On 5 Dec 2016 at 2:50pm watcher wrote:
Dreadful - coastal towns cut off again! Really the last straw for people. Measly compensation from the government is an inappropriate sop for the lasting damage this is doing to people's lives. Maria Caulfield needs to stick her neck out and This Conservative Government needs to act. The situation has become a vote loser.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 2:59pm Normans Wisdom wrote:
You won't get any action from her. Probably hiding somewhere expensive on taxpayer money. Come back Norman.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 3:10pm A Person wrote:
I confess I was amused in a sour sort of way to see their email warning of disruption "due to industrial action". It must be nice to have an excuse: they usually manage disruption (nay, chaos) all on their own. Caulfield is as much use as a chocolate fireguard, and the government is simply hoping that this will break the union. (I have a hunch that the damage is going to be considerably wider than that, but perhaps they don't care)
On 5 Dec 2016 at 3:43pm George Stephenson wrote:
...and just when you thought it couldn't get any worse......
Check it out here »
On 5 Dec 2016 at 4:17pm The Greek wrote:
This Tory govt are so arrogant at the moment. They are taking their key constituents in the south east for granted. As Watcher says, this will be a vote loser. It would be very easy to win votes on this issue for an opposition party. Coupled with expecting the 52% to vote for them and ignoring the view of the 48% this smacks of cynicism and hopefully their vile govt will hit the buffers for it.
As for George Stephenson's comment, I despair. I don't with to trust Southern to repair my tracks, let alone run the trains! Wasn't Network Rail created after Railtrack (900 companies) went into administration and had a catalogue of failures that lead to numerous major accidents (Potters Bar, Hatfield) which have reduced significantly since it was brought back into public ownership. Nationalise it all I say.
On another note, Chris Grayling has been trying to get the oyster card to Epsom in his constituency since 2013 and has failed. The man couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 4:31pm ar10642 wrote:
Even if it is a vote loser, who's going to challenge in the constituencies affected? Lewes and Eastbourne *might* go back to Lib Dem, but most of the others are always going to be true blue. I doubt if it will be enough to make the government worried, especially as they might be cleaning up in the North along with UKIP at the next GE.
"Nationalise it all I say" - won't help as previously discussed. DOO is being forced through by the DfT, normal "for profit" TOC franchises can't afford to risk this many strike days so will not try to get rid of guards. Although Northern Rail are next, as I suspected, we'll see what happens there.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 5:58pm Another B and B lady wrote:
I am no fan of Maria Caulfield and her Tory a Government, but she has written to me saying that the Southern Rail situation is copletely intolerable. She, with Caroline Lucas and other local MPs, are now acrively asking the Minister for Transport to intervene immediately and get the Unions and Southern to talks at ACAS. Let's hope this will, actually result in this completely unacceptable Rails service being sorted out before Christmas. She sounds seriously angry.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 6:12pm watcher wrote:
just had the same letter. A glimmer, a merest glimmer of hope. her masters won't like the Caroline Lucas hook up and the Lib Dem vote in Lewes could shift things after Richmond. maybe not angry but certainly rattled. Meanwhile lives are quite simply being destroyed.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 6:28pm Red Ken wrote:
For pitys sake let's get her out at the next election. We might just get someone in who will actually TRY AND DO something about issues like the Southern shambles.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 6:30pm another B and B lady wrote:
Yes Watcher, I presumed this letter has gone to all who have actively been writing to her for weeks. Perhaps some of the 'keyboard warriors' on the Forum could write to her too, if they haven't already. We must keep the pressure up on her to sort this out. I have thanked her for writing to me - through gritted teeth!
On 5 Dec 2016 at 7:40pm Keyboard Warrior wrote:
If Maria Caulfield has joined forces with Caroline Lucas, then she must be really serious about sorting this problem. She is an MP who actively campaigns for her voters.
@ Red Ken- We HAVE someone who tries to do something. For pity's sake let's vote her back in at the next election.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 8:27pm Marlen wrote:
And where is Labour in all this? Why dont we manage to get a decent opposition to fight for us? What a hopeless self obsessed bunch of wets. And then they call us stupid for not voting for them..
On 5 Dec 2016 at 9:06pm Local wrote:
The vast majority of Tory voters will be right behind the attempt to break the out-of-date Unions, IMHO.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 9:20pm Mark wrote:
She sounded like she was trying to sound really, really, really concerned in the form email that she sent to me as well.
On 5 Dec 2016 at 9:43pm Anon wrote:
I didn't get the email referred to above, but I did receive another one which is rather cryptic. Depending on which way you read it, it implies that the Government are biding their time until the dispute is settled (one way or another) then the rug is going to be pulled.....
On 5 Dec 2016 at 9:50pm Amy wrote:
in a reply to me she concedes that it is a national scandal. Perhaps something will come from all this...
On 5 Dec 2016 at 10:45pm Local wrote:
Yeah, hopefully the train Unions will be told to get on with running trains without blackmailing management via guards swinging the lead.
On 6 Dec 2016 at 8:02am Train to nowhere wrote:
Well at least the train strike is cancelled on the week running up to Christmas due to public demand. Don't say that the unions never listen to public concern. At least they have given something back, happy Christmas all!
On 6 Dec 2016 at 11:15am The Greek wrote:
"Mr Grayling responded saying he did not think it was right for him to get involved in a strike which was "politically motivated".
"This is not a dispute between me and the unions," he said.
"I have actually met Aslef, I've met the TUC and I've met other unions but I don't think it's right and proper to insert myself into negotiations between a private company and a trade union.""
TWAT
On 6 Dec 2016 at 11:47am ar10642 wrote:
"negotiations between a private company and a trade union"
He should try "private sock puppet company".
On 6 Dec 2016 at 12:08pm A Person wrote:
Ms Caulfield's been "very angry" about this for most of the year.
The compensation which has been paid out - a considerable sum, by all accounts - will be coming from *our* pockets not the pockets of Govia. So actually, Chris Grayling, when your government's cynical attempts to break the rail unions are resulting in large losses to the tax payer as well as widespread misery and loss of income for their poor benighted passengers (sorry "customers") then I think it's absolutely vital for the Secretary of State for Transport to get involved.
On 6 Dec 2016 at 12:56pm Liberalism wrote:
The reason Ms Caulfield now cares so much is because Seaford votes Tory which means lost trains equals lost votes. She doesn't care about Lewes because Lewes doesn't vote Tory
On 7 Dec 2016 at 2:19pm Cynic wrote:
Maria Caulfield. What an absolute joke of an mp that woman has proved to be.
On 8 Dec 2016 at 12:56pm Red Ken wrote:
@cynic. Can't disagree with that. I wasn't a fan of Norman Baker but at least he tried to do something for his constituents.