tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-218232802024-03-15T23:36:45.714+00:00Jonathan WallaceAbout me, my life, my politics, my travels, my thoughtsJonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.comBlogger3501125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-59491006953649174362024-03-15T23:35:00.003+00:002024-03-15T23:35:45.500+00:00Printing This morning I was in the Lib Dem office printing hundreds of letters for Whickham South and Sunniside. Fortunately the folding machine was working, something of a new experience for me! The big job now is to get the letters stuffed into envelopes and then delivered. Expect some shoe leather to be burnt this coming week.Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-7818259545466497642024-03-15T23:25:00.002+00:002024-03-15T23:25:58.367+00:00Missing conferenceI had booked up for Lib Dem spring conference a few weeks ago with the expectation that I would be attending for the full three days (starting today). And then I got a message from Whickham Voluntary Library asking me if I would bring some animals to their Easter fair tomorrow. I didn't want to let them down and the appearance of lambs and goat kids outside the fair is always popular. So I told Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-7872508143452104052024-03-15T00:20:00.002+00:002024-03-15T00:20:35.553+00:00Is this news?I'm not sure this merits the title of "news" but the PM today announced that there will not be a general election on 2nd May, the same day as the local elections. Is this a case of stating the bleedin' obvious? No PM is likely to voluntarily go early when his/her party is experiencing the loss of over half of their vote share. So, summer, autumn or winter it will be. I believe the latest date forJonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-62113050060080605882024-03-15T00:02:00.000+00:002024-03-15T00:02:25.378+00:00Camera shy We have become so used to online meetings over the past 4 years that in-person meetings now feel rather odd. So, on Tuesday, we had the odd situation of sitting with colleagues at the Gateshead Lib Dem exec at the Civic Centre. We even had sheets of paper rather than sharing something on a screen! The bulk of the meeting was about the local election campaign though Ron Beadle also gave Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-29881113387940218172024-03-14T23:48:00.000+00:002024-03-14T23:48:10.644+00:00Dinner time It seems Lib Dem local parties in the North East have developed a knack of organising fundraising dinners. Last autumn, Gateshead hosted Simon Hughes and Sunderland hosted Wendy Chamberlain MP. Coming shortly to Newcastle is Vince Cable but last week, Sunderland hosted another dinner with Jamie Stone MP as the guest speaker. Jamie is one of the Lib Dem MPs I barely know. He was elected manyJonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-47782557333404436772024-02-25T23:04:00.001+00:002024-02-25T23:04:13.793+00:00At your convenience The next meeting of Sunniside History Society will be held on Wednesday 6th March at 7pm at Sunniside Social Club. The speaker is Richard Pears and he will be talking about the history of "The British Toilet". So be ready to take your seat. This is not a crap subject. Hopefully the meeting will be flushed with success. Etc......Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-76766795840021021492024-02-24T22:34:00.002+00:002024-02-24T22:34:40.204+00:00Campaigning in Ryton Ryton ward in Gateshead used to be Lib Dem held. Sadly, it went Labour in the Coalition years and before now we were not in a position to mount a strong campaign. But that is changing. We have a new candidate and a new determination to take on Labour in the ward. Steve Kelly has been adopted by the Lib Dems to take on Labour in the May local elections.He had a meet-the-people event outside Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-77586434703601203812024-02-21T10:22:00.002+00:002024-02-21T10:22:44.123+00:00Delivery complete in Sunniside Focus on Sunniside has now been delivered. Hooray! The last patch went out over the weekend when one of our helpers took the Streetgate area. This patch has grown by 89 houses in recent years due to new house building. With my ward's Focus now fully delivered, I was able to spend some time in Saltwell over the weekend, helping to deliver our latest Focus there. I hear on the grapevine Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-69169378025294279042024-01-21T23:36:00.000+00:002024-01-21T23:36:35.543+00:00More Focus deliveriesI was back in Birtley yesterday (Saturday 20th January) to deliver another patch of Focuses. And today I was delivering in my own ward. To be precise, I was delivering in Sunniside. We are aiming to get the village delivered by Friday though the weather may be a problem tomorrow.Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-69586082705281493452024-01-19T11:03:00.000+00:002024-01-19T11:03:05.412+00:00Planning for our next meetingI met up with Alan Guest, secretary of the Sunniside History Society, last night in Sunniside Club, to review some of the photos donated to the Society by Francis Newman. Many of the photos were taken in Sunniside 30 years ago though there were some which were much older. We made a selection of photos to present at the next meeting on 1st February. The aim is to get people to share their memoriesJonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-50389428036310012932024-01-17T23:26:00.000+00:002024-01-17T23:26:04.930+00:00Happy birthday from the NHS I turned 60 recently. As birthday presents from the nation, I was allowed free prescriptions, reduced rail fares and a poo kit!The free prescriptions are no use to me, at least for the time being. I don't take any. The reduced rail fares are a bit more useful. Though the amount of travel I do is only a small fraction of what I did before 2017, I do have 3 short trips coming up. So a saving Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-60148732655702109852024-01-17T23:01:00.001+00:002024-01-17T23:01:09.798+00:00Delivering in Birtley I was in Birtley on Monday helping to deliver our latest Lib Dem Focus. Somehow Birtley had avoided the snow. Not so in Sunniside though we had only about 1 cm. I will be back in Birtley later this week as I have one more patch to deliver. Hopefully Birtley will continue to be a snow free zone!Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-61064105985779946332024-01-16T22:53:00.002+00:002024-01-16T22:53:24.681+00:00Bridge over troubled waters It seems as though the Green Party in Gateshead are continuing to target Bridges ward. Another leaflet was popped through people's doors in December. Labour hold the ward and had previously won with comfortable majorities with opposition campaigns aimed at flying the flag. Labour's hold however is based on a low turnout. Any party that could mount a good campaign could run Labour close in Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-51413725262115377252024-01-03T23:28:00.002+00:002024-01-03T23:28:34.543+00:00Last delivery of 2023 I did my last Focus delivery of 2023 in my own ward of Whickham South and Sunniside between Christmas and new year. It was a good way of burning off some of those Christmas calories. The next edition of Focus for my ward is already partly written. More calorie burning is on its way!Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-74010497802538292332024-01-03T22:59:00.001+00:002024-01-03T22:59:33.607+00:00Birtley eFocus no. 12 Published tonight, the next eFocus for Birtley. Issues covered include:
Birtley pool re-opening delayed;
Security fencing at Birtley Swimming
Centre;
Joe joins Focus Team;
Lloyds and Barclays branches closing on
Team Valley;
Ciaran chosen for Washington and
Gateshead South;
Have your say on Gateshead Council's
budget.
You can read eFocus on this link.Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-19415449131460104172024-01-03T22:54:00.000+00:002024-01-03T22:54:19.701+00:00Low Fell eFocus 130The competition to be the first in 2024 to publish eFocus has been won by Low Fell. Edition 130 was sent to recipients a couple of days ago. Issues covered include:<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->Best wishes for 2024
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->Have your say on Gateshead Council's Budget plans
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->New salt bin at Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-21083047943602570982023-12-18T22:33:00.000+00:002023-12-18T22:33:50.067+00:00You're nicked!Labour's former whip and cabinet minister Nick Brown MP has announced he has resigned from the Labour Party and will not be standing at the general election next year. A complaint against him had been submitted to the Labour Party in September last year though there is no explanation as to what was at the centre of it. Whatever the basis of the complaint happens to be, the fact it is unresolved Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-91218229111507356072023-12-15T22:51:00.004+00:002023-12-15T23:01:25.971+00:0040 years of Focus photosSunniside History Society had their monthly meeting last week. With Christmas around the corner, there was a buffet which included an edible Christmas wreath (see above). We also had the annual quiz, which I put together. I have been writing and editing Focuses for nearly 40 years and as a result I have built up a big collection of photos around Gateshead. So this formed the basis of the quiz - Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-42248839456044416192023-12-15T10:34:00.000+00:002023-12-15T10:34:12.732+00:00Ron selected for Gateshead Central and WhickhamI am delighted to announce that Ron Beadle has been selected as the Lib Dem candidate for the new Gateshead Central and Whickham constituency at the general election. The constituency includes two strong Lib Dem areas - Whickham (3 wards) and Low Fell (one ward) - as well as Saltwell, won by the Lib Dems from Labour in the May local elections this year. It means nearly half the residents of the Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-22527605633980270022023-12-12T22:57:00.001+00:002023-12-12T22:57:20.431+00:00Mick Henry appointed freeman of the borough Former Gateshead Council Leader Mick Henry was appointed as a freeman of the borough last week. Mick presided over the regeneration of Gateshead Quays as a cultural centre. During his time as Leader, the Millennium Bridge was opened and the Sage (now the Glasshouse) and the Baltic Art Gallery opened. A record to be proud of. The video above is of Mick signing the register of freemen. Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-38750792293881582952023-12-12T22:49:00.000+00:002023-12-12T22:49:02.806+00:00Gateshead freeman ceremony - speech by David Olusaga David Olusaga, one of Britain's top historians, was appointed a freeman of Gateshead on 4th December. You can view his acceptance speech above. David was raised in Gateshead and he spoke about his memories during his speech.Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-76703117638399381832023-12-12T19:39:00.006+00:002023-12-12T19:39:43.232+00:00Gateshead freeman ceremony - David Olusaga signed the register David Olusaga is one of Britain's top historians and he was raised in Gateshead. I am delighted to say that he was appointed as a freeman of the borough on 4th December. In this video he signed the register of freeman in the presence of the mayor.Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-33117412892195474912023-12-12T11:03:00.003+00:002023-12-12T11:03:55.183+00:00The birthday party It was my 60th birthday recently, and David's 66th. So we decided to have a party at Sunniside Social Club. I had a big fear in the morning that few would turn up. In the end, as the video I shot on the day shows (see above) there was a good turnout. The cakes were demolished in minutes!Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-35152610077814900812023-11-29T23:03:00.002+00:002023-11-29T23:03:21.684+00:00Blame the Liberal Democrats!It's Labour's favourite tradition in Gateshead - blame the Liberal Democrats for everything. War, famine, plague, climate change. Just blame the Liberal Democrats! At full council last week, Angela Douglas, cabinet member for leisure, took the opportunity to blame everything that has happened since 2015 on the Lib Dems. We don't often hear from Angela. In January, cabinet debated the future of Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21823280.post-31703524864811929732023-11-28T11:42:00.003+00:002023-11-28T11:42:51.017+00:00One million viewings but here comes the competition!A milestone in my blogging world - my blog has now had one million viewings! It only took me 17 years to get to that figure, aided kindly by lots of Labour members who are drawn to its contents and then criticise me in council meetings! But the crown of Gateshead's blogger of the year may be about to slip from my grasp. None other than Labour Leader Martin Gannon has launched a blog, via Jonathan Wallacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12335108244369275069noreply@blogger.com0