Extending Civil Partnerships would be like renaming Christmas as Winter Wonderland Celebration

I am what would be described as a modern Conservative I joined under David Cameron's leadership after beginning my  political life as a young Blairite supporter in the Labour Party. I joined the party after seeing David Cameron and others vision for the future, a Conservative Party built around opening up the party's values to all, uniting people across society from all backgrounds behind the Party's core values of success built on hard work, economic restraint,  fairness and liberty. 

The Equal Marriage debate symbolises the future of the party it takes the traditional institution of marriage one that all conservatives value and says "no one should be denied the benefits it brings to people's relationships". The policy is about extending the benefits of conservative policy and perspectives to the modern society and the world we find ourselves in today. When I speak to other conservatives young and old who are looking to our future this is the direction they see the party going if we are to maintain our broad church, reach out to wider society and ensure its conservative values that our society is built on this is the road we need to travel.

A modern vision for the party is far from turning our back on the party's old values and supporters but enhancing and extending them to all voters. That is why the idea of extending civil partnerships is one that doesn't fit this agenda. It would be to set up an alternative to marriage akin to re branding Christmas as a winter wonderland celebration. The bill before parliament aims to enhance and promote marriage, it is as conservative a institution and concept as it gets. Where as ironically the suggestion to create a parallel institution to this one of Civil Partnerships for all would suggest marriage isn't necessarily the best option for relationships and be at odds with the core conservative value of marriage directly.

Its time as Conservatives we looked forward, the future of the party stands on the right side of history on equal marriage and I'm proud I intend to be part of that future.

Conservative Party future can be defined by marriage for all

Today we have heard MPs from all sides of the House of Commons speak in support of Equal Marriage. Overwhelmingly there is a simple message everyone should be able to celebrate their love through the great institution of Marriage.

However it would be wrong to deny that there is not a significant minority who do oppose the idea of Equal Marriage the idea is opposed to their values and the values of the religion they hold close. This is also true of a minority in the Conservative Party.

What is telling though is not that some Conservative MPs oppose Same Sex Marriage from a cultural commentators perspective that is something that would be expected from history, but that a large number support it and that its a Conservative led government who is introducing equal marriage. When we look at polling of younger members in the party the support for equal marriage extends further.

What does this all mean? Is it that the conservative party is slowly selling out to a political correct agenda? or has the party been infiltrated by the left? If you listened to some in the media and indeed those claiming to speak for the Conservative Grass roots you would believe that to be true. Reality is that the Conservative party is changing, its is changing because times are changing, social perspectives are changing and people are changing. When I talk to fellow Conservatives under 35 the politics I see is one built around being united on Thatcherite Economic Policy, principle of success through hard work and the values of liberty, freedom and Diversity. This is also the message in a similar terminology coming from the so called modernisers in the party. Policies such as Equal Marriage are not about selling out, not about swinging left right up down or indeed out of control (if you believe some of the commentators) but about swinging behind a traditional institution. The Policy is saying the door shouldn't be closed to some as it has in the past from being able to benefit from the benefits of marriage simply because of their sexuality when in 2013 we consider people equal regardless of race sexuality gender or any other protected characteristic. As Conservatives we want everyone to benefit from the values we hold close and that we believe help achieve a society that is successful fair and one where liberty is at its core. This is a message that those still shaped by the culture of the past and shaped by their own religious perspective has been hard to see as one they can support, however as we go forward and the mist of change becomes clearer we will see people who have wrestled with their own consciences seeing the positives in other embracing their conservative values they hold close and we will see a country that is better for it too.

The Equal Marriage debate is a metaphor for change in the conservative party and its change for the better its time we wedged open our dusty wooden doors that have kept our values only accessible to some and made them accessible to all. I'm Proud to be a member of the Conservative Party and I want many more people to join and be proud too.

Time to Clean up the Drunks

This country has an epidemic of the kind we haven't seen since the Gin riots of the 18th Century. Our town centres and high streets are plagued by the presence of drunks cruising in what can be best described as gangs from bar to bar or staggering down alone in search of a local takeaway.

Tonight I was a subject of the abuse many thousands of decent UK residents face every week as they navigate our town centres in the evening either off to socialise with friends themselves or while making their own way home. Being transgender the abuse was the typical transphobic hate filled vileness that no one should be subject too not least someone stood quietly waiting to catch a bus home. However whether discriminatory or simply vile abuse this description of distressing incident on our streets is all too common in Britain today.

Over the last decade we have seen the continue decline in the respectability of our city and town centres as spaces to be enjoyed in the evening and at weekends. We have also seen a rapid increase in the amount of abuse, assaults and anti social beahviour that have left our streets as no go areas to  many people who don't consider drinking binges the best way to spend a Friday night or Weekend.

The disaster zone thou doesn't just stop there, not only are our streets filling up with drunks and abusive behaviour so are our hospitals and A & E departments. Heaven forbid you are the subject of a sporting injury or accident at home on a Saturday night as you will face the gauntlet that is your local Accident and Emergency Department. Every Friday and Saturday night thousands of dedicated medical professionals deal with the aftermath of UK binge drinking culture and the violent effects and behaviour of many who partake in this damaging past time. They have to deal with threats, abuse, assaults and patients running amok while all the time trying to deliver the high quality healthcare we have come to expect from the NHS.

All of this costs the UK tax payer and public billions and billions of pounds. Crime cost estimates range from over the £11 billion figure and the cost to the NHS from over £3 billion. In a time when we are counting the pennies and tightening the belt we can ill afford to allow this blatant abuse of public funds and impact on the UK economy to continue. Not to mention its the very victims of the anti social behaviour experienced on our streets who themselves are having to contribute towards allowing it to continue.

Government policy to date instead of tackling this problem head on has instead facilitated its continuation and escalation. From relaxing of licensing restrictions, introduction of 24 hour drinking and police policy of managing city centres instead of zero tolerance approach has meant that we are now at the stage we last faced as a country during the Gin riots of the 18th century.

But it doesn't have to be this way. We have a conservative lead government and as a party we have a long history of tackling crime and delivering strong criminal justice policy this is what we as conservatives should be focusing our attention on. No more "tough talking" or "police campaigns" we need radical new policy that will tackle this issue and make our city centres safe once again for all of us living in the UK.

Firstly I call on the government to introduce £1000 surcharges for everyone convicted of drunk and disorderly offences to be deducted immediately from convicted person's benefits or wages directly, no exceptions. This surcharge should be on top of any other court sanctions and fines and is to go towards funding the immense bill alcohol related mayhem places on the UK tax payer every year, its time we made those to blame and not the victims pay for this mess.

Secondly I call on the government to introduce 1 strike and your out anti social behaviour zones for anyone convicted of being drunk and disorderly for an automatic 1 year from all license premises all day and from all UK city centres after the hours of 7 pm. This will show help to reclaim our streets from those determined to continue to cause mayhem week after week. We need to come down hard to ensure this isn't a policy that can be ignored the impact is too great to our communities.

Finally we need to put an end to this policy of "managed city centres" where numerous offences of drunk and disorderly and premises serving "drunk customers" is ignored. We need to bring back properly restricted licensing rules and build drunk tanks in all our UK city centres separate custody suites that are safely managed but reduce the red tape and paper work needed for police officers to arrest those committing the offence of drunk and disorderly on our streets. We need to introduce a policy that no amount of causing disorder due to alcohol will be "let off" and start clearing up the streets of people who are determined to cause suffering and give abuse to others. This would make a significant difference to the state of our streets and start to reset the balance towards the rights and freedom of respectable UK residents to walk in their own city and town centre's over the rights of drunks to abuse and carry out continued anti social behaviour every week.

This is an issue that is coming to a head and one that would make a difference to the lives of millions of hard working UK citizens who simply want to not have to worry about walking home at night or those who want to enjoy respectfully a nice peaceful night out. Instead of worrying over policies such as a snoopers charter and worrying over the sentencing of ex government ministers for speeding this is a real criminal justice issue the government should and must deal with I urge them to listen to me and millions of others and do so.

Its time to clean up our streets.

Thank You

Today was a historic day when the main hurdle for the Equal Marriage Bill becoming law was passed thanks to the votes of 400 Conservative, Lib Dem and Labour MPs.

I want to say thank you to the brave and strong leadership of our conservative Prime Minister David Cameron. In the face of opposition from his own benches he today put the needs of the country and its people first and pushed forward with the Equal Marriage proposals. The reforms David Cameron has made as leader of the Conservative Party are one of the reasons I felt able to join the party and its great to see this culmination of his hard work. Thank you for helping LGBT people across the UK be one step close to being able to celebrate love, Transgender people be able to stay married to their loved one and for leading the Conservative Party into the progressive 21st Century.

I also wanted to say thank you to Maria Miller MP. When she took over as Equalities Minister she faced a raft of abuse and criticism focusing on her past and not looking at her skills and commitments she had made for the future. Today saw her leading on bringing forth the Equal marriage Bill and challenging the arguments made against introducing Equal marriage in England and Wales. She was forthright, clear and determined and  I respect her a great deal for the role she has played in carrying equal marriage bill through and leading the debate in the chamber. Thank you Maria Miller I know people across the UK are feeling happier tonight thanks to your hard work.

Finally I would like to thank Liberal Democrat and former Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone MP. She is an MP I respect a great deal, her hard work, persistence and passion has helped drive the equal marriage work within government as well as the wider equality agenda. She has been a fantastic advocate on transgender issues (which is often an issue hard to find advocates in the House of Commons on) and has remained positive and engaging on the issue of equal marriage winning people over and make a clear argument for why we should be supporting its introduction. I know many LGBT friends will join me in saying thank you Lynne we are proud of you and all your work!

A big thank you for every single person who has written to their MP, spoken on the radio, spoken to MPs in person, written blogs and done a whole variety of campaigning activities trying to show positively why we need equal marriage in the UK you have all made a difference and together shown what we can achieve when we unite across political, social and stereotypical divides to focus on an issue to bring happiness to 100 000s of people in the UK.

Finally a big thank you to the religious MPs Labour, Lib Dem or Conservative who voted to allow freedom despite their personal views on marriage and sexuality and those MPs that in the face of 100s of letters from constituents against equal marriage had the strength of their convictions to do the right thing for over 2.5 million LGBT people in the UK you have stood on the right side of history today and I thank you for the difficult decision you have made.

Equal Marriage is on its way to becoming law and the UK is better for it!

Dear Prime Minister - Equal Marriage

Letter to the Prime Minister I will be Posting tomorrow.


Dear Prime Minister

I am writing to you not as a Conservative Party Association Chairman or other quasi elected party official, but as an ordinary member of the Conservative Party, an activist, a campaigner and someone who joined over a year ago thanks to seeing the direction you have took the party and reforms you have made as party leader.

I'm a Bisexual and Transgender women those labels don't define me but instead are relevant because when it comes to equal marriage the proposals effect me personally.

As a conservative I believe in freedom and liberty, values I know you share as do many other members young and old. At the heart of these freedoms should be personal liberty and religious conscience. For too long the state has interfered in the loving relationships of same sex couples across the UK and in religious practice through the "banning" of same sex marriage. No religion should be forced to carry out ceremonies they do not feel in their own conscience they can conduct and no one should be forced to accept same sex marriage in their own religious institution. However no religion should be told by a conservative lead government and state that they are not allowed to carry out a religious ceremony, in this case same sex marriage if they so wish.

These freedoms are at the bedrock of conservative ideology and policy and are values we should hold up before all others. This debate is not simply one of equality but of ignorance blinding the values that the majority of conservatives hold. We need to show that by supporting the rights of loving couples we are delivering on the values that we can all support as a party regardless of our own individual views on same sex marriage.

The family is also at the center of most Conservative members political make up. Marriage with commitment brings stability and structure to help families grow and to provide a positive environment for the bringing up and caring for children too. Whether a family is built around a same sex relationship or one of the opposite sex we should be empowering families to give that commitment to each other and provide good homes for themselves and the next generation of children in the UK.

One thing that has not been discussed in the media is the positive effect the changes are going to have for transsexual people. When Labour introduced Civil Partnerships they left transsexual people out in the cold where they were forgot about when the legislation was drawn up. When a transsexual person transitions from the gender that was assigned to them at birth to one they "truly" are, they may be lucky enough to gain the support of their long term married partner (many transsexual people face isolation and relationship break ups when they transition) but despite this support they will face the difficult and traumatic experience of having to tell their husband or wife that in order for them to "change their gender" they have no legal choice but to annul their marriage or they will not be entitled to receive a gender recognition certificate (new birth certificate). Having talked to transsexual people who have experienced this it can be traumatic isolating and distressing for all involved and at a time when they may be very vulnerable and experiencing mental health distress this adds to their suffering. Its great that under the Equal Marriage Bill transsexual people will no longer have to annul their marriage in order to change their gender an inclusion I know my self and most members of the transgender community welcome immensely.

I know that this letter will not get the same level of recognition and media attention as the 23 Conservative association Chairman that have today handed you a letter opposing equal marriage, but as a loyal supporter, proud conservative and hopefully future Conservative Councillor or MP (Offices I aspire to achieve during my lifetime) I hope you will take time to read it and take my comments on board.

Kind Regards

Tara Hewitt

Conservative Party Member
Wallasey Constituency

email: tara1985@hotmail.com

Tara Hewitt 4 UNISON NEC

Dear Friends

I’m writing to you to ask for your support for the Healthcare Service Sector Women’s seat on UNISON NEC.

Over my time in the student union and trade union movement I’ve campaigned on a huge variety of campaigns and been involved in representing and supporting members locally, regionally and nationally through individual case work and my work supporting UNISON’s wider equality agenda.

I believe now more than ever that the NEC needs to understand the needs and issues of local health branches, as we have seen with the pay cartels in the south west the picture is changing on a region by region basis and it’s important that as a union we are able to respond nationally to support branches with local problems big or small.

If elected I pledge to try to ensure the threats to the NHS are UNISON’s top priority and that we ensure members jobs across the health service are defended and stood up for by their representatives on the NEC. I will campaign to say NO to regional pay and ensure we fight hard against the pay cartels in the south west and we defend pay and conditions on a national level no ifs or buts.

I live by the values of localism, fairness and diversity they are the core of who I am as a campaigner and as a trade unionist. I believe that all local members should have a voice and that the full diversity of the union is represented nationally that is one of the reasons that as a young bisexual, transgender and disabled women I decided to put myself forward to seek election to the NEC. I will be a voice for equality on the NEC making sure no voice is ignored and no community’s view overshadowed.

In my job as an equality and diversity officer in the NHS I have had to fight hard often in the face of strong management opposition to help ensure my organisation is delivering personal, fair and diverse services to all and a workplace that’s free from harassment and that provides equal opportunities to every member of staff. I know what it’s like to knuckle down and take on a tough fight and I’m not afraid to stand my ground in the face of adversity. I would bring these skills to the NEC injecting energy, resilience and determination to ensure UNISON is best place to face the battles and challenges we have ahead over the next few years in the face of changes to the NHS and members struggling to just get by.

I am not an established face in UNISON and yes I am young but I have developed as a student unionist representing students as a full time officer and national representative and since joining UNISON I have progressed from a workplace steward to a branch officer and now a national representative and co convenor of the transgender caucus on UNISON National LGBT Committee. Standing for NEC is my next step, I want to bring fresh ideas, new energy and be an extra tool to support UNISON better defend our members rights, terms and conditions and Jobs nationally.

I hope you will give me this opportunity to take this next step in my trade union journey, help me be a voice for local health branches across the UK and please lend me your nomination for Healthcare Service Sector Women’s Seat on UNISON NEC.

Kind Regards

Tara Hewitt

Contact: tara1985@hotmail.com

Facebook Page: Tara Hewitt 4 UNISON NEC

Blue Blairite One Year on....

So it is one year ago today that I finally filled in the forms and took the leap to become a fully paid up member of the Conservative Party and I haven't looked back since.....

Over the last year I have made some amazing friends from across the UK and I've been inspired by the hard work and intelligent views of a whole range of individuals such as:

• Cllr Clare George-Hilley and her great work with Conservative Future Women (launch event was a great welcome to the party),
• Deborah Dunleavy an engaging professional women doing some truly fantastic work supporting women to succeed with Women2Win. (always feel inspired seeing what you have achieved)
• Alycia James one of the hardest working and most down to earth young Councillors I've met and one of the best friends I've made despite living miles apart!
• Charlotte Argyle a truly passionate positive campaigner who with her work with Conservative Women's Organisation and generally in the party has helped to make me feel valued and engaged with as a working professional women and young member, 
• Sarah Jane Sewell a fantastic Conservative Future Deputy Chairman who have enjoyed engaging with this year,
• Cllr Ian Lewis a truly all round package who is one of the party' true diamonds a person I feel privileged to call a friend
• Cllr Leah Fraser who has done nothing but make me feel welcome in the local party is hard working and a friend who I value a lot
• Ben Howlett Conservative Future's fabulous chairman who has lead CF from strength to strength and I know will go on to make a wonderful MP (will happy to turn up to help on your campaign!), 
• Salford bunch who I have enjoyed meeting at many events and sharing campaign geekery with on many occasions!
• The rest of Wirral Conservative party and Councillors many of who I have enjoyed meeting and campaigning with over the last year and who I am looking forward to hopefully being a candidate for with over the coming year fingers crossed, 
• Robert Manning a hard working great North West CF Chairman :)
• Oliver Cooper for being one of the most sensible and knowledgeable  Conservative Libertarians I've met and being an all round engaging guy.
• Cllr Pamela Hall for your fantastic work ethic, fun campaign sessions and your all round positivity!
• Tony Caldeira one of the most down to earth people I have met in politics you are under valued, been a pleasure getting to know you this year and working on your campaign for Liverpool Mayor last May
• Liverpool Conservative Party all of you have been a pleasure to know and made me feel welcome from day one,
• Esther McVey MP one of the most engaging MPs in Parliament and a pleasure to have as a local MP in Wirral!
• Louise Mensch who helped start me on my journey by opening the door to the party right at the beginning THANK YOU!
• Daniel Byles MP who ive enjoyed sharing views and engaging with throughout the yr via social media a real pleasure! 

I'm sure I've missed some other fabulous people but as you can see its been a wonderful year and the friends I've made have made it even better!

I started off the year as a new member disillusioned with politics from my time as a centrist Blairite in the Labour Party and since then I've met the Home Secretary, Several other government ministers, too many MPs to mention, Ive campaigned from Bradford West in the north to Corby in the south, became a party campaign coordinator, a conservative appointed school governor, an approved local government conservative candidate, part of the team planning a new Conservative Future Branch in Wirral and leading on developing the proposal for a new party organisation "Conservative Friends of the Falklands" (hoping party will accept the proposal when we have it developed). I now feel engaged valued and excited about my future and politics in general and know I am in a party who is taking the country in the right direction for a brighter and more sustainable future.

The conservative party values what you bring to the table not who is bringing it or what equality group you come from. I've found the harder you work the more valued your are and the more you get back in return these are the values the party lives by and the values we want to help instill into the country and in government and values which will help deliver a successful society where everyone has equal opportunity to succeed and where diversity is lived not just something you find on an equality tick box form or a glossy Labour Party leaflet.

THANK YOU EVERYONE I'VE MET xx