The Vision Thing

Oh here we go again – after Destination Excellence,What Really Matters and Future
Council  (just don’t mention Future Blueprint) here comes another new meaningless Wirral Council plan launched by Power Boy Pip and we regret to have to tell you it’s back to one of those old soundbite standbys – it’s all about the vision thing again.

20/20 Vision (aka Pip’s Pledges) is a  5 year plan of 20 pledges to be achieved by 2020 (geddit?) and by which apparently the people of Wirral can hold Power Boy to account (good luck with that one !).

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/20-ways-residents-hold-wirral-9550595

Most of the the pledges themselves are so vague,broad or simply unable to be measured they are virtually meaningless .We can only assume Pip’s gang must have been holed up in a room in Wallasey Town Hall and were under strict instructions they couldn’t leave for a round of golf until they’d reached the number 20.

For example we’d particularly like to know how exactly the following will  a) be achieved  b) be measured and c) how the blithering hell we can be expected to hold anyone to account on any of them! .

1. Improve the quality of life of older people 

2. Ensure children are ready to start school 

9. Develop workforce with skills that meet the needs of businesses for the future

15. Increased access to events and activities for all residents

17. Make community services “joined up and accessible”

The 20/20 Vision pledges seem to us to be so very reminiscent of former Labour leader Miliband’s infamous “Ed Stone” which is all the more surprising considering Frankenfield has previously been so disparaging of this woeful PR stunt as he so melodramatically wailed:

“Will any of them break free ,confess the weakness that now engulfs Labour and point us in a new direction where political principles outweigh gimmicky press releases…….

https://wirralleaks.wordpress.com/2015/06/05/atonement/

We think that Frankenfield’s wise words seem equally applicable to 20/20 Vision but our dearly beloved saint in waiting does seem to have a particular “blind spot” when it comes to the local Labour group doesn’t he?.

To save Pip’s gang (under the direction of Frankenfield obviously) of maintaining this charade for the next 5 years we’d like them instead to turn their attention to just the following 4 pledges :

1.Sort out the Jim Crabtree  suspension

Outcome measure :He’s one of the gang – so no case to answer

2.Sort out the Louise Reece-Jones suspension

Outcome measure :She’s not one of the gang – so it’s bye -bye Lou-Lou

3.Sort out Wirralgate! 

Outcome measure: All those involved ARE the gang – so cheques all round

4.Sort out the she who shall remain nameless  “situation”

Outcome measure :She’s no longer one of the gang – so it’s bound to turn ug(g)ly….unless another big cheque arrives in the post.

Jim’ll Fix It

We’re hearing there were some very curious campaigning practices leading up the elections in May including Frank “Family Man” Field being accompanied on his doorstep visits by 2 children ( a boy and a girl) on his rounds in Rock Ferry. Any further information and witness reports on what all that was about will be gratefully received.

However by far and away the most worrying information we have received concerns the electioneering antics of belligerent Bidston & St.James councillor Jim “Crabby” Crabtree.

It is alleged by an appalled Labour insider that on the run up to Polling Day Crabtree loaded up the mini -bus he has access to as a tutor in horticulture at the Twelve Quays site with a group of Special Educational Needs kids and a teaching assistant from Meadowside Special School to help him deliver leaflets on behalf of the Labour Party………

It is further alleged an irate parent who got wind of this exploitative and wholly unethical practice complained to no avail to Cllr Matthew Daniel who was running the local Labour campaign.

They then tried complaining to the Davies a trio of Phil,George and then Bill (Labour’s Chief Whip – who seems to be doing a really miserable job of reining in his seemingly totally out of control councillors ).

After receiving no response from any of them the concerned parent then wrote to Anna Hutchinson the Regional Director of Labour North West. Hutchinson did not reply.

Undaunted the persistent parent emailed Hutchinson again and received a reply saying that Labour North West would look into it.
After weeks of no response from Labour North West and after receiving an abusive email from the charming Cllr Crabtree they sent all the paperwork concerning the incident by recorded delivery to new Wirral Council CEO “Stressed” Eric Robinson along with a formal complaint.

After what seems to be Eric the Red’s quickly established decisive executive decision making process of “I -don’t-know-what-to-do-so-I’ll-ignore-it” the complainant was compelled to email him again and he finally responded by passing the buck and saying the hot potato was in the scorched hands of Surjit Tour and he would be communicating directly with them.

As we go to press and true to form it seems that the “bloody useless” (© copyright Cllr.G.Davies) Director of Law has not communicated directly with the pushed-around parent – unless of course he’s practising the skills he’s picked up on a telepathic communications course.

Give him his due it seems that a re-born Brian Kenny having spent some time in the political wilderness after being ousted from his seat in Birkenhead & Tranmere has seen the light and on returning to Wirral Council as a councillor representing the same Bidston & St.James ward as Crabtree has expressed his disgust at these turn of events – although it seems his disgust doesn’t extend to actually helping the parent ensure that they actually get their complaint properly addressed.

However, we’re sure that “Crabby” and co will want to make a full and frank denial of these allegations and we look forward to him clearing up any misunderstanding as soon as possible.
Whilst he’s at it Jimbo might want to explain the curious circumstances from a few years back which led to his sudden departure from the employment of Wirral Council when he was a lowly support worker at Dale Farm.

Now that he’s rapidly risen through the ranks to chair the Audit and Risk Management Committee we’re sure that in the interest of openness and transparency “Crabby” will want to establish his impeccable credentials to lead Wirral Council on matters relating to accountability and corporate governance

Stop Being Silly

And so to the surprise of absolutely no-one the news arrives that Steal Holdings, sorry Peel Holdings have pulled out of the pipedream that was Wirral Waters International Trade Centre scheme.
We think Peel do protest too much when they claim that the split with investors Sam Wa is “amicable” and that the Chinese company is “squeaky clean” and that Stella Shiu is a “proper business person”.
Apparently Sam Wa are “going through due diligence to move the construction finance into the UK” which obviously means that if there is a failure of “due diligence” everyone involved in this debacle can turn around and blame the dead hand of bureaucracy

However Council leader Power Boy Pipsqueak Davies and degeneration, sorry regeneration maestro Kevin Addled seem determine to plough this fallow land.
Apparently by the sounds of it Stella the bankrupt from Sam Wa is going to fund it all by herself – probably from the profits made from selling giant marrows – who knows? Certainly Pipsqueak and Addled don’t seem to know as their far from convincing statements to the press prove. Check out  Pip doing his usual Pollyanna routine : HERE

“As I understand it, the way forward now is that Sam Wa who were going to be partnered with Peel, are going to be sole partner who are going to invest all of the money themselves……I’m still pretty confident it’s going to happen but now it will just be that Sam Wa will be landlord as whole on its own…….I think everybody always knew it was going to be a difficult deal to put together but I have spoken to Peel and I think they are confident in Sam Wa having got the financial muscle and Stella Shiu has the absolute determination and wants to make the Trade Centre happen……..”

Meanwhile Utterly Addled added: (see HERE)

“We have not been told by either Peel or Sam Wa that the ITC is not going to happen and on the contrary we have been told there is still the determination by Sam Wa for it to go ahead in Wirral.”

Well, that’s alright then!!  Determination will win the day!………or should that be the delusion?

Makes us want to get Eldritch to drive the Bentley down to Wallasey Town Hall to approach Pip and Addled and like the Sergeant Major in the Monty Python sketches halt proceedings by saying:
“Right stop that! stop that!.It’s gotten very silly , very silly indeed“.

It’s not loss of credibility that appears to be the most prominent issue here for Pipsqueak and co – there wasn’t any to begin with – but loss of marbles……

Reign of Shame

Foulkesy : What’s up wid ya Eric, la, you’ve got a gob on ya like a smacked arse.Just sign deez 4 cheques for 48 grand and then we can all go for a bevvy….

And so last week Wirral Council’s reign of shame came to an end as Mayor Foulkesy handed over the chains of office to Tory councillor Les “Tiny” Rowlands – who we hear is a man of conviction!.

As you can see from John Brace’s XXX-rated footage  HERE 

Foulkesy brought his supposed  “lovable” rogue persona to proceedings during his rambling farewell speech at Wallasey Town Hall – eulogizing about how proud he was to show people round the (lavishly refurbished) building – but not proud enough to have his own mayor making ceremony there obviously!

However, in a failed attempt at being profound and poignant,he saw fit to randomly make reference to carvings in the civic hall which he’d been told represented the past and the future.

We’d have thought any reference to Foulkesy’s past should have been best avoided – but this is one politician who’s living proof that history is (re)written by the victors.

Foulkesy was on more secure territory when he claimed he’d been requested to tell the assembled throng a few jokes as if he was auditioning for a slot as the new Bernard Manning on the bill at the Wheeltappers & Shunters Social Club.

Keeping it classy as usual he regaled the audience with a tale of a Birkenhead north ender who’d discovered a dead body but couldn’t spell the road he’d found the body in – so he’d moved it to one he could spell , so he could tell the police where to find the body.

Thereby reinforcing negative stereotypes that people from his ward are callous and stupid ( takes one to know one).Actually they recently voted this end of the pier and bottom of the bill clown back in – so actually he may have a point there.

But my how everyone laughed……” he’s such a colourful character isn’t he?” they all docilely nodded. ” Yes  – red and bloated” chipped in Her Ladyship.

He then mentioned that he’d help raised the not inconsiderable sum of £32,000 for “charidee”  – including such selfless tasks as a fundraising curry at the tandoori in Claughton village – my goodness such personal sacrifice – a curry ,a few beers and a stagger home afterwards – much as any other Friday night in Foulkes World we would have thought.

Obviously being a connoisseur of medieval literature Foulkesy then tried (and failed miserably ) to raise the tone by quoting from “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” :

“We’re described, the Wirral’s described as a mysterious, forested place inhabited by man and beast that God cannot love. It’s good to see the Wirral PR team still in action in the thirteenth century!”

With the Wirral’s  former PR guru currently “indisposed”  and  seemingly “disposable,” this was obviously an in-joke for those in the know. We have to say that Foulkesy and co certainly know how to kick someone when they’re down.We’re just left wondering whether such remarks will come back and bite the Council in the courtroom…..

This snide remark seemed particularly ungrateful when we consider that he failed to give specific thanks to the people that enabled him to hobnob over the hoi polloi and have the dubious honour of being  Wirral’s civic representative along with his consort – the Lovely Lainey – this past year. We were particularly surprised that he didn’t specifically thank Frank, George, Phil, Emma, Gary or Liam…..

However, these are but a few of the people that allowed this mayoral appointment to be made and to continue full term .Other than the councillors brave enough to publicly oppose Foulkesy ( take a bow Cllrs Blakeley and Cleary) all the elected members who colluded with this charade should be ashamed of themselves.

<After Foulkesy was ousted as Leader of the Council in a vote of no confidence it seems to us that allowing someone drunk on power to once again take the position of high office is like sending someone to rehab only to drive them straight to the pub after they've been discharged……….

Suspension Suspense

Following the time-honoured tradition of burying bad news it was announced (or rather it was dragged out of them) just prior to the elections ,that the North West Labour Party had suspended Wirral Labour Councillor Louise Reece Jones pending a further investigation.As you can see from the press report they are desperately trying to keep this one on media lockdown. HERE

Consequently, we have been asked whether we know why Cllr.Reecejones had been suspended – and needless to say – we do.

This is Wirral Council we’re talking about – where leaks are in direct proportion to secrets.

We publicly stated on Twitter that we wouldn’t want to jeopardise due process (an alien concept at Wallasey Town Hall) so we’ll keep a watching brief on this development for now.

We expect the usual – a report to be released on Christmas Eve stating how robustly Labour Party investigated the matter and there will be press release stating either a) there is no case to answer or b) appropriate sanction will be made as such misconduct will not be tolerated (unless you’re Cllr.Steve Foulkes or Cllr.George Davies).

Talking of which we were excited about new kid on the blog “The Morton Distortions” written by Wirral Council whistleblower Martin Morton but somewhat like Cllr.Reece jones that currently also seems to be in a state of suspended animation.

From what we’d read there were a couple of revelations about the Wirralgate scandal which we didn’t know about – but much of it we already knew and had already disclosed.

We’re just waiting information from a couple of sources and we’re ready to publish “The Definitive Guide to Wirralgate”.

Might we suggest that it might be useful to her if Cllr Reecejones reads the guide so as to understand what conduct the local Labour group think is or is not acceptable.

Failing that we think her only hope is to foster a friendship with Frankenfield very,very quickly or her days are numbered.

Wirral Leaks – Election Special

Hasta La Vista Esther

The big news here on Wirral was the ousting of Employment Minister Esther McVague from the Wirral West seat. Although it must be said this wasn’t exactly shocking considering “Detesting Esther ” had recently become a local pastime and plus the fact that the national Labour Party threw everything they could at this key marginal including sending in pugnacious “Lord” Prescott who posed awkwardly in West Kirby bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase “we’ll fight them on the beaches”.

It was clear from pictures from the election count that a frozen-faced McVague and her political agent Wirral Councillor Chris Blakeley , who was following her around like a depressed bulldog , knew the writing was on the wall (and we’re not talking about that unsightly graffiti in Hoylake). For all the gung-ho triumphalism of local Labour apparatchiks, we have to say it seems as though it was the UKIP vote that won it for them in the end as McVague’s vote astonishingly actually increased !!!

However, as our pre-election profile predicted – HERE

 

it’ll take more than an election defeat to keep McVague out of the political limelight. Back to her true calling of being in front of a camera with a microphone she announced: ” I’ll be back” like a Tiny Tory Terminator.

And of course she will be – she’ll land safely on her kitten heels thanks to the patronage of some powerful political friends.We predict that like a ruthless killing machine it will be some time before she’ll be terminating her lofty political ambitions.

Stu Kelly’s Blues

Locally it was the usual Labour and Conservative shoe-ins determined by the great Wirral East/West divide (and never the twain shall meet) . Shamefully Foulkesy was re-elected largely unopposed as were most of his Labour colleagues – although there was a spirited fight from the Greens in Council leader Power Boy Pip’s Birkenhead & Tranmere ward.Of course Pip benefited as usual from “The Field Factor” as locals voted in droves for anything wearing a red rosette even if the wearer of that red rosette resides in a less deprived and more salubrious and leafy part of Wirral. That is, of course, their prerogative – we just think they’re deserving of someone so much better.

However, credit, where it’s due the Labour group, pulled off a massive coup as Paul “Danceaway” Doughty ousted Lib Dem councillor Stuart Kelly from the Oxton ward. Kelly was one of the few opposition councillors who seemed ready, willing or able to mount a coherent challenge to dubious council practices so this seems to represent another victory for secrecy over scrutiny.

Stressed Eric Knows His Place

The election results provided the opportunity for new Wirral Council Chief Executive Eric Robinson to make his mark in his first public appearance as Returning Officer. However, it was apparent that Stressed Eric learned a salutory lesson about Wirral Council and where he stands (or rather kneels) as he was ousted from reading the General Election results by Mayor Foulkesy! Seems to us that Stressed Eric’s next job will involve meeting Frankenfield’s “demands” and having a cheque book thrust in front of him with the instruction: “sign here”!

Animal Crackers

As Mayor Foulkesy nears the end of his mayoral reign the tributes begin to pour in.  Readers are invited to enter our caption competition and win a stay at at award winning top notch Wirral love nest Mere Brook House.

New “News” is Bad News

Last week saw the launch of Birkenhead Constituency Committee’s long awaited Pravda meets poverty porn publication “Talk of the Town” ,er sorry no we mean “Toy Town”,no “Town Talk” ! which we’ve been breathlessly anticipating here at Leaky Towers – SEE HERE
The target audience for this most significant document since the Magna Carta is nailed in it’s introduction :
” So whether you live in Bidston,Rock Ferry ,Beechwood or Oxton we aim to have something in here for you and if there isn’t then let us know what is happening where you live and we’ll try to include it in our next edition”
Clearly there’s nothing of interest going on in Birkenhead,Prenton and Tranmere! either that or the people behind the publication are confident that they’ve got these wards boxed off in the forthcoming elections.

The previously avowed “apolitical” credentials of the newsletter are evidenced on page 1 as the first picture we see is a photograph of Frankenfield,Power Boy Pip and Matron McLaughlin “opening the cafe at the Vikes”.

Curiously there’s no mention in the newsletter that £22,000 of public money was given to Lairdside Communities Together to cobble together this PR opportunity. Readers will remember than in a previous Wirral Leaks story

https://wirralleaks.wordpress.com/2014/04/14/pravdacadabra/

that we identified that the first two names who appear listed as Company Directors of Lairdside Communities Together were Rock Ferry Labour Councillor Christine Meaden and Councillor Philip Leslie Davies aka Wirral Council leader Power Boy Pip

No conflict of interest there at all!.

Talking of which can somebody tell us why Frankenfield chairs the Birkenhead Constituency Committee?. How does an MP get to make decisions on council spending – is Power Boy Pip doing a job swap which means he will be galloping off to the House of Commons to vote ? …….

But then of course we need to remember it is Frankenfield who decides most things around here including the use of council money to bury bad news.

We are not providing a link to the document as you will waste 2 minutes of your life that you will never get back – unless of course you’re a fan of word searches. There’s a particularly hard gardening themed example at the end of the document featuring such challenges as “LILY” and “TULIP” .We wasted hours searching for what we thought was the most appropriate word : “COMPOST”.

Other than that it’s the usual stuff – community projects,volunteering for the unemployed and food banks. Worthy though these projects are we can’t help feeling that the Committee should have renamed the newsletter “Frank’s Foodbank Quarterly” and be done with it.

As you know Her Ladyship is a trash mag aficionado and makes some suggestions to “sex up” the next edition .She advises Lairdside Communities Together to take a peak at new women’s magazine OMG! which promises : “Your jaw will hit the floor when you read the SENSATIONAL real life tales of love cheats caught out, crimes that’ll make your hair stand on end and lots, lots more….”

As the Lord and Ladyship knows there’s enough of that around at Wirral Council to keep them in publication for eternity……

http://omg-magazine.co.uk/

The Mystery of The Missing Money

 

So let’s set the scene – a sophisticated soiree in Chester and a journalist sidles up to the then head honcho at Wirral Council and emboldened by alcohol and contempt (and tell us what journalist isn’t?) asks :

“So tell me what have you done with all the money….?”

Fast forward to a Wirral estate and a wizened Councillor who conspiratorially whispers about suspended Directors and the missing millions and click goes the record button…..

An Ode to Redundancies

Makeovers, cover ups

Piss ups and fuck ups

Toxic debts, taxi rides

Pay offs and inquiries

An improvement journey

On a runaway gravy train

Of fruitless foreign travels

‘Til the mystery unravels

They hired a consultant guru

Paid a premium to shaft you

Tell us: Is it finally understood

How you lost your livelihood ?

However as this particular roll call shows some Wirral Council staff have done rather well making “difficult decisions” when it comes to redundancies , proving once and for all there is no honour in honorariums –  it’s more about acting the part than acting up.

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/245102/response/617211/attach/3/857138.pdf

NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS

“There is a purpose to journalism…It is not to pander to political power, big corporations and rich men” – Peter Oborne – journalist resigning this week from Telegraph newspaper group

During the interminable run-up to the local and national elections we must learn to get used to PR and puff pieces and party political broadcasts masquerading as news so Wirral Leaks will continue to bring you the news that you won’t read in local newspapers or websites.
Wirral Council – please take note  below  are just some of the despairing correspondence sent to us recently by your adoring public…..

I Spy With My FOI

“Haven’t bothered for a while but seen John Braces video from the council budget proposals for the coming years and then was amazed to see my old job (only twelve months ago) with a hefty bit of investment and the promise of new staff to carry out a role deemed redundant only last March.
After many emails, F.O.I requests, meetings with councillors who soon disregarded me as soon as they realised I was talking sense and trying many other avenues to raise the point making us redundant was a stupid idea in the first place because their plan was built on lies and was quite shit also.

Now Philly boy has eventually decided that yes it was a shit idea and as he was told the Police couldn’t carry out the same role carried out by the council staff and for the amount of money invested in the cctv and repairs it was better left alone with the fully qualified staff carrying out their role much un-noticed but much admired and appreciated by Merseyside police officers and many other stakeholders. As previously stated they were all hoodwinked by our ex boss …… who is now failing to pitch for council contracts..thankfully.”

We Don’t Need No Education

“The level of misconduct, negligence and breach of the legal responsibilities of Wirral LEA (Local Education Authority) and Social Services confounds me.
I am being forced to take legal action against them as, even now, their behaviour (is) ridiculous.”

Our Source Is Outsourced

“I don’t know if you are aware that a company is being set up (extremely quickly!) by the council for all the services who trade / provide services to schools , it will run as a partnership with Cheshire and Cheshire West, like Cosocious. Staff will be type transferred across so they no longer will be council employees, they also will loose the option to take EVR /redundancy at the enhanced rate. No negotiations have been had with unions and staff have not been told t&cs (terms and conditions,) The financial information is not forthcoming to staff in relation to the ‘ business case ‘ that was drawn up by consultants ( which were apparently paid for by the government) so it makes the staff ask the question , is this company being set up to fail to rid the council of a number of staff at a reduced redundancy rate? I do wish to remain anonymous please, as repercussions do still happen within the council ”

Preaching to the Converted

‘Spect you’re v. busy with elections looming. Don’t know if the mormon councillor for Prenton’s standing for re-election in May but here’s some info about his ‘church’ & their latest efforts.

HERE 

“How he’s balanced commitment to this organisation with his role as a Labour councillor is baffling. Throw in his continued membership of XXX……well, just makes your head start to spin. Why is he still chair of a major committee? (Merseyside Pension Fund) & how does he find the time to fit everything in? His building company SDA’s got a lot of planning applications currently in process; the late (but unlamented) Dirty Food, Hoylake (prev Bej Vegetarian) restaurant’s been re-incarnated as Steak & Lobster & his day nursery (Little Angels), occupies a disused mormon meeting house in Moreton is pretty much full.”

Which brings us to …..

Alison McGovern wringing her hands –  HERE – & he’s coining it from this venture. Last OFSTED inspection (October 2012) reports 66 children in attendance. The mormons’ll conveniently overlook this one tho as all his income generates at least 10% for them so he’ll be filling their trough nicely & the good people of Wirral have helped those donations along over the last 4 years as his councillor allowance will also be available to tithe. Plus gift aid & if he is up for re-election, that’ll be another 4 years of creaming off the 10% from the long suffering citizens of Wirral.