Where's The Justice In That?

A Message from Conservative Home and Chris Grayling, Shadow Home Secretary

Sometimes Britain seems to be going quietly mad. A country where an elderly lady can be prosecuted for poking a teenager in the chest, where a police force can be prosecuted under health and safety laws when an officer is injured chasing a criminal, where a mother is driven to suicide by years of unchecked menace by a gang of troublemakers, where a vicious attack on a stranger is all too often dealt with by a caution, is a country that is getting things badly wrong.

How did we ever get ourselves into such an extraordinary position?

How did we get ourselves into a position where it is the criminal whose rights seem to come first, and where the victim is all too often forgotten or ignored?

And how did we get ourselves into a position where all too often the offender just gets away with it?

The picture set out in the most recent figures released to the Conservative Party by the Government is stark. They blow the lid off Britain's caution culture, and of a system that is sending all the wrong messages to offenders.

- Over the past decade, the number of offenders let off with a caution has risen sharply and now stands at nearly 1,000 a day.

- A third of those committing violent offences are now dealt with by a caution. That proportion has also more than doubled since 2001.

- A smaller and smaller proportion of offenders ever come before a court. Nearly half of all offences are now dealt with by a warning, a caution or a fixed penalty notice.

- Even sexual offences are treated in this way, with nearly one in three sex offenders let off with a caution. Detection rates have plummeted too.

- Only ten per cent of burglaries are solved.

- The detection rate for sexual offences has dropped by a quarter.

- So has the detection rate for violent offences - down by around a fifth.

Small wonder that so many people have lost faith in criminal justice in this country.

This short document sets out some of the reasons for the failings. It paints a picture of police stuck behind computer screens and not on the streets. Of unwieldy bureaucracy. And a system where justice is not being done.

It is a snapshot of a system that desperately needs a fresh start.

ADVERT

The Rochester Coffee Co. 45 varieties of tea, freshly ground coffee, freshly made Panini and so much more. 146 High Street, Rochester, Kent. ME1 1ER (Opposite Eastgate House)
Tel: 01634 540032

Where's The Justice In That?

Southeastern Must Do Better

"Hoping for the best, but expecting the worst" is probably the phrase that best describes the attitude of local commuters regarding the introduction of the new Southeastern timetable, and the full launch of the commuter HS1 service from Rochester and Strood to St. Pancras.

So it came as a great disappointment to myself and my fellow commuters who arrived at Strood station this morning to catch the 07.42 high speed service to find it had been cancelled because of a missing train crew. To say I am furious is something of an understatement, particularly given the fact that it is going to cost passengers from Strood £106.52 a week for the privilege of being late for work as I was!

Southeastern have been allowed to increase their fares exponentially over the past few years in order to, as they say, meet the costs of introducing the new HS1 service, though they still can't get their story straight on this. If that is the case then I think the least we should expect from our investment is to have a service that runs on time and as stated. Let us hope that today's disruption is not a sign of what is to come.

ADVERT

Rochester Fireplaces - Home Sweet Home
139 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1EW
Tel: 01634 408 007

Southeastern Must Do Better

A Labour Election Victory Would Mean Higher Taxes And Interest Rates

Today, Alistair Darling delivered the last Pre Budget Report before a General Election.

Because he failed to take the tough decisions on spending before the election, there will be higher taxes and higher interest rates if Labour win the election.

The central measure was a tax on jobs that hits everyone earning over £20,000 - well below the median wage. That is Labour's definition of the "well off". Of all Labour's tax rises this will be the one that it is the Conservatives' priority to avoid.

Because Labour is weak they failed to deal with the £178bn deficit, cancelled the pre-election Comprehensive Spending Review, and instead said that a Labour victory at the election would mean:

- £7.8 billion higher taxes - £370 more per family - after the election
- Of this £6.5 billion - £310 more per family - is a rise in National Insurance - a tax on anyone earning over £20,000.
- Labour's planned tax on jobs is now £200 a year on someone earning £30,000 a year, or £60 on average earnings of around £23,000
- And the ring fencing means a real terms 10% cut in all other Departments over just two years

Other tax increases include:

- A £440m inheritance tax rise
- A new £440m phone tax
- £220m on workplace canteens
- £500m pension tax rise
- No help on business rates; and failed to abolish small corporation tax rise

Yet even with the tax rises there is no credible plan to deal with the deficit:

- Still no honesty on spending as the Spending Review has been cancelled until after the election
- No credible plan to deal with the deficit. Debt stabilises in 2015/16 - a year later than at the Budget
- Borrowing £789bn over the next six years - doubling the national debt again to £1.5 trillion
- The pledge to halve the deficit in four years has already been dismissed as not enough by Mervyn King, the CBI and the OECD - it would leave the deficit higher in 2013/14 than when Denis Healey went to the IMF

The PBR has been slammed by business:

Richard Lambert, Director-General of the CBI: "The Chancellor has made a serious mistake imposing an extra jobs tax at a time when the economic recovery will still be fragile. Increasing the National Insurance contribution will hold back job creation and growth. He has also missed the opportunity to increase the UK's credibility by reducing the public deficit earlier. We are no clearer today as to how the Government plans to reduce public expenditure."

David Frost of British Chambers of Commerce said that the National Insurance rise is: "Terrible news...It's an additional cost for business when they can least afford it."

Miles Templeman, Director-Generalof the Institute of Directors: "The key theme of this year's PBR is prudence postponed... A further tax on jobs at a time like this is madness."

John Wright, FSB National Chairman on the tax on jobs: "this is extremely damaging for employment in the UK."



ADVERT

Xtremity - Stockists of Windsurfing, Snowboarding and Skateboarding Hardware and Fashion Items for Men and Women
2A Crow Lane, Rochester, Kent ME1 1RF
Tel: 01634 402944

A Labour Election Victory Would Mean Higher Taxes And Interest Rates

Rochester Catalpa Tree Appeal

My colleague Cllr Sue Haydock is leading a campaign to preserve one of Rochester's most endearing landmarks, namely the Catalpa Tree which sits proudly outside the entrance to Rochester Cathedral.

Believed to be one of the oldest living examples of an American Indian Bean Tree, or Catalpa Bignonioides to give it it's proper botanical name, our iconic specimen in Rochester is in urgent need of conservation work to prevent it's current state of health from deteriorating further. An appeal has been launched to raise awareness of the tree's plight and to find the £22,000 that is required to get the necessary work done. These include:

- A new propping system
- Cable bracing
- Mulching (protective cover for the soil)
- Removal and replacement of railings
- Propagation of a replacement tree for the future
- Repair to ledger stones

There are a number of ways you can help with the Appeal from displaying a poster or highlighting the campaign on your own website, to buying a book from Baggins Book Bazaar on Rochester High Street. But the most effective way of helping save our tree is to make a donation and you can do so online by visiting the Appeal website at;

http://www.rochestercatalpatree.co.uk/

The Rochester Catalpa Tree has been enjoyed and admired by literally millions of people over many years, including our very own Charles Dickens. On the eve of this year's Dickensian Christmas festival what better way to honour his memory than by helping to preserve one of Rochester's most important landmarks.

Please join me in supporting the Rochester Catalpa Tree Appeal.

ADVERT

The Rochester Armoury - Bringing The Past Back To The Future
2B Crow Lane, Rochester, Kent ME1 1RF
Tel: 01634 845526

Rochester Catalpa Tree Appeal

Residents' Survey - Have Your Say

Dear Resident

I wanted to write to you in advance of the upcoming general election to give you an opportunity to have your say on some of the key issues which we face, both as a country and locally.

If we win the election, a Conservative government will need to make difficult decisions to put the economy and public finances back on track. I want to ensure that this is done in the least painful way possible. In particular, if elected as our MP, I will first and foremost seek to represent my constituents in Westminster, rather than defend the government in Rochester and Strood.

I am not now an MP and played no part in the expenses scandal. I therefore share everyone else's anger about how MPs behaved, and I believe that we need a new Parliament with new MPs to clean up the system. Being elected as an MP should be a privilege and an opportunity for public service, not an opportunity for private profit.

I hope that you will take a few minutes to the complete the survey form online, or complete the survey on the back of the letter you received and return it in the Freepost envelope provided.

I particularly look forward to hearing your views on the local NHS, as Medway Maritime Hospital is about to appoint a new Chief Executive, and where you would like to see more police patrols, as I am our representative on the Kent Police Authority.

Yours faithfully



Mark Reckless
Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Rochester and Strood

ADVERT

Nimbus Lighting, 144 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1ER.
Great Lighting At Great Prices.
Tel: 01634 407724

Residents' Survey - Have Your Say

Protecting Britain's Pensioners From Labour Cuts

Labour want to cut Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance for over 65s in Rochester and Strood, wrecking their chances of living independently.

Nationally 2.4 million elderly people need support to cope with a physical or mental disability.

These people rely on disability benefits - a third of them through the Disability Living Allowance for over 65s, and two thirds of them through the Attendance Allowance.

Labour want to cut these benefits, wrecking their chances of living independently and having the freedom to tailor their care to their needs.

Those over 65 who claim Disability Living Allowance currently get an average of £75 every week, and those who receive Attendance Allowance get an average of £60. This compares to an average pensioner's income of around £250 a week.

This means that some of the most vulnerable pensioners in Rochester and Strood and around the country could lose around a quarter of their income - amounting to a loss of around £8 billion a year.

Speaking out against the cuts Mark Reckless said:

"I can't see how it makes sense to cut these benefits which are focussed on helping people carry on living in their own homes, often with family members caring for them, as this has to be much less expensive than supporting people in residential care homes."

These cuts are unwise, unfair, and unkind. Our pensioners deserve better.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Sign our petition against the care cuts
Email/Write to your MP to ask them to oppose these cuts
Add your name to this petiton to the Prime Minister

ADVERT

The Rochester Coffee Co. 45 varieties of tea, freshly ground coffee, freshly made Panini and so much more. 146 High Street, Rochester, Kent. ME1 1ER (Opposite Eastgate House)
Tel: 01634 540032

Protecting Britain's Pensioners From Labour Cuts

Southeastern Delays

This week I have been late to work three times and have had to either pay for a taxi or got soaked walking from Rochester to Chatham stations. From the looks of other passengers, many have suffered similar frustrations.

Commuters deserve a proper explanation and apology from Southeastern Trains, because the differing explanations we have had to date are wearing thin. Is it just that Southeastern can't cope with the rain?

It is particularly disappointing to have these problems now when Southeastern, almost uniquely in the country, and they still can't get their story straight as to why this is, are about to put up their season ticket prices.

At least there is one ray of light for my fellow commuters trying to get from Rochester to London Bridge or Cannon Street for 9 o'clock. After 13th December we will no longer need to catch the 8.06 to Chatham to get (or this week, mainly miss) the 8.10 back up to Cannon Street. That is because the service will make an 8.11 stop at Rochester.

This is the result of a long campaign which I have led and will save many commuters considerable time and hassle. Unfortunately, while almost all the evening peak trains will make the Rochester stop, not all the morning ones will, so I will keep up this campaign until Rochester commuters for the Cannon Street and Victoria trains leaving between 7a.m and 8a.m. can benefit too.

Southeastern Delays

David Cameron Reacts To The Queen's Speech

Cameron says the Prime Minister is more pre-occupied with self-survival than legislating on the measures the country needs.

Pointing out that it was the shortest Queen's Speech since 1997, Cameron said Labour have "run out of money, run out of time, run out of ideas".

Cameron said that the background to this Speech was a country facing "the most difficult circumstances for a generation", notably an economic crisis "with the longest recession since the war and the worst public finances in living memory".

But, instead of the real Queen's Speech the country needed he said what we got was "a Queen's Speech which is just a Labour press release on Palace parchment".

Cameron said that there should be an election "instead of wasting the country's time and inflicting further damage". "What is the point of this Government?", he asked.

Read the full speech here

Get Change For A Fiver - Make A Donation Here

David Cameron Reacts To The Queen's Speech

Why Can't We Take Independent Legal Advice?

Last night at Council - actually this morning as the meeting went on until nearly 1a.m.! - I requested that we take independent legal advice to clarify whether Medway Council has acted lawfullly in deciding to close St John's Infant school.

My concern is that officers replaced one of the school organisation principles, which our policy framework requires Cabinet to follow, with a different aim and falsely stated to Cabinet that it was one of the school organisation principles.

This is what I said to Council:

"Last Friday we learned from the Medway Messenger that St John's campaigners were considering a legal challenge to the closure of their school.

Given that, I think the wording of this motion is unfortunate, since it implies we accept that this is a matter for Cabinet. I don't agree, because it is us as a Council who set the policy framework, and that requires Cabinet to apply the school organisation principles.

However, it seems that our officers were not happy with one of those school organisation principles, since it only allowed the gradual amalgamation of infant and junior schools.

Instead, they developed a different policy, one which could be used to justify the closure of any infant school, and falsely told Cabinet that it was one of the school organisation principles. They used that policy to try and close St Peter's. They are using it now to try and close St John's. And I fear they may use it to try and close St Nick's.

Given the legal risks, I have to say I am surprised that our monitoring officer has taken such a relaxed attitude to this. It certainly contrasts with the position she took with respect to my ward colleague earlier in this process.

I don't believe that passing this motion will help St John's, and I do not support it. What might help St John's would be for this Council to take independent legal advice on whether it is lawful for officers to ignore a principle in the policy framework and advise Cabinet to follow a different policy instead.

If our monitoring officer will not take such advice, and this Council loses a judicial review in consequence, I would question whether she should advise us further."

Why Can't We Take Independent Legal Advice?

Tickets For Troops

Mark Reckless is proud to be supporting Tickets for Troops.

David Cameron has helped to launch Tickets for Troops, a new initiative which offers the Armed Forces free tickets to big events including football matches and top music acts.

Thousands of tickets will be made available to all serving military personnel and to veterans who have been discharged through injury since 2001 at the new www.ticketsfortroops.org.uk website.

David explained that Ticket for Troops is "all about people coming together to say to the armed forces: thank you, we respect you and we recognise the sacrifice you are making for us."

The Conservative leader first announced his ambition for this scheme in July 2009, and Tickets for Troops has since been set up as an independent not-for-profit company with huge support from the sports and entertainment worlds.

Tickets have been donated for top football and cricket matches, boxing contests, snooker, horse-racing events, theatre, and both classic and rock music concerts around the country.

Speaking at the launch, where he was joined by Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry VC, Gary Lineker and Joss Stone, David said:

"I'm proud of the part the Conservative Party has played in getting this off the ground and want to thank everyone for generously lending their time and support to this great cause."

Tickets For Troops