Student ‘Pizza and Cola’ Night – 23rd March 2009

We have organised a ‘Pizza and Cola’ Night for students of the Univesity of Bath, Monday 23rd March from 5.15 p.m. in 6East2.1.

This event will enable local students to talk informally to the newly appointed student Community Reps, together with  members of the local Police team and local Councillors about any issues they have.

Any issue can be discussed such as problems with landlords, transport, recycling facilities, crime, parking, leisure facilities, etc.

The student Community Reps will then take these issues to appropriate local PACT (Partners and Communities Together) meetings to raise them formally with the Police and the local Councillors, together with other local residents.

The Student Community Partnership, which replaced the Student Liaison Committee which Cllr McGall set up many years ago, recently appointed 2 student Community Reps to work with the Police and the local Councillors to raise students’ issues at local PACT meetings.

If you are a student from the University of Bath and have any issue you want raised but are unable to attend the meeting, please let Cllr McGall know your views and he will report them to the meeting on the night.

Cllr McGall completes the Bath Half Marathon raising money for the Mayor of Bath’s Relief Fund

Cllr Shaun McGall completed his first half marathon today.  I ran the race to raise cash for the Mayor of Bath’s Relief Fund (i managed to raise £350).  I was very pleased to complete the race in  2 hrs 18 mins 33.35 sec.  Many thanks to all those friends, family, colleagues and local residents who sponsored me.

On a related issue did any local residents from Oldfield Road or Junction Road have any problems on the day with the transport arrangements and the parking restrictions?  Please let Will or I know your comments about the either the parking restrictions or the general arrangements for the Bath Half Marathon.

Street Lighting improvements for Junction Road and Oldfield Road

The Council has a programme of improving the lighting in the area, and on the 6th April work will start on the installation of the supply and equipment for a new lighting scheme for Junction Road and Oldfield Road.

 Both Cllr Sandry and McGall have copies of the detailed plans for the changes in the positions of the various street lights along these two roads.

 If you what to find out more information, please contact us.

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Cuts to bus services (No.10 and No. 20a/c) not acceptable

Early morning services and the city’s circular route are to be cut from the bus timetable at the beginning of May as First Bus reduces the service they are providing.

Early services from Combe Down, Foxhill and Larkhall are being lost. The biggest impact will, however, come from the complete removal of the 20A/C service, which stops at Ralph Allen School, the University of Bath and the RUH.

Bath MP Don Foster said that the cuts are unacceptable and will be meeting with First Bus Managing Director Justin Davies to discuss the plans.

Don said, “Many people rely on early morning buses to get to work, what option will be available to them now? Local buses need to be able to serve the needs of residents, not force them into their car.

“The loss of the 20A/C route will be a massive blow. Many students use it to get to the university and it provides a direct link for residents across the city to our local hospital. The Council must look at finding another operator for this route.”

Please sign our petition, at http://ourcampaign.org.uk/onthebuses , calling for these services to be re-instated.

You can follow more about the story on the Bath Chronicle website

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Pubs closing at record rate

Bath has lost a total of 9 pubs since 2005 (and this does not include the potential loss of our Englishcoombe Inn), and nationally a record 2,000 pubs have called time on their business since the 2008 budget announcement that beer duty would rise once more.

Bath MP Don Foster, also the Lib Dem spokesperson for Culture, Media & Sport, says that current government policy is seriously damaging the future for the local pub.

He said, “Understandably the government wants to take action to tackle binge drinking, but by raising beer duty they are hurting the local pub and the social drinker.

“The local pub is an important part of a local community and we are at risk of losing many more if the government continues in this manner. We are punishing responsible social drinkers, when we should be hitting those who binge drink.

Cheap supermarket deals are seeing many getting ‘tanked up’ before going out into town, but rises on beer duty do nothing to tackle this. Supermarkets continue to sell alcohol as a loss-leader, but it is the local pub suffering as a result as government action is hurting them.

Update on changes to Use Classes Orders

I have just received the following forwarded email from the National HMO Lobby, from the Government Department for Communities and Local Government. If you follow the link, you will find it says –

“27 Feb 2009: Multiple Occupation

Dr. Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she plans to consult on amendments to use classes orders in relation to houses in multiple occupation.

Mr. Iain Wright: We are committed to consulting on possible changes to the use class order in relation to houses in multiple occupation. We are considering the most appropriate mechanism for this consultation, and plan to consult in the spring.”

Help available for local businesses

Bath businesses are able to claim assistance in getting through the current economic downturn.

Businesses interested in registering for loans under the Working Capital Scheme should call the helpline on 0845 459 9780.

All businesses are entitled to a free review of their business with an advisor using the help of Business Link on 0845 600 9006 or via this website.

Bath MP Don Foster said,

I encourage all businesses in Bath to get in touch with Business Link and receive free advice on how to get through this difficult period. It is important we do what we can to assist local businesses survive the recession.

One in six Bath residents living in fuel poverty

Soaring energy bills have left an estimated 16% of Bath residents in fuel poverty this winter, according to new figures from Consumer Focus, highlighted by the Liberal Democrats.

Bath MP Don Foster is demanding the Government act urgently to help people struggling to pay their fuel bills and is calling on MPs of all parties to back the Fuel Poverty Bill being introduced by fellow Liberal Democrat MP David Heath.  

 Don will be attending the Fuel Poverty Bill debate in Parliament on Friday March 20th.

 Don said: “These new estimates from Consumer Focus are truly shocking. This research tells us that the amount of people in fuel poverty in Bath could be as high as one in six.  Nationally, four-fifths of single pensioner households are in fuel poverty.

It’s not hard to see the culprit. Over the last five years average gas and electricity bills have more than doubled. The prices being paid by energy companies for fuel on the wholesale markets are coming down, but the companies aren’t passing on the cuts to their customers. And meanwhile they are making big profits. This is totally unacceptable. As a result growing numbers of people are struggling to afford to heat their homes.

I am calling on the Government to take urgent action to help people struggling with high fuel bills.

The Fuel Poverty Bill currently in Parliament, proposed by Liberal Democrat MP David Heath, would deliver a massive home insulation programme which would halve the energy needed to heat the average home. And it would end the scandal of those who use pre-pay meters – generally the least well-off – paying higher rates for their gas and electricity. The Government must give it their support.

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Give Us Back Our Rights!

The Liberal Democrats have published their Freedom Bill, detailing how the party plans to roll back the authoritarian laws passed by both Labour and Conservative governments which have undermined civil liberties.

Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords protest the restrictions on demonstrating outside Parliament during the passage of the Serious and Organised Crime Act.

The legislation is the first time a major political party has collated all of the laws which have undermined civil liberties into one Bill, so that they can be easily repealed. By axing expensive and ineffective measures that hinder and keep tabs on innocent people, the Bill will help switch efforts to catching the guilty instead.

The 20 measures contained in the draft legislation will:
– Abolish the veto in the Freedom of Information Act that allows ministers to keep information secret
– Scrap the expensive mandatory ID card scheme
– Remove all innocent people from the DNA database, except for those tried for a violent or sexual offence
– Stop councils and others snooping by restricting the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) to serious and terrorist offences
– Regulate CCTV to protect privacy following a Royal Commission on the use of cameras

You can view the bill in detail, comment on the draft and sign up to back the campaign at http://freedom.libdems.org.uk