I asked Greenwich.co.uk readers to send me their questions for the main parliamentary candidates. Nick Raynsford has answered your questions below…
If asked to list the achievements during your time as MP of which you are most proud, what would they be?
1 The transformation of public transport in the area in the last decade, with the Jubilee Line at North Greenwich, DLR extensions to both Greenwich and Woolwich town centres, a hugely improved river bus service, a much better bus network, and improved reliability of the trains – a world away from the lousy service provided by Connex in the late 1990s.
2 Helping to get the regeneration of the Greenwich Peninsula underway, with the new Greenwich Millennium Village, and the transformation of the Dome into the O2, now the most successful live music venue in the world.
3 Helping to attract high-quality higher education institutions to the borough, including Trinity Laban and Ravensbourne College, and the University of Greenwich’s move into the Old Royal Naval College.
Do you agree with Gordon Brown’s comment (2nd TV Leadership debate) that MP’s should have no extra jobs and consultancies while holding Parliamentary office?
I agree with the Labour Party manifesto commitment that in future all MPs will be required to seek and obtain approval for any outside paid appointments (as I have always done) and should not work for lobbying companies (as I have never done).
Do you think you were representing your constituents wishes by endorsing the move of John Roan school to a location in the blast zone of a gas holding works?
The proposed move of the John Roan School was backed by the governing body and the council and I tried to ensure the new site was as large as possible and was to be built to as high as possible a standard. Ultimately the council and the school decided not to take the new site due to delays in starting work because of the presence of the gasholder, a decision I respected. I am now working hard to ensure an early start is made on rebuilding and refurbishing the buildings on the school’s current sites.
Do you think that Britain wants another 5 years of Gordon Brown?
I am clear about what Britain does not want: a return to the destructive policies of the Thatcher era of the 1980s, which could well result from the election of a Conservative government.
Does your party support the Olympics in Greenwich Park given it would entail long closures of this vital amenity and potential damage to this World Heritage Site, not to mention the obscene cost, lack of legacy and transport problems?
Inaccurate and misleading stores put out by those such as Andrew Gilligan – who falsely claimed that the Olympic events could lead to the destruction of avenues of trees, or that the park could be closed for up to five years – have contributed to vocal opposition to the Olympic equestrian events by a small minority of local residents. As MP for the area, I have talked to a large number of local residents over the last few years, and found that most of them warmly welcome the fact that Greenwich will be hosting six Olympic events in 2012, including the equestrian events in Greenwich Park.
What was the last book you read?
Richard Reeves’ biography of John Stuart Mill, author of the classic Nineteenth Century treatise “On Liberty”
Are you representing your constituents by insisting that the plans for the Market be pushed through?
Would it be democratically acceptable for a Bristol based quango to force upon Greenwich a market redevelopment that is unwanted by the people or their elected representatives in the Council?
The decision has been a matter for Greenwich Council as the local planning authority, and now the Planning inspectorate. I chaired a consultative stakeholder group which considered options for improvements to the market over a two-year period. The scheme that was eventually proposed by Greenwich Hospital and recommended for approval by Greenwich Council’s planning officers would have safeguarded the long-term future of the Market. As councillors voted to reject the scheme it is now to be decided by an independent planning inspector, who is accountable to an elected politician, the Secretary of State.
I’d like to know what the candidates would do about the Blackwall Tunnel closure, and what their views are on two-way traffic through one 1/2 of the tunnel.
Although the work to make the Blackwall Tunnel safer needs to take place, Boris Johnson chose to do it just after he had cancelled plans to build the Thames gateway bridge, which would provide an alternative cross-river link. Doing the work without any alternative in place has caused massive and unnecessary dislocation and inconvenience.
Do you support reform of the voting system?
I support the Alternative Vote system which retains the constituency link – a very important feature of the current system – but also ensures that no candidate can be elected without securing broad support across their constituency.
How would Greenwich be different in five years time if you, and a Labour government, are elected?
In five years’ time, I hope to see Crossrail at an advanced stage of construction with the Woolwich station on its way to being opened (Only Labour has fully committed to Crossrail at Woolwich), the regeneration of Greenwich and Woolwich as a whole continuing apace, and everyone benefiting from the inward investment that a very successful hosting of the 2012 Olympic Games will bring.
I refer to Mr Raynsford’s answer to the question about second jobs.
Gordon Brown said plainly (at about the 53rd minute of the second leaders’ televised debate) that no-one should be standing for Parliament who was not absolutely open about his or her expenses, and nor should anyone be standing who has another job – MPs should be working solely for their constituencies.
Will Mr Raynsford, if elected,
a) Resign from his numerous other jobs,
b) Disregard Mr Brown’s views on this matter, or
c) Try to have Mr Brown replaced?
Just, once again, to correct something Nick Raynsford has said about the Greenwich Park Olympics: I have never said that entire avenues of trees will be destroyed, or that the park will be closed for five years. Nobody else has said it, either.
Locog’s own planning application, however, shows that parts of the park will be closed from this year onwards and that some areas (acid grassland) will remain fenced off until 2015. That is why I have said that the works will affect the park for five years. It also shows that substantial numbers of trees will be pruned.
It is, as I often say, very telling that the only way supporters of the Olympics can counter our arguments is to lie about them.
“Small minority of local residents opposing Olympic events in Greenwich Park” claims Nick. How about the 13,500 signatures to the NOGOE petition?
I hate criticising you, Nick, but you have changed so much as an MP in the last 13 years. Why should your judgement on the Olympics and Greenwich Park be any better than your judgement in
* strongly supporting the invasion of another sovereign country that was no threat whatsoever to the West., Iraq, with the loss of millions of innocent lives;
* strongly opposing any investigation into the reasons the UK helped the US invade Iraq (it was oil and the laziness of our then Prime Minister);
* strongly supporting the introduction of ID cards (I work in IT, I know that this has, will, does, and has already gone wrong);
* strongly supporting introducing student top-up fees (when the Labour manifesto in 1997 said that these would not happen);
* apparently seeing no conflict of interest in your views on the Olympics and Greenwich Park (and the Market) and your vice-chairmanship of the Construction Industry Council, for which you are paid just over £4,500 per month ex VAT.
More information here:
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/nick_raynsford/greenwich_and_woolwich
Nick’s heart is obviously not in being an MP: according to the Sunday Times (28 March 2010, scroll down), he earns £9,000 per month from his other jobs; that’s £108,000 per year PLUS the MP’s salary and expenses. He doesn’t need to work as an MP at all, and as there are only 24 hours in Nick’s day as in everyone else’ day perhaps someone else could put those hours to better use in serving and representing the people of Greenwich and Woolwich.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article7078833.ece
Sorry, Nick. You and I have similarly gilded backgrounds but, for all my privileges, I am sure that I am more socialist than you are. Actually, I think all your other jobs are probably “displacement” activities. I have just read your partner, Alison Seabeck MP’s Twitter page – sounds relentlessly “on-message”, far more so than Sarah Brown. Must be so tiring. Nick, see how ill Tony Blair looks: those millions are not making him happy, that is evident.
Ooh, look, only last year the medical records of Gordon Brown and Alex Salmond were siphoned off a sort of Scottish version of the NHS national database, called the Emergency Care Summary system
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2009/03/01/medical-records-of-gordon-brown-and-alex-salmond-hacked-78057-21162440/
ID cards – just say no.
As a resident of GMV since 2002 I have since seen thousands of people being housed here and benefiting from the excellent new GP Surgery, Primary School and the extra buses and retail park.
The river path is a beautiful way to work on the Tube and QEii pier with its fleet of new riverboats that now accept oystercards to Central london.
The new Ecology Park now attracts 50,000 visitors including many local young school children, with over a further 60 acres of newly established parkland which have 20,000 trees and 60,000 shrubs planted.
The 02 arena now provides employment for myself and another 2,500 local people.
I am very excited about Greenwich hosting the 2012 Olympics and am especially looking forward to the Equestrian event in Greenwich Park
With respect to Nick Raynsford or should we use his real name of Wyvill Richard Nicholl Raynsford . One of his part time jobs was as a director of a company called ROCKPOOLS PEOPLE ans Performance limited . This company acted as a recruitment consultant to the ODA and in fact recruited a large number of their staff .
This must of involved a conflict of interest as how could he act as both a local MP and a director of a commercial company which played a part in managing the Olympics coming to Greenwich , where would he place his support with the interest of the company he was a director off or in that of the people of Greenwich and Woolwich .
Rockpools has an interesting corporate structure . A company called Pinnacle regeneration group Ltd owns 85% of the shares of Rockpools . Pinnacle in turn has eight shareholders ; Either directly or through a further holding company about 36% of Pinnacle shares are held offshore . Not really British jobs for British workers as British business for the offshore centres of Jersey and the Isle of Man . Could we ask why.
That’s my vote lost for you Nick Raynsford. We weren’t impressed by your action or lack of action on the issue of the car crime on Point Hill but the Greenwich Market redevelopment issue is a no brainer. Fancy backing the professionals instead of the views of the public as expressed by every single Greenwich councillor of all parties!
Just remains to decide whether to vote tactically to unseat Raynsford …. or vote Green.
What’s been omitted from this conversation is that Raynsford was a key figure in promoting the Hospital’s appeal – were it not for the figleaf of his support, they could well have given up in the face of such heavy opposition.
I shall be voting for my local labour councillors, who have given us good service, but for the first time in more decades than I can remember, I shall be voting against labour in the general election, to register my disgust at Raynsford’s cynicism and obvious indifference to his own electorate’s wishes.
Mr Raynsford, please don’t come into Greenwich Market again. The few traders you stopped to have a photo oppurtunity with had no idea who you really were. Nor did they know that you are using all your immense power and privilege to disrupt and in some cases destroy their livelihoods. It’s tremendously cruel to use market people as a publicity exercise when the redevelopment that you support will result in genuine hardship and wasted years for many traders who have built their business here. Please don’t come again, now that we know who you are and what you stand for, how could you ever be welcome?
I once voted for you Nick Raynsford but never ever again.
Am so bitterly disappointed and angry that you put your business interests in the building sector and Rockpools Recruitment for the ODA above the interests of Greenwich Park, its history,its ecology,its users and residents.
You lied about The Park closures, you lied about the design and construction of the arena, you lied about the jobs the Olympics would bring to the young people of Greenwich – you lied and you never listened to any of the thousands of objectors. Only the Green Party have made a statement about saving Greenwich Park.
Gosh, I didn’t realise that Raynsford was personally responsible for all this happening : the transformation of public transport in the area in the last decade, with the Jubilee Line at North Greenwich, DLR extensions to both Greenwich and Woolwich town centres, a hugely improved river bus service, a much better bus network, and improved reliability of the trains.
3 questions:
– would these transport improvements mainly by TFL not have happened anyway?
– how did he find time for his other jobs?
– he has said that holding these other jobs make him a better MP – how exactly?
As for his answers to the questions put to him in his interview, it is clear that Raynsford treats the electorate as mugs.
Looks like Nickie’s trying to re-write the history books again. Jubilee line was of course committed to by the Conservatives in 1990. Nice try Nick but wrong as usual.