Prospective MP Andrew Percy has condemned the decision by Councillors on the Humberside Fire Authority to downgrade Goole Fire Station from 2 full-time to 1 full-time and 1 retained pump.

Andrew Percy says, "Despite the best efforts of an alliance of Conservative and Labour Councillors from North and North East Lincolnshire, Councillors from the East Riding decided to vote en bloc to support the downgrading of Goole.

We have been stabbed in the back by the very Councillors who should have been looking out for our interests. Although these proposals were driven by Labour Government change, there was no reason for the Fire Authority to let this downgrading go through. I condemn the Councillors of varying parties from the East Riding who have supported these cuts and I hope the electorate will hold them accountable for their decision in due course.

Brigg and Goole Conservative Councillor John Briggs opposed the downgrading of Goole and successfully moved a motion to save Kirton Lindsey Fire Station from closure. Whilst I am delighted that Kirton has been saved we must continue the battle for Goole.

The cuts to Goole can only go ahead if the Fire Brigade can recruit enough retained firefighters to crew the retained pump. Let us hope that that does not happen and that the Fire Authority is forced to look again at Goole.

I will be continuing to work with the FBU and politicians of all parties locally to carry on the fight for Goole."

Photo: Andrew addressing the 'No Fire Cuts' rally earlier this year

Prospective Brigg & Goole MP Andrew Percy has launched a petition against Government proposals to raise vehicle excise duty on cars yet further. The petition has been available to sign at the Winterton Show and at the Howden Show (see photo), where Andrew and David Davis MP shared a stall.

Andrew explains, “This Government has raised taxes related to driving by 50% since coming to power in 1997. They are now proposing to increase Vehicle Excise Duty at a time when drivers are already paying through the nose by way of increase fuel prices. We now know that 9.4 million drivers will be worse off as a result of the car tax increase, including some of the poorest families in the country who will now be anything up to £245 worse off per year. An average family will be £80 per year worse off, at a time when the price of food is also rising.

The VED tax will be retrospective – so any car bought after 2002 will be hit by the higher tax rates. This will lead in turn to a plummeting re-sale price for second-hand cars.

The situation with fuel duty is even worse which is why the Conservatives have proposed a ‘Fair Fuel Stabiliser’ which would reduce fuel duty when oil prices go up and raise duty when prices go down. At the moment the Government is creaming in much more in fuel duty than it expected to due to the higher oil prices. If a Fair Fuel Stabiliser had been introduced at the 2008 Budget, fuel would now be 5p per litre cheaper, shaving £3.50 off a tank of fuel for a Ford Mondeo.

We need to send a strong message to the Government that we can’t take anymore increases in taxes. Families are already struggling and so these increases should be scrapped.”

Update: Alistair Darling has now annouced that the 2p increase in duty scheduled for the Autumn will not now go ahead. Andrew comments, "It's a shame it took the Government so long to make their mind up on this issue despite warnings for months that motorists could not take another hit. Whilst I welcome the move, the fact still remains that the high price of oil means that the Government is still taking much more off us in fuel duty than predicted."

Sign the petition here

Brigg and Goole MP Ian Cawsey refused to vote in the House of Commons this week to scrap the infamous John Lewis list and to introduce a more rigorous audit of expenses. The following recommendations were rejected by MPs -

Recommendation 1 was for a "robust new system of practice assurance involving regular financial health checks on records kept and processes used in Members' offices with outside professional teams covering about 25% of Members each year". This was substituted by a "rigorous internal system of audit".

Recommendation 2 would have extended "the scope of the audit engagement so that it is the same as for other public bodies."

Recommendation 3 would have reduced the receipt threshold from £25 to zero so that all claims, however small, would have had to be backed by receipts.

Recommendation 4 was for the Green Book (setting out the rules on allowances for Members) to be revised to specify more detailed rules.

Recommendation 6 was for MPs to no longer be able to claim reimbursement for furniture and household goods or for capital improvements.

Recommendation 13 was for the Additional Costs Allowance to comprise of a £19,600 maximum budget for accommodation (excluding furniture, household goods and capital improvements) but operating on the basis of itemised reimbursement and a flat rate of £30 for daily subsistence.

Andrew Percy comments, "Last year our Labour MP claimed over £144,000 in expenses, including £19,000 from the 'additional costs allowance' which pays for MP's second homes. Clearly, he did not think the recommendations above were important enough to turn up and vote for. As a result MPs can carry on billing you and I for their furniture!

We are out on the doorstep pretty much everyday in Brigg and Goole and the one thing residents say time and time again is that they are sick of MPs using our money to feather their own nests. I have no truck with any MP of any party who plays the system, as some clearly have.

It's a shame that our local Labour MPs decided to ignore what local residents are saying and carry on letting taxpayers pick up their bills!"