Labour's economic mismanagement has cost us dear. Here's why:
- Gordon Brown didn't fix the roof while the Sun was shining. After 15 years of expansion, the public finances are worse than in the 1970s. This year alone the Government plan to borrow £180 Billion - and the same next year. It's all completely unaffordable, the economics of the madhouse.
- Labour's massive house price bubble is now bursting. Over 100% lending on over three times (or greater) earnings was asking for trouble. What were they thinking?!
- Unemployment predicted to hit 3 million So many families will lose homes they've worked so hard for. Labour's crazy borrowing will not only mortgage our kids' future - it will slow recovery making it harder for people to find a job, let alone get a pay rise.
- Tax up £10,000 a year per household Council Tax has doubled. Where does it all go? We certainly don't get our fair share!
- Locally the only thing to change in 12 years is that we've lost a hospital. Labour have not only axed our hospital - the A2 and other road upgrades have also been chopped, Labour have allowed local port jobs to be privatised, are planning to sell off our port and real local wages are down £1000 in 5 years. Labour's mess will make it even harder to get the investment we need for our community.
Be Better off with Charlie Elphicke and the Conservative's plan to rebuild our economy locally and nationally. Charlie's vision:
- Tough times need tough decisions The priority has to be paying back Gordon Brown's extreme borrowing ahead of tax cuts. Things are so bad it is now impossible to rule out short term tax rises.
- Care and compassion With measures to help the unemployed find jobs and hard pressed home owners weather Labour's downturn.
- Economic recovery plan To tackle long term worklessness, with stronger schools and vocational skills, making Britain more competitive for businesses.
- Lower taxes When the economy grows again, growth will allow taxes to be reduced while preventing Labour's planned carnage of public services by rethinking how services can be provided to we can get more for less.
- Our fair share To bring forward the A2 dualling, stop Labour's port privatisation plans, get more business to move in locally and support the excellent regeneration plans of Conservative led Dover Council. None of this will be easy given the dire state of things - but we will do our level best.
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Promises, Promises. What happened to Deal having a job centre, and as for regeneration if Herne Bay can have a shopping centre why can't Deal have the same given the strength of the town's retail economy and make better use of the Coop (Somerfield site and behind the High Street which is being wasted as car parks. Herne Bay is comparable to Deal with less names and they are getting a 35m shopping centre. YOu also said you would stop housing in Sholden. As I see it a vote for you was wasted come the next election let's see if you retain the seat for Dover and Deal
- Gabriella Coscia
Fair point. Going as fast as I can. I have had a meeting with the JobCentre people to talk through what can be provided in Deal and am taking that forward. I held a public meeting in Sholden the other day and reported on latest developments. I am concerned about the Church Lane site and working with the Cllrs on that. Thankfully it seems flood issues buy us time. I do not approve of building on Grade 1 agricultural land viz the other site. And I have been pushing for Hadlow College to set up at Betteshanger with a view to creating 1,000 jobs for Deal. In addition, I worked to get Castle Community academy status and I am in talks with English Heritage about making the most of Deal Castle. I am not sure if the people of Deal want a totally new shopping centre - I can see that might take some time. Please do let me know more about what you think the key things to do in Deal are.
- Charlie Elphicke
OK fair enough Charlie. I can't see why consideration cannot be given to opening a Gateway type service in Deal as Herne Bay will be getting one and as already exists in Dover which would could also double up as a jobcentre, and be used for DDC and KCC services and would be a cost effective service in the town. Ward Homes are having a consultation about the development at Sholden and I understand you are working hard on this which is good. Yon won't recall but long before your time this same site was proposed for a safeway superstore with petrol station and was thrown out for fear of destroying the vitality and viability of deal town centre. I agree with you the site is unsuitable for a number of reasons, the recent floods as demonstrated very recently the other week when there was over 3ft of water, inadequate drainage and the fact the road is already full to capacity and the situation that Sholden would be swallowed as part of a greater deal when at the same time school places have been cut with the closure of the former south deal primary school a couple of years ago which would be more appropriate for any new housing / expansion of the cemetary in Deal. I also agree that grade one agricultural land should remain exactly that agricultural. It is good to hear the plans for Hadlow college because this site is empty for 5 years now and is a wasted resource economically. I also feel Deal needs a new supermarket, Sainsburys is small and I am quite sure still over trading, the former somerfield now coop will shrink as half of it goes over to clothing as part of national chain Peacocks opening in the town. Other towns in kent of deal's size do have supermarkets and I feel another supermarket is justified in deal at a site to be identified even if it is at betteshanger to prevent leakage of expenditure to dover, canterbury and westwood cross. In terms of shopping you misunderstand me. I am suggesting not a totally new town centre, but redevelopment of the somerfield/ coop site,the service roads and car park off Park Street and demolition of the former odeon / cinema now nightclub and retail units to Iceland. The better use of space as an open air shopping arcade would allow existing retailers to increase space say Boots, M and S and WH Smith, and also allow the demand by national retailers who seek representation in Deal of which there are many who want to open but can't due to the town centre's limited retail the space they need to trade. Deal has enough car parks and the one here isn't really needed in all honesty. This would strengthen Deal's economy and benefit the town, retail is a strength in Deal and you do need to support it to prevent deal becoming another ramsgate / margate and folkestone all of which no longer have Marks and Spencer. I also suggest you ask DDC to get a retail study to reverse Dover's fortunes you may be aware that Dover M and S hasn 't been modernised and that recently a number of M and S stores in the East Midlands have closed also unmodernised. M and S scrapped plans to update the dover store along the lines of the modernisation that took place with Deal. I suspect if Dover Town Centre doesn't have plans to provide the sort of retail the district needs Dover could lose it's m and s branch in the near future. Please do all you can to stop Sholden being destroyed. It is the wrong place for housing and the flood risk and the drainage and access to the a258 from sholden new road is already very dangerous. The school can be expanded and pedestrian crossings provided on London Road. Relocating the school would not solve the traffic congestion going in and out of town only a north deal relief road from the town centre would do that as we both know. Something that was talked about for the last 40 years but never happened.
- Gabriella Coscia