January 16, 2017 2.22 pm
This story is over 63 months old
Karl McCartney: The importance of staying true to what you believe in
Politics never sleeps. We are only a few weeks into the New Year and we have already seen the soap opera surrounding the outgoing and incoming Presidents of the USA taking fresh twists and turns. The Labour leader, the Rt. Hon. Jeremy Corbyn MP, has proved himself again to be beyond satire as he seemingly…
Lincoln MP Karl McCartney. | Photo: Steve Smailes for Lincolnshire Reporter
Politics never sleeps. We are only a few weeks into the New Year and we have already seen the soap opera surrounding the outgoing and incoming Presidents of the USA taking fresh twists and turns.
The Labour leader, the Rt. Hon. Jeremy Corbyn MP, has proved himself again to be beyond satire as he seemingly changed his mind on EU immigration policy and salary caps within a matter of hours.
We have also seen our financial institutions and economists starting to (finally) admit their forecasts on Brexit were overblown as we see the economy grow apace meaning more jobs and wealth for our country, though the important thing for me is to ensure everyone benefits.
There continues to be pressures on the NHS nationally and locally, and I would like to pay tribute and thank our local doctors, nurses and other health professionals for their sterling commitment and support over the Christmas and New Year period. We all should remember that they do the same important role every day of the year.
In terms of those pressures, the decision by the local Clinical Commissioning Group to close two surgeries in Lincoln, displacing 5,500 people, remains a real concern. A decision that risks increasing GP appointment waiting times across the city.
Further pressures from any other closures in either the city or our county will only add further pressures to the service.
The pressures on our NHS also show why we need to urgently bring immigration down. Figures released just before Christmas showed 333,000 more people settled in this country than left – the equivalent of having to accommodate the population of cities such as Nottingham or Leicester every single year.
These immigration figures need to be addressed urgently. It is now the time to do, not just say.
I was pleased to see that our Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Theresa May MP, in her first major speech of the year set out a clear Conservative vision for the United Kingdom, a vision of a Shared Society is one I wholeheartedly agree with.
Like her I want to ensure that everyone in our country, county and city is able to share in the success of the country and be able to make the very best of their lives, for themselves, their families and the community.
The key question as ever is to how to put this in practice. The support the Conservative government has made in raising the national living wage, allowing people to earn more before they start paying tax and the recent announcement to tackle homelessness in our city are vital steps on this journey.
I will be playing my part in this, especially in continuing to raise the profile of the need to tackle the underachievement of boys in the education system and the lack of male teachers in our schools.
I commend the speech I made on this subject in September 2016 to everyone and it can be read and viewed here.
I was struck on Thursday with the Thought for the Day from Canon Angela Tilby on BBC Radio 4.
It is well worth a listen. She speaks very eloquently about the need for authenticity in politics and the pressures placed on politicians to not say what they really feel and believe in. This does not just apply to Members of Parliament, it is also applies to our city and county councillors from all sides. There is always this constant pressure to conform.
This stems from collective decision making, the fact that political parties are “broad churches” so there will never always be agreement on all party policy and also pressure from party whips trying to bring everyone into line.
For some, the far too many who only venture into politics for self-advancement, this is not an issue as they do not believe in anything, except of course, their own self-advancement.
Please rest assured there are a substantial number of my colleagues who like me are firmly staying true to what I believe remains key to what I do and say, both in Lincoln and in Westminster – something that will never change, no matter the “pressures” I come under to conform.
It is what I believe the people of Lincoln want from their Member of Parliament. It is also what I believe the people across the country partly showed in their actions and votes in last year’s referendum.
Karl McCartney is the Conservative MP for Lincoln.
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Have I Got News For You star Paul Merton will perform his show ‘Impro Chums’ on stage at the New Theatre Royal Lincoln later this month.
Merton, Richard Vranch, Suki Webster, Mike McShane, and accompanist Kirsty Newton are back on the road, with Lincoln among the stops on the tour for an evening of improvisation.
Tickets are on sale priced at £25 for the show at 7.30pm on Tuesday, May 31 – buy your tickets here.
Merton is a writer, actor, comedian and radio and television present, who is known for his improvisation skill and deadpan humour. He is a founder member of The Comedy Store Players and still appears at the Comedy Store in London most Sundays.
The 64-year-old is also a resident guest on BBC Radio 4’s Just A Minute and his travel series on Channel Five called Paul Merton’s Adventures covered India, China and Europe. Last summer he co-stared with Suki Website in Motorhoming with Paul Merton as part of a six-part travel documentary for Channel 5.
His autobiography ‘Only When I Laugh’ reached the Sunday Times bestseller Top 10.
A 22-year-old man who died in a motorbike crash in Lincoln will be given a final send off with a rip-roaring procession on the way to his funeral.
Connor Peters, 22, tragically died in a crash on the B1190 Lincoln Road on Monday, May 9, as his black Lexmoto motorcycle collided with a white Isuzu van.
He unfortunately died at the scene, and a fundraiser was set up for the “cheeky, loveable rogue” to have the send off “he deserves”. At the time of reporting there is a remarkable £5,000 on the GoFundMe page, which you can visit here.
Connor Peters, pictured here with his mum, tragically died in a crash on Monday, May 9. | Photo: GoFundMe
Now, plans have been made for a motorbike procession to join the hearse taking Connor to his funeral service. The event, titled Connor Peters’ Last Ride, has been organised by his brother Josh.
It will take place at 11.50am on Monday, June 13, starting from Larne Road in Lincoln.
Josh says on the event’s Facebook page: “As a family, we are wanting a full motorcycle procession behind the funeral car, we want as many bikes, trikes, mopeds anything. We want so much noise remove all baffles removed, pops and bangs enough so he can hear from up there.
“Connor was a 22 year old lad that was full of life and was loved by so many, he loved his little 125cc, he thought that he had finally hit the big time but due to a awful turn of events he lost his life doing something he loved.
“For many of us bikers we can understand the love and passion he had for that short period of time. A biker fallen hits us all but we all club together to make an effort to remember those we lost.”
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