Repossession Prevention

I've just signed an agreement for the credit union to manage loans from the Mortgage Respossession Prevention Scheme. It's an interesting example of how government initiatives filter down...

About two years ago, when the recession was still a credit crunch, someone in government thought 'people may be having problems paying their mortgage, what can we do to help them?' So about a year ago, Northumberland CC got about £76k from Government with the guidance 'use this to bung an interest-free loan to anyone having problems with their mortgage (or rent)'

And now - after a lot of effort to make the thing practical, we've got a three-way arrangement: NCC provides the money, CABx money advisors assess and authorise applicants, the credit union lends the money from the NCC pot and manages the loan. So if you want an interest-free loan of up to £5000 over five years to help with your mortgage or rent payments - this is for you.

But - the people who come to the CABx for debt advice are usually in more trouble than that, and wouldn't be able to repay such a loan. So how to get the message out to people with temporary problems who will be able to repay such a loan, and keep up with the mortgage payments in the future?

A nice-sounding idea from Government - but not really thought through, but we'll do our best to make it work

Cars: The future is electric?

Massive investment in developing a network 11,000 plug-in points for electric cars across the current! And the North East is officially the Low Carbon Region with responsibility for developing electric cars in this country. Hat's off to the marketing people at Nissan Sunderland.

And we're getting hundreds of plug-in points in the North East too - not only in the Tyne & Wear conurbation, but a whole series strung along Hadrians Wall.

So yes - electric vehicles are quieter and cause less pollution on the roads, but there's the rub. Until we get electricity generation sorted out - with the right mix of low carbon renewable energy - electric cars will just increase carbon emissions at the power stations. And if our power grid is creaking now - how can it possibly take the strain of the extra demand from hundreds of thousands of electric cars.

No - I'm afraid electric cars may be another form of greenwash, from people scared to admit even to themselves the scale of change needed to reduce CO2 emissions by 34% by 2020, let alone 80% by 2050. I rather think we need start planning to massively reduce the need to travel - and that goes for freight transport too.

Or - if we are going for electric cars, then we need a low carbon generating network first.

Friday Market trial extended...

The current trial of a Morpeth Friday Market will be extended until Easter - so there'll be markets on Friday 19th and 26th.

Then no market on Good Friday - and not on Friday 9th, because that is Gathering Weekend, and the Market Place will be full of jugglers, centurions, punch & judy men and rioting peasants. (Not to unlike a normal Friday and Saturday night in Morpeth then?)
There will be some stalls from the Wednesday and Farmers' Markets at the Gathering too...

So, there'll be a final deliberation by the Markets Partnership on Weds 31st - and if the decision is yes, the Friday Market will be permanent from Friday 16th April.

So - get hold of a copy of the Council's survey (the only one that will be counted this time) - fill it in, and get your views heard.

It'll be a riot!

"This year’s Morpeth Gathering will feature a distinct agrarian theme, unrest amongst the labouring classes in the late eighteenth century, revolutionary and republican sentiments filtering across the Channel and protests from locals crammed in dreadful conditions, many for what we’d now deem petty offences but awaiting trial or even transportation to the colonies. Unrest will spark riot and civil disturbances, anger at the hiring fair, discontent on the streets and a final violent confrontation with militia – paramilitaries as we’d now describe them, drafted in from Yorkshire!"

I guess re-enacting the Miners' Strike would be too recent....

Anyway - if you fancy being a revolting peasant - there's a rehearsal next Tuesday (23rd Feb) 7pm-8:30pm at Morpeth Town Hall, contact Tamsin Lilley for more info.

Friday the Market II The Return

The second six week trial of a market on a Friday in Morpeth started last week and runs through to March 12th. This time there'll be a big effort to channel all feedback into the County Council's formal survey - which I've had a hand in refurbishing. I think the idea is that if the market is popular, then it'll just carry on into the summer. I know I'm already in discussions about how we can manage the market on the weekend of the Northumbrian Gathering (9th-10th April).

The actual market last Friday had about 16 stalls - but was fairly quiet. It was pouring with rain though. The weather on the Saturday for the farmers' market was better (if a bit cold over 4-5 hours) - and so far I've heard no indication that having three markets in the week diluted trade that much.

I see Northumberland CC has posted a voxpop video of responses to the first trial of the Friday market (last Oct) on U-tube: