My week ahead, 1 - 7 September 2014

Monday – 1 September, 6pm – Labour campaigning Central Ipswich

Wednesday – 3 September, 9an – Planning committee

Thursday – 4 September, 10am Labour campaigning in NW Ipswich

Slightly less campaigning this week as I concentrate on catching up with all the case work I have gathered over the last month – and over 90% of that case work involves the state of the roads in Rushmere.

The Suffolk County Council seems to have just given up on Ipswich. It takes a considerable effort by our Labour County Councillors to get any work done and when they finally get a job to be done it then takes many hours of both councillor and Officer time to make sure the job is completed satisfactorily.

I pin most of the blame for these failings on the Tory run County Council and there insistence to farm out the responsibility for highways to a private firm.

Currently in Brunswick Rd, we are having work carried out to repair both the road and verges, the go ahead for this work was only made possible after constant lobbying by Sandra Gage our Labour County Councillor. The work required the road to closed but the County would only send letters to the residents right next to the closure. After further discussions it was agreed to leaflet the adjoining roads who would be part of the detour route. The County printed the leaflets but we had to deliver them.

Residents are now informing us that the road is closed but little work seems to be going on, after checking myself I have doubts the work will be completed by the planned finishing date at the end of week. This could mean the road remaining closed with pupils back at local schools.

The Tory Cabinet on Suffolk County Council seem to have regular meeting with Tory MPs, often leading to a quick change in policy or as with the location of a traveller site- dropped before the consultation even starts, so maybe at one of these meetings Mr Gummer and Poulter should be asking if the same issues we are having over highways are also happening throughout the county. I for one have a feeling that others parts of the county do not suffer like Ipswich residents do when it comes to the service they receive when it comes to highway maintenance.