Dirty tactics in Poritshead at the elections? Skatepark supporters left bicycles outside polling stations at Woodhill Road, The FOlk Hall and Redcliffe Bay,
The bikesm, which were secured by chains, were covered in posters saying vote for the skatepark. The posters contained all the names of the Portishead town councillors that voted for the Portishead Skatepark Proiect (PSP) being granted a lease for the land at the Lake Grounds. The bikes and the posters were removed by the police.

You have the facts wrong. My son's bike remained at Redcliffe Bay with it's posters intact until the day after polling. The bike at the Folk Hall had its posters removed. The bike at Woodhill Road was covered up by a bin bag and removed by the owner.
The police did not remove the bikes!

The pickler's post was incorrect in just about every respect- this was not a dirty tricks campaign, the bikes were not bmx's, the information on the bikes was not as described and the police did not move any of the bikes.
It was myself and Liese Stanley who placed four bikes near Polling Stations. This was purely to provide information to residents who wished to know which candidates (regardless of political party) have stated support for a skatepark being built at the Lake Grounds.
It was not, as reported, the names of all the Portishead town councillors that voted in favour, 3 weeks ago, to support the Portishead Skatepark Proiect in their request to North Somerset Council for a lease of the land. A resolution that was passed 10 votes to 4.
It was in fact the names of all candidates that had publicly stated support for the Lake Grounds site.
One bike at Redcliffe Bay seemed to bother no one and remained in place until the day after the election. The bike in Woodhill Road was happily moved to the High Street, by ourselves, after we spotted it had been covered by a bin bag. The bikes at Trinity School and the Folk Hall were placed after consultation and advice from the Returning Officers.
It was a last minute campaign following queries from many residents who were confused by election promotional literature that stating that some candidates supported a second skatepark in the town. However perhaps intentionally, perhaps not, they omitted to state that they did not support the Lake Grounds location. This was at best confusing, at worst misleading.
Whilst I appreciate that the last comment was posted after 1am in the morning, I would urge anybody to make sure that their facts are correct before stating things publicly. My name and address was on the posters - an easy enough lead.


If the Pickler, who I understand is also the editor of the Portishead People, posted the comment to illicit a response she might also bear in mind that along with the response comes the public knowledge of sloppy reporting and tactics!

my response was addressed to the pickler, not you tamskidoodle - I agree with your post completely!

Now that the full results of the Town Council elections have been posted on the North Somerset website we can look more closely at the figures.

gouldmark2 above, seems to have an unusual view of the democratic process. Cllr Pasley was voted for by 63% of those who went to the polling station, and by 36% of the total electorate in his ward. gouldmark2 calls this a tiny minority of the residents. Perhaps he prefers the systems where 99.9% of residents are alledged to vote for the existing President as happens in some other countries with systems where no opposition is tolerated and which I would consider very much less democratic.

Turnouts were 57% in Coast Ward and 52% in Redcliffe Bay down to 41% in the new North Ward. For local elections these are very respectable turnouts.
Judging against the turnouts at the last elections in 2007 the AV referendum does not seem to have increased the turnout to any marked extent.

Looking at the results it seems that those who supported the Lake Grounds site for a skateboard park did a lot worse than those who opposed this site.
The posters near the polling stations by the Lake Ground site promoters made this a high profile matter.
Local residents, when they had a chance to express an opinion without bullyboy tactics, seem not to have supported them and their Lake ground site.

Let us also remember that elected Councillors refused Planning Permission for this site, which was over-ruled by an un-elected Inspector not accountable to local residents.

Quick reality check Mr Walters, it's easy to blind people with figures and percentages and omit the fact that conservative voters are more loyal to their party than the community they live in. Pasley recieved 854 votes in a ward that has over 3,000 eligible voters and a town that has nearly 30,000 residents. you may be stupid enough to think that is a councilor with a majority of people behind him but most people with intelligence can see that he represents (for want of a better word) a minority, mostly aging Conservative voters and mostly the more affluent blinkered perty loyalists who would still vote for a meerkat if it has a blue rosette. So please save your flannel for your little pre council meeting backroom deals, it doesn't wash with most people which is why so many have lost faith in local politicians. This election had little to do with local issues and mereely reflected the orchestarted damage caused to the Lib Dems by their Tory masters nationally.

Having lived in various towns and cities across the UK and overseas, I don't think i have witnessed such a degree of distrust and disinterest in local politicins and politics as has become evident in Portishead in the time I have lived here. Assuming the wroter barryw is a councillor then the tone of his remarks displays a very arrogant and self interested stance that reflects the general across the board attitude of the conservative run council in the town. If proof were ever needed that people no longer have a voice in this country this town is a prime example and if 8000 people really were the total turnout at the polls then it says more about the wide divide between people and councillors than it says about those who were elected on nothing more than a party loyalty basis and a national disenchantment with the Lib dems. I am not swayed by party loyalty to any given party and like the 20,000 who did not vote have realised that self interest is the manifesto of local politicians and until local concerns replace the pot of cash available that will only ever attract those with little or no integrity then we unfortunatey have to put up with the small minded mentality of the conservative council inflicted upon us by those party faithful who will always vote their candidate in, even the more corrupt ones simply because they happen to belong to the right party.

To tamskidoodle Very sorry nobody leafleted you. All candidates do try to cover their Wards. We all, from all parties and none, put a lot of effort in to deliver to every door although some blocks of flats are difficult.
Leaflets cost money and nobody on the Town Council gets any form of payment.

Can the guy with the phone video fo the 'vote yout' sign being taken down from corner George St / Clevedon Road please get in touch or post it on youtube?

Barryw, I fail to see the releveance of your question but I spent many years living in several parts of Norfolk and the South east where turnouts frequently pass the 70% mark. Even when living in Monmouth for a few years turnouts exceeded that of Portishead. It is not the level of turnout that is important, it is who turns out and it is clearly obvious that in portishead the vast majority do not bother voting as they feel every elction is a foregone conclusion, which appears to be the case. it also appears that most of the lesser party's felt the same way this year as in a lot of the wards they never even had candidates. Sadly local and national elections have become a transparent and shameful way to prove to people that democracy is very flawed in this country and at local level the behaviour of some has been not only questionable legally and morally but the sort of behaviour you would think had been created by the writer of a TV drama about underhand methods of councillors.
In reference to your comments at goldmark2, are you really convinced that even if the number of voters in the ward in question is 2364 the winner managed to only get the support of 854 meaning the other 1510 have no representation and certainly did not have any faith in the candidate to vote for him. What kind of message does that send to the middle eastern countries who want to adopt our kind of democracy without actually realising that it's not all it is painted to be.

Regarding the skatepark I would have no objections to a skatepark at Gordano School and for the parents to pay for it. I do not want it sited at the Lakeground.

Being a new comer to Portishead I am not qualified to comment one way or the other on the proposed skate park at the lake grounds but I was part of a team that raised over £100.000 for a similar scheme which was opposed by local rfesidents. It was built and the residents agreed that their fears were unfounded.....BUT.... what hasn't been addressed is, and I speak from experience...if there was an exposion in the ownership of skateboards, young people are very adept in creating homemade facilities around other parts of the town. Will parents want to transport their children to the lake grounds ?, will the children make the journey say after school if they only have a limited time ? My experience was often they did not and used the nearest residential araea that was suitable.......Just a thought worth thinking about