July 16, 2008
The council was yesterday considering a proposal to sell Newtown Market Hall. I had serious concerns over this, with 36 businesses operating within the market and at least 70 people employed.
The majority vote of the Council’s Board resoved to defer any decision until after the sale of the Newtown Smithfield site. This will enable the Council to re consider the investment needed in the market hall from the proceeds of the sale. To me it would seem reasonable for Newtown to benefit directly from the these funds.
The Traders and the people of Newtown will be pleased with this news, This was undoubtedly helped by a well supported petition and also the backing of all the Newtown County Councillors. The proposed sale of the building has been a real worry to the businesses within the market and many believe that Newtown, as a market town, should retain its indoor market.
It was good to see so many people working for the good of our area.
2 Comments | 
newtown, powys county council, retail | Tagged: Add new tag, council, Hall, indoor, Market, newtown, powys, sale, saved, traders | 
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Posted by russellgeorge
May 28, 2008
I would like to offer my congratulations to Devika and Muralee Tharan, who recently opened the area’s first ten-pin bowling alley, uStrike. I went along on Friday night with a few friends. I had seen it described as a ‘four-lane state-of-the-art bowling alley’ and I would say that’s what it is! Really well furnished, no expense spared and professional service.
A recurring comment I heard while campaigning was that our county council isn’t doing enough in the way of children and youth facilities in Newtown.
My answer to that was rather than the focusing on council providing further facilities, our council should be encouraging and supporting local entrepreneurs.
The council is pretty strapped for cash and unfortunately leisure and recreation facilities are always going to be pushed to the bottom of the list when money is short. It is great news that the town has now got this facility. I don’t know Devika and Muralee Tharan, but they have obviously taken a risk in this venture and I just hope that the all those who have called for more facilities will support this business.
I came last in our match so will definately be going back again to improve my technique!
For more information, visit www.ustrike.co.uk or call 01686 622688 for bookings.
1 Comment | 
leisure, powys county council, recreation | Tagged: 01686 622688, alley, bowling, bowling alley, Devika and Muralee Tharan, devika tharan, entrepreneurs, muralee tharan, newtown, ten pin bowling, ustrike, www.ustrike.co.uk | 
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Posted by russellgeorge
May 18, 2008
I went to a Promise Auction last night in Montgomery town hall, as I’d never been to one before I wasn’t really sure what to expect.
I ended up bidding for a £20 voucher to use in the Shilam restaurant in Newtown. I was a little confused when the auctioneer announced that the biding would start at £20 - I ended up securing it for £25! I think I’ve been done. I must point out that in my new role in Powys County Council I’m not sitting on any finance committees!
There were 36 items up for auction. These included 216 award-winning sausages in a box (why 216?), a Hopi ear candle session (what’s that?), one pair of curtains (that sold for £8 which I later noticed had an RRP of £49.99, perhaps I should have bought that and stuck it on ebay and made some money instead!
There was also a tour of the national assembly and the senedd donated by Nick Bourne AM…I cant understand why I wasn’t approached to donate a prize of a tour around Powys County Council chambers in Llandod with a mug of tea served at the Powys canteen!
3 Comments | 
charity, powys county council, welsh assembly | Tagged: curtains, hopi, llandod, montgomery town hall, national assembly, newtown, nick bourne, powys county council, promise auction, sausages, shilam restaurant | 
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Posted by russellgeorge
May 12, 2008
I attended County Hall for the first time this week, where on Tuesday I had an induction course which was interesting, but did feel like information overload.
On Friday, I had training on Code of conduct. The speaker made a very good job of making a boring subject very interesting. The session lasted all morning, but if I had to sum it up, it would be “How to stay out of jail”.
The Code of conduct is excellent, and its quite right that if councillors break this code, they should be disqualified from their position. It does however concern me – for example, will I genuinely forget to declare a conflict of interest? – but it is correct, and I would hope that the consequences for not heeding the code would make all councillors take it seriously.
I should also mention the other new Newtown councillors, of which there are five:
Newtown East – Richard John White (Liberal Democrat)
Newtown Llanllwchaiarn North – Francis Torrens (Welsh Conservative)
Newtown South – Robert Mills (Independant)
Newtown Llanllwchaiarn West – Peter Harris (Welsh Conservative)
Newtown Central – Russell George (me) (Welsh Conservative)
I know Peter Harris and Frank (Francis Torrens) and both are good friends. I have got to know them even better this week as we have shared a car from Newtown to Llandod a few times. I probably got to know Frank the best, simply because he doesn’t stop talking - from the point of getting in the car untill we arrive at our destination!
I had heard a great deal about Bob Mills during my own campaigning, people I spoke to either really disliked him or really liked him. I met him properly this week. Bob had invited me to a meeting to save Garth Owen post office, so I was able to form my own opinion of him. I found Bob to be very hospitable, passionate about standing up for his ward and very good at arranging and chairing the meeting he organised.
Bob also called me this week on a planning issue on my ward and was a big help. From what I now of Bob, he’s a good councillior and I think he will be a good friend and ally. I also met Richard White this week.
Leave a Comment » | councillors, issues, newtown, post office closures, powys county council, training, welsh conservatives | Tagged: bob mills, code of conduct, conflict of interest, county hall, francis torrens, frank torrens, garth owen post office, llandod, newtown central, newtown east, newtown lanllwchaiarn north, newtown llanllwchaiarn west, newtown south, peter harris, planning, richard john white, robert mills, welsh conservative | Permalink
Posted by russellgeorge
May 3, 2008
It is just now sinking in that I have been elected to represent the residents of Powys and in particular the people of Newtown Central on our local Council.
The count was not taking place until Friday morning. So although very tired after weeks of hard campaigning, I had little sleep on Thursday night.
I stood around the table where the votes where being counted, along with the other candidates, each candidate having friends and party members around them. I’ve never experienced so many emotions in such a short space of time as the votes where sorted into the five trays: nerves, excitement, pride, anxiety, humility and more.
Then the results were declared:
BANCROFT, Dougie – Welsh Liberal Democrats – 211
GEORGE, Russell Ian – Welsh Conservatives – 314
LLOYD, Robert Alan – Independent – 29
MCCALL, John Andrew, Independent – 26
TAYLOR, Reg, Independent – 110
The returning officer then announced: “And I do hereby declare that the said Russell Ian George is duly elected Councillor for the said Electoral Division”. I felt very excited to be given this vote of confidence by the people of Newtown Central which I intend to repay by bringing a fresh approach on their behalf.
I’ve had many emails, comments and texts congratulating me, which I haven’t yet had time to respond to, so if you are reading this, thank you – I appreciate your support greatly.
3 Comments | conservatives, elections, newtown, powys county council, welsh conservatives | Tagged: dougie bancroft, election night, independent candidates, john mccall, reg taylor, robert lloyd, victory, welsh liberal democrats | Permalink
Posted by russellgeorge
April 24, 2008
Our local authority has put off a decision to switch off a third of Powys’ 14,000 street lights for a year to save money and energy until next month.
In a few weeks I may be one of the councillors asked to consider this proposal. If councillors vote in favour of the project next month then 5,000 lights will be switched off in June.
The lighting bill is around £500,000 per year and is set to rise by £175,000 with rising costs and a tight budget.
After chatting to people in Trehafren last night, I could be mistaken for thinking the scheme was already underway, as a number of residents told me about lights around their homes not coming on.
Of course I knew that the scheme hadn’t really started, and wondered if it was it worth reporting the problem, given that they may be left turned off anyway in a few weeks!
I’m in favour of finding ways to save electricity, and I’m making this a priority in my shop. However, I’m also in favour of having good street lighting, particularly to increase public security and safety.
I’m not sure how much it costs to install one lamppost and light, but I expect the cost is fairly high. Surely, it doesn’t make any sense to spend money installing street lights, only to then introduce a policy not to turn them on?
1 Comment | councillors, elections, environment, issues, powys county council, public services, safety, street lighting | Tagged: electricity, energy, street lights, trehafren | Permalink
Posted by russellgeorge
April 21, 2008
I can’t understand how anyone can say that removing the 10p tax band will help anyone. Newtown is one of the lowest paid areas in the UK and those on lowest pay will certainly find themselves paying much more tax.
This is just another way through the back door of taking more money from the average hard working person. When Gordon Brown announced the reduction in the basic rate from 22% to 20% and then abolished the 10p tax band, it was obvious to that everyone would be worse off. But what’s frustrating is that on announcing this he presented it as good for the average hard-working person!
So many people I have spoken to this week have aired there dissatisfaction of Labour, and I’m finding great support with people telling me there going to vote Conservative for the first time.
Council tax is of course another hot issue. The Lib Dems in Powys want to scrap council tax and replace it with a tax-per-person system. If this comes about I fear that the average paid workers in Powys will be paying even more.
The Conservatives pledge to introduce a system that places the control of council tax into our hands. My party will call for a referendum if our council wants to put up council tax by any significant amount. This will effectively make our council have to put forward a strong case to justify any large increase if they want us, the people of Powys, to vote for it.
It’s a disgrace that people who earn next to nothing are going to subsidise the 2p tax cut for people who earn more than they do. We are paying too much tax for too little in return and from the conversations I’ve had with people in Newtown this week I believe the public are finally realising it.
Leave a Comment » | conservatives, council tax, elections, issues, newtown, powys county council, taxes | Tagged: 10p tax band, gordon brown, labour, lib dems, liberal democrats, referendum | Permalink
Posted by russellgeorge
April 9, 2008
I read with interest an article on the BBC website today about how research from BBC Wales shows that Welsh councillors are not getting any younger.
A few years ago the Welsh Assembly had a scheme to “pay off” long-standing councillors, in an initiative to get younger men and women into our local councils.
I’m 34 in a few week (27 April if anyone wants to send me birthday wishes!) and if I am elected I will be among the 3.3% who are under 35! The average age of councillors is still 61 in 10 local authorities surveyed some years ago.
I am absolutely in favour of encouraging younger people to get involved in local politics and public services. It does however frustrate me that £1.6 m of the taxpayers’ money (our money) was spent on a scheme that gave councillors a cash incentive if they stood down.
What makes it all the more frustrating is the BBC Wales survey that found four years on, the average age of councillors in those 10 areas remains 61.
I think I should point out that I’m not having dig at old counsellors. For every old and ineffective councillor there is another one thats bring great experience and wisdom. We need a mix of older and younger councillors – after all councillors should be a true reflection of the area they represent.
Encouragingly, the survey found that Powys had the most noticeable drop in the average age of councillors. If I’m elected on May 1st, the Powys figures will look even better!
3 Comments | councillors, elections, powys county council, taxes, welsh assembly | Tagged: ages, birthday, old, pay off, taxes, young, youth | Permalink
Posted by russellgeorge
April 7, 2008
I left our meeting this morning feeling so glad that I’ve got the backing of my party, the Welsh Conservatives.
I have the constant support of our parliamentary candidate Glyn Davies and our association chairman Simon Baynes who has just been elected (unopposed) to represent his area on Powys County Council and the Montgomeryshire Conservatives.
Walking into the office this morning, there was a real buzz of being part of a strong team. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the many “independent” candidates throughout Powys who don’t have the backing of a strong political party.
It is great to be able to phone up the office and get advice on a particular issue, normally from Pam. And if she can’t help, she’ll know someone who can.
On leaving the office this morning I did feel bad that I hadn’t thanked Pam enough for all she’s doing for each of the candidates. Sometimes when you are totally focussed on the campaign, it is difficult to get a moment to properly say thank you.
Surely it makes sense for a county councillor to be part of a wider group, one that has influence in the Welsh Assembly, in London and in Europe? What can an independent councillor do when they face issues that affect our local area but are decided by bodies outside of Powys?
What is more, as well as offering advice, expertise and resources, I know that the more backing I receive from my party, the more of my time will be freed up to devote to the important issues that matter to you.
If I’m privileged enough to be elected, I’ll feel reassured to know that I’m not on my own.
1 Comment | conservatives, independent candidates, issues, montgomeryshire conservatives, powys county council, welsh assembly, welsh conservatives | Tagged: campaign, conservatives, councillor, county council, glyn davies, montgomeryshire, office, pam, powys, simon baynes | Permalink
Posted by russellgeorge
