tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75659359755519493632012-02-02T01:25:33.225ZElected to Darlington Borough Council in May 2007, Mike Barker tells what it's like to be a councillor and the Liberal Democrats' Parliamentary Candidate in Darlington.Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.comBlogger4291100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-78409627243201101472010-07-23T11:32:00.004+01:002010-07-23T11:47:37.208+01:00

At 7.15 this morning I was on the John Foster morning programme on BBC Radio Tees talking about the Special Cabinet meeting to be held next week. Cabinet will be considering proposed cuts of £2.6million: the first tranche towards the eventual expected target of £22million of cuts. Should you be so moved, you can listen again here. Go forward to 1 hour 11m 30s.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-61740272523056368562010-07-08T23:54:00.005+01:002010-07-09T06:40:18.259+01:00

Today's Darlington Borough Council Cockerton West by-election, caused by the election of a former Labour Councillor to be our new MP, resulted in a hold for Labour, though a spirited Lib Dem showing squeezed the Conservative vote right down and produced a much closer result than most people expected.The result, with the 2007 result in brackets:Labour 388; 45% (515; 41%),Lib Dem 347; 40% (263; 21%

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-28281292970827294292010-07-07T09:25:00.002+01:002010-07-07T09:42:45.989+01:00

The Northern Echo's report on the cancellation of Building Schools for the Future includes case studies where local head teachers give their views. Longfield's Head, Keith Cotgrave, expresses his disappointment but insists that the work which has already gone into the bid will not be wasted. He makes the point that what is most important is what happens inside the school, with which he is very

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-15633447185157484482010-07-05T12:37:00.002+01:002010-07-05T13:00:30.462+01:00

The power of an internet-based campaign! In just four days, the "Save the Forum" Facebook campaign has attracted just short of 2500 members while the editor of the Northern Echo has just tweeted that they have never had so many letters from the public on any issue. He's clearing a whole page in tomorrow's paper. "Extraordinary!" says Peter Barron, the editor.With a huge town hall rally planned

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-51400980258236735202010-07-03T00:49:00.005+01:002010-07-03T09:40:37.493+01:00

Within 24 hours, over 1600 mainly young people have joined the Facebook campaign to save the Forum music centre in Darlington. I only found out about this this afternoon and am not yet fully aware of the exact details of the financial reasons for its impending closure, though the blame is being laid squarely on the shoulders of the Council for deciding to withdraw financial support. I cannot

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-62066073737834821242010-06-23T08:45:00.004+01:002010-06-23T09:32:47.677+01:00

Yesterday’s budget was necessary, tough but fair. I didn’t join the SDP/Alliance/Lib Dems to cut the benefits of people who need them, or to increase regressive taxation. I didn’t get into politics to impose a pay freeze on public sector workers.But sadly we have no choice: the financial mess Labour got us into has to be cleaned up. If Labour were in government, they’d have had to make similarly

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-44429858240106895982010-06-13T07:22:00.003+01:002010-06-13T07:44:17.262+01:00

Yesterday, two glossy magazines landed on my doormat, possibly delivered together. One was the Council's Town Crier magazine, the other was an independent advertising glossy called "darlington TODAY" (sic). I don't remember seeing this magazine before, though this is issue 21. Maybe that's because I live in Central ward and the target market appears to be people who might send their kids to

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-79301926262302870342010-06-11T16:04:00.003+01:002010-06-11T16:12:11.940+01:00

The contest to replace Jenny Chapman MP as councillor for Cockerton West ward on Darlington Borough Council will be a four-way fight with the BNP putting up against the three main parties.The Lib Dem candidate will be Cockerton West resident Brian Jefferson, former teacher at Branksome School, in the ward, and currently Chair of GOLD (Growing Older Living in Darlington). Brian is the only

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-23244699605340829042010-06-04T00:12:00.002+01:002010-06-04T00:23:05.436+01:00

Following the election of Cllr Jenny Chapman to be the new Labour MP for Darlington, a by-election has been called to fill the vacancy caused by her resignation as councillor for Cockerton West ward. The by-election will be held on July 8th.This is only the second by-election to be held during the current four year term of this Council, which is now in its final year. It will be interesting to

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-39743600170032786422010-05-28T09:23:00.003+01:002010-05-28T10:39:25.222+01:00

The Northern Echo's front page headline and story today about reductions in local police budgets is journalism at its most sensational. Despite "Durham Police Authority promising that its front-line service will be protected" the eye-grabbing headline reads "Budget cuts will hit police numbers", which is quite clearly not what the article below says.North Yorkshire Police say there will be no

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-47933021598849531712010-05-24T11:14:00.002+01:002010-05-24T11:22:34.037+01:00

Following a typically baseless story in The Sun a couple of weeks ago that a local authority in London was advising pubs to ban football supporters wearing England shirts during the World Cup, reports have been coming in to councillors in Darlington of people on the street being threatened with a £30 fine for wearing an England shirt in public, and of a pub being told by the local police that

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-83676584810398773342010-05-21T10:37:00.008+01:002010-05-21T13:20:04.643+01:00

Two small sentences caught my eye in the new Coalition Programme for Government which will be of interest in Darlington.In amongst all the grand plans we see this:"We will allow councils to return to the committee system, should they wish to."and this:"We will impose tougher rules to stop unfair competition by local authority newspapers."There is no doubt many local councillors, particularly

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-51778774219431412182010-05-21T06:35:00.002+01:002010-05-21T06:57:13.940+01:00

Last night was Darlington's Mayor Making ceremony in the Town Hall. Definitely one of the high points of the year with abundant good will and civic pride.The outgoing Mayor, liberal-minded Conservative Jim Ruck, has been a popular and successful mayor, carrying out his civic duties, as was said by his sponsor, with a beam on his face. The incoming mayor is chosen strictly by seniority defined by

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-39337457724000288502010-05-16T16:18:00.002+01:002010-05-16T16:41:48.654+01:00

Next week I expect the Government to announce a major reorganisation of One North East, Government Office North East and the Homes and Communities Agency. I understand that significant numbers of staff employed by these organisations are to lose their jobs, perhaps following the merger of their responsibilities.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-42320169091717285972010-05-16T09:02:00.004+01:002010-05-16T09:19:47.454+01:00

One of the themes of my General Election campaign here in Darlington - a campaign, by the way, which produced an increase in our vote from 7,000 to 10,000 (23.4%), against the general trend elsewhere - was that voting Conservative and getting a Conservative Government would lead to the withdrawal of our promised £57m Building Schools for the Future money for the rebuilding or renovation of

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-24711775494512111372010-04-30T16:07:00.003+01:002010-04-30T16:12:03.762+01:00

A couple of clips from last night's Darlington Parliamentary Candidates' hustings are now on the Echo's website: including my put down of the Conservative candidate, who seemed to be saying that the Hunting Act should be repealed because it was badly drawn up and had taken a long time to go through Parliament.http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/video/regional/99801/

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-59635635582960434412010-04-27T12:49:00.002+01:002010-04-27T13:05:06.252+01:00

I have been sent a copy of a resignation letter to the Labour Party by one of its long-term members in Darlington. In his letter, this gentleman remembers the vibrant, exciting times when he campaigned to help get Alan Milburn elected as the town's MP.I will not detail his reasons for quitting here because some of them are personal and relate to his treatment by the local labour Party, but he

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-89917337820177745272010-04-22T12:02:00.002+01:002010-04-22T12:07:46.627+01:00

I understand from a phone call from the daughter of an elderly couple, that their local GP practice in town cannot take them as new patients, even though they only live a couple of minutes walk away, because "priority is given to people who live on the other side of town."I'm writing to the PCT about their policy for admittance on to GP lists, the apparent inadequate supply of GP services in our

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-82128301456964383602010-04-20T09:47:00.002+01:002010-04-20T09:56:54.695+01:00

Today's edition of the Northern Echo is full of stories about or including the Lib Dems, including the results of a regional poll conducted largely before last week's Leaders' Debate which, even then, showed Durham City falling to us. Now I think they'd have to add at least three more seats to that one.There is also an article, complete with an artistic photo of me on my knees, about vandalism in

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-24460152166727446882010-04-19T13:27:00.003+01:002010-04-19T13:35:51.710+01:00

Labour in Darlington are panicking. I've just had a phone call from a life-long Labour voter saying three Labour canvassers, including someone called "Jennifer, I think", and she thought one of the others was the MP (but surely they wouldn't let him loose on the electorate would they?) had been browbeating her saying if she switched to voting Lib Dem it would just let the Conservatives win. She's

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-68219138102205195742010-04-17T22:04:00.001+01:002010-04-17T22:05:59.304+01:00

Peter Barron, the highly respected editor of the Northern Echo has tweeted this evening:"Lost count of the number of people who've said to me that they're going to vote Lib Dem in the past couple of days. Getting interesting."It certainly is, Peter.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-15111841090335067902010-04-16T19:04:00.002+01:002010-04-16T19:19:25.496+01:00

Living in Darlington and wondering why you haven't had a leaflet from the Conservatives since the election was called? Wonder no more. Following so soon after Darlington's Conservative candidate delivered thousands of pre-election leaflets to villages in the Sedgefield Constituency, my spies in the Darlington Royal Mail office tell me the Tories have now had to bin thousands more leaflets

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-66706864290363532162010-04-15T09:09:00.003+01:002010-04-15T09:31:00.591+01:00

When we come to prepare our manifesto for next year's local elections in Darlington, I shall be pressing for that document to include a promise of radical changes to Street Scene for major improvements in its performance.Here is one local resident's view of the mess that is commonly known as Street Scene in Darlington:"(Despite their claims) the Council do NOT litter pick in North Park four times

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-73314628279300967182010-04-15T08:44:00.003+01:002010-04-15T09:02:00.691+01:00

Little time for updating this blog: there's an election on, you know: thousands of leaflets to deliver and doors to knock on, over 200 emails, and growing hourly, from voters and pressure groups to reply to (not to mention Churches Together's list of 58 questions!). However, a few highlights from our first week of full-on canvassing: knocking on the door of an elderly lady who helped run the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-87503638041771764872010-04-11T13:57:00.004+01:002010-04-11T14:07:15.410+01:00

Spotted in a disabled parking bay. Well, it is the one nearest the road, so all the passers-by will get to admire his posters.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-29401781284374510042010-04-11T08:04:00.001+01:002010-04-11T08:07:54.052+01:00

Why do I always forget, after all these years, that I need to wear a hat the first day the sun shines each year? Sadly, I'm not convinced my long-serving blue floppy Durham County Cricket Club hat (with the built-in headphones to receive Test Match Special) is quite what the good people of Darlington expect to see on their Lib Dem candidate standing on their doorstep.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-66709995864071294992010-04-09T10:37:00.009+01:002010-04-11T02:12:17.413+01:00

On Thursday afternoon the three Lib Dem North Road ward councillors held an urgent meeting with officers from Darlington Children's Services Department concerning industrial contamination on the site of the new Northwood School playing fields in our ward.We only very recently discovered that a problem existed when, on a ward walkabout, we noticed that the level of the new school playing fields

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-19683177136548064492010-04-08T06:46:00.002+01:002010-04-08T06:50:52.713+01:00

The Labour Party's candidate in Darlington has produced a leaflet showing her in a red dress alongside three grey silouettes with the headline: "Not all politicians are the same." No, that's true: some of us have radical policies for a fairer Britain while others think it's what colour dress you wear that counts.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-48479087795468369542010-04-03T09:18:00.003+01:002010-04-06T17:16:55.802+01:00

Darlington Churches Together have sent me a lengthy document posing a wide range of moral and political questions, the answers to which will be published on-line for all to see. This is an excellent initiative. Their preamble states, "We believe that our elected representative should be a man or woman of integrity, who is accessible and passionate about Darlington, whose judgment is shaped on the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-48382565282245516802010-04-02T14:00:00.004+01:002010-04-02T14:14:44.548+01:00

While not usually keen on directing you to Labour Councillors' blogs, if you haven't yet caught up with Ian Hazeldine's masterpiece of homespun philosphy, I urge you to read this post on potholes. From the first sentence to the last, it is truely a masterpiece of the genre. Ian shows a healthy willingness to point up the absurdities of local and national government administration. Read and enjoy.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-49498813315044078612010-03-29T09:22:00.003+01:002010-03-29T12:31:09.997+01:00

I don't often venture onto the "Hear All Sides" page of the Northern Echo, but Gill Cartwright's letter last week claiming that the Lib Dems' perceived "silence" about BSF "speaks volumes" provoked me to put pen to paper.My letter has been published today, and here it is in its original form, which is slightly different to the printed version, once the sub-editor got his hands on it:Sir,I can

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-17603943732283647012010-03-22T21:42:00.005Z2010-03-23T09:01:08.801Z

Yet another Cashcroft glossy Tory leaflet hits the doormats in Darlington. From it I learn that I am "tainted by town hall politics," and have "not served my country with distinction." Strangely, Capt Legard completely fails to mention that he too is a local councillor, albeit in North Yorkshire.His military career does, as usual, get extensive coverage. Capt Legard appears to believe that the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-89688939161160723782010-03-21T09:49:00.003Z2010-03-22T09:35:10.116Z

Most people, including one of the Darlington Labour Party bloggers, think PACT in Darlington stands for Police and Communities Together, which, since PACT meetings are all about local residents meeting the police and agreeing priorities in their local ward or neighbourhood, would seem to be logical.In fact, however, it stands for Partners and Communities Together (not Partnerships either, Nick!).

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-39587517416087034572010-03-19T23:33:00.002Z2010-03-19T23:42:09.665Z

Councillor Ian Haszeldine, the combative and respected Labour Councillor for Lingfield ward, former mayor and proud lifelong citizen of Darlington, has started a blog. It's called Lingfield Matters and promises to be a ward-based blog dealing with local community matters. Check it out.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-70045480877503075072010-03-19T06:35:00.004Z2010-03-19T12:40:23.588Z

As I said in Full Council last night: Darlington's hard won £57m from the Building Schools for the Future programme has an axe hanging over it if the Conservatives win the next General Election. Unless final contracts have been signed by May 6th, the Conservatives have made it clear that these schemes cannot be guaranteed.We know the Conservatives intend to divert money away from capital

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-18684694354715197472010-03-17T17:52:00.004Z2010-03-17T18:06:12.876Z

This Friday night at 7.30 in the Media Centre at Darlington Arts Centre, the Darlington Cycling Campaign have an open meeting with leading cycling campaigner Karl McCracken as the guest speaker. Go here for more details.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-9689421440748170302010-03-12T16:19:00.004Z2010-03-12T16:43:44.017Z

Brian Jefferson, former Conservative Borough Councillor and currently Chair of GOLD (Growing Old, Living in Darlington) has quit the Conservative Party and joined the Liberal Democrats. He has pledged his support to me as the Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for Darlington.Brian writes, "I decided to leave the Conservative Party because the local association imported a candidate to be the town's

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-16516337119788693832010-03-12T09:03:00.004Z2010-03-12T09:19:45.679Z

Here's a view of the Five Pound Note Bridge, Darlington's iconic bridge over which Locomotion 1 travelled, a sketch of which appeared on one version of the £5 note, that you don't often see. No, not because I'm in the picture! It's because the archway to the left of the photo is usually bricked up, so it's normally a tortuous scramble to get to this point.For my cycling readers, by the way,

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-20041642910476819722010-03-11T19:26:00.002Z2010-03-11T19:32:09.540Z

In today's Echo the Conservative agent in Darlington said the failure to include an imprint on the recently delivered Tory leaflet was a mistake made by the printer. So what's their excuse this time? The Advertiser has a wrap-around four page advert for the Tory candidate (Ashcroft's money being to put to good use, it seems). Yet again, there's no imprint. No "printed by...", no "published by..."

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-63454651363063178042010-03-11T10:30:00.003Z2010-03-11T10:44:32.055Z

Now you're talking my language! Wouldn't it be wonderful if Darlington Borough Council acted on the LGA's suggestion and ceased using these 200 words and started writing in plain English. The ones I really hate are "Quick win", "Stakeholder", Sustainable Communities", "Third Sector", Step Change", Place Shaping", Funding Stream" and Benchmarking". No DBC report is considered complete without the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-14097231969316032682010-03-08T17:30:00.004Z2010-03-08T17:57:18.613Z

In the past couple of weeks in Darlington we've had local government officers using Council equipment and paper to produce a flyer promoting the Labour Party's General Election candidate to teachers at a training event, and we've had the Conservatives distributing - and continuing to distribute despite warning - an election leaflet for their candidate which doesn't contain a legal "Published by..

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-15596492992960624122010-03-08T08:18:00.000Z2010-03-08T08:19:26.905Z

Later this week we reveal which leading voluntary organisation activist and former Darlington Councillor has defected to the Lib Dems in support of me.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-59912672896202236482010-03-05T11:37:00.004Z2010-03-05T11:44:49.700Z

My blogging colleage, Labour Councillor Nick Wallis, has called on the Tories to stop distributing their latest leaflet which carries a "Printed by..." but not a "Published by..." imprint. I suspect Nick is saying this tongue in cheek, but actually he's right. If there are thousands of these leaflets stacked up waiting to be delivered, the Conservatives must withdraw them immediately and destroy

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-81404529398763011962010-03-05T00:27:00.005Z2010-03-05T07:55:42.981Z

The latest election leaflet from Edward Legard, the Conservative candidate for the Darlington constituency, arrived with the pizza menu leaflets on my doormat this evening. Sadly, for a party which got its nickers in such a twist when a flyer in support of Jenny Chapman, the Labour candidate, was distributed without an election imprint to teachers recently, this lastest effort from Capt Legard

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-44794141474770292122010-03-04T21:18:00.003Z2010-03-04T21:56:13.642Z

On Tuesday I paid a visit to the Acute Stroke Unit at Darlington Memorial Hospital. With its long-term future still in doubt, due to the need to meet Government targets of 24/7 acute stroke care across the country, which may lead Health Trusts to seek a concentration of services in regional centres, it was really good to be able to talk to the consultant and ward sister responsible for providing

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-91742382798420340732010-03-03T09:52:00.003Z2010-03-03T09:56:03.407Z

I undertand there is absolutely no connection between the rare appearance in the town centre today of cleaners wielding high pressure hoses and the visit to the town tomorrow of John Denham, Secretary of State for Communities, Local Government and Chewing Gum Removal.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-65923828484858457262010-03-01T10:06:00.003Z2010-03-01T10:28:28.532Z

Following last week's Council Meeting to consider next year's budget for Darlington a couple of mildy interesting things happened.First, down the Quaker, I discovered that the original proposed budget was not shown to or discussed within the Labour Group before it was published. It was the work solely of officers and the Cabinet. As an only slightly-the-worse-for-wear Labour councillor told me, "

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-71021700943398862952010-03-01T09:24:00.003Z2010-03-01T09:39:42.167Z

Well, the Echo has published details of the Conservatives' complaint about the Council's conduct in apparently distributing literature in favour of the Labour Party's candidate at the forthcoming General Election.While the Council is right to be investigating this seriously, it would appear to be an example of thoughtlessness by Council officers rather than a blatent attempt to promote Jenny

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-73340114670114367362010-03-01T09:12:00.004Z2010-03-01T09:23:23.717Z

Last Thursday's Special Council meeting in Darlington to agree the budget for the coming year started off slowly but then became much more deliciously bad-tempered as the evening progressed. Indeed, I wondered if everyone had gone to sleep when no hands went up in the air following the Mayor's call for debate. It seemed that the Tories, as the official opposition, were waiting for someone else to

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-52844232202575180342010-02-27T07:59:00.004Z2010-02-27T08:19:42.977Z

This weekend, possibly Monday, a major row between the Conservative and Labour campaign teams in Darlington is expected to hit the pages of the Northern Echo. The Conservative Party's Regional Office has formally complained to Darlington Borough Council about public support being given to Jenny Chapman, the Labour candidate, from within the Council. I am an outsider looking in, and I haven't seen

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-6798075241952387792010-02-25T14:30:00.004Z2010-02-25T14:55:10.850Z

Having up to now provided a free cardboard recycling service for businesses in Darlington, the Council has announced that, from April, there will be a charge of £4.78 + VAT per collection. That's almost £250 a year if, as most businesses do, cardboard is put out weekly. This is being done "to ensure economic viability in readiness for the coming financial year".I suspect, with trade as poor as it

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-19762344994593489082010-02-25T07:48:00.003Z2010-02-25T09:11:59.385Z

...bring on the Villa! Steve Webb, Frank Skinner, Eric Clapton, Adrian Chiles...your boys took one hell of a beating!

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-60706729090465753422010-02-23T21:14:00.002Z2010-02-23T21:17:44.145Z

I have, at last, created a Facebook election campaign page: Mike Barker 4 Darlington. Now I need lots of fans...

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-58158541492807059662010-02-23T11:07:00.004Z2010-02-23T12:41:16.794Z

Yesterday the three North Road ward councillors met with officers in the Town Hall to be briefed on the latest plans to deal with the chaos in the back lane serving Harrowgate Hill Primary School. At the moment there is total confusion there at drop-off and pick-up times as cars attempt to drive in both directions along the lane, park in restricted areas and block residents' rear gates.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-3334502769222965692010-02-22T12:10:00.001Z2010-02-22T12:10:48.834Z

Allegations involving misuse of Darlington Borough Council equipment and resources, and potential breaches of electoral law, have been made by one of my political opponents concerning actions taken by supporters of the other. Expect to read more about this as the week goes on.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-28790188720882744292010-02-19T06:11:00.012Z2010-02-20T10:13:44.311Z

Darlington has lost its status as a Fair Trade town. As one of the biggest Fair Trade retailers in the town, I sat on the original Steering Group, under the leadership of the Council, which worked hard to gather together the information required to achieve that status. Shops, restaurants, cafes, public offices, schools: all were contacted and many persuaded to sell or supply Fair Trade products.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-75618938179785322932010-02-18T08:35:00.006Z2010-02-18T09:46:26.903Z

Darlington's Town Clock has gone pink. Despite its role as a traditional meeting place for those on a date, the new pink colour, which shines out through all the viewing windows in the tower too, is not, as some Twitterers suggest, a Valentine's Day tribute. No, it's to encourage support for the Cancer Research Race for Life. Darlington's Race, in South Park, will be on Sunday June 13th. I used

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-6604862057356550262010-02-17T08:00:00.006Z2010-02-17T08:34:54.999Z

That's what I should have signed off with in my speech to Cabinet last night. But maybe the Star Trek reference would have been lost on the justifiably angry Darlington Borough Council staff and unions who crowded into the public seats and stood up around the room. While even Conservative controlled North Yorkshire is going for a 3% Council Tax increase, the Labour Group in Darlington, mindful of

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-80267118525109359942010-02-13T18:46:00.005Z2010-02-13T19:37:40.125Z

Out in Northgate ward this afternoon with our excellent local Focus team, bubbling with enthusiasm and working hard towards 2011. The recent ward survey showed many problems in what is one of the most deprived wards in the town. Our guys, who have lived all their lives in the ward, are already taking action on some of these issues.Years of Labour control over the Council and in Government and yet

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-12882774521343674722010-02-12T08:09:00.003Z2010-02-12T08:19:08.689Z

Last night was the long-awaited tenth anniversary celebration of the founding of First Stop, the organisation which cares for the homeless in Darlington. It was also, as Steve Rose said, the first time the three main Parliamentary Candidates for the town had gathered together under one roof. I had a nice chat with Jenny, but sadly Edward dashed away as soon as the formal part of the evening ended

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-10183566691364607572010-02-09T19:44:00.006Z2010-02-09T20:35:04.546Z

Today just gets better and better. I've just received a jubilant phone call from Jeff Crawford, husband of one of the Early Years Inclusion Team members, to tell me that the Director of Children's Services is to recommend to Cabinet that the proposal to downgrade the Early Years Inclusion service be dropped from the budget.A full review and consultation with all interested parties will now take

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-44398825610454594772010-02-09T12:29:00.005Z2010-02-09T15:53:15.298Z

This morning was the annual Question Time debate for councillors at Darlington's Queen Elizabeth 6th Form College in front of an audience of bright, knowledgeable sixth form politics students. This was the third time I'd done the event and this time I was up against Gill Cartwright for the Conservatives and Jenny Chapman for the Labour Party.Questions covered subjects like party discipline and

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-89756473891604119262010-02-09T11:19:00.005Z2010-02-09T16:29:17.156Z

Last week I visited the Darlington Storysacks and Toy Library from which the Labour Cabinet's budget proposals would have withdrawn financial support. I am delighted to learn from the Echo this morning, therefore, that the Council has announced it will in fact continue to support the excellent work carried out by the charity. I think the advice Fred and I were able to give them was helpful in

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-54089363769887227342010-02-06T07:10:00.002Z2010-02-06T07:25:47.515Z

Three months. That's how long we have to put up with Alan Milburn as our MP. In fact, were he not standing down in disgrace, I think I would still be typing exactly the same thing.The revelation that he's been asked to repay £11,000 in over-claimed expenses on his second home mortgage will come as no surprise to his long-suffering constituents who have had to put up with an MP who doesn't live

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-89821660332747053412010-02-04T06:55:00.007Z2010-02-04T09:44:51.419Z

Yesterday I visited the Darlington Storysack and Toy Resources charity, based at Corporation Road School. It is faced with possible closure, and certainly a massive reduction in the service it can offer, thanks to the Labour Cabinet's proposed budget cuts.Funded by a grant of £75,000 per annum, the charity which runs this superb service faces the complete removal of their subsidy following this

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-56724373172558023092010-02-03T22:07:00.006Z2010-02-04T05:25:45.233Z

Durham Constabulary has lost more officers, as a percentage of its total, than any other force in the country. Between March 2005 and September 2009 Durham Constabulary slashed its number of police officers by 193, that's a whopping 11.1% of its 2005 total (1738 down to 1545). All our ward surveys show that crime and anti-social behaviour is one of the most important concerns for local residents.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-29980759367360451852010-02-02T22:25:00.005Z2010-02-03T15:40:13.846Z

The Darlington Early Years Inclusion Service has been the subject of two special Budget consultation sessions over the past couple of days. I've been to both, to try and find out what the real issues are here.The Council's proposal is to replace the eleven-strong team who provide concentrated, personalised support to a number of disabled and disadvantaged pre-school children, mainly during term

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-19784082269441378092010-02-02T09:26:00.003Z2010-02-02T09:49:56.008Z

For several years the natural health industry in this country has been engaged in a running battle with the European Commission to defend the rights of UK consumers to continue to buy higher strength vitamins and supplements. It seems now that a decision is imminent: a decision which could lead to the closure of independent health stores across the country, the loss of many small manufacturing

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-12441552698127288642010-01-29T10:18:00.004Z2010-01-31T19:12:25.998Z

The Labour Party's Parliamentary Candidate for Darlington has come out publicly in opposition to her Council Group's deplorable plan to axe the Early Year's Inclusion Service. Cllr Chapman, who has only just stepped down from the Cabinet to concentrate on fighting the General Election, would have been party to the decision to propose the axing of this service.The Labour Group is firmly whipped:

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-75664570923066565652010-01-28T13:17:00.004Z2010-01-28T23:33:08.835Z

This evening in Full Council I had a question down for Cllr Lyonette, the Cabinet's Transport portfolio holder. It read:"In December 2009 the Government’s Road Safety Minister announced proposals which would allow local councils to introduce 20 mph zones in residential areas without the need for traffic calming measures such as speed humps.The Department for Transport is seeking the views of

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-25397543209056653792010-01-24T16:33:00.004Z2010-01-26T10:56:17.629Z

A couple of hours this afternoon strolling around parts of North Road ward with Fred and Anne-Marie. Spotted one particular patch of grass outside Bob Harrison Court, near the new school, clearly used as a dog toilet. Six fresh deposits in a 6ft by 4ft patch of grass, now captured for ever in digital colour. John Herdman will be hearing about this on Monday morning.The main problem we found was

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-81642544244587729002010-01-22T13:03:00.002Z2010-01-22T13:07:35.747Z

According to a tweet from Peter Barron, the editor of the Northern Echo, who chaired the first Darlington Debate earlier this week, the next Debate will be an election special featuring the candidates.But will they - should they - invite the BNP candidate?

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-56538688506995226152010-01-22T09:30:00.006Z2010-01-22T11:43:59.613Z

Am I alone in feeling uneasy about the way in which the 12 year old boy in Darlington, who was identified as one of three children photographed bus-surfing, has been paraded in the press and on regional tv? Bus surfing is a craze at the moment among a small group of young teens in the town. It is stupid and could well have serious consequences. I'm pleased to see that Arriva have made physical

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-50802804605741249632010-01-21T10:25:00.002Z2010-01-21T10:33:09.055Z

Last night was my first ward surgery in one of the Community Rooms at the new Northwood School. One big issue is the chaos on the surrounding streets at the moment at drop-off and pick-up time. Apparently buses sometimes can't get through because of the sheer volume of cars parked haphazardly around the school.This is due to the school car park not being ready yet which has forced school staff to

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-69333977476664532322010-01-20T08:58:00.004Z2010-01-21T08:15:33.625Z

Off to Lingfield Point last night to sit in a huge empty factory unit, complete with lovely silver foil wrapped extraction ducts, for the inaugural Darlington Debate: "The Economic Future of Darlington: Dynamism or Decline". It was presented as a "Question Time" style event, cordially chaired by Peter Barron, editor of the Northern Echo. Unfortunately it lacked that key ingredient that makes QT

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-27400539879390177302010-01-19T11:20:00.007Z2010-01-19T13:29:06.386Z

I attended the Special Health and Well-being Scrutiny Committee meeting in the Town Hall this morning. The topic under debate was the future of acute stroke service provision in Darlington, following the leaking to the press of a document last week which suggested that the stroke unit at Darlington Memorial was to close. In the debate at Scrutiny it became clear to me, having listened to local

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-49776363439688293982010-01-19T08:23:00.003Z2010-01-19T08:33:09.574Z

How did this squeeze in under the radar? Walking to work this morning, the signs have finally been erected outside the shop conversion work which has been going on in Duke Street since Christmas in what used to be Sanderson's Estate Agents and before that, Golf World. It's to be a new Sainsbury's Local.The small grocery, newsagents and confectionery shop on the corner of Larchfield Street

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-65978007027849289932010-01-16T22:31:00.004Z2010-01-17T08:01:41.960Z

Today's leafletting in Haughton North was interrupted by a trip to Zetland Street in North Road ward tojoin Cllr Anne-Marie Curry, talking to local householders about flooding in their back yards and kitchens. As the thaw sets in, the problems caused by the long weeks of sub-zero temperatures are now becoming apparent.Heavy rain and ice melt combined with a blocked drain in the Zetland Street

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-71466731886026386432010-01-16T12:28:00.005Z2010-01-16T12:55:40.289Z

Try typing http://www.alanmilburn.com/ into your browser. Where does that take you? To the Darlington Conservative Future website, that's where. Sadly, Alan Milburn will not be standing for Labour in Darlington in the general election (that really would have spelt the end of Labour's tenuous hold on this seat) so the Tories' swoop for this domain name is a bit irrelevant now - as well as being

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-5096876127677419452010-01-14T08:29:00.004Z2010-01-14T08:51:00.194Z

So said a senior Conservative Councillor to me following the revelation that nascent plans to close the newly opened Stroke Unit at Darlington Memorial Hospital had been leaked to the Labour Party's candidate in the General Election - a backbench councillor with no reason to be informed ahead of the rest of us, other than the naked desire for party political advantage.In a statement to the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-40165900299367583982010-01-13T23:09:00.004Z2010-01-14T07:24:56.965Z

Liverpool (John William's team) 1, Reading (my wonderful Royals) 2. Get in!I was going to blog about the dishonourable leaking, from the very highest level within Darlington Council to the Labour Party's candidate in the General Election, of the Health Trust's proposal to close the stroke unit in Darlington, and the deliberate hiding of this information from the opposition parties until after the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-86756050316252788672010-01-09T10:03:00.011Z2010-01-09T10:38:30.061Z

Last night we had the heaviest snowfall to date in Darlington. The Regional PPC training event in Gateshead has been called off, so instead, I went out early this morning to take some photos around my house. I'm lucky enough to live in a house built in 1867 in the most beautiful road in the west end of Darlington, an area of Victorian and Edwardian terraces described by Nickolaus Pevsner, the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-15249164174483645672010-01-08T20:14:00.003Z2010-01-08T20:46:02.579Z

To The Sage, Gateshead (or Newcastle, as the Conservative Shadow Spokesman for Local Government, Bob Neill, called it, bless him) today for the first North East Local Government Summit. Sadly, numbers were much depleted by the weather. Of the 12 or so Darlington councillors who had signed up to go, only me and Ian Hazeldine managed it. The trains were running fine, which is how I and most of the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-45379403062462578342010-01-06T17:38:00.003Z2010-01-06T17:59:31.517Z

The combined effects of elderly people suffering respiratory illnesses in this continuing bad weather and a higher than normal rate of falls leading to fractures and other injuries, has meant that Darlington Memorial Hospital is on "Red Alert". It is full - there are no beds available for routine surgery patients and all but the most critical new admissions are having to be transferred

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-67013885527155646652009-12-29T18:24:00.002Z2009-12-29T18:45:12.211Z

We know how poor Darlington Council's response to the snow has been, with minimal and ineffective gritting and no snow, ice and slush clearance for five days after the first snowfall in the town centre.Following my recent blog posts the Council's performance improved in the town centre, though most residential streets remain treacherous. Thankfully, it hasn't snowed for a few days, though more is

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-56951883006109495842009-12-28T08:12:00.003Z2009-12-28T08:18:06.014Z

A fire at the Darlington home of Stephen Hughes MEP and his wife, Darlington Councillor Cyndi Hughes, has claimed the life of an 80 year old man, who the Northern Echo reports to be Cyndi's father. Stephen and Cyndi are lovely people and this is desperately sad news. On behalf of Darlington Liberal Democrats, I would like to offer our sincere sympathies to Stephen and Cyndi.

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-53967691599477627082009-12-23T09:05:00.004Z2009-12-27T13:55:07.787Z

A friend who lives in Sadberge phoned Darlington Council to complain that the salt bin on their road was empty and to ask if it could please be re-filled. He was told by the Council that there was no salt available to fill up the rural bins. He was told, "The Town Centre takes priority, you know". My friend asked the Council employee to repeat what he'd said, so he could record it. The salt bin

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-49251430949485685792009-12-22T14:37:00.005Z2009-12-27T13:54:31.484Z

Speaking to traders in the Indoor Market this afternoon, it is clear there is much anger about the deplorable state the town centre has been in for the past few days. Here are two snippets:1. When the decision was taken to pedestrianise much of the town centre, a retailer on the Town Centre Board asked what steps would be taken to ensure that the newly pedestrianised areas, which include many

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-69122918171577039072009-12-22T10:16:00.003Z2009-12-22T14:37:08.507Z

Some five days after the first heavy snowfall, Post House Wynd has finally been cleared and gritted along with much of the rest of the town centre, which has been covered with snow and sludge for nearly a week. If it's possible for shoppers to stay away in droves, they have been over the past few days. It's really taken far too long to get this done. Many of the pedestrian routes into town, such

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-63700019775149040812009-12-18T08:13:00.003Z2009-12-18T08:42:08.054Z

Yes, you...if you own a dog and let it crap on Thompson Street West in Darlington. The main walking route to Harrowgate Hill Primary must be one of the worst stretches of road in town for dog muck and litter. Earlier this week I, along with my fellow North Road ward councillors, received an anguished email from a resident of Leyburn Road, sent on behalf of many of the parents, asking us to get

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-23726950608755016162009-12-13T17:12:00.002Z2009-12-13T17:22:13.992Z

The Northern Echo, one of the great campaigning newspapers of the north and erstwhile home to Harold Evans, has achieved what is surely its greatest accolade: inclusion in the Angry People in Local Newspapers website. You'll have to scroll down to Friday, December 11th, for Paul Cook losing his car wheels. Can't help thinking if they had this website in mind when they took the photo! The comments

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-13596127868317798122009-12-13T10:35:00.004Z2009-12-13T14:17:09.866Z

The recent selection of Jenny Chapman to be the Labour Party's candidate in Darlington means that there are now two truely local candidates for the seat, Jenny and myself. Conscious of his unwanted tag as the outsider, Edward Elgar, the Conservative Candidate, has this weekend been furiously delivering a glossy, full-coloured leaflet (even to Rise Carr, not known as a hot bed of Tory voters) in

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-35644850172579847932009-12-10T12:26:00.006Z2009-12-10T13:02:44.306Z

On March 23rd, 2009, Alan Milburn, who, among his six jobs, has been the Labour MP for Darlington since 1992, charged the taxpayer £760 for a miscellany of household goods from John Lewis, including four Siberian Goose Feather and Down Pillows, a Jamie Oliver saute pan and a set of Nigella Lawson measuring spoons (the mind boggles!).On June 26th, 2009, Alan Milburn MP announced to his local

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-288891414752018052009-12-09T09:20:00.007Z2009-12-09T16:01:06.943Z

Regular readers of this blog will know that I have recently clashed in Council with the Cabinet member Cllr Bill Dixon over his ludicrous and unsubstantiated claim in the Northern Echo that Darlington was no worse than anywhere else regarding under age drinking and subsequent admission to hospital.The publication today of the Oneplace (the website for the Comprehensive Area Assessment) report

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-35149867558535590782009-12-08T09:59:00.004Z2009-12-08T10:19:47.995Z

Tomorrow evening, Wednesday December 8th, sees the local premiere, in Darlington Arts Centre, of "Beauty and the Bike", a film shot, produced and directed by my friends Richard Grassick and Beatrix Wupperman from the Darlington Media Group. The film follows a group of girls from Darlington as they travel to the cycle-friendly town of Bremen in Germany and bring their experiences back with them to

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-73647894738909726972009-12-05T09:37:00.003Z2009-12-05T10:09:05.073Z

Street Scene is the organisation within Darlington Borough Council that is responsible for street cleaning, refuse collections, parks and gardens and all that sort of thing. It was created a few years ago by merging together all these various responsibilities into one organisation where most of the workforce would be generalists, able to turn their hand to anything, be it shrub pruning or

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-86289201442199152822009-12-02T17:30:00.004Z2009-12-02T18:39:33.592Z

Darlington Friends of the Earth hosted a showing of the climate change documentary film, The Age of Stupid, at the Quaker Meeting House last night. Following what can only be described as an avalanche, or melting glacier, of publicity from FoE directed at councillors, half the cabinet turned up, while I and a number of members of the local Lib Dem executive were also there. Sadly, no-one from the

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-29967733599526683722009-12-01T08:53:00.004Z2009-12-01T11:06:42.254Z

The big news of the day, judging by his appearances on national radio last night and this morning, is that Darlington has appointed the country's first "Twitterer-in-residence". Mike McTimony, a frequent contributor to this blog's comments' section and a leading light in the town's cycling fraternity, has been appointed to the £140 a year position. No doubt the usual suspects will line up to mock

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-88012464176563839072009-11-30T09:50:00.004Z2009-11-30T10:32:28.545Z

My understanding is that there is good news on the way today for certain schools in Darlington, courtesy of Schools Secretary Ed Balls who is dishing out £1bn to a few councils around the country to enable the rebuilding of run-down secondary schools. The announcement is nicely timed for Jenny Chapman, cabinet portfolio holder for children's services, just before she faces the local Labour Party

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7565935975551949363.post-28699968137401462282009-11-29T18:03:00.006Z2009-11-30T08:31:29.060Z

During the "debate" on the abolition of three discussion forums at last week's Council Meeting, the Labour leadership, supported by the Borough Solicitor, tried to stifle open debate in the Council Chamber. Rather than have debates on each and any amendment moved by members, the Borough Solicitor likes to get amendments moved straightaway after the mover of the original motion has spoken and to

Mike Barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15453607421766177229noreply@blogger.com1