Tuesday, 24 May 2011

jobs for the boys (mostly)

Reading Labour Party stitched up made nominations last night for lead councillors for the council it hopes to be in control of, without a democratic mandate (again), this time tomorrow.  This is on their Facebook page, which has for some reason blocked me from commenting, the killjoys.  Fatboy Hartley is down, removed from Education and given "Service Delivery and Improvement" (hollow laugh), a little swan song before he stands down ahead of well-deserved defeat next May.  Education goes to Ennis, who could hardly do worse than Hartley, though he struggles without Mr Salter to tell him what to do.  Gittings, decent bloke I always thought, gets Environment, and Orton Community Care.  Ruhemann remains firmly on the back benches.  Tory Tickner gets "Community Engagement and Health" whatever that means, kow-towing to the Taleban usually.  Page gets Transport, the girl for the golden (Reading) West Rachel Eden gets Housing as a platform for her parliamentary campaign, and Marian Livingston Culture and Sport.  So that's that sorted then.

Which of those seats is being kept warm for Tony Jones for next year?

I am starting to receive putative manifestos for the elected mayor of Reading who will be brought into being if Labour retake the council tomorrow.  The mayoralty as it is now is likely to have been discredited by the expected support of Gul Khan for himself to serve another term, rather than his previously pledged support for his current deputy, Jenny Rynn (Cons), so they might just as well. However I suspect you boys are being a bit previous and ought to calm down.  Though I must say I like the notion of a mayor's "Team of All The Talents" - a very interesting lineup has been suggested to me.

What larks.  Must go now, lashings of ginger beer await.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

How ironic - Ennis in charge of Education. His one claim to fame in Southcote - making sure the much loved Elvian School closed.

Anonymous said...

I have rceently taken to Jack Daniels and ginger beer - or Jack Daniels and cola

Was said...

And in a stroke of evil genius I've heard that Labour are putting the completely inexperienced Greens in charge of the crucial scrutiny panels which will earn them £2,434 for rubber stamping Labour's programme.

So they did get something from Labour after all!

Anonymous said...

Who else would you put in charge of Education then? Not many takers I would have thought. It's now a hot potato. Anybody heard of Maiden Erleigh?? And that is just for starters...

Jonny said...

The Labour Mayoral nomination is Deborah Edwards.

Anonymous said...

Stalinists without the politics but certainly well practised in the methods.

They even have their own unions controlled by the party machine.

Uncle Joe would have been proud.

Anonymous said...

According to a Reading Chronicle letter the Greens 'are on the cusp of doing great things' !
L9

Anonymous said...

Ennis for education? I'm very happy with that. Better than Hartley or indeed, Ralph!

Anonymous said...

The majority of people in last year's consultation supported an elected mayor, but the Tories ignored them.

Anonymous said...

Paul Gittings is making a bid for Reading West:
http://go4gittings.com/index2.html

janestheone said...

you sure, Anon 2318? I thought it was all women in the West - isn't that link from last time, when he was allowed to think he was the favourite and then carved out? let me know if I'm wrong about that

Anonymous said...

Anonymous that site was for his bid in 2009. Check out the front where it says there has to be an election in just over a year (?) and in the important links there is one to HMV talking about a Reading Councillor on the shoirtlist to replace Martin Salter. It is now 2011 do keep up.

Anonymous said...

Apologies, I must be behind the time, like Alok Sharma, who doesn't appear to have realised that he has been elected:

http://www.aloksharma.co.uk/expenses