Simon Burgess

Simon Burgess, Chair of the St.James's Area Action Group and Labour & Co-op candidate for Brighton Kemptown, has taken down the Christmas lights in George Street, Brighton and disconnected the power to the Christmas lights in St.James's Street. The lights are too awkward and high in St.James's Street to take down with just a ladder so he is appealing to any local business to donate a few hours loan of a 'cherry picker' so that he can get the lights down to store for next year.

Though £8,000 was raised from businesses and individual to get lights up in the roads for the first time this year there isn't enough to pay contractors to remove them.

Mr Burgess said:
"I'm proud of the way that local businesses and individuals donated to get Christmas lights up for the first time this year especially in these tough economic times. Unfortunately there isn't enough to pay for them to be taken down commercially, so along with local decorator John Carden, we have done what we can up a ladder but now we need a cherry picker to reach up to 30 feet above the ground. I am hoping a business can generously offer us the free use of one for a few hours."

Zoe Delicata of Kemptown Tools, and Chair of the St.James's Area Business Group, said:
"This is typical of Simon, if something needs doing and we don't have the money he just gets stuck in and does it. A lot of businesses and individuals donated towards getting lights for St.James's and George Street but without Simon's dogged determination we would not have got them up, and we couldn't afford to take them down."

Anyone who can lend a cherry picker can contact Simon on 01273 330710 or email:
simon@simonburgess.org