Council Elections - Thurso - Nick Noble - LibDem

14th April 2012

Nick Noble is putting himself forward for election to the Highland Council to represent the people and town of Thurso. Nick is proud to be standing as a Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate because he has a long standing belief in the core values of the Liberal Democrat party.

"the Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community, and in which no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity" - from the LibDem party constitution

About Nick
Nick lives in High Ormlie in Thurso with his wife Jill and their four children. The children attend local schools use the local leisure services and library… Nick is an independent computer specialist and full time father. He attends the Highland Council area forum which allows tenants to participate in the development of housing strategies; He is a board member of the Ormlie Community Association and is taking a lead role in developing the new Allotment facility he has long campaigned for in Thurso. Nick also assists local MP John Thurso as a volunteer caseworker particularly with case work related to the Highland Council.

Local Issues first
Council elections are not about national party politics, they are about the issues faced by all the people of the area. If elected as a councillor for Thurso my first priority will be to ensure that individuals, families and businesses in Thurso are getting the best service possible from the Highland Council. Making sure that services that are needed are delivered, ensuring that services are provided in an efficient manner, and that where resources are being wasted that waste is stopped.

The best people to decide what is needed for Thurso are the people of Thurso. If Highland Councillors engage directly with the people they represent then those needs can be met. I believe that councillors need to hold surgeries all around the ward they represent to ensure that people feel able to come forward and speak about the issues that affect them. If elected I will hold regular surgeries in Scrabster, in Ormlie, in Pennyland, in Spring Park, in the centre of town and anywhere else people need them. I will also ensure that if big decisions affecting the town are being brought forward the people of Thurso will be the first to be informed, and their opinions sought. For example the vexed question of what to do about Primary School provision in Thurso has not gone away. The question of closures, amalgamations and the like is still on the table. It will be looked at again at the end of the Highland wide review of schools which is ongoing.

A local authority should be just that, LOCAL. Too much of the Highland Council is needlessly centralised. Currently if you wish to contact the council you are encouraged to contact the local service point. All well and good if you can visit in person and talk face to face to someone who generally will be very well informed regarding local service provision and local concerns; that is the way that things should work. If however you work for a living, have mobility problems or no transport and therefore use the phone or email to try and contact the council you are connected to the centralised "Service Centre". The service centre is staffed by very helpful hard working people; however they are not local to you and are therefore unable to help in the same way as the local service point. Surely it is not beyond hope that the council's phone system could be used to direct calls to the local service point, and only divert to the service centre if no one is available to help at the local service point? That to me is a good example of decentralisation.
Getting things right for Thurso

By ensuring that we get the little things right in Thurso for individuals, for businesses, for groups, for sports teams, for the elderly, for the young people, for those with disabilities, we will also get the big things right for everyone. After all society is only the sum total of the individuals it represents. The Highland Council faces challenges on a scale far greater than any other local authority in Scotland. We have the most roads, the most widespread population, the lowest population density, the most diverse geography, the smallest schools; facing these challenges is the responsibility of those elected to the council. By setting Inverness and other urban centres against island and highland communities, West Highlands against North Highlands, towns against country we make more problems than we solve particularly when dealing with the Scottish Government and increasingly centralised public services.

Provided councillors from all areas make strategic decisions based on what is best for the Highlands but informed by all or our communities, and not based on special pleading by a predominant group based on population, or lack of, and provided local councillors and community councils are given the authority and budget to make decisions which solely affect their area then the Highlands becomes stronger as a whole.

For more say for Thurso, with the Highland LibDems £1 million challenge fund.

For action in Town, clean up the old mart site and provide long overdue leisure facilities for everyone.
For better roads, ensuring the additional £2 million made available by the Highland LibDems for road repair is spent wisely, and by campaigning to get the Scottish Government to properly fund the repair of the trunk road network in the north.

For action across Thurso and a councillor who will always be there for you vote for Nick Noble on the 3rd of May.
Nick Noble: Number '1' to get things done.

Links
Nick's election leaflet: http://nicknoble.mycouncillor.org.uk/files/2012/04/NickNoble1stForThurso.pdf
Highland LibDems Manifesto: http://highlandlibdems.org.uk/