Category: Thame news

EX Rugby player and keen Chess Player, Kaleem Saeed, Labour?s Election candidate for the Henley Constituency (which includes Thame), has swept into South Oxfordshire from Glasgow, undaunted by his Conservative opponent?s 8,000+ majority, really believing that he can win.
Realistic or not, nobody can say that Kaleem isn?t working hard to cover the whole constituency and doing his very best to get to know the area and talk to the voters.
I interviewed him over a cup of coffee in the Social, during a breather for coffee, or in his case, lemonade, from talking to local people visiting Thame?s Tuesday market.
I asked him about the issues local people were raising with him:
? ?War is an issue for some people but I believe that it was the right thing to do to get rid of Saddam; Most people tell me that whilst the way we went to war in Iraz does concern them, they don?t vote on one issue. I prefer to focus on the other achievements of the Labour government i.e. the introduction of the minimum wage, tax credits etc.?
? ?Student fees is another popular topic, but I ask them ? Where is the money going to come from otherwise? Their taxes? Money from the Health Service? From the education budget?
? The economy is the biggest issue for the waiverers; we have provided stability which is good for families, good for business, good for stability?
? ?What of Tony Blair himself?? I asked? Kaleem replied: ? He is the man who is behind all of this! He has radically changed so many things over the last 8 years and done what he said he would do before the last election.?
? I asked Kaleem to sum up the basic difference between himself and Boris Johnson;
?I am going to listen to people; He is good at being in the right place with the media but he doesn?t deliver on local issues i.e. the closure of Youth centre in Sonning Common ? where was Boris? Look at his statements on the Henley-Twyford line, where he got his facts wrong. He?s been too busy with his other affairs to listen to what is happening and so is misinformed. He admitted recently that he didn?t know his party?s policy on drugs!
? QUESTION: What about that majority last time? What makes you think you can defeat those numbers?
?Boris may have won in 1992, but the issues of today are different from the issues then. ?I will be a very good candidate and work on local issues. I am younger, have fresh ideas and am willing to listen.?
? QUESTION: The Lib Dems are fighting a hard campaign too and were the second-place party in 1992; doesn?t David Turner have the advantage as a known county councillor?
?I have shown more commitment than David Turner; I have not gone back to work after meetings! I have made the sacrifice, given up my job for the duration and have been campaigning since January, and I have an excellent team behind me.?
? QUESTION: What do you say to people who suggest that labour supporters to should vote tactically for the Lib Dems to get the Tories out?
?The Lib Dems are misleading people over the figures from last time; Labour were only 2,500 behind the Lib Dems ? that?s practically neck and neck. Tactical voting would only work if the difference between us were larger.
? QUESTION: If you did win the seat, would you come down and live in the Constituency? Yes

Kaleem concluded: ?If Boris wants to be MP again, he should give up his other commitments and serve people properly; he gives more commitment to The Spectator than on being an MP ? that?s not fair on his constituents.
Hezeltine had a majority of around 11,000, Boris had 8,000. There?s an obvious downward trend there. What I am saying to Conservative voters is, if this trend continues over the next two elections, their candidate is pulling their party down so they might as well vote for the right candidate now!
?Constituents should come first.?
Whatever your politics, there’s no denying that Kaleem Saeed is an astute and determined young politician who, whether he wins Henley or not, will make his mark in his party in the not so distant future.

POLICE are appealing for witnesses following a sexual assault on a teenage girl in Thame today (26/4).

Between 9.30am and 10am, a 16-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by a white man on the corner of Southern Road leading into Mitchell Close. The man grabbed the girl but she managed to run away when a woman walked past into the close.

PC Rachel Carter, based at Thame police station, said: ?The girl noticed the man moments earlier drive past her in Bell Lane in a white transit van.

?I?m especially keen to speak to the woman who passed the girl. I also appeal to anyone who witnessed the incident or saw a man acting suspiciously in Thame this morning to contact police immediately.?

The man is aged in his thirties, around 5ft 10ins, slim, with short, light brown, receding hair. He has very distinctive teeth with one of his front teeth overlapping another. He was wearing a light blue polo shirt and navy blue trousers.

Anyone with information that could assist police inquiries is urged to contact PC Rachel Carter at Thame police station, via 0845 8 505 505. If you don?t want to speak to police and don?t want to leave your name contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

THAME Police have urged vigilance following distraction burglaries in Thame and Oxford.

At around 4.30pm on Saturday afternoon, (April 23),two men claiming to be police officers entered the house of an elderly woman in Thame, in the Park Street area. They searched the house and threatened the lady, leaving with cash. The lady was very distressed but not hurt.
At around 3.20pm this afternoon two men, also claiming to be plain clothed police officers, entered the house of an elderly woman on Randolph Street in Oxford. They showed identification which may have looked like a police badge. It is not thought anything has been taken.

Police believe these incidents may be linked and could also be linked with attempted distraction burglaries in Oxford last weekend. The men were smartly dressed in dark suits, both men were white and between 20 and 30-years-old. They both had dark hair and were clean shaven. One was carrying a white plastic bag.

Det Con Francesca Sillitoe, of Thame CID, said: ?We would like to hear from anyone who has seen these men or had similar experiences. Do not let anyone into your house if you are not absolutely sure they are who they say they are. Real police officers will wait outside while you check who they are. You can check an officers identity by calling the police non emergency number on 0845 8 505 505, they will also carry photo ID.

?Please look out for your elderly relatives and neighbours and encourage them not to open the door to people they don?t know.?

If you have information please contact Det Con Sillitoe via 0845 8 505 505 or if you do not wish to speak to police call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

YOUNG Thame footballers taking part in an Oxford United training session today, stretched the Thame giant scarf all the way round the sports hall at the Thame Leisure Centre – all 460 ft of it.
The session was part of three 10 week coaching session led by two of United’s professional coaches, Steve Cutts and Chris Williams for 5 – 10 year-old boys and girls.
The picture will feature on Oxford United’s website and in a future match programme, in an effort to help find an owner for the monster muffler who will donate to the Mayor of Thame’s charities, the Thame Community car and the Dovecote Day Centre for people with dimentia.

THAME police are appealing for information following criminal damage to three vehicles in the Co-op car park.
Sometime between 6pm on Friday, April 15 and 9am the next morning, door mirrors were broken off the vehicles and deep scratches scored in their paintwork.
Any witnesses are asked to contact the police via the Enquiry line 08458 505505, or Crime Stoppers anonymously 0800 555111.

THAME United Football Club have had a planning application to use part of a field along Chinner Road to form two football pitches, turned down.
The new site, at Blackditch Farm, Chinnor Road Thame, would have included a car parking area and the formation of a new access point for vehicles on to the Chinnor Road.
On refusing the application, South Oxfordshire District Council stated:
“The proposals are contrary to policies G1, G5, C1, C6 and R4 of the Adopted South Oxfordshire Local Plan and to policies G2, G4, C1, C4, R1 and R4 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2011, Second Deposit Draft (September 2003). The site lies in an open green area which makes an important contribution to the landscape setting of Thame. The proposals, which include the removal of hedging, extensive access and footway works and the provision of a car park on the frontage of the site, would detract significantly from the rural character and appearance of the area and the landscape setting of the town.”

VISITORS to Thame from its twin French town of Montesson, have experienced one of the town’s most popular amenities.
As part of a weekend of shared activities, including a coach trip to the picturesque Cotswold village of Bourton-On-The-Water, some of the French visitors joined their hosts for a cycle ride along the Phoenix Trail, in the sunshine of Sunday morning.
Using borrowed bikes, the group set off from the Morton Lane crossing of the Trail, and cycled as far as Henton Crossing, stopping to learn about the sculptures along the way. Some of them enjoyed a pint of English beer in the garden of the Three Horse Shoes, in Towersey, on the return journey.
The Mayor of Montesson, Jean-francoise Bel, and his deputy, attended the Mayor’s Civic ball at the Spread Eagle, on Saturday evening.
During a farewell lunch at Thame town hall on Sunday afternoon, Thame’s Mayor, David Dodds, bravely spoke in French when he thanked the Thame host families who acccommodated the French, and wished for the continuation of the conviviality and developing relationship between Montesson and Thame.
Didier Bruzet, the Chair of Montesson’s Twinning committee, presented special diplomas to the eight Thame cyclists who cycled from Thame to Montesson over a period of three days, last September.
Members of Thame’s Twinning Association will be returning to stay in Montesson in September this year.
Information about Thame and District Twinning Association can be found on its website: http://www.thametwinning.org.uk/

Photograph: Cyclists from Thame and Montesson ‘take a breather’ by the Red Kite Seat, one of the sculptures along the Phoenix Trail.

THREE members of staff at Travelcare, Thame, are to enter this year’s ‘Race for Life’to raise money for cancer research.
The Race takes place at the University Parks in Oxford, On Sunday, June 5, starting at 11am.
Louise Clayson, Travel Care manager, said: “At this moment in time this is a very important charity
for me to support, as both my Grandad and cousin are terminally ill with cancer and my uncle died from Throat cancer earlier this Year.”
Anyone who would like to support Louise and her two colleagues, Debbie and Angela, can find out more about the Race for Life and the work of Cancer Research UK, by visiting www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/thameteam, or contact the girls directly at the branch:01844 215576

THAME councillors have failed to give their support to a proposal for a bigger, Christmas event to be held this year on a Sunday afternoon, leading into early evening.
The proposal was put forward by Thame Chamber of Commerce and some retailers in the town, who are now considering their position in any organisation of a future Christmas event.
Further details to follow.