Rally for a hospital

Some 1,500 came along for the hospital rally and march on Saturday.

Afterwards, I joined Cllr David Hannent at Blakes to help raise funds for the Dover hospital campaign. We pulled pints behind the bar. Blakes kindly donated all profits from the event to the hospital campaign fund.

It was great fun to help raise funds for the hospital campaign. Blakes have been incredibly generous in their support. Cllr Hannent deserves the congratulations of the whole community for the great work he did with Reg Hansell to organise the most amazing and successful march I've ever seen.

Marching for a hospital

Over the last ten years, Buckland Hospital has been ruined by the Government. It's now got to the point where it isn't really a hospital at all - not beds, no doctor led emergency services.

Today I joined the march of some 1,500 people calling for Dover to have a proper hospital. Reg Hansell and the Dover Hospital campaign group organised it. I spoke of the need for Dover to have its fair share and a proper hospital was part of that.

In the picture, Reg is in the foreground as I have a few words with the charming and engaging C Cllr Newman, who represents Dover Town at KCC.

World Hepatitis C Day marked

World Hepatitis C Day was 19 May 2008. I joined Dover Hepatitis C campaigner Tracy de Gietelink to mark the day.

Few infected people know they have the condition. Tracy, who herself has Hepatitis C, runs the "Woman Aloud" The C in Me workshop to bring attention to Hepatitis C and how carriers can avoid infecting others.

Tracy told me that this condition is the leading cause of liver disease worldwide. Yet Hepatitis C has a 'zero' profile amongst the general population in this country.

Hepatitis C is most commonly associated with drug users, and the prison population, so measures are already in place in these areas, to educate and identify carriers of the virus. The workshop seeks to reach the people, especially women, (there's been a 40% increase in ladies over the age of 60, diagnosed with Hepatitis C, in the last year) who have had either medical or dental procedures, before 1991, (when proper Hep C screening of blood donations began). They might have unknowingly received contaminated blood products.

Another group that need flagging up are the growing amount of people of all ages having body art and piercings. As Hepatitis C shows no symptoms, until the end, who knows who sat in that chair before them? It could have been anyone. Tracey was diagnosed with Hepatitis C in 1991… after having given blood on 3 prior occasions.

I was really impressed by Tracy. She is doing fantastic work - not for herself, but to warn others to take care. That's real compassion. I admire Tracy so much for her work. She highlighted to me the importance for routine medical testing for Hepatitis C.

Go Whites!

Congratulations to Dover Athletic on becoming Ryman League Division One South champions.

Winning the league was a tremendous feat and a great success for the club and our community. I was personally overjoyed to see the team lift the cup recently following the Sittingbourne game and take it for a well deserved walk around the pitch! The team deserve the highest praise for their great effort and the brilliant result.

Yet congratulations are also due to everyone at the club who helped achieve victory. Not least the club's board. The long, near 4 year, march back from relegations and financial problems didn't just happen by chance. It happened because of the unity of purpose shared by everyone at the club from the board downward. This I saw for myself attending the presentation dinner at the Ramada.

The Whites are so fortunate to be so well supported. There are regularly over 1,200 supporters in the Dover terraces. With this kind of support, the team can only go from strength to strength. Go Whites!

Gordon Brown's 10p tax con

Last week the Government made a "U Turn" on the abolition of the 10p tax band. Except . . . it's all a massive con!

The rebels (who include Dover's MP Gwynfor Prosser) have been duped by Gordon Brown and the Government. In the Dover constituency the estimated 5,000 losers are reduced to 3,000 losers only. It's a disgrace that 3,000 of our poorest neighbours will still lose out. Especially when real local earnings have been falling and the cost of living rising.

Who would have thought that a Labour Government would cut taxes for the rich and raise taxes for the poorest?

Carnival Selection Day

Today I attended the carnival selection. This is, clearly, a risky thing for anyone, anywhere near politics to go!! However, it was great fun and I had the wonderful Mandie Sehmbi to look after me, as you can see.

A particular congratulations to Marek whose lovely daughter (left photo) was chosen as a carnival rose.

Meeting the A258 Action Group

The A258 road from Dover to Deal is a disgrace. For years it has been a serious danger and nothing has been done about it. Lots of warm words, no action. So I arranged for the families who have lost loved ones on this dangerous road to meet Theresa Villiers MP, Shadow Transport Secretary.

It was a really good meeting. I learned a lot. The families were so passionate and sincere. They fight, not for themselves, but so that other families do not suffer the loss they have suffered. That's real compassion. I was greatly moved and will do all I can to help.

Elvington surgery

Residents of Elvington and Eythorne have been concerned about their GP services for some time. Today the primary care trust held a public meeting to discuss what should be done.

The views of residents were represented with great strength by District Cllrs Jennifer Record (pictured right) and David Lloyd Jones along with Parish cllr Reg Hansell (middle). Hopefully we shall see some action and I will keep monitoring the situation.

6,722 Dover & Deal households risk repossession say experts

So says Experian, the credit rating experts. 6,722 households in Dover & Deal have poor credit ratings and are "at risk" of falling behind on mortage payments or repossession.

The evidence shows that as the credit crunch bites, mortgage rates are rising sharply, mortgages are harder to find and property prices across the UK are falling at their sharpest rate for 30 years.

The Government needs to act quickly before it is too late. They need to help get people access to mortgages and better rates. Otherwise we will see what is currently worry turn into a real house price slide. One person I spoke to in Deal last week told me they had a mortage offer at a nearly 10% interest rate. I nearly fell off my chair.

The financial system is complicated - but the Government should follow the advice of Shadow Chancellor George Osborne and allow banks to sell mortages to the Bank of England in return for Government bonds. That would enable banks quickly to get hold of more cash and start lending again - at better rates. The Government also needs to do more to help the least well off. Now is the time to save the 10p rate of tax, not raise taxes on the least well off as planned.

Labour increase taxes on the poorest

Figures show that millions of the UK's poorest people will pay more in tax as a result of the scrapping of the 10p rate band. The Government has confirmed that 5.3 million will lose out under the changes - over 5,000 of whom live in Dover & Deal.

I was delighted to see that Dover's Labour MP signed a Parliamentary Motion opposing the changes. Yet to make a real difference he will need to vote against the tax change itself. It will come to Parliament for a vote shortly.

The poorest in our communities are already hard pressed by rising prices and the credit crunch. There just isn't the room to pay even more tax. I urge Mr Prosser follow his instincts and stand up for hard working people in Dover & Deal when it counts by voting against this unfair and unjust measure.