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Chadsmead Conservatives:
Could you tell us a little about where
you grew up and what school you went to and your life before
politics?
Cllr Terry Thomas:
I was born in the little village of Brampton about 3 miles from
Huntingdon and went to the local primary school and then to
Kimbolton public school, about 15 miles away, as a state-aided
pupil under a direct grant scheme. At the age of 17 I went to
Leeds University
to study fuel engineering and there I met Penny, to whom I have
been happily married for the last 41 years. The whole of my
working life was spent with Esso Petroleum Company, now
ExxonMobil, first as a petroleum chemist and then on the retail
side, as a manager, until I retired at the age of 57 in 2005.
CC:
How did you get involved in politics?
TT: I have always been interested in
politics, being in the school debating society and when I went
to Leeds University I joined the University Conservative
Association and I have been involved in politics one way or
another ever since.
CC:
When you came to Lichfield what led you into becoming a
councillor?
TT:
I came to the area 36 years
ago, living first in Whittington and then, for the past 23 years
in Lichfield,
in Chadsmead Ward in the North of the City. Soon after moving
to the City I became more involved in local politics through the
Lichfield Constituency Conservative Association, encouraged
initially by Marjorie Simmonds, a long standing member of
Chadsmead Branch and former councillor. Following my retirement
in 2005, I agreed to stand in a council by-election and became a
District and City Councillor for Chadsmead Ward. I was
re-elected to the City Council in the last local elections.
CC:
How did you feel being asked to be Sheriff of Lichfield?
TT: I was elected to be Sheriff in May
2007 and have been very proud to represent the City in that
capacity. During my year in office I have been amazed by the
number and variety of organisations, charities and clubs in
Lichfield and impressed by how many people are prepared to give
of their time freely to help others. I have been honoured to
play my part in upholding civic traditions, including leading
the Annual Sheriff’s Ride on horseback, riding all 22 miles
around the City boundary.
CC:
What will follow your year as Sheriff of
Lichfield?
TT: In five weeks time I shall cease to
be Sheriff, however I am very pleased to have been recently
elected to be the next Deputy Mayor, for the year from May
2008. I look forward to this further opportunity to give
something back to this city which I am proud to call home.
CC:
What is your opinion on the recent increases in car park
charges in
Lichfield?
TT:
I am against all car parking
charges in Lichfield
and in any other town or city for that matter, and in particular
in hospitals where I believe it is a tax on the sick and those
visiting them. Unfortunately, because of the way the government
supports the District Council in terms of grant, one of the few
things they can do to raise money where they are not inhibited
by government regulations is to increase car park charges. This
government has allowed the District Council an increase in grant
of only 1% and yet they have trumpeted free bus passes for over
60s for the whole UK, however they have not funded it properly
so that the District Council has to fund a large percentage of
the extra cost of bus passes out of a 1% increase in costs as
certain fixed costs eg annual rises for District Council staff
are automatically applied throughout the UK and the cost of
living has gone up way beyond 1%. Personally, I believe the
answer to be that, rather than increase car parking charges, we
should become more efficient and cut back on some services.
CC:
So you are saying that there should be a bigger grant
coming from the government?
TT: Yes. If you look at the figures over
the last ten years since a Labour government has been in power
you will see that the smallest grants have been to
Conservative-controlled councils and this is no more or less
than political fiddling.
CC:
What do you think of the proposed Birmingham Road
development and whether it will improve life for residents of
Lichfield?
TT: I think this development is very
badly needed by the City as its current range of shops and
facilities is extremely limited, the whole of the area that is
going to be rebuilt is in poor condition, the multi storey car
park cramped, the police station out of date and inefficient,
the bus station is basically 1960s and the garage is not a very
good advertisement for Lichfield. For these reasons I voted for
the redevelopment in Council. The new department store, cinema
and hotel will fill gaps and enhance the city centre and the new
underground car park is essential. Providing the car park
charges are not excessive, Friarsgate will be an excellent
facility.
CC:
Where will the new bus station be located?
TT: The new bus station will be the other
side of
Birningham Road,
adjacent to the train station and will be of much more modern
design and should be more efficient.
CC:
Will the siting of the new police station in Chadsmead be a
better position?
TT: It will be better for the police as
it will be more accessible. It will be a modern building with
improved facilities and a better carbon footprint. There will,
in addition, be a small office in the city centre.
CC::
With the police station moving and the new shopping centre being
built by 2010 do you think this might bring more problems?
TT: I do not think it will bring any more
problems than we have at present with regard to drunkenness and
rowdiness in the city centre, which unfortunately happens
everywhere these days, and needs to be addressed by national
solutions.
CC:
How will we deal with the increased parking needs and will
this include park and ride?
TT: There is not going to be a park and
ride system as the city is not big enough. There is a current
proposal to develop the Friary Outer car park which I am not in
favour of as the proposed buildings are obtrusive and ugly and
too big and high. I am in favour of additional underground
parking underneath the Friary Outer car park.
CC:
What is your opinion of the city centre paving scheme?
TT: I think the new paving is excellent.
However, the way it was done and the handling of it was
appalling. We did not have a contract with sufficient penalties
to cause the builders to complete the project on time. I
consider that the actual finished product is very pleasing to
the eye. We should now make the city centre completely
vehicle-free for a large percentage of the time, with a barrier.
CC:
How could we regain the interest of ordinary people in
politics, particularly young people?
TT: We
do have a branch of Conservative Future (previously called Young
Conservatives) in Lichfield
and I have attended several of their meetings. The problem we
have is that this government is responsible for turning people
off, not only the government itself, but also, because of their
lies and deceit, off politics altogether. As the Deputy
Chairman of the local Conservative Association, one of my
responsibilities is getting new members and we shall be carrying
out a national advertising campaign for new members.
CC:
Very briefly, how would you summarise the benefits a
Conservative Government would bring to the people of this
country?
TT: A cut in bureaucracy, become more
efficient and eventually simplify and reduce taxes, cut down the
waste in the nationalised industries, particularly the Health
Service which does a sterling job but is not efficient. And, in
the long term, reallocate the 700,000 extra civil servants this
government has introduced to productive jobs.
CC:
You lead a very busy life working for your constituents in
Lichfield and representing Chadsmead. What do you do to relax?
TT:
I enjoy driving, being a
member of the Institute of Advanced Motorists
and a ROSPA Gold Standard driver. I collect banknotes and enjoy
travelling. I also enjoy spending time with my family, with 2
sons and 4 grandchildren living locally.
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