Campaign Diary Week 3

It's a two horse race...



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Campaign Diary Week 3

It's A Two Horse Race...

Candidates from other parties have been uniting behind Mark as the only candidate who can beat Labour here and ensure that we do not get another five years of Gordon Brown.

Robin Johnson, the UKIP candidate, has stood down and thrown the weight of his party behind Mark, saying that he wanted to put country before party. Geoff Juby, the Liberal Democrat candidate, has not endorsed Mark officially but he told Medway Council, in what is a tight Labour-Conservative fight, that it would be better to have Mark as a new MP because, in contrast to Labour’s record, he expected Mark to fight in Parliament for Medway to be treated fairly. The Medway Independent Party has also decided not to put up a candidate against Mark, who is delighted with the support he is receiving from other parties, saying:

“It is wonderful that so many people from different parties are uniting behind me to beat Labour. I will work for everyone in this constituency.”

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It's A Two Horse Race...

1 Minute of Labour

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1 Minute of Labour

Celebrating St. George's Day

Mark Reckless, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Rochester and Strood, is calling on the people of Medway to join him in celebrating St George's day this Friday, and is launching a competition asking the public to share their ideas on how best to celebrate St George's day in the Medway Towns in coming years.

Members of the public are invited to submit their idea via this website (see below) for celebrating St George's day, and these in turn will be considered by Mark Reckless, Rodney Chambers (Leader of Medway Council) and other members of Medway Council's group.

"I was delighted that, soon after the Conservatives took over from Labour and LibDems in running the Council, I succeeded in my campaign for us to fly the union flag over Rochester Castle. Why is it though that we in England are the only one of the British nations not to have a bank holiday to celebrate our national day? We should celebrate being English as well as being British."

Rodney Chambers, Leader of Medway Council, has given his support to the idea;

"I welcome Mark's initiative and look forward to considering, with Mark, ideas from our residents on how we might best celebrate St George's Day."

Medway Council's Conservative group have already made great strides in recognising and promoting our shared English heritage in Medway. Last year Mark Reckless and fellow Conservative councillors voted to hold the first 'English' festival celebrating all that is good about living in England, and the festival will be held again this year as a regular part of Medway's festival season.

And Rodney Chambers has confirmed that the flag of St George will be flown at the Council's head office at Gun Wharf this coming Friday to commemorate St George's day.

To enter, simply email your idea to Mark Reckless and he will select the best five entries for consideration. We welcome entries from both individuals and groups, but you must live within the Medway area and must be willing to present your idea in front of members of the Medway Council group. There is no cash prize, but winners will be given full credit for their winning entry.

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Celebrating St. George's Day

Ending The Free Ride For Those Who Fail To Take Responsibility

A Conservative government will tear up the old ways of dealing with worklessness, which has got worse under Labour.

David Cameron will pledge to introduce a new welfare contract by the end of 2010 - a single comprehensive Work Programme offering unprecedented support for those looking for work, combined with new sanctions for anyone who refuses to work.

Welcoming the announcement, Mark Reckless said:

"Again and again on the doorstep I hear complaints from those who work hard and are just above the level at which they might get welfare payments. They complain that neighbours who could work are just allowed to carry on indefinitely living on benefits. I know those who work hard to support, not just their families, but neighbours who could work yet live on benefits, will support David Cameron taking the lead to change our welfare system."

The new welfare contract will draw on the principles of the Big Society, backing people who do the right thing but ending the free ride for those who fail to take responsibility. The new sanctions will be introduced within six months of a Conservative Government taking office.

Speaking this afternoon, David Cameron will say "the old way" of big government has failed. "It's time to tackle welfare dependency a new way - the Big Society way."

"We're going to change the whole way welfare is done in this country so everyone takes responsibility and plays their part. This is our new welfare contract: do the right thing and we will back you all the way. But fail to take responsibility - and the free ride is over."

As part of our Work Programme, we will offer unprecedented support to all those who are looking for work. We will:

- make sure you get help as soon as you need it - straight away for those really struggling to find work, and after six months if you’re less than 25 years old;
- help you start your own business by giving you access to a business mentor and start-up loans;
- create a range of business-led training places to get you started on the road to employment, with 50,000 places in the hospitality and leisure industry to begin with;
- give you somewhere to go during the day - Work Clubs - so you can learn skills, find opportunities, make useful contacts and provide other people with support;
- if you're under the age of 25, provide a huge range of extra training opportunities - 400,000 apprenticeship, training and college places over two years;
- and, pay back-to-work providers in full only if they get you into work for a year or more.

If you can't work and need to be paid Incapacity Benefit (IB) then we will give you the financial support to which you are entitled. And if you can work, and you actively look for work, we will give you unprecedented help to find a good job.

But you must keep to your side of the bargain. We will make sure that you are claiming the right benefits and, within six months of taking office, we will introduce new sanctions for anyone who refuses to look for work. We will:

- cut the benefits of anyone on Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) who refuses to join the Work Programme;
- cut the benefits of anyone who refuses to take up reasonable job offers: the first time for one month; the second time for three months; and, the third time for up to three years;
- cut benefits for up to three years for anyone caught repeatedly committing benefit fraud.
- reassess all current claimants of IB - if you are fit for work then you will be transferred onto JSA and your benefits will be reduced; and,
- require long-term benefit claimants who fail to find work to 'work for the dole' on community work programmes.

You can download a copy of the Welfare Contract in full here.

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Ending The Free Ride For Those Who Fail To Take Responsibility

What It Takes To Change A Country

What It Takes To Change A Country

Campaign Diary - Week 1

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Campaign Diary - Week 1

Invitation To Join The Government Of Great Britain

A country is at its best when the bonds between people are strong and when the sense of national purpose is clear. Today the challenges facing Britain are immense. Our economy is overwhelmed by debt, our social fabric is frayed and our political system has betrayed the people. But these problems can be overcome if we pull together and work together. If we remember that we are all in this together.

Some politicians say: 'give us your vote and we will sort out all your problems'. We say: real change comes not from government alone. Real change comes when the people are inspired and mobilised, when millions of us are fired up to play a part in the nation's future.

Yes this is ambitious. Yes it is optimistic. But in the end all the Acts of Parliament, all the new measures, all the new policy initiatives, are just politicians' words without you and your involvement.

How will we deal with the debt crisis unless we understand that we are all in this together? How will we raise responsible children unless every adult plays their part? How will we revitalise communities unless people stop asking 'who will fix this?' and start asking 'what can I do?' Britain will change for the better when we all elect to take part, to take responsibility - if we all come together. Collective strength will overpower our problems.

Only together can we can get rid of this government and, eventually, its debt. Only together can we get the economy moving. Only together can we protect the NHS. Improve our schools. Mend our broken society. Together we can even make politics and politicians work better. And if we can do that, we can do anything. Yes, together we can do anything.

So my invitation today is this: join us, to form a new kind of government for Britain.

Download the Conservative Party Manifesto 2010 - Click Here

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Invitation To Join The Government Of Great Britain

Time Is Running Out...

In less than a month the people of our country will at long last go to the polls to deliver their verdict on 13 ruinous years of Gordon Brown. This will be the first opportunity anyone in England has had to vote for Gordon Brown, so it is important that you make sure your voice is heard by registering to vote.

The deadline for registering to vote is just days away (20th April), and if you are planning on voting for the change this country so desperately needs then it is vital that you act now.

Across the whole world, people have fought and died to win the right to vote. One only needs to think of the brave veterans who attend the Cenotaph on Remembrance Day, paying tribute to fallen comrades to see the high price we have had to pay to ensure every citizen in this proud country of ours has the right to decide how the country should be run.

Voting gives you the power to bring real change to Great Britain. It gives you the power to make sure the Conservatives can get to grip with Labour's mess. It gives you the power to have your say on 13 years of social-breakdown, failing education, and rising debt under Labour.

It gives you the power to say it is Time For Change.

If you want to Vote For Change on May 6th, you must make sure you are registered before the 20th April. It's not difficult and you can find out all the information you need at www.aboutmyvote.co.uk, or call the Electoral Commission on 0800 3280280.

For residents in Medway, you can check to see if you're already registered to vote by calling Electoral Services on 01634 332030 or email electoralservices@medway.gov.uk

With less than a week to register, it is really important that you act now. The power to decide on the path our country takes is in your hands: five more years of Gordon Brown, or real change under the Conservatives. Vote wisely and thanks for visiting.

Time Is Running Out...

NHS Action Day

Saturday was NHS Action Day for hundreds of Conservative candidates across the country. The Conservatives under David Cameron are determined to protect the NHS. We will remove the targets which distort clinical priorities and we are the only major party to have pledged real terms spending increases for the NHS every year.

For our NHS Action Day in Rochester and Strood I visited the Widsom Hospice in Rochester. The NHS provides the core clinical care at the Wisdom Hospice and volunteers and fund-raisers, like myself, work with the NHS to provide the extras which make the hospice such a loving environment for patients, including many in the last stages of their life.

As well as seeing families and learning more about what the volunteers are doing to look after them, I again heard today about the excellent care which the NHS nursing staff provide.

The Wisdom Hospice does not always find it easy top raise money in comparison to Demelza Hospice in Sittingbourne, so if you would like to join me in supporting the Wisdom Hospice, either as a volunteer or as a fund-raiser, then please visit the Friends of the Wisdom Hospice website for more information on how you can get involved.

NHS Action Day