think he'd be better served if he was elected at local level.
I'd potentially be prepared to get more involved at local level though, mainly because i'm confident I could do a far better job than some of our current councillors.
That said, that's not really too bold a claim is it?
It is a hard call ..will a good conservative do better than a bad labour candidate in a town blinkered by the word labour.
Personally I feel so let down by Iain, I could never vote for him.
The question is, do I vote for Shane which is against my socialist principals or not vote at all.
J Brash could well be a contender he uses the ploy of calling himself Independent Labour that would beguile a lot of staunch hard and fast LABOUR voters.
We know that you can't be Independent & Labour and before this is condemned as nonsense, remember the voting for the headland election.John Marshall Labour.
What happened to the Independent John Marshall?
Call me a cynic but I do not believe Brash will do anything that will prevent his re-entry into the Party. The best way he could do it is by winning the seat without too much anti-labour rhetoric (concentrate on personal attacks of those he can paint as a rogue element).and once the present ruling clique are exposed slide swiftly back into a command position.
Look how quickly Fisher sold out when offered a place at the trough.................
You catch odd glimpses of Wright during coverage of the Commons. He seems to be one of those MPs allocated the job of shuffling along the benches to sit behind whichever Labour shadow Minister is speaking, thereby giving the impression, through the narrow field of the TV camera, that the labour benches are packed. He nods and grunts at the appropriate time a bit like the Churchill dog.
He clearly thinks and enjoys thinking that he is a player on the Westminster stage.
I would say, on recent performances, that he's a lot less comfortable talking locally about local issues. So we don't hear much from him on the hospital, Manor Residents or the Traveller Sites. His last foray into local involvement saw him stood on the steps of the Civic alongside Wilcox and, from the look on his face at the time, it was a 'beam me up, Scotty' moment for him of mega proportion.
I wouldn't write the Tories off nationally, just yet. In dire days, the British public have a habit of voting to see things through rather than change direction mid-way through a crisis.
In addition, I don't think anyone can claim that the current Milliband-Balls partnership displays any sort of credibility. I haven't heard anything from either of them up to now that I could say amounts to a plan.
As for Shane. Well it will be an interesting experience for him and, to give the lad his due, he's probably the nearest thing to a genuine Tory that the town has right now. He's certainly more of a genuine Tory than Wright is a genuine socialist.
Quote from: steveL on June 26, 2013, 11: PM
You catch odd glimpses of Wright during coverage of the Commons. He seems to be one of those MPs allocated the job of shuffling along the benches to sit behind whichever Labour shadow Minister is speaking, thereby giving the impression, through the narrow field of the TV camera, that the labour benches are packed. He nods and grunts at the appropriate time a bit like the Churchill dog.
I have noticed that. I thought it odd he should be in picture so often.
Funny, I noticed his shuffling papers when a debate about bees and pesticides was taking place.
He contributed nothing other than as you say filling a very small amount of space up.
Has his wife got tired of him getting in the way when she is trying to do the hoovering ?
It's official then. Wright is a 'doughnut!
We have a number of well known LABOUR COUNCILLORS posing as INDEPENDENT. and by reading on this post another has been added to that list. I'm sure readers know who that person is.
J. Brash will continue using the term if it brings votes he cannot use it on election leaflets as you rightly state but when Hartlepool Mail continue to address him as INDEPENDENT LABOUR he's on to a winner.
I think that the 2014 elections will be a stepping stone for him to stand as MP in 2015 General Election but that's only my opinion.
Whether Hartlepool is ready for someone that is highly intelligent & articulate I'm not sure are... YOU?
Councillor Brash isn't up for re-election in 2014. He gained the most votes in The Burn Valley last May (I think). So he's safe for 3 years.
Although even though he isn't, you're right in that 2014 will be the wake up call we've all been waiting for in Hartlpool since the 'Rate Payers' took control of HBC back in the day.
Presumably if he stood for MP he'd need to resign from the council prior to doing so though, and that'd be shame. Although I guess if he didn't beat Iain Wright he could just stand as a councillor again at the next opportunity. He's generally very well liked and respected on The Burn Valley Ward. Which I can assure you, can not be said of all the councillors on that ward... ::)
People need to think very carefully the reasons for nominating someone for the roll of town MP.Lets take the two names mentioned on this post,DRiddle & Brash.One asked a question at a council meeting and the other disagreed with the party line on asking questions.Does this make them outstanding candidates?.One of them sometimes gives the impression that he wants to be a Martyr rather than a politician.
I don't think anyone (including me) have claimed that i'd be an outstanding candidate. Also, would you care to elaborate on the last line of your post?
I did mention two names in the post,but if the cap fits.
Hence why I asked which one you meant...
Don't be drawn on the subject DRiddle, it's the usual nonsense.
Labour will win whoever stands, the also rans will end up with bills for failure of £5000-£15,000.
Your friends and relatives will vote for you but you will still end up with a bloody nose and 943 votes.
Forget about it, stay where you are, you will never satisfy this load of moaning gits in a million years.
As I say, i've never even considered it. I'm not arrogant enough to think I could pull it off, I don't have the political experience to be confident I'd do a good job for the town, and it doesn't really interest me.
Maybe I could add something at local level, but then again, is it worth the time and trouble?
"Don't be drawn on the subject DRiddle, it's the usual nonsense.
Labour will win whoever stands, the also rans will end up with bills for failure of £5000-£15,000."
This is precisely the attitude that does indeed always lead to a Labour win.
I'm quite convinced that if Brash stood as an Independent then he would win. It's really a question of what he would do next.
Personally, I think he'd be quickly wooed back into the Labour fold; the carrot being a free-hand to sort out the local party as he saw fit. The chance to settle a few scores would be irresistible.
Well done Shane, the alternative could have been a parachuted in, chinless pranny using it as a learning curve to be blooded or young Wells! Out of those three options, you'd get my vote.
Dead right Steve, Brash would finish nowhere. The Labour machine will force the plebs away from watching the Jeremy Kyle show when it matters and they love a free pastie from Mr. Wright.
Thank for some of the kind words.
I have to agree with SteveL (much to his dismay) that you really shouldn't write the Tories off for the same reasons Steve gives.
I'm not going to stand here and pretend that I am the perfect man for the job, nor will I pretend I have all of the answers to our towns woes. What I will do is clearly state that I hope that if the other political groups in Hartlepool honestly want to see a change then they back my bid. I'll happy to meet with all of them on a regular basis and make sure every concern they have is heard and addressed.
As far as I am concerned, the next General Election (in Hartlepool) is not based on who you want as Prime Minister, but who you want to represent you in parliament. Do you want an MP who has a long track record of basing their decisions on what they believe will please their party elite and allow them to climb the greasy pole or one who will fight tooth and nail for the betterment of this town, regardless of what party big wigs think?
I know which I'd prefer and I hope that even the likes of honest socialists like Stig can bring themselves to give me, Shane Moore - not the Conservatives, their support so that the town we live in can get what it deserves.
What this Town needs is a true independent MP who is elected to do the best he/she can for the residents, businesses and visitors to Hartlepool. Unfortunately Shane would come under the Tory whip and be told how to vote. I believe that Cllr Brash would love to be the MP for Hartlepool, but also believe that he would be welcomed back into the Labour fold and would quickly forget about Hartlepool and its residents. So as I stated earlier what Hartlepool needs a truly independent MP but we wont find one who belongs to any of the established political party's.
Quote from: perseus on June 30, 2013, 07: PM
So WHO then Alec?
I think we should aim high............ well higher than the 4`11" encumbent we have at the moment.
Like I said we need a true independent to represent Hartlepool. All I can say is that at the next election I will not be voting Labour, Conservative, Lib Dem, UKIP or BNP. I would rather spoil my ballot paper then vote for any of the above. Maybe Putting Hartlepool First could put forward a candidate. Lets face it they would not be any worse then our current MP.
So what would you suggest Perseus?
A Save our Hospital candidate would be the obvious choice to challenge Labour, if they had £50,000 to spend on the election campaign it might just do it. PHF is already tarnished so shouldn't bother and couldn't raise the money. A SoH wealthy backer could break the mould if it had the right candidate, just to remind you, when Tory Jeremy Middleton battled Iain Wright 7 years ago for Mandelson's seat they spent £95,000 on the failed campaign !
£95,000!!!!!! That's a big ask for a little town. :(
In a perverse way, it just shows the amount of money that can be made once you're in the 'inner circle' of politics.
There so many people on here expounding views on how the town should be run and to get rid of the dross that permeate throughout the council (and the upper echelons of the officers!).
Well, if it takes so much money to become an MP, why don't we have an account that we can deposit money for a candidate to take on the shysters?
I don't believe it would take anywhere near £95k now;
the people of this town MUST now see that the people they have put their trust in for so many years have now been seen in their true colours...self-serving and totally untrustworthy.
Open the bank account, select a true Hartlepudlian and let's start the renewal of our great little town.
Quote from: The Great Dictator on June 30, 2013, 09: PM
A Save our Hospital candidate would be the obvious choice to challenge Labour, if they had £50,000 to spend on the election campaign it might just do it. PHF is already tarnished so shouldn't bother and couldn't raise the money. A SoH wealthy backer could break the mould if it had the right candidate, just to remind you, when Tory Jeremy Middleton battled Iain Wright 7 years ago for Mandelson's seat they spent £95,000 on the failed campaign !
I'm interested to know why you think PHF is 'already tarnished'. My understanding from a previous post on here that it was PHF that instigated the on-going public inquiry and that they have been the only ones putting the pressure on over Manor Residents. It certainly hasn't been Labour or the three stooges.
They promised much and delivered nothing, all wind and bluster.. :o
You have to face the fact that Drummond was the shining example of derailing Labour . However, they didn't vote for Drummond, they voted for H'angus, indicating that the electorate where clearly rubbishing the establishment, as if to say none of the above thank you and from the reaction of all the politicians, it was obvious they were fuming.
Now I'm not suggesting we put a monkey up, but a strong character who appeals to the electorate and shares their ambitions as opposed to some party lapdog.....voters only resort to established parties when there's no outstanding candidate. We need a political streetfighter who is on the elecorates level and puts a smile on their face, we need a champion we want to win.
The costs incurred in running for Parliament at a G.E. are capped to , I think, no more than £10K . In a parliamentary by-election candidates are allowed to spend upto £100k. From the point of view of cost having an Independent candidate becomes feasible. At the last G.E. votes for non-Labour Party candidates were much greater than those for Iain Wright This town is not the Labour stronghold it was 20 years ago.
I struggle to get excited about who our MP is. In terms of effectiveness, 1 MP amongst 630 won't get us very far and we've surely learned from experience that it doesn't really matter who our MP is, nothing much changes for the better.
Hartlepool has had a Labour MP for all but one of the last 50 years since the last shipyard closed and if Labour had really wanted to do something about the long-term employment and economic problems of Hartlepool they would have done so by now.
Ironically, the only significant change in Hartlepool in all of those years, the Marina Development, came about as the result of a Tory initiative. Even then, it was cocked up by Labour once its control had been handed over to the local council.
Even so, I don't really see the election of a Tory MP or of some other description helping much other than the general thought that the town would be better off if it was viewed as a marginal rather than a Labour certainty.
We'd do better under the Tories if they followed their natural instincts and put the North East under 'overseas development'.
I agree with a lot of that Steve. The real battle in Hartlepool should be to get a grip on the council. If the MRA/WCNE thing is anything to go by, there must be a hell of a lot more wastage that the general public aren't aware of.
All the moaning about the cuts and such like, is being used to hide the fact that our council is sitting on reserves in excess of £31 million, other assets worth millions, and the key decisions are being made by the wrong people for the wrong reasons.
I actually find the whole 'local council thing' very bizarre. There aren't many situations in the real world where people with no experience whatsoever in business, who may not have even had a job of any significance before, are suddenly put in charge of tens of millions of pounds.
Personally, I'd rather see all 30 odd of them replaced by 3 or 4 people with a proven track record in business and/or meaningful public sector services. Pay the 3 or 4 of them £70,000 each and in a heart beat you're saying about £250,000 which is currently being split between 30 odd people, most of whom don't speak.
However, as the council in its current form is the system we have, all that can be done is to pick off the bad apples one by one.
That means its a quango Dave, jobs for the elite or 4 Drummonds :-[
I don't see it like that. But anyway, it's not changing so I guess it's irrelevant.