According to Henry Bolton, the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Runnymede & Weybridge, there is a real need to introduce a pension that ends means testing for the oldest pensioners and removes discrimination against women. He says, "Women should be entitled to a pension in their own right. The LibDems would address this immediately once in power."
A Unite/Mori student survey carried out in January 2004 on voting intentions gives the Lib Dems a leading share of 34%, with Labour on 28% and the Tories third on 19%. Students will have a major impact in 2005, as the elections are expected during the university year, on May 5, unlike in 2001 when the elections fell during the holiday period.
Commenting on the launch of an online map to tell homeowners about flooding risks in England and Wales, Norman Baker MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, said:
Liberal Democrat Leader Charles Kennedy today launched the Liberal Democrat Pre-manifesto - the first important stage in the manifesto process, which will take the Party into the General Election.
Under new Liberal Democrat proposals police chiefs would sign contracts with local communities setting out how many officers they would deploy. The "minimum policing guarantees" would set funding levels for local police for a rolling three-year period. The guarantees are part of the party's new plans to tackle crime. The plans include using money earmarked for the government's ID card plan to hire an extra 10,000 front line police and 20,000 community support officers.
Liberal Democrat county councillors have today welcomed the announcement that the County Council has extended the public consultation on the future of the Surrey Performing Arts Library to four weeks up to 1st October 2017. The Conservative-administration had previously only offered two weeks for library users to respond to the County Council's plans, which include closing the library in order to make savings of £180,000. Cllr Hazel Watson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council, said today:
Thousands of Surrey residents have responded to the County Council's consultation on whether to close four Community Recycling Centres, as well as slashing opening hours and increasing charges at those Centres which remain. The consultation generated 13,637 responses, one of the biggest ever, and now proceeds to the Conservative Cabinet who will make a decision at a meeting on 26th September. The consultation revealed huge support for the retention of the four threatened recycling centres in Dorking, Bagshot, Cranleigh and Warlingham with over 90% of the users of those sites wishing to retain them. Over 75% of those who responded also wished to retain the daily free waste allowance currently permitted by the county council.
The Liberal Democrats have launched a petition to save the Surrey Performing Arts Library which is under threat of closure by Surrey County Council. Surrey residents have reacted with dismay on hearing of the threatened closure and that the County Council's consultation exercise will give residents just two weeks to respond. The Library, which is currently based near Dorking at Denbies Wine Estate, houses a truly unique collection of music, theatre, orchestral and dance materials available for public loan. It also holds a specialist Vaughan Williams collection and permanent display covering the life and works of Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958), commemorating his strong links with the area where he lived and where he composed some of his most important pieces.
Liberal Democrat county councillors have expressed their concern after an independent body, Healthwatch Surrey, criticised the county council for a lack of engagement and consultation after changes to the provision of sexual health services. Healthwatch Surrey has written to the county council outlining their criticisms in relation to HIV services. The letter states that:
Ofsted has today published a letter summarising the findings of the recent monitoring visit to Surrey Children's services. This is the 8th monitoring visit since the County Council was inspected in 2014 and found to be inadequate in the Ofsted report published in 2015. In the latest monitoring visit, Ofsted inspectors noted recent improvements. However some changes have taken too long to achieve and children continue to receive an inconsistent response to their needs and for some, potential risks are not explored quickly enough. Cllr Chris Botten, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson on Children & Schools, said:
Liberal Democrat county councillors in Surrey have criticised the ruling Conservative administration for recruiting a £55,000 "Head of Strategy" post when at the same time planning staff redundancies and cutting services by millions of pounds. The advert, which has been posted extensively online and in the national press, seeks to recruit a "highly politically astute" individual who will be a "skilful networker" and "support the leadership" of the County Council. The salary offered is between £55484 to £66644 for a working week of 36 hours, with a laptop and mobile supplied.
