Vote for Stephen David Worrall and the Liberal Democrats this May!

Raised and schooled in Glossop, Stephen now lives in Dinting with his wife and infant daughter. After obtaining a Masters and PhD from the University of Manchester he worked as a Researcher on Climate and Space Materials. He is now a Lecturer in Chemistry at Aston University where he teaches undergraduates and leads a small research group developing new materials to help fight climate change and pollution

With a strong track record of representing local residents, twice elected as Councillor and Chair of the Parish Council in Charlesworth, Stephen has established a reputation for both listening to resident’s concerns and for getting things done! He’s also already fought to represent Dinting, as its Borough Councillor, County Councillor and MP, in the past.

Vote for Stephen as your Dinting Councillor on 4th May!

Vote for Stephen David Worrall and the Liberal Democrats this May!

Raised and schooled in Glossop, Stephen now lives in Dinting with his fiancée. After obtaining a Masters and PhD from the University of Manchester he currently works as a Researcher on Climate and Space Materials.

With a strong track record of representing local residents, twice elected as Councillor and Chair of the Parish Council in Charlesworth, Stephen has established a reputation for both listening to resident’s concerns and for getting things done! He’s also already fought to represent Dinting, as both its County Councillor and its MP, in the past.

Vote for Stephen as your Dinting Councillor on 2^nd May!

Darcey Gillie – Challenging the status quo

Darcey Gillie was born and brought up in a milltown in the north-eastern US. Her father was a self-employed carpenter and her mother was a stay-at-home mum. Darcey grew up learning the carpentry trade, and even now, 30-odd years later, she still goes to work with her dad on Saturdays when home visiting.

Through a combination of scholarships, loans and part-time jobs as a butcher, fish-cutter, baker and university security officer she managed to get herself through university. After a couple of years managing a travel bookshop, Darcey came to the UK to do postgraduate study.

She met her husband, who’s from Derby, in Scotland and they have been married for 16 years. She is a fully-qualified secondary geography teacher and a qualified careers consultant. In the UK, Darcey has lived, worked and studied in Aberdeen, the Isle of Skye, Ullapool, Edinburgh, Derby and Nottingham but has finally found her home in Glossop. Standing for local councillor is her way of giving back to a community that has made her feel so welcome.

Stephen Worrall – Committed to our area

Born at Stepping Hill in 1990 Stephen has lived almost his entire life in Glossop. Growing up in Hadfield and Simmondley, attending Simmondley Primary School and Glossopdale Community College and now living in Charlesworth with his long term girlfriend.

He obtained a Masters in Chemistry and then a PhD in Nanoscience from the University of Manchester, spending 14 months working for one of the largest chemical companies in the world, but still stayed in touch with Glossop, working at Woolworths and Card Factory.

Now a Researcher in Climate at the University of Manchester he also takes science outreach demonstrations out to local schools. Recently he has been able to persuade his superiors to allow him to bring the demonstrations out to Glossop schools for the first time!

Our plan for Glossop and Charlesworth

It’s all about the infrastructure!

If we want to preserve the unique character, heritage, and culture of Glossop, whilst preparing our community for a successful future, we can’t afford to be conservative.

Residents that Darcey and Stephen speak with have serious, genuine concerns about infrastructure. Whether it is planning, housing, public safety, health or education they rarely hear or aware of what the Council is doing to address their concerns and, worse still, often feel these concerns are ignored. Darcey and Stephen pledge:

“If elected on May 4th we will be meeting, listening and talking to people to make sure your voice is heard and listened to in the Council chamber– as well as communicating to you what the Council is thinking and doing. ”

Traffic
We will keep the pressure on the decision makers in Whitehall to ensure that Glossop gets the bypass that it has needed for time out of mind! We will also hold residents meetings to find out what solutions local residents want to traffic problems in there area.

Planning
We will make sure that local residents voices are properly heard in the planning process for developments both big and small. We will also feedback to residents so that they are kept fully aware of what is going on in County Hall.

Public Transport
We will fight any further reductions to our already decimated bus service and seek to bring back cut services where there is a clear demand from local residents to do so.

A Liberal Democrat manifesto for our County

Derbyshire County Council continues to face significant financial pressures which severely limit what it can do. As central government funding is reduced further, DCC is faced with the problem of cutting more of the services it provides.

Yet Labour led DCC has continued to waste money. For decades DCC continued to spend £500,000 each year choosing to have branded orange vehicles rather than standard white ones. And it took 3 1/2 years of this last council to decide that was a waste of your money.

Derbyshire Liberal Democrats are always prepared to ask the difficult questions and to take the necessary decisions to ensure that DCC can continue to provide the essential services that residents need. We need to look at new ways of operating and raising revenue.

Labour continue to be hamstrung by standing up for Trade Union interests and the Conservatives for big business.

In contrast, Derbyshire Liberal Democrats will stand up for the interest group which really matters – the residents of Derbyshire themselves. We will show what we can achieve if we work together, rather than the usual Punch-and-Judy show between the Tories and Labour at County Hall.

Liberal Democrats will seek to bring a strong element of common sense to the council chamber. The best interests of Derbyshire are poorly served by excessive party political dogma and the present system of centralised, autocratic decision making. It’s time for us all to work together for you.

To see our manifesto in full please visit tinyurl.com/derbysld

What have the Liberal Democrats ever done for me?

When we had a chance to influence policy in Westminster we delivered for High Peak:

• An £800 tax cut for 39,900 local residents.
• £6,658,000 extra for our schools.
• 3,850 extra apprentices learning a
  trade in our area.
• Free school meals for 3,000 of our children.
• Record state pension rises for local pensioners.

Vote Liberal Democrat to give us the chance to influence policy in County Hall and deliver even more!

• A reduction in the amount of money that Councillors receive, with the money saved put into providing services.
• Protection of family support services in Children Centres.
• Speed up the repair of potholes, thus saving the £344,000 DCC has spent on pothole compensation claims for reinvesting in frontline services.

Why voting Liberal Democrat is NOT a wasted vote!

The Liberal Democrats have been the most successful party in the last 12 months in by-elections up and down the country with a net gain of 36 seats!

From Brexit voting Sunderland to Remain voting Richmond Liberal Democrat candidates have been winning, lets make that the case in Glossop and Charlesworth as well!

 

Stephen Worrall supports campaign to make voices of people with a learning disability heard in general election.

Today, Stephen has signed up to show his support for Mencap’s Hear my voice campaign.

The campaign is about empowering people with a learning disability and their families to have their voices heard by their local MPs and candidates in the lead up to the May 2015 General Election.

There are 1.4 million people with a learning disability in the UK but many feel they are not listened to by those in power and the issues they that are important to them – like hate crime, better healthcare and education – are often not talked about.

Stephen said:

“My brother has a learning disability and because he received the right help and support, at the right time, he is now doing so much better than I ever thought possible. All people with learning disabilities deserve that support”

Stephen is the latest to confirm support for the campaign and joins other candidates who have signed-up to say they are listening to the voices of people with a learning disability on the new Hear my voice website: www.hear-my-voice-org-uk

Through the website, people with a learning disability and their families have a space to share their experiences with their local MP and, in return, MPs and candidates can show their support by signing-up to say they are listening.

Jan Tregelles, Mencap’s chief executive, said:

“It is encouraging to see so many MPs listening to people with a learning disability and their families about the problems they face and the change they want to see in the next Parliament. They are the experts in what matters to them, so prospective candidates should be listening to what they have to say when they are out on the campaign trail.”

Lord Brian Rix, Mencap President, said:

“There are 1.4 million people in the UK with a learning disability and 6 million more family members and carers connected to them. However they often tell us they feel they are not listened to by politicians and subsequently many of the challenges they face go unheard and unresolved. We are asking Members of Parliament and prospective candidates to listen to what people with a learning disability and their families have to say.”

The campaign has also given rise to a Manifesto, which explores the issues that matter most to people with a learning disability and their families and on which they want to see action from the next UK government. These include improving healthcare for people with a learning disability, ending disability hate crime and improving support in education.

Stephen Worrall, local Liberal Democrat General Election candidate for High Peak has today pledged to support local pubs and breweries.

The three pledges are highlighted in the Manifesto for Pubs and Real Ale by CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, which sets out a package of reforms they are seeking from the next Government. These important pledges are to:

Support well-run community pubs
Promote Britain’s 1,300 breweries
Represent pub goers and beer drinkers.

Tim Page, CAMRA’s Chief Executive welcomed Stephen’s support, saying:

“We are delighted that Stephen has pledged his support for pubs, breweries and consumers. As, on average, 29 pubs close each week it is absolutely vital that our elected representatives recognise and champion the value of these important community assets, and work to protect them.

“CAMRA is urging the next Government to act to ensure that pubs are better protected in the planning system, that large pub companies treat their licensees fairly and that beer duty is set at a level which supports UK brewing.”

Stephen added:

“I am proud to be speaking up for pubs and real ale. Well-run community pubs play a crucial role in local life and make a huge contribution to the local economy – with each injecting around £80,000 to the local area every year.

If elected, I will continue to show my support in Parliament.”

Stephen Worrall, PPC for High Peak has signed up to Cifas’ Fraud Manifesto.

Stephen Worrall, PPC for High Peak has today signed up to Cifas’ Fraud Manifesto, asking for the next government to act on three simple measures which will help cut fraud against people, charities, and businesses in High Peak.

Stephen said:

“This is an important campaign and I am glad to support it. Fraud affects everyone in High Peak in some way – either as direct victims, or through higher taxes and fees as a result of the huge losses which occur. Last year alone there were 16,597 cases of fraud in the East Midlands costing over £57m, according to Cifas’ own figures.

“All too often, fraud is considered to be a hidden crime. However, when your bank or insurer absorbs the cost of fraud it leads to higher fees or premiums for everyone. Similarly, if a charity loses money to fraud its reputation suffers and those who most need that money do not receive it.

“To tackle fraud, we first need to understand its scale. That’s why I’m calling for the independent Annual Fraud Indicator to be re-established, which will make the scale of the threat clear.

“Second, we need to change the behaviour of people and businesses and ensure that they are savvier to frauds and fraudsters across the board in order to better help themselves. That’s why I’m backing the call for a cross-sector awareness campaign to help people at all stages of their lives to stay safe.

“Finally, I want to see the punishment fit the crime. I am calling on the Government to review the sentencing guidelines for fraud to ensure that fraudsters are punished appropriately for their crimes. If a fraudster swindles a grandmother out of her pension, I want to see a punishment that reflects the very real trauma and heartache that devious act would cause.

“I am very happy to support this campaign and help cut the cost of fraud to the UK.”

The Cabinet Office estimates that the cost of fraud to the public sector is between £31billion and £56billion every year. The true cost to charities and the private sector is unknown.

Cifas’ Fraud Manifesto has three clear asks of the government:

That a national measure of fraud loss is created. Government needs to work with industry, charities and other interested parties to understand the scale of the loss. Until it is understood, we will not be able to tackle it.

For a government to lead on a co-ordinated education and awareness campaign on fraud, resourced jointly by Government and industry. People of all ages need to be savvier to frauds and fraudsters across the board in order to better help themselves.

A comprehensive review of the sentencing guidelines for fraud. The public must have faith that when crimes are prosecuted, fraudsters are punished appropriately. And criminals need to know that whether they defraud a multi-national company of millions, or swindle a widower’s pension, that they will face a tough sentence which reflects the impact of their crimes.

Cifas reports that in the last year alone, its member organisations reported 16,597 cases of fraud in the East Midlands costing over £57m.

Simon Dukes, Chief Executive of Cifas, said:

“One thing is clear – incidents of fraud are on the rise. The internet makes it easier and cheaper for fraudsters to try their luck and they are doing so at a greater pace and on an industrial scale.

“We are never going to arrest our way out of fraud. So we need to understand the scale of the threat we are facing in order to change behaviours and protect ourselves. And when we have evidence on the worst cases, citizens need to have confidence that fraudsters are being pursued with the full force of the law and that the punishment fits the crime.”

 

 

After receiving a number of emails about humane, sustainable farming High Peak Liberal Democrat PPC Stephen Worrall gives his thoughts.

I wholeheartedly agree that we need to ensure that farm animal welfare is of a very high standard, the use of cages and crates being to my mind unacceptable.

With regards to outdoor systems I feel that the use of appropriately large barns (with ample space, plenty of straw, natural light and effective ventilation) may in some cases be preferable to outdoor systems, but it is clear that one out of those two set ups is the least that we should provide for our farm animals.

Genetic selection for fast growth or high yields should only be pursued if it does not compromise the welfare of the animal in question, mutilations should be out of the question.

Encouraging the adoption of diets consisting of a lower proportion of meat is a complex issue. I do completely accept that there would be undoubted health benefits and that if less meat was consumed there would be less farm animals and therefore less methane emitted, but I feel a little uncomfortable with the state trying to coerce people into changing their behavior. On balance I feel I would be supportive of such a measure, but it would have to be carefully constructed.

The issue of how to ensure that the valuable income that farming provides to rural communities, like many in the High Peak, is maintained is I think another tricky one. If higher welfare production leads to the farmers produce being more valuable then even if there was a modest reduction in demand, due to the increased price, then their incomes would be protected. However if the price of meat was raised uniformly like this then it would be poorer families who would be having their diets forcibly changed, whilst the well off were little affected. This is of concern to me and I am not sure of a way round it to be quite honest, one way would be to try and ensure that the increase in price was not too large so as to not affect those on low incomes as much.

I am fully behind the reduction in the amount of cereal used to feed animals, as it is an incredibly inefficient way to use a human edible crop and is not what the animals would eat naturally in most cases.

Overall a careful approach needs to be taken to ensure that despite our best intentions with regards to animal welfare there are not negative unintended consequences from our actions to others in society.