Wednesday, May 01, 2019

Questions About Oakham Town Council Election Answered.

Former Oakham Mayor Paul Beech has posted the following on Facebook. There are few questions from former Oakham Town Councillor John Kennedy that need answering and I will at the end of this post.



Paul Beech to Rutland debate-your voice
2 hrs
The up and coming elections has polarized a lot of us, locally and nationwide, and brought out some of those that are standing as duplicitous and untrustworthy.
The most obvious is Martin Brookes who has continually, over the years, pressed for the town council to be abolished. Silly of him really because what would he do on a Wednesday then?
His single most horrendous act is to work on the demise of the previous full-time clerk bringing his health to a very low ebb and ultimately leaving him no choice but to resign. The council were forced to employ a Locum who was also hounded out by Martin Brookes. He then started on the current clerk with attacks on her character, her work ethic, her confidence and her competence.
Only last week he attacked her again in a public meeting without just cause and with his usual malevolence.
This is what he wrote on his blog today: “At the last Town Council meeting we discussed an agenda item to give the clerk another automatic pay increase.The chairman Adam Lowe felt I was calling the Clerk incompetent which I was not. She once again lies by stating I called her incompetent and unqualified during the meeting.” She quite rightly reported him to RCC Monitoring Officer.
And then he said: “I have never said the clerk is incompetent but with such serious failing it would not surprise me if other people have used that word.” So who would they be I wonder?

He follows up with: “I also find it astonishing that the clerk has not been able to obtain basic qualification over more than a two year period and I strongly believe this lack of competence is the main reason for many of the town council failings.” How would he know?
So how do you all interpret that?
Don't be misled by his lies and innuendo, he is out to bring down the council because of his own arrogance and inner anger toward authority.
Make no mistake if he is elected, for the first time by the way because he has never stood against anybody before now, then he will see that as a victory and an endorsement for him to carry on in this obnoxious way.
If you or I were to treat a member of staff in this way then we would be called to book and prosecuted. It is unfair to act against an employee in this way and he seems to have forgotten that he is one of the employers - as a town councillor.
Please don’t vote for Brookes.

  • John Kennedy I specifically asked him not to put his leaflets through my door as I would not vote for him. He did put it through so I ripped it up and left it for him when he came back down the road.
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    • Paul Beech HE'S ACTUALLY DROPPED LEAFLETS THROUGH HOUSES WAY OFF THE WARD HE IS STANDING FOR. IF I WERE CANDIDATES ON THOSE WARDS I'D BE PRETTY MIFFED.
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    • John Kennedy Paul Beech They are professional leaflets.who is paying for them? I thought Town Councillors didn’t get expenses. He was also delivering for Nick Woodley and another Tory potential
    • Paul Beech As I have said previously, he is a closet everything. He'll go which ever way he thinks will be most profitable for his ego.
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    • John Kennedy Paul Beech electoral commission might be interested
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    • Paul Beech Doubt it John Kennedy, we used to get a small allowance but if he threw his own, or somebody else's money at it, then you might be right.
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    • Carolynn Ann Smells like a witch hunt to me. You should both be ashamed
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    • John Kennedy Carolynn Ann no witch hunt. Just wondering who payed for the leaflets? Town councillors don’t get expenses like county councillors do and they were the same leaflets. It’s worth a question at least. Maybe somebody is bankrolling him but is that legal? The two he was delivering for are Tory and he has previously stated he is Lib Dem, so as I say it really is worth a question
    • Carolynn Ann John Kennedy maybe and this is a maybe as he is a working man. I think it is possible he paid for them himself ??? The internet is a wonderful place and it's amazing what you can purchase quite cheaply on there
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    • John Kennedy Carolynn Ann could be, just not had anything from any other Town Councillors
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    • Carolynn Ann John Kennedy not had anything at all here. I think our votes don't count lol.
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    • John Kennedy Carolynn Ann Brooke’s has posted leaflets through our door for South ward, yet we are Nortb West Ward. Why? Also why are there people, not Brooke’s, who are up for Town & County Council? Are they hedging their bets?our County councillors are unoposed
    • Carolynn Ann John Kennedy I'm afraid i can't help there. I don't have a clue who is standing where. Sorry
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    • John Kennedy Carolynn Ann I just looked on RCC website
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    • Carolynn Ann John Kennedy that looks like my bedtime reading for tomorrow. Oh boy i have an exciting life
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  • Duncan Mckay Snr I am voting for him just to get rit of the shit that's there , I hope he gets in an teach you,s a lessen
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    • John Kennedy Duncan Mckay Snr who are you referring to? Town Council should be scrapped anyway, as Martin himself has said. They duplicate the work of County Council. As far as I am aware, non of the existing Town Council were actually elected but were unopposed or co-opted



Mr Kennedy says he did not receive any other town council candidates leaflets,
some were delivered to his house and he chose to tear them all up and place them 
across the road on another residents drive most blew away littering the street. 
This surprised me because I never thought Mr Kennedy was a litter bug. Especially
as he was once neighbourhood watch and regularly expresses concerns about the 
state of the area he resides in.

He also comments about me possibly delivering to the wrong ward.
I have checked and that may have happened on Braunston Road and Burley Road because the new Oakham South Ward boundary only includes one side of these roads. 

I am pleased Mr Kennedy describes my leaflet set as professional, I designed them
myself and used a affordable online publisher. Unfortunately no local printer can match 
the price paid for 5000 quality colour printed leaflets. 
The total cost of my leaflets was £271.61 which will be declared on the relevant forms
after the election.
One small advert was placed in the second leaflet in return for displaying a poster in a business premises window.

I was a member of the Liberal Democrats for one year, but found they were crap locally. 
I did not renew my membership. I was not a Libdem Councillor.

The town council is meant to be a team of people who work together, this why political 
candidates are not appointed by any of the parties. This is how Rutland County Council first started, who know one day Oakham Town Council could also turn political there are other Town Council which are political. People can stand for both parish and county as some candidates have at this election as independents at parish level and party candidates at county council level. Two have already been elected unopposed to the Town Council
as have all the other councillors who stood in the following wards: Barleythorpe Road,
Oakham North East and Oakham North West

All Candidates pay for there own leaflets at parish council level.

At County Level a political party may fund their candidates leaflets. Cllrs expenses can
not be used for election leaflets. 

It is interesting to read Mr Kennedy feels the town council should be scrapped.