CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 16years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
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The Evening News will be putting every party leader on the spot in the run-up to the council elections — but we also want to put your questions to them. If you have a burning query for any of the political parties then email it to edelect@edinburghnews.com
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We can ask them if they'll sign up to the POP manifesto!
Sounds like a good idea.
It'll be interesting to see if EN asks and publishes the answers.
From today's announced Labour manifesto:
In the meantime we’ll pay attention to the everyday things – bringing pavements to a good standard especially in busy areas, controlling the work standards of the utilities who dig up our roads, improving times and routes on our buses, encouraging more walking and more cycling and extending 20mph limits in residential and shopping areas. Most important, we’ll put some common sense back into the transport department.
http://www.edinburghlabour.com/p/manifesto-2012-labour-wants-our-city-to_6264.html
Yes that was the wording in the draft mentioned on here before.
Of course "common sense" is somewhat subjective!
But Labour won't be controlling the Council by a majority - no party can. It's probable that Labour or the SNP will win the most seats, followed by all sorts of negotiations towards formal or 'issue by issue' coalitions.
There's an interesting personal blog that seems be keeping a close eye on things.
Sally - I signed up to the POP manifesto for the Council Lib Dems yesterday.
@gordon - that's fantastic! Can we put something on our site about it? Be great to have endorsement from across the parties ...
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Cycling Edinburgh @CyclingEdin
@scotlibdems on @Edinburgh_CC sign up to @POPScotland #Manifesto #POP28 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=5687#post-60975 #cycling #Edinburgh #BetterEdinburgh #cyclesafe
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https://twitter.com/#!/CyclingEdin/status/179710350478934016
RT
Sally - happy for you to put something up. I've passed it on to the Lib Dem MSPs for their info as well.
Gordon
I'm grudgingly coming around to the idea that I might have to vote Lib Dem after all!
Going forwards, I have a good feeling about the block "cycling tactical vote" strategy...
Gordon, don't you have to check with the party before endorsing things? I wouldn't want us to be putting the endorsement on the website only to have to withdraw it... But great to have your support - maybe you could post about it on your blog? (looks like it could do with a post... ;) )
@Dave, it depends what ward you live in. If there's a Green Party candidate, for a cyclist it makes a lot of sense to vote Green.
Don't forget all wards are multi-member and it's PR voting, so you can vote for people from more than one party.
I expect there to be all sorts of 'tactical voting guides' nearer the time.
At the last CEC elections several senior councillors didn't get (re-)elected because their first name was down the alphabet.
Some parties can expect to get two councillors in certain wards, with the 'danger' that a split vote could result in none.
The 'big' question (answer not available until the count) is how much people will vote as if it were a Hollyrood/Westminster election and how much they look at local issues/candidates.
It's likely that most people won't vote.
There was a blog linked to recently which pointed out that in Fountainbridge-Craiglockhart (core forum territory :) it would take only a few extra votes to get Gavin Corbett elected for the Greens, and if they had a few extra members, they could have a real effect on coalition-making. I think it makes sense for us in that ward to really push Gavin's candidacy. (And no, the Greens are not my 'traditional' party to support.)
Anth, I'm afraid that same pundit proposes that Duddingston is prime tory territory!
"there was a blog linked to recently"
This ?
http://liberalsellout.wordpress.com/2012/03/08/eight-green-councillors-sitting-in-the-chambers
"Anth, I'm afraid that same pundit proposes that Duddingston is prime tory territory!"
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!
At least Tories aren't anti-cycling anymore.
http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=2533#post-26998
Worth clicking link for photo!
At least SOME Tories aren't anti-cycling anymore.
Fixed that for ya.
@SRD, that would be the Gavin Corbett that blogged on cycling recently.
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LIVEBLOG – Edinburgh Council Conservative Group 14 March 2012
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Wednesday March 14, 2012 19:55
Not for me. I use my bike
Wednesday March 14, 2012 19:55
Aha - perhaps an electric car then...?
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Some key seats are already shaping up to be closely-fought contests. There are 17 wards across the city, each electing three or four councillors, and a total of 58 seats to be filled.
No party is fielding enough candidates to win an outright majority on the council, which means a coalition is likely.
The SNP is putting up the most candidates, 26, while Labour will have 23, the Conservatives 20 and the Liberal Democrats and Greens 17 each.
One of the most hotly-contested wards will be Forth, where Labour and the SNP each have one of the four seats but are both fielding two candidates in the hope of winning another. It’s the same situation in Leith Walk.
Labour and the SNP are also both fielding two candidates in three-member Craigentinny/Duddingston and three-member Portobello/Craigmillar.
In four-member Inverleith, the Tories and the SNP are both fielding two candidates.
The SNP is also fielding second candidates in Drumbrae/Gyle, Sighthill/Gorgie, Leith, Liberton/Gilmerton. And the Tories are putting up an extra candidate in Pentland Hills.
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I received an election leaflet through the door yesterday which identified the candidate and all his wonderful qualities at great length. The name of any party was mysteriously absent however. It was only when I'd studied the leaflet a few times that I noticed the publication address happened to be the same as that of the local Tory branch.
I then noticed the praise for David McCletchie, which should have given the game away. Are the Tories such a toxic brand that they think they'll do better if the candidate doesn't mention their allegiance.
(One of the issues mentioned was whether the speed limit on Lanark Road should be reduced to 30mph. No opinion from the candidate one way or t'other)
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Edinburgh Council: The Battlegrounds
http://liberalsellout.wordpress.com/2012/03/15/edinburgh-council-the-battlegrounds
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AKen, Labour did that here last year. They used their normal colour scheme but no actual party name.
Joan McAlpine MSP tweeted that she had been to see a cycling group in Dumfries yesterday and that is confirmed on their web page but I can't find out what she was talking to them about. It's a bit off her patch and I think she drives a Mini. She has had pro bike comments on her web page from me in the past but I didn't notice her being pro or anti.
I met Joan McAlpine with my Cycling Dumfries hat on yesterday - she was interested and sympathetic and generally pro bike, and has gone away with a copy of the manifesto but no promises! She's not ridden a bike for ages (because of the traffic, particularly in Glasgow) but said she hasn't replaced her car after it conked out last year. Dumfries is part of her South Scotland responsibility and although she's not our constituency MSP I think she's taking on Dumfriesshire as her unofficial patch. If nothing else, if she tries to get around much here by public transport we might see some pressure to improve the rural bus and train services ...
Well we can wait and see how long she lasts with no car. I think she used it for a school run in the past.
"A COUNCILLOR has been accused of trying to secure an alphabetical advantage on the election ballot paper – by changing her surname just weeks before polling day."
e-mailing candidates, reading manifestos, trawling through blogs to find possible pro-bike sentiments, discussing the issues with cold-calling candidates all sounds like too much hard work. Better to have a pre-filter. Look at the various parties' national footprint.
Tories. 18 months unemployment from June 1984 (me). privatised everything. No
Lib Dems. Shameless deal to gain power. No
Labour. 300,000 dead Iraquis. No
Green. Patrick Harvie has been photographed on a bike. Possible.
SNP. Alex Salmond. A charming man. Possible.
Already a lot simpler.
@unclejoe
To summarise -
If you saw a picture of AS on a bike you'd vote SNP(?)
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