Mike Beckett says 'A big thank you!'

Mike Beckett by Anne Pilgrim

Thank you for your support with the North Yorkshire County Council, Thornton Dale and the Wolds By-election campaign. Voting was held on Thursday the 27th October 2011 with the count starting at 10am on the following day.

The candidates' visions were set out in the Gazette and Herald. The paper also wrote about the Conservative's minor quibble about a quote which is a matter of public record. This I believe was done to draw attention from the Conservative candidate's voting record. Firstly, voting in favour of access for a housing development on part of the Manthorpe Park Playing Fields in Thornton-le-Dale. Secondly, more recently, following the Ryedale District Council Policy and Resources Committee on the 23 June 2011 on Item 7: Review of Civic Budget. It was resolved (link to minutes) following a proposal by Cllr Burr that the Civic Budget should be £6k on councillor expenses. These are specifically for the Chairman, Vice Chairman and councillor travel expenses etc. This matter was also considered by the full session of Ryedale District Council on the 18th July 2011 in Item 33: Review of Civic Budget (Item 33), minute 7. The minuted resolutions made, will make allowances payable directly to Councillors next year for specific jobs. I fear this will not subject payments made to Councillors to the scrutiny and accountability of a vote. More importantly at the moment, the conservative candidate in the byelection voted in this named vote, in favour of raising this budget for Councillor expenses from £6k against the proposal by the specialist committee to £10k. That's an extra £4k of our tax payer's money, in this time of austerity, when Councillors should lead by example! 

Mike Beckett with our dog campaigning in the

    countryside near Thixendale with beautiful horses

The day before the election, the Malton and Pickering Mercury press covered the campaign. I also wrote my last pre election update social media post. With the Conservative MP's staff out delivering to support their candidate they were heard to remark that even the work experience person was out helping to deliver - they clearly had to fight for this seat. I hope they fight just as hard for all the residents, who I think pay first class taxes but so often are getting second class services. We are threatened with third class services if cuts disproportionately further disadvantage our rural communities. With a Conservative led District and County Councils and MP, I am left wondering what the Tories have done for us locally and I conclude not enough.

Diana Wallis MEP, Cllr Mike Beckett, Former MP
Cllr Elizabeth Shields & Edward McMillan-Scott MEP 

Press coverage of the election results are here, this was my second time fighting the seat. I gained over a third of the vote which was a better result than the last two times for this a safe Conservative seat. Six years ago when I last stood, the then Conservative constituency agent, Cllr Pamela Anderson, had said "We could get a pig in a blue ribbon elected here". When I last stood the Tory majority for this County seat was 749. More recently in 2009, the Tory majority increased to 861, with a different candidate for the Liberal Democrats and an incumbent Tory councillor. Now, on October 28th count over a third of the eligible votes going to the Liberal Democrats candidate, the Tory majority was reduced to 548 - a reduction of 313 in the majority from the last result.

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Again thank you everyone for your help and support giving local people a choice.

Byelection campaign in Thornton Dale and the Wolds

Mike Beckett local community activist

At last news from North Yorkshire County Council that the Thornton Dale and the Wolds By-election is scheduled for Thursday 27th October 2011.

Mike Beckett supports local transport

Michael Beckett said "I am delighted to be selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for the putting the people of Thornton Le Dale, Rillington, Sherburn, the Wolds Valley and the villages around them first. We need a local champion who can push the Tory controlled County Council for a fairer deal for Rural areas. We need more support to help support workers and employers, too long treated like second class citizens by remote Tory's sitting in Northallerton, as an enthusiastic and driven individuals I will visit even the smallest village at least three times a year in person to see what is happening and to make sure, people get helped sooner rather than later!"

http://gplus.to/mikebeckett 

If you are not sure if you are registered to vote and would like to do so to be able to vote or if you would like a postal vote (to vote early by post) or if you'd prefer a proxy vote (where someone else votes for you where you might be away but unsure when) then contact Ryedale District council Elections team on  elections(antispam protection please remove brackets put a with a circle round it here instead, an AT symbol)ryedale.gov.uk or 01653 600666.

Mike Beckett outside Rillington Post Office

Alderman Betty Denton, Mike Beckett's agent says "I am glad for the offers of support for our Liberal Democrats campaign to give the people of Thornton Dale and the Wolds County Council Seat a better deal. If you too would like to help please do let me know by email: denton.betty1(antispam protection please remove brackets put a with a circle round it here instead, an AT symbol)gmail.com North Yorkshire County Council needs more youth and vigour, people who work hard and really can make a difference, all of these Mike Beckett has with his professional experience but most of all he cares and he does his work with compassion."

What's the Liberal Democrat position?

A personal assessment of what I believe the Liberal Democrats position to be:

Believing in doing the right thing, Compassion and fiscal competence. The problem is that there is rarely an obvious "right" decision, usually there is a compromise based on weighing up a massive number of competing factors and the situational assessment of how this will work out. Thought through mature, evidence based policies that consider the big picture in the pursuit of objectives held with some passion which relate to the benefit of the people. Being prepared to face up to the awful realities of the deficit but trying to protect the poor from the consequences of the cuts that are inevitable. With the long-term aim to provide extra funding to public services when finances allow. Willing to adopt social policies that will work, even if they're hated by the tabloids and not being in hock to the bankers! 

Ensuring that a government should fight for our personal freedoms and protect our civil rights; challenge prejudice, oppose the concentration of power and monopoly; intrude into peoples lives only in so much as required to help people and to offer support that individuals cannot; to reduce the taxes on those that cannot afford to pay them; to provide a choice of value services irrespective of the individual's ability to pay and not to stifle opportunities for innovation, creativity and productivity but encourage individuals to be more enterprising.
Liberal Democrats as the media have described us: "Hawkish on the deficit, liberal on social policy and populist on bankers; thriftier than Labour but nicer than the Tories, the Lib Dems are squatting stubbornly, sometimes chaotically, in the middle of British politics." (New Statesman 2011.)

For readers who believe a left to right spectrum is the best way to understand politics and might prefer a tabloid summary. Perhaps this quote might help show a pragmatic position with "Clowns to the left of us. . . Joker to the right..Here we are!". In summary following the liberal democratic principles of fairness, trust and freedom. Putting people before ideology with change that works for you because together we can make a difference.

In the Liberal Democrat Federal Constitution it summaries this in the following way:

Preamble 

The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community, and in which no one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity. We champion the freedom, dignity and well-being of individuals, we acknowledge and respect their right to freedom of conscience and their right to develop their talents to the full. We aim to disperse power, to foster diversity and to nurture creativity. We believe that the role of the state is to enable all citizens to attain these ideals, to contribute fully to their communities and to take part in the decisions which affect their lives. 

We look forward to a world in which all people share the same basic rights, in which they live together in peace and in which their different cultures will be able to develop freely. We believe that each generation is responsible for the fate of our planet and, by safeguarding the balance of nature and the environment, for the long term continuity of life in all its forms. Upholding these values of individual and social justice, we reject all prejudice and discrimination based upon race, colour, religion, age, disability, sex or sexual orientation and oppose all forms of entrenched privilege and inequality. Recognising that the quest for freedom and justice can never end, we promote human rights and open government, a sustainable economy which serves genuine need, public services of the highest quality, international action based on a recognition of the interdependence of all the world’s peoples and responsible stewardship of the earth and its resources. We believe that people should be involved in running their communities. We are determined to strengthen the democratic process and ensure that there is a just and representative system of government with effective Parliamentary institutions, freedom of information, decisions taken at the lowest practicable level and a fair voting system for all elections. We will at all times defend the right to speak, write, worship, associate and vote freely, and we will protect the right of citizens to enjoy privacy in their own lives and homes. We believe that sovereignty rests with the people and that authority in a democracy derives from the people. We therefore acknowledge their right to determine the form of government best suited to their needs and commit ourselves to the promotion of a democratic federal framework within which as much power as feasible is exercised by the nations and regions of the United Kingdom. We similarly commit ourselves to the promotion of a flourishing system of democratic local government in which decisions are taken and services delivered at the most local level which is viable.  

We will foster a strong and sustainable economy which encourages the necessary wealth creating processes, develops and uses the skills of the people and works to the benefit of all, with a just distribution of the rewards of success. We want to see democracy, participation and the co-operative principle in industry and commerce within a competitive environment in which the state allows the market to operate freely where possible but intervenes where necessary. We will promote scientific research and innovation and will harness technological change to human advantage.

We will work for a sense of partnership and community in all areas of life. We recognise that the independence of individuals is safeguarded by their personal ownership of property, but that the market alone does not distribute wealth or income fairly. We support the widest possible distribution of wealth and promote the rights of all citizens to social provision and cultural activity. We seek to make public services responsive to the people they serve, to encourage variety and innovation within them and to make them available on equal terms to all. 

Our responsibility for justice and liberty cannot be confined by national boundaries; we are committed to fight poverty, oppression, hunger, ignorance, disease and aggression wherever they occur and to promote the free movement of ideas, people, goods and services. Setting aside national sovereignty when necessary, we will work with other countries towards an equitable and peaceful international order and a durable system of common security. Within the European Community we affirm the values of federalism and integration and work for unity based on these principles. We will contribute to the process of peace and disarmament, the elimination of world poverty and the collective safeguarding of democracy by playing a full and constructive role in international organisations which share similar aims and objectives. These are the conditions of liberty and social justice which it is the responsibility of each citizen and the duty of the state to protect and enlarge. The Liberal Democrats consist of women and men working together for the achievement of these aims.

If you are waiting for someone to recommend that you join a political party before deciding to join a party, then may I take this opportunity to invite you to join the Liberal Democrats.

What is even more evil than intolerance? (there can only be one thing)

As ever on the internet it is possible to encounter something that makes you think (as well as a lot that doesn't). On Tumblr a site I have not joined but was referred to, I saw the question below with the suggestion that their could be only one thing worse than intolerance...

"What is even more evil than intolerance? (there can only be one thing)"

My immediate thought was tolerance of the intolerable as an answer...that which prevents the freedom of others interfering in law abiding and constructive lives. While I am a tolerant guy and willing to adapt where possible and to suck it in to make things happen as I am and continue to be very outcome focussed. As human trafficking, genocide, torture, abuse and rape are all things I think are great wrongs and should not be tolerated, they should be addressed through due legal process. If it is a smaller wrong or slight, this may be not practicable as other considerations inevitably in our messy world must be considered then I suppose long suffering is the alternative neither option appealing.

To paraphrase Burke 'All it takes for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing'. I know I am not prepared to do nothing but equally I am measured in my responses as the optimal outcome is what I am working for and this is often not aligned with my own self interest, altruism. Working in the voluntary and community sector is comparatively under remunerated in cash terms. As I am not a reductionist and do value social capital, my perception is of creating a larger synergy which can fit under the term Big Society or more naturally for me community politics. In summary to stop evil and the politics of hate we need to subscribe to loving/caring or 'unconditional positive regard' as Carl Rogers calls it and a live giving, sharing politics.

Involvement in what happens, mucking in, caring about other people and generally making our locality a better place to live can be infectious and can make surprisingly large differences to peoples lives. Be active, be involved and lets make a difference together our Big Society starts with us and it is what we make it. Despite many attempts to legislate happiness, it is our quest and our adventure and we share our own with those we interact with as we are like or not to some extent interdependent and therefore our utility will affect others. This is a sacred quest to make the world better than we found it to reach our with availability and vulnerability to others and form real community, to make things happen for good and to seek what may be termed sustainable happiness, a more spiritual harmonised and cohesive society...God knows how but I am sure together we can have an impact, we can commit virtue and no matter the cost this is a cause worth living for!