Councillor Mike Flower

I’d like to wish all constituents, friends and family a very happy new year and best wishes for 2007.

Normal service will resume after the bank holiday when the council returns to work. Lots of chasing up to be done!

I have to say its been an interesting year of highs, lows and achievements in a year in which I had hoped would be a quiet year of consolidation! Forgive me while I try an compile a list - not all political!

2006 saw me (in no particular order):

- Turn 23… 
- Start a new job at Northampton Borough Council, working with the Conservative Group and Cabinet.
- Travel 35,000 miles in my car.
- Buy a new car(!)
- Visit Ireland, Italy and Spain.
- Get selected to fight a by-election for the Conservatives, and win, and fight the election to become the youngest Conservative councillor in the West Midlands with a 17.9% swing.
- Got attacked by a dog whilst campaigning and ended up in hospital!
- Meet many MP’s including having Francis Maude sitting in my passenger seat, and attend dinner with David Cameron/George Osbourne! Attend Conference.
- Get locked up on a visit to HMP Wellingborough - I might add by one of my councillors at NBC who works at the prison - just to see what it was like.
- Go out with local police on a shift and witness an arrest.
- Fight to save a day care centre at a hospice in Northampton - and win!
- Visit 10 Downing Street to petition the PM to save that hospice centre.
- Dress up and collect money for charity with Father Christmas.
- Go to mass in the Vatican, and attend a mass with Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor on my birthday.
- Eat horse meat in Rome - not nice.
- Get my first bit of casework as a councillor and start to see some minor achievements.
- Meet a lot of people during the election campaign!
- Establish this blog.
- See my football team relegated from the Premiership, and then beat the Wolves 3-0.

I will no doubt add to this list as I think of more things.

Focusing back on politics -politically what would you like me to prioritise for next year? What should be my political/local New Year’s resolutions? I look forward to reading your views…

Wishing all residents, friends and family a very happy Christmas.

The recent election campaign highlighted that there is inconsistency with the provision of brown bins in Walsall Wood.

Please help me to argue for brown bins for those in the ward who have been overlooked or have moved into new estates. Please email me at flowermd@walsall.gov.uk or write to me at:

Walsall Council, The Council House, Walsall, West Midlands, WS1 1TP.

The more letters and emails I have the stronger the case I will be able to make to the Cabinet.

I’m transferring my blog from moblog to WordPress to give me more control over the things I can do with it. The good news is that i’ve worked out a way of posting to this blog from my mobile phone so I can still post from out and about!

I’ll be transferring as much of my other blog across to this - but until then here is the old link:

I arranged to have the bus stop repaired, and have opened a public consultation on its future.

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The latest Intouch leaflet is currently being distributed across the ward. As you can see brown bins are important for those houses who haven’t got one and I am lobbying the council to provide them in the next budget. Download the leaflet here.

Have you thought of joining the Conservatives or helping?

We need people to help distribute leaflets and organise events. Can you help? You may also want to join the Conservative Party for just 30p a week. Contact me if you would like more information.

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Update on the phone mast - we have leafleting local residents to make them aware of what we are doing about the phone mast on this PH.

It is looking likely that in this case the masts have been put up without planning permission, however Government guidelines allows the phone mast company to BYPASS the local council, and local people. What a disgrace.

We have written to the Chief Executive of T-mobile to ask them what they are playing at and why they have ignored best practice and not consulted the local community. We await his reply.

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As promised in an earlier post I took the police up on their offer and spent between 7:30pm and 2am out with them in Walsall Wood and Brownhills on Saturday evening. I think I learned many things and understand the issues and way things work a lot better.

Did you know the ward has a dedicated car out every evening dedicated to dealing with anti-social behaviour? They cover vast areas and make sure they hit the areas in which anti social behaviour is a problem. Members of the public don’t always see the police, because they are always driving around. Whenever we were called upon we were able to react within five to ten minutes of the call being logged.

Part of the trouble is how to define anti social behaviour. One person’s perception of it differs to another. Is it anti social for two youths to sit on someone’s wall or is it anti social for a group of 12 young people to be walking the streets? In most cases it isn’t illegal, but it can be intimidating. The police officers know a lot of individuals by name and face and can normally deal with them in one way or another.

The police need more police officers and less paperwork to keep them out on patrol. For example if 20 officers are out in pairs, and each pair arrests one person (that’d be 10 in total) then that is all the officers tied up pretty much for the evening. Is that the police’s fault? No. We need more police officers to help support each other, and by reducing the paperwork we can get them back out on the beat during their shift. I haven’t got an answer to this - but the Home Office and parties need to look at doing something to support our officers, and therefore the public. Another crazy thing - Police Community Support Officers don’t get stab vests, but the police do. Where is the logic there? Its supposed to be non confrontational, but try telling a maniac that. This seriously worries me.

- Vigo Park needs lighting. Its dark and attracts anti social behaviour. I have asked the council to investigate this.
- Castlefort Road bus stop has been smashed up completely. I have asked Centro to repair this bus stop as a priority and we will consult residents on its removal.
- Dispersal orders may be required in some areas of Walsall Wood and I will support the police in applying for one in areas where there are issues.

I have asked the Council to re-open the Youth Centre in the ward as a priority. This has been successful and will be happening from the second week of January. I plan to get the main players around a table to work on an action plan for the area.

I also witnessed an arrest. So a busy evening!

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Today I went to visit the Citizen’s Advice Bureau in Walsall Town Centre to understand the work they undertake. Some of their funding comes from Walsall Council, although the CAB itself is an independent charity, and they are among the best in the country.

The Bureau offers FREE, confidential and impartial advice on a wide range of issues, including debt, welfare benefits, housing, immigration and consumer issues. This is available from the main Bureau in Lichfield Street, Walsall Town Centre and from a range of outreach venues across the town. Two of these outreach centres are in the Aldridge-Brownhills constituency based in Aldridge and Brownhills.

As well as giving advice, Citizens Advice also carry out valuable social policy work to try and bring about changes to local and national policies.

A lot of the advice is given by trained volutneers so it is also a great opportunity for people to get involved in helping their local community by volunteering.

For more info please visit: www.walsallcab.org.uk

Residents are getting in the festive mood!

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My letter to the people of Aldridge North and Walsall Wood was published in the Walsall Advertiser today:

“I would like to thank the people who voted for me in the recent by-election. I am both proud and delighted to be given the opportunity to represent all of the residents of Aldridge North and Walsall Wood.I very much hope that I can work hard to repay the faith and trust you have placed in me over the coming months. Thank you again.

Councillor Mike Flower
Conservative, Aldridge North and Walsall Wood

http://www.walsalladvertiser.co.uk

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My ‘Thank You’ leaflet will be coming through your letterbox shortly!

This afternoon I visited the local leisure centre - where I learned to swim years ago! Surprisingly it hasn’t changed much since then. It is one of 5 centres in Walsall Borough. I followed it up with a visit to Shire Oak Secondary School - the senior school in my ward. They have just had their OFSTED inspection. I have been very impressed by all the headteachers I have met.

After this meeting I attended my first Licensing Committee in the Council House. Although I don’t sit on the committee I sat in the public gallery to watch and see how it works - and learned all about taxi licensing!

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Just had another police meeting - this time with the Sergeant in the north. Again he has his finger on the pulse. He has invited me to join his officers on the beat one Friday or Saturday night to see what it is like. This is definately something i’d like to do sometime soon.

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I was contacted by concerned residents who had noticed some strange building working going on without any prior planning notice being given. Upon visiting the site it appears that there is a mobile phone mast being installed. I oppose any more phone masts in our ward - as I put in the election address I was elected on. I have asked council enforcement officers to visit the site and get to the bottom of what is happening.

Watch this space…

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