The Somme War graves cemetery

5th – Full Council Meeting

6th – Healthier Communities Scrutiny Committee, Town Hall

9th – Remembrance Sunday Service & Parade, Prestwich

10th – Bury Lib Dems AGM and Bury North PPC Hustings, Elton Liberal Club Bury 7.00pm

13th – Prestwich Area Partnership, from 6.30pm Prestwich Arts College

14th – Bury Liberal Democrats Annual Dinner, Woodthorpe Hotel

17th – Rainsough Community Centre reception

17th – Standards Committee, Town Hall

24th – Prestwich Regeneration Strategy – Consultation period ends

25th – Planning Committee site visit re: 4 Glebelands Road Application

Cllr Bibby,As a councillor attending the Special Council Meeting on Wednesday to debate the Pay and regrading of Council Staff I know I was not alone in the frustration, anguish and anger I felt that evening.I was frustrated as an opposition councillor that I cannot do more to support the many staff struggling to come to terms with drastic pay cuts and I was angry that despite numerous pleas your Conservative group remained resolutely determined to refuse to even get round the table and talk about the issue.Despite your refusal to budge, as a fellow Bury Councillor I cannot believe you and your Conservative colleagues do not share the anguish that members of the opposition feel over the pay review and regrading process. Basic humanity says you should even if the political wall you are hiding behind denies that sentiment. So as a fellow councillor I must ask you this.

1. Why have the opposition parties had to fight tooth and nail to get information about the process.
2. Why have opposition parties and Trades Union reps had to fight tooth and nail to ensure the process is fair and transparent?
3. Why on earth did you not examine numerous options with regard to manipulation of pay levels and regarding the affect on the budget WITH opposition colleagues.
4. Why did we, opposition parties and Trades Unions have to fight for a fair staff appeals system?
5. Why have you not considered the impact on staff morale.
6. Why did you not assemble a package of support for staff months ago – why did you leave it to opposition requests. 

It is because of these unanswered questions that you now face such angry staff and opposition councillors. The problem is that every time I mull over these and other questions I come to one conclusion. That is that this whole process has been carefully orchestrated from the moment you came to power in May. Orchestrated because this job evaluation has not only reviewed pay grades but in doing so has conveniently and crucially reviewed jobs and departments.

The conclusion I have come to and others may be contemplating now is that the sheer bloody mindedness of Bury Conservatives over this issue is because they are planning a major cull of jobs in the authority as a cost cutting exercise.  I hope I am wrong, I’m sure you will tell me I am. But why else won’t you talk, why else won’t you involve other parties, why else won’t you sit round the table with us.

So Bob, What’s your agenda?

Apologies for the lack of postings over the past week. Due to the popularity of the Party’s “councillor” sites they had become overloaded and needed some technical stuff doing – stuff that I couldn’t possibly understand, not to mention explain in anything approaching the Queens english!

But as you see we are back up and running and so will be aiming to keep you in touch with all my happenings and musings as usual. 

By the way I hope you like the new look site – I thought it needed a change.