Paddy Ashdown and Dr Sue Farrant Campaigning in Bridport

Paddy Ashdown, former leader of the Liberal Democrats, visited Bridport today to lend his support to Dr Sue Farrant’s election campaign.

In front of a large crowd in the town centre, he spoke of his support for Sue Farrant’s candidacy as the West Dorset Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate and on the subject of Conservative waste.

In particular, the issue of the Conservative-led West Dorset District Council’s plans to build a new £15 million headquarters in Dorchester. Sue Farrant has been campaigning to allow the people of West Dorset a proper consultation period over the proposed building and Lord Ashdown was not surprised to hear of the support she has gained.

Lord Ashdown said: “It is the same old Tories. They say they have changed, but nothing changes. A similar thing happened in Torbay where no consultation was given to the people about new offices there.

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Paddy Ashdown and Sue Farrant

Paddy Ashdown, former leader of the Liberal Democrats, will be visiting Bridport on Monday 12^th April to lend his support to Dr Sue Farrant’s General Election campaign for the West Dorset.

The schedule for the day is as follows:

10.30am Meet at Bucky Doo Square. Walk about and visit local shops.

11am Visit to Arts Centre – Exhibition. Coffee and questions.

All are welcome to come and meet Sue and Paddy.

Dr Sue Farrant has announced an online poll for all residents of West Dorset to have their say on the Council’s proposed new offices.

Dr Farrant said, “The cost of the new offices will be borne by every council tax payer in West Dorset and so everyone deserves the opportunity to have their say. I would urge people to go online and cast your vote so that we can have a clear picture of how people across West Dorset feel on this issue.”

The online poll has been set up using exactly the same question as that being used in the Dorchester town poll on the offices;

“Do you agree with the proposal of West Dorset District Council to move from their present head-quarters in High West Street to a new multi-million pound office block which they propose to build.”

You can find it at http://officespoll.org.uk with some background information on the Council’s argument for building itself new offices and some of the arguments against.  Do cast your vote and encourage your friends and neighbours to have their say. The outcome will be published in the coming weeks.

West Dorset District Council Offices

There has been a huge demand for a repeat of the public consultation opportunity which Dr Sue Farrant provided in Dorchester on 24 March.

She has now ararnged another meeting to be held in Bridport Town Hall on Monday 19 April starting at 6.30 pm.

This will give people an opportunity to ask questions about the Council’s scheme and to air their views.

Sue Farrant has invited Cllr Robert Gould, Leader of WDDC and prime mover of the scheme and Oliver Letwin MP.

“I think it is important that they both hear what people have to say about this,” she said. “Both Mr Letwin and Cllr Gould are supporting the proposal to build new offices and are claiming that it will save money in the long run. The response from the first meeting made it clear that council tax payers are not at all convinced!”

All are welcome at the meeting.

Residents of Dochester have demanded a Town Poll on the District Council’s intention to build new offices. All electors in the town will have a vote and the Poll will be held on Thursday 22 April between 4 pm and  9pm.

Conservative-run West Dorset District Council says it has consulted everyone about plans to build itself new Council offices.

Strange then that the public meeting organised by Dr Sue Farrant, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate, was packed out with hundreds of people wanting to know more and to have their say.

The Council also says that it has public support for their multi-million pound scheme. Their plan is to move out of historic Stratton House in Dorchester and into specially-built offices off Charles Street. A senior Council officer recently said the cost could be £15 million although the Council’s official figure is £10.5 million.

The meeting on 24 March heard the WDDC’s financial case for the move pulled apart by a series of speakers. They included a previous WDDC architect who told the meeting that it was perfectly possible and a great deal cheaper to adapt Stratton House to meet the Council’s needs.

In final show of hands, not a single person there agreed with the Council’s plans.

The prime movers of the scheme, Councillor Robert Gould, the Council’s Leader, and the Chief Executive, had refused to come to the meeting to answer people’s questions, despite repeated invitations from Sue Farrant.

Sue Farrant has now written to Cllr Gould telling him that he does not have public support for building new Council offices at public expense. She has called on him to abandon it now rather than waste even more public money on trying to push the scheme through.

The Leader and Chief Executive of West Dorset District Council have been invited to come and explain the council’s decision to build new WDDC offices off Charles Street.

The meeting will be chaired by Dr Sue Farrant, the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate.

All West Dorset residents are welcome.

Come and ask questions and have your say.

Wednesday 24th March 2010 at United Church, South Street Dorchester 6.30 – 8.30pm

Dr Sue Farrant visits Southill Day Centre

Dr Sue Farrant, Liberal Democrat candidate for West Dorset, visited Southill Day Centre for adults with learning disabilities last week to answer questions on a wide range of issues.  Topics included the future of day care services, concessionary bus fares, the government’s strategy for adults with learning difficulties and the NHS.

“It was an enjoyable morning with lots of searching questions put to us,” said Dr Sue Farrant.  “I hope it will help the service users to decide how to use their votes when the time comes.”

During the visit, Dr Sue Farrant expressed her concern about the way that the government’s Valuing People strategy for adults with learning disabilities was being implemented in West Dorset. Referring to the Albany Unit and Whitehouse resource centre in Sherborne, she said that she supported the Valuing People principles but wanted to see more choices being offered to service users and their families.

After the welcomed response by local residents to the change to the 58 service, which now stops at Coldharbour roundabout, Dr Sue Farrant has concerns about the impact this has now had on people in the Newland/Oborne Road area.

Dr Farrant has contacted First buses with a proposal to re-route the 57 bus service to run eastwards down Newland, stopping outside the Newland flats and turning right into Long Street.

In February, she sent out a survey to the local residents and several replied that they had been significantly affected by the change.

In proposing the re-routing plan, Dr Farrant said: “This would at least help people to get into Sherborne from where they could connect with the 58 service if they wanted to go to Yeovil or Wincanton.”

Dr Farrant has also raised the matter of ticket prices between Sherborne and Yeovil. Currently, a single ticket is priced at £3.55 and a return at £6.40 (peak) or £5.70 (off peak).  She has asked First to explain how they arrived at these fares and how they compare to journeys of a similar length.

She has also asked them to consider reducing the ticket price for a pilot period to see if it encourages people to travel.

Dr Sue Farrant with Phoebe Asiyo

Dr Sue Farrant, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for West Dorset attended the launch of aid agency Concern Worldwide’s Women Can’t Wait campaign, which is calling on the UN and world leaders to act now to support poor women across the developing world in their fight against hunger before it is too late.

The campaign was launched on Monday 8 March 2010 at a VIP reception in the House of Lords to mark International Women’s Day, with moving speeches from Ms Phoebe Asiyo, UNIFEM Goodwill Ambassador from Kenya and Baroness Nuala O’Loan DBE.

The speeches and powerful film footage of women in Africa telling their stories of hardship, all drew attention to the fact that, despite commitments made by world leaders in 2000 to ‘end poverty by 2015’, for the first time in human history there are over a billion people going to bed hungry every night and the majority of these are women.

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