Derbyshire Conservative Conference at Ashover Village Hall 28th March 2009

A team from South Derbyshire
travelled up to Ashover, near
Matlock, for a Conference on
Conservative policies on Tourism.

We were lucky enough to have
as guest speakers Shadow
Minister for Culture, Tourism
and Leisure Jeremy Hunt MP and
of course Chief Whip Patrick McCloughlin MP.

Jeremy gave an excellent speech, showing how well he understood and had a passion for Tourism. This could not have been more relevant following on from the Tourism seminar we have recently held in our area. When the local economy is so challenged and people are interested in diversifying this was an opportunity to discuss Conservative plans for the future.

Help and advice for tourism sector

Tourism businesses in South Derbyshire were invited to attend an event to make them more aware of support available to them, held at Sharpe’s Pottery Museum, Swadlincote, on 24 March 2009.
The event follows on from the successful ‘In the pipeline’ construction products tour, held in early March, which gave over thirty local businesses the chance to network.
The ‘Tourism Business Briefing’was provided for tourism businesses or those thinking of setting up in the sector. This could be anyone from hotel owners to camping parks or food and drink suppliers.
Guests heard several presentations, including one by William Smart of East Midlands Tourism detailing the support that is available to local businesses.
Other speakers at the event discussed effective use of the Internet, how to capture UK tourists and attract overseas visitors and current issues affecting the industry.
There was also displays to view and plenty of time to ask questions.
As Leader of South Derbyshire District Council I know we are doing everything it can to help local businesses in these difficult times. Assistance including grants and advice are available to businesses through a variety of agencies – the aim is to ensure that business people are aware of everything that they could benefit from.
The event run by South Derbyshire District Council and Business Link East Midlands, is held as part of a series of sector-specific events designed to raise awareness of support available to businesses.
It was a great success with companies and businesses attending from al over the District.

Party Chairman Eric Pickles MP visits us in Swadlincote Thursday 19th March 2009

Burton Mail captured the event and their article is shown in full below
photo by Simon Deacon
Nissen hut is new base for political battle
by TIM FLETCHER
SOUTH DERBYSHIRE Tories have been boosted by a visit from Conservative Party chairman Eric Pickles MP.




Mr Pickles, who represents Brentwood and Ongar and who is Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, visited Swadlincote to officially launch the party’s new headquarters, at the Nissen hut, in Church Street.

He also discussed strategy for the party’s campaign for the Derbyshire County Council elections being held in June.

South Derbyshire District Council leader and prospective Conservative parliamentary candidate Heather Wheeler said the party was ’raring to go’ in its bid to evict the ruling Labour group from County Hall, in Matlock.

"The visit went very well and Eric had the opportunity to meet a lot of our candidates for the June elections," she said.

"He was very pleased with the progress the party are making locally and the fact that we are coming up with policies on efficiency and value for money.

"We want to build on the success of winning the district council in 2007, and we have a number of seats in our sights. We are settled into our new office now and we are all raring to go."

David Cameron email to Heather

Here is some information that David Cameron has sent to me that I want to share with you. I have attached the video to the bottom of this post.

Dear Heather,

Thank you once again for the incredible amount of support shown to Sam and I after the death of our son, Ivan - it really meant a lot to us.

I've been back to work this week, and on Friday night I gave an important speech in Birmingham about the economy. You can watch me talk about it in this video, and read the full text on our website.

I think people want to hear some straight-talking about the economy. They want to know how we all - especially politicians - got into this mess. And they are ready to hear about what we are going to have to do to get out of recession and into recovery. That's what this speech was all about.

Unfortunately, this Labour Government is keeping its head firmly and stubbornly in the sand. How can you take responsibility for bringing us out of this economic crisis, if you don't take responsibility for at least some of the decisions that got us into this crisis in the first place?

Sorry shouldn't be the hardest word - that's the easy bit. The difficult bit is actually learning the lessons from your mistakes, and taking action to make sure they don't happen again.

Britain is not somehow entitled to economic growth and prosperity. It has to be earned - by having the honesty to face up to our fundamental weaknesses, and having the courage to turn them around.

Flood defences checked out In Egginton

On this beautiful Spring morning
(13th March 2009) I visited the work
being undertaken on behalf of the
Environment Agency (EA) on flood
defences from Uttoxeter down to Burton.
The lady I met this morning was Teri-Anne Curtis and she is a Geotechnical Engineer working for Ian Farmer and Associates. With her were two skilled workmen who were drilling and depositing, carefully, core samples from the earth bund that acts as a flood defence for Egginton.

This is happening because a Flood Risk Management Strategy for the River Dove is currently being prepared by the Environment Agency. This will appraise options for the reduction of flood risk, paying particular attention to the communities of Hatton and Scropton. In order to undertake this exercise, supporting data is required. Whilst the EA have recently acquired survey and hydraulic modelling information through other studies, they do not have sufficient details regarding the structural integrity of the existing defences. Option appraisal will always consider the improvement of the existing defences and for this to be undertaken reliably they will need to establish accurately the existing condition of these defences, hence this survey work.
Our local EA Midlands Design Team Leader Mark Swain really knows his stuff and as a local is as determined as I am to make sure our villages have the appropriate flood defences. This preliminary work is essential to help build the picture of what is needed, where, why and how.
Flooding and the fear of flooding blights too many lives in South Derbyshire and I am sure that this excellent working relationship that we have with the EA will bring benefits and help protect us.

GORDON LE ROTTER

On Friday 6th March 2009
I visited Dame Catherine
Harpur’s school in Ticknall.


This excellent school was
host to a touring drama
called Gordon le Rotter which had appeared at many other schools in South Derbyshire in the week.

I was intrigued by the title of the play and I felt a little visit was called for!

In fact our Council was sponsoring the touring company to help, in an innovative way, to get the message across about waste re-cycling. It was a magical way to spend some time. The children,
aged from 4 to 11, were spellbound as the very talented actress put over the message about (not) wasting food.
The point being reduce, re-use, re-cycle.

So rest assured your Council Tax is not being spent on party political propaganda telling you how awful Gordon Brown is but is being used to tell an important message to children in a fun way about cutting waste and the importance of re-cycling any waste left over.

I was truly impressed with the way headteacher Margaret Whyte and her team run the school. Have
a look at their website for more details www.damecatherines.co.uk