Woolas steps in to the fight to stop LibDem Oldham Council ruining the Whit Friday band contests.

16 March 2010

The LibDem run council is at it again. Now they are considering banning brass bands from parading local streets on Whit Fridays. This could end Whit Friday contests after 125 years of delighting the public.

 

 

First the LibDems running Oldham Council took power to run traffic management for the Band Contests. Now they have decreed that, despite the 125 year history, all arterial roads must have free-flowing traffic. Band Contest organisers are horrified. They say this effectively bans the street marching on the traditional routes used in Denshaw, Greenfield, Lees and Scouthead and they may be forced to axe these contests.

Phil Woolas has stepped in to support local people in their battle against the LibDem council's arrogance. Phil says “ Following the fiasco of Oldham Council sending a Dr Kershaw’s a £8000 rate bill and the Lib/Dem councillors pricing the Annual Charity Beer Festival out of the QE Hall, it is frankly unbelievable that Oldham Council is now threatening the Whit Friday Band Contests and the Annual Charity Saddleworth Beer Walk which is held the day after Whit Friday.”

Phil went on to say “ It is astonishing the Leadership of Oldham Council hasn’t learned from its mistakes. Other local Council’s would go out of their way to attract such events as the Whit Friday Band Contests and the Beer Walk to their Boroughs. Here in Oldham we have a bunch of members and officers who seem to be hell bent on putting unnecessary obstacles in the way of the organisers of these great street festivals.

Apart from the huge crowds they attract, tens of thousands of pounds are raised for local charities. What is next under threat, The Rush Cart Festival, Oldham and Failsworth Carnivals?

It is time for Councillor Mark Alcock to make an unequivocal statement that all these hugely popular events will go ahead as normal, instead of sitting on the fence saying discussions are still taking place.

In conclusion Phil says “Do the Lib/Dems really want these events to become highly charged issues at the local elections on 6th May? Lets hope common sense will prevail and that we are not heading for a summer of discontent if local volunteers have to battle with Council officials to stage annual events that date back to 1884.”