And here are the numbers….

I give you two scenarios:-

1. A company run for private profit which benefits from little regulation and pays massive salaries and bonuses and indulges in aggressive tax planning which deprives the rest of us of the tax revenue that should be paid towards schools and hospitals.

2. A loss making public service that has had its most profitable parts cherry picked and tendered out to private companies. An organisation that provides a universal service no matter where you live in the country that is often a lifeline in rural areas and one which the vast majority of the public wants and needs.

Now which one would you think is worth public investment?

Astonishingly the government opted to save the first one, RBS, which made losses TEN times larger than the second example, The Post Office.

The current idea of selling off a stake in the Post Office is said to be to “modernise” and to inject “confidence, experience and capital”. Excuse me for thinking the world has turned upside down but would these be the same private investors that now hold their hands up at the current financial crisis saying “who knew? No one saw this coming”. The same private investors who milked the system when the money flowed and threatened to leave the country if regulation or fair tax was mentioned? The same private investors who the public distrusts so much they would rather go on TVs Dragons Den asking for investment than approach a bank? It’s a truly uncharted territory we enter when there are plans to part privatise the Post Office but RBS is taken into public ownership.

Lets not look to sell off part of the Post Office lets look instead to see ways it can build its business model. For instance currently the Post Office account is only used to receive benefits and pensions. Why? Open it up to be a “real” bank account a “peoples bank account” when you can get other monies such as occupational pensions and salaries paid in and from where you can pay your direct debits. A banking account system used by the public and owned by the public. Rather than RBS a banking account system that will profit the few and funded by the many.

Given the current financial crisis that our banking and business sector are in I think they are the last people we the public should be looking to for advice and or expertise.

These are the sorts of issues I have campaigned for in the past and in the present, not just something I am promising for the future in return for your backing. It is my delivery on the things that matter that led both CWU branches affiliated to Erith and Thamesmead to nominate me in the current selection process.

Ms Pearce, smiling.

I did not join the party with my sights set on the House of Commons, I joined because I wanted to change society. Now after 25 years of campaigning and organising I want to take that fight to where the laws are made. If elected you can expect a non stop effort from me I would hit the ground running, the role of candidate is crucial and demands full commitment from the moment of selection. We win peoples hearts and minds with the work done now rather than a few weeks before election day. I am a skilled organiser and together we can deliver a strong effective campaign and at the same time re vitalise the local party. I am energetic, enthusiastic and hardworking. I can motivate people and keep a sense of fun whilst running a well planned campaign.
Labour needs to win the next general election in order to protect the NHS and safeguard its future. You can’t leave peoples lives to the rigours of the market. Regeneration of industry is vital, a strategy for growth is not enough, we must have a strategy for jobs.  Without retaining power we can not change the system. Our ideals are born out of faith and, more importantly, understanding, of the lives of working people. Without these twin roots, policies are just pieces of paper. Labour candidates must have faith, understanding, strong campaigning skills and a proven record of hard work. I believe I am such a person.

I went to school in London, as did both my children,  I learnt to drive in London (not an easy task). I commute every day along with thousands of others.  My daughters were born in SE London NHS hospitals. 

 I was in Trafalgar Square with my parents rejoicing in 1966 when England won the world cup.  London is my home. And more importantly Erith and Thamesmead is my home and has been for 30 years.

 I understand the need for strong government and services for  London, something that was lacking for far too long during those dreadful Thatcher years.  I was helped by local government when I most needed it in the early 1970’s before Thatcher did her worst in the 1980’s.   

I left school  at 17 to get married and become a mother and I found myself  at 18 after the departure of my husband alone facing the world with a small baby and bleak prospects.  But thanks to a small council  flat in Belvedere , a GLC funded day nursery and a Bexley council funded career advisor I was set on the road to independence, self respect,and a career in the worlds financial hub, the city of London.

I am now perceived as a successful career woman but that is partly because Erith and Thamesmead gave me life chances.

I welcome the opportunity to give back to Erith and Thamesmead  the chances that it gave to me and my family. I look forward to seeing the people of Erith and Thamesmead able to harness their full potential and access all the things that should be available to them living in the South East  corner of a world class city.