Jackie Pearcey was a hit with viewers of a town hall debate last week, which was featured live on BBC News.

The Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Bolton West answered questions at the TV debate in Westhoughton’s Carnegie Hall. The debate was hosted by Gavin Estler, the BBC Newsnight presenter.

Youngsters from Westhoughton High School were in the audience. When asked which of the candidates they preferred, they said that Jackie Pearcey’s Liberal Democrats had the best policies.

Jackie won the greatest applause from the ’studio’ audience, many of whom were from Westhoughton. She won applaud for saying voters should be listening to the policies that the parties have to offer rather than the parading of politicians’ wives by Gordon Brown and David Cameron.

Jackie said: “The debate was a first for Bolton West and I was very proud to have been able to put across my views to the people who will be choosing their next MP. People are fed up with the same old and tired politics of Labour and the Tories, and this event has thrown the doors open to a three-horse race. If you like what I said, and you want me as your MP, vote for it. This is the year that we can make a real difference.”

Jackie’s TV showing was boosted by the first TV Leaders’ Debate, in which Nick Clegg topped the debate for the Lib Dems. A Chancellors’ Debate saw Lib Dem Vince Cable as the star of the show too.

Jackie Pearcey is seeking election for the Bolton West constituency on Thursday, 6th May. Polls are open from 7am until 10pm.

Jackie Pearcey, the woman who wants to represent Bolton West in Parliament, has been meeting and greeting Westhoughton residents to find out what matters to them most.

Lib Dem Jackie has been talking to residents across the constituency. She wants to represent the area as an MP who would be firmly rooted in the community, not just someone that disappears into the Westminster village.

Asked what is the topic on everyone’s lips right now, Jackie said: “It’s the economy!”

“I’d like to thank the residents of Bolton West for their very warm reception when I’ve been calling on round,” Jackie added.

“There’s no doubt as to what the biggest issue is, it’s the economy.  From people who are worried about whether their children will be able to get an education, get on the housing ladder or even get a job, to people worried about their own job prospects and who are unable to get a mortgage or any sort of credit on reasonable terms, to pensioners who see no prospect of their savings ever earning more than a pittance on interest and whose pensions are at risk.

“The sad fact is that between the Conservatives having deregulated our economy to the point where it’s hard to tell the difference between a high street bank and a casino and Labour selling off the family silver the economic outlook is bleak and everybody knows it.  in fact everybody seems to know it except the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Shadow Chancellor who really think that they can kid people that everthing is fine until the polls close.

“What is clear from what you are saying on the doors is that the public have a better appreciation of the mess that we’re in than either of the two main parties.  I’ve been impressed at how many people have namechecked Vince Cable as the most sensible chioce to be our next Chancellor.

“In seats like Bolton West, we have the chance to make sure that can happen.”

Jackie Pearcey

Liberal Democrat PPC for Bolton West Councillor Jackie Pearcey has condemned the decision by the Government to cap Greater Manchester Police in their share of the Council Tax.  Under a deal with all ten authorities, GMP were to get a 7.5% rise each year for three years specifically in order to bring up police numbers.  Since then, a budget deficit has resulted in police number falling.

Now the Government has capped GMP, deciding that next year they will not be able to increase by more than 1.6%.

Jackie Pearcey said “this is unacceptable interference by the Government.  Because the police were underfunded, mainly as a result of the Government’s funding structure which has already taken £15.5. million away from GMP this year alone, a decision was made to increase funding in order to improve policing.  That has also now been taken away.  Meanwhile, GMP are the second worst performing force in the Country!  It is amazing to think that the Government expect GMP to improve whilst starving them of resources.

“Bolton needs better policing, but it can’t be done for free!”

The police post in Westhoughton

Councillor Jackie Pearcey, Liberal Democrat PPC for Bolton West, has hit out at reports that up to 300 jobs will be lost at Greater Manchester Police to balance the books.

Jackie said: “Last year, on the City Council, I raised the question as to whether or not there was a hole in the GMP budget and was assured by the Chair of the Police Authority that there was no funding gap.  Now it seems that they are £5 million overspent.

“The police are thinly stretched as it is.  Freezing recruitment will result in less police on the streets and will harm the fight against crime.”

You can also read this article on the Westhoughton Liberal Democrat website here.

RBS

Jackie Pearcey, Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for Bolton West, has hit out at plans to sell off Royal Bank of Scotland branches – saying that it could result in the removal of banking services for many communities.

“Over the last decade, branch closures of all of the main banks have resulted in many urban communities without local banking facilities,” Pearcey told this website. “The proposal for the Royal bank of Scotland appears to include yet more branch closures.  There are now inner urban communities which have almost no local access to any sort of banking facilities and further branch closures will make it worse.”

Commenting on the Labour Party’s selection of their Parliamentary Candidate for the next election, Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidate Jackie Pearce

Liberal Democrat PPC for Bolton West Jackie Pearcey has condemned the DNA database as out of control.  The database is supposed to comprise convicted criminals, however it has expanded to include hundreds of thousands of people who have never been convicted, or even charged with any crimes.

Jackie Pearcey

Jackie Pearcey said “There are many children on the database, who have had their DNA taken for trivial matters such as dropping litter.  They are stigamatised by being on this database, alongside rapists and murderers.  Now it turns out that a 1 year old baby is on the database.  There is no crime which a 1 year old baby can commit which could possily justify keeping their DNA on a police database.

“Years back, when police took fingerprints from people who were not suspects, but needed to have their prints eliminated from a scene of crime, these fingerprints were always destroyed after the case was completed.  However it seems that DNA samples are kept forever.  The Government should ensure that when people allow their DNA to be sampled in order to help forensic experts to understand a scene of crime, the samples should be destroyed, like fingerprints used to be.”

A congestion charge zone

The Labour government has said that the borough councils of Greater Manchester will no longer be able to bid for Transport Infrastructure Fund (TIF) money – and so Bolton will lose out.

The news comes as a result of residents voting against plans for congestion charging. The government says they will not give TIF money to councils if they refuse to accept their widely unpopular congestion charging plans.

Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Bolton Council, David Wilkinson, said: “The TIF money has always been very useful for small improvement projects around the town, but now the government has taken this money away from us just because the people have told them what they think of their grand congestion charging ideas.”

Jackie Pearcey

Lib Dem Jackie Pearcey, who is campaigning for the Bolton West constituency, echoed the sentiments. She said: “This Labour Government spent years failing to allow the people of Greater Manchester to invest in our public transport and when money was promised, it came with a string attached which was not acceptable. In the meantime, millions have been spent in railway improvements in London and the South East.  The Government should allow us to spend our own money to improve our transport.”

Councils may still bid for funding – but their chances of success are minimal after this latest government blow.

Jackie's Facebook page

Your Liberal Democrat PPC, Jackie Pearcey, has launched her campaign for the Bolton West constituency on to Facebook.

The Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, revealed in a visit to the region that we could be “in the running” to take part.

But the idea has been condemned by the Liberal Democrats’ Bolton West Prospective Parliamentary Candidate, Jackie Pearcey, who said: “All ID cards will do is put a huge amount of data into computer systems which this Government has shown skill in losing.  ID cards will not stop burglaries, carjackings, muggings or even most frauds.  They won’t stop internet crime, thefts or assault.  They won’t stop benefits fraud, as most benefits fraud concerns the amount of benefits that people claim, not who they are. ”

“In fact, all such a pilot scheme will do is cost the citizens of Greater Manchester and leave us open to every petty official demanding ID before they provide us with a basic service,” she added.