Adult Social Care Roadshow To Visit Libraries Across Cambridgeshire

Library visitors will have the chance to find out about local services to help them stay independent, safe and well at a series of roadshows taking place throughout 2012.

Focusing on providing preventative and self-help information to people who may need it, the roadshows will feature:

• a display of information
• presentations about assistive technology resources to help you remain independent 
• details of Trading Standards approved trader scheme – Buy With Confidence. 

In addition demonstrations of Your Life, Your Choice Cambridgeshire’s adult social care website will be taking place on the last day of each roadshow. Visitors will also have the opportunity to book a session with the Computer Buddy at their local library who will be able to help them to access the online information.

The full schedule of roadshows is:

• 24th January – 18th February Ramsey Library 
• 20th February – 17th March St Ives Library
• 16th April – 12th May Huntingdon Library
• 14th May – 9th June Cambourne Library
• 11th June – 7th July Central Library (Cambridge)
• 10th July – 4th August Ely Library
• 4th August – 1st September Chatteris Library
• 3rd September – 29th September Wisbech Library
• 1st October – 27th October March Library
• 29th October – 24th November St Neots Library

The roadshow will also be visiting Whittlesey Library in January 2013 (dates to be confirmed).

Anyone interested and requiring further information should call Cambridgeshire Direct on 0345 045 5225.

Tories In Pay Increase Row Told Help The Elderly Not Yourselves

Cambridgeshire Tories should invest £100,000 in cash-strapped care for the elderly rather than setting it aside to give themselves a pay rise, Lib Dems claim.

They have called on the Tories to allocate the money to Adult Social Care rather than use it to line their own pockets.

“At least that way if the Tories give themselves a pay rise the public will be able to see where they are taking the money from,” said Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrat Leader, Kilian Bourke.

“We should not be giving ourselves a pay rise when front-line services are being cut and people are losing their jobs.  Adult Social Care has been chronically underfunded for a number of years and desperately needs that money.”

The outcry follows a decision by the Tory administration on Cambridgeshire County Council to allocate £100,000 in its budget to fund an increase in councillors’ allowances. The decision comes despite the fact that the allowances panel which will discuss the matter has not even been appointed yet.

 "Given the outcry over the 25 per cent increase in councillor allowances some months ago, I find it incredible that this administration has chosen to set aside £100k in its budget for this purpose," said Cllr Bourke.

"It may only be a provision for a pay rise, but it is the equivalent of a 17.5 per cent increase in our basic allowances and that sends out a frankly incongruous message to members of the public who are facing hardship but paying their council tax."

Tories Heed Lib Dem Advice On Buses, Libraries And Roads And Back MP's Station Plan

Cllr Kilian Bourke (LD, Romsey)

Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats have welcomed the fact that county Tories have listened to their advice and scaled back cuts to buses and libraries and invested more in care for older people in their budget.

The Tories have also taken their lead from the Lib Dem Highways Review in proposing a massive up-front investment in roads, pavements and cycleways to halt the ongoing decline.

And they have supported a Lib Dem plan for a new railway station in Chesterton which is a personal triumph for Cambridge MP, Julian Huppert.

But the Lib Dems have expressed fears as to whether the Conservatives, who have a poor record at managing big projects, will be able make a success of this budget with its extra capital spending.

“This budget is half good and half bad. It shows the influence of an effective opposition as many ideas previously promoted by the Liberal Democrats have now been accepted by the Conservatives.

“The Conservatives have accepted that their cuts to many core services went way beyond what was necessary and scaled-back some of the worst. As a result the huge cuts to rural buses and plans to close libraries have been reduced; but substantial cuts will still go ahead and people who use these services will be far from reassured.

“The extra investment in Adult Care is a long overdue recognition from the Tories that this service has been chronically underfunded and mismanaged.

"The County Council's support for a new railway station in Chesterton is a great personal triumph for Cambridge’s MP, and the massive overhaul of our roads comes straight out of a Lib Dem Highways Review, and should stop the steady decline in their condition that the Tories have allowed."

“In terms of the overall financial picture we are deeply sceptical about the ability of the Conservatives to manage projects on this scale,” said Lib Dem Leader, Kilian Bourke. “With £90 million at stake in the Guided Bus court case, their track record on contract management is not reassuring.

But they added that their alternative budget will expose Tory inefficiency and waste, safeguard vital services and better provide for the long-term future of the people across the whole county.