Fom Rye’s Own March 2006 Issue
Keith Glazier and Peter Jones support closure.
The two men who are best placed to look after the interests of people in Rye and District are at the forefront of proposals to close Rye Friary Day Care Centre at the Memorial Care Centre from this October. They should be ashamed of themselves.
Moral is at a low point in Rye. The town is already under attack from Rother District Council who want to close all public toilets. Now, two men elected locally, are set to deliver a blow that will leave 100 local disabled people who rely on the Friary facilities, some even for a chance of a bath, without their “life saving” Day Centre.
Well done “Rye Observer”. They realise that democracy is at stake here and have decided that their traditional role of just reporting events is not sufficient in this case. They are bravely leading the fight to keep the Day Centre open. “Rye’s Own” will support them in any way it can.
This magazine is completely non political but because party politics are involved in the issue of closing the Friary Day Centre judgement had to be made on who is telling the truth. Is it the Conservatives who are the majority party at East Sussex County Council, they claim funds for the Friary Day Centre are not available, or is it Michael Foster MP (Labour) who tells us that money has been provided? It does seem that the Tories are attacking the Government at the expense of adult social services in East Sussex, Rye in particular.
County Council Leader Peter Jones supported by County Councillor Keith Glazier, the man in charge of Adult Social Care, defend the decision to close the Friary Day Centre. Its bad enough being stabbed in the back by Rother but unbelievable that Rye gets the same treatment from two of its own. There have been suggestions that THEY SHOULD BOTH RESIGN and save further damage to this town and their own credibility.
Toilet Closures
Who decides that Rye toilets should be closed? Town Councillor Peter Dyce reports that last year when this crazy idea was first mooted the final decision to close the Rope Walk toilets was taken by the Rother District Cabinet, led by Councillor Gubby. There was no vote by the main Council which meant that Rye’s two representatives, neither of whom is on the Cabinet, were unable to vote. “Can this be democracy?” asks Peter.
Will it be a cabinet decision again this year or will it go to open vote? It is pretty clear to see that unless Rye Town Council or Rye Town Services take on the job there will be a lot of people walking around the town with their legs crossed this summer.
The way things are going it is a fair bet that the next services to be pushed in Rye’s direction will be street cleaning and refuge collection. Rother will say they can’t afford to provide these services. Imagine the problems that this would cause.
Then it may be parks and gardens. Their decision to desecrate Rye Cemetery has left them with a problem, the fallen headstones constitute a hazard, they must be lowered to ground level, this will cost thousands, they will not be able to afford it. Let Rye pay!
One service they will not pass this way are the car parks, they need the income from these to pay the half a million pounds a year they have buried in the Rye Town Council