Receive Ben's newsletter
Click here »
Come and meet Ben at one of his public meetings
Click here »
Find out how you can help Ben win
Click here »
Our campaign relies on donations from the public
Click here »
Visit the Conservatives website
Click here »
Visit the Ipswich Conservatives website
Click here »
19th October 2009
Jackie Ashley, in today's Guardian, and the leader writer in yesterday's Observer, have both been advocating bunging the CWU to keep them off the picket line. And yet, at the same time, the Guardian seems to think it is somehow wrong to "bung" the bad old nuclear industry to keep the lights on.
The Guardian's confusion aside, this is a serious business. The CWU are on the brink of destroying our Royal Mail, and a bung will only prolong our inconvenience and the company's agony. On the other hand, giving minimum price commitments to the nuclear industry merely levels the playing field, as nuclear has pay to for its own waste, which is surely right, whilst coal doesn't have to pay for its carbon emissions, which is surely wrong.
The Guardian would do well to examine the role of its preferred party in all of this. The Royal Mail is in trouble now in large part because the government failed to support the company's earlier attempts to spread ownership among the postal workers and thereby incentivize reform. On nuclear, years of dithering on energy policy (they were vacillating as recently as 2003) have only served to increase the costs of new build nuclear, and increase the risk that we will have chronic power shortages while we wait for new capacity to come online.
If the Guardian really cared about the postal service, and about climate change, then it would stop setting itself up as the patron of lost socialist causes, turn against the CWU and give full-throated support to nuclear.
Radio interview with Graham Cleaver, Ipswich Community Radio
5th May 2010
Calling the numbers at Mecca Bingo
5th May 2010
Andrew Lansley visit to Ipswich Hospital
3rd May 2010
7th April 2010
Who are the Forgotten People?
We are! The 5 million self employed who have lost work, but don't appear on any statistics; the people disturbed by anti-social behaviour; teachers, who can no longer do their jobs properly because unruly children make their lives impossible; health professionals who have their budgets slashed while the PCT 'invests' more than £500,000 of our money in a car park! Patients who see services disintegrating at Ipswich Hospital, meaning they have to travel long distances for treatment; victims of serious crime, who see criminals released early, only to commit yet more crime.
Read more »
25th March 2010
Ipswich Conservatives Secure More Funding for Potholes Repair
Conservative Transport Porfolio Holder on Ipswich Borough Council, Cllr Tanya de Hoedt has secured additional funding to deal with the large number of potholes in Ipswich roads following the recent bad winter. She has negotiated with Suffolk County Council, the Highways Authority and obtained a one-off payment of £50,000 to fund dedicated teams to tackle the pothole problem as quickly as possible. This money is in addition to the extra £180,000 being provided by Conservatives at the County Council to help deal with repairs needed following the bad weather.
Read more »