Dewsbury and Batley updates

Discussion: Batley teacher in fear for his life.    ...  Read: Racism for Dummies here!

Dewsbury: What next?

So here we are… stood by watching long standing mainstream corporate brands leave our High Streets in droves, a sign of the times or an incredible miscalculation by local politicians and officials?

Dewsbury... a once thriving, bustling market town;
*[Formerly one of the richest towns IN THE WORLD and renowned global fashion capital (circa 1923); where every blanket used in the American civil war was made (Mungo Shoddy & Co) and crowds flocked to patron one of our 3 famous theatres, arriving from their chosen national destination, serviced by our 3 train stations...]
is slowly being eroded, with a startling amount of empty shop windows & market stalls. Abandoned buildings & offices everywhere, most of which look destined to remain empty. The Transpennie Express to Manchester Airport doesn't even stop at Dewsbury frequently, as it once always did... shameful. 

Woolworths went bankrupt; too big to fail, too slow to react, too large to adapt... gone. Marks and Spencer simply up and left and inadvertently took McDonalds with them; the cinemas closed; the pubs died; Em’pileof’shire house lies virtually abandoned, put up for sale by the council (again and again) at a fraction of its worth. The catastrophe continues with WHSmith and Boots all standing in the firing line…and they aren’t coming back if they leave; why would they?
It appears there’s no other option but to embrace ‘Pound Town’ with open arms and shop online or out of town for anything beyond the basic essentials. "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot"... the ironic iconic tune that springs to mind. 

Nobody can argue that Dewsbury in going through a massive transition and very few, if any, can forecast the direction in which we’re heading. It can be noted and argued that the entire nation is struggling  just the same, equivocally, there are also many regions that are thriving, ours in not one of them, so we have to begin to ask why?
One niggling question remains, where did it all go wrong? Here’s a shortlist of excuses but there is no doubt more to add to this short list.

1)      The death of the Textile industry

2)      The decline in market trading

3)      The rise of the internet

4)      Cession of local coal mining

5)      Increased immigration

6)      Unemployment and poverty

7)      Supermarkets and centralized shopping malls

8)      And quite a few REALLY bad local and national governmental decisions

In light of these societal changes what lies in store for the residents of Dewsbury? 
What does the future hold for us?
What direction should the town head? 
And more importantly; who is going to take the helm with ideas and policies capable of promoting a positive change and economic growth?

Being a Dewsbury local I can say...there are genuine answers and resolutions to these problems and questions. However previous and current administrations remain lackluster and clueless, openly soliciting, if not even pimping for ideas from its electorate; they’re lost. It appears councilors are pushing peas around their plate collecting high salaries whilst watching the decay continue, avidly trying to ‘pass the book’. It's time for us all to look around our town and start questioning why... really WHY?

16 reasons not to visit Dewsbury...

Dewsbury is becoming a sad place whose problems are easily and readily identified by those of us with common sense that actually live(d) here. I’m not offering to discuss or bore anyone with my personal opinion or give ideas of improvement, I have a few... but this task lies in the hands of ongoing administrations and not us Loonys. However, I'd say the answers are there, they just need to be identified and realise that the changes can be made.
The question is: Are solutions being missed, avoided, overlooked or simply ignored? I am happy to identify some of the factors of cause and also highlight questionable decisions that lie at the root of the issue; if nothing else, it’s a start.

Kirklees; Time for independence?

Independence from Huddersfield and Kirklees is the major issue that should be addressed with almost immediate effect if the town is to once again thrive, but this is beyond our control. The devolution of, and independence from Kirklees, period; until this occurs, the destiny of the town does not lie in it's own hands. However, this is being (yet again) circumvented, deterimined and now re-determined, due to border restructuring (ongoing), by the Tories. Dewsbury is split, Batley and Spen will no longer exist in its current form and I'm sure the Tories have structured these borders with absolute impartiality in mind, don't you?  

Huddersfield does not, actually cannot, have the best interests of Dewsbury at its heart, Huddersfiled will ALWAYS come first in the eyes of Kirklees; how could anyone think differently? It’s the capital... This is nothing more than a common sense observation, ‘me first’ is, more often than not, human nature. Dewsbury will never flourish whilst it remains under the governance of Huddersfield. We faired much better when we were more allied with Batley, Thornhill and Mirfield, we should do so again.

Dewsbury should (once again) control its own destiny and not be dictated to by a declining city that is itself struggling to find its own national identity and re-invent its image. Dewsbury is WAY down the list of Huddersfield’s priorities and has become nothing more than an embarrassment to it. Dewsbury was once renowned internationally for it's textile industry and the subsequent prosperity and trappings, we've since become renowned for; teenage suicide bombers, terrorists, violence, The Mathews, rough council estates, drugs, racial segregation, poor education and inequality… and don’t’ forget the Yorkshire Ripper for good measure... many of us still remember 'the Yorkshire ripper' at the townhall. 

Seriously… what do you honestly think a group of middle class council officials from, (let’s say) Holmfirth or the Holme valley, could have in common with the residents of Dewsbury? The answer is almost Absolutely nothing; quite frankly they should stick to their sheep and leave us be with the wool, like they always used to do. The deterioration of our town can definitely be attributed, at least in part, if not wholly, to poor decision making by previous government bureaucrats and inexperienced or corrupt MP’s, often opting to neglect our collective prosperity over personal gain.

Make no mistake, devolution itself would bring untold problems without a well thought out plan for an independent Dewsbury. Which it is possible to compile but probably not by somebody who wasn't born and bred here, has the intelligence to pull it off and holds no bias or resentments within the local community... such a person being very hard, if not impossible to find! In my opinion there's one local that may have been capable (Paul Halloran, Batley) but he would have needed a good team around him and I'm not sure he could pull that off in the current environment... however, he is definitley capable of putting a team together, but falls short crossing racial borders and boundries. 

Unfortunately our entire local infrastructure is governed, controlled and operated from Huddersfield. We sadly no longer have the local resources and amenities necessary to handle our local social and domestic needs or requirements, they’re centralised... in Huddersfield, and Wakefield. Slowly, and over a period of time we have become dependent upon struggling impoverished cities in decline.

I remember when we weren’t so, and the town flourished. Dewsbury was the last British town borough in the UK to fall foul of electoral boundary changes. It was run by people who knew the indigenous population and hence were in a position to relate and accommodate it effectively. Gone, are the days of Betty Boothroyd and the like; local, realistic politicians in touch with their electorate.

We do not need any more over qualified academic imports of public school boys and girls telling us what we should do in our town based upon what the numbers say. We need to set aside pompous bean counting and calculations in order to figure out good, effective social policies that work in our multicultural environment,  based upon local needs.  Not mathematics based accounting techniques which inevitably results in more centralisation, always away from the centre... of Dewsbury.

The decision to leave Kirklees would not be an easy one to accomplish and extremely difficult to orchestrate. However, there are definitive answers that would not only make this possible, they would improve our town considerably. These answers lie to the North (Thriving Leeds) and South (Wakefield) and East (Bradford) of the town and not necessarily to the West.

Dewsbury could restructure itself utilising outsourced services from all 4 local city boroughs, making it more cost effective and relative to our local infrastructure. We do not need a 'Metropolitan borough' ... Q. What does that actually mean in real terms to the people of Dewsbury? A... Less devolution, away from localised control and more centralisation towards a national political narrative.

This is the wrong approach for the make up of our town due to the diverse, multi-cultural nature of it. We are not a white middle income village, we're a very diverse, poor, working class town. ... historically, we never used to be poor, we worked.

Pioneer House: A domino effect.

Update Note: The new Dewsbury collegehas since been relocated to Pioneer house. ... Great idea? (TBD) The old building disposed of to a developer for new housing, also good but... for whom? What new industries are there in Dewsbury to bring in craftsmen or educated workers? (debateable discussion). This really needs to be thought through, but it won't be. Remember DABTAC? It used to be highly regarded nationally as a fine art college with graduates such as Stephen Batty, who lead much of Batley's rejuvenation. Their Art and Photography degree was also highly regarded but today; there is not one degree course conducted here... what does this say? 

Glaring mistakes made by the Dewsbury Regeneration Group were astounding. They did nothing but illustrate the lack of, and in, the political abilities of those involved in the negotiations. The unrecognized damage done to the  town is flabbergasting and can be now realised and seen. What officials did not anticipate is that it was never all about the aesthetics of the town or Pioneer house in particular. There’s one bigger long term issue that was seriously overlooked:- who they burnt in the process of the compulsory purchase, and the power and credibility nationwide that they possess.

WHY on earth would politicians in a rapidly declining market town, amidst pending global recession, upset a Billionaire property developer with a long standing credible history and strong ties to the House of Lords during the largest known ongoing recession in history, since 2008? Luncay, idiocy or for someone’s personal gain, call it as you see fit. 

Amazingly and ironically the Compulsory Purchase Order of Pioneer house came amidst the selloff of numerous local property assets, (our assets) simply because our council do not know what to do with them and/or have become incapable of managing them; Dryfields house (off Healey Lane) being just one example. A full list of these properties is (was..?) openly available online on the Kirklees website, but most have now been sold on to private investors. What did this money actually go into and... if they can't maintain their other properties, what on earth drew them to the conclusion that they should take on a building project like Pioneer House..?  More Lunacy? Putting the college there was a plan B, fluked ass covering exercise.

To surmise: Acting upon instructions/advice from the administration of the ex-Labour MP Shahid Malik and committed to by ongoing administrations, (Labour & Conservative) the council instigated this Compulsary Purchase Order and thus relinquished control of Pioneer house from a highly regarded national property developer into the hands of whom and for what purpose?  
A struggling council that is out of ideas and selling off property assets that it is incapable of managing… Absolute Lunacy?

How naïve to think there would not be huge ramifications and a backlash for the population of Dewsbury in general, it’s no wonder we’re in decline. What nationally regarded business person or company of notoriety would consider coming to Dewsbury after that..? Once again, why would they? You do not upset the friends of British Lords and expect to get away with it scot free; surprise, surprise, the Lords do talk to one another out of the national limelight.

We’re talking about a council that is incapable of managing a relatively small residence in Batley (Dryfields house). A council that are selling off local land and property assets simply because they can’t maintain them. Whilst at the same time under-handing influential businessmen and companies who are genuinely capable of making a difference in the long term.

What I’d like to know is exactly who really benefited from the CPO of pioneer house? The new council planning proposal is for (literally) a handful of flats and shops… in a town centre full of empty windows. Foolish governorship and naïve politics made by inexperienced officials? Or is it part of a master plan that no one is telling us about? Surely the town did not screw over Mr. Stayton without direction? Only time will tell… because 'they' never will. 

The Dewsbury regeneration group may have found better focus spending your money by improving ‘Em-pileof-shire House. £Millions spent on a Town Hall roof and facelift (including bandstand?) some of which may have been better served by kicking out the windows of Em-pileof-shire house and replacing the entire panels with a mirrored glass… thus reflecting the lovely building that is our Town Hall. That didn’t take much thought, just a pair of eyes capable of sight... short sighteness seems to be a big problem around these parts. 

The roof replacement and Town hall regeneration was apparently essential… internal regeneration was a questionable decision but why did they move out local services indefinitely to the neighbouring Walsh Building? Whilst evicting some of the services allotted for the local disabled at the same time I might add, and that were placed there originally using disabled funding... They never moved back when the work was completed.

The Town Hall now sits as the pathetic boast of a poor town aimed at the one in a million chance that ‘Question Time’ may actually return to Dewsbury again. £Millions in tax payers money spent on an ornament, and a useful bandstand… which I’ve yet to see anyone play in (can't wait). One bandstand opened, one public toilet (opposite), closed. It's comforting to know that when those big bands play the 'Dewsbury stand', the crowds will have to pee in their pockets... just like being at Glastonbury.

We have persistently opted for short term gratification over long term gain and improvement. After spending extended periods of time living in 3^rd world countries, including Pakistan and India, this sounds all too familiar… and that is not meant as a racist slur in any way, it can be demonstrated. If you’re local and you’ve lived oversees, particularly in locations such as serbia, croatia, India, Poland or Pakistan, I’m sure you’ll be in agreement, there are striking differences.

There is a genuine reason why muslim MP Shahid Malik coined and marketed the phrase ‘Paki-Politics’… the term since fell victim to 'Cancel Culture'... we all remember it at the time but now, it's like that never happened, however the reality of it never left. I’ve witnessed this concept at first hand in multiple forms whilst traveling the third world and living briefly in; Mepur, Chakswari, (Kashmir), Mumbai, India (where my IT Company was based),  Hua-Hin, Thailand and Mexico amongst others. Each has a differing value system, beliefs, economy, education, literacy, the list is endless... every one identifiably different in every location but the political commonalities remain evident... a small smelt-ering of open and known corruption; one we British sucessfully manage to hide here in the UK... but it is there, just different. 

There is a saying in Mexico: 'Corruption starts every morning in the mirror'. Corruption isn't a burning problem in Mexico for Mexicans because they understand it. Foreigners, do not because they only have their country of origin to act in comparison; welcome to culture shock. 

This is not a ‘cos I’s white!’ revalation... my perceived 'white privilege' in these nations was not always relevant because I wasn't a tourist, I was a foreigner. There is a genuine difference in the way in which all of these countries conduct their politics and daily operations; just look at the ongoing situation with Imran Khan in Pakistan, then compare that with Donald Trump in the US... the similarities are profound but in relative comparison, they differ. From their very founding constitution and principals upward, they differ. Their infrastructure and political configuration is completely different, the caste system is also completely different, their GDP, religions, culture, climate, environment, living standards and revenue streams... are completely different. The challenges they face are all different... but trait similarities are definitely identifiable and can been seen entering our British politics. Pritti Patel, (death penalty) Suella Braverman, (immigration) and Rishi Sunak's and his recent claim that a 'man is a man and a woman is a woman'. Woe betide the man who shuns the LGBTQ+ community during an election campaign, the final nail in your coffin Rishi ol' lad.  

I can see the exact same political aspects and similarities that occur in these 3rd world countries creeping into segments of local and national policies here in the UK. We all have to question whether this is for the best long term or not and I will not elaborate herein...  extended reading here.

On the whole, racially motivated political decision making, whichever way it is delivered, always ostracizes or polarises 'somebody', no matter which side of the fence you sit, that's politics. However, this needs to be eliminated wherever possible to create harmony and this simply isn't happening... I would conclude that racially motivated political decision making has certainly contributed to the town's decline, ever since the Irish catholics had control, there is no difference in real terms.

I can demonstrate this locally with mulitple examples spanning generations... as well as nationally. One, long forgotten circumstance: National housing grants during the 80's and 90's were gifted to immigrant regions only (i.e. Ravensthorpe & Saville Town) they stopped short at the surrounding predominantly white areas... (Thornville, Scouthill, Dewsbury Moor, Thornhill... this being just one precedent of many in Dewsbury).  

Is Dewsbury working? Is Britain working? You must answer these questions for yourself but I'd sing a resounding 'No' at the moment and I have one simple reasoning as to why... its just got worse to be here! Something is malfunctioning and most residents can see exactly what the contributary aspects are but their voices always seem to fall on deaf political ears. 

Having experienced the same issues (worldwide) during my 25 years of nomadic living, there is a catastophic case of Culture clash in Dewsbury. The reason these issues are being ignored is simple; British political in/correctness and stiff upper lip. Here are two bi-partisan indications of the changing political landscape at a national level, Conservative first: 

1. Pritti Patel on Capital Punishment... she's back tracking since making the statement on Question Time (political survival) but the reality of it is none-the-less; she believes in it. How this underpinning personal value is reached is what is more important and not her negligentful opinion on the sanctity of human life.
   Capital punishment is Medievil, violent and abhorrent to the standardised old school British politician. Personally, I can see euthanasia as a useful 'voluntary tool' of law enforcement, if a [violent] criminal opts for death why not oblige? Otherwise... incarcerate accordingly.

However, this perfectly identifies and indicates Pritti Patel's malfunction with clarity... culturally, she must be behind the times; backward is the actual terminology. Capital punishment is barbarism, lacking in civility; a step backwards, not forwards. You only have to be wrong once! It is an archaic value system of a bygone day that caused hatred and war... you kill one of mine, I'll make you pay... Antiquated, violent and backward, end of... 

2. Sadiq Khan promoting and granting permission for a Donald Trump baby Blimp during his state visit. I understand Donald Trump brought no end of controversy and could be inflamatory at the best of times but seriously... NEVER, ever before in British history has a foreign dignitory been treated this way, let alone that of our closest (???) ally.  It was pathetic, petty, wrong, demeaning and simply not British. And I'm no big fan of Donald Trump either, just common decency... and that is where it's all going awry in Britain today. We are losing the respect that we once upheld with force. This being where MP Shahid Malik was fundementally correct in his observations of today's UK politics.

The Irish were the original immigrants in Dewsbury, we occupied all of Saville town... I lived on South Street. The Asian culture followed the Irish into Saville town as they inherited the manual (hard) labour in the local textile mills, like my mother had. It was mainly work that our lazy white arses often refused to do... hence, they thrived and saved, working 24/7/365. The next generation of Eastern European, Iraqi, Sirian immigrants and refugees now have their turn and it would be nothing short of hypocracy to knock them for simply being the next generation in a town full of working class survivors. However, the main sticking point now being the decline in local industries and subsequently, jobs. Our local Government are known to take national tax hand outs to house immigrants ... with minimal local industry to support work and without building affordable homes to house them... Let's hope the College gamble pays off, but it's more a sign of the times than progress in my humble opinion. 

Managing these situations is the core essence of what politics is all about, and ours appears to be seriously failing somewhere. If you agree, then you have to (must) lay blame where it belongs... at the feet of the  local politicians, irrespective of policy or party. If you believe they are getting it wrong, (because they are!) then, go out and do the right thing... VOTE LOONY!  

After all is said and done: Is there a ‘New Way’ forward for the people of Dewsbury?
The answer is yes… the question is whether the current or any incoming administration would be capable of identifying and implement it. The answer to that question is a predicable... No, especially if they haven't spent their life living here.

Dewsbury is the best spin off town Leeds could ever want... big family houses, lots of recreational and open field areas, 12 minutes to the city centre by train... and still failing ! ..?

One piece of belated advice to our experienced local councilors… Never play games with the House of Lords unless you’re holding at least a Royal Flush!  

And one more for the Trainspotters out there ... a Begby ;). I don't know why I like these but I do. This one went right past 'Our Estate'... the red brick type. Those were the days my friend, we thought they'd never end!