Morpeth residents slam County Council as a ‘joke’

In one of the Councils well managed and regular fanfares of spin in May 2018, Northumberland Conservatives ran out a £10m set-aside of cash and referred to a plan drawn up by very expensive consultants to deliver town centre parking improvements across 4 Northumberland towns, Alnwick, Berwick, Hexham and Morpeth.  

The consultants found a number of common issues across all four towns and the administration coughed up more cash to have detailed plans drawn up to spend the £10m on.

 

Residents across the County are still waiting for the Councils record player to slow down the spin to halt and for the current administration to deliver on their promises to help to local residents explaining how they spent that much cash attacking their own residents by removing the opportunity to park up for more than 24hrs.

 

As the top spinning protagonist in May 2018 Councillor Glen Sanderson, Cabinet member for Environment and Local Services, said: “Because so many people approached us when we first took over the administration of the council about problems with car parking, and with general congestion in town centres, we have been committed to finding  workable solutions to the county’s parking issues which have the support of residents, businesses, shoppers and visitors”.
 

He went on to explain that his colleagues who run Morpeth Town Council had agreed the plan for their town. Fifteen months on and Morpeth residents are asking why their Councils have failed them?

 

Residents across the Town described to us their fear of not being able to park near their homes when they return from work in the evenings and older people have told us they feel socially isolated as they fear going out in the evenings by car in case they can’t park near to where they live on their return.

 

Residents living near Pretoria Gardens, Matthesons Gardens and Greys Yard have taken to social media to heavily criticise Glenn Sandersons dodgy plans.

 

People who have used the St James car park near their homes safely for many years told us, “now we find that St James car park has a maximum parking time of 24 hrs, where do we who dwell in the centre of town park for the weekend or when working shifts? As a working woman I can hardly ever get near my home. I used to love living in Morpeth but my street is not permit holders only, am I meant to spend my life travelling between car parks?”.

 

A gentleman locking his car at St James when we went to view the car park said, “I’ve been lucky tonight to get this space at the end of the car park near to my home, but when somethings on in town I think it would be easier for me to park in Pegswood and bus home than struggle to find a space in Morpeth. I don’t know what the Council is thinking of doing something like this to it’s own residents, their a joke.”

 

An elderly man told us, “the real losers are the cab drivers in Morpeth, I now have to go to the airport in my own car when before this disaster took place I would have parked near my home and taxied in to go on holiday. I now no longer catch the train from Morpeth for the same reason as I now take long term parking in Newcastle when I go to visit my son and his family.”

 

Residents are seeking answers from Councillor Sanderson but as usual secrecy is paramount in the Councils thinking.

 

 

Cramlington will be hardest hit by no-deal BREXIT.

It’s not often that the CBI and the TUC completely agree on matters but when it comes to the effect on towns and cities in North East England of a no-deal Brexit you would think they were joined at the hip.

Both massive and powerful organisations commissioned work in 2018 to locate the areas that will be worst hit and north east England topped the list when the outturns were revealed. Since then both sets of data have been scrutinised and expanded on by a number of data specialists.

Francis O’Grady said that “a no-deal Brexit would be devastating fo working people in the North-East”. and went on to say “employers are losing confidence in Brexit.” As Boris Johnson prepares the nation for a no-deal outcome.

The CBI reported that “North-East England would suffer the biggest decline in economic output of any U.K. regions if the country leaves the EU without a comprise agreement with Brussels. The gross value added (GVA) a measure of economic value of goods and services could be reduced by as much as 10.5% when compared against the current U.K. Arrangements”.

Exports from the region as a total of total exports is as high as 59% meaning that the region and the council areas within it are exposed to a higher risk of being affected by tariffs and trade costs.

Experts have looked at localised affects on jobs across the region and in Northumberland, where some of its most well off, formerly resilient to recession towns will be hit hardest by a Johnson no-deal scenario. Cramlington, Morpeth, Ponteland along with some towns who‘s economy is or they rely on the economic base of agricultural wealth may slip into serious recession through this process, Hexham, Rothbury, Alnwick and Berwick are possibly facing a bleak future.

This whole process manipulated by the brexiteers to suit their own and their supporters agendas is unbelievably dangerous for Northumberland who have recently joined in a combined authority with two large Scottish Councils, known as the Borderlands CA, which covers 10% of the U.K. geographically It allows Northumberland to access a share of £395m yet Brexit may remove 50% of the geographical area of the Borderlands into another country, Scotland, that is to remain part of the EU and that huge sum of money will be lost to Northumberland for ever.

With Labour now against a no-deal brexit and firmly against accepting a poor deal from the new PM and with the Tories folding up and collapsing in a number of recent elections we may see some change in the County of Northumberland for the better.