Reporting Standards of the Wiltshire Gazette

It seems the Wiltshire Gazette have already lost out on a new subscriber! I suggested in my blog on 13th November, that if they reported fairly on the Calne Town Council Lickhill Ward by-election due to take place on Thursday 31st January, I would take out a subscription.

With their past track record I shouldn’t have expected anything different than the contents of the column headed “BNP will fight for town seat” in today’s edition. I suppose that’s why their reporters work for them and not the Daily Mail or Telegraph.

Although the quotes are attributed to me it is worth noting the context in which they were made rather than taking them out of context for effect. If anyone doubts what I am saying then ask me for the recording of the conversation I had with reporter Lucy Buckland.

Point 1 - “BNP has vowed to fight for town seat”. I said that all elections we are aware of are considered as possibilities for contending. Until nominations are in and verified on the 4th January nothing is certain.

Point 2 – “Robert Baggs ran in last election and lost”. Usual NUJ spin on this as to be expected and ok, yes, I did receive the least number of votes but see HERE for what really happened.

Point 3 – “Calne has had some problems in the past with a lot of problem families being placed in a certain area. Calne is dumping ground for problem families”. I was asked what I would concentrate on if I was campaigning. Law and order is one issue I mentioned which wasn’t reported on but locals will see our leaflets and know where we stand on this. I also mentioned that Calne has grown rapidly in the last few years and I would like to see the provision of an adequate infrastructure to support this growth. Calne is known for having problem areas and I said it would be helpful if the appropriate level of support was available for those with problems.

Point 4 – “Rumoured to be in the running are Peter Dolman Liberal Democrat and UKIP supporter Ellie Bland”. I have heard this also, I thought incidentally you had to be a party member not a supporter. I have also heard that there is likely to be a Conservative candidate together with a possible Labour and Green candidate, the latter being represented by a local celebrity known as “The Mad Hatter”. If both Labour and the Green stand then the BNP would have no worries about coming last this time having beaten them in the past in Calne!

Talking about mis-information it has been brought to my attention that apparently I was the one who arranged for the election to be called! I have been reliably informed by 2 independent people that John Ireland, the local UKIP organiser, announced that it was me. Sorry folks, not guilty. I think that it is likely that John himself arranged for the election to be called but was loathe to admit as much due to the fact that the seat became vacant in the first place as a result of the UKIP councillor who held it being unable to stay the course.

Whatever happens from here on I hope everyone remembers that the purpose of this by-election is to elect a councillor who will do his best for the people of Calne.