Dear voter, As readers of my Old Grumpy column, either in the Mercury or, more recently, on the Internet, will know, I have grave concerns about the way business is conducted in county hall. Firstly the council is ruled by something called the Independent Political Group (IPG) who go around at election times saying that there is no place for politics in local government.
Then, once the votes are safely in the bag, they convene a secret meeting in county hall where they all sign up for what is, to all intents and purposes a political party which holds secret group get-togethers prior to meetings of the council where the 'party line' is agreed.
It is worth noting that, proportionally, Labour councillors go against the party whip more often than the synchronised voters of the IPG.With 12 members of the IPG already elected unopposed it seems likely that this non-political, political party will again rule the roost in county hall.
That being the case, it is even more important that there is a strong opposition to hold them to account. I believe I am well qualified to fulfill that role. If I am re-elected, I promise to continue to speak out fearlessly against the abuses of power that are a routine feature of IPG rule.
Openness At County Hall
Among the issues I have bought to light was the granting of planning consent for a 2,800 sq ft (more than three times the size of a three-bed council house) "herdsman's cottage" to the Leader of the council, Cllr John Davies, even though, well before the meeting of the planning committee where the decision was made, Cllr Davies had sold the dairy cattle on which the need for an extra worker was based.
For whatever reason, Cllr Davies failed to inform the planning department of this change in circumstances. My attempt to have the planning consent rescinded on the grounds that the decision was based on false information was voted down by the IPG block vote.
Exposing Cover-ups
Exposure of the dubious expense claiming practices of Cllr Brian Hall and the way they were swept under the carpet. Cllr Hall was cleared by the council's standards committee of bringing the office of councillor into disrepute by making threats of violence against a BBC journalist after his solicitor argued, successfully, that he was acting in his private capacity at the function in St Davids, where the threats were made.
This despite the fact that I produced evidence that he had claimed travelling expenses for the journey to St Davids.In answer to my written question to full council the Leader confirmed that he had nominated Cllr Hall to be his representative at the function, though he failed to make this known to the standards committee.
Leaking Of Papers
The leaking by a senior council officer of confidential Cabinet papers to assist Milford Haven Port Authority during what was supposed to be a competitive bidding process for the site of the former Mine Depot at Blackbridge.
When questioned, the Leader claimed that these papers had been provided in order to clarify the terms and conditions of any sale, though examination of the documents shows that, other than the duration of the lease, there were no terms and conditions mentioned.
To date, I have not received a single solicitor's letter, never mind a writ. Can I take this as an indication that nobody wants to risk having the truth of these potentially libelous statements tested in the courts?
Cllr Mike Stoddart published his "manifesto" (above) on his website this week which he delivered to the constituents in his ward pre-election.
Despite the best efforts of John Davies displaying "good old Pembrokeshire politics at it's worst" by arranging the standing of ex-Leader Eric Harries against him, along with a paper Tory candidate completing an attempted pincer movement to defeat Cllr Stoddart the result displayed overwhelming support for Cllr Stoddart easily defeating the Tory candidate along with the has-been Eric Harries.
If taken as a snapshot of the whole county it shows just how much people appreciate the efforts of a whistle-blower like Cllr Stoddart and one wonders how successful and prudent our council could be with other dedicated people such as Cllr Stoddart running county hall.
Unfortunately, there seem to be far too many "professional" councillors with their snouts in the trough, people who have often made money (some out of lucrative EU subsidies apparently) and decided that an easy way to make even MORE money whilst also boosting their ego is to become a Kremlin Kronie.
Tuesday, 24 June 2008
WT Letters Page - Politics Is A Part Of All Governmentnt
Dear Editor - The letters from John Davies and Richard Shepherd (June 4th) beggar belief.
All local government decisions involve politics. Every decision, from whether to extend services or have lower taxes, or whether to have lots of small schools or fewer bigger schools, is controversial and thus political.
The problem with independent groups is that they do not issue manifestos.
So, when the election comes you do not know what their policies for Pembrokeshire will be. The present group could do whatever they like, and no-one could accuse them of going back on their word.
At least with the Tories, Lib Dems, Labour and Plaid, manifestos are issued. We know what we will get if they win, we can hold them to account for their promises and throw them out if they betray those promises.
With independents, individuals may make promises to their own ward; but we want to know what they will do as a group, and this is precisely what is lacking.
Manifestos, and thus parties, are the bed-rock of democracy. All strength to our political parties in Pembrokeshire - keep campaigning and one day we may have a truly democratic county council.
ALAN YORK 17 Goat Street, St Davids.
And there speaketh a man with common sense that articulates the problem with the IPG very eloquently.
"The problem with independent groups is that they do not issue manifestos."
Therefore we have to rely on individuals masquerading as "independents" who are subsequently bribed with allowances for special responsibilities and places on various committees or blackmailed to the effect that "if you don't support me you won't get anything done in your ward".
Quite simply, there should be a law against standing as an "Independent" and then aligning yourself to any type of political organisation or group such as the thought controlling IPG which absolutely rapes the whole meaning of the word independent from the English language.
WT Letters Page - Tories On The Up In County
Dear Editor - Mr Snellgrove, of Saundersfoot was inaccurate in his recollection of our performance in the recent council elections (Letters, June 11th).
In fact, the Conservatives put up 30 candidates in Pembrokeshire, an all-time record. We also fielded two candidates in seats in Carmarthen where none had ever previously stood.
We won four new seats on the council and increased Aden Brinn's majority in Pembroke from nine to 143.
We are now the second largest group on the council - one more and we would be the official opposition.
In other areas we performed well above expectation, taking 30% of the vote in Amroth, Penally and parts of what used to be Labour dominated Pembroke Dock.
All of this has happened as a result of a great deal of help from local volunteers and supporters, who recognise that our two counties are ready for a change.
Stephen Crouch Chairman, Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire Conservatives Association Town Moor, Moorfield Road, Narberth.
See, this is the problem I have with politicians, councillors and other authority figures. They are unable to actually speak like normal people.
The Tories put up 30 candidates. We know that most of them were simply strategically positioned paper candidates placed with the aim of taking votes away from standing members that have caused problems for the ruling IPG in the past, as proved by the manic lack of Tory candidates in wards where existing IPG councillors wished to retain their seats unchallenged.
Just because such views are accused of being made by conspiracy theorists does not mean that they are not true, it's a plain at the nose on your face.
3 candidates who live in the village of Martletwy all of which decided against standing in their home ward against the "Independent" candidate because of the obvious collusion between the Tories and the ruling members of the IPG which in the main is just a horse of another colour.
Paul Davies' nonsense explanation that people can stand wherever they want to holds no water. The whole idea is that you stand in a ward at LEAST in your own town, to represent your own people to make a difference to their lives. There should have been 4 Independents standing in Martletwy if any of these people actually had any balls.
People can see through it as clear as day so why do they insist on treating us all like bloody idiots and expect us to believe the crap that they spout on the odd occasion that they actually venture out from their ivory towers where they sit raking up their salaries, special responsibility allowances and filling in their expenses claim forms.
The Tories are gutless, only fielding candidates at a time when the national government is struggling and they can be assured of plenty of protest votes from people wanting to make a point.
And to try and con us that all 30 of their candidates were genuine is perverse in the extreme, they're a bunch of clowns and the IPG are clowns in wolf's clothing.
Stephen Crouch, Paul Davies, John Davies etc. would never make it as Propaganda Ministers with weak efforts like they seem to constantly drum out.
In fact, the Conservatives put up 30 candidates in Pembrokeshire, an all-time record. We also fielded two candidates in seats in Carmarthen where none had ever previously stood.
We won four new seats on the council and increased Aden Brinn's majority in Pembroke from nine to 143.
We are now the second largest group on the council - one more and we would be the official opposition.
In other areas we performed well above expectation, taking 30% of the vote in Amroth, Penally and parts of what used to be Labour dominated Pembroke Dock.
All of this has happened as a result of a great deal of help from local volunteers and supporters, who recognise that our two counties are ready for a change.
Stephen Crouch Chairman, Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire Conservatives Association Town Moor, Moorfield Road, Narberth.
See, this is the problem I have with politicians, councillors and other authority figures. They are unable to actually speak like normal people.
The Tories put up 30 candidates. We know that most of them were simply strategically positioned paper candidates placed with the aim of taking votes away from standing members that have caused problems for the ruling IPG in the past, as proved by the manic lack of Tory candidates in wards where existing IPG councillors wished to retain their seats unchallenged.
Just because such views are accused of being made by conspiracy theorists does not mean that they are not true, it's a plain at the nose on your face.
3 candidates who live in the village of Martletwy all of which decided against standing in their home ward against the "Independent" candidate because of the obvious collusion between the Tories and the ruling members of the IPG which in the main is just a horse of another colour.
Paul Davies' nonsense explanation that people can stand wherever they want to holds no water. The whole idea is that you stand in a ward at LEAST in your own town, to represent your own people to make a difference to their lives. There should have been 4 Independents standing in Martletwy if any of these people actually had any balls.
People can see through it as clear as day so why do they insist on treating us all like bloody idiots and expect us to believe the crap that they spout on the odd occasion that they actually venture out from their ivory towers where they sit raking up their salaries, special responsibility allowances and filling in their expenses claim forms.
The Tories are gutless, only fielding candidates at a time when the national government is struggling and they can be assured of plenty of protest votes from people wanting to make a point.
And to try and con us that all 30 of their candidates were genuine is perverse in the extreme, they're a bunch of clowns and the IPG are clowns in wolf's clothing.
Stephen Crouch, Paul Davies, John Davies etc. would never make it as Propaganda Ministers with weak efforts like they seem to constantly drum out.
Thursday, 19 June 2008
Western Telegraph's Biased Publishing Of Letters Of Support For Cllr Rowlands
Seeing that the WT has lost it's balls again and is not willing to allow comments to be added to it's biased publishing of the letters to the editor on this subject I reproduce them here for open and free comment.
According to Cllr Stoddart's weekly column he knows for a fact that letters containing conflicting opinions of Ken Rowlands' treacherous actions in accepting a bribe in the shape of a Special Responsibility Allowance to join the IPG so it begs the question "WHY DIDN'T THE WT EDITOR FEEL ABLE TO PUBLISH A BALANCED VIEW?"
HAS THE EDITOR OF THE WT BEEN NOBBLED BY JOHN "CUMBUTTER" DAVIES?
5 letters in support of Ken Rowlands, doesn't REALLY appear orchestrated at all does it really?
Ken: "Hi Neil, Lord Cumbutter has asked if I can get a few friends to sign their names to a few letters that he has had prepared by the PR department to try and take a bit of the heat off me. I've told him yes because he is an absolute genius at working the local media to his advantage. Whenever anyone catches him or any of us cronies out he just laughs and says it's "good old Pembrokeshire Politics at it's worst". You will? Great, I'll drop the letter round tonight, I've already got Eddie Setterfield, Mike Cole & Roy Bourne to agree. In fact, Roy Bourne is such an arse licker he's agreed to do TWO for me and we're going to try and get the WT to publish them under different headlines. I've had to bung him a drink like, but I'll just put that down on expenses, so no worries there."
Labour loss is county’s definite gain
Dear Editor - Labour group leader Cllr Sue Perkins' comments regarding the defections to the Independent group has only succeeded in speeding up the demise of the Labour group in Pembrokeshire.
Where was the Labour group support to Cllr Ken Rowlands in the opposition of the proposed siting of a recycling yard in Johnston, to develop Arnolds Yard, or for the much-needed Bulford Road scheme?
As chairman of Johnston Community Council, I worked closely with Cllr Rowlands, who is Labour through and through, but has had to do all this without his group support.
In 2004, Cllr Rowlands bucked the anti-Labour trend in Johnston and the constituents supported him for his work within the community and not for the party, which has been proven in the recent election.
By elevating Cllr Rowlands, and his Labour values, to a cabinet position, the leader has shown that political groups are not required at local government level.
Labour's loss is Pembrokeshire's gain.
Neil James 4 Hayston Road, Johnston.
Neil, I'm afraid to say you are talking shite, it must be a Johnston thing.
Labour is about more than membership of a party, especially for people who have been members of the party for as long as Ken Rowlands has. It's a core principle belief. Rowlands bucked the trend before and his move to the IPG will never been seen by the majority of people as anything other than selfishness and greed and his blame of Labour as the cause of his decision is laughable.
Sure, the Bulford Road project is likely very much needed, but so is dualling of our roads into the county which the WAG also vetoed, you don't see all of the labour MPs in our county resigning their seats and joining the Lib Dems or something equally as mad as Rowlands' decision to take 30 pieces of silver offered by Lord Cumbutter.
If he bucked the trend once he could easily have did it again if his personal credentials amongst the voters of Johnston are as high as we are led to believe. Cllr S. Hancock did it in Neyland this year also, so Rowlands' blame of the Labour party for his scurrilous move to the contemptible IPG holds no water at all.
And what's the big deal about having a recycling yard in Johnston?????
According to someone that I met whilst out walking my dog in the street the other day, there is already a fucking great big recycling yard at 2 Woodlands View run by a Mr Lye?
Councillors Shouldn't "run round the poitical (sic) flag pole"
Dear Editor - I see that Labour's Sue Perkins has kicked up because a few of her old buddies have jumped ship and joined the Independents.
It is a great shame that the Labour group was formed in the early days of the new Pembrokeshire County Council.
I have never been a political camp follower, I have always voted for the person who I thought would help our county and not run around the flag poll for their political party.
It was a very sad day when we ended up with political parties fighting at County Hall instead of shouting in tune for the rest of us.
Like the two old district councils that it replaced, if this county council had kept politics out from its business, I know we would have been the best forward thinking councils in Wales.
Eddie Setterfield Cromwell Road, Milford Haven.
Interesting Eddie, HOW do you KNOW that exactly???
And "I have never been a political camp follower"????
You were once a member of the IPG yourself which is itself a political group so you're talking through your arse as well.
What exactly IS a "Poitical" flagpole?
Congratulations Ken For "principled stand"
Dear Editor - May I respond to the accusations levied at Cllr Ken Rowlands, of Johnston by the local Labour Group in the Western Telegraph (May 28th).I am pretty sure that the people of Johnston have re-elected Ken Rowlands wholly on the grounds of what he has done, and continues to do, for the community since being elected, and that has nothing to do with his personal politics.
Ken Rowlands' platform is that he is there to serve the people he represents and not so-called "party interests", and, considering the current political scene, he deserves to be congratulated for taking such a principled stand.
Having served as clerk to Johnston Community Council for some 36 years, I am fully aware of all that Ken has achievedas county councillor for Johnston since his first election and that is why he has been re-elected by an appreciative electorate.
To try to demean Ken's achievements is simply Labour party tactics of the meanest kind.
Mike Cole (Former clerk to Johnston Community Council) 34 Eastleigh Drive, Milford Haven.
I think that it is fairly widely accepted that Ken Rowlands may have served the people of Johnston well over a long period. That is not the issue. The issue is the abandonment of his core principles for the sake of being embraced by Lord Cumbutter in return for a cabinet position with a special responsibility allowance, or so it seems. Nothing he has done in the past will ever be able to erase his decision to apparently have his principles bought in this way, it's akin to selling your soul to the devil in local political terms.
Having reached the dizzy heights of clerk to a community council Mr Cole will surely agree that sticking to your core principles should be more important than taking the proverbial 30 pieces of silver in this manner.
If he REALLY wanted to make a point, he would have resigned his membership of the Labour party and stood as an "independent independent". THAT, I would have agreed, would have been a principled stand for sure.
Shame on you Councillor Rowlands, shame on YOU!
Outraged By Perkins'/Councillor's Comments
Dear Editor - It has been my privilege to work with Cllr Ken Rowlands on Johnston Community Council, Johnston Development Trust and as a Governor of Johnston CP School and I am totally outraged at the comments of Sue Perkins.
Ken is Labour through and through. No-one could ever have worked harder, or more effectively for their community.
I have been a member of the Labour Party for almost 40 years, but have decided to resign my membership.
If they believe they can do without committed supporters like Ken Rowlands, they can certainly do without me.
Roy Bourne Chairman, Johnston Community Council.
The "Chairman" has spoken..........more shite from Johnston.
I was under the impression that Ken had parted company with the Labour Party having thrown his toys out of the pram, not the other way round.
According to Cllr Stoddart's weekly column he knows for a fact that letters containing conflicting opinions of Ken Rowlands' treacherous actions in accepting a bribe in the shape of a Special Responsibility Allowance to join the IPG so it begs the question "WHY DIDN'T THE WT EDITOR FEEL ABLE TO PUBLISH A BALANCED VIEW?"
HAS THE EDITOR OF THE WT BEEN NOBBLED BY JOHN "CUMBUTTER" DAVIES?
5 letters in support of Ken Rowlands, doesn't REALLY appear orchestrated at all does it really?
Ken: "Hi Neil, Lord Cumbutter has asked if I can get a few friends to sign their names to a few letters that he has had prepared by the PR department to try and take a bit of the heat off me. I've told him yes because he is an absolute genius at working the local media to his advantage. Whenever anyone catches him or any of us cronies out he just laughs and says it's "good old Pembrokeshire Politics at it's worst". You will? Great, I'll drop the letter round tonight, I've already got Eddie Setterfield, Mike Cole & Roy Bourne to agree. In fact, Roy Bourne is such an arse licker he's agreed to do TWO for me and we're going to try and get the WT to publish them under different headlines. I've had to bung him a drink like, but I'll just put that down on expenses, so no worries there."
Labour loss is county’s definite gain
Dear Editor - Labour group leader Cllr Sue Perkins' comments regarding the defections to the Independent group has only succeeded in speeding up the demise of the Labour group in Pembrokeshire.
Where was the Labour group support to Cllr Ken Rowlands in the opposition of the proposed siting of a recycling yard in Johnston, to develop Arnolds Yard, or for the much-needed Bulford Road scheme?
As chairman of Johnston Community Council, I worked closely with Cllr Rowlands, who is Labour through and through, but has had to do all this without his group support.
In 2004, Cllr Rowlands bucked the anti-Labour trend in Johnston and the constituents supported him for his work within the community and not for the party, which has been proven in the recent election.
By elevating Cllr Rowlands, and his Labour values, to a cabinet position, the leader has shown that political groups are not required at local government level.
Labour's loss is Pembrokeshire's gain.
Neil James 4 Hayston Road, Johnston.
Neil, I'm afraid to say you are talking shite, it must be a Johnston thing.
Labour is about more than membership of a party, especially for people who have been members of the party for as long as Ken Rowlands has. It's a core principle belief. Rowlands bucked the trend before and his move to the IPG will never been seen by the majority of people as anything other than selfishness and greed and his blame of Labour as the cause of his decision is laughable.
Sure, the Bulford Road project is likely very much needed, but so is dualling of our roads into the county which the WAG also vetoed, you don't see all of the labour MPs in our county resigning their seats and joining the Lib Dems or something equally as mad as Rowlands' decision to take 30 pieces of silver offered by Lord Cumbutter.
If he bucked the trend once he could easily have did it again if his personal credentials amongst the voters of Johnston are as high as we are led to believe. Cllr S. Hancock did it in Neyland this year also, so Rowlands' blame of the Labour party for his scurrilous move to the contemptible IPG holds no water at all.
And what's the big deal about having a recycling yard in Johnston?????
According to someone that I met whilst out walking my dog in the street the other day, there is already a fucking great big recycling yard at 2 Woodlands View run by a Mr Lye?
Councillors Shouldn't "run round the poitical (sic) flag pole"
Dear Editor - I see that Labour's Sue Perkins has kicked up because a few of her old buddies have jumped ship and joined the Independents.
It is a great shame that the Labour group was formed in the early days of the new Pembrokeshire County Council.
I have never been a political camp follower, I have always voted for the person who I thought would help our county and not run around the flag poll for their political party.
It was a very sad day when we ended up with political parties fighting at County Hall instead of shouting in tune for the rest of us.
Like the two old district councils that it replaced, if this county council had kept politics out from its business, I know we would have been the best forward thinking councils in Wales.
Eddie Setterfield Cromwell Road, Milford Haven.
Interesting Eddie, HOW do you KNOW that exactly???
And "I have never been a political camp follower"????
You were once a member of the IPG yourself which is itself a political group so you're talking through your arse as well.
What exactly IS a "Poitical" flagpole?
Congratulations Ken For "principled stand"
Dear Editor - May I respond to the accusations levied at Cllr Ken Rowlands, of Johnston by the local Labour Group in the Western Telegraph (May 28th).I am pretty sure that the people of Johnston have re-elected Ken Rowlands wholly on the grounds of what he has done, and continues to do, for the community since being elected, and that has nothing to do with his personal politics.
Ken Rowlands' platform is that he is there to serve the people he represents and not so-called "party interests", and, considering the current political scene, he deserves to be congratulated for taking such a principled stand.
Having served as clerk to Johnston Community Council for some 36 years, I am fully aware of all that Ken has achievedas county councillor for Johnston since his first election and that is why he has been re-elected by an appreciative electorate.
To try to demean Ken's achievements is simply Labour party tactics of the meanest kind.
Mike Cole (Former clerk to Johnston Community Council) 34 Eastleigh Drive, Milford Haven.
I think that it is fairly widely accepted that Ken Rowlands may have served the people of Johnston well over a long period. That is not the issue. The issue is the abandonment of his core principles for the sake of being embraced by Lord Cumbutter in return for a cabinet position with a special responsibility allowance, or so it seems. Nothing he has done in the past will ever be able to erase his decision to apparently have his principles bought in this way, it's akin to selling your soul to the devil in local political terms.
Having reached the dizzy heights of clerk to a community council Mr Cole will surely agree that sticking to your core principles should be more important than taking the proverbial 30 pieces of silver in this manner.
If he REALLY wanted to make a point, he would have resigned his membership of the Labour party and stood as an "independent independent". THAT, I would have agreed, would have been a principled stand for sure.
Shame on you Councillor Rowlands, shame on YOU!
Outraged By Perkins'/Councillor's Comments
Dear Editor - It has been my privilege to work with Cllr Ken Rowlands on Johnston Community Council, Johnston Development Trust and as a Governor of Johnston CP School and I am totally outraged at the comments of Sue Perkins.
Ken is Labour through and through. No-one could ever have worked harder, or more effectively for their community.
I have been a member of the Labour Party for almost 40 years, but have decided to resign my membership.
If they believe they can do without committed supporters like Ken Rowlands, they can certainly do without me.
Roy Bourne Chairman, Johnston Community Council.
The "Chairman" has spoken..........more shite from Johnston.
I was under the impression that Ken had parted company with the Labour Party having thrown his toys out of the pram, not the other way round.
Have Your Say On 'Super Surgery'
Pembrokeshire Local Health Board and Pembrokeshire Community Health Council are holding events as part of their public consultation into the opening of a new Primary Care centre in Milford Haven.
The public can attend and discuss the project with representatives of the development company, Assura Property, GPs and practice staff from Barlow House and Robert Street surgeries plus members of the LHB and the CHC.
Don't waste your breath by attending this meeting. I attended one in Pembroke Dock not so long back and absolutely nothing voiced by members of the public at this meeting was taking into condsideration by the LHB etc.
I can guarantee you 100% that this "development" (how frightenting is it that a development company is involved at all?) will be carried through regardless of public opinion. It's happened all over the place.
No longer can you attend your own surgery and be assured of seeing "your own" doctor the same day, you now have to make an appointment to be ill unless you seek a same day appointment in which case you will spend half an hour on hold (on an 0870 number which can cost in the region of 10p per minute and which our NHS GP practices make a PROFIT on) only to be told that someone (a Triage Nurse whatever one of those is, I thought Triage was something to do with horse jumping, oh no, that's dressage) will call you back and decide whether you are ill enough to see a Doctor that day (if you are still alive at this point of course because many older people will be far too embarrassed to actually "press 1 if you have a medical emergency" because they don't think pain in the chest is something they should bother the nice people at the ambulance station with)
And all the time our GPs are wanting ever rising salaries and ever reducing hours.
YOU try and get an appointment to have a blood test done outside working hours. Oh no, you have to take the morning off work to have a blood test these days.
Super surgeries MY ARSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The public can attend and discuss the project with representatives of the development company, Assura Property, GPs and practice staff from Barlow House and Robert Street surgeries plus members of the LHB and the CHC.
Don't waste your breath by attending this meeting. I attended one in Pembroke Dock not so long back and absolutely nothing voiced by members of the public at this meeting was taking into condsideration by the LHB etc.
I can guarantee you 100% that this "development" (how frightenting is it that a development company is involved at all?) will be carried through regardless of public opinion. It's happened all over the place.
No longer can you attend your own surgery and be assured of seeing "your own" doctor the same day, you now have to make an appointment to be ill unless you seek a same day appointment in which case you will spend half an hour on hold (on an 0870 number which can cost in the region of 10p per minute and which our NHS GP practices make a PROFIT on) only to be told that someone (a Triage Nurse whatever one of those is, I thought Triage was something to do with horse jumping, oh no, that's dressage) will call you back and decide whether you are ill enough to see a Doctor that day (if you are still alive at this point of course because many older people will be far too embarrassed to actually "press 1 if you have a medical emergency" because they don't think pain in the chest is something they should bother the nice people at the ambulance station with)
And all the time our GPs are wanting ever rising salaries and ever reducing hours.
YOU try and get an appointment to have a blood test done outside working hours. Oh no, you have to take the morning off work to have a blood test these days.
Super surgeries MY ARSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wednesday, 18 June 2008
Council Code of Conduct & Respect
I like Old Grumpy's comments about the new code of conduct and how councillors must show respect for people and each other.
What I want to know is, whatever happened to people having to EARN RESPECT?
Most of the shower involved in the decision making down at County Hall deserve no respect especially Cllr Ken Rowlands who has jumped onto the gravy train.
Judas will be waiting for you at the gates of Hell Ken.
What I want to know is, whatever happened to people having to EARN RESPECT?
Most of the shower involved in the decision making down at County Hall deserve no respect especially Cllr Ken Rowlands who has jumped onto the gravy train.
Judas will be waiting for you at the gates of Hell Ken.
Western Telegraph Blogs
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