Sally Allen: Timing is everything in life

Well, the last couple of weeks have been totally manic. Not only have I been wrestling with the very real possibility of standing as an Independent candidate in the Wellwood by-election, but I have also taken possession of two extremely beautiful and time-consuming Bernese Mountain dog puppies.

Anyone who has had a puppy will understand how full-on the commitment has to be. This has subsequently increased the dog family in our household to four, as I already have two very large Pyrenean Mountain dogs. You will no doubt think that I was crazy to even contemplate the new additions, but dogs give the most incredible rewards of fun, love and devotion, and Tootsie and Freddie, the Pyreneans, have given even more than that with their unconditional love. They are truly a blessing and better than any psychiatrist, lifting gloom as a matter of course.

So, acting as a 24-hour kennel maid and something handy to sink their razor-sharp claws and teeth into (not to be recommended to the faint-hearted) is the required effort needed to produce two more wonderful long-term friends. To me love and friends are the most important things in life, other than your health of course, which brings me back to the Wellswood by-election. I am still shell-shocked at having lost a very dear friend in the very special, Patrick Joyce, particularly as Patrick was taken long before his time. It is so incredibly sad, and I am sure that everyone who knew him feels the same. Patrick was so passionate in delivering the best he could in everything he did. He believed in doing good and helping his community in real terms, even if it meant taking a vast amount of flack by switching political parties.

Patrick dusted off the offensive brickbats with style and just carried on doing his compassionate best wherever he could. I wanted to honour his memory by standing as an Independent in the Wellswood Ward, as I do not believe that national politics should play any role whatsoever at local level. It has long been my belief that everyone should be apolitical when it comes to local politics; otherwise there is always the conflict of sticking together as a party for political gain, rather than doing what is best for the community. However, after considerable pressure to stand from all areas of the community, sadly after much soul searching, I have subsequently made the decision not to run for the Council. The list is quite long as to why I have decided against it, but basically the reason is that if I do anything, I like to do it to the best of my ability and frankly I just don't have the time to give it my best.

Firstly, having lost my brother a few months ago, I have his probate to finish, which is very complicated and will take me until at least the end of the year. This includes sorting out and finalising his affairs, which will necessitate me going back and forth to London with numerous obligatory absences from home. I also need to wind up two of his companies, as well as continue to run my own business. Most important of all, is Norman my husband, who is 94 years old, and he needs my attention plus of course the 4 dogs, two of which are the aforementioned 13-week-old puppies.

With the by-election a matter of weeks away, there is also a very clear technical problem. I don't have the required team of volunteers in place to help get me elected in such a short space of time. Standing as an Independent, is much more difficult as
there is no network to fallback on to assist with the necessary canvassing. So, with no database or electoral role and no team for door knocking or telephone calls, as the main parties provide, I have little chance of challenging. So, all things taken together, and very serious consideration given, it is a bridge too far at the moment. Timing is all in life and in another situation and moment in time, I would certainly have relished the opportunity to stand for the community where I was born and brought up. Wellswood is very special to me, and I strongly believe that it needs someone with passion who understands the area and residents well, if they are to do a good job representing this unique part of Torquay.

I don’t want to get politically driven about the candidates standing, so urge you to Google every one of them, even if you think you know them, it might focus your mind! I also urge you not to vote for a political party. It is far more important to vote for the calibre of the person who is standing. The conservatives will throw everything they can at trying to get their candidate elected and are already pounding the streets of Wellswood. This is currently the most important seat in the Council as it holds the balance of power; and balance is critical for good government. Any coalition is safer and more productive for the community than one party with total power. So please think long and hard before you cast your vote.

The other half of one of the candidates came up to me the other day asking why I wasn’t standing, and I said that it was due to my heavy load of commitments, otherwise I would. As I said earlier. Timing is everything in life. Amazingly the person continued to tell me that the job would only take 22 hours a week so allocating time to do the job would not be a problem. How incredibly deluded and how concerning for the community. Being a councillor is a full-time job if you are going to do it properly and do the best for your community. It can’t possibly be a part-time job to even just get to grips with the overall brief, let alone the major issues in retaining the specialness of Wellswood. How concerning. It is a 24/7 commitment – or should be!

I will do the best I can to help in any way I can, to get the best person for the job elected. In the meantime, I say again, please vote for the best candidate and not their party.