News
Friday, June 05, 2009
Read Nigel's letter to Martin Philips of The Sun:
Link to Sun article: here
Dear Mr Phillips:
You make some valid points, but I would also argue that Luton represents and typifies BOTH what is wrong with Britain AND what is good about Britain, to the extent that while the town is struggling at the moment it also has a remarkable record of reinventing itself and has huge potential - if properly led, encouraged and supported.
This will require inspirational political leadership, a more pro-active/ positive attitude and mindset, and enabling/ supporting economic, educational and social policies. These will combine to create a more self-confident Luton. But none of those things are going to happen under the current government.
It is no surprise that Luton typifies so many things in Britain - as Luton South is, after all, the most reliable bellwether seat in the country - the party of the winning MP going on to form the government in every election since 1951. It is a social, economic and ethnic microcosm of Britain.
I am very disappointed that whenever most people hear about Luton these days it is in negative or cynical context: As you state in your email, Margaret Moran, racial tensions, jobs under threat, and now Esther Rantzen! Luton and Luton politics has become something of a joke…and that needs to change.
But what does not get reported so much is the positive news. We just had on Monday one of the largest street carnivals in the country. Thousands of people turned out in the streets and enjoyed themselves, and it must be one of most ethnically and socially diverse gatherings of its type in the country. The whole community came together and it certainly provided me and my family with a welcome break from the media circus that Luton has become recently.
Moreover, the recent demonstrations and race issue are unfortunate but isolated events that detract from the fact that most Lutonians live together in harmony and treat each other with respect. Luton Muslims are amongst the most moderate and tolerant religious communities in the country - and were as embarrassed and ashamed of the recent demonstrations at the armed forces homecoming parade as the rest of us.
Yes Lutonians feel badly let down by recent political leaders who have embarrassed us while simultaneously failing to take advantage of the full potential of the town. We should be attracting people and jobs to the town as we have so many good things going for us: easy access to London, three mainline train stations, the M1 and an airport; a widely admired University and a respected hospital; cheap housing - and surrounded by beautiful countryside. We must be more self confident and transform ourselves again - as we have done in the past - but we won’t do so until we have a change of government.
As for the threat to Vauxhall - it keeps me awake at night. And it frustrates me that while our political leaders are faffing around tending to self-inflicted expenses wounds, their German counterparts are laser focused on brokering a beneficial deal for their own workers. Germany is clearly in the driving seat while the UK is being sidetracked. I fear Luton workers will pay the price of this political distraction with their jobs. We must re-focus our political efforts and priorities, nationally and locally on the real issues of the economy and protecting jobs. It is widely known that the UK Vauxhall plants are efficient operations. If an efficient UK plant is closed instead of a relatively inefficient German one this will be a scandalous failure of government and will demonstrate political failure of the highest order - and I and thousands of Luton residents will never forgive Labour and especially Moran/Brown/Mandelson if this happens.
Nigel
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