Tory attacks are they now worried ?

It was interesting somewhat to be attacked on Twitter by a couple of Tories last night about the Lib Dem fightback.

It is always the case that when we get down to work other parties become concerned. In Twerton ward we have been working hard since the election and have spoken to over 600 households since the last election many openly telling us that they regret not voting Lib Dem at the last election but will be next time.

I take comfort that this is clearly getting through to the Tories and the more they move the austerity agenda the more people will reject them and turn to the only party willing to stand up to them.

Many questions have been asked internally within the Liberal Democrats in Bath as to why we fared so badly in both the General election and the local elections.

These questions are being answered and we know exactly what happened and are putting mechanisms in place to address these issues.

The one shinning light that happened is that we gained a seat from the conservatives in Bathavon North and gained a council seat in Lambridge.

We also hold key activists and campaigners in many wards who are also working hard in their communities to help residents affected the Conservative Austerity measures.

The last majority Conservative government introduced the Poll tax that hit the poor hard as will the austerity measures that are now being put in Place. The Tories lost Bath to the Liberal Democrats then, so my message to our new MP is don't get too comfortable.

The Liberal Democrats wont be coming into the next election complacent and we will have a very strong team of candidates for the Local elections in 2019 led by a very strong Parliamentary candidate.

I wonder if this article will be attacked or criticised by the Tories if it is then it just shows how complacent they have become in just a short period of time.
 

New river rescue cabinets installed

In the last few moths of the last Liberal Democrat administration I attended the River Safety group where the installation of new cabinets for the riverside to increase safety was discussed and plans were put in place for the installation of these cabinets.

The Safety of the river is very important and we have lost too many lives in recent years in the river Avon and these cabinets will go some way to helping.

Bath & North East Somerset Council has put in place 14 new river rescue cabinets along the River Avon in Bath.

The cabinets, installed in the stretch of river from Windsor Bridge to Pulteney Bridge, have been specially designed for the Council to protect the life buoys inside from vandalism and damage. The locked grey and orange cabinets containing the lifebuoys can be opened with a code provided by the Fire and Rescue Service Control when callers dial 999. 

The cabinets have been extensively tested by volunteers and members of the River Safety Group, made up of representatives from Avon and Somerset Police, Avon Fire & Rescue, Bath & North East Somerset Council, the Environment Agency and the Canal and Rivers Trust. As a result of feedback from the testing, the instructions on the cabinets have been improved so that the lifebuoy can be accessed more easily and the fire and rescue service can respond more quickly.

How to use:

If you see someone in the river, dial 999 and ask for Fire.  You will be given a code to open the river rescue cabinet.  Once open, you can take out the lightweight yellow life buoy which has a long rope attached.  Holding on to the rope, throw the life buoy to the person in the water. They need to hold tight to the buoy while the rope is used to pull them to the edge.

One of the benefits of the new design is that Avon Fire & Rescue Service will be immediately alerted of any incidents and will send help. Avon Fire & Rescue Service Group Manager, Matt Hunt, said: “We welcome the introduction of the new tamper-proof lifebuoy cabinets which will provide emergency equipment for anyone who may need to help someone in the water. Callers will provide our Control Room with a location reference from the cabinet and will be given the code to access the rescue equipment. This will allow us to mobilise firefighters with specialist equipment to a confirmed location in order that we can help anyone in need.

One of the cabinets will be on display, with instructions as to how it works, at the One Stop Shop in Manvers Street, Bath, until September 18.

The cabinets are just one of the safety measures introduced by the River Safety Group to help make Bath a safer place.  The group, formally established in 2014, and supported by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), has implemented a number of safety measures along the River Avon. 

Since 2011 Bath & North East Somerset Council has spent in the region of £500,000 on river safety; it plans to spend £150,000 on the river corridor in the 2015/16 and will be seeking partner contributions to increase that figure.

Students from Bath City College have been working with the River Safety Group to encourage young people to think about their own safety with their #gotyaback campaign.  The campaign has been shared on social media and via a specially created film which you can find on their website gotyaback.org. 

Chairman’s Community Awards 2015/16 now open for nominations

The Chairman of Bath & North East Somerset Council Ian Gilchrist has announced the launch of his community awards for 2015/2016 which this year feature a new category, Carer of the Year.

If you know someone who is deserving of an award then why not nominate them.

The Awards are organised annually in partnership with, the Volunteer Centre Bath and North East Somerset, social housing provider CURO, Student Community Partnership (involving the University of Bath and Bath Spa University students unions) and this year, for the first time, Sirona care & health.

Cllr Gilchrist said: “I am pleased to be hosting the Community Awards this year; it’s important that we recognise people across the district that work tirelessly for the benefit of others.  The new Carer of the Year category aims to highlight the important role that carers undertake on a daily basis, providing support for their family and friends.”

The award categories are:

Category 1 – Volunteering Awards

Volunteer of the Year / Young Volunteer of the Year

Volunteer Leader of the Year / Young Volunteer Leader of the Year

Volunteer Team or Organisation of the Year/ Young Volunteer Team or Organisation of the Year

Good Neighbour of the Year / Neighbourhood Team of the Year

Carer of the Year / Young Carer of the Year

Lifetime Achievement

Category 2 – Business in the Community Award

This award will recognise a socially responsible business which actively supports its local community in positive activities. 

Full details and nomination forms are available www.bathnes.gov.uk/chairmanawards

Or you can email Sara_banks@bathnes.gov.uk, call 01225 477188 or write to Sara Banks, c/o, The Chairman’s Office, Bath & North East Somerset Council, The Guildhall, High Street, Bath BA1 5AW. The deadline for nomination is 12 noon on Friday November 27, 2015.

Human Right Act

I am pleased that the Liberal Democrat group on Bath & North East Somerset Council are moving a motion to inform the Conservative government that will will oppose any proposals to repeal the The Human Rights Act.

We would hope that members from all political group would support the motion.

Council notes that:
1. The Human Rights Act 1998 came into force in the United Kingdom in October 2000.

2. The Act ensures that the protections included in the European Convention on Human Rights (a treaty which British lawyers helped to draft in the aftermath of World War 2) are enshrined in UK law.

3. All public authorities and bodies carrying out public functions are responsible for complying with the Act. This includes B&NES Council.

4. The Human Rights Act provides guidance for public authorities in ensuring their policies are developed in line with human rights standards.

5. The Act ensures that all residents have direct access to the fundamental rights and freedoms included in the ECHR and can pursue human rights cases in the domestic courts rather than only the European Court of Human Rights.

6. These fundamental rights and freedoms are a key part of our fair, free and democratic society. Everyone in the UK is entitled to have these rights protected, even when we disagree with their beliefs or actions.

 Council resolves:

1. To oppose government proposals to repeal the Human Rights Act and replace it with a bill of rights.

2. To write to the Home Secretary and the Justice Secretary to express this Council’s opposition to the repeal of the Human Rights Act.

 3. To write to the MPs for Bath and for North East Somerset to call on them to oppose the repeal of the Human Rights Act.

delays in Skate Park instalation

The long awaited installation of the new skateboard park agreed by the previous Liberal Democrat administration has been delayed at Victoria Park.

The Council had hoped to re-open the skate park in July however, as work progressed, contractors discovered large slabs of rock in the area being excavated. 

Specialist machinery has been brought in to remove this rock and extra work is needed to stabilise the ground afterwards. This means the park is unlikely to be completed until mid to late August.

The old skate park was over 20 years old and the main ramps had reached the end of their lives and needed to be replaced. The new design will continue to accommodate all small-wheeled sports such as skateboarding, BMX-riding and scooter riding. 

It will incorporate concrete bowls sunk into the ground which replicate the current large ramps in the park; it will also offer more ‘street’ features and a better ‘flow’ of continuous ride lines.

The skate park design was created following consultation involving local young people, children and their parents. The upgrade of the skate park is part of almost £500,000 in improvements by the Council to Bath’s Royal Victoria Park, including improvements to the play area and the public toilets.

I certainly hope that the opening will not be much longer as I have some eager grandchildren who cant wait to get a go on it.

New Bus Service 16

A new bus service will soon be in place that will run from Bath Spa University picking up students from the new Twerton Mill accommodation on the Lower Bristol Road then picking up at stops along Lower Bristol Road and then back towards Bath Spa University on the Newbridge Road.

I am pleased that this service has been introduced as it will ease pressure on our local bus services and even give a few of us non students who can also use the bus a pleasurable trip to the Globe for lunch.

I asked that the bus service was provided during the planning process and its good to know that I have been listened to.

The new Bus will be number 16  and run every 30 minutes Monday to Friday in term time only.

Keeping Bath moving this summer!

It is encouraging that action is being taken to keep Bath moving this summer with alterations taking place on the rail network in advance of electrification.

From July 18, Network Rail will start work to improve the rail services in and around Bath, Reading and Wiltshire. The Bath railway corridor is being prepared for electrification and the introduction of new, higher capacity, trains that will improve journeys and benefit local economies.

Bath Spa train station will remain open throughout Network Rail’s programme of works but there will be reduced access to the railway from July 18 to August 31. Network Rail and First Great Western have developed a range of measures to help travellers to get to Bath, with the cooperation of Bath & North East Somerset Council – from a fleet of replacement coaches to reshaping the timetable. These have been funded by Network Rail.

Bath remains fully open for business and pleasure – and Bath & North East Somerset Council has taken a number of actions to help people get into Bath easily. These include:

·         Increasing Park and Ride capacity at Lansdown

·         Signing diversionary routes to the Lansdown and Odd Down park and ride sites

·         Creating a temporary inbound bus lane on London Road

·         Embargoing all non-emergency road works for the period

• Additional parking and bus lane enforcement – to keep Bath moving.

There are two phases of Network Rail’s electrification work: Phase 1 (July 18 – 31) when services between Bath Spa and Chippenham will be diverted, and Phase 2 (August 1 – 31) when the lines between both Bath and Chippenham and Bath and Trowbridge will be closed.

Rail replacement buses will be operating east of Bath. These will be direct express coaches running from train stations directly in to Bath Spa.

During Phase 1: First Bus will continue to operate services between Station Hill in Chippenham and Bath’s Grand Parade and Westbury Railway station and Bath Spa. To plan your journey visit www.firstgroup.com

During Phase 2: The quickest way to get into Bath will be by bus. First Great Western will be running dedicated bus services for all passengers east of Bath to Bath Spa. Detailed timetables are available from Avoncliff, Bradford-on-Avon, Chippenham, Freshford, Frome and Trowbridge stations.

For more details, please visit www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/bath2015.

For regular bus services, check out Traveline at www.travelinesw.com

Or if you’re planning to drive, please use the Park and Ride!

What about the Green Party in Bath

These are my own thoughts about the recent General and Local elections in Bath.

The Green Party literature in Bath had a mythical tone to it with them telling residents that they were going to win in Bath and showing graphs how they were going to beat the Lib Dems hands down, in reality it did not happen and fell a long way short.

The The Green Party vote in Bath rose at both local elections and General elections with almost all of their extra votes coming from the Liberal Democrats.

In Fact the Greens did very well capturing a seat in Lambridge Ward where their candidate worked very hard, they also had a surprise win in Abbey Ward in the City centre.

The Green Party PPC was very vocal on social media getting to lots of debates with political hacks of all persuasions and making a lot of noise about local issues.

What was he Green Party ambition in Bath well only they will really be able answer that one, but from my own view it seems that they achieved it making a breakthrough in the City and increasing their share of the Vote.

On the issue of the General election its is very evidential that those former Liberal Democrat voters who voted Green at the General election succeeded in electing a Conservative MP and I can not believe that is what they wanted.

The acid test for the Greens will be in 2019 when they have to defend their seats without a protest vote against the Lib Dems and this may be a much harder task for them, and then in 2020 General election.

Next Saturday UKIP