Unlock Democracy: Sign The Open Up Lobbying Joint Letter!

The Guardian reports today that lobbyists gave MPs and peers over £1.8m in 'perks' to all-party parliamentary groups last year[1]. With just 5% of lobbying activity aimed at Parliament likely to be covered by the government's proposals for a new lobbying register [2], we will still have very little idea how much in total is being spent to influence our politicians or for what purpose.

We have just 48 hours to submit our responses to the government's official consultation on their proposals to clean up lobbying. Will you sign our joint letter?

http://action.unlockdemocracy.org.uk/lobbying-letter

Lobbying affects everything we do, from our health service to the television we watch. The new Guardian report shows that the Associate All Party Health group received £117,000 in “membership fees” from 14 companies, funded trips to 27 countries, and free membership for peers and MPs to Weight Watchers.

It is crucial that we are given the full picture about who is trying to influence what policy decision. At the moment we have no idea. And the government's proposed new rules would only affect the practices of 1 in 4 lobbyists. Bizarrely, they would cover a group of small shops objecting to a new Tesco opening nearby if they hire a public affairs company to put their case to government but not Tesco’s own in-house lobbyists.

A partial register will do nothing to combat the perception that money talks in Westminster.  Too many loopholes will simply mean that the more disreputable side of lobbying will thrive.  We can’t allow this to continue.

More than 6,000 people have signed our open letter to Mark Harper, the minister in charge of regulating the lobbying industry.  Will you add your name?

http://action.unlockdemocracy.org.uk/lobbying-letter

We have just 48 hours left to take part in this consultation - it ends on Friday!  Let’s send a clear signal to the government and demand more transparency.

With best wishes,


Peter Facey
Director, Unlock Democracy

Notes:
[1] Guardian: MPs' £1.8m in perks revealed
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/apr/10/mps-lords-perks-revealed-parliament

[2] Independent: Lobbyists' register to leave Parliament awash with cash from big business
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lobbyists-register-to-leave-parliament-awash-with-cash-from-big-business-7609018.html

Bus Consultation: One Week To Go!

We're into the final week of the County Councils bus consultation which will officially end at 4pm on Friday the 9th December. The consultation is still accessible through the website;

http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/transport/around/buses/busconsultation.htm

Following on from the Conservative-controlled Councils disastrous decision to cut 100% of bus subsidies without any consultation this review was forced onto them as the only way of avoiding a Judicial Review.

Once the consultation has closed the results will be published and then Cabinet will propose what to do next. It's unlikely the entire cuts will be reversed, but hopefully some of the key subsidised routes across the County which are relied on by the most vulnerable in society will be saved.

Buses: Cut First, Ask Later

The County Council has paid a heavy price for its cavalier decision last February to cut 100% of bus subsidies.   No research had been conducted on people’s transport needs, and there was no plan in place for those who lack transport of their own and would end up stranded, though the council said it expected Community Transport to make up the difference.

In May an application for Judicial Review was lodged against the Council on several grounds, including lack of consultation.  In July the Council’s bid for £5 million from the government‘s Local Sustainable Transport Fund was denied, specifically on the basis that the Council had gone too far in its cuts.  The government refused to fill in the gaps.

In order to make the Judicial Review go away, the Council has been forced to consult on residents’ transport needs—something the Lib Dems have been pressing for all along.

It is now doing so, though the consultation is being run primarily via the council’s website:

http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/transport/around/buses/busconsultation.htm

Unfortunately the web version does not allow you to view the entire document before starting to respond.

Tree Strategy workshops

The City Council is consulting on its tree strategy: a matter that is close to many peoples hearts. As a way of getting public opinion at an early stage the City is holding three workshops.

Probably the most useful one for King's Hedges residents is on 21st March from 12 to 7pm in the Meadows Centre. However there are two others, one in Cherry Hinton Village at 12-7pm on March 15, and one at the Guildhall from 12 until 8pm on the 23rd March.

To quote from the information we've been sent:

The workshops will be interactive drop in events where issues and concerns, including options for addressing these concerns in the emerging Strategy, can be raised from the outset. You are invited to drop into any of these events and talk to Council officers about different aspects of tree management in areas like new neighbourhoods, Local Nature Reserves, and parks and open spaces. Council officers will collect the thoughts and ideas and use these to start developing the strategy.

As part of these events, the Council is organising specific slots for round table discussions. These sessions will be held at 2.30pm and 6pm at each event.

More information is available via email on treesconsultations@cambridge.gov.uk, or in case of difficulty contact one of the team.

Consultation on the Future of England's Forests

The Government has started a consultation on the future of England's forests. The Woodland Trust is one of many organisations that has come forward with grave concerns about the privatisation of the existing forests - they have started a "Save England's Ancient Forests" campaign.

I'm not quite sure that the Governments proposals will cause the level of damage that the Woodland Trust seems to be concerned about but I do share some of their concerns about the right of public access, and government funding for charities to take these forests on to name just two areas!

I'd encourage you to check the Woodland Trusts website (here) for information on their campaign and sign their petition (here). 

The government's consulation document is available online (here).

Consultation on a prescribed alteration to expand the size of St Laurence VA (RC) Primary School, Cambridge

Not quite within King's Hedges but I know this will affect a great many people both in King's Hedges and Arbury. The County Council has started a consultation about an alteration to the current capacity of the St Laurence Primary school on Arbury Road.

The increase represents approximately a 30% increase in capacity.

The text below comes from the consultation letter;

"Cambridgeshire County Council receives data annually from the National Health Service (NHS) on the number of children who have been born in Cambridgeshire. This data informs the pupil forecasts produced by the Council for individual schools. The Council has identified significant forecast pressure for school places in the City of Cambridge by September 2012. There is also a desire to secure additional Roman Catholic school places in the City.


In order to manage the number of additional children and the number of places available the Council is proposing to expand the size of St Laurence VA (RC) Primary School by increasing the Published Admission Number from 35 to 45. The current capacity of the school is 245, while the current number of pupils registered at the school is 240. The proposed new capacity will be for 315 places.


The Council has developed proposals with the Headteacher and the Governing Body to provide additional accommodation at the school. The scheme has been developed to fit into a space so as to have minimal effect on existing accommodation and playground areas. The plans will be available at the school for you to view at a surgery on Monday 24 January 2011 from 3.00 to 5.00 pm. Members of the Governing and the Headteacher will also be available should you wish to ask questions about this proposal.


The Council is conducting this consultation in accordance with guidance produced by the Department for Education (DfE). Our aim is to;
- Consult widely with all interested parties
- To be clear about our proposals, who may be affected, what we are asking and our timescales
- To ensure our consultation is clear, concise and widely accessible


Subject to the completion of this consultation, Cambridgeshire County Council intends to issue a statutory notice as part of the five stage process that will lead to the change:
- Consultation with parents and stakeholders
- Publication of the statutory proposal
- A period for representations
- Decision by County Council Cabinet
- An implementation period


You are asked to send any feedback to me directly via email or post at the address above by Friday 18 February 2011.


Yours faithfully


David Clark
Assistant Education Officer"


The address for responding to the consultation is;


David Clark
Assistant Education Officer
Children And Young People's Services
Strategy and Commissioning
Infrastructure: School Organisation and Planning (SOP)
Box No: CC1209
2nd Floor B Wing
Castle Court
Castle Hill
Cambridge
CB3 0AP

NHS Cambridgeshire Constitution: New Patient Rights

The NHS is currently having a consultation in the inclusion of two new rights into the NHS Constitution.

These are a new right in respect of waiting times and whether this right should include the current standard for treatment (within 18 weeks), and/or the current standard for urgent referrals for suspected cancer (2 weeks).

Also should GP's provide specified information to patients on their rights around a two-week referral?

And finally do people agree that a right to a NHS Health Check every five years for those aged 40-74 should be established.

If you have a view you can submit it into the consultation here (the actual form to submit an opinion is here).