Archive for November 9th, 2013
Saturday, November 9th, 2013
Cllr John Garner – Mayor of Tamworth 2013/14
Traditional Christmas hampers will be given out by the Mayor of Tamworth to spread some festive cheer.
The Mayor will be distributing 250 hampers to elderly and disabled residents in Tamworth this year, and is now asking for nominations.
Age UK, local church groups and ex-service groups will be helping to deliver the hampers filled with traditional Christmas favourites. The Mayor will also personally deliver as many as he can.
Cllr John Garner, Mayor of Tamworth and Conservative ward councillor for Amington, said, “While we are looking forward to Christmas and spending time with loved ones, I want to make sure we give a thought to those who may not have friends and family to spend the festive period with.
“This time of year should bring people together and remind them that they are not alone. If anyone knows of someone who would like to receive a hamper, please get in touch.”
To nominate someone to receive a hamper, please contact Democratic Services on 01827 709265, or write to Lin Street, Democratic Services, Marmion House, Tamworth, B79 7BZ. The closing date for entries is Monday December 2.
Hampers will be allocated on a first come, first served basis and anyone nominated must live in the borough of Tamworth and delivery will start in the week beginning Monday December 9.
Saturday, November 9th, 2013
Conservative MPs have rallied behind a bill promising an EU referendum in the face of Labour attempts to derail it.
Yesterday in the House of Commons, legislation urging a referendum by 2017 was discussed for five hours but no major votes were held and the debate was adjourned until later this month, but the sponsor of the bill, Conservative MP James Wharton, said it had made “reasonable progress”.
The first in three days of detailed debate on Mr Wharton’s bill concluded with Conservatives and Labour arguing over parliamentary tactics. In an effort to slow its progress, Labour MPs raised a host of related issues at length, including whether residents of Gibraltar and prisoners should be able to vote in a future referendum.
Mr Cameron’s referendum pledge, following a renegotiation of the UK’s relationship with Brussels, cannot be made law in the form of a coalition government bill because of Lib Dem opposition.
Conservative backbencher Mr Wharton agreed to propose the legislation after he came top in a ballot of MPs private members’ bill and many Tories pushed for the referendum commitment to be made binding before the 2015 general election. The bill has now reached its “report stage”, where amendments can be discussed in detail. More than 50 amendments have been tabled, including 36 alone by Labour’s Mike Gapes.
Mr Gapes, who spoke for about an hour, defended his approach, saying the bill as it stood was “inadequate” and required “more proper consideration”. His colleague Barry Sheerman said it was “furtive and unseemly” to have such an important constitutional matter considered via a private member’s bill rather than through government legislation.
Mr Wharton told the BBC’s Daily Politics his bill was making “reasonable progress” but acknowledged it was “going to be slow going”. He said Labour and Lib Dem opponents wanted to delay the bill so it ran out of parliamentary time, adding, “We are going to do everything we can to stop that from happening.”
Private members’ bills normally have little chance of becoming law due to lack of parliamentary time, unless they are backed by the government. But Mr Wharton’s bill is being treated differently because David Cameron wants it to become law, to send a signal to his MPs and the public that he is serious about his commitment to hold a referendum.
If the bill makes it through the Commons, it will go to the Lords for further discussion in the next few months.
