This thought piece, comes courtesy of someone who does not wish to be identified other than as AP, Rik’s thanks go to them. I reproduce it here because I thought readers would be interested:
As a citizen for whom going to the Town Hall to watch the Cabinet and Council meetings in person is well nigh impossible, I was looking forward to watching this weeks Cabinet meeting which I assumed would be live on the internet.
I waited, and I waited for the broadcast to start, to no avail.
Rotherham Labour Council has failed yet again, to realise the enormity of what has happened and their own responsibilities for their part in this scandal!
To go back in the bunker, as they appear to have done, is simply unacceptable. The people are entitled to witness for themselves what is being done in their name and this mentality is what got us into this situation in the first place.
Open up, or feel the wrath of the people!
Better still resign, and give us fresh elections!
AP
Rotherham Politics 
Very true. I also looked for it. If I did conspiracy I might think that the two webcasts they did broadcast were to sucker us into others not taking vid cameras to the meetings. I wonder if our UKIP councils will be able to get to the bottom of all this
I just did a quick survey of other SY Institutions to compare:
South Yorkshire Joint Secretariat webcast all meetings:
http://www.southyorks.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcasts
South Yorkshire Police and Crime Panel are hosted at RMBC, and appear to be committed to Webcasting, but I can’t confirm that
Sheffield City Council – can’t find any.
Doncaster – can’t find any.
Barnsley:
http://www.barnsley.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcasts
Rotherham (including SYPCP):
http://www.rotherham.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcasts
_____________
An (incomplete) national picture comes up if you google for “which councils webcast” – without quote marks.
rr
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whoops! should have been “UKIP Councillors” ,
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The tidal wave of resentment from Joe and Josephine Public about RMBC’s cover ups, lies from Senior Officers and lack of clear communications is growing………………..
I was also waiting for the webcast because I was expecting Jacqui Collins to say something concerning Thacker’s pay off . I may be disappointed?
‘AP’ echoes the sentiments of many people who expected Larkin to show he really does intend to make a ‘fresh start’ however if you don’t tell the people what is happening we will come to our own conclusions and tell you just how badly we feel let down via the ballot box.
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Well said Colin, can this be challenged in any way ,as to why it was a closed cabinet meeting , and not televised for us the public? Especially as every meeting is so important right now, nothing less should be accepted.
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JEan, whilst your comment was directed at Colin, may I also reply since I am as deeply concerned about this as Colin is.
1. Something that has happened can’t be challenged, one can only try to ensure it doesn’t happen again. (It very unlikely that the cameras were on during the meeting).
As to how to ensure that it doesn’t happen again:
2. there is a RMBC website facility to set up a petition, but it is almost totally hidden and unused – another example of RMBC’s total lack of openness and transparency.
http://moderngov.rotherham.gov.uk/mgEPetitionListDisplay.aspx
3. There was an attempt to set up a discussion group on the RMBC site – but it was a total and utter failure – I was a major participant in it and and worked hard on it, but it was a total failure. – the people who were supposed to be administrating it knew far less about how the software worked and what their role actually was than I did, I tried to explain the whole thing to them, but… It all still hurts.Again there was no attempt of transparency.
4. The FoI route will probably get you nowhere.
5. My local UKIP Councillor tells me that he is committed to transparency – so that is my next port of call.
Over now to Colin.
rr
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Regular reader thankyou for your reply , I understand what you are saying about how disappointed you were, and this situation of neglect to the children who suffered in our town can only add fuel to that.
I wish I was more able in the political sense , but hopefully those that are will bring their knowledge here and try to make changes somehow.
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JEan thanks.
I first came to Rotherham in 2002, and was immediately appalled at the democratic deficit, Only in some – but not all – African countries had I experienced worse. My contempt for my local councillors and Barron my MP began as soon as I met them, when working with my tiny local rural community’s response to a couple of council schemes that would have negatively impacted my local community. (Both times we won! hands down!) . But it was only when, many years later, and I came across Rothpol that I began to see the extent of the problem. Change will come.
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How can he make a fresh start when, once again, we have a totalitarian Labour cabinet! We all know they are incapable of even spelling the word democracy let alone know what it means.
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See the local MPs are appearing to ask sum questions.
pity they failed to do so before
and let down their constituents.
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Ms Champion always has. As ever, links please to whaever you are referring to.
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As we’ll as associating with the same people who knew what was going on, wonder if she’s hedging her bets for the next election!!!
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THank yo for your comment, but the rest of us are trying to have a serious discussion.
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I’m a new reader of this site, motivated to join because of my disgust at what has been going on in Rotherham apparently for years. Rotherham (councillors and officials) must change or they risk being swept away by UKIP and the EDL. I do not wish to see that. Open up and be honest!! Tom N
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Rotherham – Didn’t think I could be more shocked.
If this article is honest and true?
http://www.vice.com/read/rotherham-grooming-security-guard-and-victims-interview-091
RP
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thanks for that link – hopefully Rothpol will turn it into its own topic.
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Thank you Rothperson for this link…. Please read it folks..
.I read a book while staying in Berlin. Written by a German (whose name I cannot remember)… He said the horrors of Berlin were so beyond human comprehension it became unbelievable. It is difficult to believe that human beings can be monsters and it is easier to believe that the lonely voice trying to draw peoples attention to the horror becomes the victim. They become slandered and victimized. Reading this young man’s account I believe it has the ring of truth about it. EVERYONE WHO KNEW AND IGNORED THIS NIGHTMARE SHOULD NOT ONLY STAND DOWN BUT GO RIGHT TO *”/:*%+#! JAIL> Starting with the POLICE.!
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My comment above refers to the brave testimony of James Cole… Thought I better clarify that point.
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The trouble is Linda, in these cases we are not dealing with human beings. In the case of Germany, these were the Nazis who were worse than any animal in they way they carried out their atrocities and thankfully they were exterminated. In the case of Rotherham, we have the problem of medieval culture of Pakistani Muslims carrying out these despicable crimes in our Town. The answer to the problem is just the same, exterminate them and the sooner we do this, the better.
No I am not a member of the EDL, National Front or any other right wing organisation. I am a 72 year old who believes in Britain and the British culture.
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Linda,
It’s a bit hard to follow up on a book when the author is unknown and the language may have been German . Even Amazon.DE can’t help.
But what you wrote hit a chard with me, a piece I’ve never forgotten written by Martham Graham in Germany immediately after the war. I can’t find the Article now, but this one came probably slightly earlier:
http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/war-correspondent-martha-gellhorn-at-DACHAU-death-camp
In the one I was thinking about, she interviewed many German adults – none of them admitting that they knew anything about the atrocities that took place, and saying afterwards with rage “how could they not know”.
(It was probably in a book, I’ll dig deeper) .
How did you find Berlin, what year were you there?
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@regular reader re my time in Berlin and the info I quoted from the book I read whilst there. My son lives in Berlin and married a girl from what was originally communist East Berlin. I was there 2 years ago and the book I quoted from I purchased from The Jewish Museum. There are Jewish roots in my family and it is of particular interest to me how such horrific treatment of a particular section of society can be so inhumanly brutal without public outrage and intervention. My question was, ‘ how does it start, and how does it gather momentum to reach such grotesque proportions .. I don’t remember the book title unfortunately or even what happened to the book. Perhaps I left it at my sons house. I do remember the author was German and the book was written in English. The points I refer to in the book is this. The news leaking out of Germany to the British at the beginning of the Jewish ‘solution’ was so grotesque that the British parliament even found it hard to believe. It grew to such massive proportions virtually unhindered and the intended annialation of a race is now proven history. The author speaks of German national guilt and one presumes that when faced with the truth of what happened in the streets of Berlin the average person says …..” I didn’t know”. The analogy I was trying to make is this. After reading James Coles account of the brutality that was happening at the Rotherham bus exchange under the noses of the public, council and police is so frightening that ones first impression is ; it’s too horrible to be true…. But we know it is true. 1400 children at least testify to it.
In this matter of the CSE in Rotherham there are parallels to the human response in Nazi Germany . First response… it’s unbelievable…. second response…” we didn’t know.”…Rotherham will bear a town guilt for the torture of it’s own children both now and in the future. It will bear this mark of shame in it’s history. Whatever good the Rotherham politicians think they contributed to the town is gone forever. Those who knew… must consider this.
Finally, evidence everywhere in Berlin that the grandchildren of wartime Berliners both admit and bear the shame of their forefathers.
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Fascinating Linda!
I too have friend from Liverpool living their married to a “eastie” guy.
I’ve always liked people from E. Germany/Berlin, – I knew many when I lived in Ethiopia,(including some of their airforce people). They were one of the few groups you could always rely on at times when you felt you needed a bit of help.
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Serious discussion, don’t make me laugh, your Town a standing joke in England, UK and the world. Who would’ve thought in a so call modern western town such abuse would’ve been allow to continue for decades and is still going on. The worse part is your all going round blaming everybody for this scandal when deep down you all something was going on. Your all running around like headless chickhens and not one of you’s have a clue how to solve the problem.
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Your post is negative and abusive.
“not one of you’s have a clue how to solve the problem.”
I am not paid to solve this crisis, RMBC councillors and Senior Officers are. We (Residents) are not invested with powers to walk into Riverside House and/or the council chamber and take command. None of us-including you-have been given the full facts or legal advice to say what is currently doable or who to target and instigate civil and legal proceedings.
You have not proposed any solutions and FYI solutions to problems must be based on evidence not supposition or prejudice.. If you had any knowledge of how the law works you would know that allegations and accusations are baseless without solid, reliable and witnessed evidence. The problems facing our town cannot and will not be solved in 5 minutes,5 days,5 weeks or 5 months. I’m as anxious as everyone else to see the perpetrators,co-conspirators anyone else involved in these crimes brought to justice and as you will be aware, in Britain all men and women are innocent until proven guilty.
Instead of abusing contributors on here why don’t you offer us your pragmatic solutions to this crisis? .
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Has this problem ever been solved by anybody, anywhere?
RP
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Until this problem is solved it will remain bigger than all of us.
Live camera feed of empty rhetoric will satisfy anoraks.
RP
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Manc – I stood as an independent in the Rotherham by election in 2012 and blogged at length about what could be done, practically. I can give you the link if you want to know, seriously. Our problem in Rotherham is that all the creative ideas are coming from ordinary folk. Our elected council representatives and their paid leaders are clueless and/or unwilling.
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Manc the powers that be who run our town are the ones who get paid a salary to do just that. It as only publicly come to light this last few weeks about the grooming of minors. And now we need to start afresh with a new panel of councillors and a new cabinet. My opinion only.
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No need to apologise Jean for expressing an opinion!
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To be accurate it isn’t Labours Inadequate Response – it’s Inadequate Labours Response that is the problem. A strong mind on this Council might have brought things into the open years ago. The main reason is they kept their heads down is that they are all scared of losing their parasitical existence on the council tax payers expense. This left them vulnberable to social blackmail by a small group of near criminals led by a small time Mr Big claiming to be a “community leader” and in control of a block vote supported by a fraudulent postal voting system.
For one it’s about time postal voting was abolished and votes never leave the polling station. The French can do it why cannot GB?
Oh sorry, that would mean the the start of the end of really corrupt local politics leaving it just corrupt.
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Well said Lavrenti. You are absolutely right, once again it is the medieval Pakistani Muslim culture which has infested and infected our Town’s electoral system!
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Postal voting needs banning in the UK. I fear it is a much bigger corruptible problem than any of us are aware of.
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Flag of convenience
Understood from sources that a number of labour cllrs are considering defecting to ukip.
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Hmmm, but would UKIP want to taint their brand with them. It’s Tories like Carswell that they lust for. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-28979447
Caven ?
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Ukip would be mad to take them on.
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if ukip took any of the labour councillors in Rotherham, I would leave the party..and I am reliably informed that we wont, so I wont have to
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If you are the same “ukip” who posts in the comments in the Sheffield Star I’m surprised you are a UKIP member. I seem to remember Caven on this blog making a very negative comment on something that the other2 ukip” wrote there.
Surely though, unless you are the authorised spokesperson for the Party, the nicky “ukip” is misleading for anyone reading your comments .
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Sheffield City Council have been asked repeatedly to film their meetings. The No answer always comes with the excuse of costs. I know a business person who went to several councillors and stated they were pay the costs, to be then given numerous fob offs why it still couldnt happen. I will never vote a party into power who wont let the electorate see whats going in on meetings.
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As far as I can make out there is no legal requirement for councils to film and/ or broadcast meetings. Not yet anyway. Hopefully this will change in the near future. Until then, the public who attend these meetings can film them:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/lights-camera-democracy-in-action
RMBC seem selective about which meetings they webcast, Sheffield don’t do any. So it’s up to us. We have the right to film them, we should use it. We should make it as plain as possible “We ARE watching you”. The more people who do this, the more likely the council will webcast the meetings in full, in order to avoid any possible misrepresentation of the events.
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Alternatively we could film them ourselves, shame them into being open!
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I thought tajmal khan may go for east ward he had his hopes high but it will albe all women’s short list so no 12k a year
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