Ed Davey Writes: A Clean Energy Revolution
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012 by aldcadmin

At the launch of the new Draft Bill on energy, Liberal Democrat Secretary of State of Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey, writes:

Over the next decade, around a fifth of existing power plants are due to close, against a background of increased energy demand and increasing prices. We need new investment simply to keep the lights on.

But more than that, we need a clean energy revolution to meet our ambitious climate change goals and make this the greenest government ever.

That’s why I am bringing forward a new Energy Bill today.

You can read more about our clean energy revolution here.

We also need to transform our energy market to reduce the risk and cost of low carbon technologies.

That’s what our Bill does.

The UK is fast becoming a world leader in renewable energy, especially in off shore wind. I want us to lead the world in Carbon Capture and Storage too.

And we are also tackling rising energy bills. Without reforming the energy market bills will rise by around £200 in the coming years. Our reforms will mean bills are around 4% lower than they otherwise would have been.

Going green is good for the economy, good for Britain and good for you.

Yours,


Ed Davey MP

Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

(Image licensed under Creative Commons from DECC)
Lib Dem Pupil Premium – A Message from Nick Clegg
Wednesday, May 16th, 2012 by aldcadmin
For me, nothing better illustrates the Liberal Democrat mission to make Britain a fairer place than our Pupil Premium: extra money for the most disadvantaged children in our schools.

We are letting schools decide the best way to spend this money.  I want to strike a deal with our schools and teachers: we’ll give you the cash, the freedom, and we’ll reward and celebrate your success.  But in return, we want you to redouble your efforts to close the gap between your poorer pupils and everyone else.  We won’t be telling you what to do; but we will be watching what you achieve.

(Click picture to play video)

It is shameful that, despite all the promise on a four or five year old’s first day at school, or the passion of their teachers, you can all too often plot that child’s path just by asking how much their parents earn.

The £2.5billion Pupil Premium was one of the four pledges on the front page of our manifesto.  And now, with Liberal Democrats in government, schools are using the money for things like breakfast clubs; homework clubs; or to provide one-to-one-tuition. These are the sort of experiences many middle class children take for granted but a poorer child might rarely enjoy.

Yesterday I visited a fantastic primary school to see how they are spending their Pupil Premium, highlight our new Summer Schools to ease the transition from primary to secondary, and to set out our plans to reward teachers and hold schools to account.

The Pupil Premium shows that, in tough times, we are implementing Liberal Democrat values and prioritising help for those pupils who need it most.

Best wishes,

Nick Clegg MP

Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister

PS Click here to find out how much money your local school will receive from the Liberal Democrats’ Pupil Premium.

Thank you for your support – I will continue working for you all year round
Posted May 10, 2012 * Comments(0)

I would like to thank everyone who supported me in the recent election here in Gleadless Valley. I was proud to stand as your Liberal Democrat candidate in the election and while I did not win, I would like to thank you if you were one of the many people who voted Liberal Democrat in this area.

I will continue as a local Liberal Democrat campaigner to tirelessly work to improve our neighbourhood and press the Labour administration to get the best deal possible to make our area a better place to live. For instance, just this morning I reported four blocked drains on Thirwell Road in Heeley to the council while I was on my way to work.

It is important to me to keep in touch with residents in our area, which I will continue to do via this website and by visiting residents. I know that if you share with me your concerns and tell me what issues are important to you then I can do a better job as a local campaigner. You can contact me and other local Lib Dem team members with any issues through the contact form on this website.

Thank you again for your support.

Yours sincerely,

Richard Shaw
Liberal Democrat campaigner in Gleadless Valley ward

P.S. The local Lib Dems work hard all year round, if we can help you in anyway please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Be Clear on Cancer – National Lung Cancer Awareness Campaign
Wednesday, May 9th, 2012 by aldcadmin

This week, Paul Burstow (Liberal Democrat minister at the Department of Health) has launched a national £4 million lung cancer awareness campaign. The campaign, the first of its kind, will use TV, radio and press adverts, and advertising on pharmacist bags and inside GP surgeries, to raise awareness of the disease.

One of its aims is to persuade anyone who has had a cough for more than three weeks to see their doctor.

You can find more information about coughing and lung cancer at the Department of Health website, here: http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/2012/05/coughing-could-be-a-sign-of-lung-cancer-2/

With 33,000 new cases diagnosed each year, lung cancer is a blight on the lives of far too many of our families and an early diagnosis can make all the difference. Please take the opportunity of the Be Clear on Cancer campaign to find out more about prevention and diagnosis, and to visit your local doctor if you’ve had a persistent cough – it is always better to be safe than sorry!

http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/tag/be-clear-on-cancer/

Labour’s record of waste
Posted April 30, 2012 * Comments(0)

Labour took control of Sheffield City Council in May 2011 and since then have squandered residents’ money, funding their own priorities over those of local people.

  • £2.2m on revamping meeting rooms Sheffield Town Hall;
  • £400,000 to ‘communicate’ their plan to end weekly bin collections;
  • £400,000 to fund full time Trade Union officials.

In addition to this, Labour councillors:

  • Refused extra funds from Government to save weekly bin collections;
  • Scrapped Liberal Democrat plans to give the lowest paid council workers a permanent £250 pay rise both this year and next year;
  • Rejected a plan to save £1.2 million by reducing the pay of senior Town Hall managers

Unlike Labour and the Conservatives, every Liberal Democrat council in England has either frozen or reduced council tax. Lib Dem run councils are opening libraries in Cardiff, Portsmouth and Bristol and Lib Dem councils are more likely than any other to give low-paid workers a pay rise.

The people of Sheffield deserve councillors who serve the interests of the community and who spend their money wisely.

By voting for me and other Liberal Democrat candidates this Thursday you can help us protect our prized green spaces, retain local services such as weekly bin collections and free green waste recycling and prevent the closure of three local dementia care homes.

You don’t need your polling card to vote. If you’re not sure where your polling station is, click here for a map of local polling stations and further information about voting in person.

Campaigning all year round – for you!
Posted April 20, 2012 * Comments(1)

I believe in being active in the community in which I live, trying to help make the area better for local people. This means working all year round, not just at election time, talking to local people, whether on the door-step or while out and about in the local area. It means asking people what bothers them and actually doing something about it!

As I live in Heeley I get to see and experience the problems that other local people face. If I see something while I’m out, be it whether I’m cycling to or from work, visiting the local shops, or just enjoying a walk in our local parks, I whip out my phone or notepad and I get in touch with the Council or StreetForce as soon as possible.  For example, a couple of weeks ago I reported several very deep potholes in the carpark of the Carrfield Medical Centre in Heeley and am pleased to report that they have now been filled in:

Repaired potholes in the carpark of Carrfield Medical Centre

Since getting involved with Sheffield Liberal Democrats I have been campaigning in the community with Denise Reaney (former councillor for Gleadless Valley and this year’s candidate for Graves Park) to learn what it takes to make a good councillor. It was while she was going door to door in my street last year that we met for the first time – the first time I had actually seen a councillor “in the wild”.

Richard with Denise Reaney at the Periwood in Woodseats, discussing what can be done to help restore the pond which is silting up.

Denise isn’t “phantom councillor” who you never see apart from at election time – she’s a great community politician who believes in going out and meeting local people face to face, seeing for herself what the issues are and doing something about them. It was her attitude to local service that helped me to decide to get involved too, going out knocking on doors and delivering leaflets in all weathers any chance I could – even on New Years Eve!

If I am elected I promise to be active in the community and available to all members of the community all year round, not just at election time. I will not be a “phantom councillor”.

No Lib Dem Council Has Raised Council Tax – Tim Farron
Tuesday, April 17th, 2012 by aldcadmin

Official reports have confirmed that no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has increased council tax for their residents. This is unlike both other major parties, many of which are increasing council tax by up to 3.5% this year.

Commenting on Labour and Conservative councils’ record on Council Tax, Liberal Democrat Party President, Tim Farron said:

“While Labour and the Tories fight over how many of their councils raised Council Tax, it’s clear that with the Liberal Democrats your money is safest: no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has raised Council Tax.

“Ordinary working families are struggling already with paying bills, without their councils increasing the burden.

“The choice in next month’s elections is clear: vote Liberal Democrat for financially responsible councils that create jobs. Vote Labour and the Tories for waste, mismanagement and tax rises.”

As well as freezing council tax across the country, Liberal Democrat councils are protecting front-line services, fighting to keep libraries and Sure Start centres open. This is in addition to the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in government, which after the Budget include a £130 income tax cut for all working families, the largest-ever rise in the basic state pension, an increase in child tax credits for the poorest families, and an increase in the Lib Dem Pupil Premium to £600 for every pupil receiving Free School Meals.

At every level of government, the Liberal Democrats are cutting taxes for low- and middle-earners and better targeting help to those that need it the most. It is a record of financial responsibility of which we can be proud.


Sheffield Lib Dems launch manifesto – waste collections and community funding to be saved
Posted April 11, 2012 * Comments(0)

Local Lib Dems and Tim Farron MP launch Sheffield Lib Dems 2012 local elections manifesto outside Park Hill flats.

Sheffield Liberal Democrats launched their 2012 local election manifesto today at Park Hill flats, into which Labour councillors have sunk £2.5m of taxpayer funds at the expense of local services. The manifesto includes commitments to restoring the free green waste recycling service, weekly general waste collections, restore community funding, establishing a Sheffield Investment Pot to develop local businesses with local money and double the number of local apprenticeship places.

Local Lib Dem councillors were joined by Lib Dem President Tim Farron MP who said:

“Across the country Lib Dem councillors are campaigning for a fair alternative to Labour’s plan to slash-and-burn services.

“Labour’s Town Hall bosses care more about blaming the Government than they do about listening to local people. Here in Sheffield, Labour politicians are protecting senior managers’ pay over the jobs of the low paid – that’s not a fairness I recognise.”

Cllr Shaffaq Mohammed, Leader of the Lib Dem Group on Sheffield City Council, said:

“Labour councillors are steadily heading back to pouring all funds into their ‘favoured areas’. Lib Dem campaigners will fight to ensure everyone gets a fair deal not just Labour’s favoured areas.

“Labour have made their priorities clear – Town Hall managers, their trade union pals, and the Park Hill development. Unfortunately, it has come at the expense of local people’s priorities. Our manifesto sets out the things that matter to local people, like having their bin collected every week.”

Read the full post and download our manifesto

Local Elections 2012 – Video
Wednesday, April 11th, 2012 by aldcadmin

A first look at part of this week’s Liberal Democrat Local Election Broadcast. This clip looks at our key pledge to cut taxes for working families, and celebrates the fact that Liberal Democrats in government have achieved:

  • The biggest-ever single uplift in the tax-free personal allowance
  • A £3.5 billion tax cut for working men and women
  • 840,000 of the lowest earners in the country lifted completely out of paying Income Tax

Next year, the allowance increases again (to £9,205) – within touching distance of our manifesto promise to increase the Income Tax threshold to £10,000.

These are all significant achievements that are already making a difference for millions of hard-working men and women across Britain. Real change for real families in tough times – promised and delivered by the Liberal Democrats.

Labour to charge £58 for green waste collection
Posted March 28, 2012 * Comments(0)

Endangered services? Waste collections and recycling have been slashed by Labour

I arrived home on Monday to find a letter from local refuse collectors Veolia offering to continue to empty my green garden waste wheelie bin every two weeks between April and December for the not inconsiderable sum of £57.60. This comes after the previously free service was needlessly axed (along with the weekly black bin collections) by Labour despite protests from local residents and Sheffield Liberal Democrats. I say needlessly because Liberal Democrats presented a financially sound alternative budget which would have preserved these and other services by modestly reducing senior-level Town Hall pay and other savings which would not threaten front-line council services. Labour instead have decided to, among other things, put three dementia care homes under threat of closure and slash community funding by up to 30%, except for the all-Labour-councillor North East Community Assembly which got a 15% rise even though it was already the most funded assembly!

This additional flat-rate charge (£57.60 for 8 months of bin collections, regardless of how many times you actually need to use the service) is also a further burden on the wallets of hard pressed families and is doubly unfair on those on lower incomes who still need to dispose of their garden waste somehow. Sheffield Lib Dems have described it as a stealth tax with Cllr Ian Auckland saying:

“At a time when Sheffielders will be receiving their council tax bill, Labour councillors plan to hit residents with an extra garden tax of up to £58. This will be a kick in the teeth for many families, particularly as they face losing their weekly black bin collection.

“Free city-wide garden waste collections have been hugely popular since they were introduced by the Lib Dems. We put forward a plan to save the service, but Labour councillors were more interested in protecting their fat cat salaries in the Town Hall.”

Local people I have spoken to have expressed concern that the withdrawal of the free green waste recycling service will cause more people to resort to burning their waste while those that have access to a car will have to take it to the tip themselves. Both of these will contribute to poorer air quality and traffic in Sheffield. If you too are concerned that these changes will adversely affect our community please sign the petition against the scrapping of the free green waste collection.

Previous