Richard Baum

So the final full Council meeting of 2007 is over. The press were out in force for the congestion charge debate, and I can only apologise to them for the two hours of knockabout political gaming that went on before the main event.

Questions from the public gallery boomed out from the world’s single loudest microphone, puncturing the eardrums of many during the opening minutes, with a contest going on between Manchester Against Road Tolls (MART) and planted Bury Labour supporters as to who could ask the most obtuse questions to the Leader. I would say that, perhaps for the first time this year in any contest, Bury Labour won.

Of particular note to St Mary’s was the question from one Labour activist concerning the Butterstile Children’s Centre and suggesting that I have put the scheme in jeopardy by giving voice to resident’s concerns at the Council’s Planning Committee.

Once again they have missed the vital point - that Council officers have assured Councillors that if planning permission is granted at the pre-Christmas meeting then the building can still be completed on time. It will be tight, sure. But perfectly possible. And we will see it done.

I don’t like having a go at other parties and other Councillors on this blog or anywhere else. I genuinely believe that we’re all in it for the right reasons and got into this to try and do some good. But there are times when stuff goes on and I start to doubt people’s motives. This is one of those times.

The situation with the Children’s Centre wouldn’t be anywhere near this tight if it weren’t for the numerous mistakes made in the design and consultation phases by Council officers, the early parts of which were presided over by Labour’s Cllr Maggie Gibb in her capacity as Executive Member until May this year. The same Cllr Gibb who was in the same room as me when we were told on November 30^th that the planning delay wouldn’t mean the end of the scheme, but appears to have been distracted by something and missed this key point. The same Cllr Gibb who has been elected by the people of St Mary’s to represent their views to Council, but is dead against me doing the same at Planning. The same Cllr Gibb who allows her local activists to plant questions and write letters to the papers that do nothing but propagate lies and spread anxiety.

I do hope that the same momentary distraction which afflicted Cllr Gibb on November 30^th didn’t return during questions to the Executive last night, when I asked about outreach facilities from the Butterstile Children’s Centre to Rainsough. These are crucial, and heavily dependent on cooperation between Bury MBC and Salford City Council, who own the building where we hope these facilities will go.

I began a dialogue with Salford some time ago when I went to see Cllr Peter Connor, the Labour Executive Member for Housing in Salford. Nothing had been done for 15 years under his watch or that of Bury Labour, so I thought I’d build some bridges. Unfortunately Cllr Connor preferred talking to the press than to me, hence the smiling picture of him and Cllr Gibb in Rainsough some weeks later proclaiming a bright future thanks to Labour.

It’s nice when I can do a favour for Labour once in a while.

Unfortunately the promised bright future requires work. Work which I wanted us to do together, but which now I am barred from because Labour don’t like talking to us. Possibly because they think local people’s lives are all part of a big game of some kind.

So I asked the Leader of the Council last night what work has been ongoing between Bury MBC and Salford CC. There wasn’t much forthcoming on the detail, so I asked to be kept informed. What is clear though, is that if the Rainsough thing doesn’t happen, the blame lies absolutely with Labour. We started the ball rolling, we cajoled Bury into playing along, and now it’s stalled because going to the press to win votes is an easier option than working together with us horrible Liberal Democrats.

If it does happen, the people of Rainsough will be delighted, and so will I because I nudged Labour into action after 15 desparate years. But if it doesn’t, they should be ashamed.

I will keep you updated.

Rick