
Keeping up the Pressure on Recycling Proposals
Lib Dem councillors are having to be vigilant in order to keep the borough council's proposals on track.
Lib Dem councillors are having to be vigilant in order to keep the borough council's proposals on track.
The borough council is to hold a Public Meeting on Monday 14th April (starting at 7.30 pm at the Town Hall) to try and solve many of the issues surrounding the Stones Road area of Epsom. The green space at the end of Stones Road contains allotments and a pond which is classified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because it contains great crested newts.
Residents from Rosebank, Lib Dem councillors and activists all turned up to quiz the Local Committee at its meeting on 10th March. During the half hour public question time, Rosebank residents told the Committee about their parking problems and how they have to compete with shoppers, workers and commuters every day.
Surrey County Council's governing Executive Committee is set to meet at 2.30 pm on Tuesday 25 March 2008 to finally decide whether or not to lease Nonsuch Park and its Mansion House to the Epsom & Sutton councils whose joint management committee (JMC) has run the park for them for the last 70 years. Campaigners, including Sutton's Lib Dem MP, are encouraging those concerned about the future of Nonsuch to attend this meeting to demonstrate the strength of public feeling locally on this issue when D-Day (Decision Day) finally arrives
Lib Dem councillors and FOCUS teams throughout the borough are taking action to get a better deal on parking, parking enforcement, traffic and road safety.
With a formal "Motion" to the council already on the table (see earlier News Story) a campaign by the Daily Mail is now underway.
This Motion to Council is not an attempt to ignore the financial situation in which we find ourselves. Rather, it is a recognition of that situation and the need to get the best possible returns for the investment of the Council's money. Let me ask councillors a question. What sort of return do you think we get for every one pound given in grant to a voluntary organisation? Is it three pounds, six pounds, ten pounds? The information which I have gleaned leads me to believe that it is ten pounds or above; if so, the effect of the cuts will be more than £8 million in service provision. I think that any business would be delighted to have such a return on their investment and within a very short space of time.
Following pressure from the Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council, proposals to abandon the Student Fare Card Scheme have been withdrawn. The cards allow Surrey students up to 18 to travel at the under-16 rate. They remove a barrier to youngsters travelling to the course that suits them best, keeping them in the education system.
Dear Editor.
The Tory budget is proposing to cut grants to voluntary organisations in Surrey by £838,000. This means a significant reduction in the money available to organisations that have a fundamental role in supporting Surrey residents and will cause an already fragile sector to fail in key areas.
The Tories' BDR (Business Delivery Review) will adversely affect the County Council's countryside services. The proposals, if approved, will:
The Tories' Business Delivery Review (BDR) will hit Surrey Arts, Music and Museums. Surrey County Arts currently provides 278,000 music lessons annually. However, tuition fees in Surrey are already 30% higher than the national average. Some 42% of local authorities do not charge any tuition fees.