Councillor Warns Lack of Student Housing May Stymie Sustainable Growth

B&NES Council last week adopted a position on the sustainable growth of the district. 

Councillor Shaun McGall spoke in the debate and warned that the Universities are not planning to build adequate student accommodation to keep up with their intended growth in student numbers.  This could have a negative effect on the sustainability of growth in the district. 

I welcomed the development of a long term corporate position to deliver sustainable growth and the link to refreshing the community strategy. 

It is worthwhile noting the corporate priority to improve the availability of affordable housing. 

The ‘Future for Bath’ highlights the strength of our local education sector.  I know this first hand through working at the University of Bath and studying at Bath Spa University.  The Future for Bath vision includes the need for ‘appropriate provision for student accommodation’.  This is all to be welcomed, however history does not support the optimistic idea that either the Council or our Higher Education partners will be able to deliver this goal. 

Since 1990 there has been an increase of approximately 75% in the numbers of students at the Bath Spa University, but only a 67% increase in accommodation – this equates to an increase of 2500 students but only 300 beds.  Similarly the University of Bath, since 1990, has increased from around 4000 students to around 12000 today.  In its recent consultation on its draft Masterplan 2008-2020, the University of Bath stated an intended growth of between 2000 to 6000 students by 2020 but they only plan to build a maximum of around 2300 new bed spaces. 

These growth plans for our Higher Education partners are potentially NOT sustainable for our community especially if we are serious about increasing the number of affordable homes in the area. 

Purpose built student housing growth MUST outweigh and outgrow the growth in student numbers if we want balanced and sustainable communities.

B&NES ‘Opts-In’ to Sustainable Communities Act

Liberal Democrat Councillors have welcomed the adoption of their motion on the Sustainable Communities Act.  By adopting the motion B&NES Council has resolved to “use, to the full, its powers under the Act by preparing and submitting proposals to central government”. 

The Act became law in 2007 and gives Councils the opportunity to make proposals to make proposals to Government to encourage the improvement of the economic, social or environmental wellbeing of the local area. 

This Act empowers local communities to raise issues and get their voices heard.  It works on the principle that local people know best what is needed for their area. 

The Act can be used to address issues such as over-concentration of second homes or student houses, ‘clone cities’ and protection of post offices and local shopping areas. 

Now the Council needs to decide how it will advise and help communities develop proposals to be submitted to local government and how it will evaluate these proposals. 

This is a great opportunity for Councils to reverse the trend of removing services from local communities.  Under this act the Council should be able to make devolution and decentralisation into reality.

Lib Dems Back Gurkha Rights

Liberal Democrats are campaigning for the rights of Gurkhas who are being denied citizenship and full pensions. 

It’s an ongoing disgrace: Gurkhas who retired from the British Army after 1997 can automatically stay in the UK, but those who retired earlier must apply, and many have been refused and face deportation.  Pension rights for years served by Gurkhas before 1997 count at only around a quarter of the level of years served after that time. 

On Tuesday 30th September, in a test case, the High Court ruled their treatment had been unlawful in terms of the right to live in the UK if they retired before 1997.  Following that decision, a huge campaign has been started to get the Government to change the law on how it treats Gurkhas. 

Now Liberal Democrats on Bath and North East Somerset Council are backing a motion calling for equal treatment for Gurkhas.  The Liberal Democrats have been firmly backing the Justice Campaign, and have consistently raised this issue in Parliament.  Our position is unequivocal: The government must allow all Gurkhas who risked their lives serving in our armed forces to become British citizens, and enjoy equal rights.  If someone is prepared to die for our country they should have the right to live in our country. 

I have signed the Gurkha Justice petition as have many of my Liberal Democrat colleagues here in B&NES. 

The motion coincides with a massive rally in London and the submission of a petition signed by 180,000 people to Number 10 Downing Street by Joanna Lumley.

B&NES Conservatives Refuse Independent Review of Bath Transportation Package

Conservative Councillors in B&NES have come under fire tonight for refusing to consider an independent review of the Bath Transportation Package. 

The Liberal Democrat motion which was tabled at the November Full Council meeting was intended to permit a proper debate on the Package, which has caused so much controversy.  However the Conservative Group forced through an amendment, which was also backed by Labour and Independent Councillors, to maintain nothing more than the status quo. 

We are still not convinced that all the alternatives have been properly looked at and that there has been real and meaningful consultation.  Once again the Conservatives have shut their ears to the protests which have been raised by the very people who will be worst affected by the scheme. 

The Conservatives seem only to be concerned with quibbling about who voted for what and when in the past.  But residents care more about what is on the table right now.  It is clear that the other parties do not care about residents’ concerns. 

The present situation is different in many ways to that agreed in the local transport plan, so the Tories should listen to the electorate and agree to an independent review to show the people that they are listening.  But we suspects as usual they won’t listen yet again.

National House-building drop shows how unrealistic house target is

In the wake of Government figures that show house-building has dropped by a third in the last quarter and almost a half since this period last year, Bath MP Don Foster has once against called into question the realism of the 21,300 new homes target for Bath and North East Somerset. 

Don said that these figures show that the house building market is slowing massively, and yet the Government is asking us to significantly increase house building locally. 

The average number of homes built in the authority over the last 10 years is 400 per year.  The Government target means we’ll have to build at 1,100 units per year.  It shows that the Government really is barking mad. 

Private finance is drying up, and the affordable housing we need is not going to be built unless the Government loosens the shackles on local authorities and social landlords. 

We need to be able to focus our efforts into building affordable homes for those that need them, not having to reach some pie-in-the-sky Government target.

70% Care Charge Hike: Real Cost Revealed

Massive price hikes have led to a drop-off in demand for Council services according to opposition Councillors on Bath and North East Somerset Council. 

Liberal Democrats on the Council committee scrutinising Health and Older People’s issues have strongly and consistently opposed the Cabinet member’s decision, made earlier this year, to put up prices of community meals, transport and home care. 

Now a report to the Healthier Communities and Older People Overview and Scrutiny Panel of the Council shows that many people have stopped having home help since Conservative Council chiefs increased the charges and a number of residents have cancelled meals due to the price increases. 

We said that this would be the wrong decision and the Cabinet member ignored us.  When we organised a challenge to these price hikes, back in April, we warned the Cabinet member that our vulnerable residents would probably reduce their care and we tried to persuade him to change his mind. 

We dread to think of the difficult circumstances these people and their relatives have to face as a result of the Cabinet member’s decision. 

We remain opposed to these increases and believe that, given the current economic climate of rising costs and falling interest rates, service users will struggle to secure the care they need.

Lib Dem Comment on B&NES’ New Recycling Partnership

Sadly Bath’s recycling contract has now passed from the ‘third sector’ (not for profit) for the first time.  May Gurney has a good reputation, so let’s hope that the need for this PLC to make a profit does not interfere with service to residents.  I am encouraged by Nicola Peake’s comments and wish the Company well. 

The Council is once again silent on the broken promise to collect ‘kitchen’ waste (including cooked food), which would further boost our recycling and composting rate to around 60%, reducing the damage that this organic waste does to the environment and making B&NES the top recycling council in the country.

Fourth Place is Not Good Enough on Recycling

The Conservative-run Cabinet of Bath and North East Somerset Council has become complacent about recycling and waste policies.  As the first Council to adopt a zero waste policy, under Liberal Democrat leadership, B&NES Council was seen as a trailblazer on recycling.  However since the new Administration took over however the Council’s waste record is becoming a damp squib. 

The Cabinet are happy to congratulate themselves about Government statistics, but meanwhile they are once again considering delaying their promised introduction of kitchen waste collections – now saying this could be put off till 2011 – and same day collections of waste and recycling will now not come in till 2009.  These measures would already have been in place under Liberal Democrat plans and local recycling rates would have been nearly 60% by the end of next year. 

This latest boast from the Administration should really be an admission that recycling and global warming are not high on their agenda.  77% of B&NES residents recycle – residents clearly want to do their bit and want to start now.

B&NES Cabinet Determined to Railroad BRT Through

The Conservative-run Cabinet of Bath and North East Somerset Council is determined to railroad the Bus Rapid Transit through against the wishes of residents, according to Lib Dem Councillors who have tabled a last ditch motion to the November Full Council meeting hoping to ensure a proper debate takes place. 

It is understood that many residents who will be affected by the BRT and other aspects of the Bath Transportation Package intend to protest at the Council meeting on 20th November. 

It seems that the Conservative-run Cabinet is determined to railroad through the BRT and not to listen to any opposition.  At the last two meetings of the Council Cabinet the Leader has changed the rules on public speaking each time to prevent Councillors and residents from having their say on an issue that was and is of great importance to many local people across city. 

The way that this Conservative administration is running roughshod over local people is a disgrace.  They feel it is perfectly acceptable to make changes to the proposed Park and Ride site to the East of Bath but refuse to countenance changes to the BRT route – despite the lack of proof of the benefits of the chosen route.  Furthermore, they have changed the area of the Newbridge Park and Ride expansion since the adoption of the Local Plan and the Joint Local Transport Plan. 

The debate we will have at November meeting of Full Council is a vital opportunity for representations to be made direct to the Cabinet members – especially given that they refused a debate at the previous Council meeting and have sought to suppress discussion on this issue. 

However from their attacks on the Liberal Democrat Group at the recent Cabinet meeting it would appear the Conservatives are more interested in talking about who voted for what and when in the past, rather than looking at what is happening now.  Cabinet members should accept that the Local Plan and Local Transport Plan upon which the Council has previously voted do not reflect the current schemes for the Bath Transportation Package.

Don calls for stronger response to fly-tipping

Bath MP Don Foster has joined calls for local authorities to use the powers given to them be the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 to address fly-tipping and punish those responsible for it.  A major campaign has been launched by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and its President Bill Bryson. 

Don said that fly-tipping blights the whole country from towns and cities, to our countryside, and Bath is no exception.  There are practical measures that the Government should be taking, such as encouraging consumers to return and recycle drinks containers, rather than seeing them thrown away as litter. 

Local authorities need to be making better use of the powers that they already have, and begin punishing those responsible for fly-tipping.  This is why Don has signed EDM 1634, backing the CPRE campaign “Stop the Drop” to see these issues dealt with more seriously.