The week in figures:

Number of room stripped of delicious woodchip covering: one
Number of doors knocked on in Eaton & Cringleford: Too many to count
Number of carpets pulled up: one
Number of trips to Mile Cross Tip: Two
Number of leaflets delivered: Errrmmm, lots and lots
Number of books marked: Now you're talking a really big number!
Number of Labour Councilllors committed to opening the Bus Lane in Bowthorpe: None
Number of Tory PPCs committed to opening the Bus Lane in Bowthorpe: One
Number of games of GameCube: None (pleasingly addiction over)
Number of LibDem Council Leaders quitting: None
Number of LibDem Council Leaders or Councillors apologetic for absolute disasters in City: None
Number of Governing Body Meetings Attended: One
Number of Ante-Natal classes: One

Everybody that believes in accountability should sign our petition on www.norwichconservatives.com

Tories keep up the pressure on Couzens

Petition launched to restore confidence in City Hall

Leading Conservatives have kept up the pressure on embattled LibDem Leader Ian Couzens after he refused to take responsibility for the CityCare by failing to quit.

Conservative Parliamentary Spokesman Antony Little widened the debate with a full analysis of Cllr Couzen’s leadership under the title “5 strikes and he’s out”, detailing the LibDems woes in a number of areas including CityCare, Norwich Market, Car Parks, Snow Gridlock and the recent revelations about waste in the Housing Department.

In a letter to the Evening News and the EDP, Antony summed up the Tory position, saying:
“If people are losing faith in politicians it’s because nobody seems to be accountable anymore, or take responsibility when things go wrong. Cllr Couzens, this is your administration and your problem. Put public faith back into City Hall – surly it must be 5 strikes and you’re out?”

Speaking later to a meeting of Conservative council candidates, Antony said:
“We will not let this issue lie. The report from the Housing Department about money being wasted and the rules being broken should shame the Council. The CityCare fiasco has literally shaken lives in our City. Somebody needs to be held responsible.”

“This evening we will start collecting names of those believe we should have accountability in political life. Cllr Couzens believes he can hide in a City Hall bunker and ignore the wishes of local people. We won’t let him.”

“This evening we are launching an on-line debate and petition calling from Cllr Couzen’s resignation. Our website – www.norwichconservatives.com - details the case against Cllr Couzens and asks for new political leadership.”

“We will take this information to every home in Norwich asking people to stand up for accountability. LibDem Couzens must listen, and it must be 5 strikes and you’re out.”

To look at the truth behind LibDem campaigning, just take a look at these examples from Salford and Ruislip.

Have had quite a busy, but hard, weekend. Spent most of it laid up feeling ill – but that hasn’t stopped the world going around!

Friday night I went to a highly successful “Winter Warmer” event at St. Andrew’s Hall in Eaton. It was great to see so many new members turning up and the food was excellent. A tidy little sum raised the election campaign.

Saturday I made a rather high profile splash in the press with both the Evening News and EDP leading on my calls on Ian Couzens to quit over the CityCare fiasco. Needless to say, he has said he won’t go. Is that because he feels he hasn’t done anything wrong or that his party desperately want him to stay? I’ve identified the 5 big failures of this LibDem council – including CityCare, last January’s gridlock, car parks and the market – so Cllr Couzens has a selection of reasons to resign. It really does upset me, this whole thing about politicians clinging on to power no matter what. Resigning has gone out of fashion. But it strikes me that if we want to raise turnout and return politicians to some kind of public respect then our senior leaders need to become more accountable.

We’re keeping up the pressure this week – more details later. Also noticeable about this whole thing is the way that the Labour Party are having to back Couzens because they were the ones who negotiated the CityCare contract in the first place.

Saturday was also spent on the doorsteps. The morning we were in Eaton village where we got a good reception. Lots of talk there about Labour’s pensions crisis and the CityCare issue too. It is damaging the LibDem vote. But not nearly as much as in Sunningdale, where we met not one single person prepared to sday they were voting LibDem. We met a Green voter, a couple of socialists, but not one Liberal. Why? Because of their shamless development of the Civil Service Site and Cllr Lubbock’s indifference to their opinions. If the LibDems allow this to go through then Sunningdale itself will become a rat-run extraordinaire. That really cheered our Eaton Campaign Team up!

Sunday has been spent clearing up the house and working on strategy. Next week we are launching survey’s about one-way systems in the Golden Triangle and we are going to publish the results of the Crime Survey. Busy!

The result of meetings last night. It's time that Labour and the LibDems carried the can for this disaster.

Citycare: Conservatives call on Couzens to quit

Council Leader Ian Couzens should take the blame and resign over the Citycare fiasco, say the Norwich Conservatives.

City Tories entered the row over the costly contracts after it was revealed that taxpayer would be force to pick up the compensation costs.

At a special meeting of the City Group Conservatives to discuss the growing crisis, Parliamentary Spokesman Antony Little said:

”Everyone who works in the community knows of people stung by the overcharging by Citycare. We strongly welcome the compensation being provided but we cannot fathom why it is taxpayers who are lumbered with the bill and not Citycare who were the ones overcharging.”

“This is a serious mess and there needs to be accountability here. Labour created the contracts and the LibDems worked with them. For all the people affected and now the taxpayers footing the bill, there needs to be an acceptance of blame.”

“As long as this goes on without an acceptance of blame, the people of Norwich will have no faith in this council.”

“It is time that LibDem Leader Ian Couzens actually took responsibility for something. This Citycare issue is a disaster – he should go now, and go quickly.”

Got into school at around 7.45 this morning to find a dozen kids hanging around. Who says that they don’t like school? Busy day today followed by ante-natal classes tonight and a quick trip to my constituency office to check the postal returns to our crime survey 2005.

Crikey, I can actually see some floor space now. Quick – somebody put a box on it! A busy day at school trying to sort out Sixth Form Admissions soon pans out towards the dreaded DIY.

Fantastic stuff from the Conservatives today on the tax and spending plans, although slightly disappointed we can’t point to the specifics with the unfair taxes (inheritance tax, stamp duty, petrol tax etc) that we’ll cut. Andrew Marr, the hardly pro-Tory political editor of the BBC, said it was achievable and anybody that works in public services knows that there is money to be saved. £8bn off public debt and an extra £24bn into frontline public services sounds sensible to me, plus these are by far the most detailed plans put forward by any opposition in a decade.

As for the rather timid LibDem launch, there was really nothing new. Raising tax etc but nothing to write home about. Their rather sad placing on the news says it all.

Really interesting piece in tonight’s Evening News standing up for the Tesco’s on Unthank Road today and also another complaint about charges at the Mile Cross Tip.

Another grovelling apology for failing to blog this week, but we have just moved! Yes, it’s happened! We’re now living in a rather nice house on Trafford Road. It is an absolute tip and plenty of DIY and TLC is required. Perhaps I should now call this Blog from Town Close?!?

Between me smashing out wardrobes (something rather pleasing about hammers) and running around in circles for school there have been very few opportunities to do anything else. Saturday I had a large team out in (you guessed it) Town Close Ward knocking on doors – really good reception. The LibDems are currently trying to ignore the Greens in between periodic bouts of having a pop at them. If I were the Liberals I’d be very worried about the Green vote in Norwich, because it certainly isn’t coming from Labour or the Tories. Had a few switchers from Labour and a very angry nurse declaring she’d rather eat her ballot paper than vote for Blair. Nice.

This week my Gamecube playing goes to one side to enjoy more DIY, parents evening on Thursday and ante-natal classes on both Tuesday and Wednesday!

p.s. I have only seen the response to the Crime Survey 2005 from those who completed it online but it looks like a real success!

Norwich Conservatives are doing an unprecedented survey about City resident’s views on crime and anti-social behaviour.

The survey is to be delivered to 6,000 homes across the City, e-mailed to over 500 people and is available to complete on-line at www.norwichconservatives.com.

I hope it will be the biggest consultation about crime in the City for years.

With violent crime on the up and our local MP now Home Secretary the pressure is really on Labour to start delivering on law & order.

However we all have a role to play in trying to combat crime, which is why we are asking people across the City about their views.

Crime is by far the biggest single issue that people are bringing up at the moment. Politicians don’t know all the answers so we’re asking questions about how residents feel we could be doing more.

Be it through tougher sentences, more police on the beat or an extension of CCTV, it is important that local people have their say about local crime fighting and what we can do to help.

There are also questions about the controversial ASBOs and the use of prison as a deterrent against crime.

Also, very importantly, we want to know from people how they want the extra police numbers promised by the Conservatives to be put to use. The Norfolk Conservatives have said that we want over 400 more officers on the beat in our county, but we think people should have some say on how they can be deployed.

People know that Labour are all talk and the LibDems are soft on crime. Now is the time for the Conservatives to put forward plans to cut crime.

Whatever your political view, each completed survey helps us to represent you better.

Happy New Year everybody!

I can happily blog again now as I am back to work and politics is back up to speed. I have enjoyed the Christmas break, although Louise was very ill over New Year, but feel that all of the Bank Holiday’s took me by surprise and I never want a finish that early again. When you finish the term in school you are really ready for Christmas, but to face a whole week of getting ready it really let me down. Ho-hum!

Back to work today, have been lesson planning for hours now. Such a rush around – I was at Earlham High School this morning at a cluster meeting for all the History Department’s in the area and saw some very impressive work being done with PowerPoint. Felt almost technologically ashamed. Then in the afternoon I attended a meeting at the Earlham Excellence Centre (what the government would like us to call a PRU) and saw how well it worked. Tim Collins, the Shadow Education Secretary, has pledge to massively expand these units and offer long-term placements for the most disruptive pupils. Everyone there agreed this was a fantastic idea, even the most socialist and liberal of teachers. We have pupils – as do all schools – who need a lot of work on their social skills and school isn’t always the best place to do that. However the EEC can only accommodate a pupil for a maximum of 3 days. At least the Conservatives are talking about 3 weeks and 3 months … we can’t change attitudes and behaviour like it were a paid of underpants, it doesn’t work like that. Meanwhile the government (now in the form of Ms Kelly) digs its head in the sand.

This evening we went to the first National Childbirth Trust meeting at the Christ Church Centre on Magdalen Road. Excellent even – a good group of 8 “parents-to-be” and we had a laugh! The men particularly enjoyed it, and there appears to be very little you can’t do with one of those plastic babies and a lot of jokes about breaking water…

However, now for me it’s back to the planning (sigh*). One last political add-on. I saw Labour’s rather feeble election posters up around Norwich tonight. We got stuck in traffic, right underneath one, and only recognised it when we came to pull off. Done in a sixties style groovy ad, it really didn’t catch either of our attentions. They’ll have to do a lot better than that come May!

As I think it is excellent (rather obviously), I thought that I would re-print Michael Howard's New Year Message in full:

New Year is a time of hope.
But this year, as every day brings more news of the disaster unfolding across Asia, our hopes for the future are overshadowed by the tragedy that has engulfed hundreds of thousands of lives.
We watched the scenes of destruction with a sense of disbelief. The scale, the speed, the ferocity of what happened on Boxing Day is difficult to grasp.
Yet Britain's response has shone a light on our nation's character. The last week has shown that the warm, caring heart of Britain beats as strong as ever.
At the start of a year which will almost certainly see a General Election, it is worth thinking about what unites us rather than what divides us.
What is it that we, as a great nation, believe?
People in genuine need - the sick, the aged, the vulnerable, the persecuted - should be helped.
People should be judged on their ability and their potential, not their background, religion or the colour of their skin.
People's property should respected.
People who take responsibility for themselves and their families should be rewarded.
People who work hard, risk their money by starting new firms, and invest to create more jobs, should be encouraged.
People who break the law, who have no respect for other people's freedom or property, should be properly punished.
People should have the opportunity to live their dreams.
These are values that I believe most Britons hold dear.
In the weeks ahead, I will be setting out how the Conservatives can turn these beliefs into reality - reaching out to the millions of people who these share these values.
Of course, some of the things I have to say will be controversial. I do not believe in sweeping the truth - however painful it may be - under the carpet.
I will outline the choices facing Britain at the election. How much tax do people want to pay?
Who will give taxpayers value for money - the clean hospitals and good, disciplined schools they want? Who can be trusted to get a grip on the disorder on our streets and the chaos in our immigration system?
Mr Blair has had his chance to tackle these problems. His approach has failed. Britain is heading in the wrong direction for a simple reason: Mr. Blair has the wrong solution to the problems we face.
His government is a bossy, interfering government that takes decisions that should be made by individuals.
That requires a bigger state and more bureaucrats - which has to be paid for in taxes.
The result is big government and higher taxes eroding incentives, undermining enterprise and denying people choice.
Worst of all, it is a government that has wasted people's money and failed to tackle the problems families face today.
This is the record that Mr Blair will have to defend in the months ahead. It is time to hold him to account.
The question is simple: why should we trust him now and think he would be any different next time, when he has let us down so many times in the past?
Britain is a first class country. Our country and its people brim with ambition, drive and creativity. We can overcome the challenges we face.
We can cut crime. We can improve public services without asking people to pay more in taxes. We can have progress without losing what makes Britain great - its tolerance, the respect for the rule of law, the ability of everyone to fulfil their potential. We simply need to change direction.
The election will give Britain the chance to change. The debate will soon begin on how we can create a Britain in which everyone, no matter his or her background, has the chance to build a better life. I hope you join in it.
I wish you a very happy, peaceful New Year.

The news from Asia really has put everything into perspective this Christmas. With the news that a lady from Colney - in Norwich South - is amongst those killed, I issued the following press release urging people to donate:

Parliamentary spokesman Antony Little has encouraged Norwich to take up Conservative leader Michael Howard’s challenge to the British public to match the £15 million of Government aid to help the victims of the tsunami disaster.

Antony, and his wife Louise, have donated via the special telephone hotline 0870 60 60 900.

Mr Howard said something could be done "at all levels". He said he has himself donated £250 to the appeal fund. He said the British public had always responded generously in the past to disaster appeals and he was confident they would dig deep now. "It would be really good if we could match, as individuals, the £15 million which the Government has pledged," he said. "It would be really terrific if the British people could match the £15 million, doubling the money available for relief."

Speaking at a reception in Norwich, Mr Little said in the areas affected many people survived on as little as a dollar a day, so small sums of money could make a significant impact.

Echoing the words of Michael Howard, Antony said: "The really important thing is that everything that can be done now to get help to the people who need it now should be done. As we speak there are people sitting on rooftops, sitting on hills, without any clean water, at risk of death from disease. And if disease is allowed to get a grip in these areas we face another calamity possibly as big in scale as the one we have just seen from the earthquake and the tsunami."

”Individuals want to help, individuals want to take some responsibility for themselves and I think that is to be encouraged."

“I know how Louise and I felt watching the appeal being made on the BBC and how we feel each time the death toll goes up. Our donation is hopefully one small step to turning somebody’s life around. I urge everybody in Norwich to donate.”

As it's Christmas Eve and we're away for a few days now visiting friends and family, I'd like to wish everybody a very "Merry Christmas" - looking forward to 2005!

On another point, the Budd inquiry will have no doubt shocked the government, as Blair’s inquiries are there for the sole purpose of finding him innocent of all charges. I am surprised by this morning’s Guardian poll about 67% of the public wanting Blunkett back at some point. Michael Howard did an excellent job pointing out that he lied in all this. Am I the only one left in electoral politics that believes that ministers (and, for that matter, Prime Ministers) should quit if they are found to have lied? Tomorrow I am also at our print company to look at the new design for our “Matters” series of newsletters. Whilst Westminster may fetter over a new catholic education secretary or the PMs Christmas cards, the real stuff of politics still goes on locally!

It’s day two in the Big Christmas House. Antony is getting increasingly frustrated that he can’t find a mass that finishes at a sensible time. Louise is attempting to make mincemeat in record speed and without letting it stand at any point. Despite trips to Diss, Bowthorpe and Costessey, they still don’t have the shopping they need, despite only entertaining for one day over the festive period. Tomorrow the farce continues, as Antony has the glass in his car replaced and attempts to mark some ‘A’ Level essays. Who says there isn’t anything fun about Christmas?

Just back from St. John’s Cathedral, have been to a celebration service. Really good time. Feels a bit weird now that school has finished. Unfortunately the only celebration I get is going to the design company to look at the new layout for our “Matters” newsletters. There is going to be a really big change for next year!

Everybody is asking me how my chances have changed with Clarke’s promotion to Home Secretary. One is tempted to say that the bigger they are, the harder they fall! I actually think this improves my chances. Firstly is that Clarke is still saddled with his tenure at Education. I know 10,000 students at UEA (and countless more over the last seven years) who won’t forget which party and which person ushered in fees. But now Clarke is responsible for the area of biggest failure under Labour. He’s dumped with bringing down crime, waging a war against knives and tackling our immigration crisis. Michael Howard cut crime, now we’ll see if Clarke is made of the same stuff. I really think that gives a second edge to the fight in Norwich South, because now crime and education will be at the fore. And with the Tories currently 19% ahead on law & order issues, this could be the final nail in Clarke’s political coffin.

To paraphrase Dr Reid, on accepting the Health portfolio, “***k, not the Home Office.”

I think Blunkett has made the right decision here, see below for my press release about Mr Clarke's appointment as Home Secretary:

Charles Clarke’s Conservative Opponent at the next election has wished the new Home Secretary good luck in his post and has urged the Norwich MP to start “a real fight back against crime” before the next election.

Mr Clarke – the cabinet minister who as Education Secretary introduced top up fees - takes up the job at a time of rising violent crime in Britain.

Mr Little, a 25 year old teacher from Notre Dame High School in Norwich, sent his congratulations to Mr Clarke but also a tough warning of the task ahead.

Speaking to a meeting of the Norwich Conservatives’ Campaign Group at the time of the announcement, Antony said:

”Charles Clarke is now one of the last Blairites in this failing New Labour government. I wish him well in his new job, but he must now get a grip on the crime and anti-social behaviour that is ruining lives in cities like Norwich.”

“I hope Mr Clarke brings a new broom to the job and commits himself to increasing police numbers, like the Conservatives have done, commits to getting more drug addicts into rehab, like the Conservatives have done and commits to scrapping unnecessary police bureaucracy, like the Conservatives have done.”

“Mr Clarke holding his seat after the next election is no certainty, with the Conservatives breathing down his neck in Norwich South. He may not have long to make his mark, so I wish Mr Clarke luck for however long he has as Home Secretary. A few months is more than enough time to start a real fight back against crime.”

“Within a week of being in power the Conservatives will have scrapped Labour’s early release programme, which will stop criminals getting out of prison early and will reduce crime. Let’s see what Charles Clarke can achieve in a week to help reduce crime.”

Christmas week is the normal mayhem in school at the moment. Have GCSE mock re-takes tomorrow and Thursday and it always seems to take such an effort to organise anything. Plus I have the photographers in for the Yearbook photos tomorrow as well. Lunchtime is a coursework catch up club – aaarrrggghhh! “Free period” seems to be a euphemism for “working even harder that I would do if actually teaching”. Tomorrow I am also on (joy of joys) Formal School Detention duty. Can’t wait.

Today I attended the funeral of Colin Barker, a very good friend of mine. It was a moving service and there was a really sincere tribute by his sister. It makes you think that you never truly know people half as well as you should. I have found out so much about Colin today, and yet I’ll never be able to share any of it with him. Rest in peace, Colin.

This evening I have been doing more general election planning. However, as somebody said today, it all rather pales into insignificance really.

Despite the festive season coming thick and fast nothing seems to be slowing down! Following last week’s dental disaster I was back at school on Friday to “enjoy” the Sixth Form Panto, which seems to have become an excuse for smut and sexual innuendo – quite good, really! Even got a mention or two in the play – apparently you can’t mention the s-word around future Tory MPs!

Saturday morning I was out with my team in Town Close and we got a really good reception. I have to say that the last time I canvassed that particular area it was 2001 and I was the County Council candidate. Then we were struggling but today people had so much more time for us. In fact it took ages to canvass just two roads because of the number of people who wanted to talk. Sadly the Labour vote seems to be up, but more at the expense of the LibDems. A couple of Labour switchers to us, but far more LibDems saying that they are ready to vote Conservative again. A rather charming gentleman, ex-RAF, told me about his fears for the future of the armed forces if Labour wins again. Ironically he voted for Blair in ’97, then didn’t vote in ’01 but will now vote Conservative. I was recognised (hurrah!) – a grandmother of one of my year group, saying I’ll definitely have her vote. However I spent most time with a lady who works for the N&N, filling me in on some of the ways in which the NHS works at the highest levels that would scare the public if they knew. I said I wouldn’t give out details, so I won’t, but they certainly match experiences that my wife told me about from her time in the NHS.

Following canvassing I fought my way through Norwich, spent enough money to start a small inflationary boom and then came home for Christmas card writing and the X Factor final. Does that make me a nerd? Yes. Clearly. But I did make up for it for going to see Phantom at the UCI Riverside last night. Fantastic, fantastic fantastic! Highly recommended night out. Tomorrow I am leafleting in Bowthorpe then off to the in-laws for Sunday Lunch.

Today has been proof that despite our cynical attitude towards public services they really can come together. I’ve been getting pains in my teeth for a while now and a Christmas party in Norwich really set them off. All night I was up with the pain and no amount of pain killers worked. Both Louise and I had a really bad time (me in pain, her having to listen to me in pain.)

This morning I phoned a dentist ho advertises in the EDP – no appointment for another 2 weeks. No good with me still on the verge of exploding with pain. So I call NHS Direct who put me onto emergency walk-in dentists found on the old West Norwich hospital site on the Bowthorpe Road. Sure enough, an appointment was made for 10o’clock this morning. Even better I was in the dentist’s chair by 10.05. I needed to have one tooth out, one cleaned up and a filling. It took all in all no more than half an hour. The cost? Just £27 – a really acceptable price to pay for the work and stopping my agony.

Still being in some discomfort I wasn’t looking forward to the journey home, but I stepped out of the dentists, crossed the road, and caught the No.21 straight away, which dropped me back outside my home in Bowthorpe. Fantastic service.

Politicians don’t say it enough, but when push comes to shove our public services can and do work. They worked for me today and I’m sure they work for thousands of people everyday. The thought going through my mind on the way was why such services can have problems. It isn’t the professionals who work in them – they were top quality the whole way through. It must be the politicians.

Labour had better take note (and the Tories for that matter) – public services run better without us. Freedom and choice make the public services better not Whitehall led “reform”.

So let me say this loud and clear: Thank You, NHS.