Category: notes from JK

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notes from JK

Election suspended: Where next?

Green Party members should have by now received notice that the internal election for External Communications co-ordinator has been suspended. Sadly GPEx’s failure to be open & transparent and their continued control freakery created the problems we currently face.

We (Rupert & Jason) wanted an open, democratic process where members’ voices would count; where our different ideas and priorities for the party could be debated. Unfortunately the predictable consequences of some of GPEx’s decisions have started to emerge. That these have halted the election is deeply worrying, we have not been told who requested the returning officer to halt the process. We believe this halt is unconstitutional, it is clear that ALL members have to be balloted if two or more valid nominations are received.

Our hopes for an open, inclusive process continue to be thwarted. First the rules clearly allowed for candidates to mail each member a leaflet, we were told this rule had been left in as a ‘drafting oversight’ and would not be used.

We wanted to speak to members but were told that canvassing was not permitted and no member lists would be provided.

We spoke to our existing contacts and we were warned we could be straying into forbidden canvassing territory.

We have campaigned on the allowed mediums of websites and member elists, but came under concerted pressure for being too open. Yet this open approach engaged with a broad spectrum of the membership. That our endorsers cover a wide geographical range and backgrounds shows that breadth.

Our core arguments for professionalism, openness & transparency remain. Our other key planks that the party needs to be bolder and protect the Freepost scheme still stand.

If the current GPEx had been more open and transparent we may well not have got to the election being suspended. They should have consulted with the wider party on key decisions like:

* Changes to the scale/nature of the Freepost scheme
* Changes to political strategy

We believe it is deeply unfair to exclude the members who cannot or chose not to attend conference. As conference is in Brighton & Hove this autumn it’s particularly far for people in areas of the North to attend.

We await the resumption of the election process, in the meantime as active members and councillors we’ll keep debating what we believe are the party’s key priorities for the next year.

To clarify:

* We were not consulted on the election suspension, just informed once the decision had been taken.

* Only Rupert & I are acting on behalf of our campaign (whatever you call it during this limbo period!). Mark’s letter was his own initiative which we did not initiate or approve. The only thing Mark did at our request was provide an endorsement we used on this site.

Why are we blaming GPEx? Because if they had resolved the issue of the Freepost quickly and clearly things wouldn’t have got to this. Mark, as contractor to the party, had to make significant financial commitments (which put his family finances and employees at risk) to ensure the scheme could be delivered. With unresolved doubts about deposits and the scale the scheme would take Mark has been left in an impossible situation.

I would not have taken the approach he has done, but GPEx having received his increasingly urgent pleas, should have provided him the clarity one way or the other that he needed.

So to recap, it’s deeply regrettable that we are here and people might have taken alternative approaches, but GPEx could have headed this problem off LONG AGO.

Footnote
How the election for External Communications co-ordinator will now work (directly from the ERO) as of 13th August:

“The nominations will close and be elected at conference as per any other GPEx post where the nominations close at conference. I.e. they will close at 10am on Friday 4th September and voting will be on Saturday 5th September on presentation of a Saturday plenaries voting card. The candidates statement booklet advises that this is to be from 14:20 to 15:20 and from 17:00 to 19:30.

“There will be no proxy voting. It will be conducted in the same way as a usual election for which nominations close at conference and are elected at conference.”

PS This was originally a post and a comment on our campaign site which has been closed while the election is suspended. I wasn’t able to bring over other people’s comments from that post without them all being from me — please repost if you wish.

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notes from JK

Bike for life: First cycling experiences

Riding the Rothan balance bikeSeeing yet another advert for cheap supermarket bicycles reminded of an article I read a while ago about ‘Bike Shaped Objects’. It was by the very knowledgeable and helpful folks at South Coast Bikes (who I can highly recommend for bike servicing). “An impassioned guide on why not buy a cheap Bike or BSO” makes for excellent reading.

In essence the argument is that bikes are complicated, the simplest needing hundreds of precision parts, and that quality bikes are relatively speaking cheaper than ever. As supermarket bikes don’t last and don’t ride well they’re not good value at all.

I remember helping to find a first bike for my nephew a few years ago and then for my daughter more recently. The usual shops sold these incredibly heavy, bulky bikes which were difficult to move and seemed poorly welded together. Being used to a decent but low-end mountain bike for most of my cycling life I was stunned at how heavy these bikes were given their size and proposed users.

A child won’t engage with a bike which is too heavy for them to manhandle and which could crush if it falls on them. My daughter started with a pink thing with stabilisers which felt like it was made from cast iron. She could barely make it move and soon lost interest.

Having been a keen cyclist on and off for many years I didn’t want her to miss out on cycling. So I did more research and spoke to some friends (particularly fellow Green councillor Ian Davey) concluding that ‘like-a-bikes’ were a better starting point. These are bikes without pedals essentially so kids can learn balance without worrying about the pedals.

I saw plenty of these in wood and plastic which somehow or other didn’t convince and seemed quite pricey. Then, I don’t recall how, I came across Islabikes ‘the childrens bikes specialist’.

Wow. They make proper bikes, but for little people. Perfect.

We got my daughter the ‘Rothan’ balance bike which she absolutely adores and uses all the time. It’s solidly built, has a brake (which is good for downhill escapades and to get her familiar with the concept) plus it’s really light being based on an alloy frame. She picks it up, takes it out and zooms on her own. Marvellous.

I believe setting a positive first experience with biking should help her to be a positive cyclist for life. Someone who enjoys cycling as a way to get around, to explore and to keep fit. For a little bit more than a supermarket ‘bike shaped object’ I hope she’ll be well on the road to bike for life.

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Campaign Launch: Rupert & Jason for External Communications

Today Cllr Rupert Read and I are launching our campaign to become the joint External Communications co-ordinator for the Green Party’s national executive.

We believe we have the campaigning, communications and management experience to deliver winning campaigns in this General Election year. As elected councillors from two of the top target constituencies (Rupert from Norwich, Jason from Brighton) we can help ensure close collaboration during this critical year.

You can read more about our experience, previous comms work and campaign pledges at www.vote-rupert-jason.org.uk

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notes from JK

Reflections on the Green win in Goldsmid

Going down with swine flu in the final few days of the Goldsmid campaign was pretty galling. I missed those golden last days of campaigning and of course the count…

When party chair Simon Williams rang me with the result I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, the result was beyond my expectations. I had been quietly hoping for a narrow victory over the Tories, but a 350 vote margin – wow! Amy summed it up best with “Goldsmid: Epic Green Win”

Turnout was 9 points above the Regency by-election, I think a sign of the greater interest in the Goldsmid result and warmer weather (the Regency by-election was on a cold 13th December).

There has been some debate in the blogosphere over why people voted Green. Labour activist Dan Wilson argues Greens aren’t passionate about the city, that we’re using it as a vehicle for Westminster success. Nevertheless Wilson also claims Greens don’t have any achievements from 13 years on the council.

All I can say to Dan is, if we didn’t care about this city there’s no way we’d still be working our socks off 13 years later! Many changes were Green initiated from council webcasts to refusing directly elected mayors, much more in our archives.

I think Brighton Politics blogger is right to surmise that Labour’s collapse in support in Goldsmid had many good national and local reasons and that the city’s political landscape has changed. (Former?) Labour activist Neil Harding also agreed with this analysis. Of course fellow Green Cllr Ben Duncan also was keen to celebrate our success.

Mary Mears and others were quick to criticise our policies or claim our leaflets had been misleading. They somehow arrogantly prefer to assume that voters are stupid than actually believe voters may have preferred the policies and approach used by the Green Party! Perhaps easier for our opponents to swallow when facing our second straight by-election win, first seat won off a Tory and first seat in Hove.

Having lead the design and writing of all of our leaflets in Goldsmid I’m very confident in stating they were truthful and straightforward. We discussed our policies on:

  • Education
  • Employment
  • Energy efficiency
  • Housing
  • Honesty & Integrity in public life
  • Older people
  • Transport
  • Waste & Recycling

We also touched on our opposition to privatisation, ID cards, nuclear power & weapons, wars and council tax.

We additionally exposed some of the cosy votes Tories and Labour have taken together, giving each other additional allowances as well as forcing in the new council constitution a year early. Our leaflets had to rebut some of the false allegations from others and explain to voters that Alex was blocked by the Tory mayor from speaking on residents’ behalf.

I’m very happy with how the leaflets were received. Based on what I’ve seen from the opposition we not only covered far more policy than all the others combined, we were more positive and avoided personal attacks.

The other parties were all misleading about us at some point or another but Labour, as usual, excelled in false allegations. They claimed that Alex hadn’t attended local meetings when she had (in fact despite Labour Cllr Melanie Davies trying to block her), claimed Alex was a student when she isn’t and claimed she works for Caroline Lucas MEP when she doesn’t.

So, unless there’s truly a skeleton in the closet to be exposed, I think once again we see negative campaigning doesn’t work.

The Green success story continues, we’re set for more hard work in winning votes for the General Election. And the Green group of councillors know we need to work harder than ever to make this council work for the city and keep people’s faith in us. With power so finely balanced lots of negotiation and detailed proposals will be required but we might, just might, be able to get more Green policies in place if councillors in all parties can stay open minded and resist petty back-biting. We shall see…

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notes from JK

Reflections on Michael Jackson


Back in September 2005 I was in Canada for a cousin’s wedding. I had been married about 3 months, my new wife was expecting our first child and we were driving around Quebec and Ontario to meet family while sight seeing.

The local radio was mind numbingly poor, far too smooth the whole time. So we stopped at an HMV to buy a CD. We decided on a Jackson compilation. The clerk gave me ‘deeply uncool’ look, clearly displeased with our choice.

This double CD of Jackson 5, the Jacksons and just MIchael was played non-stop for hundreds of miles, it went the distance.

We found it the other day and it’s seeing heavy play again. I refuse to judge Jackson’s private life, I have no idea what of we know about it is true anyway! What I do know is that he was extremely generous, holding a Guiness record for most charities supported by a pop star.

The man was an extraordinary dancer, talented songwriter and gifted singer. But above all he was so breathtakingly in the moment when he performed – he totally embodied his performances. That’s something I deeply admire. RIP.

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Report into Care UK contract for GP-led clinic is approved

I’m very pleased that the report into Care UK being contracted to run Brighton & Hove’s GP-led clinic contract was approved by today’s full Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee. We’re going to keep watching Care UK’s performance very carefully given the criticism they’ve come under for other contracts across the country.

More detail in my press release which is copied below.

You can read the full panel report on the Council website here.

My earlier blog post on Care UK and private corporations getting involved in the NHS.

REPORT RAISES CONCERNS ABOUT QUALITY OF CARE AT NEW HEALTH CARE CENTRE

A special report looking at why Care UK was chosen to run Brighton’s new ‘GP-Led health centre’ has raised concerns about the ability of the company to deliver quality care. *

The report, produced by members of Brighton & Hove City Council’s Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC), states ‘members still have reservations about Care UK’s ability to deliver the quality of care required it is evident that special measures must be put in place for monitoring the early progress of this contract.” **

Green City Cllr Jason Kitcat, who sits on HOSC and is also the Green Group of Cllrs’ spokesperson on Health issues said:

“Our investigation found problems with both the method used by the PCT to decide who should run the health centre, and their final choice of Care UK.

“The whole selection process seemed to unfairly favour big business over smaller and more local providers, because of the complex and intensive bid system.

“In choosing Care UK, the PCT have plumped for a company with a very mixed reputation – their management of the Sussex Orthopaedic Treatment Centre led the Healthcare commission to put it in special ‘measures’ after concerns were raised about hygiene among other things.

“In light of this, we’re urging the PCT to monitor the new health centre very closely and want a comprehensive update on how things are going after the first year.

“I’m really pleased we were able to find a cross-party consensus while drawing up this report, and would like also to commend the PCT for their co-operation with our investigation.”

ENDS

Notes for Editors:

Following detailed questioning by Cllr Jason Kitcat and members of Keep our NHS Public Brighton, the Chair of the Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee called for a panel to be formed in March 2009. The panel examined the process and bidders involved in the procurement process for a city centre GP-led health centre. These health centres are a national initiative created on the insistence of Labour health minister Lord Darzi.

The new ‘GP led health centre’ in Brighton opened on the 1st of July 2009, on Queen’s Rd, Brighton.

** Please see pages 65 – 66 of the report

For more information, please call Cllr Jason Kitcat on 07956 886 508

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notes from JK

Familiarity in the modern age

Respect

The age of deference has long gone, and I don't mourn it's loss. To me deference carried with it unquestioned authority which led to paternalism.

However deference and familiarity are not inherently tied together. It is striking how people struggle (probably unconsciously) with how to address one other in correspondence. For example in recent emails and letters I have had:

Dear Councillor

Dear Mr Kitcat

Dear Cllr Kitcat

Dear Jason Kitcat

Dear Jason

I don't wish to be overly formal. I also am certainly not looking for deference. I very much see my role as being a servant of the people.

But for someone I've never met, let alone corresponded with, I personally wouldn't open a letter on firstname terms. I wouldn't greet them on firstname terms either when I first met them.

In many cases I think people aren't aware of the distinctions: they rarely write formal letters or emails and so just write them as they would a message to a friend.

Others do intentionally use familiarity as a tool in managing relationships. Officers in some public services are notable for always using first names, perhaps that's their training.

Why does it matter? I think properly addressing people says something fundamental about how we treat each other and respect each other.

There's little I can do about this issue except try to correspond in the way I think most appropiate but I hope that by blogging it I might at least raise awareness amongst my tiny readership!

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notes from JK

When will people see through Cameron’s Blairite strategy?

I'm reading Peter Oborne's excellent “The Triumph of the Political Class” and it probably couldn't be a better time to be reading it as Parliament continues to dig itself into a deeper hole. I wish I could quote whole swathes of the book on this blog, but I shan't. It is a shame more of Mr Oborne's work isn't readily accessible online – there is an excerpt of the book here on the Daily Mail website which doesn't seem to be that reliable at the moment.

Anyway one thing that struck me in the book is Oborne's absolutely searing yet precision attack on the relationship between the new political class and the media, he argues that they have in many cases become one. For example Sky’s Political editor Adam Boulton being married to key Blair advisor Anji Hunter.

Oborne argues that, along with the increasing disregard for Parliament, a situation arose where politicians and reporters colluded in reporting unreal events as being reality – statements never really said, actions never taken, figures based on no facta and so on.

The Tories were not doing well in this Blairite environment where so many connections, lunches and favours intertwined the media and New Labour people. So, in the same way that Blair outdid the Tories to win office, now Cameron is trying to be the Better-Blair. Like Blair, Cameron comes across well on TV, but he also is not honest about his policies or values. A Blair mimick is the last thing we need right now. Blair was in many ways a disaster for this country, leading as he did an assault on our democratic system, human rights, civil service, position in the world through ill-advised wars and undermined the status of MPs in our mode of governance.

Cameron offers nothing new and I just hope more people will realise that Cameron is not an alternative to Labour. It's the same kind of thinking, the same kind of new-politico-media people with the same dishonest values which got us into this mess.

There are honourable exceptions but Parliament as a whole has failed to hold the executive to account, to prevent expenses abuses or to stand up to the epic scale of dishonesty being perpetrated by our politicians. Oborne has documented so many huge mistruths and inexcusable omissions that one is left to believe the entire culture of Parliament is rotten – and they have got away with it.

Cameron, Brown, Clegg and their lot have been party to these acts for a long time. They are a disgrace to politics and we deserve better.

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notes from JK

Catching up after the Euro elections

Phew. What a week and a bit.

Election day last week was frantic and exhausting, which is how they are supposed to be. We put on a huge operation across the city to ensure we were visible at as many polling stations as possible. It was very noticeable that barely any activists from other parties were visible, we heard reports of one LibDem and two Tories across the whole city.

Then for a few days we had to wait, with the small respite of some good Green council election results in other regions. Finally Sunday evening came and as a candidate I went to Southampton to be at the regional count held in St Mary's football stadium. The atmosphere was a strange one with no 'real' counting happening there, we were waiting for local authorities to send us their results. The mood wasn't helped by the computers crashing rather too often (I'll blog more on that soon) and all the BNP crowd hanging around in suits and rosettes.

The result came in very late, after 1am if I recall despite the returning officer promising it would all be over by 11am! We did very well, with our regional vote share up about 4 percentage points in the South East and nearly 100,000 more votes being cast for us.

The two biggest cheers of the night were when we heard the Oxford and Brighton results where we beat all the other parties to top place across those cities. In Brighton & Hove we won 31.4% of the vote and 26.1% in Oxford, 11.5 and 6.4 percentage points up respectively in each of those cities!

However despite all the growth of the Green vote across the UK, we sadly did not win any more seats. While I'm delighted and relieved that our two existing MEPs Caroline Lucas and Jean Lambert have been re-elected to their third terms with increased margins, it's disappointing that all this growth didn't see more Green MEPs returned, especially when we came so close in a number of regions.

I calculate that in the South East we needed about 29,500 more votes to beat the LibDems for that last seat. Not beyond the realm of possibility, especially if No2EU hadn't been there. I respect and support the diversity of parties a more proportional electoral system brings. However the UK Euros are counted by probably the worst form of PR which means people need to be realists.

I don't think anyone in No2EU would be able to disagree with our key policies. Their website says No2EU wanted to oppose the Euro-Gravy-Train, EU militarisation, privatisation and champion civil liberties… the Green Party already offers those things and is established in the European Parliament. Of course you can't count on votes transferring between parties, new parties may well mobilise people who wouldn't otherwise have voted. But in the North West region No2EU won more than enough votes to, if they had been Green votes instead, stop the BNP and elect a Green. Again in the Eastern region No2EU and Animals Count votes, if Green votes, would have been enough to get a Green MEP there. Green MEPs are totally committed to workers and animal rights issues, and have a clear track record. Despite obvious good intentions, splitting the vote sets back our common cause much more than any publicity gains these tiny parties campaigns will have had.

The speeches from successful candidates in Southampton were pretty dire, and completely empty of any policy other than Caroline Lucas and a smidgeon from Nigel Farage. I couldn't help myself from heckling Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan as he smugly attacked Brown and proclaimed the new Tory dawn was upon us (or something to that effect). I shouted “Clear out your moat. Get back to your duck house,” to hearty guffaws all around. I know Daniel is one of the better Tory MEPs but it infuriates me that they are attaching themselves to a message of change… They are part of the establishment which maintains the status quo. Many Tory MPs were very noticeably implicated in the expenses scandal — the Tories should be judged on that, not given an easy ride.

Monday saw me back on the campaign trail. Yes, no rest for me despite having only got home from Southampton at 3am. You see on election day a Tory Councillor Paul Lainchbury submitted his resignation. Odd timing until you remember that Labour ministers were resigning one after the other during that election week. It must have been something in the air.

So we have a council by-election in Goldsmid ward which is a strong target for us Greens and we have a good candidate in Alex Phillips. If Greens win the seat from the Tories then we'll be in a stronger position to push through our policy priorities as the Tories won't be able to win votes without some form of cross-party support. So it's an important by-election and we're going to be working very hard to win it.

I am going on holiday in August so once the by-election is over on 23rd July I know I will be looking forward to a serious break. Until then it is rosette to the ready, here I come Goldsmid!

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Video: This is it, the time for positive action is now. Vote Green.

http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/fXi1auHtgfI&hl=en&fs=1

Election day is tomorrow, Thursday 4th June. Polling stations are open from 7am until 10pm. Call your local council to find where your polling station is, you don't need your polling card with you to vote. Please take action for positive change by voting Green.