Fantastic win for Steve Hunt
Steve Hunt, the Liberal Democrat candidate in yesterday’s Seaton by-election, easily beat the anti-immigrant Reform and Conservative candidates.
Conservative 400
Reform 565
🔶 LD 789
Independent 156
Reform = racism + council chaos
‘Eliminate council waste’? Every council where Reform has taken control has descended into chaos, threatening local services, Nigel ‘Gas them all’ Farage has zero interest in Seaton or East Devon.
It is depressing that the local Tories have also selected a candidate who is chasing the anti-immigrant vote. I’ve had my differences with Marcus Hartnell, but he campaigned on local issues, not racist dog whistles.
These two far-right candidates must be stopped. We don’t want this country to go down the Donald Trump path to cruelty and dictatorship.
Vote for Stephen Hunt, the Liberal Democrat, on Thursday.
Over 100 people at Gaza event in Ottery
Over 100 people heard Amal Ghusain (right) speak at a Palestine solidarity event in Ottery St Mary last night. Despite my not very good photo, this was an inspiring event, with lots of discussion, films and music, and a shared determination to keep the focus on the appalling situation in Gaza, where the genocide has not ended.
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Devon NHS trusts plan to run our records on US spy-tech firm’s software
The Good Law Project says the Royal Devon and other local NHS trusts are part of this:
NHS England is rolling out software to run our health records from Palantir – a US spy-tech firm that has supported mass deportation in the US and enabled genocide in Gaza.
One of Palantir’s founders is also openly against the NHS. Peter Thiel claimed it “makes people sick” and said that the British people love the NHS because we’re suffering from Stockholm syndrome.
We can’t let a company like this take control of our healthcare system.
But we can fight back right now. We’ve set up a simple tool so you can find out if your local NHS trust has started using the software, and then send an email demanding they say no to Palantir.
With the government putting NHS trusts under pressure to adopt the software, we need to act right now. If you want to keep Palantir out of our NHS, send an email to your local trust and Wes Streeting, secretary of state for health.
Information here: https://notopalantir.goodlawproject.org/email-to-target/stop-palantir-in-the-nhs/
Stop the Tories and Reform in Seaton – tactical voting advice
Vote tactically in Seaton to stop the Tories and Reform
— Read on stopreformuk.vote/local/east-devon/seaton
Reform and Tories trying to make immigration an issue in council by-election
I’ve seen copies of the letters that the two far-right parties have sent to postal voters in the by-election for one of Seaton’s seats on EDDC. Reform’s doesn’t even mention Seaton – it’s just a plug for Nigel Farage’s anti-immigration policies, claiming ‘Britain is broken’ but failing to mention that his Brexit is a major cause of our national problems.
The Tory leaflet also contains nasty little anti-immigration jibes. Voters should remember that members of both parties have been prominent in harassing women asylum seekers in a hotel near Exeter. They’re only plugging these issues because they have nothing to offer Seaton.
I’m supporting Steve Hunt, the Liberal Democrat, who is the candidate interested in local issues. He will work with Richard Foord to protect Seaton Hospital and build on successes like the coming banking hub and the recently completed protection works on the beach.
Latest update from NHS Devon about Seaton Hospital
The Steering Committee has received a an update from Steve Moore, CEO of NHS Devon. He appreciates our frustration at the time it is taking for discussions, and says: ‘Ideally, a solution will be found that involves a positive future for the former ward,’ but ‘there are many possible ways forward and all of them are being explored for the most appropriate solution.’
He concludes: ‘At this time there are no proposed changes, nor have any service change processes taken place for NHS services or the Seaton community hospital site itself. Any decisions about NHS services from Seaton Hospital will be subject to our service change process and in accordance with our legal duties to involve the public, steering group members, clinicians and local elected members. Currently all services at the hospital continue as normal and there are no proposals to change any services. Local people should continue to attend appointments at the hospital as normal.’
Our Steering Committee, elected at the public meeting two years ago, is pleased that there is no imminent threat to services. But we will continue to press for the whole hospital to be used to provide services locally, as the Seaton area community and the NHS agreed when we raised the money for the Hospital in the first place.
‘Exeter is for everyone’ – march against racism 25th October
Following the far-right protests at the airport asylum hotel (which still continue, with counterprotests to protect the asylum seekers from abuse), extremists are organising a march in Exeter on 25th October, and Stand Up to Racism have organised this protest.
Seaton & Colyton MATTERS 