Lib Dem Action Down Sefton Drive

After being agreed by the Area Committee, the damaged and tired looking Sefton Drive street sign has been properly repaired now!


The Before photograph can be found here.


Any Manor residents suffering similar problems, please get in touch via the contact details on the right of the Blog.


The make up of a good area is the way in which small things, such as this, are cared for. So do get in touch with your hard working FOCUS team.

A Stark Contract Between Labour Party Colleagues

Both Birkdale LibDems and Victoria LibDems are active Bloggers. So much so, that they started the ball rolling with the story about Labour's Leader of Liverpool City Council, Joe Anderson’s, letter in today's Liverpool Post. Manor Ward's good friend, Peter Hough, got in there first with his Blog. In the letter, Cllr Anderson is responding to the Militants who urged him not to set a budget and to take on the government he writes:

“There is no such thing as not implementing the government cuts.
Government gives the city 80% of its funding through different types of
grant. They have chosen to give Liverpool a 22% or £91m reduction. They
simply have not given us the money.

If someone’s household income is reduced by 22%, then they can’t just
ignore this, or they’d go bankrupt. If the city ignored its cut from
the Government, then quite simply we would run out of money by November
of this year, with no money to run social services or pay wages. That
chaos will not happen under my leadership.”

Well under the Leadership of Peter Dowd in Sefton that is the chaos that we may well have faced as he - despite being in the Cabinet - rejected almost every cut. They even voted against a 25% cut in senior and middle management. 

Peter's blog spells out the detail.

When I was Deputy Head at Chesterfield High School, in Crosby, Joe Anderson was working at the school. Although not having much to do with him, it was clear he was a formidable, principled character and one who didn't stand any messing. It is a shame that Sefton Labour councillors have NONE of the principles of their Liverpool Labour colleagues.



The Liberal Democrats in Sefton have taken an identical view to the Labour leaders in Liverpool.  We feel that we should have more cash than we have been given by government.  We have lobbied government about this.  We shall continue to lobby government about this. But we shall not desert our residents in these most difficult times.

"Sefton roads to benefit from pothole windfall"

This week's Champion carries an article about pothole budgets for Sefton. And it's good news...:

A £200m windfall given out by the Government to councils across the country will be used to help repair potholes on West Lancashire's roads, it has been confirmed.
The Department for Transport said that the money had been given to all local authorities following last week's Budget to help repair a nationwide menace to motorists, and although a specific amount hasn't been allocated to West Lancashire yet the amount given to Lancashire as a whole stands at nearly £3.8m, while the amount given to dealing with the problem on Sefton's roads stands at more than £600,000.

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said:

“Potholes are a menace to all road users and I want councils to make fixing them a priority. That is why, when more funding became available, I agreed with the Chancellor that we would double the amount of money we are providing for repairs to be carried out.

"This represents a significant investment in road maintenance at a time of severe fiscal restraint, demonstrating the Government’s commitment to maintain our infrastructure to support motorists and businesses."

The funding is in addition to the £831 million already provided to councils for road maintenance this year and the £3 billion the Government has committed over the next four years, the Department for Transport added.

Lancashire County Council, who have been given the £3,792,323 to spend on repairing potholes, have welcomed the boost, and will use the funds to repair potholes created by last winter's severe weather.

”Repairing our roads following three harsh winters in a row is one of our top priorities and the council has already committed around £25m in the budget for the next year.

“We are well on with the job of repairing potholes caused by the harsh winter – last year we fixed over 20,000 potholes. This extra money will allow us to catch up on the backlog of pothole repairs. Not only that, we'll be able to do more full resurfacing schemes so the repairs will be of better quality and last longer.”

Sefton Council, who have been given the £613,026 to spend on repairing potholes, declined to comment but Councillor Tony Robertson, the council's leader, told The Champion he welcomed the investment,

"Any money we can get to help keep our roads up to scratch is most welcome as last winter's deep freeze had a terrible effect on many road surfaces across the borough," he said.

To promote greater transparency and accountability, all local highway authorities, including Lancashire County Council, have agreed to publish information on their website by 30 September 2011 showing where this extra money has been spent. 

(Article by David Simister. Picture is of Birkdale Councillor, and friend of Manor Ward, Simon Shaw.)

29% vs 0% ?? A simple no brainer...

The really big message about the Sefton Council budget for 2011/12 is that there will not be an increase in the hated Council tax. That was a very clear objective of Liberal Democrats in these hard economic times when family budgets are stretched.

However, if Labour’s voting throughout the budget process had been in the majority, Sefton’s Council tax rise would have been an eye watering 29%!! Lib Dem colleagues, Councillors Iain Brodie-Brown and Simon Shaw have covered this in detail since the Budget.

"What is this AV thing all about?"

On the doorstep the other night, I was asked: "What is this AV thing all about?". So here goes the Manor Lib Dems' attempt at breaking 'this AV thing' down...

What is this AV thing all about?

·         On May 5^th, at the same time as voting in the local election for Sefton Council, you will also be asked to vote for or against a change in the way we elect our MPs next time.

How does AV work?

·         It’s easy as  1, 2, 3 ...Changing to the AV (Alternative Vote) system just means numbering the candidates on the ballot paper in order of preference – instead of putting an ‘X’ against one name. An AV ballot paper will look exactly the same as it currently does. Instead of only putting an ‘X’ in just one box, you will be able to put a ‘1, 2, 3…' and so on in as many boxes as you like.

·         You can vote for as many or as few candidates on the list as you want to. With AV, if your favourite doesn’t win, you can still have a say in who is elected. But if you only want to support one candidate, you can - just mark an ‘X’ as you did before.              

                                                                                                         

·         In a democracy, MPs ought to have the support of a majority of their constituents. Under AV, if no candidate commands 50% support, the last placed candidate drops out and their voters’ second preferences come into play. This continues until one candidate has majority support. The reallocation of votes over several rounds is not complicated to organise and forms a part of many efficient and fair voting systems in this country and around the world.

So why change what we have ?

·         Under our current ‘First Past the Post’ system for electing MPs, you only get one choice. That means that most MPs – 2 out of 3 of those elected in 2010! - get to parliament with less than half of voters on their side. With AV, candidates have to do more in order to gain public support. They have to consider the interests of a much wider group of the public than just relying on looking after the interests of their own party supporters.

Would we still have one MP just for the Sefton Central Constituency - like we did under the ‘First Past the Post’ system?

·         Yes! You will still have one MP in your area, and they will speak for the majority of the community.

·         This is about more than just who is MP for Sefton Central. It is also about who runs our Government. Too many MPs have got used to ‘jobs for life’ in the safe seats the current system has created. AV would give these complacent MPs a wake up call.

·         For the millions of people forced into tactical voting just to keep out a candidate they don’t like, AV offers the chance of an honest vote. Political parties who can currently just focus on a handful of voters in marginal seats to get into power will have to secure much wider support in future.

More information can be found at:  http://www.yestofairervotes.org/  

Animal Farm - writes Councillor Hough

Friend of Manor Ward, Councillor Peter Hough, has an interesting piece of opinion posted on his website.


It is well worth 5 minutes, opening:

There were two callers on Radio Merseyside this morning taking part in a discussion on stereotyping. They complained they were discriminated against on their trip to London for the demonstrations, because they were 'scousers'. 

What emerged though was that both these men (one a retired trade unionist) had travelled by first class rail,  paid for by the unions. 

Increase in Income Tax Threshold thanks to Lib Dems in Government

900,000 low-paid workers are set to be taken out of Income Tax altogether from April, thanks to the Lib Dems in Government. Many more people throughout Merseyside will receive a tax cut.

"This will help reduce the gap between rich and poor," says Manor Ward Lib Dem Councillor, John Gibson, who welcomes the news. Inequality increased over 13 years of Labour government. Lib Dems insisted, as part of the Coalition agreement, that this should be reversed. "The merging of Tax and National Insurance will also make it clearer to people what rate they are really paying. National Insurance has not been any form of real 'insurance' for many years. It has been used as a hidden tax by successive Prime Ministers, especially by Tony Blair” added Cllr. Gibson.

Sainsbury's Investment: The Plug Pulled?

It was not easy to stomach the news that, it looks likely, Manor Ward friend and Victoria Councillor, Peter Hough, was right to make the judgement welcoming Sainsbury's development plans for Crosby. The Champion reveals that there is now a very real danger that Crosby will missed out on the crucial investment altogether:


Sainsbury's have admitted they are looking into selling their properties in Crosby Village.

The Champion can exclusively reveal that handing over their retail outlets is one of the options being discussed by senior management.


The retail giant announced this week that they would not be appealing the decision to refuse a planning application for a £50million new store on Moor Lane.

Sainsbury's officials confirmed to The Champion they are in lengthy discussions over whether to leave the current store as it is, submit new plans for the area or the option many residents fear, which is sell up and move out.

Senior management also added that there is “no timetable” for a further announcement.


Peter Hough, who is Sefton Council's regeneration spokesperson, labelled the news as “devastating.”

The Victoria ward Liberal Democrat councillor was contacted by Sainsbury's management this week who said they would not be appealing the decision to refuse last year's store plans.

But he mentioned that while in a discussion with the multi-million pound company, he received the impression that they were no longer interested.

Cllr Hough said: “I got the strong impression Crosby has been shoved onto the back-burner and that they now have other fish to fry. 

"Since their offer was turned down, they have been looking at several hundred other sites in the North West with a view to investing their money.

“Never say never, but this is devastating news for our town centre. 

”I said at the time when I and my colleagues supported the investment, that I didn't want to gamble away Crosby's future. Others may have done just that.“

"We should have grabbed their offer - and embraced this once in a generation opportunity.

“It was the only game in town. There are, and never were, any other investors waiting to step in.”

Kevin Macmillan, Sainsbury's development executive, added: “We have always said that we would keep people informed and although we have still not decided what do to regarding Crosby, we have decided not to appeal the refused planning application. 

"All options are still being considered and these range from selling the properties, doing nothing to drawing up new plans. There is no timetable for any further announcement."

Conservative Blundellsands councillor Peter Papworth said that it was expected they would not appeal and is still ”hopeful“ the company would come back with a new offer.





There will be some who welcome this news, declaring good riddance to the proposals. Having worked in Moor Lane for near two years back in my youth, I know only too well how little investment has come into Crosby Village since this period. I cannot see how this situation can change or develop in the future. In the mean time the Village will continue to look rather worn and deprived of the vibrancy it could once boast. 


There were some who were quick to suggest that Crosby Area Liberal Democrats had not consulted the public on this matter. They were ill-truths. We'd still very much like to continue the debate. Peter's website can be found by clicking the following link.

Save Our Cheque Petitions Arrive at Downing Street

Last week (March 25th), Southport’s MP, Dr. John Pugh, handed over 5000 petitions to the Prime Minister supporting the ‘Save Our Cheque’ campaign.

Amongst this incredible number of petitions was a significant number that came from the Crosby Area. As the Crosby Area Co-ordinator since the New Year, I would like to take this opportunity to offer a heartfelt thank-you all those residents who penned their support to what has been a very engaging campaign.

This is by no means the end, however. Without proper government legislation the high street banks are still free to abolish the cheque; a service that has proved to have large amount of support among the public still. Many petitions were returned to myself with an additional letter from signatories outlining how important the cheque service is to them. The first steps have been taken to amend this, by telling the Government that it needs to act to ensure that a real alternative is set in place before the cheque is abolished in 2016. With this in mind, petitions continue to be distributed across the Crosby Area and those returned will still make their way to the doorstep of Number 10 Downing Street.

To obtain a petition online, please visit the ‘Save Our Cheque’ section online at: www.manorfocus.blogspot.com.

James Ludley
Crosby Area “Save Our Cheque” Co-ordinator.

Report from Sefton's Budget Meeting, Thursday 3rd March, 2011.

Sefton Council Leader and LibDem colleague, Tony Robertson, reports from Sefton's Budget Meeting on Thursday, 3rd March below: 

"Last night’s Sefton Council meeting was little more than a farce. Many members of the public turned up to hear how the Council was going to react to the representations they had made over Children’s Centres, Youth Centres, Disability Groups and the Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme amongst other matters.

Their issues were addressed by a budget put forward by the Lib Dem and Conservative Groups on the balanced Council where no party has a majority. But Labour who had courted every special interest group and promised to fight for them all had no budget proposals to make! So having marched these special interest groups literally around some local streets in the Borough Labour then ditched them having made no proposals to help them what so ever when they had every chance to do just that. Cynical manipulation comes to mind.

So what did happen? Well the Lib Dem/Conservative budget agreed to conduct a full review of Sefton Children’s Centres with a view to making savings in the operation of them. The budget decision did not put any of Sefton’s Children’s Centres under threat of closure. In neighbouring Liverpool the Labour run Council gave 4 Childrens Centres the bullet in their budget this week. What Labour says is not what Labour does.

The budget also agreed to a redesign of Sefton’s Youth Service to both save money and make youth provision as up to date as possible within what will clearly be fewer resources. The savings required to be made by the Youth Service, which had originally been £1.4 in 2011/12 were reduced to £500,000 with an additional £500,000 in 2012/13. There are no preconceived ideas about how the Youth Service will be redesigned but young people will be involved in the process.

The future of the Duke of Edinburgh Awards scheme will also be looked at via the Youth Service redesign with this aspect being noted as a priority issue. Children doing an award at present will be able to complete that process.

Disabled youth groups were also made a priority within the Youth Service redesign.

So concerns were addressed and campaigners have clearly been listened to. However, Labour not only failed to support these positive moves they actually voted against them! In the end they were preening themselves as though Militant of the 1980′s was back in charge of Labour locally. An utterly unbelievable carry on and an abdication of responsibility by Sefton’s Labour Group of councillors."

Planting For The Future

A programme of tree planting has been finished throughout and across Manor Ward (Crosby, Hightown and Thornton areas). Each Ward in Sefton is allotted a budget to spend on community and local schemes; it has been a long tradition that tree planting and 'green' environmental benefits to Manor are funded within this budget.

Councillor John Gibson, with agreement from all other parties in Manor, can confirm that there has been a programme of £1332.20 worth of new trees and greenery in Manor. This was £237.80 short of the expect figure! Crosby Area Committee will decide on what the surplus monies should be spent on. John told e-Focus: "It's your money, as tax payers, get in touch with your Focus Team and tell us what you think the money could be used for in your area. I have suggested rolling out the tree planting programme further, but I am always willing to listen to your thoughts and views."

Hightown's All Night "Raves": We Say NO!

Councillor John Gibson (pictured on right, with local residents) is leading the fight along with Hightown and other residents to stop the "Raves" application.

 

Councillor Gibson said:

 

"We object to licensing application M/018304 which is for a Sefton Council licence to hold a series of festivals on land within the perimeter of Moss Lane, Orrell Hill Lane, Scaffold Lane and North End Lane near Ince Blundell, Formby and Hightown. We understand that the application is for up to 15 festivals which may include live and recorded music, plays, dance and so forth. The site application states that up to 5000 people could be using the site from 9am until 3AM the following day.

 

We object because of the noise that will be caused to people living in the area (noise carries particularly well at night), the huge impact on traffic (North End Lane has seen some serious accidents and is presently the subject of a Technical Services plan to reduce accidents) and the general nuisance that this application, if granted, would cause to the many people of Hightown, Formby and Ince Blundell who use the narrow lanes adjacent to the land. We are concerned about the additional traffic that 5000 peoples’ cars will cause to the Formby by-pass too and the general loss of amenity that such festivals will cause."

 

Your MANOR FOCUS Team are working alongside ALL the PARISH COUNCILS in the area to stop this happening. To join the campaign please contact Cllr. Gibson directly on the details on the right of this page.

Thornton Primary School: The Facts

There have recently been some misguided claims as to the future of Thornton Primary School, Edge Lane. Councillor Gibson has been working alongside Thornton Parish Council and other elected councillors in Manor to make it clear to residents as to what exactly is to happen. Councillor Gibson was in The Crosby Herald not too long ago outlining the future of the school, however, there have been myths or ill-informed rumours about the site that have begun to spread across Thornton.

A full report is available by contacting Councillor Gibson on the details to the right of this page. However, in short:

• The report, outlined by Council Officers, outlines that there has been £2,000,000 set aside for capital works on the site.
• This is to refurbish the existing buildings and extend the car park.
• There will be reconfiguration to the entrance and exit of the existing two buildings, meaning that there will be NO NEW BUILD, or extensions, or a second story. 
• The playing field will not be affected and there are no plans to build houses on the field.

Those residents concerned or wishing to discuss this further please feel free to contact Councillor Gibson directly.

Picture taken from Crosby Herald website.

"Lib Dem forces end of historical Tory club"

The story that we broke yesterday of Crosby Conservative Club being no more has now been confirmed by this week's Crosby Champion, with some additional interesting quotes from Crosby's serving Conservative councillor.

The article opens:

A Conservative club which stood for 75 years has been stripped of its political allegiance - by a high profile Liberal Democrat.

Last month The Champion exclusively exposed Lib Dem local election candidate Jack Colbert as being the chairman of the then Crosby Conservative Club.

Former Lib Dem cllr Jack Colbert is now “delighted” after 69 members at a meeting unanimously voted to rename the building Crosby Village Social Club.

He has been hailed by Lib Dems as “the man who took over a Conservative club” but branded by Tories as “like an annoying itch.”