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.

Changes are on the way for GP services in Weston town centre
Posted May 9, 2012 * Comments(0)

Have your say on changes proposed to the services offered by the GP practice and Walk-in Centre at Weston General Hospital and the Boulevard.

You can find out more by visiting: www.northsomerset.nhs.uk

Or you can attend one of the public meetings being held by the NHS to seek your views:

Thursday 10 May at 7pm, 12-14 The Boulevard

Wednesday 16 May at 2.30pm, The Badger Centre, Wadham Street

Alternatively, please let us know your views by emailing us.

Cllr Mike Bell or Cllr Clare Kingsbury-Bell

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/

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.


“One rule for Weston, another for the rest of the district” as on street pay and display parking hits town centre
Posted April 11, 2012 * Comments(0)
North Somerset Council’s ruling Conservative Executive will meet next week to approve plans to introduce on-street pay and display parking charges for much of Weston-super-Mare town centre.
The proposals include:
  • Pay and display meters on 28 town centre streets with parking charges of £1.20 an hour
  • Charges to be imposed 9am to 6pm, Monday to Satuday
  • A parking permit for town centre residents giving an hour’s free on-street parking in the morning and at night charged at £62 per annum
  • A ‘Tradesman Permit’ costing £20.80 per day
  • A 10p per hour reduction in short stay off-street parking charges
If approved next week, consultation will commence immediately with the intention that the new scheme could be implemented later in the year. The Weston scheme will cost a total of £324,000 to set up and will have annual running costs of £237,000. The council expects the scheme to generate £327,000 in revenue and parking fines in a full year – a surplus of £66,000 which they expect to rise to almost £100,000 a year by year two.
Councillor Mike Bell (Lib Dem, Weston Central), who represents most of the area affected by the proposed on-street charging scheme, said: “Businesses and residents have been pressing for a new, fairer parking scheme for many years. But this isn’t it.
“Town centre residents will be significantly worse off, forced to pay to park near their home or cough up for expensive permits which guarantee nothing. The scheme proposes to do nothing about the inevitable knock on effect of motorists parking in roads just outside the pay and display zone. Most people I speak to who live in streets like Jubilee Road, Stafford Place or around Ellenborough Park think parking is bad now. It’s only going to get worse.
“But worst of all this is a continuation of the unfair policy of hitting Weston. It’s one rule for Weston and another for the rest of the district. Weston residents already have high charges on the seafront – £7 a day – and in our off-street car parks. Now, visitors and residents will be expected to pay on street as well. Meanwhile, the council is happy to have no charges at all in Portishead or Nailsea and almost none in Clevedon.
“Not content with taking £1.5 million in parking income from Weston, North Somerset Council wants more. We need to see the profit taken out of parking and a fair deal for residents and businesses right across the district.”
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.

Public toilets could be closed for good
Posted April 2, 2012 * Comments(0)
THOSE desperate to spend a penny could soon be faced with the prospect of having to pay for the privilege in North Somerset’s public toilets – or see the facilities close for good.
The council is looking to persuade town and parish councils or private individuals to run the conveniences in order to save cash.
The authority is hoping to save £400,000 by transferring its responsibilities for running toilets across the district from 2013/14.
The proposal, which is contained in North Somerset Council’s budget papers, suggests passing them over to parish or town councils, letting them as part of concessions so, for example, someone running a seafront café would also run the toilet, or closing them altogether to achieve the saving.
Although the authority says it is ‘far from inevitable’ that charges could be introduced, North Somerset councillor Mike Bell says there is a danger the public could end up with an ‘unfortunate’ choice of losing even more public toilets or have public toilets where fees apply.
He said: “No concessionaire is going to want to run expensive toilets for nothing and will at least want to cover their costs.
“So where the toilet is kept, we could see charges of 20p or more.
“Tourists, those with young children, older people, pregnant women, people with disabilities – they will all have need of an accessible and clean public toilet.
“Closing more or asking people to pay is simply wrong.
“We already have scandalously high parking charges on the seafront and in the town centre.
“The prospect of on-street parking charges is looming. Now we will be asking people to pay to spend a penny too – that is if they can find a public toilet that is not boarded up or demolished.
“It sends the wrong message and will harm our tourist industry and our economy.
“North Somerset Council must think again on this, consult widely and put the interests of residents and visitors before its bottom line.”
There are currently 29 public toilets across North Somerset, 15 in Weston, with only three left around the seafront.
A North Somerset Council spokesman said: “We are looking at a number of options at the moment and have been having discussions with town and parish councils.
“Those discussions are ongoing and no decisions have been reached yet.”
A few years ago Birnbeck Road, Carlton Street and the Uphill beach toilets were closed and over the years many of the seafront and town centre ones have also been shut.
North Somerset to benefit from Mary Portas cash boost
Posted March 30, 2012 * Comments(0)
HIGH Streets in North Somerset are set for a much-needed cash boost following a Government-supported report by a television shopping expert.
Following Mary Portas’ high street review, North Somerset Council will benefit from a £100,000 grant from the Department for Communities and Local Government.
The authority says the money will be used to improve the ‘vibrancy and look’ of the district’s main shopping areas.
Last year shopping guru Ms Portas compiled a Government-supported report which recommended a variety of options to boost the nation’s ailing high streets.
Among her recommendations were introducing new town management teams, affordable town centre car parking, disincentives for landlords who left shops empty, and adopting a ‘town centre first’ approaching to planning.
Today (Fri) the Government has responded by launching a new package of help for town centres, such as a £1million fund for the most creative and effective schemes to revitalise high streets and introducing national markets day.
North Somerset is one of five authorities in the South West to benefit from the £100,000 grants from the High Street Innovation Fund.
Although it is currently unclear how the money will be used across the district, in Weston the council is likely to work in conjunction with the Business Improvement District (BID) which was recently voted in.
A spokesman for North Somerset Council said; “We welcome the announcement today that we have been given a grant of £100,000 as part of the Government’s support of the Portas review.
“We will be looking at exactly how we can use this money to improve the vibrancy and look of the area’s high streets.”
Liberal Democrat councillor Mike Bell, who represents much of Weston’s High Street, said: “This cash is really important in helping North Somerset to tackle the very real challenges faced by our high streets – namely vacant premises, the poor retailer mix, absentee landlords who are disinterested in the community and unaffordable business rates, especially for new businesses.
“I hope that North Somerset Council, the Town Centre Partnership and the Business Improvement District team can work together with landlords, businesses and the community to use this money as a real catalyst for change in our high street and retail economy.”
For The Many, Not The Few: Budget Message from Nick Clegg
Wednesday, March 21st, 2012 by aldcadmin

We can be proud that the biggest tax cuts in today’s Budget go to millions of working families.

As a result of this Budget, someone working a full week on minimum wage will see their income tax bill cut by over 50% compared to under Labour.

Increasing the personal allowance to £9,205 takes us within touching distance of our number one manifesto pledge – ensuring no one pays any tax on the first £10,000 they earn.

Thanks to our changes, a basic rate taxpayer will be paying £45 a month less in tax than they would have been under Labour.

We can be proud that we’ve ensured the richest in our society will be paying more, much more.

The Tycoon Tax, an increase in stamp duty for high value properties and other new taxes on wealth will raise five times as much as the 50p tax rate. Those with annual incomes of more than £150,000 a year will be paying on average an additional £1,300 a year in tax, as a result of this Budget.

Of course, this is a Coalition Budget and we did not get our own way on everything. Conservative priorities are not ours. But as on so many other issues, we have made sure that there is a real Liberal Democrat stamp on this Budget.

Lower taxes for more than 20 million working people; effective new taxes on the rich.

This is a Budget we can be proud of – a Budget for the many, not the few.

Best wishes,

The best road out of the bad times
Sunday, March 11th, 2012 by aldcadmin

2012 is going to show the best of Britain. With the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, we’ll be celebrating our past but with our face to the future and the change it will bring. In Government, the Liberal Democrats are at the heart of that change.

Of course, times are tough. Families are under pressure, worried about paying their bills. That’s why we’re cutting tax for working people while calling time on the tycoon tax dodgers.

From next month, 25 million working people will have more money in their pocket, because of us. You can help spread the word about our £60 tax cut by clicking here.


 Going green is not a luxury for the good times – Liberals have always fought to protect the environment, and that’s why we’re part of the greenest government this country has ever had. Not only are we making the right choices for the environment, we’re putting green policies at the heart of our economic recovery.

This is a liberal nation with liberal values; hard work, fair play and a sense of freedom. I’m proud that the Liberal Democrats in Government are repairing Labour’s industrial-scale destruction of that liberty.

Just think for a moment what we’ll have achieved by 2015. The first gay marriage, and end to child detention and the first elections to the House of Lords, to name just three.

These are just some clips from the speech Nick Clegg MP,  Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister made to the Gateshead Lib Dem conference, for the text of his full speech click here.

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