I would like to begin by paying tribute to two people who recently passed away who were devoted servants of the borough of Bury.

Sam Cohen was a Conservative councillor for Unsworth who was a dedicated public servant.

Paul Hilton was chair of Radcliffe FC. Not only did he devote countless hours to the club, but he was very instrumental in transforming their fortunes and leading them to their highest ever status.

I just wish my boyhood club, Prestwich Heys, would be as successful and move up the table.

On a happier note, can I also congratulate Bury FC, who, for all the challenges they have faced since their" rebirth", reached the final qualifying round of the FA Cup - beating local rivals Radcliffe on the way.

Bury, in their previous incarnation, were of course two times winners of the FA Cup.

I even remember them playing Manchester United in the FA Cup not so long ago (Google has subsequently confirmed it was in the third round in 1993).

I also want to discuss something that the Labour government are doing that I actually agree with.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting has launched a review of the NHS.

For a Labour minister he is surprisingly prepared to slaughter some sacred cows. He even seems prepared to take on the unions!

He has criticised some of the "back office" practices that are holding back progress.

One idea that he has floated is "beefing up" clinics. This is something I applaud.

In other countries GP surgeries are "clinics lite". In other words, there is no need for a GP to refer a patient to hospital for an outpatients appointment in order to have a scan or certain tests.

It can all be done in situ. This makes life easier for both the patient and the doctor.

It also reduces admin, costs and crucially reduces the time it takes to get results back.

Having thus far been very consensual and collegiate, I will end with what you would expect from a Tory politician- criticism of the government.

Arnie SaundersArnie Saunders (Image: Supplied)

We still have almost a week till the proposed "eve of Halloween" budget.

Although once upon a time the details of the budget were subject to "omerta" conditions, this particular budget has had more leaks than Manchester United's defence or a water company's sewage pipes.

If the leaks are to be believed, among other measures, the winter fuel allowance will be taken away from pensioners who do not receive pension credit (declaration of interest- having become a pensioner this year, I am one of those potentially affected!)

This will affect millions of pensioners, including disabled people, who are just on the wrong side of the cut off line for credit- including thousands in Bury.

There is still time to relent. The government would then be able to claim "the pension credit"!