Cllr Roy Gerstner – Community Activist

Friends of Whittlesey Library (FOWL) will be holding their Annual Quiz Night on Friday 18th March starting at 19:00, there is a Fish & Chips supper included in the price – plus a star prize raffle.

    
Another fantastic time at ‘The Waterfront in Kuching’ nice to have met and had a good conversation with the owner David L who’ s Lamborghini was parked outside, no he did not take us for a drive.
A relaxing 10 days here with a ‘room with a view’ once again.
Kuching still has a lot of ‘British’ history and culture along with traditional heritage. They are also very proud in keeping the place tidy, safe and clean.
Fantastic food as always, diverse and relatively inexpensive

One of my neighbours for the past 40+ years Mrs Christina  Booth has recently passed away, Connie & I pass on our condolences to Graham (Creation-Booth Web Designing)
The funeral I understand will be at Peterborough Crematorium 20th March @ 15:00

Thanks to RD who informs me that on the 26th Feb I stated that the owners of the Norwich & Peterborough BS was the Yorkshire Bank, it is in fact the Yorkshire Building Society, my apologies…I do try and be as accurate as possible, so again my apologies.
Those customers who have yet to move their accounts should they wish to do so, are advised to open new accounts asap.

Several crimes happening in our locality, it is a matter of ‘lock it’ or ‘loose it’ – low life in general look for the easiest target, Cyber crime is still at the for-front of crime even in our real local world, including 3 reported more senior folk being victims of crime recently.
I am hoping to attend a Cyber security seminar at Cambs Police HQ at the end of the month.

There is a full Whittlesey Town Council meeting this Wednesday, with some updates on local projects.
FC-Agenda-8th-March-2017-revised

As mentioned last week, we are presently in Sarawak – Northern Borneo, this a part of Malaysia, we were last here in 2004.

We were joined by our nephew and enjoyed the local delicacies including something like a giant ‘Papadum’ – the one shown had oysters embedded in it.

Another fantastic experience of being with rescued ‘Orangutans’ – I have made some small donations over the past years and was very pleased to revisit the park, where they have 28 of these marvellous animals.
Most are rehabilitated to live locally within the limits of the local jungle, one of the females ‘Suduku’ is still here from our visit 13 years ago now being 46 years old, they are tempted with fruit and coconuts for visitors twice  a day, there is no guarantee they will come – especially if they have enough food in the jungle.
 

Sorry for the delay in my weekly update – been partially ‘Off the grid’ – travelling to visit family in Malaysia.
Since my last posting about ‘A deposit scheme for cans, bottles & plastic’ I am pleased to inform that MP Steve Barclay has sent me a letter – unfortunately I can not read it here in
‘Malaysia’ but when I am able – will of course place his reply here.
Some slight good news on this front – being that The Coca Cola Co® are having a re-think in possibly supporting the plan – however other Big Businesses are lobbying hard not to introduce a scheme in England and Wales. Why is it that dozens of other countries including some poor third world places – have brought in laws to stop millions of tonnes of this waste being dumped into landfills, seas or just fly-tipped.
Big Business and money are holding this scheme back – I will continued to fight and highlight this issue.
Read much more about the issues and arguments –
Litter Heroes
Click Here

If you support and think England should join dozens of other countries with a Deposit Scheme why not write to MP Steve Barclay with you views.
http://stevebarclay.net/contact/

This week also saw the monthly Whittlesey Business Forum meeting, which I support 100%, the group is now getting more involved in what and how not only businesses are being affected, but our town folk that rely on the success of these businesses.
Of course nothing new in that Banks and Building Societies closing down – it has been around for a considerable time –  and the ‘cull’ is not over yet.
Lloyds will be closing in Whittlesey this May, there is a somewhat waiting time now at the Nationwide and I am told appointments are needed. The N&P owners – Yorkshire Bank are offering 25 months ‘free’ banking to businesses who move accounts to them.

Still no news coming from Abellio on any enhancements or improvements to Whittlesey Railway Station – my friend AO is ‘still’ the only ‘friend’ of Whittlesey Railway Station – no one else has joined in as yet….I am contacting Cllr Simon King to see if he has
any update – Don’t hold your breath.

Finally – I understand there may be an emergency meeting to consider the future of the Whittlesey Christmas Extravaganza – more delays to follow once confirmed.

         
Happy Holidays continue – next to Sarawak Northern Borneo – to visit and support the
Oranutan Sanctuary in the Semenggoh National Park – last time in November 2004.
A surreal experience.

Invitation to quiz teams, social event, and a good night with a Fish & Chip supper included (Or Chicken if preferred) BYO Drinks…. Raffle Prize Draw.

The poster quotes: The questions are easy if you know the answers

My quote: The answers are easy if you know the questions and I should know….
as I have set the questions!

Ha Ha – Is this the end of Whittlesey Streetlife™? I see that in order to register/sign up,
‘they’ want you to sign up 9 other people in your area/vicinity in a period of 21 days in order to validate your registration.
Sounds very much if’y to me. You do the recruiting – they will have some ‘angle’ to flog stuff to you at your expense for sure.
So although as all know not a fan of Streetlife – mainly because of the anonymity of the people using it – I think now I will actually miss my daily infusion of the comments?

At least one kind person sending reports to me and the public whilst I am away – thanks.

Of course more people could attend these meetings and hear first hand on how your council debate?
So I see from the report some fairly good news, in that £40,000 has been placed into the reserve fund….WTC for many years was the ‘poorest’ council in Fenland, either not raising enough when they were able too and had no assets as such, the proposed purchase of a stand alone Council building has been gone over before – there are some advantages but there well maybe a burden of debt involved – I can not see ‘how’ there is no cost to the precept ? – surely all council funds are the taxpayers funding!

So I also see that the deaths knell is in store for the Whittlesey Extravaganza unless maybe the Business Forum takes it over….there is a lot of work involved, rules/regulations and insurance to consider, although I have attended several, the feedback which I received was that it didn’t bring a great deal of business into the town and was always dependent on the weather? Still we wait and see.

Streetlife™ – see my previous post – well, well well – under the ‘New owners’ – Nextdoor™
It was meant to be a neighbourly get-together – but the takeover of the UK’s Streetlife™ website by America’s Nextdoor™ has left many British users deeply unhappy with the new arrangements.
Under the new owner – subscribers are NOT allowed to hide behind false/mickey-mouse™ names and will have to register a ‘real name’ and address – under these circumstances I may well sign up myself? – I wonder how many ‘Streetlifers’ will migrate having to disclose their name and address…..
See the whole story on the BBC Click Here