TICEHURST & ETCHINGHAM WARD
                (INCLUDES PARISHES OF FLIMWELL AND STONEGATE) - Rother and East Sussex CC Councillors   

IN TOUCH – WITH YOU - THE RESIDENTS   March 2007
From your local Conservative Rother Councillors: Ian Jenkins and Robert Elliston

We have both been selected to contest your District ward seat of Ticehurst and Etchingham, which includes the parishes of Flimwell and Stonegate, in the Rother elections on Thursday 3rd May.  This edition of “In Touch” gives us the opportunity to comment on current issues.  Please let us know of any other issues that you feel need addressing.

SPEEDING TRAFFIC
All our villages suffer from both speeding traffic and heavy vehicles; we will support all measures that can be put into place by your County Council or our Parish Councils to reduce this problem. These may include such things as speed repeater signs or road markings.
COUNCIL TAX
Conservatives are committed to low Council Tax and over the last four years have provided the lowest Council Tax in East Sussex. We will ensure that this policy will continue to be pursued to the benefit of the elderly and those on fixed incomes, who are finding it increasingly hard to cope.
NEW SCHOOL AND VILLAGE HALL (ETCHINGHAM)
Etchingham NEEDS a new village hall urgently. We support the Village Hall Trust and school in their efforts and are pressing hard for action to turn this much needed scheme into a reality. Our school, which teaches to a very high standard, is held back by having to teach in a large number of mobile classrooms. We think the best way of securing a new school is by way of a shared project and we continue to press for its construction.
NEW VILLAGE HALL (FLIMWELL)
We support the construction of a new village hall for Flimwell, and we are glad to see it incorporated into the local plan, with provision for enabling housing. It will bring essential facilities back to the village. We hope that it will be constructed in such a way as to blend into the countryside and to be eco-friendly.
SHARED OWNERSHIP
We support this form of property ownership which helps our young residents have a home of their own and get onto the housing ladder. We believe it right that local residents should have priority so as to be able to live close to their relations if they wish.
VILLAGE DEVELOPMENT
Central government is pressing more and more housing on us. We want to see this in North Bexhill and NOT in our villages. We shall resist any attempts to modify village development boundaries.
TRAIN SERVICES (STONEGATE AND ETCHINGHAM)
As a result of lobbying at Westminster, we have secured a good railway timetable that meets local demands. We have established a user group so that we can hear your comments. We need your support to ensure that good services are maintained to rural stations such as STONEGATE and ETCHINGHAM, and it is one of our top priorities.
NEWINGTON COURT (TICEHURST)
We are proud as your serving Councillors to be associated with this major project, that will have facilities, including a doctor’s surgery, available to residents of Ticehurst and surrounding areas.
VILLAGE PLANS
Rother District Council has supported your Parish Councils to facilitate parish plans via second homes Council Tax monies. This is an opportunity for YOU to become personally involved with the development of your villages, and plan for the short to long term.
LAND AND BUSINESS PLANNING
We believe strongly that land that is designated for industrial or commercial use should remain so. We will continue to support local business through their business chamber and seek ways to maintain the local shops that are so important to all our residents. We will press the planners to insist on proper car parking facilities when new developments are requested, combining this with adequate measures that take regard of existing infrastructure.
A21 FLIMWELL TO ROBERTSBRIDGE
The preferred route announced by the Highways Agency several years ago is deeply damaging to local business. Together with our MP we have been fighting to secure a better route. Since the road is unlikely to be built before 2016, we will lobby to have the proposals withdrawn to prevent the continuing blight and uncertainty to this area.
CRIME IN OUR WARD AND ROTHER OVERALL
Targeted efforts of those involved with the Safer Rother Partnership have resulted in the reduction of crime. Domestic burglary, 574 in 03/04, now 246 for the 12 months, Jan.06 to Dec.06, car crime is also down. In our ward area we are lucky to have excellent CPSOs. This is a Conservative idea, picked up by the Government, but John Reid has now withdrawn the promised funding that would have given us more of them.
LOCAL SERVICES
We will ask Rother District Council to introduce some of the services they offer to our area by way of a sub office. This facility has now happened at Rye, we would like the same for you and our community in general.
OUR ENVIRONMENT
We are all very lucky to live in one of the most beautiful parts of our Country, we are its custodians for the future, this asset must be passed on to our children and their children, we therefore support 100% all that can be done to recycle our house and garden waste, stop fly-tipping, or litter on our streets.

WE BOTH WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR READING OUR COMMENTS ON CURRENT ISSUES.  IF YOU HAVE VIEWS OF YOUR OWN, PLEASE LET US KNOW BY EMAIL OR PHONE.  WE WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM YOU.

IAN JENKINS TEL. 01580 819131    ROBERT ELLISTON 01580 200609
email: office@bbca.uk.com

If you think you might be away from home or unable to get to the polling station for any reason then please contact Bexhill Town Hall for a postal or proxy voter form.  Applications close on Wednesday 18th April.
Promoted by Gillian Wheeler on behalf of Ian Jenkins and Robert Elliston all of 6a Amherst Road, Bexhill, E Sussex TN40 IQJ

We invite you to join the Conservative Party

So many issues are the concern of many residents in our District. Council Tax is of course one of them, and we will hear in the months ahead of new ideas to address this very real problem. On the national agenda we have many more concerns that affect the Democracy and freedom of speech which has been the mark of this country for centuries. We would like our young People to have similar standards and values to those we are used to. Decisions on Europe, the House of Lords, the Law of this Country, Immigration, Defence, Education and many more. If you share the same concerns as we do, then let's do something about it together.

Etchingham and Ticehurst Conservatives are active and friendly branches. For those who want to get more involved or just meet new friends there is a busy social and political calendar.
For more details about joining phone 01424 219117 or e-mail

Or copy and paste this this form and send it to:

BBCA, 6a Amherst Road, Bexhill-on-Sea,E Sussex TN40 1QJ
Name Tel No
Address ..
Post Code I would like to help Etchingham/Ticehurst Conservatives ..

Promoted by G Wheeler on behalf of Bexhill and Battle Conservative Association, 6a Amherst Road, Bexhill, E Sussex TN40 1QJ