http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/ Top stories for Barlow's brief http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049472_its_no_picnic_for_the_treetop_teddy_bears WITH Cheshire’s roads in perpetual chaos, schools under threat and selection procedures in turmoil, isn’t it comforting to know that county councillors have their eye on the ball? http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049472_its_no_picnic_for_the_treetop_teddy_bears Tue, 13 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049471_rats_to_fortnightly_collections REMEMBER when politicians told us high rise flats were the housing of the future before pulling them all down 20 years later? http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049471_rats_to_fortnightly_collections Tue, 13 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049470_shadow_elections_were_a_bit_dull SO, DID you cast your vote at the local elections? It was a mite confusing don’t you think? Initially I thought I was voting to elect ONE councillor; then I understood I could vote for THREE but if I voted for TWO it might negate my ballot paper but it didn’t, so I could. It was all a bit bizarre. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049470_shadow_elections_were_a_bit_dull Tue, 13 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049469_silk_road_memorial HAVING been pulled over by Cheshire Police for driving ‘too slowly’ down the Silk Road, I’m well aware of the 70mph speed limit. It’s the fastest road for miles around with motorists rocketing in both directions. It’s a freeway and stopping for anything other than an emergency is obviously forbidden. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1049469_silk_road_memorial Tue, 13 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048485_mps_are_in_need_of_leadership_lessons AS A KID, I often sat in our parlour listening to trade union meetings. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048485_mps_are_in_need_of_leadership_lessons Tue, 06 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048484_no_justice_for_the_lawabiding FOR ALL those police officers, magistrates, judges, solicitors and politicians who believe public scorn in the criminal justice system is unwarranted: read on. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048484_no_justice_for_the_lawabiding Tue, 06 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/s/1048482_truth_is_stranger_than_fiction I’M WRITING a new book and, as regular readers of my column, I thought I’d ask your opinion. This is the story so far: http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/s/1048482_truth_is_stranger_than_fiction Tue, 06 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048481_making_a_hash_of_our_reputation TAKE a look at the amount of cannabis growing in that house on Bridge Street. It was only discovered after firemen attended a blaze. Had that lot gone up in smoke, the whole of Cheshire would have been stoned for a month. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048481_making_a_hash_of_our_reputation Tue, 06 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048480_whats_so_special_about_wardens FOR THE past number of years, Macclesfield Borough Council have been shedding their responsibilities like snakeskin. Housing, highways, you name it… they don’t want it. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1048480_whats_so_special_about_wardens Tue, 06 May 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047580_police_must_give_us_what_we_want I WAS ruminating today on the demise of the village bobby. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047580_police_must_give_us_what_we_want Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047579_why_im_going_to_adopt_a_lowkey_approach_in_future_ IT’S A strange thing laying your life bare week after week in a local newspaper. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047579_why_im_going_to_adopt_a_lowkey_approach_in_future_ Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047577_how_to_keep_our_hospitals_clean_is_not_brain_surgery I’VE HAD a rather worrying call from a lady who’s just had an x-ray at Macclesfield General. "The staff were wonderful," she told me. "And the patient care was excellent." http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047577_how_to_keep_our_hospitals_clean_is_not_brain_surgery Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047575_are_workmen_on_another_planet DRIVING into Macclesfield yesterday morning, I encountered a team of workmen erecting temporary traffic lights on Byrons Lane. When I returned at 3pm, the lights were working, but the men were not. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047575_are_workmen_on_another_planet Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047574_residents_must_continue_to_fight SOMETIMES I feel like that little boy in The Emperor’s New Clothes. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1047574_residents_must_continue_to_fight Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046529_just_dont_spend_it_all_at_once I HAVE a wonderful letter from a 79-year-old reader advising me of the pension increase he will receive on reaching his 80th birthday. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046529_just_dont_spend_it_all_at_once Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046531_chance_to_make_real_difference WITH local elections little more than a week away, it’s important to have your say. Do not be confused; this is the simplest local election ever. There is no Cheshire County Council, no Macclesfield Borough Council, just the one East Cheshire Unitary Authority. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046531_chance_to_make_real_difference Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046532_i_cant_make_you_become_top_dog IN THE ten years I’ve been writing this column, I can honestly say I’ve never been offered a bribe. I’ve had the odd free jaffa cake and a few knuckle bones for the dogs, but never anything substantial. That is until my editor decided to run a Pet Idol competition. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046532_i_cant_make_you_become_top_dog Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046533_circus_protestors_should_stop_clowning_around WHEN Circus Mondao turned up recently in Poynton, I couldn’t decide what was more outdated: a travelling circus or animal rights protestors gathering outside. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046533_circus_protestors_should_stop_clowning_around Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046536_dont_delay_over_roadworks_claims SWANSEA department store JT Morgan is to sue the local council for trade lost claiming "badly managed" roadworks forced them into receivership. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1046536_dont_delay_over_roadworks_claims Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1045432_everythings_great_in_my_corner_of_the_nhs ASK anyone’s opinion of the NHS and you’re likely to hear it praised to the heavens or castigated as an inept third world organisation. If you’ve endured an agonising wait for test results left on some inept doctor’s desk for weeks or been confined to a filthy ward you’ll certainly have an opinion but it won't be good. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1045432_everythings_great_in_my_corner_of_the_nhs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1045431_tesco_would_never_allow_it THERE was a mini riot building up when I was dropped off at Macclesfield station this morning. The station had been converted into a fairground with all the adjacent car parks occupied by accompanying trucks. Train passengers arrived to find nowhere to leave their cars. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1045431_tesco_would_never_allow_it Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1045428_im_on_a_mission_for_canines I WAS very enthusiastic when Channel M suggested we make a TV programme from Manchester Dogs’ Home. I’m on a mission to keep dogs out of rescue centres and this was a God-given opportunity. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1045428_im_on_a_mission_for_canines Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044448_remember_those_old_playground_games I RETURNED home yesterday to find Mrs B throwing a couple of old tennis balls against the wall in the yard. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044448_remember_those_old_playground_games Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044446_got_lots_to_do_join_the_queue I HAD several things on my ‘to do list’ today, like posting an urgent airmail package and sorting out a problem with my bank. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044446_got_lots_to_do_join_the_queue Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044445_pupils_will_be_driven_to_distraction A TEACHER once wrote on my school report ‘Victor often looks miles away’. As from September, many Wilmslow pupils will be just that. In fact they’ll be so many miles away they’ll need to leave home at the crack of dawn to avoid detention. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044445_pupils_will_be_driven_to_distraction Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044444_parking_fines_are_just_an_easy_copout ACCORDING to the annual report from the National Parking Adjudication Service, parking fines have soared from 794,851 in 2000-1 to 3.58million in 2006 – a five-fold increase in six years, raising over £214million per annum. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1044444_parking_fines_are_just_an_easy_copout Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043420_hospital_decision_is_simply_baffling I’VE READ the assurances of Mike Pyrah, chief executive of the Primary Care Trust, concerning the future of A&E at Macclesfield General. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043420_hospital_decision_is_simply_baffling Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043419_success_of_play_is_no_mystery WITH A blizzard howling through the streets, I never expected to see a crowd gathering in Macclesfield town centre on Easter Saturday. But just like Baldrick, Sutton vicar Taffy Davies had "a cunning plan". http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043419_success_of_play_is_no_mystery Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043418_a_queensized_headache I’D BEEN in transit for 14 hours by the time I boarded my overnight flight from Atlanta. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043418_a_queensized_headache Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043414_twiggy_looks_better_now_shes_not_so_twiggy IS IT me or does Twiggy look better now than she did when she was err…Twiggy? http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043414_twiggy_looks_better_now_shes_not_so_twiggy Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043413_why_does_trouble_follow_us_brits HARTSFIELD-JACKSON Airport is one of the largest international hubs in North America. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1043413_why_does_trouble_follow_us_brits Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042429_nows_your_chance_for_a_real_election MACCLESFIELD Borough is looking for fresh councillors to stand in the May 1st elections for the new East Cheshire Authority. Now’s your chance. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042429_nows_your_chance_for_a_real_election Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042427_lawyer_is_lowest_of_the_law WHEN Keith Anderson was awarded £1.8M damages as a result of a horrific road accident leaving him paralysed from the chest down it was small compensation for the life of dependency he faced. With good financial advice and careful management it may have paid for the care he needed but Mr Anderson did not get good financial advice he got a crooked solicitor. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042427_lawyer_is_lowest_of_the_law Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042424_whos_going_to_remove_junk THE rules surrounding the disposal of waste at Macclesfield Borough Council tips become increasingly complex. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042424_whos_going_to_remove_junk Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042417_endangered_list I'VE received a number of e-mails regarding the £60K the, soon to be extinct, Cheshire County Council spent relocating four newts from a development site. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1042417_endangered_list Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041421_why_cant_mps_play_by_our_rules THE FURORE surrounding MPs’ expenses has made me think. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041421_why_cant_mps_play_by_our_rules Tue, 18 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041420_yet_another_cleanup_is_needed HERE we go again…another invasion of travellers. Having been moved off Macclesfield Leisure Centre car park travellers descended upon Whalley Hayes pay and display car park where they did neither. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041420_yet_another_cleanup_is_needed Tue, 18 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041419_charges_drive_custom_away WITH a whopping 25 per cent rise in some car park charges and an army of traffic wardens about to take to the streets, plus swingeing fines for offenders, town centre shopping is in terminal decline. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041419_charges_drive_custom_away Tue, 18 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000 http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041418_booze_issue_is_cultutre_not_cost I DON’T really understand the uproar about cheap alcohol. You can buy a standard bottle of Budweiser for 20p in many US supermarkets and you don’t find hordes of drunken yobs wandering the streets. http://www.wilmslowexpress.co.uk/news/barlow/s/1041418_booze_issue_is_cultutre_not_cost Tue, 18 Mar 2008 23:00:00 -0000