Can Dudley Council leaders do better?

Something, below that brought not a single response from the genuine, proper politicians (like yourself).  They are awarded, however, 10 out of 10 for total apathy, outright acquiescence and, complete complacency - well done! :-

"To the 6 Metro Mayor candidates and 5 questions

 "Please could you tell me, YES or NO against the number, if you

1. think there should be a public inquiry into the W Mids Police gross misconduct in the tragic, farcical, inept mishandling of the Brum pub bombings in 1974.
2. Do you want commuter, regional and freight trains on the remaining 47 Kms of the ready-built "railway of national strategic significance" between Stourbridge, Walsall and Burton on Trent that doesn't get the isolated Metro trams on 6.7 Kms?
3. Should regional, Fare-Free Public Transport be extended from elders like me who are well past our prime, getting housebound and are quite wealthy enough, to be also given to the up and coming generations?
4. Before Tuesday, will you join me in emailing the Labour Party to ask for the immediate reinstatement of Cllr Yvonne Davies who remains the suspended Leader of Sandwell Council on a trumped-up charge of racism and antisemitism?
5. Before Tuesday, will you please send an email to Deborah Cadman, Chief Executive of the WMCA, to ask for the major 22 Kms Black Country Cycle-Walk Mudway to be the CA's top transport priority so that all can use it without wellies, walking boots or rough, tough mountain bikes or, using horses?

"Five 'Yes' or 'No' answers before Tuesday, please.  The results for the six of you will be announced during my 2 mins opening statement on Tuesday 30 March at 5.30pm."

FIVE SCANDALS that make the West Midlands unique!

1. Do you think there should be a public inquiry into the W Mids Police gross misconduct in the tragic, farcical, inept mishandling of the Brum pub bombings in 1974.
2. Do you want commuter, regional and freight trains on the remaining 47 Kms of the ready-built "railway of national strategic significance" between Stourbridge, Walsall and Burton on Trent that doesn't get the isolated Metro trams on 6.7 Kms?
3. Should regional, Fare-Free Public Transport be extended from elders like me who are well past our prime, getting housebound and are quite wealthy enough, to be also given to the up and coming generations?  Or, regional FFPT simply as the antidote/carrot to the stick that is congestion/pollution charging?
4. Should you investigate the case of Cllr Yvonne Davies who remains the suspended Leader of Sandwell Council on a trumped-up charge of racism and antisemitism?
5. Would you like to write a piece about the major, business and commnuter route, the infamous 22 Kms Black Country Cycle-Walk Mudway to be the CA's top transport priority so that all can use it without wellies, walking boots or rough, tough mountain bikes or, using horses?

To Jacob

Thanks so much for your email.  My answers:

Five years ago, confirmed by the election for Mayor in 2017, we had the creation of a completely new regional government organisation that I had no idea would be the result of getting a Metro Mayor four years ago!  So, we have workers like Deborah Cadman on £180,000 a year, as Chief Executive, to an unknown number of employees in many layers of a deep hierarchy.  What is worse is this.  Not one of these new decision-makers was elected.  But that will not make a scrap of difference if the election of the Mayor is anything to go by.  He has no official powers and simply says, and rubber stamps, whatever is decided by unelected officials for him.

Yet, from out of our numbers, we get members of councils who are so hopeless they have allowed professional officers, whom they have agreed with, to do this:

1. An electric tram network completely obliterated and replaced with diesel buses.
2. About 100 Kms of our West Midlands railways were used for housing and trading estates and roads.
3. The UK's very last, fully in place but, only half used, is now converted after 50 years to shuttle tramline, VLR test track and proposed extended cycle-walkway.
4. A worse public transport journey for eleven different bus routes from west Brum and the Black Country because of the rebuilding of the tram network that has always had priority over trains and buses from Metro's start in 1981.  The bus now has a longer and slower journey into Colmore Row because of the tram taking over.  If you change for the tram, this is no quicker if you have to wait upwards of 15 minutes for the tram at Five Ways to take the direct route that was taken by the bus.

IN PARTICULAR:

1) What is your official policy regarding the specific role of the metro mayor, both nationally and locally?

The Metro Mayor should be challenging the policies/decisions by the officers and not simply rubber-stamping them.  That should be his role locally and regionally.  He/she should be insisting on full council chamber debates in each of the seven district councils over the wisdom of spending £15 billion to 2040 for mainly underground and overground Metro trams to replace buses and trains.

2) What are the main points on which you are campaigning in the run up to the 2021 West Midlands mayoral election?  To expose the four scandals, above.

3) Would you change the way in which the WMCA currently works with the metro mayor?

The mayor should be more proactive and questioning and not simply a mouthpiece and PR person for the WMCA.

Please comment, if you wish.    Tim

Pay freeze for workers on more than £150,000 a year

Thanks Stuart and Doug. I think a pay freeze for workers on as much as £150,000 a year must be only the start. The more you get paid, the more you will spend. The more you spend, the more you are taking of finite, precious resources that poorer nations and future generations might just possibly need. But it's worse than that.

Because we are now well and truly trapped in the most prodigious consumption of finite fossil fuels, we are all so dangerously changing the planet's climates for the worse, that Attenborough was warning in Dec 2018 of this:-

"the collapse of civilisations, the extinction of much of the natural world and time is running out".

It is urgent that we not only lockdown for Covid but lockdown our greedy overconsumption for Climate.

Selfish, thoughtless overconsumption is one of the two main drivers of global destruction - the other is ... ?

Five years ago, confirmed by the election for Mayor in 2017, we had the creation of a completely new regional government organisation that I had no idea would be the result of getting a Metro Mayor four years ago!  So, we have workers like Deborah Cadman on £180,000 a year, as Chief Executive, to an unknown number of employees in many layers of a deep hierarchy.  What is worse is this.  Not one of these new decision-makers was elected.  But that will not make a scrap of difference if the election of the Mayor is anything to go by.  He has no official powers and simply says, and rubber stamps, whatever is decided for him by unelected officials.

Yet, from out of our numbers, we get members of councils who are so hopeless they have allowed professional officers whom they have agreed with to do this:

1. An electric tram network completely obliterated and replaced with diesel buses.
2. About 100 Kms of our West Midlands railways were used for housing and trading estates and roads.
3. The UK's very last, fully in place but, only half used, is now converted after 50 years to shuttle tramline, VLR test track and proposed extended cycle-walkway.
4. A worse public transport journey for eleven different bus routes from west Brum and the Black Country because of the rebuilding of the tram network that has always had priority over trains and buses from Metro's start in 1981.  The bus now has a longer and slower journey into Colmore Row because of the tram taking over.  If you change for the tram, this is no quicker if you have to wait upwards of 15 minutes for the tram at Five Ways to take the direct route that was taken by the bus.