Cllr Steven Lambert and the Liberal Democrats at Aylesbury Vale District Council have called on AVDC to sign up to the 1010 campaign to reduce UK carbon emissions by 10% in 2010.
Speaking after the AVDC council meeting on Wednesday (9th September), Cllr Steven Lambert said “I have signed up and will do my bit to reduce my carbon footprint. Many local councils and organisations are signing up to pledge a personal 10% reduction. If we are to survive as a planet we need to act now. AVDC does take the climate change threat seriously and are working to reduce carbon emissions, but by AVDC signing up to this pledge we will be publicly committing our work to this and not just to council papers which only get seen by councillors”.

Cllr Alan Sherwell, the leader of the Liberal Democrats at Aylesbury Vale District Council has set in train the review of all new cases where AVDC have used the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (2000). The RIPA act allows local councils to intercept phone calls, access electronic data (such as emails and websites) and carry out covert surveillance by council officers
Alan Sherwell, who put a motion to Council, last Wednesday (9th September), said “great care has to be taken when the RIPA act is used, which is mostly for Benefit Fraud, our aim is to make sure that the council is using the act appropriately and that safeguards are put in place.
At the moment council officers need only inform the relevant cabinet member that an investigation is happening. The Lib Dem proposal will make sure that when a RIPA investigation happens, that a report is provided to the council’s audit committee, with personal information taken out, so that members of the council and not just officers and cabinet members, can be satisfied that the Act is being used appropriately.”

Aylesbury Liberal Democrats have called for the Government to award big pay rises to military personnel many of whom are risking their lives on the Afghanistan frontline. The new Liberal Democrat policy is set to give the worst paid servicemen and women, who earn less than trainee police officers and fire fighters, pay rises worth almost £6,000 a year.

Steven Lambert said “Every day young men and women are putting their lives on the line, fighting in terrible conditions in Afghanistan. “What is their reward from this Labour Government? Shockingly poor pay that leaves them on the poverty line and their families back at home hungry.

This policy would massively benefit so many servicemen and women living in Wendover, Aston Clinton and Aylesbury, who would be freed from the shackles of poor pay.

The Liberal Democrats will put a stop to this straight away. We will raise the pay of the lowest paid troops by an extra £6,000 a year. The average basic pay across the ranks of private and lance corporal would rise to around £25,000. We need to stop short-changing our troops.”

Notes for editors
1. New recruits to the police receive £22,680 basic pay. A junior firefighter receives £22,038 basic pay.
More than 51,000 members of the Armed Forces (over a quarter) receive less than that. About 13,000
personnel receive £16,681 – the basic pay for the lowest paid private.
2. Under Liberal Democrat proposals a fully trained private would receive an average basic hourly wage of
£9.44 (up from the current £6.74 an hour), amounting to £430 a week, a pay rise of £115.
3. The average basic pay across the ranks of private and lance corporal would rise to around £25,000. They
will receive an average basic hourly wage of £10.40 an hour, up from the current £8.80 an hour. That is
£480 a week, an extra £73 a week.
4. Hunger charity Foodbank has had to help 245 struggling military spouses and children in three years
(The Sun, 3 Aug 09). Foodbank’s Jeremy Ravn: “It’s very distressing to see Forces people in this state.
It is heartbreaking.”
5. The Liberal Democrat policy will cost between £300 and £400 million – one per cent of the Ministry of
Defence’s total budget. It will be paid for by reducing the number of civil servants within the MoD
where at the moment there is one desk job for every two servicemen.
6. For more information please visit www.NickClegg.com/ArmedForcesPay

The legality of the vote held at the District Council meeting is now in question after it was revealed that ten Tory Councilors were found to have publicly declared their opposition to the Southern Growth Arc just prior to it being abandoned last year.

Unusually although there was, apparently, a legal officer present at the meeting, the Tory chairman allowed the head of planning to answer the legal question on whether the Tory Ten had broken any rules. This meant that the Tory Ten, one of them representing Stoke Mandeville village, were told they could vote for the Eastern Arc and making sure that growth steered away from their areas in the south.

Cllr Steven Lambert who formally raised the question said “we sought legal advice throughout this process on what we could and couldn’t say to our residents and were told emphatically that we could not discuss definitive views or positions as this could prejudice our vote. Yet we find that up to ten Tory Councilors have done just that. I have raised this with the head of legal services as the Lib Dem team has been hamstrung yet the Tories have been allowed to say what they want. We are now challenging this decision and are awaiting a formal response.”

Liberal Democrat Town Councilor Julie Ward who represents x ward said “it was obvious that the Tories were going to oppose any motion put forward by the Lib Dems, but to then make a mockery of council protocols on obtaining legal advice is just foolish.

The meeting should have been suspended until proper legal advice was made available. How can you have the officer who put this plan together and therefore has an interest in getting it voted for, give legal advice on whether Councilors can vote or not. This officer is under the guidance of the Tory Cabinet, of course he was going to say its ok! We are now waiting for the response from the head of legal services and are seeking external advice on the matter.”

The Liberal Democrats stood up for up Aylesbury Vale residents at Wednesday’s full council meeting on the Local Development Framework. At the meeting the Cllr Avril Davies, the Liberal Democrat spokesperson on Strategic Development Control put forward a motion calling for the missing evidence to be bought forward and for the vote to be deferred till it was available.

Cllr Davies said “the motion set out our support for the LDF in principle but tried to buy more time so that councilors could review all the evidence relevant to the direction of growth around Aylesbury. Rather than taking a finely balanced decision on partial information, which is more likely to be thrown out at public enquiry. One Tory abstained; the rest voted the motion down leaving the council deeply exposed.

We accept that any strategy for growth will disadvantage some communities and all our villages and the residents of Aylesbury have the right to have their amenities protected as far as possible. We could not support the eastern arc strategy because of the disproportionate harm that it would bring to the communities of Bierton, Brought and Watermead, the flood risks, damage to the environment and lack of clarity on creation of employment.”

A straight southern strategy is also not acceptable either because of the disproportionate effect on Stoke Mandeville. No attempt was made at scrutiny or elsewhere to consider properly the sites to the north of the town nor possible hybrid options. The Council leaders were clearly determined to force their view through the Council without even a pretence of listening to local people. This failure will make it more difficult for the Council to defend its plan at enquiry and increase the likelihood of it being thrown out by the planning inspector.

Cllr Jenny Puddefoot, who is a Councilor for Watermead and Elmhurst, an area deeply affected by the plans said “I accept that there would have been a danger to planning powers if the LDF had been defeated. But it is not acceptable to use this threat to force the council to pass something that is unsound. Broughton is one of the Vale’s most ecologically fragile areas and development was thrown out there last time. What has changed since? Noting material that I can see.”

Cllr Alan Sherwell said “The Tories have argued that a change of government will mean a change of rules so that we do not have to take these houses. The Lib Dems also believe that planning decisions must be taken locally but, if a new government means that we do not have to take all these houses, then it must also mean that will reverse any loss of our planning powers. The Tories cannot have it both ways.”

Raj Khan said “We have seen stacks of evidence but what is still missing is crucial.” Cabinet member David Thompson admitted that he had seen evidence that the other members had not. “This admission is outrageous” said Cllr Julie Ward, the Aylesbury Town Councilor who spoke out as a public speaker concerning the shortfall of evidence. “Time and again I have called for all the relevant information to be bought forward. Cllr Thompson’s response clearly indicates that there are things we have not seen. I want to know if they would have materially affected the decision.”

Cllr Steve Patrick who represents Oakfield said “residents should not be in any doubt that that the officers who have put this plan together have done so under the guidance of the Tory Cabinet. The possibility of planning becoming a series of decisions by Inspectors rather than Councillors is now very real as we believe the plan that has been put forward is unsound.”

The Budget will do nothing for ordinary residents of Aylesbury who have been clobbered by rising food, fuel and transport prices, local Liberal Democrat have said. The Budget was criticised for failing to give much needed help to those struggling in recession by refusing to back Liberal Democrat calls to cut income tax by £700 for the vast majority of people.

Commenting Cllr Mary Baldwin, the Leader of the Liberal Democrats at the County Council said “as the cost of food, heating, water and transport continue to rise, families in Aylesbury haven’t been given any practical help by the Government. People who aren’t on huge salaries are noticing more and more of their cash is going on the basics. Gordon Brown should be putting money back into their pockets by cutting income tax for the vast majority of taxpayers by £700.”

Cllr Alan Sherwell the Leader of the Liberal Democrats at the District Council said “Britain’s taxes are too heavy on those who can least afford it and too easy to avoid for those who know how. Labour is out of ideas and out of steam. This Government has condemned us to years of unemployment and a decade of debt. The country deserves something different.”

County Councilor Steven Kennell the Aylesbury Liberal Democrat spokesman for Finance said “A Liberal Democrat budget would deliver practical help. It would take 4 million people out of paying tax all together and would cut the majority of people’s income tax by £700. Paid for by cutting loophole and exemptions that benefit the richest individuals and big business. We would cancel the pointless VAT cut and invest in important green projects that create jobs right now.

Meanwhile, the Conservatives are planning swingeing cuts at the very time that the country is expected to be gradually starting to recover. We would take big choices about what government should and shouldn’t do. With a shocking deficit this year of £175bn we need a national debate about what the state can and cannot afford in the future.

The Liberal Democrats believe that this is the responsible way – the honest way – to reduce spending in the years ahead and avoid painful higher taxes. The country deserves something better – a Liberal Democrat government, Vince Cable as Chancellor and a tax system that has everybody paying their fair share.”

Liberal Democrat Motion defeats Government

 LIBERAL Democrats in Aylesbury are delighted that Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrats forced the government into an embarrassing u-turn on proposals to allow those who had fought for Britain to remain in the UK.
County Councilor Freda Roberts said “the Government’s policy of deporting Gurkhas and not allowing them to settle in the UK after fighting for our country was shameful. The Gurkhas are brave people who have served the UK over many generations. We owe a debt of gratitude to their service”.
The vote on a Liberal Democrat motion was held in the House of Commons on 29th April and resulted in a shock defeat for the Government. “The Labour plans would have seen thousands of Gurkhas being deported from the UK,” said Aylesbury East councilor, Jenny Puddefoot, “but the Government was defeated because a few concerned Labour MPs defied their party bosses and backed the Gurkhas who have so bravely fought for Britain. The Government has a moral duty to support those who have put their lives on the line to protect our freedoms and fight for our country.”
The Government must take notice of the will of Parliament and bring back new proposals that will allow Gurkhas to stay rather than have them kicked out of the country. Gordon Brown must have a change of heart and bring forward new proposals as soon as possible.

Notes for editors
• On 29th April 2009, the Government lost a vote on the following Liberal Democrat motion on the right of Gurkhas to settle in the UK. The motion read:
That this House regrets the Government’s recent statement outlining the eligibility criteria for Gurkhas to reside in the United Kingdom; recognises the contribution the Gurkhas have made to the safety and freedom of the United Kingdom for the past 200 years; notes that more Gurkhas have laid down their lives for the United Kingdom than are estimated to want to live here; believes that Gurkhas who retired before 1997 should be treated fairly and in the same way as those who have retired since; is concerned that the Government’s new guidelines will permit only a small minority of Gurkhas and their families to settle whilst preventing the vast majority; further believes that people who are prepared to fight and die for the United Kingdom should be entitled to live in the country; and calls upon the Government to withdraw its new guidelines immediately and bring forward revised proposals that extend an equal right of residence to all Gurkhas.

Aylesbury Liberal Democrats are calling on Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS trust to do their part to tackle knife crime. 43 young people died from knife crime last year throughout the country.
Local Lib Dems believe there is a strong case for hospital accident and emergency units and the police to work together to identify knife crime black spots after information released under the Freedom of Information Act point to the experience in Cardiff where information is routinely passed on to the police about locations where injuries caused by knife crime take place to back up their call for hospitals and police to work together.
Worryingly when asked “Do the Accident and Emergency Departments within your trust collect details of the locations of any incidents from patients that present to you with injuries caused or suspected to be caused by violent criminal offences (including, but not limited to, gun shot wounds, stab wounds, and assaults with or without a weapon)” Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS trust said “The Trust has no formal mechanism for recording this information. It is not a routine question asked at reception.”
Police in Cardiff have been able to target the areas with the worst knife crime rates and have cut incidents by 40%. “There is clear evidence that when hospitals help the police build up a picture of where knife crime is taking place, areas with high numbers of incidents can be tackled,” said Cllr Mark Willis, the Lib Dem County Council Candidate for Aylesbury South, which includes Stoke Mandeville Hospital the Town’s only Accident and Emergency department.
“The Cardiff model allows for the information to be handed on by hospitals anonymously. The result is therefore a fall in knife crime by nearly half. Unfortunately, 4 out of 5 hospitals in England are not passing on this vital information to the police. Amongst them is Stoke Mandeville. I strongly urge a change in policy by Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS trust so that the risk of knife crime in Aylesbury can be cut.

Notes for editors
Background information

• The ‘Cardiff Model’, established in 2002, collects data from Accident and Emergency wards about the precise locations and times of violent incidents and shares them anonymously with the police. This new approach has led to a 40% drop in knife crime in some areas.

The figures, contained in replies to Freedom of Information requests shows that:
• Only 25 of the 123 NHS trusts which responded to Freedom of Information requests are following the Cardiff Model
• The situation is no better in the nine areas in England taking part in the Tackling Knives Action Programme, where only 10 out of 58 trusts (17.2%) are following the Cardiff Model
• Three areas had no trusts using the model – Essex, Lancashire and Nottinghamshire

The responses to the FOI requests from hospital trusts are attached.

Thousands of people in Aylesbury will be taken out of income tax altogether by new tax proposals launched by the Liberal Democrats. And thousands more will see their income tax bill slashed by £700 a year.
The plans were launched by Party Leader Nick Clegg on 20th April who said that they would boost family budgets battered by rising food, power and transport prices. The plans call for the personal tax allowance to be raised to £10,000. County and District Councillor Raj Kahn said, “Thousands of families on low income in Aylesbury will benefit from this tax cut. They will be lifted out of income tax altogether. People earning over £10,000 will pay £700 less income tax a year, paid for by ending the loopholes and tax avoidance schemes used by the wealthy and big corporations.
Commenting on the Liberal Democrat proposals, District Councillor Paul Hughes who represents Coldharbour Ward said “ordinary people like residents in Prebendal Farm, Hartwell and Fairford Leys are struggling because of the recession. Now is the time to make a far reaching and permanent change to the tax system that benefits those on low and middle incomes.
Chairman of the Aylesbury Liberal Democrats, Julian Newman said “the Liberal Democrats want to see more money left in the pockets of ordinary people rather than taken away by the Government. Here in Aylesbury the Liberal Democrats will be going into the general election committed to a lasting income tax cut.”

Notes for editors
Background information

• On 20th April Nick Clegg and Vince Cable launched new proposals on income tax. Low and middle income earners will be the gainers with the personal allowance being raised to £10,000. This will cut the vast majority of people’s income tax by £700 a year as well as lifting over 4 million people out of income tax altogether.
• The cost will be met by closing tax loopholes and clamping down on tax avoidance by the wealthy and large corporations. The proposal replaces the previous proposal to reduce the rate of income tax by 4p.

Aylesbury Liberal Democrats are asking where local MPs David Liddington and John Bercow were on Friday when MPs voted on a new parliamentary bill aimed at ending fuel poverty. The Bill was just 11 votes short of the number it needed to make progress.

Just one in ten Conservative MPs and one in fourteen Labour MPs were in Parliament to support the Bill. Nearly three quarters of Lib Dems were present but it was not enough to stop the Government blocking the Bill.

Cllr Steven Lambert the Liberal Democrat parliamentary spokesperson for Aylesbury said, “The Fuel Poverty Bill was ‘talked out’ by the Government on Friday because not enough MPs turned up to support it. It needed 100 MPs but it only got 89. This is a crying shame. With millions of people across Britain struggling to afford to heat their homes, this Bill is desperately needed. Many Aylesbury Vale residents will continue to worry about heating with many making the choice of heating their homes or eating. In the 21st century this is unacceptable.”

Liberal Democrat County Councillor Steven Kennell, who is the Lib Dem spokesman for Adult Social Care said “with such a narrow margin of failure it is really disappointing that our local MP were not in Parliament to support this important Bill. The Bill, which was proposed by Liberal Democrat MP David Heath, would deliver a massive home insulation programme which would halve the energy needed to heat the average home. And it would end the scandal of those who use pre-pay meters – generally the least well-off – paying higher rates for their gas and electricity.

Our best hope now is to put as much pressure as possible on the Government to change their minds and support the Bill. Without government support I am afraid it looks doomed. Campaign groups such as Consumer Focus and Age Concern have condemned the Government for blocking the Bill’s progress. Help the Aged have said that, “Millions of older people will be devastated and dismayed by this result.”

Notes for editors

• Details of the Warmer Homes Bill and Lib Dem polices can be found at www.endfuelpoverty.org.uk.

• NB. A household is said to be in fuel poverty if it needs to spend more than 10% of its income on fuel to maintain a satisfactory heating regime (usually 21 degrees for the main living area, and 18 degrees for other occupied rooms).