The Conservative administration’s proposals include making cuts of more than £40,000 to the Robert Le Kyng and the Penhill/Pinehurst Children’s Centres and cuts of more than £8.500 to Children’s centres in places like Freshbrook, Dorcan, Stratton and Drove Road.

These Tories proposed cuts to Swindon’s children centres will be a huge worry to families in places like Freshbrook, Dorcan, Eastcott and Penhill, whose children’s centres are receiving cuts.

SureStart is a universal service for our town’s young families and any cuts to this service are depriving families of this essential support they deserve.

Unlike Labour, who have created and defended the many excellent children’s centres across our town, the Tories do not prioritise young people.

As Labour councillors and representatives of this town, we will stand up for our children and fight this lack of investment in their future. It is a shame that the Tories both locally and nationally are not doing the same.

Tories Proposed Sure Start Cuts in 2012/13

• Support jobs with money raised from repeating the bank bonus tax – not hold back recovery with the VAT rise and cuts that will put almost one million workers out of their jobs.
• Protect police numbers – not cut them while wasting £100 million on new elected police commissioners.
• Protect your frontline local services – not make unfair cuts which will hit the least well off the most.
• Get the deficit down through strong growth and sensible cuts – not by slashing too far, too fast, and putting your local economy at risk.
• Stand up for young people – not kick away the ladder by tripling tuition fees; scrapping EMAs; cancelling Building Schools for the Future; and slashing school sport

DOWNLOAD THE SWINDON LABOUR MANIFESTO 2011

Voting Stations are open from 7am till 10pm.

Guidance on voting procedure is available from Swindon Borough Council.

Labour Candidates and their contact numbers are:

1. Abbey Meads – Mark Viner (07811 142 413).
2. Central – Derique Montaud (07711 556 261).
3. Covingham & Nythe – Peter Watts (01793 529163).
4. Dorcan – Ged Meheran (07989 918 352).
5. Eastcott – Chris Watts (07776 238 327).
6. Freshbrook & Grange Park –  Neil Heavens (07817 262 258).
7. Gorsehill & Pinehurst – John Ballman (01793 694 584).
8. Haydon Wick – Tim Page (07717 669944).
9. Highworth – Anthea Beaumont (01793 762 517).
10. Moredon – Jenny Millin (07879 023 903).
11. Old Town - Cindy Matthews (01793 644 388).
12. Parks – Fay Howard (07952 350 656).
13. Penhill – Paul Baker (01793 334 598).
14. Shaw & Nine Elms – Michael Heal (07810 872 849).
15. St Margaret – Nigel Chalk (01793 346165).
16. St Philips – Joe Tray (07813 170 202).
17. Toothill – Steve Wakefield (07775 911 922).
18. Walcot – Ellen Osa (07577 923 694) .
19. Wroughton – Geraint Day (07753 957 565).
20. Western – Des Moffatt (07709 066 707).

Polling Stations locations are available from THIS LINK:

To use this link you’ll need to know your Polling District. Check on your card – the Districts in each Ward are as follows:

1. Abbey Meads - AM1-AM4.
2. Central – CE1-CE4.
3. Covingham & Nythe – CN1-CN4.
4. Dorcan – DN1-DN4.
5. Eastcott – ET1-ET5.
6. Freshbrook & Grange Park –  FG1-FG4.
7. Gorsehill & Pinehurst – GH1-GH3.
8. Haydon Wick – HG1-HG5.
9. Highworth – HW1-HW5.
10. Moredon – MD1-MD6.
11. Old Town - TL1-TL5.
12. Parks – PK1-PK4.
13. Penhill – PH1-PH4.
14. Shaw & Nine Elms – SE1-SE4.
15. St Margaret – SM1-SM3.
16. St Philips – SP1-SP6
17. Toothill – TW1-TW3.
18. Walcot – WA1-WA3.
19. Wroughton – WC1-WC5.
20. Western – WE1-WE4.

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OFFER YOUR HELP IN NORTH SWINDON OR SOUTH SWINDON

In order for Swindon to succeed now and in the future, its local Council must have a high quality strategy on how to meet its local transport needs, it must ensure that the roads in Swindon are safe for motorists and pedestrians and it must develop an environmental strategy that will not only reduce the town’s carbon footprint, but will also attract the green industries of the future, in order to bring jobs to the town.

Currently, Tory-led Swindon Borough Council is failing to deliver on all these fronts. They have failed to meet local transport needs, with them doing nothing to alleviate traffic pressures in particular areas, like on Thamesdown Drive; they have failed to ensure that Swindon’s roads are safe for motorists and pedestrians, with more and more streets being turned in to rat runs and they have failed to develop any form of environmental strategy, which could bring the jobs of the future to Swindon.

The Swindon Labour Party believes this neither meets the jobs nor fairness test.

A Labour-led Swindon Borough Council would:

• Support more environmentally ways of using business and household waste, such as through greater use of Waste to Energy plants that can create energy out of local waste, which can then be sold back to the electrical grid
• Make Swindon a Green Hub for the UK, encouraging and incentivizing green businesses and social enterprises to settle in Swindon, which will bring jobs to the town
• We will encourage green organisations to come to Swindon through the development of a ‘Green Industrial Development Board’ and an ‘Eco Park’
• Introduce 20mph zones in all communities that want them and on roads that are adjacent to schools in the town
• Review Swindon Borough Council’s road safety strategy to ensure that motorists and pedestrians are as safe as possible. The review will include the need for speed cameras in the town, as well as the prevention of rat runs and potholes

Just as many feared the Tory and LibDem cuts have hit the poor hardest, and turned the clock back to the 198s.  They have increased VAT, this time to 20 per cent and cut child benefit.

Swindon’s two Tory MPs have failed to secure a better deal from Central Government. Swindon had to accept deep cuts while wealthier Councils are getting away with smaller or even zero cuts.

In Swindon the Tory cuts will hurt the young, the elderly and the vulnerable:

• Adults and the elderly: £1.5 million cut for care budgets.
• Our children: £494,000 cut from help for schools.
• Our young people: £860,000 cut for help back into work.
• The vulnerable: £2.4 million cut from support for homeless.
• Transport: £300,000 cut to bus funding.
• ?Libraries: £100,000 cut in library services.

Instead of this Swindon needs a plan of action:

• A plan for the economic growth of Swindon.
• A plan that delivers the regeneration the town so badly needs.
• A plan that creates the jobs of the future that brings green jobs to Swindon.
• A plan that delivers a University for Swindon.
• A plan for building a more resilient economy. We were too exposed to financial services as an economy.

Let’s learn that lesson fast. These are the priorities that should be at the heart of an  economic plan for Swindon.

Join my campaign to bring a Labour voice back to Eastcott to stand up against the cosy Tory LibDem alliance in Swindon.

Join Labour – and contact me with your ideas

Chris Watts,  Labour Candidate, Eastcott.

p.s. read my blog here and my interview with Swindon backgarden

Do you feel let down by the Lib Dems?  Want to be part of a fairer Britain?  Join Britain’s only progressive alternative?

Go to labour.org.uk/join

Mustofa Gulam, Labour Candidate Eastcott Ward, May 2010.

The above quote is from Simon Hughes on the Politics Show, 15th June 2010. NO wonder Kennedy looks uncomfortable below.

Stop press- latest YouGov poll shows that even amongst LibDem supporters the Government only has a 35% popularity rating – and falling.

I was born and raised in Eastcott and have lived here my entire life for 25 years. I lived on Euclid street for 16 years and Curtis street for 9 years. I have seen the neglect under the Tories of our local playgrounds and the huge increase in the cost of parking permits for residents. To add Insult to injury the Tories tried to cut services to the most vulnerable people of our town by trying to cut £50,000 from Dial-a-Ride, which is relied upon by the elderly and disabled. Fortunately, they failed due to tough opposition from local people.

I believe every country needs a strong welfare state to support our people in general because it will create a more happier and prosperous society. Swindon and especially Eastcott need good public services

If we want Swindon to be a great place to live then we must regenerate the town centre and develop brown field sites as well as protecting Coate water. We need to remove the obstacles to good service delivery and the first obstacle is the Tory control of the council. My political heroes of the 20^th century are Tony Benn (Leader of the stop the war coalition), Sir Clement Attlee (British Prime Minister 1945-1951) and Nye Bevan (Founder of the NHS). We know that by working together we can achieve more for the working class and the middle class who are the ones who create wealth, jobs and decent public services. We must not be fooled by Chameleon Cameron politics, the Tories are going to cut everything except Michael Heseltine’s hair. You only have to look at what the Tory run council have cut and what they have proposed to cut in Swindon.

The Liberal Democrats have failed to deliver a second traffic light crossing for Kingshill road, they have failed to clean up and repair Savernake playground as well as the playground behind Curtis Street. I live in Curtis Street so I have suffered like other residents as a result of their incompetence in Eastcott.

Resident priorities I am going to fight for include:

• Return ‘Residents Parking back to resident’s control and fight against price increases in parking permits.
• Build/Acquire more council houses.
• Protect urban spaces and gardens.
• Reduce Eastcott Residential roads down to 20MPH.
• Ensure local accountability and fair charging for council services.
• Press for more Eastcott School places for Eastcott children.
• Work for a sustainable solution for the Mechanics Institute.
• Correct the Tories mistakes on Street Cleaning and Waste.
• Bring back the speed camera’s the Tories abolished.
• Introduce gates and fences around Faringdon Park and all cemeteries to prevent vandalism.
• Have traffic lights installed on Kingshill Road.
• Most important of all we must try to Balance the Council Budget.
• Tackle Graffiti and rubbish dumping by imposing heavy fines.
• Helping Businesses on Victoria road acquire parking spaces, which the Tories abolished while raising their business rates.

Please contact me by email with any questions you have.

Mustofa Gulam