To contact us_

Either e-mail us using talk2us or ring us on 01562 823581 (Answerphone service out of office hours)

Welcome

The Premier Independent political party in Wyre Forest

The Wyre Forest area of north Worcestershire is the home of independent political thought - having been represented in Parliament for two terms (ten years) by the Independent M.P. Dr. Richard Taylor M.B.E.

Representing Wyre Forest people

The party has representatives at Worcestershire County and Wyre Forest District levels as well as Councillors on the Bewdley, Kidderminster and Stourport-on- Severn town councils.

Not just a ‘Single Issue’ party

As is reflected in it’s title, Independent Community and Health Concern is NOT just a ‘single issue’ grouping of independent representatives of the people; taking on-board all manner of local problems (and solving them) and local aspirations (and aiding in their delivery). It grew out of the projected closure of Kidderminster Hospital (to which so many had contributed with fund-raising). This prompted mass protest and street parades and, ultimately, the rejection of the sitting Labour MP - a junior Minister. While I.C.H.C. remains fundamentally concerned with the provision of health facilities and the delivery of all that results in ‘good health’ it is associated with concern for all aspects of a healthy community - education for all ages, support for the disabled and the elderly, transport, arts and entertainment, nature and the environment.

Dr.  

Richard  

Taylor

  

is  

“back  

in  

the  

saddle,  

again”  

..  

riding  

to  

the

rescue of the patients of the Worcester NHS.

Following   complaints   about   queuing   Ambulances,   corridors   blocked   with waiting    patients,    and    a    clogged    A&E    Ward,    Dr.    Richard    Taylor    (Wyre Forest MP 2001-2010) comes-up with the obvious solution .. “It   is   utterly   ridiculous   that   hospital   facilities   at   Worcester   Royal Infirmary   are   overloaded   while   facilities   at   Kidderminster   Hospital are vacant or underused !” If   only   we   had   a   Doctor   leading   for   minor   injuries   at   Kidderminster, fewer   people   would   have   to   go   to   Worcester   -   which   is   a   huge   waste of time (and money).” After   a   meeting   and   conversation   with   the   new   hospital   Chief   Executive Matthew   Hopkins,   Dr.   Taylor    said   he   thought   that   he   had   “all   the   right ideas”  but that he would be judged in time by what he did.

Councils

Bewdley Town Council, created 1974, has 13 Town Councillors all of whom are elected for a term of four years. For voting purposes, Bewdley is divided into three Wards which are Bewdley West (4 Councillors) and Bewdley East (4 Councillors) on the west side of the river and Wribbenhall (5 Councillors) on the east side. The Town Council Elections last took place on 22nd May 2014. The next election is due to take place in 2019. Timetable for 2019 meetings not yet available January: 8th   -  Planning 10th - Services 22nd - Events 23rd - Finance 24th  - Town Hall 29th - KEF events planning 30th  - Full Council Tuesday 8th    January   2019 Tuesday 12th  February  2019 Tuesday 12th  March      2019 Meetings will be held in the courtroom of the Coroner's Service, Civic Centre, Stourport-on-Severn, unless otherwise stated

Stourport-on-Severn

Dixon Sheppard   01299 826941 Councillor for Lickhill Ward Janice Sheppard   01299 826941 Councillor for Lickhill Ward Julie Bennett   01299 827773 Councillor for Central Ward Gill Smith   01299 878067 Councillor for Central Ward Nicky Martin   01299 871825 Councillor for North Ward Neil Thomas   01299 871895 Councillor for North Ward Mike Salter   01299 877382 Councillor for Stour and Wilden Ward

Kidderminster

Mary Rayner   01562 748564 Councillor for Broadwaters Peter Young  01562  750529 Councillor for Broadwaters

Bewdley

Linda Candlin  01299 409414 Councillor for Wribbenhall Ward Elizabeth Davies  01299 403053 Councillor for Wribbenhall Ward Calne Edgington-White     01299  400726 Councillor for Bewdley West Ward

Worcestershire

County

Mary Rayner    01562 748564 Councillor for Kidderminster - St Georges and St Oswald

Wyre Forest District

Mary Rayner   01562 748564 Councillor for Broadwaters Nicky Martin   01299 871825 Councillor for  Mitton

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JOIN Health Concern to be part of Health Concern …

•

VOTE for one of our Candidates

If you are not going to be in Wyre Forest on polling day (at work or on holiday) or

are not physically able to go to a polling station to vote in person, you can still

vote. Even if you've moved house since the electoral register was drawn up and

have not yet joined the register at your new address, this is how to exercise your

democratic right.

•

If you wish to appoint someone else (a proxy) to vote on your behalf _

DOWNLOAD THIS FORM

•

If you wish to vote by post _

DOWNLOAD THIS FORM

Simply print the form out, complete the details and send it to _

The Local Electoral Registration Officer.

Finepoint Way,

Kidderminster, DY11 7WF

•

Or you can telephone the Worcestershire Hub on

01562 73292

Be a SUPPORTER  …  … 

•

ATTEND our bi-monthly meetings and participate in our Social Events.

•

Volunteer to deliver our Newsletters (Pulse) in your street, 

•

Help with fund-raising,  

•

Man the office phones and talk to people (we have machines to do the printing

and paper-folding).

 

Be a CANDIDATE  …  …

•

VOLUNTEER to stand for election to represent your area and have the Health

Concern resources behind you

Ring for a ‘Call-Back’

01562 823581

Preparing for the Next Elections

Join Health Concern to become a member of the party. Membership details available from Keith Robertson, our Membership Secretary

PRESS RELEASE

27/01/2019

Loneliness is said to be one of the scourges of today’s society • Why then are Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust transferring patients out of the county and further away from family and friends, into Warwick hospital ? • Think of what this means for the patients and their families in terms of contact and support • The problem we are told is one of capacity - yet there have been appeals not to use Worcester A&E - because it could not cope ! If that is the case, why not use the already available facilities at Kidderminster Hospital / Treatment centre ? • How do the Trust justify the expense of buying care from Warwickshire when we have the potential solution here, in Kidderminster ? • Better by far for patients and their families • Now we hear that GP’s will not be able to order certain X-rays - at a time of increasing difficulty in getting GP appointments Surely now is the time to review the minor injuries and out of hours services at Kidderminster Hospital ? The above points are not mutually exclusive. There are a number of other issues which need addressing What we ask is happening to patient care in Worcestershire?

National

Don’t you just ‘lurve’ a successful advertising campaign ? It often compensates for the paucity of the programmes either side of the commercial break. So the ad. for The Times  newspaper is now the highlight of every evening’s viewing. Populating the House of Commons with animals from the Zoo is a ‘corker’ of an idea .. and the most enjoyable bit ? Must be matching the animal to the politician ! The Old Goat on his hind legs (last legs ?) in front of the Opposition benches must be_ J _ _ _ _ _ C _ _ _ _ _. The Ostrich facing him (burying her head in the sand) must be_ T _ _ _ _ _ M _ _. The grotty, little, bad- tempered, frightened Terrier can only be_ J _ _ _ B _ _ _ _ _. The Rats (leaving a sinking ship) must be_ The T _ _ _ _ A _ _ _ _ _. So, who is the Python, the (Karma) Chameleon, the Vulture, .. etc, etc. ? Like I said, far better than the programmes, any evening. __________________ “What is it ..” as Stephen Fry might be heard spluttering “.. with women and their ‘Lady Bits’ ?” There we all are, quietly muttering into our beards about Brexit and all manner of diatribes and then, all-of- a sudden, .. there they are .. ‘in-your-face’ as it were. Firstly we have Boris’s “other half”, sister Rachel Johnson, stripping off on Sky News (Sky? How common is that ?) .. then we have Dr. Victoria Bateman, that esteemed Cambridge economic historian, (!) stripping off on ‘Today’ (in an attempt to embarrass Jacob R-M ?) .. and just last Friday, perhaps in emulation of their “big sisters” we have topless ‘gels’ running through Parliament Square in protest at climate change. They probably have good cause to protest about the British climate in February; still, the early Spring temperatures will allow their protests to stand out all the more. (16/02) ___________________ Ed: Thought was given in these “#-days” whether to post the above article and we believe, on the balance of probabilities that the ladies (?) in question, having abandoned the high moral ground of reasoned argument on the altar of notoriety, ought not to protest upon hearing whistles and cat-calls. __________________ And now “Little Nicki” is in trouble and will find himself sitting on the bench outside the headmaster’s office ! He’s been summoned !! Summoned to appear before the House of Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights    (06/02) (chair - Harriet Harman) .. “You are uniquely placed to discuss online harassment of MPs on social media sites.” And all before he’s had time to hang the curtains in his new home .. which his new Facebook salary will probably pay for in his first year at the firm. ___________________ “Little Nicki” that ‘Mini-Me’  Deputy Prime Minister .. (whose job was presumably, to make David Cameron look Ministerial ?) has completed his ‘about-face’ in rejecting all his former political ambitions and posturings. Nick Clegg’s journey from failed politician .. thrown out of his parliamentary seat - to being knighted .. Sir Nick - to becoming a mega-rich V.P. and lobbyist for U.S. Facebook .. has meant his abandonment of many of his ‘principles’ .. • no rise in student fees (which he then raised) • his promise of an In/Out referendum (in both 2008 & 2010) and then contributing nothing in its aftermath. Presumably his £7,000,000 new home in America’s priciest post-code was too much of a draw for him to stick with us or even to  overlook Facebook’s risible tax position in this country and its role in the on-line self-abuse of our youth. Nine years ago, in his In his ‘Dandelion Mind’ tour, comedian Bill Bailey sang "Nick Clegg you don't have to wear that dress tonight, walk the streets for money, you don't have to sell your body to the right" .. to the tune of "Roxanne". But he has. Well, like ‘they’ say, Rt Hon. Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg .. “Onward and Upward” __________________ “Alexander Elliot Anderson Salmond .. how do you plead ?” Well, he didn’t .. at least not on Thursday (24/01) The 64-year-old made no plea during the (private) hearing at Edinburgh Sheriff’s Court when he was accused of two charges of attempted rape, nine of sexual assault, two of indecent assault and one of breach of the peace. He resigned from the SNP in August 2018 with the declared intention of resuming membership ‘when he had cleared his name’ - which the Po-liss obviously don’t think he has, so far. The allegations of sexual misconduct date back to 2013 which was while he was ‘First Minister of Scotland’. Outside the court, this product of a 2:2 Joint Honours MA in Economics and Medieval History (St. Andrew’s University - May 1978) spoke to reporters. Study his words with the same care with which he crafted them .. “ .. the only thing I can say is I refute absolutely these allegations of criminality  and I'll defend myself to the utmost in court." As is often said by those in the legal profession, Alex; .. ‘See you in court’. ____________________ The latest (hopefully the dying gasp) of ‘Project Fear’ to emerge from the BBC is that .. drivers going abroad will have to obtain a ‘Green Card’ before venturing onto the Continent’s hallowed tarmac (17/01). (For those of you so young and callow as not to know what a ‘Green Card’ is - it’s a (green) card issued by your Insurance Company which confirms that you have Insurance cover and so can drive legally while abroad.) Of course, if you haven’t got Insurance, you won’t get a Green Card, and so can’t go.  Serves you right. Those of us reasonably long-in-the-tooth can remember having to get a Green Card - and thinking nothing of it.  “Foreign currency - check, Passport - check, Green Card - check. OK kids, we’re almost there !” For ‘Snowflakes’ it is all obviously just too much ! __________________

Local

It’s a shame when one’s dirty linen gets washed in public - a phrase and saying with which Adrian and Tim Hardman would no doubt agree. Even worse is when families fall out and things end up in the hands of “Chancery” (as Dickens advised against). Our modern ‘Jarndyce v Jarndyce’ protagonists came to blows before district judge Bosman at Cambridge County Court  the other week (17/01) over a book (worth £127.50 - but sold eventually at auction for just £25) in dispute since 1986. What a festering grudge ! Tim believed that, despite being their mother’s executor, he had not been informed of her demise ‘by her immediate relatives’ and that various of her possessions - and some of his - were removed from her home …. allegedly. Anyway, His Honour, Justice Bosman, ordered Cllr Hardman (that’s Adrian) who is also Worcester County Council’s cabinet member responsible for adult social care and a former leader, pay costs of £60, with the total amount of £187.50 due by January 31. We really ought to draw a veil over these proceedings; after all, as ‘Sly and the family Stone’ used to sing .. “It’s a family affair .. it’s a family affair .. !” _________________ Fancy a trip to Hospital ? Well, it wasn’t what 41 patients were expecting when they arrived at ‘Worcester Royal’ for their treatment .. and got bussed over to ‘Warwickshire South’ ! (17/01) Why, it’s even in the ‘wrong’ county ! But Kidderminster isn’t .. so why was our spare capacity not used ? And, while we’re “at it” .. let’s thump the old drum about the Out-of-Hours service at Kidderminster and the Minor injuries Unit being combined and Doctor led ? Or are they acutely deaf at Worcester Acute ? _________________ Michael Gove - that man of inordinate ambition - that ‘Iago’ to Boris’s ‘Othello’ - now refreshes his ‘Sarf Landin’ credentials and declares war on country- dwellers. (14/01) For those living in the rural environs of Wyre Forest  (please note the ‘Forest’ bit in our name) he now intends to outlaw wood- burning stoves ! Wyre Foresters .. often / frequently / mostly situated along country lanes, far from mains gas and at the end of an electric supply slung from poles across fields - this environmentally- friendly (wood’s renewable) method of providing warmth, hot-water and cooked food is an essential part of staying alive. Gove and his city “mates” probably see them as a ‘cute’ addition to their London pads. We need them / rely on them / depend on them ! Which cannot be said about Mr. Gove. __________________ With Tuesday’s     (12/01) “Meaningful Vote” immanent, Wyre Forest voters might be wondering if our MP - Mark Garnier (if you’ve forgotten) - will be walking into the lobbies with the 2017 Conservative Party manifesto in mind. Remember those hallowed and oh-so-reassuring words … “we continue to believe that ‘No Deal’ is better than a ‘Bad Deal’.”   his ‘contract’ with the electorate ? Mr. Garnier .. Wyre Forest is watching you. ____________________ Generous people, those builders at Elmsvyne Homes; giving away the ancient (as far back as 1940) footpath at the old (not as far back as 1940) car park at Vale Road, Stourport. I mean, its not as if Stourport needs any more car park spaces, is it ? And to add it on to the gardens in their development so that half a dozen can benefit .. “nice” - while countless others (to quote the Council) “the vulnerable, are put at significant risk and conflict with vehicles.” Of course, no one can blame the innocent people who have bought the homes (that Elmsvyne built). How were they to know ? ___________________ Just how ‘local’ do you have to be to get a copy of the District Council letter regarding their ‘Local Plan’ consultation ?     (04/01) While residents of ‘watery’ Stourport seem to have Cllr. Fran Oborski “championing their cause” for being ill-informed about the consultation process, who will the residents of ‘leavy’ Chaddesley Corbett have to champion them, they wonder ? “Letter ?  What letter ?” they are heard to mutter. ___________________ Several letters have recently appeared in national newspapers (26/12) - one from local, leafy Chaddesley Corbett  - despairing of all the main political parties (and their manifestos which melt and disappear once they are in office somewhat like an MP’s reputation once they have been handed a speeding ticket) and suggesting the formation of a new force to represent The People. While those living in far- flung places might be excused, residents of  Wyre Forest know they have their salvation so very close to hand. HERE WE ARE ! The antidote (not to panel games) but to frustration and disillusion with the London-centric, democracy- rejecting reactionaries that dominate proceedings because they have accrued power and the influence of the ‘me-jah’ to themselves. Failure to take into account their innate unaccountability could all too easily result in the terrible consequences we view across ‘La Manche’ - see opposite column. Like the Christmas adverts maintain .. “Go Local” to obtain quality and accountability.

International

The EU reveals its true face as Donald Tusk, that inane grinner of inane grins, thinks its funny to condemn Brexiters to hell !    (07/02) “There is a special place in hell for ‘Leave’ campaigners !” he says. “After what they did to Britain, even Lucifer would not welcome them !” Well, Donald .. (and what is it with politicians called ‘Donald’ not being able to get a grasp on reality ?) we (the British) have seen hell many a time, usually when we’ve had to visit the continent to rescue you chaps from your latest megalomaniac dictator, intent on enslaving you - or wiping you out ! Yep, Lucifer is an old friend of ours .. thanks to people like you ! __________________ Oh .. and that combines well with an interesting little snippet about others with whom we are “negotiating”.. the dad of Martin Selmyer, the un-elected Head of the EU Civil Service .. we repatriated him in 1946 to Yugoslavia to be convicted of war crimes - only for him to be released to work for the CIA .. Velly interestink ! __________________ Nissan, the car maker, is in disarray following the arrest and financial misconduct charges brought against its charismatic and globe- trotting former chairman, Carlos Ghosn (a ‘Mr. Bean’ look-alike if ever there was one). Firms around the world are frantically engaged in the biggest re-engineering of production since the introduction of the Ford Model T by Henry Ford in 1908 as the internal combustion engine, which has reigned supreme for more than a century, is under huge threat from regulators and politicians seeking to reduce pollution and global warming.  So this is yet another ‘green’ debacle that we can lay at Tony Blair’s door. It makes obvious sense for Japan to retrench during the universal ‘retreat from diesel’ by switching production to its home country. (05/02) Good news ?   Nissan has reaffirmed that its production of another relatively new model, the petrol-fuelled Qashqai, will remain here. Bad news ? The disingenuous use of this ‘news’ to lay the Sunderland U-turn at the door of Brexit – particularly by “.. the personable but ineffectual Business Secretary Greg Clark” (to quote a national daily). And the ‘elephant in the room’ ? Getting rid of diesel cars doesn’t get rid of diesel ! When you ‘crack’ crude oil you get lighter distillates (petrol, aviation fuel, central heating fuel, etc) .. diesel is one such and, no matter what you legislate, every gallon of crude that is processed will continue to produce the same volume of diesel. That’s the laws of chemistry at work. It’s why there was all that ‘spare’ diesel around which fuel companies wanted to flog cheaply and which led to the over-production of diesel engine cars. Question. What do with the diesel being made when we’ve got rid of the diesel engine cars  ? Answer, on a postcard, to Greg Clark, please. ____________________ “And there’s more .. from Ireland” (26/01) ‘Lovely Leo’ Varadkar- that Dublin-born Taoiseach whose family have progressed here via Mumbai, Slough, Leicester,, back to India, and back to Dublin (and good for them) - has ‘threatened’ a hard Irish border, complete with wire, watch-towers police and troops ! Plenty of troops .. though whose troops he’s none too explicit about. Perhaps he’s referring to the projected new European Army, strung together with bits and bobs of French and German reserves (never a good mix) ? And all to man Barnier’s  ‘Atlantic Wall’ (something that Hitler was none too successful doing) ! Against what ? Lorries of soap-powder and vans of pickled onions ? ___________________ They may be the “New IRA” in name but ‘The Boys’ in Londonderry are stuck in their old ways. Even past allies Sinn Féin say it was a “mindless and outrageous attack on the people of Derry” (Sinn Féin president Mary-Lou McDonald) .. and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar says “the Government in the Republic condemns the incident in the strongest possible terms” -  “an appalling, reckless and cynical act of terror,”- (20/01) And yet, ‘The Boys’ can’t break with their old ways and, in alerting the innocent Irish citizens of Derry to their bomb-blast, they chose to ring .. The Samaritans .. in Birmingham - a somewhat roundabout (but to them conventional) route. In situations like that it depends who you’ve got on speed-dial and, apart from Ghost-busters, who else are you going to call ? ___________________

Blog

Comments about what’s going on in political life …  … Please note that views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Health Concern or of it’s Councillors or members - so enjoy them - or ignore them (!) It’s your choice.

News

A VOTE ON FEB. 14th ?

  ..   OR, MAY-BE A VOTE ON FEB. 28th ?

WHO KNOWS ?

AND WILL ANY OF THEM BE “MEANINGFULL” 

Why, even my spell-checker doesn’t know what that word means !

If you didn’t laugh .. you’d cry ..

More Crackers .. # Will BREXIT be followed by Grexit, Departugal, Italeave, Czechout, Finish and Byegium  ? # What song did David Cameron (or Peter Mandelson, or ?) sing at the Christmas party ?   “All I want for Christmas is EU !” # Jeremy Corbyn says that his position on Brexit is quite clear .. it’s just that he doesn’t agree with it ! # BREXIT .. that’s saying ‘Goodbye’ to Croissants and ‘Hello’ to Crumpets. # Great idea of the people of England to vote for BREXIT and leave Germany with the majority of power in Europe.   What could go wrong? # I just read that after this BREXIT-thing the people of Britain will be forced to live on a rainy island   separated from the rest of Europe. # BREXIT ?  It sounds like a three year-old trying to pronounce Breakfast. # What’s the difference between BREXIT and Donald Trump’s “Great American Dream” ?   We’ve already got a ditch ! # When you look at the map above (top of page) remember that for vast tracts of Scotland and N. Ireland (the   Yellow bits) you’d be sharing the vista with sheep from horizon to horizon .. and (some say) that, to the south (the    Blue bits) the same would hold true. # Just after one MP described Theresa May’s Brexit document as “.. a fig-leaf .. and a small one at that !”,   that adorable Michael Gove chimes-in with a quote from “Game of Thrones” “ .. Winter’s coming !”   How un-gentlemanly ! # Have you noticed that the date for BREXIT is a FRIDAY .. and, since ..   “.. on Saturday and Sunday, we do not work at all  .. .. it’ll be on the Monday morning Brexit’ll make fools of us all !”   Our first ’proper’ day of freedom will be APRIL FOOL’S DAY AND THERE’S MORE .. keep ‘em comin’.

Remember the Referendum ?

This was how we voted _

England voted 53.38%

West Midlands voted 59.26%

Wyre Forest voted 63.1%

TO LEAVE

Yellow = REMAIN Blue = LEAVE

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

‘Plus Ca Change ?’

Do we have a “New ‘Centrist’ Party ? Or is it ‘more of the same’ under a different name ? Apart   from   hating   ‘The   Sainted’   Jeremy   Corbyn   (and,   possibly,   being   equally   hated   by   him   in   return)   what   do   ‘ The   Magnificent   Seven’   have in common ?  Why .. their hatred of BREXIT ! This   is   a   “REMAINERS   PARTY”    fully   intent   on   stopping   Brexit   from   happening   and,   seeing   March   29th    approaching   at   breakneck   speed, are panic-stricken to put the brakes on (and don’t see Jeremy as having a clue where the brake-handle is). This   group   is   pitching   at   a   specific,   identified   demographic,   to   which   it   will   promote   itself   as   their   ‘saviours’. They   look   to   the   London-centric, former Blair supporters who have clammed-shut in the face of Corbynista guerrillas. Read   their   opening   texts   and   recall   ‘Two-tone’   Tony’s   words   (read   them,   and   weep)   ..   “improved   life   chances   ..   mixed   social   economy   .. safe-guarding the vulnerable .. multilateral this .. international that” .. and a partridge in a pear tree to all who vote for us. Few   people   want   to   be   perceived   as   “extremist”   ..   apart,   that   is,   from   people   who   have   isolated   themselves   on   the   extreme   poles   of   thought ..   “akin   to   madness   close   allied”.   So   everyone   these   days   thinks   of   themselves   as   being   in   the   ’Middle   Ground’   and   everyone   else   is   “an extremist”.   Wherever   the   middle   of   the   ‘Middle   Ground’   is   to   be   found   it   won’t   be   in   the   thoughts   and   proclamations   of   a   London-based ‘social liberalism’, which is so very, very far away from the aspirations of the ‘working man’ elsewhere in the UK. JUST HOW MUCH OF AN ‘EXTREMIST’ ARE YOU ? Left Wing Middle Ground Right Wing _________________________________________________________________________________________________

Contact

Health Concern

I.C.H.C. office Station Approach, Comberton Hill, Kidderminster. Worcs. DY10 1QX Tel: 01562 823581 Fax: 01562 77 00 11 e: talk2us@healthconcern.org.uk

How to find us

Directions

Google maps Our office is located on Comberton Hill, next to the Severn Valley and West Midlands railway stations. There are a number of Pay & Display car parks in the immediate vicinity. There is a bus service along the main road.

Hours of Business

Please ring to make a weekday appointment. 01562 823581

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