Sample of Recent Letters

Berwick Advertiser

14th October
Assembly would not be beneficial

SIR, — I do not believe that an Assembly for the north east of England will be beneficial to the region or its people for a number of reasons, many of which have been aired at some length in your Letters columns. In particular, I dispute the claim made by its proposers that the Assembly will bring government closer to the people. I believe that the services carried out presently by district councils such as planning, housing, litter and rubbish collection are better planned and delivered locally than removed to the county level. However, should the people of the north east vote for a Regional Assembly in the forthcoming referendum, the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed will be presented with a unique opportunity to improve its economic situation by seeking to become part of Scotland again. The town has only been part of England officially since 1835. Before that time, it was described as an independent borough of, but not within the Kingdom of England. Since local government reorganisation in the 1970s, coastal and rural communities have been incorporated in the borough that were never part of Scotland. The dissolving of the Borough Council will allow the various parts of the district to choose their own ways forward to their best advantage. Commentators often remark on the financial advantages that Scotland currently enjoys in the form of the Barnett Formula and other funding packages. Berwick certainly deserves to benefit from a potential boost to its development that a reinstated Scottish identity could secure. I very much doubt that Berwick will feature greatly in the strategic plans of the North East Assembly, or even of a new Northumberland Council struggling to get to grips with massively increased responsibilities in a huge rural county. Berwick’s unique history and superb tourism assets will surely be far better appreciated and exploited if the town is restored to Scottish hands. Anyone who has visited Gretna Green, the Gateway to Scotland, will agree that Berwick would offer a far higher quality visitor experience on crossing the border. Would Berwick benefit more from having its regional headquarters at St Boswells or in Durham City and its national capital 60 miles or 350 miles distant? There would, of course, be major hurdles to overcome, among which differences in law and education are prominent. However, the advantages could be substantial. People like myself who live in Tweedmouth or Spittal would have to decide whether to retain the link with the town which was established in the 17th century or to remain in England. This may all seem fanciful, but I am pleased to note the reports that serious consideration has been given to this idea at least on the Scottish side of the border. I have been in favour of the town’s return to Scotland for some time, but it is not a practical proposition while the borough exists in its current form. Inadvertently, the creation of a Regional Assembly may provide the key to the town being able to decide its own future for the first time in a turbulent history during which it has been treated as a political football.

DEREK SHARMAN, Dean Drive, Tweedmouth, Berwick-upon-Tweed.

Vote to save Northumberland

SIR, — I have read with interest the arguments put forward by District Council politicians in favour of two unitary authorities for Northumberland. They would have us believe that all the residents of South East Northumberland are peas out of the same urban pod and that their needs are very different to those of residents in the more rural parts of Northumberland. Can someone explain how the people of Prudhoe,Haltwhistle and Hexham are so different from those in Bedlington, Cramlington or Blyth? We’re told that a single Countywide unitary would be too big and remote but that a rural authority that would cover 97 per cent of the existing County area wouldn’t. Where would the headquarters of this Rural unitary be - County Hall, Morpeth? The County Council, a ‘good’ authority, already provides 85 per cent of services and spends more than 80 per cent of the money allocated to local government in Northumberland. It has the capacity to absorb the remaining 15 per cent of services without disruption. Think of the difficulties that would follow the creation of two education authorities, two Highway authorities, the breakup of the existing Care Trust, the relocation of thousands of staff. We all know that services are bound to cost more in rural areas because of sparse population and greater distances. The County spends £5 million on schools and school transport in South East Northumberland but £77 million in the rural areas. Rural highways, of course, cost twice as much to maintain, £20 million as opposed to £10 million. A rural unitary would inherit all of the extra expense without a compensating increase in grant. Professor Michael Chisholm of Cambridge University, who specialises in how much new councils cost, confirms the estimate that a single Unitary for Northumberland will cost £7.3 million less than now whereas two unitaries will cost £4 million more than now. Put another way it will cost the council tax payer in Northumberland £106 more a year by having two instead of one unitary in Northumberland. May I suggest that when you vote you vote to save Northumberland and save yourself at least £106 in council tax every year.

JOHN WHITEMAN, Friend of Northumberland County.

Assembly will make a difference for better

SIR, — “Will it make a difference?” This is the question I have heard most frequently in the referendum campaign. The implication being “will it make a difference for the better?” My answer has always been an emphatic “yes”. I believe it will make a difference because, for the first time ever, the region will have leadership that can talk to Government with the backing of the people of the region. The region will have the powers to make decisions based on priorities assessed in the region and not decided by unknown bureaucrats in London. I fought my first election in 1964 and included in my election address a call for a dual carriageway from Newcastle to Edinburgh and from Newcastle to Carlisle. Today I would add the A66 and the A69 to the list, and for good measure from Carlisle to Stranraer, so that the region can benefit fully from the growing Irish economy. This is just one example where the region has been held back by Whitehall’s lack of vision. The present system of representation by un-elected quangos is not realising the full potential of the region. The North East is still at the bottom of the regional league table. I believe an elected regional authority can make the difference for better and will be voting “yes” on 4th November.

DR GORDON ADAM, Palmersville Great Lime Road Forest Hall Newcastle upon Tyne, NE12 9HN. via e-mail. Undercover Elephant Alert

No matter what the vote, Assembly will be formed

SIR, — With regards to the Regional European Assembly for the North East. I’d like to offer you this prediction — no matter how the citizens vote on this issue, the Assembly WILL be formed. We have no genuine choice in this matter, because it’s the will and the directive of the EU to create these Assemblies as part of their plans for the future of Europe. Like it or not, we’re part of Europe now, and we have to bend to the will of the EU and their plans. Until we some how manage to remove ourselves from the EU we’ll continue to be manipulated, whether we like it or not, and no matter how far they wish to go. As ordinary citizens we have no GENUINE say in the direction of the EU, or our part within it. The EU is extremely complex and rapidly becoming more so, plus it’s rife with corruption, and it’s virtually impossible for ordinary citizens to access the EU to find out ANYTHING about its policies or plans for us. The NE European Assembly is a FAR WIDER issue that local citizens are being told — it’s not simply a small local issue, it has massive implications and is all about the EU and our submission to the EU. As a matter of principle, everyone who has doubts about the EU and our involvement with it should vote NO to the Assembly, even though it won’t do any good, at least it will show politicians how ordinary citizens feels about being manipulated by and dominated by the EU.

J HARPER, Berwick-upon-Tweed. via e-mail. They are already there Mr. Harper

Hexham Courant
ACCUSATIONS
Published on Friday, October 15th 2004

WITH just under a month to go before the result of the regional government and local government referendum is announced.I can understand why readers of the Courant may hope this time passes quickly.However, last week’s district council press release aimed predominately at the Northumberland weekly press has to be challenged for its inaccuracies.To accuse the county of concealing cuts in services until after the referendum is untrue.Indeed, Tynedale Council is trying to minimise press coverage of the proposals that it is considering to close tourist information centres, bowling greens and public toilets as well as increasing charges for parking, planning and commercial waste.Also to falsely repeat the accusation that all decisions are made by south-east Northumberland councillors, when the person making this comment is based 70 miles away in Berwick seems bizarre to me.When you read this letter I am confident there will be another anti-county council article in the local press emanating from the districts. The districts cannot challenge the fact that council tax bills will be over £100 per household higher if we have two authorities governing Northumberland rather than one and that a rural authority headquarters would still most certainly still be at Morpeth.The results of the referendum will be announced on November 5. There will be plenty of papers with false accusations to burn upon the bonfires near the districts’ offices.

TONY REID,Moor Road,Prudhoe

News Update...No winning

Referendum Fever still slow to break out of early infection phase but at least the press and media are being forced to look at exactly what is on offer...thereby doing the job of the No campaign.

Darlington and Stockton Times reports the No Campaign winning

Oh how we laughed!

Save money with the streamlining of local councils? Well, the initial reorganisation will cost £75m +

Assembly 'will save money'
Oct 15 2004
By Zoe Hughes, The Journal

Students are being urged to vote in the North-East assembly referendum with Government ministers promising it won't cost as much as critics fear.
Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford is using a speech to Durham University Labour students tonight to say an elected regional government could save the North-East as much as £124m over the next decade.

Despite students not paying council tax, Mr Raynsford will insist people will not face additional bills and "will actually see a net saving if they vote Yes".
He will argue the streamlining of local government in Northumberland and Durham will save £6.2m to £14.4m a year over the next decade. "Not only does it make sense to give people of the North-East more say over matters which affect their region, it will also lead to an overall reduction in the amount they pay for public services," he will argue.

Campaigners for a `No' vote criticised the suggestions. A spokesman said ministers had been wrong about assembly costs in Scotland, Wales and London "and they are wrong now".
"The fact is that the taxpayers of the North-East will have to pay more for all the extra politicians, spin doctors and bureaucrats," he said.
"In any case, most people in the North-East live in a unitary authority and so they will be gaining an entirely new layer of government.
"People have a simple choice: do they want to trust a politician that says he will save them money?" There are just three days to go before voters receive their ballot papers and both sides of the debate are gearing up for a major last-minute campaign push, after a Tyne Tees poll put the `Yes' vote on 29pc and the ` No' vote on 27pc.
The don't-knows still outweigh both sides at 38pc.

The North-East Says No group is hoping its first referendum broadcast last night will break the impasse after it warned that "politicians talk, we pay".

The Yes4theNorthEast campaign will counter the arguments tonight in its own referendum broadcast featuring Brendan Foster, Denise Robertson and opera singer Suzannah Clarke.
A spokesman for the `Yes' campaign said it was vital to encourage as many people as possible to vote before the November 4 poll.
"We want to encourage everyone to vote. Students are the least likely age group to vote, but we do want them to have a say as many of them are the future of the region." The elections watchdog the Electoral Commission, has also announced it will target North-East students next week to urge them to use their vote on a regional assembly.

Referendums chief Douglas Stewart will travel to Newcastle, Northumbria and Sunderland Universities on Monday and Tuesday to show undergraduates how they can vote in the coming weeks.

BBC Question Time

The question of the referendum came up in Question Time from Gateshead...third on the list of questions! Obviously not crossing the national radar. Biggest constitutional change in North East politics and the lack of understanding by the panel, particularly Harriet Harman, was staggering.
The audience, and we were not allowed to go, was very hostile and dismissive of the whole concept, particularly the lack of information.

Professor Tomaney walloped by NESNO's Graham Robb on TV

Tyne Tees ran a programme 7.30pm tonight on the referendum and it featured a debate with sixth formers. NESNO's Graham Robb performed very well and pasted the Yes Campaign's Professor Tomaney. Vote by the students went 2 - 1 No. Tomaney's nose grew when he said it was the first one they had lost. Seems like he is really a politician after all!

Well done to NESNO for their referendum broadcast which went out tonight. Simple message well delivered.

Yes campaign now start to lose their 'perceived' ground.

They never really had that ground, but with lies, spin and deceit they have deluded themselves and the press and a few members of the public that hey were winning.
As we have always said, as the public starts realising what they are actually getting, or rather not getting, with a regional assembly the polls will shift rapidly towards no. Our Poll Prediction has always been 60-65% No, 30-35% Yes since we began this two years ago.

The Journal
Floating voters hold home rule key
13th October 2004
It's all still to play for in the battle for North-East regional assemble votes, according to an exclusive Journal poll out today.
Just days before ballot papers go out in the regional assembly referendum, the poll - run in collaboration with both official campaigns - shows 36pc of those likely to take part will vote `No', with 28pc backing an assembly.
But with a further 36pc still undecided, pro-devolutionists believe they are still very much in the race to persuade people to vote "Yes".
The result is a dramatic shift from The Journal's last poll in May, when the `yes' camp enjoyed a 45pc-19pc lead.
Last night, Yes4theNorthEast said the margin of error in this poll - about 5pc - could explain the `no' side's lead.
And North East Says No chairman John Elliott refused to get carried away by the result, saying: "This poll shows that the referendum is up for grabs, and we are confident that our campaign will succeed."
Yes4theNorthEast chairman John Tomaney said: "Our task is to cover the region over the next 22 days and persuade the vast numbers of people who are still undecided on this issue to vote `yes'.
"We also need to ensure that people who are supporting the assembly return their ballot papers and vote `yes' as we know we can't afford to be complacent."
He added: "This poll is a curious one as it is at odds with others conducted recently. Previous polls have shown the `yes' vote consistently about two to one ahead of the `no' vote.
"When you consider the very small sample size and the small gap between the numbers voting `yes' and `no' the difference is explained entirely by the margin of error of around 5-6pc."
Nesno leaders were delighted to see their key campaign message resonate with voters.
When read the statement "A regional assembly will lead to more professional politicians and higher council tax bills", 51pc agreed, while 18pc disagreed, and 31pc admitted they did not know.
Mr Elliott said: "Not surprisingly, the message is proving a popular one because it adequately sums up what the people of the North-East are being offered."
Most members of the assembly are likely to be paid to work three days a week, though the linked local government reorganisation would see the number of councillors in Durham and Northumberland slashed.
When it was put to respondents that "without a strong voice and the ability to make its own decisions, the North-East will never get a fair deal", 42pc agreed, 35pc disagreed and 24pc said they did not know.
And asked if an assembly would improve their quality of life, 49pc said `no', 22pc thought it would, and 30pc said they did not know.
Mr Elliott said: "The `yes' campaign has two serious problems. The first is that the most important priorities for the people of the North-East, such as jobs, education and health, cannot be addressed by a regional assembly.
"Secondly, people do not believe that a regional assembly will benefit their own lives."
But Prof Tomaney countered: "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to turn the fortunes of the region around.
"The `no' campaign admits that the North-East has problems but fails to provide a single solution.
"I would urge everyone to use their vote and think about what kind of a future we want for the North-East.
"We have been inundated with calls from people who want more information about the assembly, and our experience shows that when they hear the truth about what it can do, rather than the scare stories and propaganda tactics used by the `no' campaign, that they will be voting `yes'."

Another cock-up by the Electoral Commission

Complaints are flooding in to the office about the latest Electoral Commission clanger.
This time it is they who blame printing problems and tight schedules! Surely after witnessing the problems in the June elections they would have had contingency plans.

If they are complaining that they did not have enough time, what about the Yes and No campaigns who were given a damn sight less...and a lot less money than the Electoral Commission's £41m.

The buck must stop with Mr. Younger. He is the head honcho and he must accept full responsibility for this crass incompetence.

The Electoral Commission is becoming an absolute joke. Incompetent and totally discredited and an absolute waste of public money.

Whoops, there goes the voting deadline
Oct 14 2004
By The Journal

The body overseeing the North-East referendum was criticised last night after thousands of voters received details on how to get ballot forms re-directed - after the deadline had passed.
Voters needed to return an application form to a registration officer by 5pm last night if they are not going to be at home during the referendum period.

But a leaflet sent out by the Electoral Commission explaining that arrived on the region's doormats only yesterday.

That means many people who left for work early yesterday would not have seen the information until after the deadline.

The problem harks back to a number of difficulties with all-postal voting in the June European and local elections.

Then, printing problems delayed the arrival of ballot packs, which opponents of the system said could have caused some people to miss their chance to vote before going on holiday.

Yesterday, North-East No Campaign leader and former European election candidate Neil Herron said: "This doesn't surprise me - it's yet another postal-ballot fiasco.
"This has been the most badly handled referendum we have ever witnessed, but we've been saying that for over two years. You would expect them to get some-thing right by now."

Tory Euro-MP Martin Callanan said: "I continue to be astonished by the incompetence of the authorities in relation to the conduct of postal voting in the North-East.
"You would have thought they would have learned their lesson after the fiasco with the European election."

But an Electoral Commission spokeswoman said: "We are aware that the leaflet is later than we planned for it to arrive, but we had quite a tight deadline.
"We are aware that made the 5pm deadline tight, but the purpose of the leaflet was much broader than that."
She said newspaper, radio and internet adverts had all advised people of the deadline well in advance.
Ballot packs for the referendum are due to be sent out on Monday and people have until November 4 to return them.

Sir John Hall despondent in Hexham.

In the Journal sponsored debate in Hexham Sir John Hall and opera singer, SuzannahClarke were walloped by two Conservative speakers from NESNO's campaign. The result went 2 : 1 to the No's.
The White Elephant provided an amusing backdrop in the rain outside and NESNO is growing to the campaign and getting its act together.

Sir John Hall called for more Independents to stand, but didn't quite make clear who will pay for all their expenses. He doesn't want the assembly to be dominated by politicians! Perhaps the Spanish sunshine has gone to his head ;-) or perhaps he sees great opportunities for property developers as well as 'new non-politician politicians.' The last platform I spoke on with Sir John he said that rules could be bent if we didn't like them after I said an assembly could not set aside any EU regulations or ignore Parliamentary legislation. Wonder if he would risk a conviction to bend the rules?

Suzannah Clarke said that the Scottish Parliament had been held accountable for the extraordinary cost debacle and £400m overspend over the new building, and people would not allow the same to happen in the North East.
"Who has been sacked?" came the cries from the audience.
She struggled once the derisory laughter died down.

To read the Journal report click here. It is also copied below.

Hall wants a united front
Oct 14 2004
By Ross Smith, The Journal

Former Newcastle United chairman Sir John Hall last night revealed he wants an army of 10 independent candidates to keep a regional assembly out of party hands.

Speaking at The Journal's regional assembly debate in Hexham, Sir John admitted he feared politicians from the region's town halls would fill a devolved assembly.
He gave his strongest statement yet confirming he will stand as an independent, and called on other non-party candidates to step forward.
The property tycoon said: "I've got two at the moment, but I want 10.
"I'm concerned they're going to reinvent themselves, the old politicians. If they're going to put the old people forward - no way. They're not doing the right thing for this region."

His comments came during the event at the Queen's Hall in Hexham, the second of four debates around the region being staged by The Journal.

A crowd of 150 put advocates of both a `yes' and `no' vote on the spot over issues including the cost of an assembly, its impact on rural affairs and the effect of scrapping a tier of local government in Northumberland.

A poll at the end of the night showed a 91-53 split in favour of a `no' vote, with six undecided. But that was an improvement for the pro-assembly lobby from a vote before the debate, when it was 92-41 behind.

And privately, the `yes' campaign was pleased with the result in an area expected to be one of its weakest in the referendum.

But the `no' side slated pro-devolutionists for not putting forward a speaker from rural Northumberland in the debate. Sir John was joined on the platform by Teesside opera singer Suzannah Clarke. Miles Middleton, chairman of the North East Rural Affairs Forum, claimed: "Do you think they couldn't put up one person from this area, from the rural North-East? This whole movement is urban based."
Mr Middleton was joined on the `no' platform by local county councillor Maureen Milne at the event, which was chaired by former BBC North-East political correspondent Tony Baker.
Opponents of the assembly raised fears of higher council taxes when it is given the freedom to set its own precept.
But Sir John countered: "What we have to be is prudent, but we're going to have to spend money."

Both sides agreed the vote is likely to be a one-off chance to secure devolution.
Ms Clarke said: "Obviously some people are worried about what will happen under a regional assembly, but this is a once in a lifetime chance."
Mr Middleton retorted: "I too don't think we'll get a second chance and I'm quite pleased about that when I think what the first chance is costing us."
But Sir John told `no' campaigners: "You haven't addressed the problems of this region. When you do that and come back with a solution, we'll listen to you

An elephant and burning notes was all we needed to win! But well done NESNO

Seems like according to the Times, a few pound notes set on fire and an inflatable elephant has shifted the polls in the last few weeks. If we had known that then we could have stayed at home for the last two years.

May I be so bold as to suggest, as we were quoted ( North East No Campaign) as saying many times throughout the last two years of campaigning (which has included influencing overtly and subliminally), that, "The further up the tree the monkey climbs, the more you will see its arse."

As the North East public are only now starting to realise that there is a referendum taking place and examining the issue, it is only now that they are grasping the fact that what they are being sold is useless and toothless. They are asking the questions that the Yes Campaign have struggled to answer for two years. Hopefully we have done our bit at the North East No Campaign over the last two years to soften up the Yes Campaign and alert the public to the issues to enable NESNO to turn up on July 13th this year with a couple of stunts to win the day.

Isn't the world of politics wonderful?

The letters Page at the Times, should anyone wish to comment is letters@the times.co.uk

The Times
October 13, 2004
North East turns against 'white elephant' assembly
By Jill Sherman, Whitehall Editor

JOHN PRESCOTT’S dream of setting up elected regional assemblies across England has been thrown into jeopardy after polling showed a dramatic shift against the idea in the North East.
With only three weeks to go before a referendum, the Deputy Prime Minister and Gordon Brown were drafted into Newcastle to boost the "yes" vote, amid signs that the proposal to devolve power to the North East region could be rejected.

A poll published today in the Newcastle regional newspaper The Journal shows that 36 per cent of people would vote against the mini-parliament for the North East, 27.5 per cent would vote in favour and 36 per cent are undecided.

Polls in recent months had shown the "yes" camp leading by two to one. But the tables have turned with the "no" camp staging a series of stunts to galvanise opposition before the vote on November 4.

Last week, the group burned thousands of fake £20 notes, which they claimed would be wasted if the 25-strong assembly, to be based in Durham, were set up. This week it is deploying a 12 ft inflatable white elephant at regional events.

The referendum is being carried out by an all-postal ballot, despite Electoral Commission misgivings. The ballot will be sent out on Monday.

The "no" group is fronted by former members of the Business for Sterling campaign, which fought against the euro, and is backed by Tory and UKIP-supporting businessmen.

The group, led by John Elliott, 60, chairman of Ebac, a water-cooler manufacturer, says that the assembly will cost more than present local government, will create an additional tier of bureaucracy, will result in higher levels of council tax and will have few powers.

"The 'yes' campaign is struggling to convince people that this assembly will have any real power," said Mr Elliott of the latest poll, which was conducted by Wood Holmes, a market research company.
"They have got no message and just rely on warm words. That is a problem, when people believe that more politicians means higher council tax."

The 'yes' camp, led by Professor John Tomaney, 41, a genial academic, who has worked for a North East assembly for more than 12 years, runs a slick, conventional campaign with roadshows, glossy leaflets and two dozen experienced volunteers. Professor Tomaney said of the poll, which surveyed 400 people: "It was a relatively small sample size and its results are completely out of line with others conducted recently. There is still everything to play for."

The 'yes' group, backed by Labour and the Liberal Democrats and academics and regional artists, is more knowledgeable, better organised, better financed, but, so far, less aggressive than its opponents.
Its organisers also privately admit that they are trying to distance themselves from the new Labour hierarchy, and highprofile North East MPs such as Alan Milburn and Stephen Byers, who are not popular locally.

Both camps face apathy and ignorance among the region's 1.9 million voters. "Apathy, not the Tories, is our enemy" said Professor Tomaney, who travels daily across the region to try to spread his message.

He argues that the proposed regional assembly will create jobs, boost investment and give the North East a bigger say over tourism, transport, public health, skills and culture. But he admits that the powers proposed by the Government, which mainly cover those presently held by the Regional Development Agency, are disappointing and need to be improved.

He claims that the young are the most enthusiastic supporters of the proposed assembly. But, when his roadshow arrived in Seaham, Co Durham, a former mining community on the North East coast, most shoppers, young or old, had barely heard of it.

NORTH EAST REGIONAL ASSEMBLY
Size: The North East assembly would have 25 directly elected members, up to six executives and a first minister. Elections would be by proportional representation

Location: Based in Durham, it would cover an area from Darlington to Berwick

Cost: The assembly would cost £25m to £30m a year, mostly funded from central Government but also from council tax

Powers: With a budget of about £500m, it would control housing, fire and rescue services, public health and some training. It would have no powers over transport, police or other public services

Timetable: Elections would take place early in the next Parliament. An assembly could be set up in 2006

THE TWO TRIBES
YES
Chairman: Professor John Tomaney, 41, Newcastle University academic and co-founder of North East Assembly campaign.
Funding: £100,000 from Electoral Commission; £150,000 from Rowntree Foundation and others.
Politics: Independent, but has Labour and Liberal Democrat support and is backed by trade unions, Greens and Respect.
Member profile: All local. Some have worked for more than ten years for a North East assembly.
Main message: The North will gain more powers from regional assembly. Family businesses in particular would benefit.

NO
Chairman: John Elliott, 60, chairman of Ebac Limited, former regional director of Business for Sterling.
Funding: £100,000 from Electoral Commission; £40,000 to £50,000 from other backers.
Politics: Links with Tories and UKIP. Main backers are Tory businessmen. Campaign leaders have strong Eurosceptic links.
Member profile: Have little knowledge of the region but good on gimmicks. Seen as test for referendum on European constitution.
Main message: Assembly will have no powers and will lead to more bureaucrats, more public spending and higher council tax.

Times Condemns Prescott's Plan

The Times
October 13, 2004
"When the vote comes in"
The North East should be sceptical about a regional assembly

Democracy is frequently a mysterious process. For many voters in the North East of England, however, everything to do with the referendum on whether they would like a regional assembly remains a mystery.

As we report today, this campaign has not merely failed to catch fire but barely started to smoulder. What little energy is evident has been generated by a small band of individuals opposed to the assembly.

A new opinion poll suggests that they now enjoy the political momentum. If so, they deserve it.

The positive case for an elected mini-Parliament based in Durham is at best vague and at worst feeble. It may well prove to be an expensive talking shop.

This has been a strange exercise in many respects. The drive for elected regional assemblies appears to be more the product of John Prescott’s private zeal than any upsurge in demand from ordinary voters.

At one stage, the Deputy Prime Minister planned to hold ballots in the North West and in Yorkshire and Humberside in the hope of establishing a form of tepid devolution throughout the North of England.

This scheme has been put on hold until the mood of the electorate is tested in the North East, the region which has historically shown the most interest (relatively speaking) in this idea. If the electorate here reject it, the entire blueprint will probably be abandoned.

It is not hard to see why Mr Prescott thought that the North East could be persuaded to adopt an assembly. This is a region with a strong sense of collective identity (which is not so true for rambling areas such as “Thames Valley”). It has endured economic difficulties over several decades. It has long resented being ignored, even patronised, by politicians in Westminster.

Furthermore, some local industrialists are worried that Scotland might overtake the North East in attracting inward investment because it has a Parliament with the resources to lobby for business. And as the part of England that has traditionally been more supportive of the Labour Party than any other, sheer partisan tribalism should help the “yes” movement.

Yet there is no stampede in favour of an assembly. This is partly because it is not obvious what the body would do. Its proposed powers are limited and ambiguous. Despite this failing, it would require a major reorganisation of local government units. It might also impede the interesting work that has been done by councils such as that in Gateshead and elected mayors in Middlesbrough and North Tyneside. There is not much evidence that the Parliament in Edinburgh is preventing companies from relocating to this region. Indeed, Newcastle has enjoyed a boom and revival in recent times.

An elected assembly would, therefore, involve costs but bring few benefits. It would add a new tier of bureau-cracy without doing anything for employment. It would prove difficult to scrap once created, even if it were not value for money.

Postal ballots will be sent to electors next week and need to be returned by three weeks tomorrow. The North East should vote “no” and demand a more coherent plan from the distant cousins in London.

Ministers Commit Offences

The integrity of our democracy is at stake and we will await with bated breath to see exactly what the Electoral Commission are prepared to do about it. Is the referee ever going to blow the whistle?
Below is a copy of the complaint they have been sent this morning.

Douglas Stewart
Head of Referendums
Trevelyan House
Great Peter Street
London
SW1P 2HW

13th October 2004

Official Complaint from Permitted Participant: North East No Campaign

In the past two days we have had three Government Ministers in the region supporting a Yes vote in the forthcoming referendum and making statements which are in clear breach of the referendum's purdah period. We waited until today before making an official complaint because we were aware that Deputy Prime MinisterJohn Prescott and Chancellor Gordon Brown were also due to make statements adding to the one by Peter Hain quoted in yesterday's Newcastle Journal..

At all the workshops organised by the Electoral Commission we were told that there would be strict adherence to the purdah period. We were also told that if we, as a permitted participant, breached any of the rules, you would come down on us, "like a tonne of bricks (whether metric or imperial wasn't specified but we got the message).
It appears however, that the Government and its Ministers, despite having over two years to campaign on the issue have chosen to flagrantly breach the purdah period. I do not need to draw your attention to the relevant section of the Political Parties and Referendums Act 2000, but for the interests of clarity for other observers of the complaint I have provided a link to Section 125. Please click here for clarification.

For your information here are some of the Ministers' statements:

Chancellor, Gordon Brown stated yesterday,"I believe that a `yes' vote in this referendum would be good for the people and the businesses in the North-East - moving us forward from an old Britain weakened by centuries of centralisation towards a new Britain strengthened by local centres of initiative, energy and dynamism."

To read the full press report in the Newcastle Journal click here

On Monday, Minister Peter Hain was in the region and was quoted as saying, "Voters in the North-East should think big and bold about the future of a regional assembly and not worry about the "few extra bob" it will cost to run it."

To read the press report click here

As timescale is extremely important I would be grateful for a full and clear response within 24 hours as to what the Electoral Commission is prepared to do about the clear breach of the PPRA2000, the offences committed and the timing and nature of action or censure.
I am sure that you will appreciate the seriousness of the breaches and the implications for a free and fair referendum. We want this nipped in the bud by the Electoral Commission immediately. Such illegality should not be permitted.
Yours sincerely,

Neil Herron
Campaign Director
North East No Campaign
48 Frederick Street
Sunderland
SR1 1NF
www.northeastnocampaign.co.uk
Tel. 0191 565 7143
cc. numerous press and media
bcc. numerous contacts

Another Undercover Elephant?

Richard Clark writes today in the Newcastle Journal..." Anti-assembly arguments do not stand up to examination."

Since we exposed 'Undercover Elephants' who forget to disclose an interest (click here) perhaps another has appeared.

Could the above Richard Clark be the same Richard Clark who has been "content to follow the debate in the press" but who is also heavily involved in regional politics and mentioned here?

DESIGN WORKS

"Design Works, located in the Felling area of Gateshead in North East England was once a redundant warehouse. In 1989, the owners, Burton Group plc, with help from Project North East (PNE), opened the redeveloped property to promote the importance of design and marketing to commerce and industry throughout the North East.

The new Design Works was a mixture of managed workspace and conference and exhibition facilities. "The exhibition and conference facilities served their pupose, but were overtaken by newere developments and the need for improved accessibility. With this in mind, PNE approached GO NE with a £260,000 scheme totransform the under-used space into "incubator workspaces" for new businesses. "The scheme was awarded a vital £60,000 grant from the ERDF, with the remainder of funding provided by the local RDA One NorthEast.

Providing incubator workspace for new businesses is an integral part of the'Objective 2' Programme's regeneration strategy. The units are set aside for people starting a business or who ave been trading for less than three years,with particular focus on the creative sector where businesses are fragile but potentially high growth. High quality premises for local SMEs, providing the latest technology andservices are vital to help the businesses grow and become more competitive. The businesses there also benefit from supportand advice from Project North East.

By July 2002, four units were already occupied. A further five units were ready for letting, three of which had been reserved by prospective tenants.

"Richard Clark, Project North East said: "The European grant has enabled the conversion of around 7,000 sq ft to 400 sq ft, each of which has an alarm, air conditioning, broadband Internet access and 'easy in, easy out' terms. The project also involves work to improve the overall accessibility of Design Works such as creating a new reception area, ensuring that all meeting rooms are on the ground floor, and providing a new lift to theupper floor. Without the grant, and the assistance of the Government Off icefor> the North East in obtaining it, this project could not have gone ahead."

"This is taken from "the 2002-3 report on the work of the governmentOffices> for the English Regions produced by the Regional Co-ordination Unit".

"Government Offices administer a number of significant funding streams> provided by the European Commission."

Second Burglary at No HQ

Computer Networks Down.

Apologies to all for the interrupted service over the last few days, but this has been caused by disruption to the computer networks and a second burglary.

After the first burglary on the night of Wednesday 6th October it was assumed that it was a random 'opportunist' theft involving our petty cash...£60, 80 euros, 2,000,000 lire and 10 Australian dollars, and our digital camera.
The acrobatic and gymnastic skills involved in getting through the 3rd floor window had the police baffled and SOCO shaking their heads. The following day the computers seemed to be playing up, and on the morning of Friday 8th October the main computer system ceased to function. A remarkable coincidence?

We are currently awaiting (today) for a Forensic Computer Analyst to examine the office systems to see if it is random and coincidental, or a deliberate attempt at sabotage.

Damage from the Wednesday break-in was cleared up and files replaced in drawers. There was no wanton destruction or damage and the crime scene with the empty cash box laid open on the chair next to the window and a few drawers laid open and a few envelopes scattered. Something just didn't sit right. Kids usually mess everything and graffiti the walls. Thieves going to such lengths to get in would have taken the fax machines, ink cartridges and computers.

On Monday morning we arrived at work to find that we had been broken into again. This time there was nothing in the petty cash and nothing appeared to have been taken from our office. However, the coffee shop downstairs lost a few bottles of beer, some CD's and a jar of chocolate sauce had been opened. Entry and exit was through the same 16x28 window and across the very steep rooftops. We had jokingly ruled out Prescott from the first burglary because of the size of the window. This time it appears we could be looking for an alcoholic, ex-gymnast or circus performer, not afraid of heights but with early onset diabetes and a poor taste in music.

We had mentioned in the office on Friday that we would get the office swept for bugs on Monday, so the second burglary may also have just been a coincidence.

Hopefully we can catch up on the backlog of news stories that have been running in the press and can get back into the regional assembly fight having been 'sidetracked' for half a week. I am sure that eveything is totally innocent and that the bloodstained clothing taken from behind one of the computer stations will throw up a DNA match of a local career criminal. It would be surprising if there were no match because, as the police have remarked, this 'unusual' break-in does not appear to be the someone's first step on the crime ladder.

As I write, reinforced security bars have just gone up at the windows and it is starting to look like a prison in here. The sophisticated alarm system will hopefully now deter even the most committed burglar.

Where are your balls Mr. Younger?

The spineless, toothless Electoral Commission is pretending to be the referee in the North East referendum. However, the whistle they are not even prepared to take out of their pockets does not appear to even have a pea in it.

In Electoral Commission workshops in the North East in the run-up to the referendum, we were told that the Government would observe a 28 day perdah period where no information or statements by the Government would be placed in the public domain. Ministers could campaign in their 'personal' capacity as Labour Party members but not as Government Ministers.

Well we see by Peter Hain's statements below that they have total and utter contempt for the process and with the visit to the region by Brown and Prescott today, the No Campaign is not going to get a fair fight.

And where is the referee?

Getting the yellow and red cards ready?

Spineless, toothless and hiding behind weasel words. " We would be very surprised if they (Government Ministers) hadn't taken legal advice."

Of course they haven't taken legal advice. They are laughing at you Mr. Younger.

They laughed at you when they pulled the postal ballots in the NW and Yorkshire before your recommendations.

Prescott laughed at you and couldn't wait to use the Conservative versus Labour argument when you gave the money to the elusive conservative construct, NESNO.

Mr. Younger has said that the Electoral Commission is a 'learning organisation.'

Well, Mr. Younger, our democracy has not got time to wait for your balls to drop. Start doing what we thought you were getting paid to do or hand in your resignation.

Referendum rule row as big names arrive
Oct 12 2004
By Ross Smith, The Journal

Anti-devolution campaigners say they will lodge an official complaint with referendum watchdogs over Cabinet ministers backing a `yes' vote, as two of the Government's biggest names arrive in the region today.
The North-East No Campaign, run by Neil Herron, claims ministers are breaking referendum rules by making campaign speeches in the run-up to the poll.
A `purdah' period started last Thursday - 28 days before polls close in the assembly. After that date, public bodies, including local authorities and the Government, are barred from encouraging people to vote in a particular way.
Since then, Commons Leader Peter Hain has urged a `yes' vote, while Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown and Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott will do the same in Newcastle today.
Mr Herron said: "Government ministers have had two years to posture and campaign on this subject.
"It is typical of the contempt that Mr Hain has for the democratic process that he has chosen to make statements during the official purdah period.
"We hope, and expect full censure by the Electoral Commission. Other ministers are planning to come here and campaign as well. We want this nipped in the bud by the Electoral Commission. Such illegality should not be permitted."
But a spokeswoman for the Electoral Commission said: "We would be very surprised if they hadn't taken legal advice on this."
She said ministers are likely to be on the right side of the law if they campaign as members of the Labour Party, rather than the Government, but admitted it is a "grey area".
Meanwhile, the official North-East Says No campaign yesterday claimed a new assembly building would be "inevitable," saying it would be considered necessary for prestige.
Yes4theNorthEast has said the assembly will probably be housed in an existing building, but the final decision will be down to the elected members.

To read the 'It's worth a few bob,' piece about Minister Hain's statements click here

Hain Breaks the Rules

Press Release
North East No Campaign
11th October 2004

"Government Minister Breaches Perdah Period"

Peter Hain in the region today made the statement, "Voters in the North-East should think big and bold about the future of a regional assembly and not worry about the "few extra bob" it will cost to run it."

Trouble for Mr. Hain is that we are now in the official perdah period where the Government can make no further statements.

An official complaint has been made to Douglas Stewart, Head of Referendums at the Electoral Commission.

Neil Herron states, " Government Ministers have had two years to posture and campaign on this subject. It is typical of the contempt that Mr. Hain has for the democratic process that he has chosen to make statements during the official perdah period. We hope, and expect full censure by the Electoral Commission. Other Ministers are planning to come here and campaign as well. We want this nipped in the bud by the Electoral Commission. Such illegality should not be permitted."

ENDS

Neil Herron
Campaign Director
North East No Campaign
48 Frederick Street
Sunderland
SR1 1NF

Tel. 0191 565 7143 Mob. 07776 202045

www.northeastnocampaign.co.uk

www.neilherron.blogspot.com

Minister Peter Hain or Labour Party Member?

Speaking as a Government Minister Peter Hain breaks the rules of the perdah period...but in his usual, arrogant way, what do rules matter.
The Electoral Commission's Head of Referendums has been informed and we expect them to take action...but should we hold our breath?

'It's worth a few bob'
Oct 11 2004
By Zoe Hughes, The Journal

Voters in the North-East should think big and bold about the future of a regional assembly and not worry about the "few extra bob" it will cost to run it, says Cabinet minister Peter Hain.

In an exclusive interview with The Journal, the Commons Leader and Welsh Secretary urged voters to brush aside thoughts of the expense of regional government when ballot papers arrive in one week's time.

He advocated they should think of the "big picture" of giving the North-East the power "to punch its weight".

Mr Hain is in Newcastle and Middlesbrough today as part of the Yes campaign, and said people should use the experience of Wales as proof of the success of devolution.

He dismissed criticism of the cost of introducing a regional tier of government, arguing: "This is petty cash compared with the big picture of building a stronger economy and bringing extra social benefits."

As Welsh Secretary for the past two years Mr Hain has led negotiations for greater devolved powers, and is expected to announce new transport powers for Wales in the Queen's Speech next month.

He will use his visit to the region to speak about the benefits of home-rule, and also say the North-East will be left behind Wales and Scotland if voters failed to take their "opportunity of a generation" to say Yes to the assembly on November 4.
"This is a real once-in-a-generation opportunity for the North-East to get its own strong voice for the first time." he said. "It has put Wales on the map as never before. It has given us more clout in Brussels.
"Even those who were sceptical about the assembly in Wales have accepted it has done real good."

Pro-devolutionists have already claimed a North-East assembly could lift the region from the bottom of the health league tables and could have secured the European Capital of Culture bid.
For Mr Hain though, the benefits could also include free bus travel for pensioners and a boost for the regional economy.
"There is a great opportunity for people in the North-East to look at what has happened in Wales and say we don't want to get left behind."
"Since devolution in 1999, the Welsh economy has done better on employment than any other region in England. That is an example of Wales punching its weight."

The Welsh Assembly has been beset with problems since its creation five years ago.
However the number of patients on NHS waiting lists have increased to more than 300,000 this year and the cost of building a chamber extension has soared 450pc to £55m.
"No government is perfect," Mr Hain conceded, adding: "It's not about having a perfect system of regional government or not, it's about having any kind of regional government."
He added "Voting No in the North-East would send out a very bad message which says we want to be stuck in the past instead of going forward to the future.
"This is a great opportunity for the North-East to punch above its weight across Europe and across the world and it would be something really, really fantastic for the region as it would set the pace for devolution for the rest of England."

It is on the issue of cost that No campaigners have repeatedly hit out, with the North East Says No group warning in their logo: "Politicians Talk, You Pay."

Last night a spokesman for the North-East Says No campaign said: "As a wealthy politician, Mr Hain is obviously in a better position than most to dismiss the cost of a `few extra bob' but ordinary people have genuine concerns about higher Council Tax.
"People should look at Wales to see how politicians underestimated the running costs of their Assembly by 177pc, how the number of bureaucrats has risen by over 50pc and how the Welsh taxpayer is picking up the bill for the politicians' spin doctors.
"A Regional Assembly will increase Council Tax but will not have the power to create jobs or employ a single extra nurse, doctor, teacher or police officer. His attempts to scare people into a yes vote are pathetic."

Analysis of the Assembly cost

Council Cock-up

In the total and utter confusion surrounding this badly handled referendum here is yet another 'cock-up.'
This smacks of desperation and self-preservation.
Our complaints will be going in on Monday, as well as those of many Derwentside residents.

Yet again, we will witness the toothless, ineffective Electoral Commission sitting on the fence. They have no power to force the Council to remove the leaflets. However, the District Auditor has the power of censure and they will be forced to intervene.

Council Leader Alex Watson should have been fully aware of the legislation and of the purdah period. If not, then he is not fit to hold office. He must be held personally responsible for any cost burden.

To view the Journal story online click here

The £20,000 stick-up
Oct 8 2004
By Ross Smith, The Journal

Bungling council bosses have been accused of "staggering incompetence" after running up a potential £20,000 bill to remove political stickers from wheelie bins.

Binmen in Derwentside, County Durham, have to remove them from the area's 40,000 bins because the stickers break election law.
The stickers call on residents to support the district council's position on local government re-organisation.
But they will have to be removed by today because a "purdah" period - where public bodies are not allowed to put out any advertising material that may sway an election - has begun.
Council leader Alex Watson was hoping that the stickers would be allowed to stay, but the Electoral Commission has told him that they must be removed.
North-East Euro MP Martin Callanan said last night: "This is staggering incompetence.
"Somebody should remind them that the only reason we're having to go through this farce is because their own Labour Government has imposed a referendum.
"Otherwise they wouldn't be contemplating their own future."
And Reg Ord, who sits on both Derwentside
Council and Durham County Council said: "The stickers are a complete waste of money and time as far as I'm concerned.
"It's more work for our hard-pressed refuse collectors and confirmation that they have been an absolute waste of money. It's ridiculous."

Unions estimate the wage costs of carrying out the job could be as much as £20,000.
Derwentside Council leader Alex Watson told The Journal that he thought the stickers could stay up as long as no new ones were added.
But an Electoral Commission spokeswoman said: "They would have to take them down.
"Any kind of advertising of that form would have to be removed during the purdah period.
"They would be in breach if they put something up beforehand and leave it there."
Derwentside Council, along with the other district councils in Durham, is calling for voters to support an option which would see three unitary council established. But Durham County Council wants just one authority to be set up for the whole county.
The reforms will come in if a regional assembly is established after the referendum on November 4.
Voters in Durham will be asked which option they prefer in a second question on ballot papers, which are due to go out in two weeks.
People in Northumberland will also be given a choice on local government re-organisation.
Coun Watson said that he would have the stickers removed if Derwentside received any complaints - but only if publicity material from the county council was also taken out of the public eye.
He said: "If somebody complains, we'll pull them back.
"But that must mean all publications are pulled back so all the county's must be taken down too.
"All we want to do is inform the public."
Coun Watson added that the stickers were bio-degradable.
"They'll disappear eventually," he said, "but not before Derwentside Council, I hope."

Sample of Recent Letters Across North East Press

Sunderland Echo
8th October
Letters

We deserve better
WHY is it that as soon as money is mentioned, things crawl out of the woodwork!For about two years Neil Herron has been campaigning against regional assemblies at considerable cost to himself and with no other income but donations from like-minded individuals. Where were these people when Neil was "telling it like it is"? Oh silly me ... of course no-one wanted to know as there was (apparently) "nothing in it for me". Does anyone know who these people are? Have they made any sacrifices for their beliefs, or has money "bought" them?Neil, and those of use who have supported him these past few years, financially, ethically and morally, do so because we believe our children, their children and their children's children deserve better than the dictatorship that regional assemblies will bring. In short we want a better life for them and we will only get this outside the Federal State of Europe.It is because of Neil, and others who see the other side of the coin, that we are becoming more aware of what is at stake. Who decided on the leadership of the "No" campaign? Is the "Yes" argument so weak that a strong voice, which Neil has, would drown them out?Regionalisation has nothing to do with Prescott's'dream and everything to do with the founders (Jean Monnet, Arthur Salter and Altiero Spinelli) back in the 20s and 30s, later ratified by John Major in 1975. Regional Assemblies emanate from and are controlled by Brussels, not Westminster.
Georgina Kennedy,Sunderland

Northumberland Gazette
8th October
Letters

Message 'misleading'
THERE seems to be potentially misleading information about changes in local government structures in a glossy newsheet, “Connections”, from Alnwick Distict Council on pages 4 and 5. The layout suggests that the regional assembly is either option A – one council for Northumberland – or option B – two councils. There is no clear map defining the regional assembly area, neither is it made transparent that there are two issues at stake: namely the regional assembly, covering from Berwick on Tweed to Middlesbrough for which one can vote yes or no, and the local government reorganisation with options A and B. I am sure that people could easily be mislead into thinking that the regional assembly is a vote for Option A or B and will be falsely reassured by the rural nature of the area. One concern about a regional assembly has to be that the rural areas will be dominated by the greater populations in urban areas, with their rural distinctive concerns over-ridden. Let us have more clear, honest and correctly informative information about the regional assembly especially. National government seems to be very coy about putting specific information on the issue in front of the electorate. Also, how will the larger “local” services be better if they become more remote under local govenment reorganisation? Another issue is the all-postal ballot which is going ahead here despite being rejected as invalid elsewhere. It is an invalid plebiscite before it even happens.
Charis Scott, Rothbury.

Time to become trend setters
ALNWICK District Council vote against regional government – surprise, surprise. Regional government, of course, means a streamlining of local government, and district councils are part of that re-organisation. It is noteworthy that the 'no’ letter in the Gazette (September 23) came from Preston. The rest of the country, including Whitehall, hates the thought of more power to the region. We already have regional decisions but they are made by unelected quangos. Give power back to the electorate, i.e. regional assemblies. Regional government is well established in Germany and France and when their heavy industry was decimated it was regional government that enabled them to access funding and regeneration when the coalfields of Durham and Northumberland were ignored by Whitehall. Of course, the powers of regional government are limited, but you have to start somewhere. Once established and effective, the regional assembly can then seek more devolved power. The North East has been the origin of much innovation and invention over the centuries; we can once again be trendsetters and inventors and show the rest of the country how local government should be done. The 'no’ campaign have nothing to offer except more of the same – total disinterest in local government and lower and lower turn out by the electorate. Local government is a shambles. Be positive. Become a trend setter. Vote 'yes’ on November 4.
Mike Dixon,Shilbottle.

Berwick Advertiser
7th October

SIR, — District council leaders are contacting local newspapers across Northumberland in an attempt to deliberately conflate the issues of local government and schools re-organisation. This simply highlights the desperation of these leaders. Let me correct them on some factual errors. First if a unitary county is formed it will be a new council, for which new elections will be held, not a continuation of the existing body as suggested by Berwick councillor Tony Hughes. The public will therefore have the opportunity to change regimes if they so desire. Second, if county is running scared on closing schools as Coun Hughes suggests, why did they open up the issue before the regional referendum? Surely ‘Machiavellian politics’ would dictate that county said nothing and opened up this difficult matter after November? Third, district leaders are hinting that schools will not close if voters chose to split Northumberland in two. This is simply desperation politics, as they know that hard decisions are going to have to be taken no matter what council structure exists. Are the districts seriously suggesting that a rural unitary council won’t face exactly the same problems as now? Furthermore, if a rural unitary is formed it will contain most of the schools currently under threat, yet it will have half the tax base of the current county council, meaning that it will have diminished resources and administrative capacity to do anything about it. If district leaders are so confident in their assertions I challenge them to pledge that they will not close schools or reform the current structure of education if two new unitaries are formed, and stand for election on that platform. I bet I know the answer to that one! The simple fact is that it is the districts who are scratching around for causes to latch onto and in doing so are seeking political advantage for themselves. Don’t be fooled by this empty politics of the worst kind.
COUN GLENN SIMPSON, Labour Group Leader, Tynedale Council. via e-mail.

Break-In News...Update

Apologies to everyone for the lack of information hitting the sites in the past coople of days. The break-in discovered on Thursday appeared, despite the bizarre nature of entry, to be a 'random' opportunist burglary.

The crashing of our computer systems may be a coincidence. The main system has been completely wiped out, and the other two are seriously disturbed.

The Police, who expressed amazement and the nature of the theft and entry, are now keeping an open mind as to the intent. We are waiting for a forensic computer analyst, appointed by the insurance company, to diagnose how the computers have been attacked and if anyone accessed the systems and interfered with them during the break-in.

However, when moving work stations to check on computer connections, an item of bloodstained clothing was found. It appears to have been taken from a sports bag in the office and then discarded. The method of entry through a small widow with jagged glass over a 60ft drop appears to have caused an injury. Hopefully this will enable a DNA match should the culprit have a criminal record. The Police did remark that it was very likely that if it was an ordinary burglary then the perpetrator would have 'previous.' First -time and opportunist burglars do not perform such dramatic and dangerous methods of entry.

Busy working from the laptop at the minute and hopefully normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.
Neil H

Referendum- Gate

Sunderland Echo
7th October
Break-in at No campaign's HQ
A BURGLAR has smashed his way into the third-floor office of anti-regional assembly campaigners.

The North East No group, which has its campaign base in Frederick Street, Sunderland, arrived for work this morning to find a window panel broken.Campaign front man Neil Herron said the window had eight panels and one of them was now missing.

He said: "There's a great big hole in the window and we're on the third floor, some 60ft up so they must have done some climbing to get in here."You wouldn't think it possible that somebody could come through the window as we're so high up."Shards of glass were on the inside of the office and several hundred pounds from the group's petty cash box had been stolen along with a digital camera.Checks were still being made to see if anything else had been stolen but the culprit had looked in office files, possibly to see if there was more cash.

Mr Herron did not think that any information held by the group had gone missing. It also looked as if the culprit had left the office by the window."It was some burglar, to have got in here. I have ruled out Mr Prescott though as the hole in the window is not big enough."One of my ties was also stolen and then that was found thrown away in the street, probably after they saw it in the light," joked Mr Herron.

Police had been informed and were visiting the offices as the Echo went to press.Mr Herron added: "It is strange, very strange. It might be a small setback for a day or two but it won't affect our work."
07 October 2004

Burglary at No Campaign Offices

The North East No Campaign suffered a temporary set back today following a break-in at their offices in Frederick Street.
Situated on the third floor above a coffee shop, No Campaign staff arrived at work to find the front window broken and draws and cabinets rifled.

Perhaps not unusual for Sunderland, another 'opportunist' theft, but the window the burglar got through has to be accessed via steep roof slopes and is over precarious drop with loose guttering. Not the work of a passing opportunist. A passing drug addict may not have been phased by the 50ft drop but he would have had to have had gymnastic skills and the balance of a Navaho Indian to get through the window.

Hopefully normal service will be resumed tomorrow. Computer systems are being checked for interference.

The press actually arrived before the police this morning after they were informed as they rang the office on campaign business.

They did muse that perhaps the thieves were looking for the £100,000 and made the same mistake as the Electoral Commission in getting the wrong campaign.
They also ruled out involvement by the Deputy Prime Minister after observing that he could not have got through such a small window.

More to follow.

Naughty North Tyneside

North East No Campaign barred from North Tyneside Computers

We could not believe the e-mail from Allan Pond, a North Tyneside resident. He got an e-mail to us saying that access to the North East No Campaign was barred in all North Tyneside public libraries. 'Material prohibited' was the advice on the screen.

However, following intervention by Judith Wallace of the No Campaign, and 'buck passing' by library and council officials, the site was reactivated. "Don't know how it happened," was the council response.

The Journal, however has reported that the council is not allowing aither the Yes or No campaigns to campaign in their area, and refuse to allow any information to be given out from council premises.

North East No Campaign therefore intends to have North Tyneside as its first port of call for the leafleters.

House of Commons Select Committee

To view the Written Evidence to the House of Commons Select Committee :

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister: Housing, Planning,Local Government and
the Regions - Written Evidence please click here

To view the well prepared evidence by NESNO please click here. It is disappointing that the author of the report could not turn up in person. One would assume that it was one of the NESNO team, and not William Guy Norton or Dominic Cummings who prepared the report. Judging from the NESNO website and the information on the site it appears that the draftsman of the report is not the same as the draftsman of the website. Please click here to see the NESNO website. I am sure clarification will be forthcoming.
Perhaps it was the same principle that was applied to the application to the Electoral Commission. NESNO Chairman John Elliott, has already confirmed that he did not have sight of the Electoral Commission application. Wonder who produced it?

There is going to be a very big spotlight shone on the Electoral Commission's decision. Even after a the briefest of scrutiny there is the suspicion of a stitch-up. Once the rest of the evidence comes to light I am sure that there will be even more intense media scrutiny. BBC Asian Network are now looking very closely at the 'Have Your Say' information leaflet, so it will only be a matter of time before the big penny drops. However, as three of the Electoral Commissioners have BBC connections it may need to be an independent source that uncovers 'The Anatomy of A Stitch up.'

Rather amusing to see in the NESNO analysis, based on European Election results, Herron would end up with a position on the Assembly...another reason to vote No!

Support outside the region

A letter for the local press outside the region from Chris Cooke

Dear Sir,

You might have missed it in national papers, but the Referendum on Regional Assemblies in North East England is well under way. The only Region where John Prescott actually thinks he might squeeze a YES vote and so create a domino effect to knock over the rest of the English Regions.

To ensure victory his Government quango, the Electoral Commission, gave official designation (and £100,000 of taxpayers money!) to a NO campaign which was nothing more than a Conservative backed group formed in only in the last couple of months. In these Labour heartlands of the North East designating such a Tory NO campaign is the equivalent of putting a skunk in the NO lobby of the House of Commons. If you want to vote NO you'd better hold your nose! A delighted Mr Prescott now portrays the whole referendum as "Labour v Tory".

A very much better known, respected and well supported peoples' NO campaign, up and running for a number of years, was totally ignored by the Commission. This - the all postal voting - and other suspicious events - all point to a deceitful stitch up of this Referendum by our Government. In fact their chosen NO campaign is so elusive that people looking for them find it about as easy as discovering Lord Lucan's home address!

Regional Assemblies are demanded by EU plans for Europe. I long suspected Tories only pretend to be EU "sceptic" because it sabotages anything else that might come along to upset the EU's mad rush to become a fully integrated super-state. So I did expect this Tory involvement in sabotaging the NE Referendum NO campaign. I also expect similar tactics to be used to railroad through the West Midlands Regional Assembly, if and when we in Tamworth are allowed to have our vote. The West Midlands Assembly already exists, spending large sums of taxpayers money and interfering in much of our local politics. The only Referendum question they will ask us is do we want a lot more elected politicians running it - or just unelected ones!

Anyone else despair of this country?

Yours sincerely

Cllr Chris Cooke
Address witheld

Penny drops for one NE newspaper

Darlington and Stockton Times
Region must reject this meaningless charade
by The Editor
THE idea of regional government for the North-East is unquestionably appealing.
Devolving power from Whitehall bureaucrats and politicians and allowing meaningful decisions about projects and services to be made by the people most affected by them is politically highly desirable. By linking local taxation with local policies, it should be a way to involve people more in local politics and strengthen the democratic process.

That's the theory and there is evidence that it may work in practice - namely in Scotland, Wales perhaps, and certainly in Germany where regional government has been the norm since the end of the Second World War.

Unfortunately, the regional government the people of the North-East are being offered in next month's referendum is not regional government at all.

The key to this issue is the draft Regional Assemblies Bill, which sets out how central government sees a North-East Regional Assembly operating. It is a sickening document because it suggests devolvement of decision-making but doesn't deliver it.

On every major policy area, the assembly will have no real power. Its policies will have to fit in with national policies or complement the policies of other regions. It will have no control or influence over education, health, housing, policing, transport or the environment. Even in the one area where it will have some powers over the policies of the regional development agency - One Northeast - these are limited by the Secretary of State's veto.

The most damning indictment of the Bill and a North-East Regional Assembly comes, ironically, from organisation most committed to the concept of regional government - the Campaign for the English Regions.

In its evidence to the Select Committee considering the draft Bill it says it remains "concerned that the Bill includes too many powers for the Secretary of State to intervene, set any conditions of funding, set targets and issue regulations and guidance."

In doing so, the Campaign for the English Regions has eloquently set out the case for a "No" vote on November 4. The people of the North-East are not being offered anything more than a promise which cannot hope to be fulfilled. The promise could be a costly one and, ultimately, undermine still further people's faith in our democratic institutions.

The prospect of a toothless assembly drawing up endless policy documents and conducting pointless consultation exercises is truly depressing. We should have no truck with this political charade.

Week end round up

The Journal Letters Page
Yes vote for devolution has nationwide implications
Oct 2 2004

Reading the letters page of The Journal one is made aware of the vacillation between the Yes and No camps in the so-called devolution debate.

No-one is being properly informed. Criticism of the 74pc No survey may be justifiable: but it is an acknowledged fact that surveys are notoriously unreliable.

A nationwide poll may involve no more than a handful of people, relatively speaking.
How can, say, 4,000 possibly represent 40,000? So your survey does have credence, even though the Yes devotees have rubbished it.

One point to consider - and consider well. Posterity may not look kindly upon a Yes vote if the rest of Little England is forced to follow the same path. Your decision has nationwide implications.
Take utmost care.
JOHN WARMINGHAM

Best to say `no' to assembly while we have a choice
WHY on earth do we need the expense of another layer of administration and control in the form of an elected regional assembly?

For what we pay dearly we already have an elected parliament in Brussels, an elected parliament in London, an elected county council, an elected city council, and an elected parish council.

At election times all promise to serve us faithfully, once elected all they do is lord it over us, and impose their will upon us.

For the rest of us, we are living in this "Plastic Paradise", created by this present Government who have led us into a trillion pound debt, there will be more of the same, from a regional assembly.

To justify its existence there will be another list of "must dos" and "must not dos", and we are already swamped in legislation.

Once installed, however, much as we show our disapproval by not voting, it's there for keeps. I have not read of any mechanism for its removal.

As this assembly grows in size and power, as it surely will, we will be told to pay more and more for its upkeep. Best to say no, while we have a choice.
JOHN LOWRIE,
County Durham.

Keep-off rule
Oct 2 2004
By The Journal

A North-East council has told the official `yes' and `no' campaigns to keep off its land during the run-up to the North-East assembly referendum.
North Tyneside Council says neither campaign will be allowed a formal presence on public property in the borough before the November 4 referendum.
Conservative elected mayor Linda Arkley explained: "We felt that people were not interested. They have already received quite a lot of literature from both sides." Yes4theNorthEast Campaign director Ross Forbes said he was saddened by the decision:
A spokesman for North-East Says No said: "This sounds very odd."

Middlesbrough Evening Gazette

Quango rings a bell
Oct 1 2004
By Evening Gazette

John Prescott's remarks in the debate on the proposed Regional Assembly reported in the Gazette confirmed my doubts about the wisdom of voting Yes.

You report him as saying the aim was to give responsibilities to elected people. It was a question of giving people in the North-east more effective control over areas such as housing policy and economic development. Powers on planning and housing would be devolved to an assembly.

It is only a few months ago that the Government told Middlesbrough Council they would not be allowed to raise money for housing repairs and renovations. But if the council transferred its housing stock to a housing association that association would have such powers.
The council asked tenants to vote but left no doubts as to the consequences if they voted against the transfer.
Prescott also said that powers would be transferred from quangos to the assembly.
The housing association to which Middlesbrough Council, under Government pressure, transferred its housing, is a quango.

He says quangos are not accountable to the electors. But they are accountable to Government Ministers, including John Prescott.
In reply to a question on the problems associated with the postal voting system he acknowledged there were allegations of fraud elsewhere, but not in the North-east and so he had decided we will use postal voting. How illogical can you get?

Whether or not there is evidence of fraud in the North-east in the past is irrelevant. What is relevant is the fact that postal voting is open to fraud.
On the basis of John Prescott's remarks I smell a rat and I wouldn't touch a regional assembly with a barge pole.
BERT WARD, Linthorpe, Middlesbrough

THE last paragraph of the letter from Eric Firth encapsulates the real reason behind the Regional Assembly project. Were it to be successful, a North East assembly would be the thin end of a wedge used to destroy England as a country and the English as a race.

The end product would be a European socialist superstate with powers equally as draconian as anything witnessed in the USSR and China under communism and in Europe under national socialism.

European legislation along with the Civil Contingencies Bill will allow politicians and some individuals in positions of power and influence, unlimited power over the lives of the people of this country with complete immunity for their actions.

The idea that another layer of local politicians will improve the lot of the people in this region says much for having the Prime Minister as an elected representative in the area.
Of the high profile supporters of the assembly how many will have to live with the consequences?

The showbusiness elements are unlikely to pay more than a flying visit to the area usually for a photo opportunity or work, the businessmen probably have much to gain on a personal level before they retire to the Iberian peninsula to spend their retirement on the golf course and, as for the remainder, they would no doubt make sufficient from their involvement in the project to enable their retirement to more desirable surroundings.
P ALLAN, Middlesbrough

Northern Echo

Saturday 2nd October

Assembly likely to get powers on region's roads
by Tony Kearney
THE proposed regional assembly for the North-East looks increasingly likely to be given the power to complete the dualling of the A1, The Northern Echo can reveal.

The Government is thought to be on the verge of agreeing to hand over the running of the region's roads to the assembly by transferring powers from the Highways Authority.

The move would leave the assembly responsible for the upkeep of the region's network of trunk roads, give it the power to order the upgrade of roads such as the A1 and those stretches of the A66 that fall inside the North-East, and give it control of an annual roads budget worth tens of millions of pounds a year.

It is understood that the Government came within a whisker of agreeing to transfer the Highways Agency's functions in the summer, but ran out of Parliamentary time ahead of the publication of the draft Regional Assemblies' Bill in July.

It now looks likely that the new powers will be included in the full Bill, which will be published later this year if November 4's referendum delivers a Yes result.
During a visit to Durham City yesterday, the Liberal Democrats' regional affairs spokesman Ed Davey MP, who has been closely involved in the negotiations over the role of the proposed assembly, indicated that even if the new powers are not included in the Government Bill, his party would use the House of Lords to try to force through an amendment transferring the powers.

"We are arguing that the Highways Agency should be given over to the assembly," he said.
"The Secretary of State for Transport appears to be responding to the view that a stronger say on transport will assist the assembly.
"I would be very surprised if those powers are not in the Bill and I think we can use our position in the Lords to ensure there are more powers."
The news was last night welcomed by Professor John Tomaney, chairman of Yes 4 The North East, who said: "If the LibDems stick to this commitment, and we have no reason to believe they won't, then clearly a Yes vote will produce the powers we need to tackle the region's major transport problems."

Oh Mr. Younger...will the Electoral Commission 'learn' from this?

Sunday Telegraph Letters
A different agenda
Date:3 October 2004

It is highly disingenuous of Sam Younger, the chairman of the Electoral Commission, to claim that the decision to give official designation to the Conservative-run "North-East Says No" campaign in the referendum on an elected regional assembly for the North-East, was taken by the commission without consulting its officials, and that all the information supplied "was given directly to commissioners" (letter, Sept 26).

As the campaign director of the long-established, rival "North-East No" campaign, I must tell your readers that the applications were given not to Mr Younger and his fellow-commissioners, but to Douglas Stewart, the commission's head of referendums, whose job was to appraise them, and with whom we had extensive consultations before the decision was taken.

Mr Younger's view of the evidence supplied may have been different to that of his officials, but he should not imply that he and his fellow-commissioners had any direct contact with the rival contenders.The fact remains that, for whatever reason, they gave the designation to a group with no campaigning track record, which offers a website so ineffectual as to be laughable, and which is identified with a political party so unpopular in the North-East that Mr Younger's choice has given the "Yes" campaign its only faint sniff of victory in what previously looked like a hopelessly one-sided battle.

And to part with £100,000 of public money without interviewing the two campaigns or even a telephone call to see if they actually exist smacks of the highest degree of incompetence imaginable. Or does it highlight another agenda?
From:
Neil Herron,
Campaign Director,
North-East No Campaign,
Sunderland, Tyne & Wear

Electoral Commission under the spotlight...again

Christopher Booker Column
The Sunday Telegraph
3rd October 2004

The invisible official campaign
With only a month to go before the North-East's referendum on an elected regional assembly, the disastrous result for the Conservatives at the Hartlepool by-election again highlights the curious decision by the Electoral Commission to designate as the official "No" campaign a group known as "North-East Says No" (Nesno), run by the Tories.

Last week Neil Herron of the rival and long-established "North-East No" campaign - which, to the surprise of local people, did not get the designation - received a telephone call from the Electoral Commission in London. The caller had been told to travel north to hand over the commission's cheque for £100,000. He had searched for "Nesno" on the internet but all the resulting references had led him to Mr Herron's "North-East No" campaign. So could he please be told how to contact the now-official "No" campaign?

Mr Herron naturally obliged. But many people would like to know how the Electoral Commission came to give taxpayers' money to an organisation so inept that it offers John Prescott his only hope of winning the November 4 referendum - and so obscure that even the commission has difficulty in finding it.

Hexham Courant

This week's Hexham Courant Letters Page is 100% opposed to an ERA

CONCEPT
Published on Friday, October 1st 2004
LIB Dem Coun. Duffield, should disabuse his thinking that it is only Tories who oppose the Old Labour concept of regionalisation.Anyone who appreciates the history and constitution of England must know that political regionalisation is wholly alien to our tradition.It is rich to get a lecture (completely hypothetical) on future council tax bills, from the spokesman for a party pledged to do away with council tax and introduce instead local, income tax.The councillor's time might be better spent spelling this out and explaining how it would differ from the maligned poll tax. One would expect the Lib Dem tax to be levied against every tax payer and not solely the main occupier of a property?
T.A. BATES,Nilston Rigg,Langley

AT A PRICE
Published on Friday, October 1st 2004
SADLY, there are not enough of us left alive to influence the outcome of the current debate on local government reform based on our personal and painful experience of the last upheaval instigated by Edward Heath.

I was a councillor in the days when it was an unpaid voluntary service to the community and the area in which one lived.This changed overnight with the introduction of two-tier local government, the merging of four local councils into one with attendance allowances for councillors, together with smart new centralised offices which were neither local or convenient.

It was now necessary to hold council meetings five days a week instead of the two or three evenings a month which had been adequate for years and involved no claims for loss of earnings.

All the surplus chief council officers were made redundant on terms so generous that there were no complaints while those remaining to serve the new council received substantial salary increases to reflect the size of the new authority, as laid down on the official scale.

All this expenditure had to be paid for, as it will be this time round. Services went down and the council tax went up with a vengeance.

If there is one lesson at least some of the younger generation must have learnt by now, it is that, if the politicians are in favour of something, it is a safe bet that it is a bad idea for the rest of us.The choice is simple. Ignore the smoke screen and vote no to any change or get ready to feel the pain in your wallet.
J.B., Acomb,(Name and address supplied).

ANOMALY
Published on Friday, October 1st 2004
IT IS apparent from your report (Courant, September 24) that Hexham Labour supporters did not give MP Joy Quin an easy ride in her presentation of the case for a NE Assembly.

Many responses, omitted vital facts needed to reach balanced conclusions.Agreement that the pro-Scotland Barrett Formula for Regional funding, set in 1978, was now hopelessly out of date.
But the extent was not quantified.

In fact, if the North-East had the same funding per head as Scotland we would have about £2,800 million extra per year. The Government has refused to correct this anomaly.

It was inferred that an assembly would improve the position on EU funding. In fact there would be no change in the successful representation of the NE on the EU Committee of the Regions that advises the EU on funding grants.

In addition in 2006 Structural funds will dry up and with 10 new members the NE will be classed as a wealthy region.

Of the one billion budget now being quoted for the assembly, only the original £350 million (two and a half per cent of total Government spend in the region) will be under its direct control. The recently-added amount is for areas over which they will have "influence", whatever that means!Coun.
Bill Garrett has suggested that a no vote would force the Government to have a fresh review of local government. Perhaps too it would shock them into correcting the Barrett Formula anomaly!
LES GRAHAM,Elvaston Park Road,Hexham


THE REAL NORTHERN ASSEMBLY ISSUE IS REGARD FOR RURAL INTERESTS
Published on Friday, October 1st 2004
THE referendum on the proposed North-East Assembly is only a few weeks away so it seems appropriate to remind your readers of the real issue facing our rural population.

The crux of the matter is that the assembly would be dominated by the urban constituencies. Recent events at Westminster have proved that these have little interest in, or sympathy with, rural affairs and are quite prepared to trample on rural interests.

Combined with that, our representation in an assembly would be minimal and our voice barely heard.If the people in this area do not wish to find themselves in a sort of forgotten political hinterland of the coastal cities they should turn out in force and vote NO in the referendum and hope for apathy among the urban voters.
TOM CHARLESWORTH,Lowgate,Hexham.

NEEDLESS
Published on Friday, October 1st 2004
I WHOLEHEARTEDLY concur with Graham Ashley’s succinct comments with regard to the prospect of setting up an NE regional assembly in the (Courant, September 24).It occurs to me that this will merely further complicate and add yet another layer of bureaucracy, and another layer of officials to service it, with resultantly more expense to the taxpayer. This is needless.
MRS A. CATRIONA JONES,Branch End Terrace,Stocksfield.

Designation Farce Continues.Another 'foot in mouth' outbreak.

The Designation farce continues in the North East. NESNO, the campaign that no-one can find except five Electoral Commissioners, is providing two speakers for a debate organised by the Newcastle Journal. The Bridge Club have been tasked with the logistics and organisation for the event, but it appears they are also having trouble finding NESNO.

The Bridge Club are not to blame and it is becoming increasingly frustrating for all seeking information and access to a campaign that has a public profile on a par with Lord Lucan.

Even a blind man with a glass eye and an eye patch could see there is a rabbit away (though before long there may be plenty of foxes out there on the chase).

The e-mail below is to Tom Patterson of the Journal and copied to Ross Forbes of the Yes4theNorthEast Campaign and Philip Cummings of North East Says No...except they have our (North East No Campaign) e-mail address. It appears as though the Chief Executive of NESNO doesn't have one.

The Bridge Club and the Journal join the following in making the same mistake:-
The Electoral Commission, The House of Commons Library, Durham County Council, the ODPM, the Conservative Party, the BBC to name but a few.

Even if you track NESNO down on the internet there is no e-mail address on their website.

Perhaps one day the penny will drop for some in the NorthEast press and media that a monumental stitch up has taken place.
It seems like the people and the rest of the country are aware.

I will remind you of what the Electoral Commission said. "NESNO appeared to best represent the No outcome."

And Prescott was quoted in today's Journal as saying, " It's not just Yes or No - its Labour versus Tory."

I am sure Conservative Donor, John Elliott and North East Conservative spokesman, Graham, Robb will put on a good show for NESNO and will do a fantastic job of pretending they have not falling into John Prescott's elephant trap.

Our only hope is that the momentum the People's No Campaign continues to create will make up for the polarisation of the debate into a party political one.

Dear Tom,
Having spoken to Phil and Chris yesterday I just wanted to send you a short email of clarification.

I’m going to be contacting all the speakers on both sides and in chronological order before the debates, just to say hello!
I’ve also stressed to Ross/Chris and Phil the importance of the two minute timed session, so that they can brief their speakers.

On that, I wonder if some confusion has set in? To my mind it makes sense that the timed session is the last thing that happens at each of the debates (ie it’s not followed by more questions). This would mean that attendees all vote when they arrive and then again at the end after a concluding timed session! Please can we confirm that this is what is going to happen?

Hope all’s well with all!
Cx

Caroline Theobald
Director
The Bridge Club Ltd

Daniel Day Lewis was 'The Last Mohican.' Is Peter Atkinson 'The Last NE Conservative?'

After watching the Conservatives YESNO /NESNO behaviour in the North East over the designation fiasco against the People's No Campaign the public have turned against them pushing them into fourth place in the Hartlepool by election.

They have lost all credibility in the North East because of their deceitful and duplicitous behaviour over the 'No' designation.

Grassroots Conservatives are disgusted at their 'back-stabbing' of the true People's Campaign. Calls to the North East No Campaign office from long time Conservatives confirm this.Even NESNO council members are not aware of the facts and have also called the real No Campaign as NESNO's ineptitude becomes apparent.

The public are also incensed at Conservative NESNO's ineptitude, their lack of profile, mixed messages, lack of public meetings and poor understanding of the issue.

Their only sitting MP now looks very vulnerable with his very small majority.

One has to think whether this has been a deliberate attempt to damage the No Campaign to such a degree that they at least end up with some Conservative Assembly members.

More will be exposed and uncovered in the coming weeks. The North East public have a right to know the truth. The North East No Campaign will make available its Electoral Commission application for full scrutiny to expose what is the most bizarre decision. Will NESNO do the same? ...There needs to be a full investigation in order to prevent the same political polarisation in the European Constitution referendum.

As for the last NE Conservative...people are now queueing to stand in Hexham and campaign by the coach full.

Next week's Tory Conference will be an interesting place to be. Their big mistake in the North East will be the talk of the town...but they were warned !

To see the Hexham General Election Results click here

Neil Herron on Radio Liberty

Good afternoon America and it was great having a chance to speak to Dr. Stan on Radio Liberty.

Our various campaigns can be seen by clicking the links below:-

Metric Martyrs

North East No Campaign

To make a donation and support the campaign please click here

To contact us mail@northeastnocampaign.co.uk

Best wishes,

Neil Herron