Beautiful Rutland

With the summer in full swing, and before the developers and their friends in Rutland County Council have theie way, I thought it would be nice to include a post on why it matters that we fight any move to destroy this beautiful part of England forever.

To me Rutland is one of the most beautiful counties in England and I will never tire of its lovely open countryside that is there for all to see and to enjoy. It is this fair land that I walk on everyday and see as I drive along to work each day that as kept me smiling when everything else seemed to be a mess. I guess that is why I get so passionate about keeping it rural for the future generations of mine and others families to enjoy.

Special Council Meeting

Following on from the a blog post last week, in a special meeting of the council the following resolution was passed:

"That the Council grants an indemnity to, and support to the Chief Executive and/or officers, to take legal action in her/their own name(s) for defamation by Councillors Gale, Richardson and Wainwright of the Rutland Group of the United Kingdom Independence Party."

This gives the green light to individual members of the council to take legal action for defamation against the members of the former Rutland anti-corruption party members who recently joined the United Kingdom Independence Party. The ruling Conservative council claim that the group of three have made defamatory statements on a website and harassed staff in a series of emails. While the group of three maintained they have done nothing wrong, insisting they need to ask difficult questions to carry out their jobs.

This cleaver move avoids Minister for Justice, Lord McNally, comments that "it would be contrary to the public interest for organs of government to be able to sue in defamation, and that it would be an undesirable fetter on freedom of speech.” By allowing individual councilors members to sue for deformation Secretary of State would be unable to stop the legal challenge as would be the case if the council as a whole were to sue the councilors.

The cost legal action against the three councilors is estimated to be around £150,000  which could be covered public money, which, as we know, is in short supply in these times of cuts grants to local government by central government. The leader of Rutland County council, Conservative, Roger Begy is reported as saying that "I don't know how much this is going to cost, nobody will at this particular stage." but went on to say "This is not a blank cheque for the lawyers."

The leader of the council Roger Begy has demanded that the group of tree councilors apologise or produce evidence to prove there accusations. The later being a tough call when the council won't give them the information they require to prove of disprove their concerns about the dealings of the council, the thing that started this all off. If one good thing came out of the legal action it would be the answers to the original information requests that the three councilors asked in order to prove their case one way or another. It could be the only way the people of Rutland find out what is the truth.

Councillors Gale, Richardson and Wainwright have asked for more time to consider the demand by Rutland County Council to "refrain from further defamatory statements and allegations and provide a full and unequivocal retraction and apology". As yet no statement has appeared on the groups website as to what they are going to do, although a number of posts have been removed. In the end it could just come down to money and if they have enough resources to fight the individual councilors who have the financial backing of the council.

If it is a good use of public money remains to be seen when it could be spent on essential services rather than a silly playground fight designed to shut up three councilors who just want openness in local government. I know what I think and many others think about the council taking this action, but I will keep that to myself. 

FOOTNOTE: Currently the total cost to the local council tax payers is around £42,000 according to local reports in the press.

UPDATE (1st August 2013): A full, well written and factual report can be found on the Rutland Times Website that even the BBC would be proud to have on their website.

Ready for Sainsburys?

Having traveled through both Melton Mowbray and Leicester (below) recently I have started to wonder, once people are stuck in traffic jams on the way into Oakham, if the people of Rutland will think the addition of a new mid price supermarket is worth the trouble.

The road between the level crossing in Okaham and the roundabout with the A606 is a major one for the people of Rutland and is often beset by roadworks due to the construction work associated with a large housing development with the land north west of Oakham looking more like a war zone everyday with the destruction of farmland for bricks and motor.

Personally traffic jams and the increased pollution they cause isn't something I am looking forward to and with the prospect of another mid priced supermarket to come one that I see as pointless. If it was a low cost supermarket there might be a point of putting up with the disruption for the connivance and saving that could be made in doing the weekly shop, but in this case it will bring little to the town, other than the closure of more high street shops.

Ghost House

Sometimes feels like this place has become a ghost house. Once so lively and full of sound not it has taken on a silence that is quite eerie. The days in the house seems so lifeless compared to those of the past.

All the fun, and the laughter and the joy seems to have gone from the house, and what remains and just memories of what was once a place that was alive with the sound of children.What it needs is an injection of life, happy and smiling faces to bring it alive again like in the days gone by. That has been sadly lacking today. There has been none of the noise of laughter and fun, a sound that makes the world seem bright and full of hope.

I just pray that this won't always be the case that in time the house will return to normal and become a home again. Full of love and support for the people that matter so much to me. I know this prayer will be answered, it just a matter of time.

Old Picture New Frame

Although the picture was taken many years ago the thoughts behind it mean the same now as they always did. It is about family and the importance of creating a family and the meaning behind it and keeping those you love together and showing them the love they deserve and need to grow.

The children in that photograph were separated and the ties between them broken forever and their small sister, Lucy, who was meant to unite those three girls will probably never be with the all three of her sisters at the same time ever again. There isn't much I can do about that now, how much I wish I could. Everything to do with that time is broken like the frame that the picture was in, but all it was needed replacing.

The fact is you can't change the past but you can re frame it and preserve the meaning and feeling behind it. As adults we make many mistakes in life but those little people in the picture which we united had a bond and although that bond may weaken it never really goes away. Like the picture those bonds can be renewed if only people will let it happen. The question is  there the will to uphold the promises of the past, rather than to carry on the history of breaking them, I think not but I hope not.

I know I need to build the bonds between the two older girls and there little sister, whose face is just visible in the picture to the picture of the three girls. I know how to do that and to rebuild some of what is important to me. It is not a question of will that happen, more a question of when. For me the sooner the better for I can't carry on for much longer having two of my girls split form the other. I love all the people that matter to me and that will never change.

I just find what happened to me so sad because it was never what I wanted for my children. It what that picture showed that I wanted and can never have again.