My week ahead, 14 - 19 September 2015

Monday 14 September, 11am – Labour Party ‘coffee meeting’ – Pump and Grind, Great Coleman Street
4pm – Culture Portfolio meeting
6pm – Campaigning in South West Ipswich

Tuesday 15 September, 5pm – Early Warning Group

Wednesday 16 September, 5pm meeting with National Portfolio Arts organisation – Pacitti Company
7.30pm – North East Ipswich Labour members and supporters ‘get-together’ – The Old Times, Cauldwell Hall Rd

Thursday 17 September 6pm, North East Ipswich Partnership Group meeting
7pm – North East Ipswich Area Committee meeting, St John’s Church, Cauldwell Hall Rd

On Saturday we had a strong team out campaigning in South West Ipswich, we were informing residents of the large scale development planned for Chantry Vale – the area to the west of Chantry Park. The development is poorly planned, (there is no master plan) and the houses are of bad design – but the issue is that Chantry Vale is outside the Borough, it is in Tory run Babergh. It is their planning committee who will decide if the scheme is approved and if it is, it will be Babergh Council who will collect all the council tax but it is Ipswich where the new residents will look to for services not Sudbury or Hadleigh.

Now on the Northern Fringe we are making sure there is a master plan but we still face stiff opposition from the local Tories and both our Tory MPs. Mr Gummer was also against us building much needed affordable home in South East Ipswich. But when we come to Chantry Vale we are met with a deafening silence from the Tories.

Expect Mr Gummer to come up with the excuse of ‘not in his constituency’ – but it is his constituents who will face more traffic congestions, whose schools will have to take the pupils from Chantry Vale (Tory run Suffolk seem happy not task for any money from the developers towards secondary education). Mr Gummer was also quick to comment about the purchase of the old Sugar Beet factory (and that is also in Babergh)

Then we have the Tory leader, Mrs Cenci – whose main election campaign seemed to be about stopping the erection of a wind turbine (also in Babergh) but we have heard nothing from her or her fellow South West Tory councillors about the proposed Chantry Vale development – wonder why? Not up for election this year?

It is only Ipswich Labour who campaigns for resident’s week in week out, Mr Gummer has only been noticeable by his obvious absence from Ipswich this summer and the only time we seem to hear from him is when he is tweeting something prepared for him by Tory Central Office.

Then again why would be surprised that the Tory Party is still the party of ‘self interest’

Ipswich Labour will be passing on residents concerns about the Chantry Vale development to the Babergh Planning Committee.