Labour Doorstep 1

Yesterday I was out on the doorsteps of Pinhoe with Cllr Moira MacDonald, Pinhoe's Labour City Councillor (who took a seat from the Tories at the last local election) covering part of Pinhoe Road, the Mede, Whipton Village Road, Summer Lane and Summer Close.

Completing the inevitable "paperwork"!

A fair number were out (which was predictable on the penultimate Saturday before Christmas) but of those that were in, I can only describe the welcome as warm. We decided we would knock on every door by way of introduction, not just those we knew to be sympathetic to Labour, and I am glad we did. Even those who clearly not naturally "Labour people" genuinely seemed to be pleased I'd called, and took time to talk through some of the local issues. Several said that while their vote usually went elsewhere, they would be prepared to support me next May because - as one put it - "At least you've bothered to come round. I've never seen the other lot."

How sad. A councillor's job is to represent. How can one possibly represent people one has never bothered to get out to meet. I've never understood politicians that see "getting out there" as a chore. Maybe it's because my "day job" has always been in community work, but I love meeting people and hearing what they have to say. It would be incredibly arrogant to assume that simply because I have been elected I know what is best for an area. It is by listening to people who have lived experience of their neighbourhood that one sees community issues from their perspective.

As an example, Summer Close. What a wonderful little street! Summer Close has a fair share of bungalows for older people, many of them adapted to help residents cope with their various disabilities and mobility problems. Moira and I met one elderly couple on their way to the shops, both infirm and partially sighted, but spritely, cheerful and ready to talk. "Lovely to meet you," they said at the end of our chat, "It's good to put a face to the name," and then again, "we never see the others here." I watched as they made their way slowly down the close, to the junction of Summer Lane where they had to navigate the barriers on the pavement edge until they were closer to the busy junction of Whipton Village Road.

Another resident of the close reinforced the concern I had when I asked about local issues. "We could use a crossing," he said, "A lot of folks in this close can't walk so well, and folk like me, well, our eyesight isn't what it was. Summer Lane is busier now. Busier than when I moved here."

A simple issue of getting local perspective. Looking at the junction from my own perspective, it all seems to flow, it doesn't seem too bad... Yet when one goes out and meets the residents, seeing that here we have a whole close that is made up of mostly elderly people of limited mobility, the same junction then seems too busy, and the traffic too fast. It's a perspective I would only have got from getting out, meeting people, and - crucially -  listening to them. They are the experts on Whipton, on Pinhoe, not me. 

It was great to see Moira at work in the same way, scribbling down several issues raised by residents as we made our way round. She is a true community activist, attentive to the concerns of everyone she spoke to. I cannot wait to be elected to the local Labour Group on the council. A team serving Pinhoe made up of 2 Labour City Councillors in a Labour-led Council, a Labour County Councillor (Saxon Spence) and a Labour MP in Ben Bradshaw will achieve so much for our community.

I'll leave the last word to a lady we called on in Pinhoe Road. "Does any particular party usually have your support?" I asked.

"I voted Conservative last time," came the reply, "But never again. Not after what they are doing to this country."

"Do you have any idea who you might vote for instead?"

"No. Not yet," she said. And then, grinning slightly, "I may vote for you. But you'll have to work for it."

And that, for my money, is exactly how it should be.

Hello Pinhoe, come in Pinhoe, this is Labour calling...

The nerve centre of Exeter Labour HQ. Kind of.

Last night I began phoning around the residents of Pinhoe from the Labour offices in Exeter. Telephone canvassing nights are more fun than they sound. Honest. In a large meeting room in the labyrinthine Labour HQ in Clifton Hill, there are telephones situated all the way round the room. The offices always seem to have people there (I have a theory that Dom and Ollie may actually be living there.) 

Cllr Richard Branston (Newtown) was already busy on the telephone when I arrived, and seemed to be taking an age on every call, as it seemed that everyone he spoke to knew him and had things they wanted to discuss. The sign of a good ward councillor, in my book. 

Cllr Ian Martin (Mincinglake) was busy on the laptop before he was due to head off to a community forum in his ward with Cllr Saxon Spence (County Councillor for Mincinglake & Pinhoe.) With every email he opened, or Twitter / Facebook update he read, there was a cryptic, "Aaaah, that's interesting..." before he went back to tapping away on the keyboard. There's a man at the hub of every decision in Exeter, it seems. Saxon - busy lady as she is - was munching on a sandwich between meetings, and Ollie was wandering around with something microwaveable and steaming on a plate. Possibly a paella. It smelled better than it looked, at any rate. 

Dom Collins, our local strategist-come-call-centre-gangmaster had the call sheets all ready for me, and strong black coffee in hand I got on with it.

One never knows how one's call at 5 or 6pm on a dark December night is likely to be received. People may be eating, organising the kids, watching the news (or the Simpsons!) or getting ready to go out. However, I can honestly say that not a single person I spoke to was abrupt or even sounded as though they were desperate to get away.

Our calls always start by asking people if they have any local issues or concerns that they want to raise with our councillors or with Ben, as our MP. The issue that came up most frequently (though only 3 or 4 times) is the prospect of any development of Eastern Fields. It was handy having Saxon there. Between mouthfuls of sandwich she explained that in the New Year there were likely to be 3 or 4 possible proposals going to public consultation from Devon County Council for local residents to have their say on, so watch out for that. 

The other issues raised were almost all national issues, or at least the local manifestation in people's lives of consequences from national policies. One woman I spoke to - a single parent - described how terrified she was of increased speculation about Coalition cuts to tax credits. "I rely on them", she said, "and I don't want to go on to benefits. I want to work, and I enjoy my job, but it's only part-time. Tax credits mean I can afford to work." 

Another parent, this time of adult children, told of the frustration of her sons - both in their late 20s - being priced out of local property markets, and this is not even property to buy, but property to let. One of her sons shares with his partner and child in a small flat, but the rent is over 40% of their income. Her other son still lives with her and her husband as all he would be able to afford would be a bedsit in a cramped house. "I don't want him living like that," she said, "he is already suffering with depression."

It's calls like this that make the remind me why I am involved in politics. The decisions that we make as elected representatives, whether local or national, really impact on people's lives. I never forget that. I don't know what difference my calls last night made to people, but they certainly reaffirmed my own commitment to work hard with my Labour colleagues to make things better for the people and communities of Pinhoe and Exeter. 

My favourite call of the night was to an elderly but spritely couple. "Is there anything I can do for you?" I asked as my closing question.

"Yes," came the reply, "Get this shower out of government."

I'll try, Mr & Mrs B. I'll try.

Apologies...

Incidentally, sorry for the lack of blog actively lately, but I have been busy with a house move into my new home in Pinhoe.
So now as well as Twitter (@simon4pinhoe)...
email (simon4pinhoe@gmail.com)...
and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003217840244)...
...you can now write to me at:
Simon Bowkett
20 Rews Park Drive
Pinhoe
Exeter
EX1 3QL
...or if you're REALLY keen, come to my daily weekday surgeries on Platform 2 of Pinhoe station, 7.30am...!


:-)

It's nearly Christmas, let's lose the cynicism...

£3 well spent!

On the way into work today, I bought a Big Issue. I was holding out the usual £2, when the vendor said, “It’s three quid this week, sir.”

“Christmas bonus is it?” I laughed, still offering out the £2.

“No it is, look,” He insisted, this time pointing to the £3 Bumper Issue flash on the front cover.

I felt awful, and rooted around for the extra quid.

My assumption, even after working with rough sleepers and the vulnerably housed for years, is that – given half a chance – they will always try and get one over on me. When did I get so cynical?

Last week, this same dynamic was played out nationally with the public sector strikes. Radio phone-ins, social media, newspaper letters pages and internet message boards were full of polarised, adversarial debate between those that work in the public sector and those that work in the private. The mutual cynicism and suspicion was worrying and showed how divisive the debate could be.

At their worst the arguments seemed to be that those working in the public sector are ungrateful, lazy, work-shy whingers hell-bent on class warfare on the tax-payers’ time; and those that work in the private sector are amoral money-grabbing fat-cat tax-dodgers or ignorant lackeys blindly doing the bidding of those thereof. The truth, of course, is that we need a vibrant, productive and socially-responsible private sector and an efficient, dedicated public sector that delivers the quality universal services that we all rely on. 

Like me with my Big Issue friend, we have all become suspicious of “the other” – the assumption that everyone is after something at our expense. We have lost a community sense of mutual interest and cooperation, and instead bought into “everyone for him / herself”. The truth, of course, is that we need a vibrant, productive and socially-responsible private sector to help fund an equally productive, reliable and consistent public sector that delivers the quality universal services we all rely on.

I see this same cynicism sometimes on the doorstep. “Ah, politicians – you’re all the same…” is usually followed by a list of perceived faults, flaws and episodes of recent political shame. We are all, I am told, in it for the money, the power, the expenses, the “back-handers”, the networks, or whatever. In 8 years as a councillor, I have received one free perk. Let me publicly declare: a curry. My local balti house made it into the top 50 best curry houses list, and to celebrate, the owner invited the local MP, business leaders and councillors to a free curry night. That’s it.

I have to say, in all my time as a councillor, the people I have met are by and large in it because they care, because they feel they have something to offer their communities, because they have a vision (however mistaken, in some cases!) of a better community that is sincerely held.

Now, I am certainly not a perfect councillor. I don’t always agree with everything that my consituents tell me, or do everything they ask, because sometimes I think we have to stand up for what we think and believe, even if it loses us votes. I don’t always remember to get back to people, but that is occasional forgetfulness, not arrogance. And I can be a nightmare with names! However, I’m not interested in the money (it really isn’t very much!), the position or the perceived perks of being a councillor. What I am interested in is being part of the decision-making processes that means I can involve the residents of Pinhoe in making our community better, and working with other councillors to make our city better.

Exeter has proven to be very resilient in the latest Tory recession. A busy Labour MP and equally hard-working and visionary Labour councillors means Exeter has not seen the devastating levels of business closure that other areas have seen. While some towns are boarding up retail units, and seeing their public spaces deteriorating, Exeter has seen investment and regeneration.

Out on the doorsteps of Pinhoe with former
councillor Val Dixon and Exeter MP Ben Bradshaw

Throughout this winter, and up to next May’s elections you will be hearing from your local Labour candidates, councillors and activists as we will be phoning you and calling on you. It would be so easy to think “another politician”, and to fall into the trap of being cynical about local politics, but please take time to talk to us, and you will see that we are genuinely here for you.

Yes, I want your vote – like my friend from the Big Issue wanted £3 not £2 this week. But the fact that I seek your support is not something to be suspicious of – it is a sign that I want to see a great ward and a great city be even better, and I can only do that with you. I look forward to hearing your ideas, concerns and questions, and if on a frosty or rainy Saturday morning there’s a cup of tea going spare, that’d be great. (And I promise to declare it…)