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Safety fears lead to ban on lamppost election posters



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Published Date: 23 April 2008
By MARK McLAUGHLIN
THE traditional sight of election posters on lampposts is set to become a thing of the past in Midlothian – for health and safety reasons.
The council has agreed to impose a ban on the posters at future elections because of the risks involved in putting them up.

The local authority's director of commercial services, John Blair, said the practise of political activists scaling precar
iously-placed ladders presented "a clear risk to road users and untrained people erecting and removing posters adjacent to a trafficked road".

Midlothian Council sent a consultation paper to the Scottish Government and Scotland's 32 local authorities seeking guidance on the matter. The Scottish Government agreed the posters were unsightly and posed a danger to road users.

However, of the 13 local authorities that responded to the consultation, only Fife and Moray have already taken the same action.

A report was also sent by the Labour-controlled council to local representatives of all Scotland's other major political parties with the Tories, Lib Dems and SNP all in favour of a ban.

Local Conservative party leader Peter Smaill said: "Historically the purpose of mass poster campaigning was to identify the name of the candidate with the name of the party.

"The absence of the party name from the ballot paper was remedied many years ago so on this view, postering can be dropped."

But some of the smaller parties were taken aback by the proposals, fearing that they would be further marginalised by the move.

Midlothian Green Party convener Ian Baxter said: "An amendment to remove or reduce the presence of posters is likely to result in a reduction in turnout as a result of reduced voter awareness of the poll taking place."

The Scottish Socialist Party, meanwhile, branded the action "fundamentally undemocratic".

Despite the poor response from other local authorities and the smattering of party political objections, the ban was voted through unanimously by councillors yesterday.

Midlothian Provost Adam Montgomery said: "The sight of young men and women climbing ladders at all times of day and in all weathers, is clearly a cause for concern."





The full article contains 357 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 23 April 2008 11:27 AM
  • Source: Edinburgh Evening News
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Related Topics: Midlothian
 
1

BIG EYE,

Paisley 23/04/2008 12:09:30
I can see this spreading as Labour have no activists left and therefore if they have nobody to put up their posters then some way has to be found to stop all the other parties.

Absolutely unbelievable!!!
2

BIG EYE,

Paisley 23/04/2008 12:12:53
The next move will be to stop people crossing the road to get to the polling station as crossing roads can be dangerous, especially with Labour dropping in the polls.

Hundreds of Labour MP's councillors etc could be put at risk!
3

Alternative (High Octane) Fuel Head,

Edinburgh 23/04/2008 12:13:59
I can't see any risk at all in putting them up. However, having loads of vibrant, multi-colored, phosphourescent boards decorating all the lamp-posts is possibly a hazard to motorists.
4

Tr1xx,

Edinburgh 23/04/2008 12:19:55
Apparently 48,000 people a year in the UK attend hospital as a result of accidents involving ladders. Maybe it's time for GB et al to introduce a new law banning the manufacture, sale and use of ladders?

Only joking really, but then again . . . nothing surprises me these days.
5

fresian,

dubai 23/04/2008 12:21:10
plenty of hazards involved. can you imagine the shear forces being put on a corroded lamp post when somone the size of Paul Nolan is up the ladder.......Oh alright then, just carry on
6

Jock 1O7,

23/04/2008 12:50:49
They weren't real ladders - they were step-ladders!

Anyway, less litter if they're banned
7

Alasdair MacWhirter,

Still awaiting the results from Harare 23/04/2008 12:58:31
Does ANYONE decide what way to vote, influenced by these bits of cardboard, string and cable ties? How shallow if they do.
I just wish that those who put them up with such enthusiasm were as quick at taking them down within the statutory time limits after the hustings. There were Scottish Socialist and Labour posters drooping from lamp posts months after the last election. And, if the council are paying so much attention to them, why did they not enforce the removal of them and have the election agents reported to the PF under the legislation?
8

Scotish Exile,

23/04/2008 13:04:20
well done to Midlothian Council, these things are a bloody eyesore, and it can take months for the clowns to take them down again, should apply right across Scotland
9

John Knox furr First Meenister,

High St, Embra 23/04/2008 14:09:06
"Midlothian Green Party convener Ian Baxter said "

Ah Baxter! Me old mucker. So that's what you're up to. Making grandiose statements on behalf of yer august organisation. No change there then!

Agree with you, mind.
10

John Knox furr First Meenister,

High St, Embra 23/04/2008 14:12:25
Midlothian Provost Adam Montgomery said: "The sight of young men and women climbing ladders at all times of day and in all weathers, is clearly a cause for concern."

This man should stick to what he knows. This might not be a lot, mind.
11

Vincent-W,

23/04/2008 16:53:14
I'd like to see the risk assessment and a record of actual accidents which have occurred due to this activity.

My suspicion is that there has been a very low or zero accident rate and the risk assessment is flawed.
12

Seabhag,

Edinburgh 23/04/2008 17:29:06
In answer to 7 and 8 - lampost posters are not going to swing elections but 99.9% of them are taken down within days of the election and I personally think they add colour and a sense of occasion to elections. All the other public-facing stuff has gone: hustings, street stalls, cars with public address systems - all of which gave a sense that there was an election actually on. Now it is all PR men in suits deciding on scripts for minimum wage workers in call centres and viral emails. No wonder voters never bother. As 1 says this is all to do with Labour having no activists left and fearing to be exposed as such.
13

John Jamieson,

Edinburgh 23/04/2008 17:31:56
In the 1960s and 1970s helped to put up and took down posters for years in Morayshire. Can't remember anybody from any party falling off a ladder but did see one person step in a bucket of paste.
Posters were removed overnight on election day and that included all those put up for concerts, wrestling, circuses, etc.
So by tolerating election posters for a few weeks the authorities got rid of all the old posters, at least for a while.
14

Brian Hill,

Edinburgh 23/04/2008 21:12:01
More of this unbelievable PC rubbish. For God's sake these people should get a life instead of dreaming up new ways to keep us all safe. I for one am thoroughly sick of it.

On the one hand we are worried about people not voting and on the other hand the nutter brigade want to ban one of the major visible signs that an election is actually on.

This may come as as shock to some political anoraks but many people are not particularly interested in elections and many can go through the entire day without even realising or indeed caring that polling is taking place.

Posters, leaflets, stickers, loud speaker cars, car cavalcades are all ways of creating interesting in an election.

Can we get back to treating people like adults and allow them to lead their lives as they see fit.





15

Eve,

Scotland 23/04/2008 21:20:37
I wonder if that includes roundabouts. When I was wee they never put poster on the roundabouts BUT in more recent years the political parties do. They also only use to put them on every second lamb post now they put 2 on each lamppost for each party.

Though saying that it did have it's fun element. If you where going on wee day trip it would act as a certain form of entertainment. i.e. you could tell what the majourty of people suported by seeing what politcal party had the most posters up. Some areas only had one political party poster up.

To those who think they be less litter. I have an unfortunate thing to say, with out the lamb post posters they will be more leaflets handed out and that will cause even more litter. Unless the poster are moved to online. Either way there will be something to replace it.
16

Matt there,

somewhere 23/04/2008 23:11:05
Midlothian Provost Adam Montgomery... does he wears clown's shoes, and a big red nose? He should do. Then the public would recognise him for the undoubted clown that he is.
17

,

24/04/2008 00:01:40
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
18

Douglas,

Bathgate 01/05/2008 18:25:02
#4 Tr1xx: "Maybe it's time for GB et al to introduce a new law banning the manufacture, sale and use of ladders?"
Steps have already been taken. :o)

 

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