Multi-Million Pound Pool Shortfall!

If you are unlucky enough to live in the failing Labour Dictatorship of Sandwell you have probably just received a letter with another whopping Council Tax increase from the failing "socialists". But you now need to dig deep - literally and metaphorically - for the latest Labour white elephant - the Commonwealth Games pool which will destroy Londonderry Playing Fields, a vital green space in a heavily urbanised area.

The whole array of the bent Labour playbook is in evidence here. This car crash stems from the days of the late wife beater Darren Cooper (formerly the joke "leader" of Sadwell) who insisted that each of Sandwell's six towns (or what is left of them) should have a leisure centre - whether there was an economic case for one or not. Smethwick never got one whilst the scumbag was alive....

But when the increasingly irrelevant "Commonwealth" [sic] Games couldn't find a city in the whole of the old British Empire mug enough to host its second-rate jamboree, bankrupt Birmingham stepped up to the plate and the crazed comrades in Sadders decided they wanted a piece of the - fleeting - action. Durban in South Africa and two big Canadian cities had been sensible enough to pull-out and the Games organisers has to find a patsy - and quickly!

Curiously, bust Brum had been in the running for the 2022 egg and spoon races etc since 2009but announced in September, 2013 that it was pulling out as it "simply didn't have the cash"! WTF has changed since then as that council also continuously bangs on about "austerity" and "Government cuts". Brummies have had to put up with disastrous children's services (ditto Labour Sandwell), bin strikes and anyone visiting the City centre is assailed by legions of beggars. The Council can't seem to find money for the rough-sleepers but has found vast sums down the back of the sofa for "the Games".

As with most Sandwell Labour projects there has been no proper planning and everything is "back of the envelope" fayre. A Borough with a host of brownfield sites available apparently couldn't find one one that could be reclaimed in time and so the decision was automatically made that a greenfield site would be destroyed for this hoopla despite the lack of green space in Sadders, poor air-quality, child obesity etc etc etc..... And so the comrades just needed to decide which green space in Smethwick they wanted to sh*t upon. The comrades looked at these sites but ruled them out - allegedly for the reasons given:

Bizarrely, the (hell's) angel of destruction (now that Squealing Eling has been defenestrated) Cllr Paul "The Cipher" Moore - pictured above - said at a recent Council meeting that Labour actually tried to BUY the GKN site but they couldn't get it at the right price - something of a black mark for The Cipher who, incredibly, now fancies himself as a property development expert! (Moore is also the "lead" Councillor working to also destroy Lion Farm Fields!)

(Moore is an employee of Tom Watson who is ignoring the Brexit vote in Sandwell and campaigning from his London home for an second referendum).

But with the Games fixed for 2022 time is off the essence. Eling and Co decided to destroy Londonderry Fields. They "consulted" with local swimming groups who, unsurprisingly, were all for this multi-million sp*nk-up-the-wall. Jan Britton's bent paid service said publicly that letters were sent to all local residents but most say they never received one and a large number of them don't want the green space ruined! New regeneration "supremo", Amy Harthoff, got rid of the problem of an environmental impact assessment by simply saying that plonking a huge building on a greenfield site did not require one (safe in the knowledge that no-one has the money to take the bent Council to court to contest such matters).

The "socialists" lied that the pool would not cost local people anything as all the funding would be "external" - seemingly forgetting that most residents of Sadders, er, pay tax in one form or another! But now the truth is coming out.....

On April 9th the full Council had to decide on this act of pure vandalism and Moore went into bat for bent Labour. In his monotone delivery Moore stated that The Fields had no ecological or biodiversity value (unlike concrete "lol") and that this was the only site "readily available in the prescribed time frame" ie this is an ill-conceived enterprise rushed through without thought or proper planning as the Games must be delivered in 2022.

I thought The Cipher might suddenly crack one of the wrist as his tone rose a semi-quaver to explain that this was the site is Smethwick where a leisure centre was "most required". Eh? Surely close by the new hospital (if it ever gets finished) would be more appropriate? But this would be a "world-class facility" (groan...) that would somehow bring "kudos" to Sandwell. He actually said, and I sh*t ye not, that the project would "put Smethwick on the map". All this created a "once in a lifetime opportunity". So folks, you can pay for a 13-day show and you and your kids can pay for it for years to come.

He was seconded by Bill "Alka Seltzer" Gavan - he of all the dissolved companies. Gavan is also in favour of destroying Lion Farm Fields - despite his previous statements/lies to the contrary.

But Moore also made a couple of extraordinary claims. It seems that the running of the Centre was NOT put out to tender but gifted to Sandwell Leisure Trust (SLT). Technically SLT is a separate legal entity from the bent Council but, in reality, it is the Council's Leisure arm and receives massive annual subsidies of our, taxpayers' money, to stay afloat (cf the arts in Sadders). In recent times corrupt Labour have threatened to close it down. Relationships became so bad that West Bromwich Leisure Centre was not given to them to run. They came back into favour by agreeing with Cooper, Hussain and Eling's plan to destroy The Public. In return for supporting closure they were given the new Wednesbury Centre to run. But problems persist. There have been redundancies at SLT and some Council members have queried whether it is up to the job.

Aye, but here's the rub. The Cipher Moore says that the new Leisure Centre will SAVE money as Langley and Thimblemill Baths will be closed and they cost a lot of money to run. The Lion Farm coward, Gavan, claimed that "the Smethwick building" will be retained for "community use" which, presumably, will require taxpayer subsidy! And Moore went on to make the extraordinary claim that after The Games the new Londonderry Centre will NOT require any subsidy but will actually generate income for SLT which will subsidise its other activities! Where he has got this from is anyone's guess but this is highly likely to be pure "b*llocks".

And, of course, it gets worse. The predicted cost of the paddling pool is £62.5m. Moore made the ludicrous statement that a considerable amount of external funding had been promised which, wait for it, "Sandwell would lose" if it did not proceed! Moore stated that the Black Country LEP was divvying up £5m of taxpayers money. Sport England were chipping in £2m of, er, taxpayers's money. And the Government via the Department of Culture, Media and Sport were going to plough in - yes you guessed it - taxpayers' money of £32.6m.

This, of course, means the general taxpayer is to fork out a cool £39.6m for a thirteen day jerk-off. (When Sandwell Councillors say I have no right to comment on Sadders when I do not live in the shit-hole Borough this should be a clear reminder that their pathetic decisions affect us all).

And so to "gain" public money Labour are charging local folk £22.9m (£62.5m - £39.6m). This is why they are shafting you for extra Council tax, raising all sorts of charges and selling off every bit of land they can. You are being mugged by Labour again folks!

If the developers, Wates, run into "difficulties" with the site and demand more loot to finish the job the taxpayers's pants will be down again! Hold on tight Sadders - it's going to be a bumpy ride!

There were just three abstentions - Linda'n'Rog Horton and Jo Hadley - as the rest of the comrades present pushed this crap through. As far as I could see Jackie Taylor voted for this scheme when she had been the sole vote against it at the planning committee - there's consistency!

Next Thursday yo have a chance to change things in Sandwell. Not voting is voting for Labour and ensuring more of the same after over 40 years of dismal failure......

Paul Moore's Soccer Whopper!

During the Council meeting Cllr Jo Hadley raised a question about the football pitches on the Fields. Moore's exact response was "to my knowledge there is not currently a football team using the Londonderry site." There is a very good reason for this. The Warley League were thrown off The Fields by, er, Labour Sandwell Council because of this project! What an absolute t*****!

Clacker and Reeves

Jan Britton's boys are taking a pounding! Folk say Clacker has been dismissed. Reevesy remains suspended.

Lion Farm

Pop down to the shops at 11 tomorrow. Some local candidates and The Skidder will be there for an informal chat.

[Please note the Londonderry picnic has been postponed until Sunday 5th May.]

Roger Horton

I am certainly not going to get misty-eyed about the end of Roger Horton's reign as Sandwell's longest serving Councillor - ever. Rog was "old-school" Labour and quite happy to get down and dirty when the Dictatorship was threatened in any way. His reputation, and that of his wife, Linda, will, alas, always be tarnished by the Cashmore scandal.

But over the last couple of years I have often had a merry quip with Rog outside Council meetings and it has been sad to see him suffering ill-health. Linda has had the good grace to keep me up to date with health bulletins when Rog has been unable to attend.

I spoke to Rog outside Labour Group on the night before the last Council meeting and he looked very poorly. He said he would be there on he following night for his last hurrah and I must say that I rather doubted that he would make it. But - gamely - he did.

Outside the building were protesters against the destruction of Londonderry (and Lion Farm) and they parted to give Rog a rousing round of applause as he entered The Oldbury Kremlin. It was good to see Rog smiling and greeting everyone present. Good luck for the future Rog!

Compare and contrast Rog's brave attendance with the behaviour of the snivelling little sh*t who used to be "leader". It is amazing how the scales have dropped from the eyes of so many in Sandwell given Eling's behaviour over the last couple of years and, in particular, his squalid and desperate attempt to hang on to his position (and the money that goes with it). The Squealer gave an absolutely disgraceful interview on the day of the Council meeting to a pet "journalist" stating that he is disabled and feared that he might be "accosted" entering the Council House?! Squealing stated that his back injury meant that he "lived in fear of being pushed or shoved" though did not say whether this was likely to be from members of the public or his erstwhile comrades - many of whom he tried to shaft! For good measure he added "I worry all the more, because I have a disability, I can't run off." His playing of "the victim" following his demise is now as ludicrous as it is tiresome. A number of Labour Councillors were appalled at his conduct and said so!

Let's sound the trumpets for Rog and scrape a tiny fiddle for The Squealer!

THE SANDWELL SKIDDER - COMMUNITY NEWS - READ THE SKIDDER, KIDDER!

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PROUD TO HAVE BEEN TROLLED BY DICKHEAD DARREN COOPER DECEASED!

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