Out yesterday canvassing, delivering campaign newspapers, and talking to residents in Recreation Road, Acre Path, Batchelors Barn Road, Colenzo Drive and Seville Crescent. Thank you for the positive response I received from everyone and apologies to those I missed. I’ll try and get back to see you later.
All the comments I received will be passed on to councillors and council officers for them to follow up.
Len
Andover Lib Dems have selected well know local campaigner Len Gates as candidate for Andover North in the forthcoming county council elections.
Len lives in Andover with his wife Linda, he works as Technical Manager for a Hampshire fruit farm. For eight years he was borough councillor for Andover’s Alamein ward.
As a borough councillor he campaigned for a 30mph speed limit and a parish council in Enham; in Smannell and Little London he worked for better broadband and backed the campaign against the diversion of Smannell Road through the new housing at Augusta Park.
On Roman Way and Cricketers Way he opposed the closure of, and sale of land at, Shepherd Spring School; he founded the Roman Way Forum giving residents the opportunity to meet regularly and raise concerns with the police and council officers. On King Arthurs Way he successfully campaigned to keep the shop and post office open and he opposed plans to convert family homes into flats.
Len has worked with many local community groups and charities putting Andover and its residents first. While leader of the Liberal Democrats on Test Valley Borough Council he worked to set up Andover Town Council, opposed the sell-off of the Guildhall, and spoke out against the demolition of the band stand and the plans to close the hospital. He took the lead in campaigning against fluoridation of local water supplies, supported the development of Andover Airfield, bringing new jobs to the town, and opposed plans to move Twinings jobs to Poland.
Voting takes place on Thursday May 2nd if you haven’t registered to vote yet or need a postal vote contact Test Valley Borough Council on 01264 368000
Andover schools are set to get an extra £1.86 million in cash, thanks to Lib Dem action in government. The cash is an increase in “Pupil Premium” funding, which is a major Lib Dem priority to help schools. 2350 local children are expected to be eligible in 2013/14, but the funding will help all schools improve.
Liberal Democrats are building a strong economy and fair society where everyone can get ahead. I am proud that the Liberal Democrats are helping every child in Andover.
Action thanks to your Lib Dems!
So Test Valley Borough Council has decided to charge residents £25 for new wheely bins. Surely supplying the bin is part of the rubbish collection service.
Does Tesco charge for the use of supermarket trolleys?
What next – extra charges for actually emptyjng the bins into their lorries?
Test Valley Borough Council has agreed to implement changes to council tax introduced by Lib Dem Communities Minister Andrew Stunnell. The changes allow councils to end the council tax discount on second homes which cost local taxpayers £55,000 a year.
The new proposals also allow the council to charge an empty homes premium on any home left empty for more than two years. The extra income generated will go towards funding a local council tax support scheme which replaces council tax benefit this year.
Welcoming the news Cllr Katherine Bird said “Ending the discount will bring thousands of pounds back to support local services and help those most in need rather than helping those with multiple homes.”
I am delighted to see local Tories are making use of this initiative introduced by Lib Dems in the coalition. As well as generating extra income, these plans will help bring many urgently needed empty homes back into use.
Revising the unfair council tax system has always been a Lib Dem priority. We are delivering on that priority.
Today I received the following from Catherine Bearder MEP perfectly summing up the Prime Minister’s failure to provide clear leadership of this country’s role in Europe.
“Britain’s place in the European Union has been debated at great length over the last few weeks. The Prime Minister’s long-awaited speech meant I was asked to speak about the issue quite a lot on various local radio stations and newspaper articles.”
“Mr Cameron has doffed his cap to the right wing nationalists in the Tory party, whose real agenda is an immediate exit, and simultaneously put British growth, jobs and investment at risk. He pledges to work with the EU to fight terrorism and crime… then decides he wants to repatriate justice powers from Brussels. Businesses are confused, our EU partners are confused and, no doubt, the voter is confused.”
“Backbenchers in his own party demanded, and got, pledges on repatriating powers from ‘Brussels’. However, be warned, fellow EU member states are clear what they expect. Britain cannot be allowed to cherry pick elements of EU policy. A high degree of dithering is unhelpful for everyone at a time when a clear path forward for the union is needed.”
” Let’s face it, multinational companies looking to invest in Europe, the largest single market in the world will think again while Britain does not show a commitment to its partners and biggest export market for two, five or even 10 years? I imagine they will be weighing up options in Germany, the Netherlands, or any southern countries where the support for employment creation will be great.”
“Unlike Mr Cameron and many in the Conservative Party, I am 100 per cent sure where Britain’s interests lie. The UK has played a fundamental role in establishing the EU and we should play a fundamental and very influential role in its development.”
“Positive reform can only come through working closely with our European partners. Not by thumbing our nose from across the channel. In these difficult times, we must concentrate on the major economic challenges and the national interest; fixing the eurozone, protecting our trading rights and preserving our voice in Europe. Not, I stress, by threatening to turn our back and, in a delusional manner, wandering into an unknown future alone.”
I am disappointed but not really surprised by the county council’s short-sighted proposal to ban wind farms on county owned land (Andover Advertiser 25 January). What is particularly worrying is that such an important decision is not made by the full council representing local views but by the leader alone.
Wind farms have an important role to play in reducing our carbon emissions and Hampshire should have its fair share of them. There are adequate safeguards to prevent the building of wind farms in sensitive sites. The council could, and should, consider each case on its merits rather than adopt a blanket ban. The report on which this recommendation is based is flawed and written to satisfy a minority of climate change deniers and nimbies. Climate change is happening now and everyone, including Hampshire County Council, needs to address this.
The council already faces a £1.4 million bill because of its failure to reduce carbon emissions. Now it plans to further undermine energy efficiency by a blanket ban on a proven renewable energy source. Local people are already paying the price for burning excess carbon and future generations will continue to foot the bill for an ill-advised decision made by just one man.
(Picture Independent/Getty Images)
Hampshire Conservatives have once again been caught up in an embarrassing mess, after it emerged that they had forfeited £1.4 million in taxpayers’ money, paying for the County’s excessive energy emissions.
The County Council must pay a levy for every tonne of carbon emissions as a result of electricity and gas use, but residents were shocked to find that very little progress has been made to reduce emissions, with the County’s energy plan in tatters.
Local campaigners have accused the County of ‘dithering’ and failing to get on with the job, which has now led to the £1.4 million bill. Plans for solar panels on buildings were ditched last year, meaning the County missed out on maximum savings in energy bills that could have been used to keep Council tax down and protect local services.
Hampshire County is already ranked in the bottom half of the national energy efficiency league table, and it seems it hasn’t learnt it’s lesson after it was announced Conservative Council bosses were considering a blanket ban on windfarms, a move described as ‘bonkers’ by local campaigners. Residents fear this backwards thinking will mean another massive tax bill next year.
Local people are fed up of this needless waste of their money by the Conservative-run Council. If the County had got on with the job, it could have made our buildings more energy efficient and generated green electricity to save taxpayers money.It’s now paying the price, paying taxes for burning up excess carbon. Worse, it’s local residents who are once again being punished for Conservative County Chiefs’ dithering.
While the Lib Dems have got real action on pensions, local residents have been horrified to learn that Conservative-run Hampshire County Council has been investing cash Belfast’s Tesco, while rejecting to help local jobs in Andover!
CBRE Global Investors, acting on behalf of the County Council, has bought a £6.26m Tesco foodstore on Main Street in Limavady, with local businesses here continuing to struggle.
It is scandalous that when investment is so badly needed in Hampshire, our own County doesn’t just stand by, but actively invests elsewhere! Hampshire’s Pension Fund can and should be used to get high returns for Hampshire people.
Pension funds should be used to support local jobs and housing. Andover needs investment in jobs, and shops. When will the Conservative County Council start to back the Andover economy, with money for jobs, shops, services and homes for Andover residents?
Andover can’t afford any more Conservative waste and cuts!
Pensioners in Andover receiving the basic state pension are now £5.30 a week better off thanks to the Lib Dems.
This means that since the last general election 19,870 pensioners living in our area are almost £10 a week better off. I’m delighted that pensioners are being given the respect they deserve. This is in stark contrast to the last Labour Government which insulted pensioners with a 75p a week rise.
The Lib Dems’ pensions ‘triple lock guarantee’ means that the basic state pension will go up every year. It will rise in line with earnings, inflation, or by 2.5% – whichever is higher.
A guaranteed pension rise every year!