Bridge ward monthly report 56

Highlights included the re-election of Paddy Tipping as Nottinghamshire Police Commissioner, the busy and vibrant Community Gardens spring open day, a statue to Jimmy Sirrel and Jack Warner, and a busy bank holiday weekend in the city featuring music and archery.

However, a range of problems in The Meadows remain and some issues getting worse – people motorbiking where they shouldn’t, some challenging crimes and tipping.
Perceptions slightly changed by casework from the sheer volume of doorstep visits that I and friends are undertaking at the moment.  And yes – the Old Meadows is overwhelming for REMAINing in the EU.

Some opportunities – consultation has begun on play equipment for The Green, new housing on Arkwright Walk and on removing the metalwork from the Bridgeway Shopping Centre.

The chaos of schools policy that is forced academisation and giving our schools over to businesses to be run by venture capitalists was debated in full council.

Some moments for reflection too.  The tv documentary on the Hillsborough disaster, witnessed by Forest fans.  75 years since 159 people killed by a Nazi bombing raid on Nottingham, including 40 workers at the Co-Op bakery off Meadow Lane.  Over 6,000 killed at the Battle of Jutland, including 2 sailors from The Meadows blown up on HMS Invincible.

Big moments from the past.  And a big moment for the future on its way.

Approx. 1650 matters logged from around 685 people.  

The Battle of Jutland centenary

Today we remember those who died in the Battle of Jutland.
The Royal Navy’s aim – to continue the blockade of Germany across the North Sea by keeping the German High Seas fleet in port – was achieved, but over 6,000 British sailors were killed.

We remember 2 sailors from The Meadows who were killed by the explosion that split HMS Invincible into two halves.
Ernest White of Glapton Road and George Fenton of Kings Meadow Road (circa the Meadows Way West tram stop); from the front page of the Nottingham Evening Post of the 10th June, 1916.

HMS Invincible fought in 3 separate battles and effectively destroyed a German ship before it blew up, hit by a German shell – vulnerable due to a Vice-Admiral’s battle tactics and drive that led to unsafe handling of cordite.

A fuller presentation is available on Facebook.
(Please note, I am not a trained hostorian, so happy to accept points.)

Creative Quarter 3rd annual report

A difficult separation

REMAIN seems to being doing better nationally, and certainly doing well in the Old Meadows.

SO where does the push for LEAVE come from?

Just this morning’s efforts.
Meanwhile …

So a tax-dodging media and a kinda nationalism that wants you to stop thinking.
(Cos let’s face it, we beat them 3-2 only last month.)

An article by the Finanicial Times seems a lot more objective and helpful.
Gist is -...  before the divorce comes the tricky separation. … the remaining 27 EU leaders would be deliberating and voting on the UK’s exit deal… the UK cannot dictate the exit terms. … could [be] … an orderly transition or … [an] unpredictable process … no clear precedent … have to re-engineer the world’s biggest single market, setting new terms of access and legislating to “renationalise” volumes of law rooted in the EU.  …

The FT has aked that people don’t lift their articles, so I’d better stop and say – read the article.

Gist is, negotiating out is a big job, will take a lot of the country’s governing capacity for some years and all to still be paying loads to access the EU markets.

And we have other priorities.

 

European Archery champions in the OMS

Nice weather. And you could also kinda watch from the side – all tickets were sold.

Big crane on Bellar Gate

… to take a smaller crane away.
The crane was used to build a new block of flats betwen Bellar Gate and Msiden Lane.

Lilian visits Meadows Muslim Centre for Labour IN for Britain

Plenty of support for REMAIN today.

Hackney Carriage drivers took the opportunity to explain their protest from last Monday.

Proportion on the doorstep

Soem alarmist remarks about the LEAVE campiagn being shown by The Guardian, but I much prefer Michael Heseltine’s reaction to Boris Johnson and his muddle over bananas –
“He’s not standing up to the strain, his judgement seem to be going“.
Not many LEAVE supporters in the Old Meadows, but those conversations I’ve had have been enjoyable cos they haven’r screamed out at 11, or reflected nonsense like banana bunches or straight cucumbers.
Instead, a sense that Britain was once better and who is anyone to tell us that we can’t do it ourselves.
Conversations have allowed points to be made, like how Norway pays so much to the EU despite being outside, or that there are significant establishments of high spec manufacturing in our part of the Midlands that are at risk if we leave.
Indeed, even when people are starting to think the result isn’t in doubt, conversations about how we trade, do business and make decisons make this a special time to be out and about talking to pople.

Bananas

Nice to hear a sorting office worker ridicule Boris Johnson for saying there was a limit to selling bananas in bunches of 3s; Lying over bananas, lying over £350m per week, lying over the EU never getting its accounts agreed.
As for the Trades Council debate itself, well, the Old Meadows has already decided, and indeed it would have been a good test for some of the contributors from the floor to have practised the arguments on the doorstep.

BBC tv Newsnight are reporting that the LEAVE campaign are to emphasise immigration more, though they are denying that this is because they have lost arguments on the economy and trade, or that polling suggests they are losing ground.

In the paranoia we see about threats of new immigration, I was intrigued to see a discussion on BBC tv’s Daily Politics about the open border between the EU and the UK, if we leave, that will be Northern Ireland is described by the Secretary of State as a ‘risk’ – and it doesn’t trigger a wave of angst, presumably cos she’s LEAVE.

Meanwhile, a former Labour national spokesperson invites us to embrace Englishness as a way to reach middle England, without a single reference to the jobs market and how local employers used agencies to avoid paying proper wages (cos it’s what cost us in 2010), including I believe, one factory part owned by the Tory MP who represents Ashby-de-la-Zouch, which I heard on Monday was one of the stronger towns for LEAVE. (No doubt the town has a plan to rename itself if they win – Ash tree development of the Smith family?)

We are some way on from tippy-tappy

A BBC Radio 5 presenter signs off on his Saturday performances by saying sport is the most important of all things, that are unimportant.
Yep, some perspective there.
Less so about Leicester City’s premiership win.  The only champions to win by havng less than half of the possession.  We are a long way on from Barcelona’s domination through tippy-tappy.  The sit back approach was popular once in football games in India, but the game died out as people thought that style was more interesting when watching kabaddi.
Having watched Benedict Cumberbatch play his distant relative in BBC tv’s latest Richard III, I’m surprised Leicester want to be associated with that king.  But the connection is there – knowing how to hold 2 down in  box – a clear inspiration for their corner kicks.
As for the FA Cup Final, Crystal Palace were said to be posed a dlilemma by Man U going down to 10 men; they were trying to win the final with 30% of the possession.
Now a bit of hyprocrisy here, cos this special team’s approach is kinda how Shrewsbury Town had their best victories this year.
But for clubs to win English trophies with this style begs questions.
Meanwhile, the football excitement has come from Tottenham Hotspur – with 5 England players (Kane, Alli, Dyer, Rose and Walker), who are relatively young.  Great skill, pressing and energy – and typical  ‘Tottenham glassjaws’ outcomes.
Manchester United winning the cup – and what a run by Rooney – with some young players kinda hints at previous successes, but Mourinho is coming and his wit has definitely waned.
England’s performance against Turkey, in contrast to the win over Germany, showed the old signs of poor passing and control.
Just the kind of grounding we need before getting too excited about the forthcoming Euros.
That’s despite BBC tv’s football documentary “Alfie’s Boys” about winning in 1966 (would surely have only ever been Alf), which despite showing how Ramsey had worked on energy and tactics, summed up with an appeal to players to show spirit.  That and a nonsense poem about not doing anything unless you are prepared to sacrifice all – not sure we will ever learn.