14/02/2015

HONESTY IS CLEARLY NOT THE BEST POLICY

One of the first tasks that research students who may be thinking of enrolling on the Radical Honesty degree course at the soon to be relocated further education faculty, (Known as Ashton College) should be to apply for funding to investigate just how far Tameside councillors can actually ‘stretch the truth’ before it finally dawns on ‘the great and good’ that they are being constantly subjected to a stream of concentrated BS, by a cabal of career councillors, who have a propensity to exaggerate their accomplishments, make false excuses for monumental failings and evade uncomfortable questions!

The shenanigans revealed in the article relating to Ashton’s Market, is a case in point.

It is not what has been written in this case, it’s what has been left out!

When one reads the article, one could be forgiven for thinking this award ‘Britain’s Favourite Market’ is a prestigious one-off award. But it isn’t. It’s was just one of thirteen awards given out annually to members of the National Association of British Market Authorities, (NABMA) and costs our council over £1000 per year for the privilege.

In other words, NABMA is an organisation that represents Local Authorities; so in simple terms this is a group of Councils who take turns at patting other Councils on the back until they’ve all got a ‘glass plaque’ to brag about and then presumably they’ll start again. (For proof, look at previous year’s results)

When one reads the article, it also suggests by implication that Ashton Market attracted over 100,000 votes. However, when one checks the figures, the figure of over 100,000 was for the total of votes cast for ALL the categories.

When one looks at the NABMA web site, and compare the results, with the council press release, one will see the significant difference.

The 2015 results for the Great British Market Awards were as follows:

Best Food Market – Leicester Market Food Hall
   
Best Large Community/Parish Market – Sandbach Charter Market

Best Small Community/Parish Market – Myddleton Road Market

Best Small Indoor Market – Pontefract & Stockport Market Hall

Best Large Indoor Market – Swansea Indoor Market

Best Small Outdoor Market – Kingston Ancient Market

Best Large Outdoor Market – Keswick Market

Best Small Speciality Market – Oswestry Christmas Live

Best Large Speciality Market – Belfast for their Christmas Market that took the top award in the Large Speciality Market category in the Great British Market Awards 2015.

The judges paid tribute to the success of the market and the influence and impact it has had in terms of socio economic, tourism and education in the city during the last decade.

Best Love Your Local Market Event – Haverhill Youth Market & Stockton High Street Market

Best Market Attraction – Bury Market is officially Britain’s Best Market Attraction. 
That was the decision of the judging panel in the Great British Market Awards 2015. The market attracts numerous awards every year for its innovation, quality and vast number of coach visitors.

Best Wholesale Market – St James’s, Bradford

Britain’s Favourite Market – Ashton-Under-Lyne The voting public returned Ashton as Britain’s Favourite Market for the second year running.

*In total, over 100,000 votes were made in the competition as shoppers clicked on line to vote for their local markets!

Cllr Taylor with his Christmas Tea Pot Award
– All this of course down to the guidance of Cllr John Taylor, who, as if we may have forgotten, is responsible for Tameside’s Markets and keeper of the official Christmas Tea Pot Award!

Returning again to the council press release; again by inference, it tells us that the much-loved Ashton Market – has also won ‘Britain’s Greenest Market’ and Market Team of the Year’ accolades! And goes on to give mention ‘successfully hosting the spectacular Tameside Christmas Market for the past two years!’

What it doesn't say, is that both The Greenest Market and Market Team awards were given in previous years! It’s like repeatedly telling us that The Wanderers won the FA Cup at Wembley! – Yes, they did, in 1871!

And as for the ‘successful’ Christmas Market, well…. We all have opinions on what the council call successful, don’t we?

There was a time when there was no need to concoct a National Competition to spread the word about Ashton Market, every housewife in the North West knew it was one of the best!
What confuses me is why is it that these councillors in their press releases simply seem unable or unwilling to tell the public the facts. They always seem to twist or distort the particulars in order to convince gullible voters into supporting their agenda.

On picking up the weekly newspaper, the thing that normally gets me motivated to oppose something, is when I am told something that is either completely untrue; has had the facts manipulated, or it does not make sense.

That’s the point when I feel it’s incumbent upon me as a local blogger, to do a little research and attempt to present my readers with all the facts.

While I can accept that things won't always be seen by others as I view them, I cannot accept people making decisions without having all the facts. Not just those that our councillors want us to know about. And because investigative reporting is now a thing of the past; what has resulted; especially around electioneering time, what passes for news from the council has become a version of the children's card game "Cheat!”

If the public really wants more honest, trustworthy, truthful and candid councillors, why don’t they start voting for them?


Surely, even if you don’t want to know the truth, at least learn to spot the lies!

8 comments:

  1. In our age there is no such thing as 'keeping out of politics.' All issues are political issues, and politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred and schizophrenia.
    George Orwell

    ReplyDelete
  2. As per last year the majority of votes cast on behalf of Ashton Market were made by three employees of tameside council. Any poll worth its salt would require you to register your name and email address to prevent multiple votes by individuals. Yet again we witness tamesides ruling elite manipulate the general public by publishing quasi facts, helped by employees who can see the benefit of toeing the party line, thus gaining promotion, pay scale increases etc. It would come as no surprise if an ex employee had compiled a dossier on these wrongdoings, together with the hidden agenda and future plans for Ashtons famous market ground and was preparing to release it to relevent groups.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Look how they spun the online budget survey, they said Tameside was in top 5 UK councils with the number of people taking the survey.
    Just over 1000 people took the survey, over 214,000 people live in Tameside.
    Tameside council said that over 70% of these people supported the dreaded bin swap and for that reason they will roll it out across Tameside, well you do the math on that one.
    Anybody reading this excellent blog. Please please post links to it where you can.
    If you're on twitter you need to follow @Shameside.
    Its going to take years to cut this labour cancer out of Tameside and we all have to work had to spread the word because this Labour lot literally don't take a day off.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The cancer isn't the Labour mafia it's the brain dead dross and the burgeoning 'community'
    who vote for them. The worst of all are the apathetic t***ers who, despite often detesting the main parties, can't even be bothered to vote.
    Voting main party nationally THIS TIME could be a death sentence for Britain.

    ReplyDelete
  5. He is certainly ageing in this photo. About time he realised he is past it

    ReplyDelete
  6. We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office.
    Aesop

    ReplyDelete
  7. http://tameside.gov.uk/transparency is till there! Try opening the Tameside site, then using the ABC... go on 'Council Spend' and follow the link!
    C

    ReplyDelete
  8. Tameside Council meeting 24th Feb
    Taylor implies 100,000 votes for Ashton Market, fact is the total number of votes cast for all categories was 100,000. Yet again misleading the public.

    ReplyDelete

Please feel free to comment and express your views, all opinions are welcome but we will not post comments that contain abusive language or are deemed to be offensive or inflammatory.