Kirkburton Conservative Party Leaflet - Misinformation & Green PartyResponses

Elections often bring out the worst in some Local Politicians in pursuit of votes. Here are the main areas of misinformation from the Kirkburton Conservative leaflet. They usually put out a late leaflet full of  dubious claims about the Green Party. Here are the main ones and our responses. Please share this on Facebook, Twitter and Email if you know people who live in the Kirkburton Ward. 

“Kirkburton needs an active Councillor, not one who works full time and is therefore limited in their commitments as the Green Party & Labour Candidates are.” – Kirkburton Conservative Leaflet

 Actually Green Councillor Derek Hardcastle is very active, is a full time Councillor and has no other job. So this statement by John Taylor is incorrect. Also is he saying that all Councillors should not have any other employment? This is certainly not the case with many Councillors including many Conservative Councillors. - Green Party Response

“In the Conservative Manifesto is a specific commitment to protecting the Greenbelt so if elected we will be able to safeguard our environment. Something the Labour Party and the Green Party have not committed to”  - Kirkburton Conservative Leaflet

Greenbelt is the most protected land in law in any case, so this ‘commitment’ in many ways is already there. In reality the real threat is to ‘Provisional Open Land - POL’ which many people assume is Greenbelt simply because it is usually green fields. There is lots of this land in the Kirkburton Ward. Both Strategic Planning Committee Conservative Councillors Bill Armer & Brice supported a POL development at Brockholes on the basis that it was POL and they had “no choice” (this was a recorded meeting). Because of the reasons that they gave, it is hard to see how they would not then support other POL applications – including developments in Flockton. - Green Party Response

“I will not support tokenism like my Green Party opponent who prioritised funding for a study of installing renewable energy on Kirklees land over additional funding for the roads budget.”  - Kirkburton Conservative Leaflet

The Green Party proposal was aimed at solar installations on large Kirklees buildings and on derelict land. The aim is to actually raise income from the electricity generated which could support Kirklees services such as the roads budget. - Green Party Response

Conservatives say they will “Reverse the cuts in front line services but forward by Labour and the Green Party”  - Kirkburton Conservative Leaflet

The GreenParty have put forward no cuts to frontline services. Labour have cut services but that is due to the £156 Million cuts to funding to Kirklees from Central Government. The reality is that if the Conservatives actually ran the Council they would have to make cuts. Any Party running the council would. - Green Party Response

Conservatives propose “Relocating Huddersfield Library saving £0.5million whilst saving local libraries.” - Kirkburton Conservative Leaflet

Where will they relocate Huddersfield Central Library to? What will they do with the existing Library building? If they propose selling it, who would buy it? This is not a realistic proposal and they must know it. - Green Party Response

“Green Party Councillors only make the problem worse by voting along with their left wing allies (Labour)”  - Kirkburton Conservative Leaflet

Green Councillors have worked with Conservative, Lib Dem and Labour administrations over the last 15 years, as Kirklees has had no Party with an overall majority over all that time. Our aim is always to get the best deal for local communities. Currently we are using our influence on Kirklees and Kirkburton Parish Councils to help save local Libraries in Shepley & Kirkburton. The problem for the Conservatives is that their Councillors will not work with any other Party and so you could argue are effectively a ‘wasted vote’. - Green Party Response