Post Office Closures in West Yorkshire

The Post Office have announced the latest round of closures - this time in West Yorkshire.

18 per cent of the Post Office branch network would be axed, if all the proposals are confirmed after the six-week consultation.

According to the Post Office Area Plan for West Yorkshire (which does not include Huddersfield or the Colne Valley), 63 branches are proposed for closure in West Yorkshire whilst 282 will be retained.

Commenting, Shadow Minister for Postal Affairs, Charles Hendry MP, said:

“One of the major concerns is that these closures are illogical.  It is simply a computer which has decided to close a Post Office which is deemed too close to another, even if it happens to be profitable and easily accessed by its customers. 

“The Post Office is complacently assuming that all of the business at the closing profitable office will simply migrate to surviving branches. This conveniently supposes people will travel the extra distance irrespective of the public transport connections or the accessibility for vulnerable groups and the elderly.”

“Whilst the Government says it is listening, we will be fighting to save Post Offices across Yorkshire.”

Yorkshire Campaigning in Crewe & Nantwich

Conservative Party members and activists from across Yorkshire are helping the Conservative campaign in Crewe & Nantwich ahead of the by-election there.

Led by Regional Chairman, Peggy White CBE, the team travelled across the Pennines to work with Edward Timpson, our Parliamentary Candidate for the constituency.

Crewe and Nantwich By-Election

The campaign for the Crewe & Nantwich by-election is now underway and the campaign team in Crewe & Nantwich is looking for help from now until Polling Day.

As the Local Election results come in, it is becoming clear that people across the country are taking their opportunity to vote for change.

The results so far show that the people of Britain trust the Conservatives to deliver true value for money whilst making their neighbourhoods cleaner, greener and safer.

They also finally lay to rest the myth that the Conservative party cannot compete in all parts of our country but we still need your help.

The Crewe and Nantwich by-election will take place on Thursday 22nd May. If you can come and help between now and the 22nd please call 07594 567273 or email campaign.support@conservatives.com

Click on the image above for a pdf map and directions to Campaign HQ in Crewe.

Gains across Yorkshire in Local Elections

Key Facts from 1 May:

Conservative Gains:
23 across Yorkshire (15 in West Yorkshire, 5 in South Yorkshire, 3 in North Yorkshire)

Conservative Losses:
2 (1 in South Yorkshire, 1 in West Yorkshire)

• In Wakefield, the Conservatives have gained eight seats - Ackworth, North Elmsall and Upton ward; Stanley and Outwood East ward; Horbury and South Ossett ward; Ossett ward; Wrenthorpe and Outwood West ward; Crofton, Ryhill and Walton ward, Pontefract North ward and Pontefract South ward.

• In Calderdale, Conservatives gained Brighouse and Todmorden from the Liberal Democrats.

• In Bradford, Conservatives have taken Bowling and Barkerend ward and both the Keighley East and Keighley West wards.

• In Kirklees, Holme Valley North and Denby Dale were taken by the Conservatives.

• In Labour’s heartland of South Yorkshire, the Conservatives gained three seats in Rotherham.

• In the wards that make up the Rother Valley Parliamentary Constituency, our analysis shows  Conservatives took 39 per cent of the vote to Labour’s 30 per cent.

• The Conservatives also gained a seat in Barnsley. We now hold Penistone East and Penistone West, two key wards in the new Penistone and Stocksbridge constituency.

• In North Yorkshire, Conservatives won the Boroughbridge ward and Ouseburn ward in Harrogate from the Liberal Democrats.

• On Craven Council, Conservatives gained Skipton East.

• In North East Lincolnshire, Conservatives gained one seat and now have 15 councillors.

Shadow Foreign Secretary, Chairman of the Northern Board and Richmond MP, the Rt Hon William Hague, said:

“We have won seats in the Labour heartlands of Wakefield, Rotherham and Barnsley, we have won seats in both Kirklees and Calderdale to become the largest party, we have won seats in Bradford, Harrogate and Craven.

“Today’s results are significant for the Conservatives. They show that, even in Labour strongholds, we are making big steps forward and it’s clear Yorkshire, like Britain, is ready for change.

“The work our team is putting in to improve our position in Yorkshire will continue. Significant progress is being made by improving our vote share and being the only party to stand in every ward being contested.

“This year’s results put us in a good position to improve further in the years to come in both council elections and the General Election. With more than one hundred tax rises, the doubling of violent crime, and cuts to key NHS services, people across Yorkshire have had enough of Gordon Brown and Labour.”

Thank You For Voting

If you voted Conservative on Thursday, 1 May, then thank you.

We’ve been across Yorkshire for the local elections and are, of course, the only party that has contested every ward in every council where there are elections.

If you can help in future elections, or are interested in finding out more about how to get involved, please e-mail office@yorkshireconservatives.org.uk

Vote Conservative Today

Your vote can make a real difference. These elections really do matter. It’s time to turn Britain around. So please vote Conservative in your local elections today.

Wherever you are in Yorkshire, if there are elections, there’s a Conservative candidate. Polling stations are open until 10pm.

 

Francis Maude on the election trail

Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude has been in Keighley to offer his personal support to the Conservative Party candidates standing in Thursday’s local government elections.

Accompanied by several of the candidates including Bradford Council Conservative Leader Cllr Kris Hopkins who is standing for re-election in Worth Valley, the former Conservative Party Chairman called in to congratulate Chris Herd, of C & L Herd Family Butchers on Queen’s Road, who yesterday ran as “Beefy Botham” in the Mascot Gold Cup event at Wetherby Racecourse in aid of Manorlands Hospice.

Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude said:

“It is always a pleasure to visit Keighley where I keep in very close touch with local developments.

“Having the opportunity to pop in to congratulate Chris on his fundraising efforts in the Mascot Gold Cup and sample some of his products is a special delight for me.

“I wish him and his business very well, as I do the local Conservative candidates who I hope will receive the support of huge numbers of Keighley residents in Thursday’s council elections.” 

Cllr Kris Hopkins, who is also the Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Keighley and Ilkley, added:

“It is terrific to welcome Francis back to Keighley to receive his personal support in advance of Thursday’s elections.

“The response of local people to the Conservative campaign has been very positive and we hope very much that this will be translated into votes when the ballot boxes are opened on Friday morning. 

“On a personal note, I would also like to pay tribute to Chris who did such a wonderful thing by running in the Mascot Gold Cup.

“Manorlands needs all the support it can get and this was such a fun way of raising some extra cash.”     

Baroness Warsi of Dewsbury wins Public Service award

Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, Shadow Minister for Community Cohesion and Social Action, has won a Lloyds TSB Jewel Award for Public Service Excellence.

The Awards highlight British Asian achievement. Baroness Warsi, also Shadow Minister for Sheffield, was nominated in recognition of her successful mission to Sudan to free UK teacher Gillian Gibbons in December 2007, as well as her ongoing work on community cohesion.

Upon receiving the award, Baroness Warsi said, “The case of Gillian Gibbons was a classic example of a local dispute based upon cultural misunderstanding with troublemakers standing on the sidelines prepared to make things worse. When this happens, it’s important that people are prepared to take a stand and be counted. In going out to Sudan, I hope that’s what I was doing.”

“The awards ceremony was an amazing night,” said Baroness Warsi. “We had people from all walks of life – business, the arts and the public sector. The evening was a celebration of the huge contribution that British Asians are now making. It was a real privilege to receive this public excellence award in such distinguished company.”

Local Election Campaign Launch

David Cameron has come to Yorkshire to launch the national campaign for the local elections on 1 May.

He was in Dewsbury, accompanied by Party Chairman, Caroline Spelman, Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government, Eric Pickles, Shadow Community Cohesion Minister Sayeeda Warsi, and Leader of Kirklees Council, Robert Light.

In his speech at the Town Hall, he promised Conservative candidates would be greener and tougher on anti-social behaviour without “slapping people in the face” with huge bills.

He added: “As people see the cost of their groceries going up, they want a council that keeps costs down.

“There is nothing more depressing than paying a whacking great cheque to the council and then watching it being squandered on pointless schemes and vanity projects driven by councillors on an ego trip.

“Wasting public money is a slap in the face to people who live on tight budgets because council tax can swallow a significant part of their disposable income.”

Eric Pickles Visits Sheffield

Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government, Eric Pickles, has visited Sheffield to help with our election campaign there.

He met with activists and party members, along with Cllr Anne Smith.