NEW YEAR RESOLUTION or REVOLUTIONS?

 Morning folks.....Wednesday was the last day of 2014 and as we all woke up to a brand new year, it was hard to believe that it was a mere 12 months since I was writing about the disastrous financial catastrophe incurred by John Taylor’s insistence on investing £69,500 of taxpayer’s money into building 30 log cabins, whilst trying to create a pseudo Christmas Market. 

However, that figure albeit large, paled into insignificance when compared to the £75,252.50 employing a PR/Events company to run the show! – So before we get the final figures in from this year’s dreadful event, it’s worth reminding ourselves that this cash strapped council speculated well over £144,752,50 of taxpayers’ money on Ashton’s first Christmas Market!

As per usual when things don't go quite right, after last year’s event, it was followed by the inevitable ‘consultation’ as to how the 2014 Christmas Market could be improved, but in typical Tameside Council fashion, the result was once again to put the entire nonevent back in the totally unqualified sycophantic career councillors hands, when what was really needed was strong local democratic oversight by experts.

Roll back a year to, February 25^th 2013 you may recall being told that the Stalybridge eyesore that had once housed CASABLANCA’S Health Club was set for demolition and were promised a ‘speedy’  redevelopment by New Charter Housing, who’d bought the site the previous October 2012.

Once again, that intrepid poster-boy for all that’s wrong with local council democracy; ‘Cllr John Taylor, deputy leader of Tameside Council chipped in and said: "These are great times for Stalybridge. We are finally going to see the end of a building that has spoiled the town centre of for almost eight years."

He finished his piece by donning a newly opened Day-Glo Jacket...and posed for the obligatory photo-shoot after sending the actual demolition gang ‘off camera’ for an early lunch!

However, council promises are just like Holland’s ‘pie-crusts’ and are easily broken, so you’ll not be too surprised to know that 2 years later; at the start of 2015, the demolition site is still just as it was; leaving Stalybridge town centre with just as big an eyesore as it had before!

Perhaps to take the focus off the on-going Stalybridge ‘redevelopment in waiting’ fiasco, we were told, again by Cllr John Taylor that ASHTON MARKET HALL had been voted ‘Best of British’ whilst in actual fact; ASHTON MARKET HALL was not voted ‘Best’ of anything - In fact it had won absolutely nothing!

However, never one to let the facts spoil a good politically advantageous story, it transpired that it was actually ASHTON MARKET who’d won an award, however it only won in one of the twelve award categories on offer and that was in the minor classification of: BRITAIN’S FAVOURITE MARKET.

By the way, to be eligible to be considered for an award in this National Market of the Year Competition, the council must pay an annual subscription of just under £1000, - an expense that the council has seen fit to continue -so don't be surprised if in 2015 we get another piece of engraved glass for the council's trophy cupboard!

By the end of February I had occasion to visit yet another of Tameside council’s catastrophic marketing decisions.

It was Saturday lunchtime, about 12.20, when I happened across the £1.3 million Hyde Civic Square/Market ground where there were two stalls occupied and a children’s round-a-bout operating! One stall was selling rolls of carpet the other dog beds!

For the moment I’ve forgotten the name of the councillor who promised that this investment would transform Hyde into a bustling market town once again! So a collective “Well done” to Tameside council for their consistency in winning 'first prize' in the local government 'waste of money' awards.

As the year rolled on, we were 'enthralled' by the Council Leaders address, which despite the usual blame-game and excuses as to why they were finding life in the Town Hall challenging, we were told ‘That total saving on councillors allowances for this year alone was over £113,000 which along with savings arising from ‘reductions in administration’ this represented a saving of 10% to the overall costs.

However, when one looked closer at the published financial statements it revealed that councillors in Tameside received more that £1.2 million in allowances, with the highest amount being paid to the Council Leader Kieran Quinn himself!

In total, the allowances bill for Tameside councillors in 2012/2013 came to £1.204,972. Compared to £1.200,094 in 2011/2012 which was yet another increase on 2010/2011, which was £1.186,473.

So, instead of keeping his promise of saving £120,498 from his councillors allowances; despite all the platitudes of hardship, government cuts; food banks; closures and sell-off's;- not forgetting cutting the number of lollipop ladies; reducing the number of pensioners' luncheon clubs; community centres and cutting the budget for road repairs, this caring bunch of self-serving, bottom feeders still managed to jack-up the council tax bill by 3.5% and increased their collective allowances by another £5000!

In March, we heard of Tameside Council's Deputy Leader, John Taylor describing his party’s venture into the Wythenshawe Ward; where they’ circled their political wagons - in order to get their candidate Michael Kane elected.

Taylor a self confessed film buff, said they had ‘ridden in’ as a posse who had ventured into unknown territory, with himself leading the hastily sworn in mob, as their Sherriff! He was obviously suffering from a John Ford moment.

Then, as election fever gripped the inner chamber we had the usual promises and warnings followed by the by-election farce proper. That’s where nobody votes and the councillors stay the same!

It was at this point that Cllr Kieran Quinn, like most sensible politicians whose party is again seeking election, took the popular high-ground- by telling us of his keen interest in local history, particularly the history of Droylsden, - the town he represents.

In attempting to prove his sincerity, and in-depth knowledge, he described in detail the time when Droylsden’s Lumb Mill was demolished and how he organised the preservation of an engraved monument to Droylsden’s proud manufacturing past. A time  when ‘Cotton was King!’ - namely the mill's name stone.

In his blog he told us, “I’m sure many Droylsden residents will have fond memories of the mill and working there before it was finally demolished in 1991.” 

He then went on to tell us, “…This is why when the building was being demolished, along with residents and my fellow councillors, I organised for the Mill’s entrance stone to be saved and, initially, displayed at Littlemoss School!”

So by implication, and taking his words at face value, we, the residents of Tameside, were led to believe that those philanthropic councillors of yore,led by non-other than Cllr Kieran Quinn claimed that he had the foresight to save a rich historical piece of our industrial heritage for us to admire.

However, that being the case, perhaps the councillor could explain how he and his fellow councillors managed to rescue the mill’s entrance stone from the demolisher's in 1991, when, according to his council profile, he did not become a member of the council until 1994?

The rest of the year went on in much the same way, with nonsense, drivel, and broken promises delivered by the usual protagonists who are still so prone to politically embroidered exaggeration; I am led to understand that many of the more rational councillors have also suspended belief in their colleagues excessive use of hyperbole and rhetoric and have recently distanced themselves from many of their more fanciful remarks. 

In the coming year, if the people of Tameside don’t wake-up and vote in numbers for people who are qualified to set and attain realistic targets for all the towns in our borough, then I suspect 2015 will bring us more of the same abject misery.

That being said, ....it's traditionally time to think about New Year Resolutions.

I wonder what our councillors will choose to change?

That’s if they intending making any.

Me? I don't think I'll bother! ........ I’ll just say a little prayer.....

“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change

The courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference!”