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The Northern
Democrat
no. 60no. 60no. 60no. 60no. 60DecemberDecemberDecemberDecemberDecember20112011201120112011
The newsletter for Liberal Democrats in the North of England
Produced, printed and promoted by Jonathan Wallace, 7 Laburnum Grove, Sunniside, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE16 5LY
Lib Dem Conference at Sage, Gateshead, in March
Next stop:Tyneside
The next Lib Dem Spring Conference will beheld on 9th-11th March and for the first time itwill be held in the North East.
The Sage, Gateshead, will host the three-daygathering. This will be a great opportunity toshowcase the region.“Liberal Democrats in NewcastleGateshead andacross the North East of England are delighted to behosting Spring Conference,” said former Leader of Newcastle City Council,
Lord Shipley
.And he encouraged members to attend. “This willbe the first time that we have welcomed our partyconference to this region and we hope you will bepart of it.”Online booking is now open at
www.libdems.org.uk/conference
Promoted and published by Jonathan Wallace, 7 Laburnum Grove, Sunniside, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE16 5LY
Remembering two colleagues
Two long-standing Liberal/Liberal Democrat members have sadly diedrecently, Robert Pinkney (North Tyneside) and Dorothy Allan (Wear Valley).Bob Pinkney
was born in Welwyn Garden City in 1937. He joined the YoungLiberals in Hampstead where he met his wife Mary. They were married in 1962at St Martin in the Fields, London. After National Service, Bob taughteconomics, history and geography in the London area before moving to theNorth East in 1975 to teach at Newcastle Polytechnic, later NorthumbriaUniversity. Bob became Senior Lecturer in Politics; he retired in 2006 butcontinued at Northumbria as a visiting professor. He wrote several books,specialising in African politics.Bob was a keen and active party member. He was a member of NorthTyneside Council for eight years and deputy Group Leader. He was alsocandidate for Tynemouth for a time. He was a keen cyclist and runner, doing theLondon Marathon and the Great North Run.Dorothy Hail – best known as
Dorothy Allan
- stood as a localcouncil candidate for the party
Dorothy Allan
Bob Pinkney
Page 2
Remembering Two Colleagues
Page 3
Broadband/Early Years Education
Page 4
Stockton competition entry/Autumn Statement
Page 5
Regional Conference Report
Page 6
Regional Conference Report
Page 7
New Chief Exec/Youth Contract
Pages 8
Labour debunked
Pages 9
Labour debunked
Northern Democrat
December 2011Contents
Editorial: please send material for inclusion to the editor, JonathanWallace, phone 0191 4883190 or email jonathanwallace@compuserve.com
Northern News
December 2011
numerous times and held office in the party at local level. She was alsoTreasurer of the Northern Region for three years. Born in Willington in CountyDurham, she was the daughter of the formidable Barbara Wilkinson, anIndependent district and county councillor who was at one time the only non-Labour member of Crook & Willington UDC. Barbara, who later joined theLiberal Party, was the only person ever to defeat Labour Leader JohnRichardson in a local election.After caring for her mother in Barbara’s final years, Dorothy moved toBrandon and was elected to Brandon & Byshottles Parish Council. She finallysettled in Stanhope in Weardale where she became a pillar of the local churchand community. Dorothy had no children, but delighted in her extended family.Her first marriage ended in divorce: some years later she married again andfound happiness with her new husband Harry Hail.
Where have you been for the past 8 months?
Apologies to readers for the lack of Northern Democrats over the past 8 months. I have had a rather busy year andunfortunately
Northern Democrat
had to be shelved for a few months whilst other projects were underway.
NorthernDemocrat
is now back into publication and I will be aiming for one edition a month in 2012. Thanks for your patience.
Jonathan Wallace, Editor
The North East is set to benefit from ashare of billions of pounds in EU cashaimed at bringing super fastbroadband to everyone.
The £8 billion investment announced bythe European Commission will helpeliminate the Internet black-spots whichblight parts of the North East.
Local Lib Dem MEP Fiona Hall
welcomed the news and said it would helpcreate and safeguard jobs in the region.Fiona said, “Despite recent investment,parts of the North East are still stuck inthe Internet slow lane. This new multi-billion pound plan will ensure everyonehas access to super fast broadband,wherever they live or work.“It is particularly vital for businesseswhich increasingly rely on the Internet. Itwill allow smaller villages and towns tosustain businesses that have previouslybeen forced to relocate to secure faster Internet connections.“And the work required to roll these
North East to benefit from broadband billions
improvements out will also help create jobs in the North East. In difficult economic times it is right that major investment is aimed at encouraging growth and ensuring we have the infrastructure to remain competitive in thefuture.”
Fiona Hall MEP, centre, has welcomed plans to invest inbroadband in the North East.Free early education will be extended to 140,000 disadvantaged two-year- olds,and parents will be able to access the free entitlement more flexibly, under planspublished by the Coalition Government last month.
In the North East, nearly 8,000 two-year olds are expected to benefit from theproposals.Liberal Democrat Children’s Minister,
Sarah Teather
, announced a consultation todayon how this commitment will be implemented. The plans include proposals to helpparents and children alike by making the free entitlement of 15 hours per week of earlyeducation more flexible, so it can be taken between 7am and 7pm across two daysinstead of the current three days.Berwick MP
Sir Alan Beith
said, “Helping nearly 8,000 two-year-old children from the
Free early years education for two-yearolds in North East – Alan Beith
poorest backgrounds in our area will benefit them for years to come.“High quality early education is the key to making a difference early on in a child’s life and help make Britain a fairer and more equal society. Improving social mobility is a Liberal Democrat priority in Government and early yearseducation is crucial to achieve this.“Targeting early education at those who stand to benefit most, is an important to achieve this goal. It will be anintegral part to disadvantaged children’s healthy development. This means they’re not falling behind before they haveeven started primary school.”Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg said, “I want us to give every child the bestpossible start – so free education for toddlers from the most disadvantaged homes will now be a right and not aprivilege.“Crucially the extra care will be flexible and easy to access. Parents across the country are bending over backwardsto balance work and home. The Coalition wants to help in whatever way we can.”
Northern News
December 2011
Sir Alan Beith -welcomed free earlyyears education.
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