East of England Liberal Democrats

Town Centres across the country are having to battle against a range of prevailing factors such as the economic situation and the rise of out-of-town and internet shopping. Here in Bedford we obviously face these issues just as all other towns do, and there are real challenges for our town centre. However, Bedford Town Centre is showing some real resilience and, while we must all recognise that there is lots to do to support and improve Bedford town centre, we have a number of reasons to be positive about its prospects for the future, as I wrote in my monthly article in the Times and Citizen this week. If you haven't seen it, I have reproduced it below:

The opening of a new 'jobs hub' in Bedford Town Centre is now not far away, with refurbishment work now underway on the premises in Greyfriars. This is pioneering new scheme, which we have pursued through the 'Bedford Borough Partnership Board' (the partnership of local public sector bodies, which I co-chair), will offer a unique approach to supporting people into work, training and business. The Hub is also being supported by Job Centre Plus, and will offer real support to people in an informal environment.

Cambridge MP, Julian Huppert and Liberal Democrat councillors answered a call for more blood platelet donors on Friday, May 18.

Julian and the five city and county councillors supported a campaign by the NHS Blood and Transplant service to find more platelet donors for the Cambridge Blood Donor Centre.

As part of the Liberal Democrat's commitment to reducing the Council's carbon footprint by an aspirational 40% by 2015, Bedford Borough Council has again been supporting Green Office Week.

Green Office Week runs from the 14^th to 18^th May and includes fun and practical ideas to help offices to work in more sustainable ways. Each day during Green Office Week is themed, and raises awareness of the different ways we can all be greener and reduce our impact on the environment.

Cllr David Kendall restated his commitment at last night's Annual Council meeting to take a 5% cut in his Leader of the Opposition Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) for the next financial year.

After being confirmed as Chair of Overview & Scrutiny, which also attracts an SRA, Cllr Barry Aspinell also confirmed that he will take a 5% cut.

Cllr David Kendall has questioned the ruling administration's "double standards" over the dichotomy of action taken by the Conservatives over the appointment of chairs.

Back in 2009, Lib Dem Deputy Leader Cllr Barry Aspinell was stripped of his chairmanship of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee whilst he was being investigated by the Standards Board (charges he was subsequently completely cleared of). However, this year, the Leader, Cllr Louise McKinlay, has appointed a number of her own councillors to the front bench despite them currently being under investigation by the Standards Board.

Cambridgeshire County Councillor, Geoff Heathcock has sent a formal complaint to telecom giant, BT, after frail, elderly residents were without working phone lines and unable to summon emergency help for 10 days.

Some of the pensioners rely on Personal Emergency Response Systems worn around their necks which allow them to raise the alarm through the speaker on the phone without having to reach the receiver.

Estimates of the potential cuts required to fire services across Cambridgeshire have been increased by £800,000 to a minimum of £5 million with fears this could go even higher if the government grant settlement for the service is low again this year.

The news has prompted the Tory-controlled Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Fire Authority to revise its savings plans and led to reinforced opposition to front-line cuts from the county's Liberal Democrats.