Personally, I do not believe this ‘top hat and tofu alliance’ will be good for Britain, or that it will last the duration of Parliament. I do know that Labour is now the sole main Opposition to the Cameron-Clegg Government, and I do know that soon Labour will have an excellent new Leader to take us forward and renew the party.

I am confident that at the next General Election, whether it be in six months or five years, Labour will be in a strong position to regain the nation’s full confidence and to win back key seats, including Shrewsbury.

I also know that Labour cannot fight back effectively unless we have the full and formal support of wonderful people like you. So I would like to invite those of you who are invaluable Labour supporters and sympathisers but not yet Labour members to join the Labour Party today if you are able.

Whether you are in Shrewsbury or not, please consider joining the Labour party and help us to challenge the Cameron-Clegg Government effectively. Many of you have already done a lot to support Labour and to support me, and I am deeply grateful for that. But we need more bright, switched-on, energetic people like you at the heart of the party as members and decision-makers. Now is a great time to make that extra commitment and sign up.

Since yesterday, over 3,000 people across Britain have joined Labour, and many more are doing so every hour. And if you’re under 27, you can join for just £1.

If your are interested you can find out more at http://www.labour.org.uk

Labour is now the only progressive, pro-equality force in British politics – be part of it today.

Best wishes, and please stick with me for the re-match! It’s going to be a good one.

Jon Tandy

Despite not being selected as the member of parliament for Shrewsbury and Atcham on this occasion, I will continue to campaign for the good of Shrewsbury and Atcham in the capacity of local councillor and would like to to thank everyone for their kind support and I will be keeping this podcast going for the foreseeable future dealing with local issues and concerns.

Thank you so very much for listening and watching.

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Jon Tandy Podcast – Episode 09 – Election Result & Speeches from jon tandy on Vimeo.

Shrewsbury & Atcham General Election Declaration May 2010 from shropshirelive on Vimeo.

The leaders debates have been dominating the media on and offline and I have been following some of the main political bloggers coverage but in a change to what you may expect me to do as a Parliamentary candidate, I am certainly not going to delve into each policy area and tread ground already well worn.

The thing that fascinated me about the leaders debates was that whilst televised debates such as this are common place in countries like the USA, they are a completely new territory for everyone in the UK as party leaders, parliamentary candidates and members of voting public.

I remember a very good quote from Eddie Izzard about how public perception is predominantly made based on how you look and not what you say. The exact line is

“ All that people care about is the look. there have  been studies.  it’s 70 per cent of what people react to is the look, 20 per cent is how you sound, 10 per cent is what you say so if you look good and sound good…”

This to me is relevant to the media spectacle around all three leaders debates because so much, in fact too much in my view, emphasis is placed how the slick Public Relations techniques such as gesturing, looking directly into the camera to give the feel of a personal eye contact, sharp suits and overall scripted stage managed answers being given by all of the leaders.  Nick Clegg of the Lib Dems excelled at this in the first two debates leaving David Cameron and Gordon Brown playing catchup.

The second debate came and went and once again we were treated to a stage managed marketing campaign based around image and not policies. The second debate was declared by many exit polls, some with questionable big media bias, as a win for Nick Clegg and David Cameron.  Both winners in the x-factor election debate where at any time I was expecting a phone number to appear on screen telling the viewers to phone the premium rate phone number to cast their vote.

Gordon Brown, despite making some very effective points and covering his policy areas was left trailing.  Lets look at this for a second.  David Cameron and Nick Clegg are polished, PR savvy and the archetypal salesmen wheres as Gordon Brown is simply a politician talking about real issues that are not glamorous or exciting but necessary to our society.

There is no way that Gordon could ever come out of these debates looking like the characteristic, picture perfect Hollywood statesman because that is simply not who he is.  I have had the privilege of meeting Gordon Brown on several occasions and found him to be a very very intelligent man who is focused on getting down to the issues and getting on with the act of government and has no time for the posturing of life in the media eye.

I was watching the third and final debate on Thursday and it was clear to me that the  move to the less tabloid style BBC news broadcast and the pressure on all of the leaders just one week before election day made all of the leaders shine in their true colours.

Nick Clegg, the media darling of the hour, started well in his now trademark stage managed style before being stumped by questions from the public and from Gordon Brown and David Cameron leaving him to flounder so much on the issue of immigration as well as subsequent issues.  Generally not a good moment for Nick or Lib Dems up and down the country and in my view the moment that Nick blew it.

David Cameron again, started well taking Nick Cleggs tried and tested PR approach and generally getting his points and policies across when questioned although managing to dodge some of the more tricky cross examination from Nick Clegg and Gordon Brown.

Gordon Brown, had everything riding on a good performance and in my view he succeeded. Gordon Brown knows the economy, he knows immigration, he knows training and business and I feel the increased confidence in this debate represented this. Gordon Brown was not as polished or packaged as Nick and David which I think did go against him but his words were insightful and clear. Gordon is a no nonsense Prime Minister.

The end of the debate came and in my view Gordon Brown was the stronger leader in the debate in terms of words and passion although not in image or style. David Cameron stayed fairly steady throughout and didn’t really say anything to make him stand out in a positive or negative way.

Nick Clegg however came into the debate as the golden child with everything to lose and the pressure showed. The issue of immigration was the end of the unfaltering, smooth, confident leader and when pressed on the issues found it hard to answer or justify his policies which is one of the things the Lib Dems have always been criticized for; been able to throw out ideas but unable to back them up with real world situations.

For me the real question is  do you want an intelligent prime minister who knows what they are talking about or someone who looks good on camera? Gordon Brown may be be uneasy around the media but he has a very sharp mind and has lots of experience which is what matters because you cannot run a country on PR tricks and smarmy style.

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Jon Tandy Podcast Episode 5 – Housing from jon tandy on Vimeo.

In this episode I talk about my views on the need for further investment and employment is Shrewsbury and Atcham.

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Jon Tandy Podcast Episode 4 from jon tandy on Vimeo.

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Jon Tandy Podcast Episode 03 – Going Out on the Doorstep from jon tandy on Vimeo.

Show Notes

In this episode I update you on which areas I have been out knocking on doors and talking with local people about the issues that matter to them as well as the areas that I will be covering in the next few days.

I will be releasing Policy podcasts during the next few days each covering one particular policy.

[1 min 43 seconds]

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jon tandy podcast 02 – What’s at Stake from jon tandy on Vimeo.

Show Notes

In this episode I look at what is at stake in this years General Election and ask if we can afford to let the Tories win this May.

David Cameron’s cuts to Sure Start children’s centres would deal a devastating blow to Shrewsbury families on middle and modest incomes – that was the message from Jon Tandy as they launched their “Save Our Sure Start” campaign against Tory plans to take £200 million from Sure Start.

On the same day that Labour announced it has delivered on its pledge to build 3,500 Sure Start centres across England, the campaign in Shrewsbury against Conservative plans to cut Sure Start for families on middle and modest incomes gathered pace, with people campaigning door to door and online at www.saveoursurestart.com

Jon Tandy, Labour’s MP / PPC for Shrewsbury and Atcham  said:

“Sure Start has given thousands of children the best possible start in life, delivering real benefits to the education and health of families across Shrewsbury.  I’m proud that with Labour’s continued support for Sure Start, all families, including those on middle and modest incomes, will continue to have access these wonderful facilities.

“Mums and dads in Shrewsbury are taking a long, hard look at the Tories and they can see how much damage David Cameron’s Sure Start cuts could do to. That’s why I’m backing the campaign to “Save Our Sure Start” here in Shrewsbury and Atcham.  People must realise that Sure Starts, like the wonderful Sunflower House  Kendal Road, Shrewsbury will only be safe in Labour’s hands.

“Before Labour came to power there were no Sure Start centres. But today there are thousands of families on middle and modest incomes across  Shrewsbury who rely upon the fantastic services they provide.

“By offering top-class support to all mums and dads, Sure Start has changed countless lives for the better.  How would Shropshire’s 13,000 families with children under 5 year cope if their local centre was to close? I just don’t know – and the Tories just don’t seem to care. That’s why I’m determined to take the fight out into communities across Shrewsbury and Atcham, and online at www.saveoursurestart.com I would urge all parents to join the campaign.

“By diverting £200 million of funding away from Sure Start, David Cameron has shown once again that he has the wrong priorities for Britain. But with Labour’s future fair for all, every child is guaranteed the Sure Start in life that they deserve.”

The Labour party has been well represented here in recent elections gathering significant support from the public and the official General Election Results for the most recent General Elections (1997-2005) show this trend.

The results show that in the last three General elections in Shrewsbury and Atcham, more voters cast their ballot for Labour, with Labour polling 3,441 votes more than the Tories over the period 1997-2005. This represents a 2.33% lead by Labour over the period.

The Liberal Democrats do not perform well here, receiving only 31,498 votes during this period and never winning this seat in modern times, their last victory was in 1923!

The results clearly show that only Labour have ever beaten the Tories here and over the last three General Elections have secured 40.51% of the vote compared to the Tories 38.18% of the Vote.

The results from 1997 show that in Shrewsbury and Atcham Labour won the seat from the Tories with a majority of 1.670 votes which represents 3.14% of all votes cast. It wasLabour who saved Shrewsbury and Atcham from the disgraced Tory MP Derek Conway, the father of the MP’s expenses scandal.

The Liberal Democrats did not poll well here, receiving only 13,838 votes which represents only 26.04% of votes cast during this period compared to Labours 38.55%. The result shows that Labour can and have won here in recent times.

The results from 2001 show that in Shrewsbury and Atcham, Labour held the seat with a significant majority of 3,579 votes which represents 7.6% of all votes cast

The Liberal Democrats again performed poorly in Shrewsbury & Atcham, receiving only 6,173 votes which represents only 13.11% of votes cast during this period compared to Labour’s 47.25%. The result shows that Labour can, and have, held a seat here in recent times and by a significant majority. This result also shows if voters do not want a Tory MP, the only way to be sure is to vote for the Labour candidate.

The letters page of the same edition of the Star continues in the same vein.  Local resident Ian Minshall reports that at the public meeting in Hanwood Village Hall organised by Daniel Kawczynski, he asked about the UK’s continued membership of the EU. The amazing reply from our MP was that if he received as few as 500 letters from constituents seeking UK withdrawal from the EU, he would campaign to his Party leader, David Cameron, to make the UK leaving the EU official Conservative policy!

Assuming the letter records the meeting accurately, this is a bombshell. Conservative policy is unequivocal that Britain should remain a full member of the EU. Yet upon receipt of letters from less than 1%  of his electorate, he will attempt to reverse the whole Tory position on Europe and re-ignite all the divisions that wrecked the party in the past. And don’t believe 500 letters will take long to arrive. On the very same letters page was yet another contribution from Oswestry’s strongest critic of all things European, Bob Wydell. In his letter he mentions that he has written between 1300 to 1400 letters to the press, before once again fretting about the mass immigration he feels has swamped Oswestry.  It will not take Bob’s friends long to fill Daniel’s postbag to the required level.

For me, Daniel Kawczynski’s position on Europe has always been full of contradictions. In debates in Parliament he frequently adopts a very critical tone to the EU, describing himself as an “Arch-Eurosceptic”  regularly.  Yet the rest of Europe does not share his views, countries keep joining and more are in the queue to join the 27 members of the current EU. This included Poland, when 0ver 38 million Poles joined the EU in 2004. It is strange how insular and anti-European his views are, when one considers Daniel Kawczynski was born in Warsaw and lived in Poland until he was 11 years old.