On the Mail letters page again today under the headline;

"Let the football club pay"

FFS it was £3,000

Its alright though because he went to the play-off final with his son......

he needs to keep harping on about it to ensure the constant exposure he craves and to keep having a pop at the Mayor, I hope everyone just ignores him and doesn't respond via the Mail.

Ringpiece

he was going on about all the sports clubs, cricket, rugby, etc, but seemed to be 'annoyed' that Pools got all the attention ... that could be something to do with the fact they were the only team who actually won something...

*cough* wanker *cough*

Bit of a tickily cough there Mr.Disorder????

*Cough* aye *cough*

Feeling a bit like this right now...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhNXJGmcqNI

Aaaa....'wanka'....Choo!!!!

Bless *cough* you

He is a tool of the highest order, but they Mayor has hardly set out what he promised to do, or is one not allowed to criticse the Mayor because he is a Pools fan?

No. Pools fans are above criticism.

Well although I may be a bit obtuse, didnt he stand as a massive monkey?

Its so long ago, I've forgot his mandate, but to be fair ADG, the gravy train which is HBC is still chugging along, council tax continues to rise etc etc etc, doesnt the 'Mayor' have any input in this, or mayhaps i've got the wrong end of the stick?

So, I'll take it, because he is a poolie, the mayor isnt to blame for ANY thing wrong in the good borough of Hartlepool?

Really, does the mayor have ANY input, or is it all the Labour Councils fault?

1. No, he isn't.

2. Yes, it is. Everything.

He does a very difficult job very well in my book!!!!

All the pettiness and backbiting he has to put up with would see a lesser man crumble!!!!

And all because he upset some people and councillors by getting elected by the people of Hartlepool in a democratic way....twice I may add!!!!

Mr Pu Li Kev to you, waspy waist!!

Hey Mr Avenger I am merely pointing out that Mr Marshall seems to be using any thing he can, and in this instance its pools, to get his head in the mail to have a go at the Mayor, I am not suggesting that the mayor is beyond criticism and frankly your assumption is way off the mark, so why ask me the question?

Answer it yourself, you are allowed

I shouldnt have directed it at you, sorry about that, its just a question that I believe needed to be asked

Fact is, when the electorate of Hartlepool where given the option, they chose a giant monkey in prefernce to the assorted party hacks who offered themselves ... and when he put up the following time as an ordinary bloke, without political affiliations, he got an even bigger majority ...
As for the job he does, I wouldn't do it for twice the salary, having to endure the petty obsessives whining on and having cheap digs from every pathetic angle they can .

s for the job he does, I wouldn't do it for twice the salary, having to endure the petty obsessives whining on and having cheap digs from every pathetic angle they can .

He does a hard job very well and he must feel a bit like Jesus at the last supper with all the 2 faced tvvats ready to knife him in the back.

Sounds like my job every day so yes, i'd do it for half the salary, cant be that difficult

Getting back to Coun Marshall, I would throw his argument back at him. I think the club should agree to pay the cost of the celebration, and send the Council a bill for a Million for the free publicity the town has received as a result of our sucess, not just in the last year, but over the full period of IOR tenure in charge of the club.

How do you think that would be received, maybe we would accept the ground being given back to the club as payment in full.

He doesn't exactly have a hard job for 50k a year does he...? What does he actually do....? And to say that he never stood as Hangus is nothing short of laughable. I admit to voting for him for his second coming but he was just the best of a bad bunch. Please do remind me of 4 or 5 constructive changes or initiatives he has implemented over the last 5 years.........

how many people drink in the town on a weekend - what would happen to certain pubs if werent for the revenue that the football matches generate for them resulting in these companies being able to afford their biz community charge rates and also employing plenty of staff who otherwise my not work and may claim benefit for comm charge and other services, how many of them use the council car parks, etc etc so on you get the picture

What? Making us a laughing stock again

Mind, the Mayor must be congratulated for taking advantage of the general feeling amoungst the voters at the time and must be doing something right because he was also voted in second time round!

What we need a mayor on £70k a year for is another
I dont see the point, I thought thats what Carl Richardson was for!

Believe me, if we had the option of voting for a directly-elected mayor in Liverpool I'd definately be looking for the independant option and while the first time Drummond got in it was probably a protest vote the fact he got re-elected says something....

Over here we have a ruling Lib Dem group that often seem more inclined to fight amongst themselves and against Labour than actually get on with doing much for the city. We have one of the highest council tax rates in the country and yet I constantly find other places have far better services.

One thing that shows something of what it's like is a Blog that one of the Labour Councillors runs - admittedly it's partisan, but there are occasionally some damning insights about what party politics causes in councils - google Louise Baldock and you should find it if interested.

Not for me to say if the Hartlepool Mayor does a good job, but I'd have voted a similar way if I had a choice. I ended up having a choice of five candidates the other week - three (Liberal, Tory, Green) that had a campaign so low profile I didn't even know they were standing until I got my ballot paper, one who lives several miles away from the ward, and one who is a member of Ian Paisley's church and was apparently in line to become the DUP's mainland spokesman if they opened a branch here. It was like WC Fields famous comment - "Vote For? Hell, I always vote against!" Offer me a genuine independant and I would have been well chuffed to vote for them....

Even though it gives you a legitimate reason for getting your knob out in public???

Not that you normally need one like.....

It's nobody's fault that you've only got a little hogger is it??

Maybe it's cold and you haven't been well??

Yes it was good publicity for the town but we don't really need a mayor do we? If Drummond hadn't of been Hangus he wouldn't of got in...... The election gave Pools and the town a lot of good publicity but SD can't live on that forever.

Saying that he attends functions for free is also a joke, it is his job as the elected mayor to show his face at events in the town. And it is also good pr for him.

I don't think we need a mayor, he has done next to nothing. What does he actually do on a day to day basis.? Some of us have to graft like phuq to earn just over half of what he's getting.........

Well it must be phuqing nice a grand a week for doing bot all, you have to admit.......

Right, well you know the libraries, the parks and gardens, the waste collection, the traffic management, the Council Tax collection, the town planning, the leisure centres, the Town tourism, the housing department, social services, schools, civic amenities and various other things that you see every day??

Well he's in charge of 'em and you aren't. That's why you have to graft like fu ck and he just swans about keeping all the above in check with his massive salary, which pound per hour isn't much more than yours probably.

I'm not on his back. Like I said earlier I voted for him, maybe all his marvellous work is invisable to the public eye.....? You tell me.... All he seems to do is prattle on in the mail now and again whilst services are cut back and taxes are increased.

They all get too many perks at that fucking council. Isn't the sickness rate there supposedly one of the worst in the north of England? Yet they are all getting paid top whack and getting glorious pensions...... Some of the re-structuring and golden handshakes that have been given out over the past few years haven't been bad.......

Here....that's a downright lie. I often talk to you.

You know what I mean, the, bins get collected once in a blue moon, the general state of the town is going to the dogs, and schools facilities threatened with closure. And most people are paying well over a grand for these fantastic services.......

Ah the sweeping statement. I wondered when it'd turn up!!

What perks, what's the sickness rate?? Who's getting paid top whack and what is it?? Which restructuring and what golden handshakes??

There's been a few stories in the local rag about about huge pay offs, one woman who's name escapes me was in line for around 200k and her salery was just being absorbed by three or four other people each getting a nice 15k a year rise I believe.

And didn't Mr Fitt get a hefty package?

Unfortinutly you are right.... In industry if qualty of service is poor firms lose out, and it costs people their arses. But you have to play your bloody council tax no matter how shite the services are in this town. No wonder people are moving thousends of miles away from rip off Britain......

Some woman and Mr Fitt?? Who the bloody fucks Mr Fitt??

Nope sorry, can't convict on the evidence so far.

I say, this concellor is not very popular on here is he?

If you don't know about Janet Barker leaving the council and getting a mega bucks pension then I don't know where you have been. Her huge salery was then divided between existing directors who got a massive pay rise, you're talking about 15k a year.

And Mr Fitt was the main man in charge of education in Hartlepool......

China. I'm a bit lost as to why you don't know that seeing as it seems to crop up every day on here.

Still a bit lost as to the definitions of 'mega-bucks' and 'huge' though in terms of fiscal reality. Sadly a 15K a year rise at Director level in a local authority that's losing a post isn't that 'huge.' I reckon if you did a comparison with equivalent posts around the country you'd find it fairly nondescript. Have a look at Ken Livingstone's and work downwards. Administrative Salaries in the NHS for instance piss all over that.

I was being a little bit sarcastic Kev, I know you're in China - I sometimes wish I was. I just thought that you might log onto the website for the local rag to keep up to date with happenings here. To prevent things from getting mega zzzzz I'll summerise my main points.

John Marshall is a nob head.

The mayor is over paid and does nowt.

Council workers at all levels are over paid and the majority of people get next to nothing for their huge council tax bills.

Council workers shouldn't be allowed to retire early and still recieve huge pensions.

Living in Britain is a rip off.

Living in Hartlepool is getting worse.

But Pools are doing ok even if the badge is shit and we could do with a couple of quality signings.........

I can recommend it.

Retiring people off early and losing their salary from ongoing costs is common in all forms of business. It's called rationalisation. The pension comes from funds already provided and ringfenced for exactly that purpose and is self generating. Only Gordon Brown is allowed to pilfer pension funds. A famous man called Maxwell tried it once and is still vilified for it. A friend of mine is Council Dog Warden in Bassetlaw and he's on about 14K, don't think that's excessive, but someone has to be at the top and carry a salary that reflects the responsibility. Chief Exec in Bassetlaw is on about 90K and the population is comparable.

We're on common ground with rip off Britain, that's why I don't live there any more. Haven't lived in Hartlepool since 1972 so I'm not really qualified to speak about that.

Local councillors like to make a noise but there's rarely anything of substance comes from them. It's only 'cos he's banging a drum about the club that anyone is reacting. Starve him of the oxygen of publicity and he'll crawl away and die.

not forgetting council staff can go on the sick
get paid from day 1 at full pay for up to six months then six months at half wage thats why so many abuse it.
also if there are a squad of council workers in your area doing a job
they arrive 8.30-9 first job have a cup of tea/coffee in the van then work till 10 at which point it is morning break 10-10.30 work till 11.30 then back to yard for lunch at 12
return 1.30 cuppa work till 2.30 then afternoon break return to yard 4.00 repeat for as long as possible.
you have all seen the council vans at morrells getting the sarnies every day mon-fri
and them buggers on grounds if they are working anywhere in town make their way to the toilets at seaton if they need a wee
need a wee they are taking it

Jonny, did you vote in the Mayoral referendum?

jonny - what are you?

barker didnt get paid 200k it was no more than 75 and her wage got split tween the other bods who were taking on extra responaibilities

i may a huge amount of council tax and dont care too much - the wheels keep turning - yes people take the piss with the sick and the amount of work they do and the skiving etc but a massive overview of how the council works is needed and as another said they aint gonna bin a load of jobs off - bad pr etc etc etc - the overview would need to be independent professionals and could run up a bill of £1000000 or so to save us £10 a month the next year of the tax - is it worth it - yes if it reduces waste if resources, yes if it saves money in the long run, yes if it is better for the long term stability of the authority. but no coz the current bods there will not allow it to happen. scared of what they will find - by the way the bird works for the council as do other high ranking council bods who read this board and most of the salaries and pay structures there are under review and salaries will probably go up a lot for some (hopefully the missus as she at the top of her scale!!).

what the council also needs to address is the position in relation to benefits they dish out re housing allowance, council tax benefit and all the other bollocks people get - if you're that fookin arsed about council tax this, councillors that - then help them out - report the bastads who claim to be livin alone, who claim for this, who claim for that - there's only us fookin paying for it and i work damn hard for my poke and so does the bird so why the fook should i subsidise some lazy cheating silly boy

Council Workers tossing it off, whatever next.....

i cant believe cllr john marshall has received this much attention and as normal the post has totally gone full circle onto something else

thats a normal bunker post innit?