David Morris has launched a broadside attack on Labour’s ‘Seaside Resort’ MPs as the Government announced a £10 million cut to tourism funding.

Mr Morris, the Conservative’s choice for Parliament, questioned the accountability and credibility of Labour’s coastal resort MPs, accusing their Government of hypocrisy, double standards and spin.

In a recent Westminster Hall debate about economic regeneration, the calls from both Morecambe and Blackpool’s Labour MPs for more investment in tourism and infrastructure in coastal towns to attract business, were recorded.

However, within a week, the Labour Minister for Culture Media and Sport, James Purnell MP, announced that funding for VisitBritain would be cut by £10 million by 2010-2011 - from £55.1 million to just £45.8 million.

Davd Morris, who in previous elections was the Parliamentary Candidate in Blackpool and Tenby, said “I’ve heard lip service from Labour’s seaside MPs towards tourism for the better part of this decade. I have read their rehashed diatribe with no results other than job losses and further decline year on year”.

“This is a body blow to every hotel and guest house owner and an affront to the local economy here in Morecambe. By cutting this funding it cripples the entrepreneurial skills of our local tourism operators.”

Mr Morris, who has spoken with authority at a recent Conservative coastal resort initiative panel, believes that entrepreneurs should be aided in business by local Politicians. Government should not impede their endeavours and a proactive stance for local tourism with results must be adopted by the elected representatives to make a change.

Morecambe and Lunesdale’s would-be Conservative MP, David Morris, has condemned the proposed closures of Hornby and Skerton High Schools citing a new report which claims school children are suffering from deep anxiety due to the pressures of the ‘modern world’.

David argues that “any additional stress on local children caused by the uncertainty surrounding these schools could affect their emotional wellbeing.”

Researchers from the Cambridge based ‘Primary Review’ ran 87 discussions with groups of children, parents, teachers and others; 750 people took part.

A spokesman from the National Children’s Homes charity said “the findings of this report are a wake-up call to the Labour Government… “We know from our own research the increasing importance of emotional wellbeing in childhood in determining life chances and later social mobility.”

After a failed bid to merge Hornby and Skerton High Schools with Central Lancaster High School, to create a new academy school, Lancashire County Council is considering the closure of Hornby and Skerton High. The consultation closes at the end of the year.

It is thought that if the schools close, the Labour County Council will attempt to send the Hornby and Skerton pupils to Central Lancaster High.

David said: “Lancashire County Council’s decision to even consider closing these two popular schools is simply wrong. This new report by Primary Review adds to the case of why trying to close these schools is wide of the mark. The legacy of this current County Council could be one of adding a lot of stress to some very vulnerable school children.”

“I can assure all parents of pupils’ currently at Hornby and Skerton that I will be actively supporting them in their campaign to keep these schools open and available for local children.”

Stephen Hammond, the Shadow Minister for Railways, visited Carnforth Station at the invitation of David Morris,the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Morecambe and Lunesdale.

The purpose of the visit was to see first hand, the site of the scheme to reconnect Carnforth Station to the North/South mainline network.

This is an important part of David Morris’s vision for this part of the Constituency and he has committed himself to achieving such an upgrade to Carnforth Station within 5 years of being elected as the new MP.

According to David, it is “imperative that Carnforth is recognised as a major destination for both Tourists and a facility for our Commuters. It is criminal that 10 years ago upon electing both a Labour MP and Government, this promised upgrade has been conveniently forgotten - but not by me”

Stephen Hammond MP was very impressed with Carnforth Station and the scheme and was delighted for the opportunity to see the site of the proposal at first hand.

The Shadow Minister commented that “the Main Line Train stops here twice a day yet takes on no passengers. It surely should not be allowed to leave without taking on passengers and this is precisely the sort of relatively small-scale proposal that would improve the Rail Network and bring the added prosperity to Carnforth”.

“A future Conservative Government would look favourably on the scheme and that David Morris would be in a position to give a political will to the proposals which Labour had promised but never delivered”.

Jim Trotman, the Tourism Manager from Lancaster City Council reported that the projected cost of the improvements would be in the region of £2million and that the benefits would soon out-way the costs.

Apart from the obvious benefits to the Carnforth hinterland, there was also the added benefit that it would cover the wider area of Carnforth, giving a better service to customers. This would enhance the possibility of more schemes like park and ride, which would benefit communities by taking traffic off the roads.

Carnforth Councillor Tony Johnson added that “Carnforth is rightly a major hub of the National Rail network and deserves this promotion to further enhance our towns status.”

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This news item was originally published in early October 2007, but was added to our website on the date shown above.

David Morris has criticised new proposals from Gordon Brown’s Government to change the rules on planning and weaken the say of local communities.

Recent policies unveiled by Whitehall ministers push through controversial developments and gag local communities. Mr Morris has vowed to fight this Planning ‘White Paper’.

The White Paper includes proposals for a new centralised planning quango that will strip local communities of their say over developments such as wind farms. Its powers also include the compulsory purchase of land.

David says: “The Conservative Party is the party of local democracy and choice: any large scale application whatever it is for, has got to command local support.

“If wind power is not popular in the Lune Valley, the Labour Governments Renewable Engery obligation needs to be reviewed and reformed to offer a balanced range of alternative energy technologies. This is the answer to energy problems; not contriving new planning laws to make controversial developments easier.”

“Gordon Brown has shown his true control freak instincts by backing moves to strip local communities of their say. Labour has sided with large developers rather than the people. I will side with the voice of local communities and be accountable to you.”

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This news item was originally published in September 2007, but was added to our website on the date shown above.

Tory Parliamentary Candidate David Morris has accused the Labour MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale of playing with people’s jobs and prosperity in her constituency by carrying out a ‘misleading and pointless’ public consultation into an alternative route for the M6 link road.

David said, “The M6 Heysham link road is a number one priority for the people who live and work here. The future prosperity of Morecambe and the surrounding area depends on it”.

He added: “Currently there is a public enquiry into the proposed Northern route only. There is no secondary route planned, yet the Labour MP has wasted money on a consultation asking constituents to voice their opinions into an alternative route through Lancaster that will never be considered”.

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This news item was originally published in September 2007, but was added to our website on the date shown above. The picture above does not represent the proposed M6 Road Link.

The Labour-run County Council has just announced that it will be consulting on closing Skerton High School, Hornby High School and Central Lancaster High School.

Labour has proposed a policy that would see these three schools closed, in favour of a new 900-place Academy. It is expected that the Academy, due to open in September 2008, will be on the site of Central Lancaster High School.

At a public meeting on Monday, 18th June, the Labour Cabinet member explained that that any parent selecting one of these schools for 2008, will be deemed to be applying for the Academy.

So much for a consultation then. Labour have already made their mind up, whilst treating parents, children and teachers in a most appalling way. This is no way to help improve standards in our schools.

Prospective Conservative Parliamentary Candidate, David Morris, has called for an extension to the consultation process, and some commitment that the results will be listened to and not just ignored.

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This news item was originally published in June 2007, but was added to our website on the date shown above.

David Morris the Tory Parliamentary Spokesman visited Carnforth Railway Station to see for himself the missed opportunity of re-establishing a west coast main line link to Carnforth Station.

David gained the views and opinions of the Carnforth Railway Trust members who are perplexed to the reasons why this has not happened as a matter of course.

David said, “Tourism plays a significant role in the local and district economy and it defies belief that Carnforth, having the heritage and status as a major national rail junction linking north, south and the east that this key strategic station has not been re established on the west coast rail line.

“I am led to understand that the mainline train stops in Carnforth for 20 minutes in the morning and the evening, so why can’t it accept and drop off passengers?”

David acknowledged the dedication and hard work of the Carnforth Railway Trust in recreating and maintaining the station. He pledged his total support in making their dream of Carnforth becoming a mainline station a reality, should he become the area’s next Member of Parliament.

David added: “I have written to the Chief Executive of Virgin trains requesting a meeting and a feasibility study into this proposal and I have informed the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport Theresa Villiers MP who is looking into this matter.”

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This news item was originally dated the 7th of September 2007 but was added to our website on the date shown above.

SPEAKING ahead of tomorrow’s Commons’ debate on the Pensions Bill, the newly selected Parliamentary Spokesman for the Conservatives, David Morris said:

“In 1997, we in Britain had the best pension provision in the whole of the European Union.

“It is now one of the worst thanks to Gordon Brown because of his short sighted tax regime he pursued so viciously since he became Chancellor.

“Gordon Brown has robbed pensioners of security in their retirement through his £100 BILLION tax raid!

“More than 60,000 occupational pension schemes have been wound up or have begun the process of winding up since Labour took office.

“Under Gordon Brown, only a third of final salary schemes are still open to new members, while since 1997 around 125,000 people have lost some part of their pension because their employer is no longer in business due partly again to his plundering of taxes through increased Labour employment “red tape”.

“Conservatives have been developing constructive proposals as a first step towards resolving the crisis.

“”Our proposals will help thousands of workers affected by the failure of occupational pension schemes and those hit by Gordon Brown’s relentless raid on pension funds.

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This news item was originally dated the 18th of July 2007 but was added to our website on the date shown above.

David Morris, the newly selected Parliamentary Spokesman for the Conservative Party, has done a political hat trick and seen his team win at Wembley. All in the last few days!

First, there was a high level meeting with Conservative leader David Cameron, where David Morris informed the potential next Prime Minister of the challenges that face Morecambe and Lunesdale.

David said, “I explained to Mr Cameron, the opposition to the proposed wind farms in the Upper Lune Valley and the socio-economic problems that face my prospective Constituency.

Next, David was privileged to attend the Mayor-making ceremony at Lancaster Town Hall to see a fellow Conservative, Helen Helme, installed as the District’s Mayor.

Then, there was another high level meeting with the Shadow Chancellor, George Osborne, where David explicitly described the regeneration funding needed to support, maintain and Improve, Morecambe, Heysham and other areas of this Constituency.

David said: “George could be our next Chancellor of the Exchequer and as your prospective MP it is imperative that I gain his trust and awareness and explain my vision by stressing what funding and initiatives are needed to prosper the lives of the people of this Constituency.”

Best of all; David was privileged to see his team Morecambe, win at Wembley. “It’s an honour to be taken seriously as your potential MP by the potential leaders of our Country, but nothing beats seeing Morecambe win at Wembley”, said David.

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This news item was originally dated the 20th of May 2007, but was added to our website on the date shown above.

New Government figures, have, for the first time, exposed the actual waiting times patients face across the North West for hospital operations, and the stark regional variations patients face in accessing vital NHS care under Labour.

Analysis of the official figures shows how almost 500,000 people each year are forced to wait for over 12 months for hospital treatment, with 74,616 patients in the North West forced to wait over a year for operations after being referred by their local GP.

Ministers in Whitehall consistently claim that they have reduced waiting times for hospital patients, but they did not even collect actual waiting times until they had been in power for over ten years.

Commenting, David Morris, the Conservative Parliamentary spokesman for Morecambe and Lunesdale, said: “These figures make shocking reading. For years, patients have been forced to hear Gordon Brown talk about how no one waits more than six months for an operation. This is particularly galling for the 76,000+ patients across our region who we now know are forced to wait over a year.

“In Europe, waiting lists are unheard of. Labour have had ten years and have spent vast amounts of money, including a 1p hike on NI contributions, to bringing NHS funding up to the European average, for nothing like the same level of health care that patients on the continent receive.

“NHS staff work hard every day to deliver improvements in patient care, but they are held back by a top-down, target-driven culture imposed on the NHS by Gordon Brown. David Cameron has pledged to make the NHS a Tory priority. We need to take politicians out of the running of the NHS, and set doctors and nurses free to make the decisions about patients based on their need, rather than a central target.”

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This news item was originally publicised in June, but was added to our website on the date shown above.