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12/01/10 :Anneliese and Naz praise 'resilient Reading':
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Anneliese Dodds and Naz Sarkar, Labour Parliamentary candidates for Reading East and West respectively, today issued a message of thanks to all Reading's "snow angels".
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Throughout the freezing cold snap, a wide variety of individuals and organisations have sprung into action to help others. Many residents formed teams to help motorists caught in the snow, with the Salvation Army and local churches offering shelter to stranded people, and St John's Ambulance providing medical support. Local shops have stayed open despite the snow. Staff at Reading Buses and at Reading station have been working hard to keep services running. Community wardens have worked hard to clear steps and get shopping for elderly residents. Care workers have trudged through icy conditions to ensure they get to service users. Doctors on call have driven through terrible conditions to ensure they can make house visits to those unable to travel in the snow. And Reading Borough Council workers have been doing their best to keep council services open and accessible where possible, and deal with the worst of the snow fall. |
Anneliese said: "It is easy to be critical at times like this. Many organisations - including local councils - have not faced conditions like this for many decades and we need to learn together how we can improve the response.
But that does not detract from the fact that we should be proud of the hard work of thousands of Reading people. We know that Reading has been named Britain's most economically resilient town. Now local people have shown that Reading is also a socially resilient town. From neighbours helping elderly people with their shopping to Reading bus drivers struggling to keep services moving, the dedication of local people has been tremendous".
And Naz said: "I know that Jo Lovelock, Reading's Council Leader, has asked the Chief Executive to call a meeting with neighbouring authorities, the emergency services and the Met Office to ensure they can all contribute to future plans.
I very much support that and hope that we can use the expertise of our dedicated front line public sector workers who worked so hard in Reading, to ensure those plans reflect any suggestions they have to make and that they get the best possible support when they are out there in freezing conditions ensuring the most vulnerable are protected".
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