Crawley Labour Party

On Tuesday (20th July) Crawley Labour Party will be hosting a Labour Leadership Hustings at the Hawth (Studio), starting at 7:30pm.

Several of the campaigns have already agreed to send representatives and it is hoped that every candidate will be represented on the night. This event is open to all Labour Party members, particularly members from local parties.

Make sure you bring your party membership card – they will be checked at the door.

Crawley Labour Party would like to thank all the local residents who turned out on the 6th May to vote Labour. While we are obviously sad not to see Chris Oxlade elected to Parliament the party is pleased to have picked up council seats in Northgate and Broadfield North and to hold seats in Bewbush and Langley Green. New councillors Stephen Joyce, Ian Irvine, Michael Jones and Peter Lamb join the existing Labour Group on Crawley Borough Council where they will continue to fight cuts to local services and to campaign for more jobs and better housing for local residents. The election is over but the fight goes on.

‘Does anyone remember the ‘Campaign for Pease Pottage Hospital’- the new Crawley hospital which Henry Smith wanted built on the road to Horsham? Yes, of course you do. Many thousands of pounds of Crawley council taxpayer’s money has gone into funding a feasibility study. Below is a quote from the website, from co-chair, Henry Smith.

‘Acute hospital services in Crawley and Horsham are at crisis point. After years of campaigning we have now accepted that the Labour Government and the local NHS will not accept our need for a new hospital.

In response, we have created a strong partnership – West Sussex County Council, Horsham District Council, Crawley Borough Council and two private healthcare providers. In January 2010, we announced the start of a major feasibility study into whether that partnership can create a new hospital for local NHS patients. We desperately need an accessible, clean and state-of-the-art hospital with services that people can rely on – A&E and maternity, to name just two.’

That was before Henry Smith was elected as Crawley’s MP. The following is a direct quote from his maiden speech to Parliament.

‘I was involved in an important campaign which I co-chaired with my right hon. Friend Mr Maude to get those hospital services brought back to the important population and transportation centre that the Crawley constituency represents’.

Notice the past tense, and the complete lack of mention or commitment to a new hospital.

If anyone sees Mr Smith, perhaps he could be reminded of one of the main election promises that helped him get elected as Crawley’s MP.

Perish the thought that it was all a cynical electioneering stunt, at taxpayer’s expense!