First to explain I am a Labour party member and thus I am not independent on these comments.
MP
Pheasey is part of the Walsall South constituency which Bruce George (Labour) has held for 36 years until he stepped down recently. The seat is solid labour thanks to the great work Bruce has took part in and the nature of the seat. It is strange though that both Walsall seats are solid labour but the council has been Tory for many years.
2010 Results
Despite a strong swing from Labour to Conservative Valerie Vaz held onto Walsall South with a reduced majority to become Walsall’s first women MP
Valerie Vaz 16,211
Labour
Richard Hunt 14,456
Conservative
Murli Sinha 5,880
Liberal Democrat
Derek Bennett 3,449
UK Independence Party
Gulzaman Khan 482
Christian Party
Mohammed Mulia 404
Independent
Majority 1,755
Turnout 40,882 63.1%
Councillors
Some History – Pheasey has always been considered a swing ward, in my lifetime it was rare for any party to hold all three seats. However in 2004 the wards had to be withdrawn primary Pheasey was too small and we gained what is known as the Daisy Bank area, which is solid Tory. We then went from a swing seat to Tory majorities of 1000
Current councillors are
Mike Bird – Conservative – Current Walsall Leader
Adrian Andrew – Conservative – Deputy Leader
Chris Towe – Conservative
It is worth noting none of these live on Pheasey and the case of Mike Bird is interesting. He was de-selected from neighbouring safe Tory seat of Streetly. During this time I mentioned there was review of the boundary wards and recommended part of the Hundred Acre Estate in Streetly should become part of Pheasey Ward. Mike was less then complementary about Pheasey but once we were made safe Tory, guess what he turned up, make up your own minds on that.
News and Views about Pheasey Park Farm 
Ian good to find your blog and will be putting right a few inaccuracies on you blog.
You are clearly not that informed about the whole area as the part that was joined to Pheasey Ward, the original ward that I and Cllr Towe were elected to, is called Orchard Hills. Daisy Bank is a very small are of it and considering the UKIP candidate lives there, Bruce George lives there and a previous labour election agent lives there (and from canvass returns) I would hardly call it solid Tory and I have to inform you that you are under the same misconception as some of our own colleagues that Orchard Hills is solid Tory – it is not. From canvassing and also the correlation between the reduced turnout in the ward and the reduced vote for Labour, Lib Dem and UKIP demonstrates that the area is not solid Tory.
Your comments that we do not live in the ward – many councillors of ALL parties do NOT live in the ward they represent and it is disingenuous to criticise us when the Labour Candidate in the last 3 local elections has been from Darlaston – slightly further away than where I originally lived, incidentally I now live within approximately a mile of the ward boundary. The last Labour Councillor to defend (lose) her seat in Pheasey did not live in the ward either.
Labour came 3rd in the last local election which is unheard of yet still two thirds of the ward is the original Pheasey Ward – can you explain how the boundary change contributed to that?
I hope this clarifies some of the inaccuracies in your reporting – I look forward to some accurate debating with you.
Adrian
Sorry PS. It was not Cllr Bird that was critical of Pheasey it was Councillor Douglas-maul (a former pheasey councillor) who was expressing a personal view many years ago
Hi Adrian,
Thanks for the reply
there are a number of issues there to be addressed.
1) Labour voting, you are fully aware that before the boundary review, Pheasey was a fully self contained ward which was a marginal and now solid Tory. Are you saying within the nominal boundaries of Pheasey something changed ?
Also you will be aware of let’s say the ‘Newman factor’ which I believe has affected our vote greatly
2) It is worth noting the last time the Tories put up a local candidate, Barbara lost. Maybe you are right local candidates do not matter, maybe the brutal fact is that there are not enough memebers of either party based locally who could/want to stand. However I am consisent on this how can a councillor represent an area he/she does not live in or experience of apart from making an effort to drive in ?
3) Would you not agree that all of us in Pheasey consider ourselves Brummies ? The vast majority of our lesiure and work activites for most take place in Birmingham and should you not as a local representative be looking at the next boundary review to move Pheasey into Birmingham ? I feel sorry for the residents of Orchard Fields, your last leaflet was all about Pheasey itself, little mention of OH and lets face it neither residents on either side really mix in terms of social activities or even shared amenties.
Ian the turnout in the Orchard Hills is in 2008 went down substantially yet I still won with an increased majority and I recognise only a slightly increased vote. I maintain with you, and to be fair some of my own Tory colleagues, that it is not Orchard Hills that has made the ward ‘safe’ Tory. From my experience it is not a safe Tory seat. Certainly not in the traditional sense of Streetly or Paddock. I am proud to say that I was elected to the ‘self contained’ Pheasey Ward and yes I think something has changed over the last 10 years something much deeper than can be discussed over a blog – more a pint!
The Newman factor was a big issue in 2002 and certainly 2003. In 2002 it cost us the seat and 2003 it cost you the seat. Bill, bless him, would have done more damage to both parties as straight Ind rather than joining UKIP (sorry Steve but it is true). Bill was a great advocate for Pheasey Park Farm.
I think Ian that many of your own Councillors do not represent the area they live in and Harrower (from PPF) has tried to get elected in Pelsall and in Rushall over the last 2 years and your candidate in this year was from The Butts. Am I to understand that you voted for Steve as he was the only candidate from PPF?
Ian if we are to have a sensible political discussion on this blog silly snide comments about my ‘effort’ to drive into the area are not well placed if you really think that is the only connection I have had with PPF over the last 11 years you are not as well informed as I thought. I was trying to illustrate that PPF is part of my life other than being a Local Councillor; perhaps I need to be more explicit in future.
Ian in terms of leaflets we do sometimes ensure that news that is more relevant to Orchard Hills is reported to them and news more PPF based is reported in the area. We understand that the new boundaries imposed by your govt 6 years ago are not great and we have to deal with different areas in similar but not the same ways.
I would add Adrian that it does you guys down not to have an internet presence, in today’s social world something like this takes minutes to set up and is a very useful tool to communicate with as we are so distant from the centre.
How come I know more about Birmingham council issues than Walsall, though catching up fast.
Adrian, one final thing !!
Even though it is obvious about my political bias I am quite happy for you to have a regular blog piece on here, totally unedited, adds to the flavour !
I might take you up on that offer – it would be good to have the debate
I would like that Adrian, debate is not to be afraid of an I believe for too many years Pheasey has been left aside by being too far from the centre. Now I know Darlaston feel the same and maybe Aldridge as well, in many Ways Walsall is a funny old place.
If you have news you wish to publicise let me know, I will be putting out Valerie’s surgery times for example, happy to extend that to you guys.
I also hold the same to Steve as well
Hi Ian/Adrian,
Walsall South is no longer a solid Euro-Labour seat Ian. Following the General Election result two weeks ago it is now a Euro-Labour marginal Constituency.
I agree with Adrian with regard to voting trends and canvass returns in Orchard Hills. It was the only part of Pheasey/Park Farm where i saw Euro-Labour posters in windows during the recent elections; and i’d say that without Labour votes in Orchard Hills and Nether Hall Park, Euro-Labour would have finished in fourth place in the local election behind the Lib-Dems.
Because Euro-Labour havn’t had a REAL local candidate in Pheasey/Park Farm since John Prescott signed his name to the documentation to allow Bovis to dump hundreds of homes in OUR green belt Great Barr Park – because Euro-Labour havn’t campaigned overly hard in the ward from that date – and because the last two Euro-Labour candidates, nor any Euro-Labour counting agents have bothered to turn up at the last two ward counts; local party activists, such as yourself, seem to have only a patchy idea at best about voter trends and canvass returns in/for the area.
Many residents in Park Farm and Pheasey (still) feel as though they were stabbed in the back by Euro-Labour and Prescott over what happened in Great Barr Park.
Your party locally had fair warning about what would happen politically if the Bovis overspill scheme were ever approved. Bill Newman and Darren Porter for example, both former Labour Party members, repeatedly spoke out on this incendiary subject on many occasions – as did many other local residents.
But Euro-Labour and Prescott didn’t listen; and so we all got the overspill – and Euro-Labour in turn received the Royal order of the boot!
Now run this one past me again! – Dead Milliband, the ‘current’ leader of Euro-Labour, the party that introduced student tuition fees, indicated a couple of days ago he was considering joining students out on the streets protesting against student tuition fees!!!!!!!!! – So bizarre you just couldn’t make it up!!!!!!!!!
If ‘Dead’ had gone out on the streets with ‘the kids’, i wonder how far along the protest route the plonker would have got before a good number of the students and their supporters turned on him and started to tear him apart.
So, the Tories that bought in student tuition fees (the Euro-Labour Tories) voted against an increase in fees for the punitive measure that they put on to the statute book; And another bunch of Tories (the Lib-Dems) voted in favour for a massive price rise on a measure that they had promised to abolish in their last General Election manifesto.
Meanwhile, the Tory Tories (David Cameron’s Blue Labour) were also breaking a General Election pledge to jail anyone carrying a knife, at the same time as rubber stamping a European Union Directive making it illegal for anyone resident in the United Kingdom under the age of 16 to buy Christmas party crackers!!!!!!!
Welcome to the lunatic ward of 2010 LibLabCon British party politics!! I can’t wait to see what these idiots have in store for us in 2011 (not!!!!).
What irony!!!!!
Local Independent anti-EU MEP Nikki Sinclaire, together with a number of (real) Labour, Ulster Unionist, Conservative MP’s and UKIP MEP’s, delivered Tory toff Euro-Labour leader Ed Miliband’s only chance at ever seriously hurting David Cameron to the front door of 10, Downing Street, in the form of a 100,000 + signed petition calling for a national Referendum on the United Kingdom’s membership of the completely undemocratic, rotton and corrupt European Union recently.
I’d guess that many real Labour members and supporters would expect no nonsense, tough political fighters such as Keir Hardie, Herbert Morrison and Clement Attlee to have made sure that all rabidly pro-EU Euro-Labour MP’s were absent from the House Of Commons for a debate and vote on Europe, such as that set now for October 24th; And would quietly but firmly advise the larger number of Labour MP’s to ambush Cameron and vote to defeat the current coalition Government by voting for a democratic Referendum on the question of the UK’s membership of the EU.
It seems however, that spoilt, posh, Tory toff Euro-Labour leader Ed Miliband is going to deny the British people a long overdue democratic vote on this issue, by voting no to the petition together with his posh Tory toff pals David Cameron and Nick Clegg. Real Labour members and supporters would surely be best served from now until the 24th, urging their MP’s and their hapless, hopeless, Tory Leader ,Miliband, to ‘knife’ quisling Cameron and to vote YES to a Referendum.
I see that the Trade Union movement and UKIP are seriously concerned about the European Union’s growing pressure on the quisling FibLabCon parties to introduce ‘Mode 4’ for all UK trade and services agreements.
‘Mode 4’ allows multinational companies to bring foreign workers into the United Kingdom for ‘special tasks’, even if the necessary skilled staff are already available within the borders of the UK; ‘Mode 4’ also allows companies to pay wage rates set at the levels of ‘imported workers’ countries of origin; wage rates that in many countries are lower than those of the UK, thereby encouraging the undercutting and laying off of workers here at home.
There has been no public discussion regarding the EU’s ‘silent’ push for the FibLabCon to forcibly introduce ‘Mode 4’; And it seems likely that the Fib-Dem Tories, the Conservative Tories and posh Tory Euro-Labour MP’s such as largely privately and Oxbridge educated, multi-home owning toffs like Ed Balls, Harriet Harman, Ed and David Miliband, Fiona Mactaggart, Hilary Benn and Yvette Cooper etc, will quietly ‘agree’ to do the bidding of their EU masters and ‘lobby’ to introduce ‘Mode 4’.
PROTECT BRITISH WORKERS JOBS AND THEIR RIGHT TO WORK. SAY NO TO THE EU, SAY NO TO ‘MODE 4’.
Is it not great democracy,no one is allowed to have a referendum on anything EU,we have 3 main political parties populated by massive wealth,Bankers(Maude,Green)big accountants supplying free labour for MPs,Big business putting money,meals(tax Office Boss)conferences into the parties, bankers & politicians in Iceland have been jailed for dishonesty,here they are in the cabinet,WHO DO YOU VOTE FOR?
Hi DJ,
I agree with you absolutely; Only about 111 of our 650 MP’s recently either voted for the citizens of the United Kingdom to be given a referendum with regard to our future either to remain a member of or to leave the European Union or abstained. The bulk of the quisling SNP, Welsh Nats, SDLP, Alliance, Conservatives, Euro-Labour and Fib-Dem MP’s voted to deny us a democratic vote on this issue, against the wishes of a majority of the British people. I see that a number of Euro-Labour councillors have been recently arrested on fraud and corruption charges in Stoke; Euro-Labour’s Lord Paul and Baroness Uddin are both under investigation with regard to possible expenses fraud to the sum of approx £200,000; and Euro-Labour’s Jack Dromey, Harriet Harman’s wife and the MP
For Kingstanding, North Birmingham, North Warwickshire, is currently under investigation for failing to declare the sum of £27,867 when required to do so. The sum in question has now i believe been belatedly submitted and published in the Parliamentary Register Of Members Financial Interests.
DJ, you have asked what i assume to be a general question ‘WHO DO YOU VOTE FOR? – My answer to your question is UKIP.
Oooops; That should have read ‘Harriet Harman’s husband’.
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Dear Steve just as a thought for you, the press who like the status quo(,buddies with politicians and tax dodging amongst the owners),seem to have it in for UKIP and the public seem to follow like sheep as usual,even in some 6 th.form colleges you lot are known as Dilute Fascists,You need to get at the youth,there is great scope for mobilisation amongst a lot of disinchanted kids. DJ.
Hi DJ, i’d say that on the whole UKIP’s press coverage has improved greatly over recent years; Mike Nattrass our local UKIP MEP and Derek Bennett, Chairman of UKIP’s Walsall branch party have attended a number of debates at school/college 6th forms since 2009 and have always enjoyed a positive response from the students, who generally have a greater awareness of how completely undemocratic and corrupt the European Union is than many other 16 to 18 year olds.
Where UKIP does need to improve dramatically is in convincing ‘tribal voters’ of all ages in Metropolitan areas such as Walsall, who are telling us on the doorstep in ever increasing numbers, that they want the UK to leave the EU, to break lifelong habits and make the jump from voting for the quisling anti-British, pro-EU FibLabCon and to start voting UKIP.
According to earlier reports, Euro-Labour MP Jack Dromey failed to declare payments totalling £27,867 to the relevant Parliamentary body. In actual fact it now transpires that Dromey failed to declare payments totalling almost £60,000. An oversight that no doubt many other people make all the time. (not!!!!)
Picture the scene if you will at chateau Dromey/Harman; a large, well appointed house set in the leafy Home Counties. Dromey lets the cat out, picks up the milk, mail and morning newspapers; scans the latter quickly, puts on the kettle and begins cooking breakfast; goes upstairs and takes out a dress suit and white tie and shirt for dinner at Lady Longford’s (Harriet Harman’s aunt) country home that coming evening; forgets to register nearly £60,000 in the Parliamentary Register, goes back into the kitchen, turns the bacon on the grill, pours hot water into cups and lets the cat back in.
I see that Real Labour MP’s Dennis Skinner and Kate Hoey attacked Tory Prime Minister Cameron in the House Of Commons yesterday over his EU Veto climbdown in Brussels on Monday. Dennis Skinner rightly compared ‘traitor’ Cameron’s actions to Neville Chamberlain’s appeasement of Nazi Germany in the 1930’s. Kate Hoey reminded the House that some of the EU ‘leaders’ attending the summit were unelected apparatchicks of Brussels. Disgracefully, many of the spoilt, posh, anti-British, pro-EU Tory toffs that have taken over the Labour Party, heckled Mr Skinner and Miss Hoey for making their heartfelt remarks regarding the corrupt, fascist, European Union.
So ‘Windy Miller’, crazed useless windmill zealot and Anti-British, pro-EU high priest of Fib Demmery, Chris Huhne is to face criminal charges in the High Court; and about time too. Now let’s see Euro-Labour expenses fiddlers Baroness Uddin, Jack Dromey and Lord Paul arrested and charged with (between the three of them) failing to correctly register with the relevant Parliamentary authorities/or incorrectly claiming the sum of (it’s believed) over a quarter of a million pounds. Dromey, while picking up his MP’s salary of around £65,000 per annum, was also apparently billing the Trade Union Unite up to £200 per hour for work conducted for the organisation over a period of several months. What on earth was he doing on behalf of the union to be able to charge them up to £200 an hour for his services, turning lead into gold? How many of his legitimately employed con
services, turning lead into gold? How many of his constituants
stituents earn anything like £200 an hour? I wonder How many North Birmingham Euro-Labour activists and voters, who would probably have preferred to see a local candidate chosen to contest Dromey’s seat, instead of a parasitic, money-grubbing, Southern Tory, are regretting not fighting harder to have ensured that a more honest party member with real roots in the constituency was selected to represent them?
I see that Southern Tory Euro-Labour MP for Erdington, Birmingham, North Warwickshire, Jack Dromey, was out and about in North Birmingham with spoilt, posh Tory toff Ed Miliband and spoilt, posh, privately educated, Tory toff Ed Balls this week. The only place Dromey, Harriet Harman’s husband, should be, is behind bars, for failing to correctly declare almost sixty thousand pounds of expenses to Parliament recently. Instead of prison food though, he’s no doubt been enjoying the odd cup of tea or two and cucumber sandwiches at Harriet Harman’s aunts Lady Longford’s swanky gaff.
Another Euro-Labour crook who by rights should be languishing in the chokey is expenses fraudster Baroness Uddin who attempted to diddle us all out of a whopping £125,000!!!!!!! – She had been claiming that she couldn’t afford to and wouldn’t be paying back any of the cash she scammed, but hey presto, the money has now been handed over; Now let’s see the authorities in Wapping, East London seize the keys to the subsidised Housing Association property she’s been living in and hand them over to a more deserving case. Her crookedness could always go and live in the valuable flat she owns in Maidstone, Kent.
P.S, I wonder if she’ll be disclosing the details of where that £125,000 she’s handed over came from? – She’s allowed back into the House Of Lords next week and will again be eligible to claim £300 a day in expenses. What a rotter!!!!!!
Did i forget to mention Baroness Uddin’s overseas ‘palatial’ third home? Tut, tut, tut; how remiss of me. Her crookedness has yet to disclose where the £125,000 she’s been forced to repay has come from, but she will have to disclose that fact to Parliamentary authorities fairly shortly.
Incidently, Uddin was plucked from a relatively obscure position as a Euro-Labour Councillor in London’s East End and elevated to the House Of Lords by spoilt, posh, privately and Oxbridge educated war criminal and former Euro-Labour Leader, Tory B’Liar.
Apparently, multi-home owning and multi-millionaire B’Liar is looking to make a return to front line British politics (it has been noticed that he was never as eager to volunteer for front line duty with British forces in all of the wars he helped start) – and no doubt ‘current’ Euro-Labour party leader ‘Dead’ Miliband is absolutely delighted at the prospect of having Tory B breathing down his neck!!!!
Obviously, having between 20 million to 60 million pounds (depending on which accounts of his and his wife’s joint fortune you believe) in various bank accounts (mostly in accounts situated in overseas tax haven’s i’d imagine) – and owning 8 expensive homes, is not enough; and B’Liar clearly is of the opinion that more of the folding stuff will come in very handy from getting his grasping hands on another safe Euro-Labour Parliamentary seat. I wonder which Euro-Labour MP is shortly going to get sandbagged, sorry, i mean volunteer to ‘retire early’, to make way for the blood soaked and fabulously wealthy ‘Mr B’Liar?????
I see that spoilt, posh, Oxbridge educated Tory, Euro-Labour leader Dead Miliband is to share a stage with a blood soaked war criminal at a swanky dinner next week, multi-millionaire Tory B’Liar. B’Liar, who ‘earned’ 20 million pounds last year, said in an interview last week that he’d like to be U.K. Prime Minister again (God forbid!!!) at some point in the future.
Another spoilt, posh, privately and Oxbridge educated Tory, champagne socialist, David Cameron, leader of Blue Labour, has by any standards had a, mostly self-inflicted disastrous last six months. One policy and budget statement u-turn after another, a mostly pretty useless and ineffective front bench in the House Of Commons and a poor showing in May’s Local Elections, has Cameron on the ropes and you’d think a lame sitting duck for a strong opposition Leader.
But no; You’d expect any opposition leader worth his salt to attack Cameron now; and where he is weakest; And Cameron’s weakest spot is undoubtedly over Europe and the strident calls for a UK referendum over our membership (or Not) of the European Union. Miliband however, rather than attacking Cameron with all guns blazing by announcing a Labour pledge to call an in out EU referendum directly following the next General Election and severely damaging Cameron below the waterline, does nothing.
I’m awaiting the publication of a cartoon somewhere depicting goalkeeper David Cameron caught outside his box, floored, floundering in the mud, his face a picture of despair; And there is Dead Miliband, with the ball marked ‘General Election Winner’ at his feet, in front of the open goal net marked UK, EU Referendum. But rather than kicking that ball into the waiting goal, Miliband is saying ‘Yah, okay, right then chaps, remind me what do i do with this round thing again’; And the crowd of Labour supporters are screaming at the idiot, ‘Kick the ball into the net you stupid spoilt posh Tory halfwit!!!!!!!!!!!’
Why do you not join the Tory party,then you vent your one sided bile and may get somewhere,because you come over as a Tory apologist,I agree neither party is worth a vote but get real they are both as bad on Europe and Tories even worse on screwing us normal folk on THEIR FRIENDS and BIG BUSINESS TAX AVOIDANCE (Vodafone,P.Green Hedge funds,Godman sachs ,Price waterhouse etc.etc) to the tune of many Billions!
DJ.
Hi DJ,
My comments above those of your’s attack two out of the three Tory FibLabCon parties i.e. Tory Conservatives and Tory Labour; so how, pray tell, can that be one-sided bile ????????????????????
As a former member of the Labour Party and a member of UKIP for over 11 years i’ve never been noted by anyone other than yourself as a Tory apologist???????????????
Why on earth would i want to join them, when as you correctly point out, the Tory Tories are as bad on Europe as the Euro-Labour Tories? I also agree with you that the Tory Conservatives and Tory Euro-Labour Party have done virtually nothing other than screw us normal working class folk to the tune of billions of pounds over decades; and neither party is, as you say, worth voting for. Stuff both of ’em!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And the Fib-Dems too!!
When the last appallingly useless Euro-Labour Government began to impose the European Union Waste Framework Directive in circa 2006 and evenually forced approx 180 Council’s to impose once fortnightly houshold waste bin collections, there was an angry backlash from voters that saw not only Euro-Labour but also Fib-Dem and Conservative Councillors lose seats to UKIP and Independent campaigners to restore once weekly bin collections
Conservative Minister Eric Pickles has spent some time over the last three years safeguarding once weekly bin collections in approx 100 Council areas, as well as attempting to persuade the other 180 Council’s to resume a once weekly service; But his efforts now appear to have been in vain as unelected bureaucrats from the fascist European Union have now parked their panzers on Mr Pickles front lawn in the form of Conservative Minister Lord
De Mauley, who as widely reported in many of this weekends National newspapers, has stated that the EU have ordered that their European Union Waste Framework Directive must be fully implemented by 2015 and so all once weekly household waste collections must be scrapped and replaced with a once fortnightly ‘service’ in every local authority the length and breadth of the United Kingdom.
I have no doubt that if Lord De Mauley, the Nazis of the EU and anyone else that wants to impose fornightly household waste collections on us pushes ahead with their rotton directive, then there will be a price to pay at the ballot boxes in the Local Council and European elections next May. I’d imagine that many already anxious anti-British, pro-EU FibLabCon Local Councillors and MEP’s will have noted Lord De Mauley’s words/instruction this weekend with no little sense of unease. Roll on next May!
Why yet again are we going to follow the EU orders and make a mess of our streets and gardens, why are going to encourage rats, other vermin and a continuous mess in the name of some faceless fools in Brussels? My wife and I create a wheely bin full of rubbish and recycling each week and there is only two of us, so how will a family of 4 or more manage to cram all of their refuse in to a rubbish and recycling bin in a fortnight, especially when leaving even a little forcing the lid open means that the bin will not be emptied? It is time that the people of the UK stood up and made themselves heard, we do not need or want barmy Brussels making our rules, this is Britain, we like it the way it is … We do not want to be an island off the coast of Europe, we want to be the British Isles, we are British and we are capable of making a mess of our own rules, laws and regulations without some jumped up unelected fools in Brussels.
We have become casual about rubbish in our throwaway world, and leave it to municipal authorities to deal with it. But the pressure on landfill sites demands new solutions, and this means that, increasingly, environmental responsibility for waste disposal will be redirected back towards consumers and manufacturers.
The quantity of rubbish we produce has grown exponentially over the past century, with the relentless rise of consumer goods, packaging and plastics. In the not-so-distant past, when goods were sold in paper bags, and virtually everything was used and re-used, or burnt in the kitchen grate, households would have little to chuck out besides ash. Now, Britain produces 100 million tonnes of rubbish a year. Domestic or household waste accounts for one-sixth of this total – or nearly 300kg for every man, woman and child.
Most of this rubbish ends up in landfill sites, but space is fast running out. With growing environmental sensitivities, and the increasing economic burdens of waste management, the government is having to radically rethink its waste-management strategy.
Landfill
What happens to all this waste after it leaves your home? The most common destination for rubbish worldwide is a landfill site. Essentially, the rubbish is tipped into a big hole in the ground – usually a hole created by quarrying or mining. In Britain about 70 per cent of waste goes to landfill sites. Modern landfills are carefully constructed and managed. They have impermeable floors of clay or heavy-duty plastic, and pipes to collect the toxic liquid called leachate, which drains to the bottom, and which otherwise might pollute groundwater. Heavy machinery is used to compact the rubbish, and layers of soil may be spread over it prevent odour, vermin and windblown debris. The decomposition that takes place in a landfill produces flammable, toxic gases, notably methane, an environmentally damaging greenhouse gas. However, this can be flared off through pipes, or alternatively it can be piped to a plant and burnt as a fuel to generate electricity. In some places (notably China) it is piped to households and used as a domestic gas. Once full, landfill sites can be covered over and sealed, and eventually rehabilitated as airports, golf courses, dry ski-slopes, and so on. There are separate landfill sites for hazardous waste, which, needless to say, are treated differently.
Landfill is a comparatively cheap option. The trouble with landfill is that virtually all industrialised countries are rapidly running out of suitable sites. Existing sites are filling up fast, and proposals for new sites are met with insurmountable opposition by those living in the vicinity. Land near big cities is very expensive: cheaper land further away incurs higher transport costs and journey times (collection and transportation already accounts for 75 per cent of waste management costs). From an environmental point of view, landfills are a poor option. But by 2020, according to government targets, only 25 per cent of all rubbish will go to landfill. The key to success in this strategy lies is dramatically reducing the volume of waste produced in the first place, largely through recycling (nearly half will be recycled, according to the plan). Meanwhile, the pace accelerates as the total volume of waste in Britain grows by 3 per cent year on year, pushing waste disposal ever closer to crisis.
Incineration
So, if you cannot dump rubbish on the land, why not burn it? Incinerators reduce 85 per cent of rubbish to fine ash. This is what already happens to about 10 per cent of Britain’s rubbish. What’s more, we can use the rubbish as a fuel to produce electricity. The target is to increase the proportion of rubbish that is incinerated to 27 per cent by 2020.
Unfortunately, rubbish incinerators produce a large volume of toxic waste, in the form of gas and solids. Create air pollution, and the environmental fallout becomes an international issue. In recent years, great technical advances have been made in the process of cleaning (‘scrubbing’) gas emissions from incinerators, but these add considerably to the costs, and still some residual toxic pollutants escape. Another criticism is that incineration destroys large quantities of potentially recyclable materials, so the net energy loss is substantial. And it is difficult to build new incinerators, because – as with landfills – no one wants to live near to one.
Well Martin, are you saying that this is a good enough reason for fortnightly bin collections? Without disputing your facts, the core of the problem is obviously more down to the increased population than anything else. With all the procedures that have been put in to place to cut down on landfill our created rubbish quantities (per person/household) must have fallen and not grown, thus meaning the issue is yet again down to population and more proof that we need to put a stop to mass immigration. If you wish to dispute this fact then the proof is in your recycling bin, which of course should be containing more than the rubbish bin if you recycle correctly! There is no reason whatsoever to go to weekly collections, the British public have always had weekly collections, it is what we British do and no concern of the EU idiots!
Lord de Mauley’s widely reported comments/instruction on this topic over the weekend certainly seems to have upset a large number of people. Eric Pickles usually responds quickly when contradicted or challenged directly and i must admit i was fully expecting a robust response in the media from him yesterday, but no; And nothing today either. A fair few local residents who saw Lord de Mauley’s words on this topic in a variety of National newspapers
have expressed concern over this issue to me over the past two days, particularly those local Council Taxpayers from households of four or more people. They tell me they that they just about manage using the smaller black wheelie bins we now have for food/general household waste with a once weekly collection; A once a fortnight collection would be extremely unwelcome and unpopular and i’m sure elicit a large backlash with many voters
expressing their opposition to such an imposition at any subsequent elections.
Martin, Having researched your facts and figures i am very surprised to say that they are incorrect in the main, hope you don’t mind, however, i felt compelled to check in to them.
Just over a month ago the proposed cost of the European Union’s EU HS2 High Speed Rail Network (part of the EU’s ‘T ENT Policy’) rose from an eye watering 30 billion pounds to a massive 42 billion pounds. New figures just released for this disastrously misconceived madcap scheme now put the costs at a staggering 80 billion pounds!!!!!! If the EU want to waste money on a large train set (that we certainly cannot afford) well let’s see them foot the
bill for once instead of them forcing British and German taxpayers to stump up the cash as they invariably always do.
A number of senior Euro-Labour figures including Lord Bovis Of Hull, John Prescott, have been publicly critical of ‘current’ party leader ‘Dead’ Miliband recently. Local residents of Foxwood Avenue, Park Farm Road and Crail Grove probably best remember Prescott as the Euro-Labour scumbag responsible for signing the paperwork allowing carpetbaggers Bovis to dump hundreds of houses and flats at the bottom of their gardens despite mass
massive objections against the overspill in green belt Great Barr Park. Prescott and others in Euro-Labour have accused Dead Miliband of having no policies in place less than two years away from the next General Election. A statement which is actually untrue; Dead has announced two policies, 1 – NOT to allow the citizens of the United Kingdom a referendum on the UK’s continued (or otherwise) membership of the widely loathed European Union; and 2 – To increase the amount of benefits payed to claiments
despite the fact that plc UK can’t afford to borrow the huge amounts currently being used to fund our already massively overstretched benefits system.
Dead Miliband is clearly a lot of a dud; but of course things could be a good deal worse, just picture Euro-Labour having a raving buffoon like Prescott as a replacement party leader for hapless, hopeless Dead!!!!!!!!!
until the penny drops and we all wake up to the inequality and nil social mobility here and in USA,bleating about the daily mail type them against us,is silly ,to keep the status quo, so the rich pay little if any tax.No spending on what we produce, cause we can’t, bankers and their privately educated chums, some in the Cabinet,cost us trillions with their dishonest behaviour,non jailed,chastised We at working level pick up the bill,The last time this happened right wing forces grew up in protest and O dear. Europe is a part of this sideshow,punishing ordinary folk,whilst rich and bankers carry on including Mr.Farage and his business interests as well as a multitude of MP’s in business employment. Our political system is a disgrace,barely democratic,still lets bomb Syria, DJ
Hi DJ; Many of my neighbours here in our suburb, like your neighbours no doubt, were incredulous and angry that with our nation going through such troubled times financially, all that idiots such as William Hague, George Osborne and David Cameron appeared (and still seem) concerned with is attacking yet another Middle Eastern country with military hardware we surely cannot afford to waste and personnel from our armed forces a number of our so called politicians
appear happy to put in unnecessary danger at the drop of a (top) hat. I’d say that a very large majority of people across the UK are pleased that enough of our elected representatives In the House Of Commons voted no to Cameron’s call for British military intervention in Syria last week. As for the 270 fools that voted yes, well give them each uniforms, tin hats, packs and rifles and parachute them into Damascus pronto; And good riddance to bad
rubbish! Elected British politicians need to begin putting the interests of the British people first for once.
I see that a Sutton Coldfield residents group whose aim is the re-establishment of full independence for Sutton Coldfield from Birmingham have collected above the 5,000 signatures needed to force Birmingham City Council to hold a referendum on the first stage of the ‘Sutton Coldfield Town Council Referendum Committee’s’ plan for full independence, to create a seperate Town Council.
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The SCTCRC have in fact collected an impressive 10,000 signatures requesting a referendum and the petition is to be handed in to Birmingham City Council this Tuesday (October 8th). The referendum is expected to be held on the same day as the European Union and Local Council Elections next May. I wish SCTCRC Chairman Mr Ken Rushton and all Sutton Coldfield campaigners every success with their full Independence fight.
I note that the 10,000 signature petition collected by the Sutton Coldfield Town Council Referendum Committee, the first stage to re-establishing full independence for Sutton Coldfield from 39 years of massively unpopular control by Birmingham, has now been handed in to Birmingham City Council.
Do you have any video of that? I’d love to find out some additional information.
Hi Gita,
I’d imagine that there could well be a chance that there might be a clip of the SCTCRC handing over the 10,000 signature petition requesting a referendum to hopefully re-establish an independent Town Council for Sutton Coldfield, to Birmingham City Council, somewhere on the BBC’s website on it’s local news section.
You can find out more with regard to this issue by logging on to the Sutton Coldfield Observer’s website. The newspaper have covered the story in some detail.
Er Steve, you just replied to a spam message
Hi Ian,
Thanks for letting me know. Like a fair few people i guess, i get spam in my e-mail inbox pretty well every day, which i always delete without opening. I suppose that i shouldn’t be surprised that the people firing out spam should also target websites like the Pheasey/Park Farm site. Why would they send a spam message to your website?
all blogs get it, there is normally a spam filter that gets rid but this one got through as simply it is very simple, joys of running a blog, ho hum.
I am just here to let you know that i have more of a personal look at the work your current local councilors do and how much time they actually spend working and caring for the community in which you live. Cllr Bird, Cllr Andrew and Cllr Towe all work exceptionally long hours and are all available 24hs a day for the people of the constituency and the surrounding Walsall area. I know this as i have watched on as a family member who knows first hand all of the sacrifices these committed men make on a daily basis.I am sure that moat people go on holiday and turn the phone off, do not read emails and generally relax from their jobs a few weeks of the year and definatly at Christmas. Rightly so !! i know i do ! but i know first hand that these elected candidates take their work with them wherever they go any time of day or year ! they do this because they care about Pheasey and Walsall and want to provide the best community they possibly can for us and our children.
Hard decisions have to be made and sacrifices are made every day by us all. I sacrificed time spent with my father for him to help you and i don’t mind that as i am like him and would rather help another it puts a smile on my face, Just a thought before you tick the box today ! think local not general on this one. Have a good day.
I am surprised there is no comment so far on the undemocratic creation of the “Super Council”. All part of the EU drive to get rid of democracy, and the nation state.
Hi Adrian, I did a post a week ago after the announcement of the WMCA and I put my views. This is nothing to do with the EU though and all to do with the Tories trying to move the blame to local councils and areas.
Hi Adrian, there have been a number of comments elsewhere on this site relating to the Enforced Areas Euro-Quango, otherwise known as ‘Greater Birmingham’ or the WMCA.
Hi Ian,
Absolutely incorrect; the WMCA Enforced Areas Euro-Quango is very much to do with the shambolic and massively corrupt European Union. There are EU directives for both the creation of a ‘Greater Birmingham’ and a so called ‘Metro Mayor’ for a ‘Greater Birmingham’.
Adrian is spot on with his observations that these are yet more measures emanating from the completely undemocratic and fascistic European Union and a continued determination on it’s part to destroy democracy and our free nation state here in the United Kingdom.
There is even an office for a ‘Greater Birmingham’ in the European Union Parliament Building in Brussels.
You are however completely correct with your assertion that each of the Tory parties are all complicit in their drive to assist the EU in this blatant attempt to circumnavigate the democratic process in this part of the Midlands. The Fib-Dem Tories, Green Tories, Tory Tories and spoilt, posh toff Corbyn’s Euro-Labour Tories have all signed up to implement this disgraceful enforced Euro-Quango without offering local voters a referendum on the issue.
I see that in a Referendum held in Denmark today the Danish people have voted NO to further Danish integration into the European Union. The BBC made no mention of either the Referendum or the NO vote following the announcement of the result this evening on the Ten O Clock News. What’s the betting that they would have had a report on the Referendum if the Danes had voted yes to surrendering more freedoms, democracy and sovereignty to the fascist, shambolic and corrupt EU.
The people of the Midlands need a Referendum on whether or not the Quisling WMCA Enforced Areas Euro Quango should be established together with it’s EU Metro Mayor.