A blog by Luke Akehurst about politics, elections, and the Labour Party - With subtitles for the Hard of Left. Just for the record: all the views expressed here are entirely personal and do not necessarily represent the positions of any organisations I am a member of.
Just as Boris dismantles the western extension to the congestion charge zone, Manchester is going to vote on 11 December on going in the opposite direction:
posted by Luke Akehurst at 7:57 am
Labour MP for North Durham since 2024. Labour Party activist since 1988 - firmly on the moderate wing of the party. Member of Labour’s NEC 2010-2012 and since 2020. National Secretary of Labour Students 1995-6. Parliamentary candidate for Aldershot (2001) and Castle Point (2005). Hackney Councillor (Chatham Ward) 2002-2014, Labour Group Chief Whip 2002-09, Chair of Health Scrutiny 2010-2014. Dad. Unite and GMB union member. All views expressed in a personal capacity. The rest will become evident from reading the blog.
12 Comments:
I'm glad to see Labour supporting this locally (as well as nationally) and I think the youtube vid is a nice touch
1:15 pm, December 08, 2008
There is also a video about the future of transport in Manchester here: http://www.21centurytransport.com
2:06 pm, December 08, 2008
Labour in death spiral.
Daily Mail poll to be released shows:
Cons 43%
Lab 27%
Limps 17%
The result is very much due to Labour's education programme which has succeeded in dumbing down every poor bastard living on less than £15,000 a year.
3:30 pm, December 08, 2008
I wonder what New Order think of their music being used for this video.
8:44 pm, December 08, 2008
The congestion charge will in the end make the poorest motorist even poorer and create a two tier road system.
There is very little evidence to suggest that road charging in the UK has any positive outcome in terms of reducing congestion. Even in London the impact was short lived and people soon got tired of using very expensive crowded and unreliable public transport.
I can't see how a Labour government can honestly have the nerve to charge motorists yet at the same time approve the expansion of British airports. Then set another C02 target that they will never achieve.
Yes we need greener transport but why doesn't the government approach this in a more positive manner rather than using tax all the time. Why not make commuting FREE or tax deductible if its green.
It seems to me that this government is just looking at other ways of making us even poorer and has no concern for our planet at all.
9:24 pm, December 08, 2008
Anyone who has had to deal with Manchester traffic will know that something has to be done. Once again, I hear nothing from opponents of a congestion charge what their alternative is.
The money FROM the congestion charge will pay for additional public transport. Without doing something about the traffic problems, spending more on public transport will not be sensible. The two things need to happen together. The money has to come from somewhere. Again, no alternatives suggested.
3:47 pm, December 09, 2008
WE don't call it C-Charge up here though Luke. It's not the same. It's peak only and peak flow only and it follows the better part of £3 Billion of infrastructure improvements.
Calling it C-Charge - as local media have tended to do is an invidious limiting of the debate to drivers and a negative for everyone.
Perhaps anon 8:44 could get Ofcom onto the case and has this video pulled too?
Whereas £3 Billion of improvements with limited charging when it's all fixed is so much better.
5:56 pm, December 09, 2008
There already is an answer - personal rapid transit (PRT). The first system's being installed at Heathrow. Description on youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7hgipbHBK8
5:39 pm, December 10, 2008
The Manchester C-Charge has been rejected by a 4-1 margin in all ten local boroughs.
1:56 pm, December 12, 2008
So, carry on congestion and queues - I'm afraid people will have to learn that the luxury of the personal drive to work in peak hours is simply not feasible.
I would expect far more draconian compulsion in the future.
11:35 pm, December 12, 2008
And the people of Manchester so No.....now watch this vile Labour government override British democracy and force it down their necks......as they did Europe.
12:22 pm, December 13, 2008
I would expect far more draconian compulsion in the future
Instead of coercion, how about sorting out the public transport options first, rather than making promises that clearly the the vast majority of Manucians did not believe? As for 'draconian compulsion', who do you think is going to vote for that? Or is an end to democracy part of Labour's strategy?
11:50 pm, December 14, 2008
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