What were top 7 most viewed articles and top 7 most viewed videos for May 2016?
Power
Well just over a month has passed since polling day the election for a Merseyside PCC and local councillors on the Wirral and on the 23rd June 2016 there will be a referendum about membership of the EU.
As I’ll be at Wirral Council’s Cabinet meeting on Monday morning, instead I thought I’d look back at the most read stories of last month (May 2016) and some of the most watched videos. Both are in order of most viewed (so the top number 1 slot was the one that attracted the most interest).
Since I wrote this story question marks have also been raised about the election of two further Wirral councillors not referred to by name in the article, which leads to unanswered questions about over a quarter of the 23 councillors elected. If all six elections had been (or are in the next 2 years) declared null and void*, no political party would have a majority on Wirral Council.
*Highly unlikely considering how this country works or doesn’t work and I’d like to point out that councillors/candidates are innocent until proven guilty and that trial by media doesn’t count.
PC David Phillips, killed in the line of duty, awarded Freedom of the Borough by Wirral’s councillors at emotional meeting
Please accept YouTube cookies to play this video. By accepting you will be accessing content from YouTube, a service provided by an external third party.
If you accept this notice, your choice will be saved and the page will refresh.
Video above is of the public meeting of Wirral Council held on the 20th May 2016 to award the Freedom of the Borough posthumously to PC David Phillips.
Mayor and Mayoress of Wirral presenting a Freedom of Borough award for PC David Phillips posthumously at the Extraordinary Council meeting of Wirral Council held on the 20th May 2016
The highest honour Wirral Council can bestow on a Wirral citizen is called Freedom of the Borough. Wirral Council councillors decided last Friday evening to give this award posthumously to PC David Phillips and make him an Honorary Freeman of the Borough.
Last year PC David Phillips had been trying to stop two burglars who were fleeing the scene of their crimes in a stolen red Mitsubishi pick up truck. The truck was being chased at high-speed through the Wirral streets at night by police cars.
He had put a ‘stop stick’ (used to burst a vehicle’s tyres) across the Wallasey Dock Road in Seacombe and was waiting for the truck to go over the ‘stop stick’ to bring the high-speed chase to an abrupt halt.
The fleeing burglar avoided the ‘stop stick’ across the road by crashing the vehicle into PC David Phillips. PC David Phillips was struck by the front of the Mitsubishi pick up truck and his colleague PC Thomas Birkett jumped out-of-the-way. PC David Phillips then tragically died of his injuries. The driver, who didn’t stop at the scene was later convicted in Manchester Crown Court of manslaughter and sentenced to twenty years. He was also banned from driving for three years.
PC David Phillips left behind a wife and two young daughters.
The Bishop of Birkenhead Rt Reverend Keith Sinclair started the meeting with a prayer.
After apologies were given for councillors who couldn’t make it to the meeting, the Mayor of Wirral asked for a round of applause for the police band, who had been playing before the meeting started in the lobby to Wallasey Town Hall.
The Mayor of Wirral Cllr Pat Hackett explained the background to why the award was being considered. Leader of the Labour Group Cllr Phil Davies nominated the motion to award Freedom of the Borough to PC David Phillips.
Leader of the Conservative Group Cllr Jeff Green and Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group Cllr Phil Gilchrist jointly seconded the nomination and both spoke in favour of granting the award to PC David Phillips.
PC Phillips’ father Robin Phillips spoke about how honoured and proud the family was that he was nominated for this award and described the goodwill his family had received following PC Dave Phillip’s death.
Sir Jon Murphy QPM (Chief Constable for Merseyside Police) described it as a “wonderful honour”.
Cllr Lesley Rennie (a former police officer) in an emotional speech spoke of the culture in the police force and how he would not be forgotten.
The scroll and mounted award was then presented to PC Phillips’ widow and children by the Mayor & Mayoress. A second duplicate mounted award was then presented by the Mayor and Mayoress to PC Phillip’s father Robin.
The Mayor of Wirral Cllr Pat Hackett and before ending the meeting thanked all those who had attended.
If you click on any of the buttons below, you’ll be doing me a favour by sharing this article with other people.
What are the election statements of the 4 Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner candidates?
Jane Kennedy (left), the current Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside and Labour Party candidate in the 2016 elections for a Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside at a public meeting of the Police and Fire Collaboration Committee (2015)
Each candidate for Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner has produced a statement outlining what they would do if elected, which can be read on the Chose My PCC website. However I doubt many of the 1.4 million people on Merseyside who can vote in this election have heard of that website, so I have copied their election statements below. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order by surname. For those voting in this election at their polling station, polling stations will be open for voting from 7 am to 10 pm on Thursday 5th May 2016.
David Robert Burgess-Joyce (Conservative Party candidate)
For over 30 years I have supported law and order locally, nationally and internationally in Merseyside Police as a former Special Constabulary Chief Officer, and as a member of the National Crime Squad and the Serious Organised Crime Agency. However, the most important post is the one I am applying for now, that of Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner. This is not just a wish to get back into the policing world but a genuine belief that the communities of Merseyside have not felt their police force has prioritised their needs in recent years.
Each year thousands of residents and businesses lose large sums of money through hackers and scammers who prey on their trust. More sinister too are the threats from paedophile gangs. I will ensure Merseyside is a hostile environment for those seeking to harm our children and vulnerable people.
It is clear to many people that the police have retreated from our streets. One of my first decisions will be to redress this by making all officers available for front-line duties. I don’t want to see any ‘forgotten’ areas in Merseyside; we all deserve access to sensible levels of policing.
I believe a re-organisation of current resources is more important than increasing council tax and guarantee we can get more out of our police force without necessarily putting more money in.
Local police and fire services work well together. As Police and Crime Commissioner I will merge much of their work, saving money to put where it is needed most: protecting law-abiding citizens and arresting criminals.
My priority will always be to make Merseyside safer for the law-abiding and hostile to the criminal.
Prepared by Simon Eardley on behalf of David Burgess-Joyce both of Wirral West Conservative Association, 24 Meols Drive, Wirral, CH47 4AN.
Christopher David Vincenzo Carubia (Liberal Democrat Party candidate)
Chris Carubia – working to cut crime and protect frontline policing in Merseyside.
Chris was elected as a Liberal Democrat Councillor in Wirral in 2014 – where he lives with his wife and daughter. Chris has spent over 35 years working in electrical engineering and I.T. management both in the UK and abroad.
Chris’s priorities for Merseyside are:
– Maintain a visible presence by defending front line policing
– Protect neighbourhood policing and fully support our PCSOs
– Ensure swift and effective response to reports of anti-social behaviour
– Prioritise tackling domestic violence and sexual exploitation
– Champion the rights of the victims and the use of restorative justice
“I am standing for Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner to work hard and make Merseyside the best police force in the country.
Policing faces many funding challenges and I believe this post needs a fresh, practical approach. One that is not influenced by existing culture.
I believe to be effective in this role you need to listen to residents of Merseyside. The Commissioner should be the voice of the community within the police force – not the police force’s voice in the community.
With your support on May 5th I’ll make sure we have an effective, well-funded police force that will help keep you and your family safe.”
This election address was prepared by Kris Brown on behalf of Chris Carubia both at 509 Smithdown Road, Liverpool, L15 5AE.
Traffic policing has not been a key priority for Merseyside Police and, while general crime has been falling, road crime such as dangerous speeding has not. The toll of killed and seriously injured across Merseyside remains high.
I would call on the police to tackle road danger as a key priority, with challenging targets. If needed, I would propose an increase in the police precept to provide resources for road policing.
Other police priorities are widely agreed, such as action on serious and organised crime, domestic abuse, hate crime, burglary, violent crime, support for victims, tackling antisocial behaviour and supporting neighbourhood policing.
As a city councillor from 2002 until 2015, I worked alongside the neighbourhood policing team in my ward, gaining insights into the value of local policing. To make neighbourhood policing more effective and more visible, I would encourage police to use cycles rather than cars for non-emergency patrols.
The illegal drug trade fuels the gun and gang culture on Merseyside: the police and the community need to act against it. The PCC should speak to government about its failure to either reconsider the need for drugs to continue to be illegal or else provide adequate funding to deal with the consequences.
In the meantime, resources should not be wasted punishing people with a medical condition which they manage by cultivating a few cannabis plants.
The PCC should build trust between every part of the public and the police. I would monitor and review local policing to make sure the police were not seen to be acting in an oppressive way against any element of the public, such as ethnic minorities or vulnerable people, particularly the homeless or those in fear of eviction.
This form has been prepared by John Coyne, 86 Belgrave Road Liverpool L17 7AH
Re-elect Jane Kennedy as Merseyside Police & Crime Commissioner
I am asking the people of Merseyside to re-elect me as their Police Commissioner on 5th May.
The Tories have cut police budgets hard and areas like Merseyside have lost a huge number of jobs. Since 2010 we have lost 1600 police officers and staff due to the Tories savage cuts. I fought hard to stop them from cutting the Force even further and thanks to a strong public response last October, over 16,000 people signed my petition in just two weeks.
As a result of public pressure George Osborne promised to stop any further cuts and so we can save our PCSOs, our mounted unit and neighbourhood patrols along with a wide range of other services which were under threat. I am in no doubt that if I had not challenged him about the cuts and if Merseysiders had ignored my petition, we would be in grave danger of reducing the police force to a ‘blue light’ only emergency service.
But there is something to celebrate. In spite of being one of the hardest hit by Tory cuts Merseyside Police have been judged to be one of the best performing metropolitan police forces in England by the independent police inspectorate, HMIC.
As Merseyside Police Commissioner I will:
Work hard with the Chief Constable to maintain this outstanding performance
Build even better services for the victims of crime
Work hard to make our roads safer for all
Fight against further cuts to the police budget
With the support of the people of Merseyside I can do this and more. That is why I am seeking re-election on May 5th 2016.
Promoted by Peter Dowling on behalf of Jane Kennedy at 108 Prescot Road, Liverpool L7 0JA
What’s happening in the week ahead in local government (30/11/15 to 4/12/15)? (Wirral Council, Merseytravel, Merseyside Police and Crime Panel, House of Commons and House of Lords)
Cllr Chris Blakeley addressing Wirral Council Regeneration and Environment committee about a new fire station in Saughall Massie September 2015. A decision in September 2015 was deferred by councillors but will be decided this week.
I thought it would be a good idea to restart a regular feature I used to do on this blog which was looking to the week ahead with a brief summary of what’s happening.
Wirral Council’s Families and Wellbeing Committee meets tomorrow (Tuesday 1st December) at 6.00pm at Wallasey Town Hall. There are no motions on the agenda but councillors will discuss the all age disability strategy and the day services local authority company called Wirral Evolutions.
Wednesday evening sees the high-profile issue of a fire station at Saughall Massie return for a debate by the Regeneration and Environment Committee. Also to be debated is a motion on Wirral’s nuclear industries. The changes to how Wirral Council will deal with objections to traffic regulation orders (already agreed by the Standards and Constitutional Oversight Committee will also be discussed. This public meeting also starts at 6.00p.m.
On Thursday you are literally spoilt for choice for public meetings and if I wished I could probably spend all day filming them!
The Merseyside Police and Crime Panel meets starting at 10.00am in the Council Chamber in Huyton. On the agenda are updates on serious and organised crime, the appropriate adult scheme, sustaining excellence, a home office pilot for mental health nurses to be colocated in custody suites, a night-time levy consultation (the consultation has already finished but just applies to Liverpool and 70% of the levy on licenced premises will go the police for policing Liverpool’s night-time economy), proposals for future Chief Constable recruitment and other routine items.
Other than minutes and the co-option of Cllr Joan Lilly (who replaces the late Cllr Sharp), councillors will hear an update on smart ticketing, discuss the Merseytravel Fees and Charges Review for 2016/17 and a report on delivering an improved bus "offer".
On that last report I should also declare an interest as their current social media policy by my initial reading of the policy/report to councillors seemed to state that Wirral Council employees (unless they can prove some business need such as the press office) were prevented from accessing this blog, the associated Facebook Group, Twitter account and as mentioned in the report itself also video of public meetings of Wirral Council on Youtube. However a reader has left a helpful comment stating that this blog isn’t blocked which is useful information I am interested to know.
I’d better declare a financial interest as Youtube pays me a very small amount in royalties from videos I’ve filmed (and by small I mean £1.10p for October 2015). In fact Wirral Council blocks employees from watching its own Youtube channel.
If the new policy goes ahead, Wirral Council employees will be allowed to read this blog (after writing this a reader left a comment to say they already can despite this blog falling into the social media category) and the above sites that fall into the social media category in their breaks.
However Big Brother, sorry Wirral Council will be watching what they get up to, so who knows what red flags you’ll raise if you read this blog or Wirral Leaks or well something really subversive like Wirral Council’s Youtube channel!
So that’s the round up for the week, I used to also provide a quick overview of what’s happening this week local government wise in two more open and transparent public bodies the House of Commons/House of Lords which you can watch online.
This afternoon starting at 4.00pm the Communities and Local Government Select Committee will discuss the Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill. The Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill has implications for Merseyside over an elected Mayor in 2017 and the devolution changes that have already received a lot of press coverage. As I’ve seen at least one local government officer here in Merseyside refuse to answer politicians’ questions about the government’s side of what’s happening, this looks like an interesting opportunity to hear about what’s happening from another perspective.
Tomorrow starting at 9.25am, the Public Bill Committee will discuss the Housing and Planning Bill. At the same time (starting at 9.30am) the Education Select Committee will discuss Holocaust Education and in the afternoon starting at 3.00pm the Treasury Select Committee will ask questions of the Chancellor on the Comprehensive Spending Review (which is only partly related to local government). In the House of Lords a Select Committee will be discussing the built environment starting at 10 am.
On Wednesday morning starting at 8.55am the Second Delegated Legislation Committee will discuss the Draft Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Codes of Practice) (Revision of Code E) Order 2015. For those not familiar with police procedure Code E relates to the audio recording of interviews with suspects. Starting at 9.30am the Work and Pensions Select Committee will discuss the local welfare safety net, also at 9.30am the Education Select Committee will discuss regional school commissioners, the Treasury Select Committee will continue debating the Comprehensive Spending Review starting at 2.15pm and the Public Accounts Committee will discuss reform of the rail franchising programme.
Thursday sees more discussion of the Housing and Planning Bill by the Public Bill Committee in two sessions starting at 11.30am and 2.00pm. The House of Lords Select Committee will continue to discuss the built environment and hear from a former Chief Executive of the Planning Inspectorate.
If you click on any of the buttons below, you’ll be doing me a favour by sharing this article with other people.
