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Thursday
15th December 2005
Vale Conservatives
Financial
crisis at Vale as Council 'sells off' flagship service
Less than
two weeks after being forced into selling off Abingdon most prized
asset, the Old Gaol, The Vale of White Horse District Council has been
forced to sell off its flagship Revenue and benefits service with the
loss of 38 staff. The Liberal Democrats are desperately trying to fill a
black hole in the finances of the Vale and have been forced to privatise
it service that was once rated the best in the country.
The Council submitted it's own in-house tender for the contract but
failed to reach the final round of tenders. Staff were told that the
in-house bid had failed almost a week ago and that they would cease to
be employed by the council in less than a year's time.
Leader of the Conservative Group Cllr Melinda Tilley said she was
"deeply shocked" that the in-house bid hadn't reached the final stage.
This is a disaster for Vale staff who will be transferred to a private
company and expected to re-locate to sights all over the country, the
knock on effect being many staff will be unable to re-locate and will
become unemployed."
Conservative Councillor Matthew Barber added "This is a massive blow for
staff at the Vale who have constantly been treat appallingly by the
Liberal Democrat administration, there were widespread management
redundancies earlier in the year and now the flagship service of the
council has been axed. Many disadvantaged people will no longer have the
face to face service at the Council offices as this service is now
likely to be shipped all round the United Kingdom"
The Councils main trade Union Unison also voiced their concerns with
Branch Secretary Karen Tolley saying "The Union is very disappointed at
the news especially following the overall restructuring debate. This
will be a big blow for staff before Christmas and will lower morale even
more. Staff have worked hard to maintain an excellent level of service
and were surprised that their in house bid was rejected."
7th December 2005
Conservative Party
New era as
Cameron becomes Leader
David Cameron
became Leader of the Conservative Party yesterday ushering in a new era
in British politics.
Party members,
both nationally and in Oxfordshire, decided to jump a generation and
elect 39 year old David Cameron to succeed Michael Howard as new Leader
of the Party. The Shadow Education Secretary takes over the top Party
post after emerging victorious from the final run off ballot in a
leadership contest which has been underway for months.
The 70,048
majority result in favour of Mr Cameron was declared by Sir Michael
Spicer, Chairman of the 1922 Committee at the Royal Academy of Arts in
Central London.
David Cameron
immediately promised a new era of modern, compassionate Conservatism for
Britain “that is right for our times and right for our country”. He also
urged the people of Britain to “come and join us” and become part of
Cameron’s Conservatives.
As our new
Leader, David Cameron will immediately face Tony Blair in the Commons
this lunchtime at Prime Ministers Questions.
David was
elected as the Conservative Member of Parliament for the Witney
constituency in West Oxfordshire in June 2001. After the General
Election in 2005 David was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for
Education and Skills.
Born in
October 1966 David has worked at a high level in both business and
Government. David is married to Samantha and they have two young
children. They have homes both in West Oxfordshire and in London.
Further
coverage of the new Leader of our Party can be seen on conservatives.com
6th
December 2005 - 3.17pm
Conservative Party
David
Cameron wins Conservative Leadership Contest
David Cameron
has been elected as the new Leader of the Conservative Party.
198,844 votes
were cast in the contest. David Cameron secured 134,446 votes (68%)
against 64,398 votes cast for David Davis.
Further
coverage in regards to the result will follow shortly and can also be
followed on
www.conservatives.com.
Monday 7th
November 2005
Vale Conservatives
Tory Leader
announces Cameron support
Vale Conservative Leader Cllr Melinda
Tilley announced her support for Leadership hopeful David Cameron today
at a question and answer session with local school pupils. Whilst
visiting a local school Cllr Tilley was asked by one of the children who
she'd be supporting, she announced" I have already voted and I have
voted for David Cameron" This was greeted with cheers from the pupils in
the hall. when pressed further Cllr Tilley said " I have always been
impressed with David when I have met him, I think the youth factor will
appeal to many voters and enable the party to communicate with the
younger generation. However it is an excellent sign for the party that
we have two such strong leadership candidates, this can only bode well
for the future."
21st
October 2005
Conservative Party
Leadership
Election Update
The
Conservative leadership contest has moved to its final decisive stage
after Dr Liam Fox was knocked out in the second round ballot amongst
MP’s. His elimination means that the membership of the Association will
now help to decide which of the two remaining candidates, David Cameron
and David Davis, should lead the Party.
The two
candidates will now pitch their appeal to members at a series of
hustings meetings across the country.
Mr Cameron
enters the final stage with the strongest backing of Conservative MP’s
with 90 votes. Mr Davis came second with 57 votes. Mr Fox was eliminated
in third place with 51 votes. Mr Kenneth Clarke was eliminated from the
contest on Tuesday 18th October.
The format,
venues and timings of the hustings meetings are still to be decided by
the Board of the Party and will be communicated to members in due
course.
Michael Howard
will stay on as leader of the Party until a successor has been chosen.
Ballot papers
will be sent out centrally to eligible members in early November and
will need to be returned by midday on Monday 5th December. The result of
the ballot will be announced on Tuesday 6th December. The Party has
appointed Electoral Reform Services Limited to send out, receive and
count the ballot papers.
You will have
had to be a Party member for at least three months before the close of
the ballot to vote. Lapsed members will not receive a ballot paper.
The two
candidates website addresses are as follows –
David Cameron
-
www.cameroncampaign.org
David Davis -
www.modernconservatives.com
Sunday 9th October 2005
Vale Conservatives
Local MP
'bugged' at conference
A Conservative Party Conference fringe
event, organised by the Conservative Political Officers Network (CPON),
at which Ed Vaizey was speaking at was targetted by a Lib Dem 'spy', it
can be revealed.
The event - entitled "Winning Elections - The Conservative Way!" -
featured newly-elected MPs Ed Vaizey, Justine Greening and Peter Bone;
as well as Gloucestershire County Council Leader, Barry Dare, and
Trafford MBC councillor, Alex Williams. The event was hosted by
Kensington & Chelsea Leader, Merrick Cockell.
At the event the panellists were asked what they thought were the main
reasons behind their electoral success. At the beginning of the meeting,
a unidentified man asked permission to record the meeting, but
controversy raged after the event when he revealed himself to be the
official Liberal Democrat observer
Afterwards, Mr Vaizey, MP for Wantage said, "I was unaware of the
controversy at first until the gentleman was questioned about a
recording he had made of the meeting. This type of underhand tactic is
of course nothing more than we have come to expect from the Liberal
Democrat Party. They only have to examine our election campaign and our
results in local government elections to know that the Conservative
agenda is the one that the people want."
Kate Stinton, CPON Deputy Chairman, said, "The whole point of CPON's
event was to pass along ideas, policies and strategies on how to win
elections. It is more than flattering that not only was this received
well by MPs, Councillors, and party members, but that our political
opponents felt it worthy enough to record for posterity."
28th
September 2005
Conservative Party
Local
Members to vote in Conservative Leadership Election
Local members
in the Central and South Oxfordshire Conservative Group area will be
voting for a new Party Leader shortly after the announcement of the
Party Leadership Voting Ballot yesterday.
The
Constitutional College of the Conservative Party voted, via a postal
ballot, for the proposal to change the rules for electing the Party
Leader, but by an insufficient majority to effect the change. For the
changes to be approved, 50% of all those eligible to vote were required
to vote in favour, along with 66% of MP’s who voted and 66% of the
National Convention members who voted. It was this final threshold that
was not reached.
The result of
the ballot was as follows –
Ballots issued
– 1141
Ballots returned – 1001 (87.7%)
Number in favour of the Proposal – 611 (61%)
Number against the Proposal – 389 (38.9%)
Number of Void Papers – 1
The
Conservative Party Chairman, Francis Maude MP, commented on the decision
–
“I think it
was very important for the whole Party to have the chance to look at the
leadership rules before electing a new leader. Both MP’s and the
voluntary party have had that opportunity to do that – and they’ve
decided to stick with the old system. It’s been a worthwhile debate and
we’ll now get on with electing a new leader – hopefully in early
December.”
In due course
there will be a ballot of all Party members to elect the new Leader.
Once Michael
Howard steps down after the Party Conference, the Party will proceed to
elect the new Leader as follows –
(i) The 1922
Committee presents to the Party a choice of leadership candidates. The
rules for deciding the procedure by which it does this are determined by
the Executive Committee of the 1922 Committee after consultation with
the Board.
(ii) When the 1922 Committee has presented its choice of candidates to
the Party, all Party members of three months standing or longer vote by
postal ballot for their preferred candidate.
(iii) A candidate achieving more than 50% of the vote among the Party
membership is declared elected Leader of the Party.
Further
information on the events of yesterday and the forthcoming Leadership
Election can be obtained by contacting the Group office on 01491 612852
or visiting
www.conservatives.com.
22nd
August 2005
South Oxfordshire Conservatives
Shadow
Attorney General confirmed for SOCA Annual Dinner
Shadow
Attorney General, Dominic Grieve MP, has been confirmed as the Honoured
Guest and Speaker at the 2005 SOCA Annual Dinner.
The Dinner
will take place on the evening of Friday 4th November 2005 at The
Phyllis Court Club in Henley On Thames. Boris Johnson MP will also be in
attendance.
Tickets for
the event are selling fast and can be obtained from the SOCA office on
01491 612852. Members of SOCA have been sent an invitation to the event
through the Royal Mail. The deadline for ticket applications is Friday
28th October 2005.
12th August
2005
Boris Johnson MP
Boris
heads ‘Save our Hospital’ March in Henley On Thames
Boris Johnson
MP headed the ‘Save Our Hospital’ March that took place on Saturday 6th
August 2005 in Henley On Thames.
Over 4000
members of the public joined the March calling for the Hospital to
remain open and for the local Health Authority not to take the decision
to close the site. The streets of the town were closed for about a hour
whilst Boris led marchers through and around the town. Boris has been
very active in his support for the Hospital to remain open in Henley On
Thames.
Boris
addressed the marchers at the end of the event and pledged his continued
support for the cause –
“It is
absolutely crazy that they are thinking of closing such a unit here,
when it is so vital to the people of Henley and surrounding villages.
Bureaucrats in the health service say the key problems in the health
service are huge delays, waiting lists and queues and people blocking
beds in the acute sector. Is it not then totally demented to be closing
a valuable hospital like Townlands? You are right to fight for this
hospital, it is your democratic right!
The people of
this town raised the money for the War Memorial Hospital, which was
taken away in favour of Townlands and for this hospital to be closed by
people who have no democratic responsibility to us is quite wrong. They
are well meaning people, no doubt, and they have very difficult choices
to make, but they must be aware of how strongly the people of this town
value their hospital. This is the beginning of the campaign to Save
Townlands and I have no doubt that if you continue to show the same kind
of commitment and determination that you have today – we will win!”
Boris thanks
all those who attended and supported the March with him and the leaders
of the campaign.
8th July 2005
South Oxfordshire Conservatives
Successful
CPF Meeting in Thame
SOCA Members
last night attended a successful CPF Meeting in Thame, which discussed
the performance of the Party during the recent General Election.
Mr Paul Vita,
Chairman of SOCA CPF, led the discussion brief, which concentrated on
aspects of the 2005 General Election and the policy work to be started
for the next General Election campaign.
Feedback on
the discussion has been sent to CCHQ and members will shortly receive
details of the next CPF meeting.
14th May
2005
Oxfordshire County Council Conservatives
Leader of
Oxfordshire County Council sets out approach…
Councillor
Keith Mitchell, the new Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, today set
out his approach for the new Conservative Administration at County Hall
…
“I write to
you today as the Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, which for the
first time in some twenty years is a Conservative Council. For sixteen
of these years, the Council was truly hung. There was no leadership and
no clear direction. It was increasingly clear how damaging this lack of
leadership was to the whole Council and Oxfordshire.
I am delighted
that our excellent team of candidates was able to prove the doubters
wrong and to show that, at a local level, the electorate voted for a
return to Conservative policies and clear accountability. I would like
to take this opportunity to thank all the professional staff and members
of SOCA for all their hard work and effort at these County Council
elections. Without you we could not have done it – thank you.
Our new
Administration will be characterised by seven simple words – Low Taxes,
Real Choice, Value for Money. In delivering this strategy our approach
is simple – we intend to strengthen accountability, starting with the
Leader and Cabinet but enhancing a strong culture of ownership and
accountability throughout the organisation and we expect the Council to
be more customer focused, with elected members, managers and staff
placing themselves in the position of their customers to ensure the
service is accessible, helpful and supportive as well as efficient.”
Councillor
Keith Mitchell can be contacted by e-mail at
leader@oxfordshire.gov.uk.
10th
May 2005
Boris Johnson MP
Boris
Johnson MP hails fantastic success
Boris Johnson
MP today hailed the fantastic electoral success across Oxfordshire on
the 5th May.
After taking
the weekend off to recover from the campaign trail Boris acknowledged
the successful set of results and achievement of the 5th May –
“I was
naturally delighted to be returned as the Member for Henley constituency
with a greatly increased majority. I had hoped that all the hard work we
have done together over the last four years for our community would be
recognised and it certainly seems to have been. Onwards and upwards!
The return of
the County Council to Conservative leadership was stunning – did you
know it has been over twenty years since we were last in this kind of
position? I salute all of our successful candidates in being returned to
County Hall and I look forward to working with them over the next four
years.
We can also be
very proud of the real assistance we gave to other Associations during
the election period. Our help really did make a terrific difference on
the ground. I thank all those of you who helped and contributed towards
the historic results achieved on the 5th May. I also pay the most
fantastic tribute to Wayne, Matt and Karen at the Group Office who
really are the unsung heroes of all our campaigns and successes.
Results like
this really are our springboard to our national success at the next
General Election – keep working hard for our cause and it will be
achieved!”
Friday 6th
May 2005 Boris Johnson MP
Boris
Johnson re-elected with increased majority, Conservatives take control
of Oxfordshire County Council
Members of
South Oxfordshire Conservative Association were jubilant today over the
news that Boris Johnson had been re-elected to the House of Commons with
a significant increase in his majority. Boris’ result was announced at
4.30am this morning and saw a 4.2% swing from the Liberal Democrats to
the Conservatives.
Boris’
majority now stands at 12,793 and he polled some 53.5% of the vote.
SOCA members
had further cause to celebrate when the results of the County Council
elections in Oxfordshire were confirmed by late afternoon – for the
first time in some 20 years the Conservatives had secured a majority
allowing them to begin forming a new administration at County Hall.
The Chairman
of the Association, David Crossman, stated that he was delighted with
the results and all the hard work of the Association’s members during
the election period. He also thanked all those who had voted
Conservative throughout the constituency.
Friday 6th
May 2005
Ed Vaizey MP
Tories
snatch Labour seat!
OxfordshireConservatives.com is
delighted to announce that ED Vaizey has won the Wantage Parliamentary
Election with a majority of 15.4% inlcuding a swing of 1.9% from Lib dem
to Conservative. A very tired Ed said he was "very proud" at being
elected MP for Wantage. Vale Conservatives Leader Cllr Melinda Tilley
said she was "delighted for Ed" and spoke of his incredible "hard work
and drive, not only since the Election was announced but since being
selected as candidate a long time ago."
Wednesday
16th March 2005
Vale Conservatives
Lib Dems
tried 25% council tax rise
Documents have been brought to the
attention of the Conservative group which show that the ruling Lib Dem
group tried to get permission for a 25% Council Tax rise from the
Minister for Local Goverment. This move was quickly flattened by the
Government and was branded "ludicrous" by Councillor Matthew Barber.
"The fact that the Lib Dems were trying this and planning to hit it on
the residents out of the blue sums up their financial mismanagement."
Cllr Melinda Tilley added, "The fact that they say in one breath that
they have kept Council Tax as low as they can and are trying this in
another really sums the administration up. We predicted before the
budget that there would be service cuts coupled with Council Tax rises
and they have done exactly that. Tax payers money is being squandered
and the public need to be made aware."
Tuesday
15th February 2005
Vale Conservatives
Lib Dems
not interested in the community
Deputy Leader of the Conservative Group
Cllr Terry Cox declared himself "very upset" by the decision of the
Liberal democrats to nearly half the money available for community
grants. Liberal Democrat Leader Jerry Patterson had tried to argue that
£100,000 was being cut from the total grants budget of £733,000 however
it soon became clear that £500,000 of this was already tied up in long
term partnership agreements that the council could not get out of.
Leaving a total community budget before the cut of £233,000 which now
stands £133,000, a cut of 43%.
Cllr Cox said "A large number of community groups are going to suffer
and be prevented from doing very valuable activities in the community
because of this short sighted Lib Dem attack. The public are being
punished for their financial mistakes"
Friday 11th February 2005
Vale Conservatives
Lib Dems
don't care about youth
Conservatives reacted with anger to the
Liberal Democrat decision to close Abingdon open air swimming pool as
part of drastic budget cuts imposed due to severe financial
mismanagement.
An audit of sports provision had already reported a damning verdict for
the Liberal democrats saying that only 9% of parishes in the Vale of
White Horse met the minimum standards for Sports provision leaving
successful youth football teams such as St Edmunds F.C. without pitches
to play on, this situation was made even worse by the closure of the
Pool.
Conservative Councillor Mike Badcock said he "was shocked and
disappointed. Closure of the pool has been talked of before but always
resisted because of the value of this amenity to the people of Abingdon.
I learnt to swim in the pool as have many others and it is a great shame
the Liberal Democrats have chosen to close it".
Fellow Conservative Peter Jones said, "Its typical of Liberal Democrat
policy, only a month ago we were arguing the case to help St Edmunds FC
where the Lib Dems admitted there was a serious lack of sports decisions
and that they would do what they could to help, and then they go and do
this! The Youth of Abingdon and the surrounding villages obviously do
not matter in the minds of the ruling group but I can assure you they
are at the forefront of our minds"
Councillors listened in amazement as the Executive Members told the
council that they planned to replace the pool with a water feature but
had no idea what it would be.
Cllr Matthew Barber joked "Perhaps our media conscious Lib Dem leader is
anxious for an appearance on Ground Force with Charlie Dimmock"
Leader of the Conservatives Cllr Melinda Tilley told the Liberal
democrats that it was a mistake to close the pool without the
consultation of the people of Abingdon and Abingdon Town council. "To
take the decision then go and consult is pointless and an insult to the
people of Abingdon" she commented.
Thursday
20th January 2005
Vale Conservatives
Lib Dems
take 'kicking' over football pitches
Conservative Councillors last night
highlighted the failings of the Liberal Democrat administration when
campaigning to save a local youth football team. A Council Audit has
shown that only 9% of Parishes in the Vale meet the standards for
children's play areas and outdoor sports provision and Abingdon as a
town was also found lacking.
St Edmunds FC is a local club which has been running for over 15 years.
Currently they have over 300 members but a lack of playing accommodation
is seriously threatening the future of the Club. So far two teams have
had to disband because they have nowhere to play and other teams are
being made to travel as far as Oxford and Witney, at great expense, as
no local pitches are available.
In a motion to Council Cllr Monica Lovatt urged the council to help the
club find pitches to play on and gave a number of options that the
Council could use. She was seconded by Cllr Peter Jones who produced
minutes of a Council meeting from February last year when Leader of the
Council Cllr Jerry Patterson said that steps would be taken to address
the problems, "How long does he need?" asked Peter Jones but as usual no
answers were forthcoming from the Lib Dem front Bench.
Conservative Group Leader Melinda Tilley said that she had met with the
management of the club and that help was needed immediately not more
talk and delaying tactics. "There is a site available to help the club
in the short term which is owned by the Council. This should be used
immediately whilst a long term solution is discussed. There seems to be
no sense of urgency from the Lib Dem Leadership".
Tuesday
18th January 2005
Vale Conservatives
Bouncebackability of local Tories evident as they declare "business as
usual"
Vale Conservative Councillors insisted
it was business as usual despite the news that local MP Robert Jackson
had defected to the Labour Party. PPC for Wantage Ed Vaizey continued
his support for local residents which has included; sewage plan re-think
for Faringdon residents, a major part in the fight to save community
hospitals in Wantage and Didcot and supporting a local educational farm
for autistic children which has been threatened with closure by the
proposed development of wind turbines yards from the farm.
On hearing the news Ed Vaizey said he was "flabbergasted" at the
defection and that he thought Conservatives would now fight even harder
to secure a Conservative seat at the General Election. Conservative
Group Leader Melinda Tilley spoke of her feelings of "betrayal" and said
"We have supported Mr.Jackson for 26 years and he is now sitting in
Parliament on the Labour benches and taking his salary and allowances
which the Conservative Party in Wantage have fought for so long".
Faringdon Town and Vale Councillor Matthew Barber said "We were all very
surprised and disappointed by Robert's actions; however we are very
comfortable that Ed will take the seat in May. It seems as though the
only way Labour can take the seat in Wantage is to by-pass the
electorate which is hardly democratic"
Anybody wishing to join the Wantage Conservative Association in its
election preparations is encouraged to call the Association office on
01235 769090.
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