What future the health of or NHS?

We had the promise of more spending on our NHS.. now we have a report from the TUC suggesting 50,000 jobs in our NHS could be lost.  The senseless waste of money.. some £1.8 billion .. to tear up the fabric or organisation of our NHS... this would pay 15000 nurses for 3 years. This Tory/LIb conalition is pursuing a path of partnerships with private companies whose sole responsibilty is to bring back profits for their shareholders...   do we really beleive that our NHS is safe in the privatised hands of the Tories?

Ian Robertson

The axe man cometh but where will he actually hit?

The Tory budget for spend in this next year was passed last Thursday with not a whimper of dissent from the Tory ranks. we know that around £17 million was cut with around £35m more over the next 4 years. on top of the national cuts such as the increase in vat to 20%,  the extremely high cost of fuel and transport.. everyone will see their budget cut. there are a good number who 'feeling the pinch'  will revolve on perhaps only going out to eat twice a week and maybe reducing their holidays to 3 year from 4. for the rest of the ' market will decide' as in any good Tory world.
faced with loosing 6 seats straightaway in may by closing a local library as revealed by the cabinet member at last council.. there had to be a delaying of the announcement until the summer when around £600k is due to come out of libraries.
this Government has 'promised' to maintain central government grant at to the borough wide music service..but this council has cut 4 full time music teacher posts at least.
severe cuts to the care budget leaving those most vulnerable with the bare minimum cover and forking out from their own allowances for such items as transport.
£100k off youth services.. so expect to see more hanging around street corners.

a lot of the cuts happen due to cuts in external grants and it is difficult to uncover all the front line effects which will happen...for example scout groups got £12k a year towards room hire and training costs.. this has now gone.. a kick in the teeth for many 'wrth their weight in gold' volunteers who cost us nothing and do priceless wok in our community.
as usual it will be the lower earners ( stretching into the lower middle earners) who will suffer.. there were ways the cuts could have been cushioned as taking too much too quickly will wreck our communities.
we have lost inevitably this battle.. the war starts with the build up to the May elections. We in Walsall Labour are ready to take on that challenge.. will you join us?
 regards
cllr ian robertson

Time to man the barricades ! Come the revolution!

Come the revolution.


Man the barricades before it is too late! We stand at a crossroads where we are poised to slide into a Walsall where the slogan will be ‘Survival of the fittest !’ ‘Let the market decide! ‘

The proposed cuts or more like amputations that are revealed in the budget proposals for Walsall to be passed without a wimper at full council on 24th February will hit at the very heart of this Borough.

6 libraries to be closed… without any doubt in the most disadvantaged parts of Walsall serving such wards as Pleck, Birchills Blakenall Palfrey Willenhall and Darlaston. However that has now changed with the promise of no closures this year.. amazing what a bit of fear of what will happen in the ballot box!


£100,000 off the music service plus a national cut of up to £850K which will end music support in Walsall apart from those in the more affluent areas who can afford to pay. Plus more cuts to the museum and art gallery.. so some of the reasons to live here in Walsall are getting crossed off the list as we move to being just an ordinary Town living in a cultural desert.

An end to Community transport service now to be mainly run by a private company.


A  serious cut to current levels of support for social services support of over £7 million with imposition of charges of up to £89.35 a week . A direct attack on those most disadvantaged in Walsall.

Cuts of nearly £3 million in Leisure which will mean almost certainly as well as 6 libraries, all but 6 of swimming pools attached to schools will close and cuts to park maintenance and cover.

£600,000 off young services provision … no doubt more young people to be seen hanging about street corners. A requested cut of £2.5 million off the contract held by SERCO to deliver education in Walsall schools while we languish still very near the bottom of the league for education results in England.

When you cut £25 million off a budget at a stroke, the fall out for front line services will be major, especially for the disadvantaged fellow members of the human race in Walsall.

At the sharp end there will be many small community projects that will be closed. I note that the £12,000 yearly grant to the scouts to help pay for premises rental and training costs will cease which will mean some groups will close.


The problem for Walsall is that power rests with one individual almost alone… bit like in Egypt really … however the people there are showing what they think of him and people power after 18 days has got rid of him!  See you in Liberation Square in Bridge Street, Walsall or maybe on the election trial.  Although we have the luxury of a democratic process.. let us hope that especially the residents of Pheasey excercise their vote wisely.