Our money to unions?

In today's Whitehaven News, J. Bush from Cleator wrote an open letter to Copeland Borough Council regarding the 2012 budget and their cost cutting consultation exercise. For me, the letter raises some very interesting questions about ethics.

During a question and answer session at Egremont,  a member of the public asked how much the council gave in funding to Trade Unions. Ms. Stannard, who was representing the council confirmed that money is given, but couldn't answer how much - the response was that funding was on a par with the rest of the country.


The council consultation period ends at the end of January - we can expect to see cuts in services, increases in charges and possible job cuts. I've approached Copeland Council twice myself this morning via Twitter, and have not received a reply in relation to how much money has passed between themselves and unions - the resident Copeland Tweeter was online, but it appears that my question was ignored.

If council services are to be cut, surely this is one of the services than can be cut - unions receive substantial funding from Union membership. I, myself am a union member, and was unaware of this situation - I'm also unhappy that I'm paying my dues twice.

Question - What influence do unions have over Copeland Council? Considering the fact that the Council is primarily run by Labour councillors, is it wise to have money passing between two organisations that are intrinsically linked?

Answer - Labour councillors are chosen by union membership. It is not wise for councillors to transfer OUR money to unions from council coffers. By doing so, it could lead to a conflict of interest, and could suggest that things are not as transparent as they should be.

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Whitehaven Coal Hurrie

Delivering coal from the face, to waiting ships was facilitated by Coal Hurries which were located on the harbour at Whitehaven. They were a pretty ingenious, but simple mechanism, which allowed coal to be transported from pit to boat in a short period of time.

Coal was placed in the cart, which you can see located on the top of the Hurrie. The cart moved along, and was tipped when it reached a stop on the line. Coal slid down a chute (can be seen to the right of the hurry) into the hold of a waiting ship. The Hurrie, and the ship didn't move during loading - so men were employed to disperse the coal evenly... moving tons of coal daily, by shovel - it was back breaking work! Beneath the Hurrie, a number of men (coal rangers) were employed to collect the black gold as it fell to the ground.

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Preston Street Goods Yard

These photographs seem to be from a lifetime ago - can you remember this scene from Preston Street, in Whitehaven?

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Police sea rescue

At 2pm, police responded to calls that a woman had been seen in the water at Whitehaven harbour. Officers pulled a woman from the water, adjacent to the western pier - outside the confines of the harbour.

A police spokesperson confirmed: “Police officers entered the water and managed to bring the female to shore.”

Officers were observed to be resuscitating the woman.

At approximately 3.15pm, the woman was transferred to the West Cumberland hospital with a police escort.

Update - 24/01/2012 17:00
Police have confirmed that the woman, despite the best efforts of emergency services and medical staff, died in hospital. She was named as Sheena Norman, aged 42, of Grisedale Close, Whitehaven.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or who may have seen the woman enter the water is urged to please contact Whitehaven police on 101.

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Pervert calling women

Cumbria Police have issued advice to women in the Copeland area - a man has been making threatening phone calls. He has been ringing lone women and saying:

I know where you are and that you’re alone, do you want me to come round?

Officers say his victims have been scared and upset by the calls. The man makes the calls from a withheld number.


Police are advising anyone who receives a call not to talk to the man, but to put the phone down and report the incident to their telephone provider.

Alan Willison, police community support officer for Copeland west, said:

The calls from this male seem to be purely to upset and scare the individual receiving the call. If you receive such a call, hang up as soon as possible and advise your provider.

Anyone who knows who is making the calls should ring the police on 101.

British Telecom offer advice on their website, on how to deal with calls of this nature. I have transcribed the information below for ease of use:

Remember, you are in control – and you can take a few simple precautions when answering the phone. Stay calm and don't engage with the caller. Many malicious callers are motivated by getting an emotional response from you, and walking away from the phone for a few moments before replacing the handset can be more of a deterrent than simply slamming the phone down or retaliating verbally.

Don't disclose any personal information. This may seem obvious, but many people answer their phone by stating their telephone number, or sometimes, their name. If the caller has dialled your number at random they are more likely to remember it and call you again if you've given them some personal information. It's always better to answer the phone with a simple 'hello' or wait for the caller to speak first.

Keep any answer phone messages short and to the point: never leave a message informing people that you are away from home. For example, simply state that you are unable to take the call at the moment. A male voice message may be more of a deterrent than a female voice, and if you're a woman, you could consider changing your phone book listing if this gives any indication of your gender or marital status.

Taking action 

If you are receiving abusive, threatening or obscene calls that are distressing to you, then you should report them to the police.

For every malicious call you receive you should note down the date, time and nature of the call. Note specific details of what the caller said, including any background noises you can hear. Any information you gather may help towards identifying and prosecuting the caller.

Someone from BT will talk to you and advise the best course of action. This may include changing your number or placing a trace on your calls. Most malicious calls can be traced, whether they come from private, public or even mobile telephones, anywhere in the country.

You may need to be prepared to give evidence if the malicious caller is traced, charged and taken to court.

Reporting malicious calls

If you are receiving persistent malicious calls, please contact the Nuisance Call Advice Line on 0800 661 441 (Monday to Friday – 8am to 10pm and Saturday – 9am to 6pm).

Other ways BT can help

Caller Display – lets you see the number that's calling you before you answer so you can decide whether to pick up the phone or ignore unwanted calls. BT Privacy at Home – a free service that includes Caller Display and registration with the Telephone Preference Service.

Choose to Refuse – helps block particular numbers from getting through to you.

Anonymous Call Reject – lets you block incoming calls from withheld UK numbers.

Call Sign – gives you an additional number with a different ringtone. If you give this to family or friends you can distinguish between incoming calls.

BT Answer 1571 – a voicemail service for callers to leave a message if you don't answer the phone.

BT 1471 – dial 1471 to check the last person who called you.

Ex directory service - make your telephone number ex-directory.

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