A chance for common sense

The Fire Authority have given the Swansea Labour leader a
chance to do the right thing. Lets hope he takes it and re instates
 the chair and the experienced fireman that he has kicked off.

The Fire Authority had its first meeting yesterday since being made chairless by Swansea Labour. First up on the agenda was to elect a new chair. The cross party committee was both embarrassed and reluctant to progress this. Instead, they took a measured approach by deferring the decision until the September meeting.

The Fire Authority is well aware of the growing unrest that has been caused by Swansea Labour leader David Phillips who threw an experienced fireman off the committee for political reasons. 

Absent from this meeting was Labour Councillor Pearleen Sangha. She got into hot water by her vastly different recollection of events to others at the previous meeting.

We hope that Swansea Labour will reconsider their decision and allow the current chair and experienced fireman to continue their service without further ado.

Smiling all the way to his bank!

Plenty to smile about. Mitchell Theaker
has just gone AWOL with your cash
for another couple of weeks.

Councillor Mitchell Theaker is off again. The £31,900 undergraduate cabinet member not only refuses to pay council tax, he is off on his travels again spending your money. 
In a recent BBC article he said:


"Being involved in politics and in the local council is such a great way to make an impact directly on the lives of individuals and if you're in it for the right reasons, if you've got the real passion, I don't think there's anything that can stop you."

We thought we'd ask him how he was putting his fine words into practice.

Plans for Young People in Swansea

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FROM:

• Milking Swansea

TO:

• mitchell.theaker@swansea.gov.uk

Message flagged

Monday, 25 June 2012, 10:47

Dear Councillor Theaker

Congratulations on your election. We would like to know what your plans for helping young people are over the next month.

The Milking Swansea Team

And the reply?

Out of Office AutoReply: Plans for Young People in Swansea

Hide Details

FROM:

• Theaker, Mitchell (Councillor)

TO:

• Milking Swansea

Message flagged

Monday, 25 June 2012, 10:49

Thank you for your email. I am currently out of my office and won’t be back until the 12th of July.

Councillor Theaker: If you want people to believe what you say to the BBC, try turning up and earning the money we are paying you.

Councillor claims 90p to have her photo taken.

Lesley Walton claims 90p from the public purse to have her photo taken

Councillors normally claim petrol for attending meetings, particularly if they live a long way from the centre. It has been customary for those living within a mile not to bother claiming as the amounts have been very small.

The Swansea Labour leader, who lives on the first street as you go up Constitution Hill, in fairness doesn't claim. 
New councillor, who lives a street nearer to town, Lesley Walton does. She has been meticulous in her first month in registering 8 separate claims for 90 pence each. She even made a 90p claim when she had to go and have her photograph taken.
This mentality of claiming small amounts because 'I can', is a worrying sign of a jobsworth attitude. Will Lesley Walton go that extra mile for her Townhill constituents providing she gets her 45p back.
Perhaps the Swansea Labour leader would be willing to have a quiet word. This is not an impressive attitude when promoting the anti poverty strategy.
Something that does stand out though, is how organised and neat the form is compared to the handwritten efforts of others. A possible explanation is that Lesley Walton's husband, Jeff, spent time working for Alan Williams MP. He must have been a dab hand at filling out MPs expenses forms making sure that everything claimed was 'within the rules'.
We await June's petty claim form with interest.

6 Out of 10 couldn't be bothered

The first meeting of the new Swansea Labour cabinet took place last week. There are 10 cabinet members earning between  £32,000 and £52,000. Six of them simply stuck two fingers up at you and didn't turn up.

Sybil Crouch and David Phillips have got your
votes you pay them £84,000. They couldn't be
bothered now.

Mark Child

Rob Stewart. No one has found him
yet so here's of picture of Rod instead

Nick Bradley prefers the sun
and hasn't been near the
 place since May 24th.
Just look at his attendance!

Will Evans

Using the Fire Brigade to line pockets

Damaged goods: Swansea Labour may
be close to finding a job for the Robert
Francis Davies. He was the Labour cabinet member
when Labour shut the Leisure Centre in 2003.

Swansea Labour leader David Phillips' unwelcome political interference with the Fire Authority finally made it to the local paper today. This chapter involved removing recently elected chair, non Labour Counclillor Cheryl Philpott from the Fire Service so that he could force a Labour-friendly re vote. This is embarrassing for Swansea as the Labour leader's whim has put Swansea council on a collision course with the politically neutral Fire Service. They are still clearly recognising Cheryl Phillpott as their chair  even though David Phillips does not.
David Phillips' apparent motivation is to encourage the Fire Service members to vote in Labour councillor Robert Francis Davies in as chair. Councillor Francis Davies does not have any extra allowance at the moment. He was snubbed from having a cabinet or stadium position as he was seen as a liability associated with the Labour's Leisure Centre scandal. (Ironically, the Leisure Centre itself was closed by Labour in 2003 because it was a fire hazard)
It is sad that this is the second time that the Labour leader has used the Fire Service as a political pawn. He once accused them of favoritism on his own blog when someone he didn't like got an important job there.

A lucky financial escape?

Labour Councillor Pearleen Sangha has discovered
the tax benefits of single nationality

A recent article in the Santa Cruz Sentinel highlights the benefits of not having dual US and UK nationality. Local girl and newly elected Swansea Labour councillor Pearleen Sangha, aged 22, is perhaps a little over anxious to make the point that she is solely British as opposed to a joint citizen. The cautiously worded article states that the Labour councillor casually went to school in the US, left her parents behind with settled jobs and home life, to go to Swansea University.
Dual nationality can be a pain as London Mayor Boris Johnson found out. It means you have to enter the States using a US passport.
More importantly, it also means that you can't go home (wherever you choose not to call it!) too often otherwise your UK income is taxed in the States.

Playing Politics With Fire

FIRE: The crazy world of  Swansea Labour

In tomorrows papers will be an article outlining how Swansea Labour are now on a direct collision course with the Mid and West Wales Fire Service. Last week they voted in Cheryl Philpott in as their chair. Swansea Labour leader didn't like it and wanted a Labour chair.
To achieve this he used his bullying fists again by removing Lib Dem Councillor Philpott at yesterdays council meeting and also the Independent member Councillor Gordon Walker.
Councillor Walker is a retired firefighter and has Swansea Labour's greed has wound up firemen across the county.
They will more than likely be a firefighters' demonstration and some serious questions to be answered at the next council meeting.
The reason that Labour are giving for their conduct is that Councillor Walker wouldn't join their group on the Fire board. Labour councillors Robert Francis Davies and Pearleen Sangha are presently denying all knowledge of this. They are on the fire board and could be lined up for some £8,000 a year of taxpayers cash as the new chair.
Watch the press tomorrow for an update but you heard it here first.

Take the money and run!

Yesterday was a full council meeting. This is when cabinet members, each on a minimum of £31,900, can be questioned by fellow councillors and the general public. 

Three of the ten cabinet members didn't bother to turn up. One of them was busy in London the day before, having his ego massaged by Ed Milliband (the leader of the Labour Party in London).

Where was he? What has he done to earn his pay? Is not bothering to turn up going to be a regular thing? Does Ed Milliband have a view on this as well?

This is the same cabinet member who despite taking £31,900 a year from the public purse, refuses to pay a bean in council tax until he graduates.

All right for some in Swansea Labour's anti poverty drive.

She's only here to tax the Swans!

Fans are already saying when the East Stand sees
Christine Richards sitting in the directors box out will
come the chants "You're only here to tax the Swans!"

Councillor Christine Richards has been given a place on the board of directors on the Liberty Stadium Management Company. She has been sent on a special mission by Labour Council leader David Phillips who has been anxious to fleece the club for around a £1million without looking at the bigger picture. Surprisingly consideration was initially given to send Councillor Robert Francis Davies in to grab the cash and take the stadium off the Swans. This was the Labour Councillor who thought building a McDonalds to thwart stadium expansion was a good idea. This move will prove bad news for Swans fans. The likelihood is that Swansea Labour's cash raid on the club will lead to them paying more to watch the Swans.

Ignoring Democracy

Last week's story on how Swansea Labour snubbed Councillor Richard Lewis has gathered steam. In today's full page spread in the Evening Post,

Swansea Labour leader David Phillips confirms that his group have no respect for democracy:  "My group did not reject Councillor Lewis because he wouldn't be Labour's poodle, my group rejected him because he clearly wasn't the right man for the job."


This is the man who said at the same meeting that he wanted to operate an open regime.


Richard Lewis won a democratic vote in his own party. The Swansea Labour leader had no right to undermine it. 


It is hoped that this worrying behaviour and attitude from Labour is not a taste of things to come for the city at large.

Its not what you know....

The anger felt by Swansea citizens over the £84,000 taxpayers cash that David Phillips his wife Sybil Crouch enjoy is being vented quite regularly in the local media. Today this is in the form of a letter, which also points out that this £84,000 is on top of what they already earn. Having this income is one thing but with it you also need influence beyond the chamber. This would probably explain the fact that Councillor Crouch's name appears the most on the list of outside bodies the council sends representatives to. In the list, Councillor Crouch is confirmed as a decision maker on the Community Cohesion Fund Grants Panel. One of the aims of the fund is to ensure "People from different backgrounds have similar life opportunities"

The Cabinet Member who doesn't pay Council Tax

Labour Swansea University student
Councillor Mitchell Theaker, aged 21,
Who gives a hoot about student fees
when Swansea residents are giving you
£31,900 to guzzle from your trough?

A letter from Peter Birch about the 3 Labour students being elected onto the council highlights the nose for money that Swansea's youngest cabinet member has.
In March he went for a £17,000 job in the Student Union, promising a 'revolution'. Fellow students rejected him quite comprehensively leaving a hole in his pocket.
Councillor Mitchell Theaker has bagged £31,900 a year now by becoming a cabinet member for "opportunities and young people".
His fellow Labour student councillors, Pearleen Sangha and John Bayliss each earn £13,000 a year as back benchers.
Even though the taxpayer is footing a bill for £58,000 to pay their wages, none of the 3 pay a penny back in council tax as students are exempt.
This could cause friction with their seasoned anti student Labour council colleague Councillor Nick Bradley who made his views quite clear in a recent letter.
Many Swansea families on £31,900 would love exemption from their tax. We hope that Councillor Theaker will bear this in mind and make voluntary payments to put Labour's anti poverty strategy into practice.

Going AWOL with your cash.

One of Swansea's new cabinet members Councillor Nick Bradley is a now a very busy man. He already has a demanding job at the university which means he spends a lot of time abroad. We thought we'd ask him how he was going to manage the two roles...

Value For Money

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FROM:

• Milking Swansea

TO:

• nicholas.bradley@swansea.gov.uk

Message flagged

Sunday, 27 May 2012, 16:30

Dear Councillor Bradley

Congratulations on becoming a cabinet member. We were wondering if you were going to reduce the amount of international travel that your job at the university demands so that you can justify taking the allowance the taxpayers of Swansea are giving you.

Milking Swansea

And here's the reply.......

Out of Office AutoReply: Value For Money

Hide Details

FROM:

• Bradley, Nicholas (Councillor)

TO:

• Milking Swansea

Message flagged

Sunday, 27 May 2012, 16:30

I am currently out of the office on annual lave until June 11th. I will answer e-mails upon my return.
Kind Regards
Cllr Nick Bradley
Cabinet Member for Regeneration

You are paying Nick Bradley £780 of his cabinet allowance, while he has gone AWOL for  a fortnight

So there you have it. Some serious explaining to do from Councillor Bradley then when he gets home. Last week at the council meeting he was given an extra £18,725 a year to take on the role. Having immediately gone AWOL until 11th June means that we are paying £780 for an absent cabinet member. Councillor Bradley represents the ward of Townhill. Hardly appropriate behaviour Councillor!

Council AGM Act 3: Labour leader leaves early to put his snout straight in the trough at an overnight hotel

Having given the wife a 32 grand job and interfered with another party's democracy Councillor Phillips left the council meeting early. He was off to the WLGA meeting in Llandrindod Wells. As you can see from the link, the meeting was on the following day (25th May). It has been normal practice for Swansea councillors to drive up in the morning to attend this. Llandrindod is about 90 mins drive from Swansea.
I'm afraid that when the Freedom of Information request comes back, Councillor Phillips will be personally guilty of one of his first trough crimes. What difference could the cost hotel bill have made to a needy family's quality of life. Perhaps Councillor Phillips ought to reflect on this in his new role as cabinet member for poverty. Shame on you.

Council AGM Act 2: Labour bang their bullying fists on the table

Councillor Richard Lewis - Won an election only to be
 bullied by Swansea Labour because they didn't like him

The Lib Dem opposition were granted a couple of committee chairs. They then held internal democratic elections to put their nominations forward. Councillor Richard Lewis was successful in one election. A few minutes before the council meeting started, the Labour leader said that he didn't want Richard Lewis as chair and the Lib Dems had to choose someone else. So much for respecting the democratic will of others then. What a bully.

Council AGM Act 1: Labour Council leader appoints wife to senior position

Agrippina and Nero alias
Sybil Crouch and David Phillips

Confirmed in the Council AGM of 24th May. Labour Leader Councillor David Phillips appoints  his wife Councillor Sybil Crouch. Councillor Phillips salary is £52,700. Councillor Crouch's salary is £31,900. This represents a taxpayer contribution of £84,600. The move is well documented in the Evening Post .
What makes this move ironic is that Councillor Phillips has proclaimed himself the Cabinet Member for Anti Poverty and made his wife the cabinet member for Sustainability. For those into classics, the similarity between this couple and Agrippina and Nero is striking.

Getting Your Cash Early

Today there was an extra council meeting that lasted 5 minutes to vote in the Lord Mayor and the Deputy. An extra item was slipped onto the agenda by Swansea Labour to give two of their councillors extra cash. The election of Leader and his appointment of the deputy leader is a function for the council AGM on the 24th. However, Swansea Labour insisted that the election was held 9 days earlier.

Christine Richards - The cup overfloweth by £405 for 5 minutes work

This means that David Phillips gets £567 straight into his trough, and Councillor Christine Richards gets £405. In other words Swansea Labour have binned nearly a grand into their pockets as a result of a 5 minute meeting. Barely a week in and they are at your cash already.

The Big Kick Off

Swansea Labour kicked off the new council season with an all expenses paid trip to the Swans v Liverpool game. The council box was opened at the tax payers expense. The Freedom of Information request will reveal the bill and also the guest list.