Saturday, May 07, 2011

A week is a very long time

The election is over and the referendum is finished.  For better or for worse the electorate has spoken and we live with the decisions.
Watching the count yesterday I was struck by how many people ranked their choice of candidates 1,2,3 and wondered if it was a statement about their approval of AV or because they thought that if they voted Yes in the referendum they had to put it into practice.  I shall never know of course.
On a personal level I'm very sorry that Lesley Lewis wasn't elected to replace John Fletcher.  She'd have been a real asset on the council.  At the same time I'm surprised and honoured to have topped the poll for the Parish council as well as being re-elected to the Borough council.  It places a huge responsibility on me to do my very best for the residents over the next 4 years. 
The referendum result was a disappointment but not a surprise.  There hadn't been a particularly good national campaign to explain the proposal and also it wasn't the best system that could have been offered, but it was offered and rejected so we are stuck with the even less good system of first past the post.  That's democracy.
Tomorrow is a day of rest and then on Monday the new councillors take office and the work carries on. There are potholes to mend, litter to be swept and meetings to be arranged.
And in between all the important things there are decisions to be made about who should be the council leader and who should fill cabinet positions, committee chairs and the like.  All to be decided by the Annual Meeting on 25th May.

11 comments:

Orchard resident said...

And do you fill potholes and sweep litter ? I thought you just attended meetings and took your allowances.

Edward Sheffield said...

you're right there was not a good national campaign.

Clegg should have been distant from the Yes campaign because he's unpopular. simple logic and it should have crossed his mind. And now there was a No vote he should resign! lets see the Tories try to get their idealistic cuts through with a minority government!

Andrew Duffell said...

@Orchard resident: Maureen has done a lot for Eaglescliffe. If you feel the need to criticise her good work, please don't hide behind an anonymous name.

Orchard resident said...

You never could understand humour could you Andrew. If you read what she wrote, she implied that SHE was the one sweeping road mending.
I would never doubt Maureens devotion to Eaglescliffe, though I think more people would vote for her if she stood as an independent. Her association with the "Lewis joint gravy train" lost her many votes from the people I know. If she failed to be returned, it would have been a great loss to Eaglescliffe, and the fault of the electorates view of Lewis and wife.

Anonymous said...

Good to see the Lib Dems get a stuffing at the elections, it's what you deserve for propping up the tories.
Clegg is toxic, anyone who thinks you are going to win back voters while he's in charge is deluded. Ditch Clegg and Alexander, and change direction or face oblivion.

Radar said...

Hi Maureen.

I grew up in Teesside so was following your result with interest. Was pleased to see you keep your seat, I was fearing the worst.

Dear Anonymous.

You take pleasure in the loss of several hard working council members, I feel sorry for you. These elections should never have been a referendum on the coalition. That you can't tell the difference between local and national politics I pity you. This should have been about which party had the best ideas for each area as no result here was likely to change the roadmap that the coalition has drawn up.

Keep up the good work Maureen.

Anonymous said...

On the contrary Radar the local elections are already causing a change in the roadmap, how else do you explain the sudden rush by your leaders to save the NHS from the bill that three months ago you were claiming was your idea.
Support down to 8% in the latest YouGov poll.
Oblivion beckons.

Andrew Duffell said...

@Orchard resident: I think it is well known that sarcasm does not come across well in written media. This is why the majority of people avoid it in written media, and use more complex forms of humour, or emoticons.

I also see you are still choosing troll behind the safety of your pseudonym.

From my reading of her text, she was implying what she did. The potholes and clearing of litter ARE something that Maureen is involved in, as she implied. She's the one who gets in contact with the relevant bodies to have these things sorted out.

Your decision to make a personal, yet wildly inaccurate personal comment about myself really will reflect on you. I can only assume that your comments are so wildly made up that you do not wish to be associated with them yourself.

A different orchard resident said...

Plop. The sound of a dummy being spat out?

Orchard resident said...

You really are still an arrogant bastard Andrew. Free speech gives me every right to say what I want here, and you can't stop me. Maureen may claim I am taking her out of context, but SHE doesn't sweep the streets or fix potholes, so she is LYING! I think that you need to stop interfering with what goes on in Eaglescliffe Andrew. It's not your place. Get out!

Orchard resident said...

And A different orchard resident, You can pipe down!