Quite Pointless Contribution

THEY have been navel gazing again at Saddleworth Parish Council, although what they expect to find apart from a ball of yellow fluff and a map to Huddersfield it is difficult to say. It was one of those who-are-we, what-should-we-do kind of meetings.

The splendid Shoab Akhtar, deputy leader of the, in these parts, far from loved Oldham Council, and Jean Stretton must have upset someone on high because they were sent to the civic hall to oversee this riveting debate on localism, which was ostensibly called to find out why the parish council, which has had, believe it or believe it not, Quality Parish Council status for a few of years now but doesn’t know what it means.

It’s simple really. QPC status gives the elected Saddleworth tea and cakes meeting brigade the right to take on services currently provided by Big Brother Oldham. But, in the years since the award was made, how many have they taken on? None.

The always good value John Hudson spelled it out when he said (and I can’t do justice to the voice in print, sadly): “We need to decide what our role is and if we’re big enough to fulfil it.” Answers on a post card to Councillor Akhtar.

One of the observations to come out of all this soul-searching scrutiny was the overwhelming view that community and residents’ groups are by-passing Saddleworth Parish Council and dealing directly with Oldham Council. I am surprised that the Saddleworth councillors are surprised; shocked that they are shocked.

After years with the medal or is it millstone of Quality Parish Council status but having done nothing about it, apart from building themselves a new meeting room, are they surprised that local folk who want action go to Oldham?

The outcome of this dithering dilemma is the establishment of a fact-finding mission to Selby to see how they have learned to live with QPC status. Will anything ever come of it?

What do you think?

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WHEN we joined the Common Market all those years ago, it was an act of good neighbourliness. You know, we’d lend them the odd cup of sugar and look after their pet frog (no intended slur on European neighbours) while they went on holiday and they’d not nick our telly while we were asleep in bed.

So how did we come to move from that kind of jovial camaraderie with our neighbours and friends in Germany, France and Italy to being up to our necks in the deep dooh-dah and facing the prospects of paying billions we haven’t got to Greece and maybe Italy, Spain and Portugal as well because they have picked up the mantle of our bankers and run up debts they can’t possibly meet.

And the irony of it is we thought that by staying out of the funny money euro while keeping a foot in Europe, we would be better off. How wrong we were. This economic version of the splits hasn’t worked in our favour at all and, even though the euro, the Greeks, the Italians et al, have nothing to do with us (most of Europe, including the French don’t like us at all) we have to throw money at them to save them from going broke. Who’s going to save us from running out of dosh? The euro? The International Monetary Fund?

The euro is dead in the water and those who were daft enough to swallow the all-one-Europe fantasy and abandoned their own currency should pick up a bill, not us.

Chris Davies, who gets his wages from the Euoropean parliament says we should stay in but there are many who will think that that is reason enough to quit.

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FINAL WORD: Terry and Maureen Walsh from Derker have had the most shoddy treatment from Oldham Council and the Housing Market Renewal mandarins. Having fought a long, brave but fruitless battle to save a much-loved home of 47 years the couple, both in their 70s, looked forward to selling their house to the council so that they could buy a new home of their own. The council now says that it can no longer afford to buy and the Walsh’s future is grim. It is nothing short of tragic.