The Busway Local Liaison Forum - Wednesday 24 November

Attached are the papers for the next forum meeting, which will take place on Wednesday 24 November from 7 pm at Orchard Park Community Centre.

The contractors update will be available at the meeting.

If there are any local issues that need to be raised please let one of your local Councillors know.

Agenda/ Notes

North Area Committee: 25 November

The next North Area Committee is next Thursday, and the agenda is due out later this week.

The meeting will be at the usual venue, The Manor (School) on Arbury Road. We will start at 6.30pm with planning, and the main agenda at 7.30pm including the Open Forum: your chance to ask councillors about local issues.

I'll try to post more details when the agenda is published, but you will be able to get it from this page on the City Council website.

Planning app for a dropped kerb

It has been a while since we had a planning application in the ward but one is in the list this week.

It is for a dropped kerb outside 63 King's Hedges Road, and has application number 10/1036/FUL. As usual you can get details from the City Council development control web site or contact the team in case of difficulty.

Your community centre needs you!

Arbury and King’s Hedges residents are being urged to have their say on who runs their community centre.

Trustees of the Arbury Community Centre are to be elected at its Annual General Meeting tomorrow evening (Tuesday, November 16).

Councillor Neil McGovern, Chair of Trustees, said "With increasing bookings, a dedicated professional staff, as well as recent renovations our community centre is where it should be; right at the heart of the local community. As trustees we've done this by focussing on the unique needs of North Cambridge and providing a link between local group organisers and people interested in joining the groups."

County Councillor Andy Pellew, a trustee said "Engaging with the local community in this current economic climate is always going to be more difficult but it's vital, especially given the Government’s commitment to the 'Big Society', that successful Community Centres like this have the support of their local communities.

“I urge everyone to attend the AGM and have their say on who will run their community centre for the next year. If you would like to be more involved than that of course we’d welcome you."

Alan Soer, Centre Manager and Chair of King's Hedges Neighbourhood Partnership said "This government may be talking about the 'Big Society' but here in North Cambridge we've been doing this for years. Volunteering can be, in my experience, one of the most rewarding things you can do with your time - this isn't about endless meetings and nothing ever happening, we're at the cutting edge delivering services to real people for whom the benefits can be enormous".

The meeting takes place at 7.30pm at the Arbury Community Centre on Campkin Road (CB4 2LD). Parking is available on site. Enquiries should be directed to Alan Soer (Centre Manager) on 01223 712038.

CAPTION: Alan Soer (Centre Manager), Jo Flood (Vice Chair), and John Robershaw (Treasurer) from Arbury Community Centre Trustees

At the drop in surgery at Arbury Community Centre

Cllr Andy Pellew and myself are currently at the councillor drop-in session at Arbury Community Centre. It is a lovely day, so do come along if you wish to talk about any local issues. We are here until noon.

As you can see from the picture we do need a new sign! We should have one for the next session on 11 December 2010, and the second saturday of each month.

Thinking of becoming a councillor...?

If anyone in interested in standing as a City (or district) or County Councillor then there a couple of events coming up that might be of interest.

The first is run by the City Council and is on Wednesday 17th November at 6pm in the Committee Rooms at the Guildhall. This is for people who would like to stand for the City next May. More details will be published on the City Council website soon.

There is also a Be A Councillor event on 23 November at 7pm, for anyone in the Eastern Region who might like to stand for their councils. This requires you to register online. There are other dates (but these are in other Counties) as well.

There is lots of information on the Be A Councillor website, it is well worth a look. I'd encourage anyone who might be interested to think about it: it is very interesting, challenging and enjoyable.

You can also contact the team and we'd happily talk to you about it independent of any party allegiance.

Mobile phone mast changes in Kirkwood Road

Local councillors have received a somewhat short on detail letter about plans to site a consolidated O2 and Vodafone mast on Kirkwood Road, off King's Hedges Road in Cambridge.

I have written asking for more detail, and if you are interested in what may emerge please get in touch with us so we can keep you informed as we find out more.

We will of course update the blog when we find out more.

Halloween message from the police

Today is Halloween (and that is presumably why I saw Frankenstein's monster on a bicycle yesterday evening...). Subscribers to eCops have received the following mesage from the police:

HALLOWE’EN

I know that we have already made you aware of the precautions regarding Hallowe’en but just a quick reminder.

* Ideally children should be accompanied by an adult.
* Children should stay in groups, make sure at least one person has a mobile phone on them and not go out too late.
* Children should tell someone where they are going, what route they will be taking and what time to expect them back.
* Not everyone wants to get involved in Halloween and we ask children and parents to leave residents not wanting to take part in peace.

We hope everyone enjoys themselves and I’m sure we will see many of you on the night. If you have any issues or concerns during Hallowe’en, let us know on 0345 456 456 4.

If you don't wish to be disturbed you can download a poster from here in either colour or black and white.

Having said all that: if you are going trick-or-treating or to a Halloween event have a good time.

Councillor "drop in" sessions

If you'd like to talk to a member of the team about problems then we are pleased to announce we are starting drop in sessions at Arbury Community Centre on the second Saturday morning of each month.
The first one is on Saturday 13th November from 10 until noon.

Andy and I should be attending that one (and possibly other members of the team). No appointment is needed: we should be in the reception area, but will have private space if needed for your issue.

The next few dates will be

• 13 November
• 11 December
• 8 January 2011
• 12 February

Do come and say hello if you are around!

City Council: Keep our Libraries open!

At last Thursday's meeting of the full City Council meeting I proposed a motion to ask the County Council to rule out library closures in the City.

The motion was passed unanimously sending a strong message to the Conservative run County Council of how much our libraries are valued. Our library network is vital not only for the people of all ages who use it for educational and leisure purposes, but because it plays a key part in our communities.

Taking away our libraries impacts on the whole fabric of our society, denying people access to life-long learning opportunities and the wide range of events that take place there.

I grew up in a village with a travelling library so I also know the great benefits that rural libraries bring to people who have few other services. At the Cabinet meeting it appeared that Tories in the county council Cabinet know that libraries will be lost and they are fighting to protect those in their own wards.

We need to keep the pressure on the County Council to rule out closures anywhere in the County, but especially in King's Hedges.

Another planning app in Lovell Rd

This weeks weekly list has an application for a "two storey pitched roof extension with associated works" at 36 Lovell Rd. The application number is 10/0967/FUL, and details can be found in the usual places. In case of difficulty contact the team.

"Thank You" Party in King's Hedges

Sunday afternoon at the Arbury Community Centre we had a "Thank You" party for local activists who worked alongside your local Councillors to help get Julian Huppert elected to parliament and Simon Brierley elected to the City Council at the last elections.

It was good to be able to talk to and thank some of the people who haven't just helped with the last election but have helped us to deliver on our promise to be working for the people of King's Hedges "not just at elections, but all year round".

Julian Huppert MP recorded this message;

If you'd like to help in King's Hedges please get in touch.

Planning apps last week: Crowland Way

Last weeks list of planning applications had one in King's Hedges. The application was for a single storey front extension to 18 Crowland Way. The application is number 10/0909/FUL.

As always more details are available from the City Council's planning portal, or in person. In case of difficulty contact the team.

Coalition Agreement - Liberal Democrat Policies

Given that it's now been a few months since the political landscape in the UK changed forever I think it might be a good idea to reflect on the successes the Liberal Democrats have had in government and the foundation for those successes has to be the coalition agreement.

In light of this I'm providing the list of policies that are in the Coalition Agreement because the Liberal Democrats are in Government (well, according to the Guardian anyway).

Of the 399 policies in the agreement, 174 are solely from the Conservatives, 91 are solely from the Lib Dems, 80 were policies of both parties, and 54 are of unknown origin.

Looking at percentages this gives us 20% Liberal Democrat, 44% Conservative, 20% from Both Parties, and the final 14% seem to be what Nick Clegg/ David Cameron dreamed up on the spot (for example the AV Referendum).

The complete list of Liberal Democrat (and now Coalition) polices is below;

• We will bring forward detailed proposals for robust action to tackle unacceptable bonuses in the financial services sector; in developing these proposals, we will ensure they are effective in reducing risk.
• We want the banking system to serve business, not the other way round. We will bring forward detailed proposals to foster diversity in financial services, promote mutuals and create a more competitive banking industry.
• We will take steps to reduce systemic risk in the banking system and will establish an independent commission to investigate the complex issue of separating retail and investment banking in a sustainable way; while recognising that this will take time to get right, the commission will be given an initial time frame of one year to report.
• We will cut red tape by introducing a ‘one-in, one-out’ rule whereby no new regulation is brought in without other regulation being cut by a greater amount.
• We will impose ‘sunset clauses’ on regulations and regulators to ensure that the need for each regulation is regularly reviewed.
• We will find a practical way to make small business rate relief automatic.
• We will seek to ensure an injection of private capital into Royal Mail, including opportunities for employee ownership. We will retain Post Office Ltd in public ownership.
• We will seek to ensure a level playing field between small and large retailers by enabling councils to take competition issues into account when drawing up their local plans to shape the direction and type of new retail development.
• We will review the range of factors that can be considered by regulators when takeovers are proposed.
• We will reinstate an Operating and Financial Review to ensure that directors’ social and environmental duties have to be covered in company reporting, and investigate further ways of improving corporate accountability and transparency.
• We will ensure that Post Offices are allowed to offer a wide range of services in order to sustain the network, and we will look at the case for developing new sources of revenue, such as the creation of a Post Office Bank.
• We will end the so-called ‘gold-plating’ of EU rules, so that British businesses are not disadvantaged relative to their European competitors.
• We will introduce a Freedom Bill.
• We will scrap the ID card scheme, the National Identity register and the ContactPoint database, and halt the next generation of biometric passports.
• We will outlaw the finger-printing of children at school without parental permission.
• We will extend the scope of the Freedom of Information Act to provide greater transparency.
• We will protect historic freedoms through the defence of trial by jury.
• We will restore rights to non-violent protest.
• We will end the storage of internet and email records without good reason.
• We will introduce a new mechanism to prevent the proliferation of unnecessary new criminal offences.
• We will abolish the unelected Infrastructure Planning Commission and replace it with an efficient and democratically accountable system that provides a fast-track process for major infrastructure projects.
• We will maintain the Green Belt, Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and other environmental protections, and create a new designation – similar to SSSIs – to protect green areas of particular importance to local communities.
• We will explore a range of measures to bring empty homes into use.
• We will promote ‘Home on the Farm’ schemes that encourage farmers to convert existing buildings into affordable housing.
• We will phase out the ring-fencing of grants to local government and review the unfair Housing Revenue Account.
• We will require continuous improvements to the energy efficiency of new housing.
• We will introduce stronger consumer protections, including measures to end unfair bank and financial transaction charges.
• We will take forward measures to enhance customer service in the private and public sectors.
• We will increase households’ control over their energy costs by ensuring that energy bills provide information on how to move to the cheapest tariff offered by their supplier, and how each household’s energy usage compares to similar households.
• We will seek to extend protection and support to ‘off-grid’ energy consumers.
• We will seek to spread information on which policing techniques and sentences are most effective at cutting crime across the Criminal Justice System.
• We will have a full review of the terms and conditions for police officer employment.
• We will make hospitals share non-confidential information with the police so they know where gun and knife crime is happening and can target stop-and-search in gun and knife crime hot spots.
• We will promote better recording of hate crimes against disabled, homosexual and transgender people, which are frequently not centrally recorded.
• We will review the operation of the Extradition Act – and the US/UK extradition treaty – to make sure it is even-handed.
• We will maintain the independence of the BBC, and give the National Audit Office full access to the BBC’s accounts to ensure transparency.
• We will maintain free entry to national museums and galleries, and give national museums greater freedoms.
• We will examine the case for moving to a ‘gross profits tax’ system for the National Lottery, and reform the National Lottery so that more money goes into sport, the arts and heritage.
• We will use cash in dormant betting accounts to improve local sports facilities and support sports clubs.
• We will cut red tape to encourage the performance of more live music.
• We will look at whether there is scope to refurbish Armed Forces’ accommodation from efficiencies within the Ministry of Defence.
• We will support defence jobs through exports that are used for legitimate purposes, not internal repression, and will work for a full international ban on cluster munitions.
• We will hold a full Spending Review reporting this autumn, following a fully consultative process involving all tiers of government and the private sector.
• We will push for the EU to demonstrate leadership in tackling international climate change, including by supporting an increase in the EU emission reduction target to 30% by 2020.
• We will introduce measures to promote a huge increase in energy from waste through anaerobic digestion.
• We will refuse permission for additional runways at Gatwick and Stansted.
• We will replace Air Passenger Duty with a per-flight duty.
• We will work towards an ambitious global climate deal that will limit emissions and explore the creation of new international sources of funding for the purpose of climate change adaptation and mitigation.
• We will work towards full compliance with European Air Quality standards.
• We will investigate measures to help with fuel costs in remote rural areas, starting with pilot schemes.
• We will extend the right to request flexible working to all employees, consulting with business on how best to do so.
• We will undertake a fair pay review in the public sector to implement our proposed ‘20 times’ pay multiple.
• We will press for the European Parliament to have only one seat, in Brussels.
• We will maintain the goal of ending child poverty in the UK by 2020.
• We will reform the administration of tax credits to reduce fraud and overpayments.
• We will publish serious case reviews, with identifying details removed.
• We will regulate lobbying through introducing a statutory register of lobbyists and ensuring greater transparency.
• We will end the detention of children for immigration purposes.
• We support E-borders and will reintroduce exit checks.
• We will explore new ways to improve the current asylum system to speed up the processing of applications.
• We will support efforts to establish an International Arms Trade Treaty to limit the sales of arms to dangerous regimes.
• We will review what action can be taken against ‘vulture funds’.
• We will support reform of global financial institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in order to increase the involvement of developing nations.
• We will explore alternative forms of secure, treatment-based accommodation for mentally ill and drugs offenders.
• We will urgently review Control Orders, as part of a wider review of counter-terrorist legislation, measures and programmes. We will seek to find a practical way to allow the use of intercept evidence in court.
• We will ensure that there is a stronger voice for patients locally through directly elected individuals on the boards of their local primary care trust (PCT). The remainder of the PCT’s board will be appointed by the relevant local authority or authorities, and the Chief Executive and principal officers will be appointed by the Secretary of State on the advice of the new independent NHS board. This will ensure the right balance between locally accountable individuals and technical expertise.
• We will give every patient the right to choose to register with the GP they want, without being restricted by where they live.
• We will make the NHS work better by extending best practice on improving discharge from hospital, maximising the number of day care operations,
• reducing delays prior to operations, and where possible enabling community access to care and treatments.
• We will prioritise dementia research within the health research and development budget.
• We will seek to stop foreign healthcare professionals working in the NHS unless they have passed robust language and competence tests.
• Doctors and nurses need to be able to use their professional judgement about what is right for patients and we will support this by giving front-line staff more control of their working environment.
• We will encourage NHS organisations to work better with their local police forces to clamp down on anyone who is aggressive and abusive to staff.
• We will restore the earnings link for the basic state pension from April 2011, with a ‘triple guarantee’ that pensions are raised by the higher of earnings, prices or 2.5%.
• We will commit to establishing an independent commission to review the long-term affordability of public sector pensions, while protecting accrued rights.
• We will explore the potential to give people greater flexibility in accessing part of their personal pension fund early.
• We will establish five-year fixed-term Parliaments. We will put a binding motion before the House of Commons stating that the next general election will be held on the first Thursday of May 2015. Following this motion, we will legislate to make provision for fixed-term Parliaments of five years. This legislation will also provide for dissolution if 55% or more of the House votes in favour.
• We will bring forward a Referendum Bill on electoral reform, which includes provision for the introduction of the Alternative Vote in the event of a positive result in the referendum, as well as for the creation of fewer and more equal sized constituencies. We will whip both Parliamentary parties in both Houses to support a simple majority referendum on the Alternative Vote, without prejudice to the positions parties will take during such a referendum.
• We will review the control and use of accumulated and future revenues from the Fossil Fuel Levy in Scotland.
• We will fund a significant premium for disadvantaged pupils from outside the schools budget by reductions in spending elsewhere.
• We will help schools tackle bullying in schools, especially homophobic bullying.
• We will simplify the regulation of standards in education and target inspection on areas of failure.
• We will ensure that all new Academies follow an inclusive admissions policy. We will work with faith groups to enable more faith schools and facilitate inclusive admissions policies in as many of these schools as possible.
• We will reform Access to Work, so disabled people can apply for jobs with funding already secured for any adaptations and equipment they will need.
• We will increase the personal allowance for income tax to help lower and middle income earners. We will announce in the first Budget a substantial increase in the personal allowance from April 2011, with the benefits focused on those with lower and middle incomes.
• We will further increase the personal allowance to £10,000, making real terms steps each year towards meeting this as a longer-term policy objective. We will prioritise this over other tax cuts, including cuts to Inheritance Tax.
• We will reform the taxation of air travel by switching from a per-passenger to a per-plane duty, and will ensure that a proportion of any increased revenues over time will be used to help fund increases in the personal allowance.
• We will seek ways of taxing non-business capital gains at rates similar or close to those applied to income, with generous exemptions for entrepreneurial business activities.
• We will make every effort to tackle tax avoidance, including detailed development of Liberal Democrat proposals.
• We will review the taxation of non-domiciled individuals.
• We are committed to fair pricing for rail travel.
• We will ensure that public funding mechanisms for university research safeguard its academic integrity.

NOTE: This was originally posted on the Split Horizons Blog.

10 weeks on the Lib Dems have had huge influence in Government

In just 10 weeks since the start of the Coalition Government, the Liberal Democrats have exerted a huge influence over its agenda.

Going into the election the Liberal Democrats made clear that they had four key priorities: fairer taxes; a fair start for children with extra funding for disadvantaged pupils; a comprehensive clean up of our politics, including a fairer voting system; and a green, sustainable economy.

Thanks to Lib Dem involvement, the Government will deliver on each of these.

There are also a large number of other Lib Dem policies and pledges that will now begin to make a real, positive difference to people’s lives because of our role in the Coalition Government.

These include everything from rolling back the surveillance state and giving people back their civil liberties, to prison and NHS reforms, fairer pensions, the ending of child detention and the scrapping of the third runway at Heathrow.

Delivering on our promises

Fairer taxes

The Liberal Democrats promised to make the tax system fairer by ensuring no one pays tax on the first £10,000 they earn and closing loopholes that allow the wealthy to pay a smaller proportion of their income in tax than people on low and middle incomes.

The Coalition Government has already taken a huge step towards achieving this by raising the income tax threshold by £1,000 in last month’s Budget, saving low and middle earners £200 a year, and reforming Capital Gains Tax. The income tax threshold will continue to be increased every year during this Parliament.

The Liberal Democrats also promised to restore the earnings link to pensions, which the Government will now do.

We also promised wide scale banking reform, including a banking levy to make sure that banks pay for the financial support they received from the taxpayer. The levy, which will raise £2.5bn, was announced in the Budget.

A fair start for children

The Liberal Democrats promised to introduce a Pupil Premium to target extra money at disadvantaged children. The Coalition Agreement makes clear that this will now happen.

We also promised greater freedoms for teachers over the curriculum, which will also be brought in as a key part of the Coalition’s education reforms.

Fair politics

The Liberal Democrats promised a comprehensive clean up of the rotten political system. This is now a key part of the Coalition’s agenda for which Nick Clegg has responsibility.

The plans include:

• A referendum on the Alternative Vote to take place in May 2011

• The right to sack MPs guilty of serious misconduct

• Fixed term parliaments of five years

• Reform of party funding

• Moving towards an elected House of Lords, elected by proportional representation

• A statutory register of lobbyists

• A radical devolution of power and greater financial autonomy to local government and community groups

A green, sustainable economy

The Liberal Democrats promised a raft of policies to help the economy recover and make sure that we build a new green and sustainable economy fit for the 21st century.

A huge number of these policies will now become a reality, including:

• Tough action to tackle the deficit

• The creation of a green investment bank

• Reform of the banking system to make sure that banks lend to viable British businesses

• An independent commission on separating investment and retail banking

• Measures to improve energy efficiency in homes and businesses

• Support for low carbon energy production and an increase the target for energy from renewable sources

• Enabling the creation of a national high speed rail network

• The creation of a smart electricity grid and the roll-out of smart meters

• The establishment of an emissions performance standard that will prevent coal-fired power stations being built unless they are equipped with Carbon Capture and Storage Technology

• Replacing Air Passenger Duty with a per-plane duty

• The provision of a floor price for carbon, as well as working to persuade the EU to move towards full auctioning of ETS permits

Other Lib Dem policies that will now become a reality

The Liberal Democrats have long campaigned for the restoration of freedoms and civil liberties eroded under Labour and the rolling back of the surveillance state. A huge number of Lib Dem policies will now happen, including:

• The abolition of Identity Cards, the National Identity register, the next generation of biometric passports and the ContactPoint Database

• The repeal of unnecessary laws

• Further regulation of CCTV

• The outlawing of finger-printing of children at school without permission

• Extending the Freedom of Information Act

• Ending child detention for immigration purposes

• Removal of innocent people from the DNA database

There are also a host of other Lib Dem policies that will now happen under the Coalition Government. These include:

• Fair compensation for Equitable Life victims

• The modernisation of the Royal Mail

• Flexible working and promotion of equal pay

• Reform of the NHS to strengthen the voices of patients and the role of doctors

• A commission on long-term reform of social care

• Cutting Quangos and government bureaucracy

• Implementing the recommendations of the Calman Commission on Scottish devolution

• A referendum on further powers for the Welsh Assembly

Gritting Changes in North Cambridge

With Summer barely over I'm afraid the eyes of the County have already started to focus in on Winter as it completes it's review of gritting.

Following on from last years heavy snowfall the County Council has decided to "trim" the Gritting Network as a way of conserving resources and lowering costs. For us in King's Hedges the only change of note is that St. Kilda Avenue (between Campkin Road and King's Hedges Road) has been removed from the gritting network.

Despite the inconvience for local residents it does seem to make sense - both Campkin Road and King's Hedges Road are both to be gritted and these two roads join up a few hundred meters down the road - you can see on the map to the left (where the route is strangely still being highlighted!) that there are alternatives.

Note: Gritting is the responsibility of the County Council, not the City Council - the City Council has offered to make staff who can't do other work available for gritting providing the County provides both the grit and the legal indemnity.

Guided Busway Local Liaison Forum

The next meeting of the Liason Forum will be help in Orchard Park Community Centre on Thursday 16th September at 7pm.

I've attached the previous meeting minutes and the agenda for the next meeting.

If you have any "guided busway"-related issues you'd like either myself or any of the other local Councillors to raise please let me know.

20100520 The Busway Local Liaison Forum Meeting Minutes.pdf 28k Download
20100916 The Busway Local Liaison Forum Agenda.pdf 9k Download

LDV: Electronic voting

I've penned an article for Lib Dem Voice (a website run by Liberal Democrat Activists) on some disturbing news from India about new research into electronic voting;

http://www.libdemvoice.org/opinion-the-sordid-world-of-electronic-voting-21037.html

The article touches on some of the very real concerns raised by the introduction of Electronic Voting in India (the worlds largest democracy) - especially when the security of the voting system was questioned by independent researchers.

Take a look and let me know what you think!

Advance warning of North Area Committee

The next North Area Committee is scheduled for Thursday 30th September at Manor School, Arbury Road. As usual the meeting will start with planning at 6.30pm, and the Open Forum will start at 7.30pm, or after we complete the planning if we need more than an hour.

The Open Forum is a chance to raise questions to local City and County Councillors on any topic you wish.

I'll post about other agenda items when they are finalised.

Planning applications

Somewhat later than usual, but two planning applications have come in for King's Hedges in the last couple of weeks.

One for the erection of a conservatory to the rear of 18 Crossfield Court (ref 10/0787/FUL) and one for a single storey front and side extension to 44 Amwell Road (ref 10/0837/FUL).

As usual more information is available online from development control at the City Council, and in particular at the planning portal. You can also check plans in person, and in case of any difficulty contact the team.