I think I just promised to eat my hat....

Last night, I attended Carleton Neighbourhood Watch's monthly meeting. Always an interesting evening, good mix of people from across the community, if Carleton had a Parish Council it would look like this and do good work.

Anyhoo a member was sharing some information about the proposed traffic survey about Pontefract's traffic problems. This has been wheeled out smartish as our MP and one of the ruling group councillors gave an interview to the local paper saying that they intended in conjunction with senior officers of WMDC to have a summit to find solutions for our problems.

Thing is Yvette was promising something and included Trevor the councillor, she usually does something similar each year with whichever Labour Councillor is up for re-election or to introduce their candidate. In 2006 on election day she was found in a local chip shop at Carleton Park drumming up support from the evening rush to go out and vote for the person announced as the next Deputy Mayor (in this case it seemed not to work 42 more people voted for me than him and the rest is history).

Well this time somebody checked the story by asking a WMDC senior officer in a public meeting what WMDC knew about Yvette's initiative.

Nothing was the reply, more questions were asked and it suddenly starts to look like this was one of Yvette's aspirational press releases. Nobody at Wakefield knew anything. Result piece in paper shortly followed by an embarassed Trevor having to say details not agreed yet.

Then all of a sudden we do get some officers of the council doing a version of a human suggestion box in Pontefract Town Hall to avoid any embarrassment. So after the comment that this was really the consultation to end all consultations and would really get things sorted, I reminded the assembled group that the same exercise happened in 2002, 2004, 2006 and that if any real action resulted that lead to a significant improvement before October this year, I will eat my hat at a charity event organised for the purpose in Pontefract Town Hall. (Children in Need)

I have a cunning plan.....