Marvin Rees

[Septic Peg]

Wants a public owned bus service again (bye First!), more support for the areas of deprivation (largely ignored by GF) and more support for health services including mental health services of which he has experience in working.

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/12/marvin-rees-the-bristolian-bearing-the-weight-of-labour-hopes#_=_

Could he be the man to knock old Red Trews off his proverbial perch?

[Aizoon]

He's the man most likely to depose the scarlet trousered buffoon. 

[Maesknoll Red]

He hasn't won any fans in some of the social services, he was involved in the decimation of the councils care homes and subsequent lack of places for folk with dementia etc.

 

[Dollymarie]

I firmly believe Marvin is our best chance of getting rid of red trousers.  

[CyderInACan]

Surely a council owned bus network will actually serve to increase council tax? No thanks. 

[Septic Peg]

I doubt it. The tickets themselves will produce the income. And currently the council subsidise some services anyway!

[Barrs Court Red]

So Bristol get to elect a mayor again this year. Maybe more than 24% of you will vote this time.

Apart from the unpopular RPZ's the election build up could well be dominated by the growing scrutiny of the money spent on Bristols Green capital year.

Of course it could all be overshadowed if a "Metro Mayor" is stood up, covering the greater Bristol area. It would undoubtedly be a Tory, pretty much making whoever Bristol elect irrelevant for the big issues over transport.

[Barrs Court Red]

15 minutes ago, Septic Peg said:

I doubt it. The tickets themselves will produce the income. And currently the council subsidise some services anyway!

What will they do, only run busses in Bristol? 

[Lanterne Rouge]

52 minutes ago, Barrs Court Red said:

So Bristol get to elect a mayor again this year. Maybe more than 24% of you will vote this time.

Apart from the unpopular RPZ's the election build up could well be dominated by the growing scrutiny of the money spent on Bristols Green capital year.

Of course it could all be overshadowed if a "Metro Mayor" is stood up, covering the greater Bristol area. It would undoubtedly be a Tory, pretty much making whoever Bristol elect irrelevant for the big issues over transport.

Judging by some recent interviews Ole` red trousers is positioning himself for the job already. In fact, in one I saw, he was talking like he had already been elected.

[Barrs Court Red]

44 minutes ago, Red Right Hand said:

Judging by some recent interviews Ole` red trousers is positioning himself for the job already. In fact, in one I saw, he was talking like he had already been elected.

Is be amazed if he finished in the top 3, and no doubt he'd be a threat to the motorway junction at Emersons Green.

[The Gasbuster]

3 hours ago, Barrs Court Red said:

So Bristol get to elect a mayor again this year. Maybe more than 24% of you will vote this time.

Apart from the unpopular RPZ's the election build up could well be dominated by the growing scrutiny of the money spent on Bristols Green capital year.

Of course it could all be overshadowed if a "Metro Mayor" is stood up, covering the greater Bristol area. It would undoubtedly be a Tory, pretty much making whoever Bristol elect irrelevant for the big issues over transport.

Not sure if I heard it right on the radio the other day, but there was mention of this metro mayor having power over Newport and Crapduff !!

**** that ! imagine the arguing that will take place over the money being spent !

[Guest]

7 hours ago, Barrs Court Red said:

Is be amazed if he finished in the top 3, and no doubt he'd be a threat to the motorway junction at Emersons Green.

The interview on ITV on Friday did more damage than any of his rivals have managed. He looked completely uneasy at the questions fired at him. 

[Esmond Million's Bung]

24 minutes ago, Tomarse said:

The interview on ITV on Friday did more damage than any of his rivals have managed. He looked completely uneasy at the questions fired at him. 

The full interview is on this attachment, he never properly answered one single question, he was like a bloke whose missus caught him with his kippers in the grill (to quote the wonderful late Ian Dury). Slimy git.

http://www.itv.com/news/west/2016-02-12/george-ferguson-promises-further-breakdown-of-how-green-capital-money-was-spent/

[Nibor]

I can't work up any enthusiasm about any of them.  Whoever is going to repeal the 20mph and residents parking bullshit will get my vote.

As for taking buses into the public sector - great.  I'm tired of pissing money down First Group's overpaid management and greedy shareholders, and running a bus network isn't exactly rocket science.  As long as we hire the right people to do it and think about it properly it can be done well.  I doubt Labour can pull that off though, they couldn't find their arses with both hands and a map.

[RedM]

2 hours ago, Tomarse said:

The interview on ITV on Friday did more damage than any of his rivals have managed. He looked completely uneasy at the questions fired at him. 

We said exactly this too. It really was car crash tv. All he did was agree to go on tv when he was being hassled at the Colston hall a few days earlier. As for answering any questions people wanted he made it 100 times worse for himself. He must be deeply regretting appearing now. As for where all the money went he couldn't / wouldn't answer and just drew more attention to the fact that basically all the Green Capital millions are unaccounted for. If people weren't asking questions before they will be now.

 

[Septic Peg]

3 hours ago, Esmond Million's Bung said:

The full interview is on this attachment, he never properly answered one single question, he was like a bloke whose missus caught him with his kippers in the grill (to quote the wonderful late Ian Dury). Slimy git.

http://www.itv.com/news/west/2016-02-12/george-ferguson-promises-further-breakdown-of-how-green-capital-money-was-spent/

Huge kudos to Ian Axton off ITV Westcountry. I normally dislike journos but he really had GF by the short and curlies and wasn't fazed by GF trying to wiggle out of the questions. He just kept on pushing him and making George look even more of a prat (who knew it was possible?)

[Esmond Million's Bung]

1 hour ago, RedM said:

We said exactly this too. It really was car crash tv. All he did was agree to go on tv when he was being hassled at the Colston hall a few days earlier. As for answering any questions people wanted he made it 100 times worse for himself. He must be deeply regretting appearing now. As for where all the money went he couldn't / wouldn't answer and just drew more attention to the fact that basically all the Green Capital millions are unaccounted for. If people weren't asking questions before they will be now.

 

it would appear some of the money has been moved somewhere that does not come under audit scrutiny and that made things seem even more like there was something to hide.

 

[Dollymarie]

10 hours ago, RedM said:

We said exactly this too. It really was car crash tv. All he did was agree to go on tv when he was being hassled at the Colston hall a few days earlier. As for answering any questions people wanted he made it 100 times worse for himself. He must be deeply regretting appearing now. As for where all the money went he couldn't / wouldn't answer and just drew more attention to the fact that basically all the Green Capital millions are unaccounted for. If people weren't asking questions before they will be now.

 

And when he was on tv being hassled, he referred to those people with placards as "lunatics" what a lovely way to describe people for them simply asking where our tax payers money has gone.   

[RedM]

35 minutes ago, Dollymarie said:

And when he was on tv being hassled, he referred to those people with placards as "lunatics" what a lovely way to describe people for them simply asking where our tax payers money has gone.   

And potential voters too. I can't believe I am defending him but he was right to be annoyed (and they did make themselves look less credible) when they began to put their placards in front of him when he was being interviewed. They were getting their point across and managing to annoy him perfectly well when they were just behind him. 

[marshy]

14 hours ago, Nibor said:

I can't work up any enthusiasm about any of them.  Whoever is going to repeal the 20mph and residents parking bullshit will get my vote.

As for taking buses into the public sector - great.  I'm tired of pissing money down First Group's overpaid management and greedy shareholders, and running a bus network isn't exactly rocket science.  As long as we hire the right people to do it and think about it properly it can be done well.  I doubt Labour can pull that off though, they couldn't find their arses with both hands and a map.

I think you probably mean long-suffering shareholders. Five years ago in February 2011 the share price stood at £3.73, today it stands at £0.86, a decline of 77%. As for dividend they were paying 22.12p a share, they now pay 0.00p per share. Stupid perhaps, certainly not greedy.

[Guest]

16 hours ago, Nibor said:

I can't work up any enthusiasm about any of them.  Whoever is going to repeal the 20mph and residents parking bullshit will get my vote.

As for taking buses into the public sector - great.  I'm tired of pissing money down First Group's overpaid management and greedy shareholders, and running a bus network isn't exactly rocket science.  As long as we hire the right people to do it and think about it properly it can be done well.  I doubt Labour can pull that off though, they couldn't find their arses with both hands and a map.

Rees does come across as somewhat of a central labour govement pupet. He's still got a half arsed unfiished website and no manifesto for the election.  Given we have 4 labour MPs you'd think he'd be in poll position to win it but who knows.

Obviously the trouble of a public sector bus service goes back to having unitary authorities. We need, at least for transport, a united authority to roll it out far and wide.

[Barrs Court Red]

Annoyingly if you take transport from the equation, both Bristol, BANES and South Glos seem to be doing well. Stuffs being built, jobs are being created and the region has a real feel good factor.