Star date: 2nd May 2017

SALFORD MP AND MAYOR SEE SAVE THE GRANGE PROTESTS ON MAY DAY

Yesterday, Salford Labour Party turned the annual May Day march and rally into the launch for its General Election campaign, with speeches by both Salford and Eccles MP Rebecca Long-Bailey and Salford Mayor Paul Dennett urging backing for Jeremy Corbyn.

Long-Bailey urged "a society where we actually care for each other because that is the benchmark of a civilised society". Throughout her speech, and the Mayor's, Save The Grange placards were raised, objecting to Salford Labour Council closing the only residential disabled children's home in the city.

Full details here...

Salford held its annual May Day celebrations yesterday with a march from Sacred Trinity Church to a rally at Bexley Square. With the Greater Manchester Mayor election this week, and a General Election in June, Salford Labour Party turned the event into a launch for its policies.

Speeches from both Salford City Mayor, Paul Dennett, Salford and Eccles MP, Rebecca Long-Bailey, and other Labour Party members urged the city to get behind Jeremy Corbyn...

"Over the last seven years, with Theresa May like some sort of turbo charged Margaret Thatcher, we've seen our public services be absolutely destroyed" said Rebecca Long-Bailey, adding that for this General Election "it's a choice between a labour movement and a Labour Party that will stand up for the many, and a Conservative Party that will only stand up for a privileged few...

"We don't accept that the people of this city just have to put up with what they've got, that that is just the way it has to be; because it doesn't..." she explained.

In front of the Salford MP, campaigners held up Save The Grange placards, protesting at Salford Labour Council's plans to shut the city's only residential care home for disabled children...

Rebecca Long-Bailey added that Jeremy Corbyn's vision, shared by the many, is about transforming the way society is structured so that "we have a society where we actually care for each other because that is the benchmark of a civilised society..."

Campaigners also held up Save The Grange placards during the speech by Salford City Mayor, Paul Dennett, in the Square famous for its brutally repressed community fight against welfare cuts in 1931; what became known as the Battle of Bexley Square (see here).

"Since 2010 the Tory Government and the Coalition with the LibDems have taken £186million off this city, they've forced us to make cuts against our will, and will continue unless we get a Labour Government in the future" said Dennett "It's been absolutely heartbreaking in the first twelve months in office to implement another £16million of cuts this year, absolutely disgraceful..."

Salford's Labour Council wants to save £300,000 by shutting The Grange - while finding £300,000 extra for street cleaning in the city, over £2million in rents for empty posh offices and £19million for the RHS Garden in Worsley (see previous Salford Star articles – click here and click here).

After Dennett's speech, Save The Grange campaigners confronted him about the closure...

"The Grange is the only disabled children's home in the city and they, in their wisdom, want to close it which is totally unacceptable" Lynda Barton, from Save The Grange told the Salford Star "We need it for the children who are there now, and the children in the future who need to be extremely well cared for because they cannot be cared for at home."

Lynda was unimpressed by the speeches about caring for the vulnerable... "If you can get more vulnerable than disabled children I would like to see that because they've got to be at least at the top of that list" she explained "I said to the Mayor that he and Jeremy Corbyn are all saying they can support vulnerable people but we need to see it...

"To be fair to the Mayor and the problems he has, the reason is always the budget and I understand that" she added "He did listen and appeared to be genuine and I'm hoping he takes it on board. But he and the Council are going to have to get creative here. To me it's not difficult."

Lynda was in the Council chamber on the day the budget and The Grange cut was passed following a protest outside the Civic Centre (see here). At Bexley Square she also challenged Labour Councillor, John Ferguson, about his role in that meeting...

"I said to him, 'When you're in that chamber, instead of you all going 'Aye, aye, aye, aye', didn't one of you say 'Why don't we think about this?'" Lynda added "'And then to add insult to injury, £300,000 was spent because you did a survey and eight hundred people said they'd like to see the streets cleaned...while in the same breath you said you'd shut The Grange to save money'. To me it's no contest."

The Grange is Salford Labour Council's litmus test for putting into practice what it preaches...

Almost three thousand signatures against closing The Grange have been gathered on print and online petitions, with Salford Red Devils, Salford City FC supporters and even Greater Manchester Mayor candidate Andy Burnham backing the campaign (see here and see here and see here)

To sign the petition – click here

There is also going to be a Public Meeting to Save The Grange Again on Saturday 27th May, 10:30am at Swinton Moorside Cricket Club – more details to follow.

For a full background on the closure of The Grange - click here