Elections 2008

Dear Resident

Re-election of Cllr Michael Rouse Deane for Derringham Ward

On Thursday May 1st 2008, I am seeking re-election as your Independent Councillor for Derringham Ward and am writing to you as a resident of the ward to ask you to use your vote to support me in this election.

You may recall that residents of Derringham Ward elected me to be your local councillor in May 2005 as a LibDem candidate. In October 2006, after much agonising I decided to become an Independent Councillor because I found myself in conflict between your needs as the residents and the demands of a political party. Eventually, faced with increasing pressure to vote in favour of decisions that would not benefit you, I left to join with other councillors to form the New Hull Independents Group.

Since then I have continued to work tirelessly on your behalf to ensure that the interests of Derringham Ward Residents come before the interests of political parties. This has been especially important since June 2007 when Derringham Ward became the most severely flooded ward in the City and I still work hard to resolve problems faced by residents recovering from flooding.

You can always easily contact me by phone, at my regular weekly surgeries, at coffee mornings or home visits and at Ward Forums. In addition I provide regular updates on my Blog at http://Derringham.blogspot.com and in newsletters. If any resident needs help in dealing with any problems related to public services you can contact me and know that I will assist you to the best of my ability.

As well as working directly with residents in the Ward, I am also very active in working with community groups like HAIG, Choices and Rights Coalition and HEREN which deals with equality and Human Rights issues. I have also completed the How Your City Works Course run by Hull Community Network and attended regular political summer schools and conferences to continue to improve my ability to represent your interests, and fight for your rights.

During this election campaign you may be told that Independent Councillors always vote with Labour. This is completely untrue. I always vote for the benefit of Derringham residents no matter which political party holds office and I will continue on your behalf to hold them to account and oppose any plans that do not put Resident First.