Liberal Democrats : Communities News Feed

]> Liberal Democrats : Communities News Feed http://www.libdems.org.uk/community RSS News provided by Liberal Democrats en-gb Wed, 20 Aug 2008 10:23:33 +0100 Copyright Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats In house Flood protection gimmick laughably inadequate - Webb http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14861 Commenting on the Government’s proposed £5m flood protection scheme, Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, Steve Webb said: "This announcement is laughably inadequate. "A typical semi-detached house could cost £5,000 to flood-proof, so £5m would barely meet the costs for just 1,000 homes. "There needs to be a nationwide strategy to tackle flood risk, working in partnership with local government, instead of these Whitehall gimmicks designed simply to grab quick headlines." Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Disappointing that Post Office has not listened - Bruce http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14860 Commenting on the announcement that 40 post offices have been earmarked for closure in the North East, Tayside and Fife, Liberal Democrat MP for Gordon, Malcolm Bruce said: "It is disappointing that the Post Office has not listened to our representations about the volumes of business that will be affected by these cuts. "The UK Government seems determined to destroy the Post Office network across Scotland. "Post Offices provide a vital service, particularly to vulnerable people and rural areas. When they close, other services often follow suit, with devastating consequences for the community. "Again, mobile offices are being offered by the Post Office. But these wholly inadequate replacements will not provide anything like the kind of service people in rural areas rely on." Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Grayling speech is rehashing old announcements - Willott http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14845 Commenting on Chris Grayling’s Uniting Britain’s Divided Cities speech, which he will make in Liverpool tomorrow, Liberal Democrat Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Jenny Willott said: "This speech is just rehashing old announcements from the Conservatives. "When will the Tories admit that the problems in deprived cities got worse in the 1990s when they were in charge? "Instead of taking responsibility and telling us how they will help they say that volunteer groups and private companies must do all the hard work. "No-one believes that can make the real difference in struggling neighbourhoods. It just doesn’t ring true." Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Outreach services are poor relation to a proper post office - Teather http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14826 Commenting on today’s BERR Select Committee report on post office outreach services, Liberal Democrat Shadow Business Secretary, Sarah Teather said: "Outreach services are a poor relation to proper post offices. The Government seems to think it can get post offices on the cheap this way. However, even outreach services need to be properly funded. "At this rate many areas will end up with no post office services whatsoever. Ministers are presiding over the managed decline of our post offices. Commenting on the relationship between the Post Office and Royal Mail Group, Sarah Teather said: "This report questions whether the Post Office really benefits from its exclusive relationship with Royal Mail Group. "The time has come to separate the Post Office from Royal Mail, which would allow it to develop business with Royal Mail’s competitors. "This would allow the rest of the Royal Mail Group to flourish as a private business." Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Eco-towns will be out of date by time they are built - pik http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14825 The Government today announced that homes in eco-towns must achieve the environmental target of level four of the Code for Sustainable Homes, despite the fact that all new housing is to reach the stricter target of level six by 2016. Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Housing Minister, Lembit Öpik said: "There’s surely some mistake here. This means that eco-towns could be less environmentally friendly than normal towns. "Instead of setting challenging environmental standards, eco-towns will be out of date by the time they are even built. "The Government has swapped its vision of cutting edge developments for bog-standard homes with a pale green veneer." Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Housing shortage has left 130,000 children homeless - Clegg http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14822 Housing shortage has left 130,000 children homeless - Clegg Over 100,000 children in England are currently stuck in temporary accommodation because of a chronic lack of affordable housing. The figures were highlighted today by Liberal Democrat Leader, Nick Clegg, as he visited a homelessness project run by the charity Shelter in East London. Figures show that: <DIR> · Around 130,000 children in England are homeless Homeless children miss on average a quarter of their schooling, often have nowhere quiet to do their homework and may face long, exhausting journeys to school Mental health problems such as anxiety and depression are three times as common among homeless children, even a year after being re-housed. There are now 10% fewer social homes available in England than when Labour came to power (down from 4.4m to just 3.9m) Social housing waiting lists have increased almost 70% from 1m in 1997 to 1.67m in 2007.</DIR> Nick Clegg said: "Over 100,000 homeless children have been forgotten by this Government. "Homelessness can cripple a child’s life chances, stopping them receiving a decent education and harming their mental well-being. "As fuel and food bills continue to rise, it is likely that thousands more families will struggle to afford their mortgages or rent and be forced to leave their home. "The Government’s paltry efforts to fund more social housing and stop child homelessness have been wholly inadequate. Councils should be allowed to borrow against their assets to invest in new social housing. "It is a scandal that this summer thousands of children will not have a home to spend their school holidays in." Shelter Chief Executive Adam Sampson said: "Shelter is delighted that Nick Clegg has put child poverty and homelessness at the top of his political agenda. "With 5,600 homeless households trapped in temporary accommodation in the borough of Newham, Shelter’s Educational Support Project plays a crucial role in rebuilding the lives of those children whose education has been affected by their housing situation. "Nick Clegg’s visit will help raise awareness of the need to tackle the root causes of child poverty and homelessness in order to improve the life chances of children in bad housing." Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Government has left local planning departments defenceless - Goldsworthy http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14818 Commenting on today’s CLG Select Committee report, which warns that a shortage of planners could cause house building targets to be missed, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "The shortage of planners is sending councils into battle with big developers unarmed. "Without sufficient local expertise and manpower it is difficult for councils to ensure that developments are planned to benefit local people. <DIR> <DIR> </DIR></DIR> "But with the Government attempting to railroad local planners with its unpopular eco-town policy, it’s not surprising that they have been content to leave local planning departments virtually defenceless." Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Legal advice must sound death knell for eco-towns - Goldsworthy http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14808 Commenting on today’s publication of advice from leading lawyers, which claims that local authorities will be able to challenge the Government over its approach to eco-towns, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "Not only is Gordon Brown’s pet eco-towns project facing opposition from residents and councils up and down the country, but now we learn that legal challenges are also likely. "This must sound the death knell for this attempt to bypass the local planning process and local public opinion. "What this Government fails to understand is that centrally-imposed solutions are doomed to failure. The real solution to the housing crisis is to free councils to build the homes that their areas need." Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Government has failed the elderly - Goldsworthy http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14748 Commenting on today’s [Thursday] Audit Commission report on adult social care, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "One of Gordon Brown’s first pledges was to deal with the ageing population but his Government’s record is one of failure. "The web of targets has trapped councils and prevented them acting innovatively to support older people in all areas of their lives. "A painfully tight budget settlement has left councils struggling to meet the immediate challenge of helping those most in need of adult social care. In too many areas around the country this is now rationed to those in the most extreme need. "Ministers would like to palm this challenge entirely on to local government, but they have ensured that resources are very scarce at a local level." Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Government underfunding causes local tensions - Goldsworthy http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14732 Commenting on today’s Communities and Local Government Select Committee report, which claims that internal migration is putting strains on local services, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "The Government’s underfunding of local services can lead to rising tensions between neighbours. Until the Government recognises that its policies are causing, rather than helping the problem, it will fail. <DIR> <DIR> </DIR></DIR> "Ministers need to recognise that people moving between different parts of the UK can have just as significant an impact on a town as migration from abroad. "Too often this impact is simply ignored by the Government." Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Britons struggling with low quality of life - Cable http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14722 Commenting on today’s [Wednesday] U-Switch survey which finds that the UK is bottom in a European quality of life survey, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor, Vince Cable said: "It is depressing but unsurprising that while so many families struggle to make ends meet, we have one of the lowest qualities of life in Europe. "With soaring food bills and energy prices, this report highlights the many pressures British families are facing. "This is a damning indictment not only of this Government’s economic incompetence, but also its education and healthcare policies. "There is now a real danger that as the economic downturn takes hold in the UK, we will once again become the sick man of Europe. "It is critical that ministers act now to help those hit hardest by soaring debts and household bills." Tue, 15 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Local authorities left defenceless by Government - Goldsworthy http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14695 Commenting on Hazel Blears’ announcement that new guidelines will be introduced to curb out-of-town superstores, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "With centralised public services and widespread post office closures, this is a Government that has presided over the death of the high street and the degradation of village and town centres. "Local authorities need back-up from the Government to support their fight to save their town centres. "But this Government’s poor track record means it has a lot of work to do before anyone will believe that this will not just leave local authorities defenceless." Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Eco-towns run risk of becoming broken communities - Goldsworthy http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14693 Commenting on today’s CLG Select Committee report that criticises the Government for ignoring major problems faced by New Towns, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "With the Government pushing ahead with its unwise and unpopular eco-town plans against the wishes of people across the country, the Committee is right to demand that ministers learn the lessons of New Towns. "Regenerating existing areas and building affordable and sustainable housing near public facilities and places of employment is essential. "Instead, the Government is storing up problems for the future by steamrolling ahead with a programme of isolated car-dependent developments. By ignoring the lessons of the past, eco-towns run the risk of becoming the broken communities of the future." Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Urban derelict land should be transformed for the community - Clegg http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14662 Derelict land in urban areas should be transformed to meet the need for more quality public spaces that foster community bonds and reduce anti-social behaviour, Liberal Democrat Leader, Nick Clegg will say today in an event hosted by the think-tank Demos. Speaking at the Southwark Lido, a project that transformed a piece of undeveloped land for use by the local community, Nick Clegg will speak about the importance of changing the settings in which politics is conducted to make it more engaging and responsive. Nick Clegg will say: "Shared space is vital in fostering the bonds that create happy communities. "But when there’s no clear ownership, the danger is that these spaces become dominated by anti-social behaviour. And people retreat into their private space instead. "Public spaces that are open to all - like parks and shopping areas - need careful design. "Our focus should not just be on grand public spaces with beautiful public art - valuable though they can be. "Design also has the potential to bring together small groups of people to create definable, cohesive communities. Through shared gardens, shared play areas, or even just a shared alleyway. Calling for communities to be more involved in transforming public spaces through participatory planning, Nick Clegg will say: "It’s because our physical experience of the world is so shaped by the built environment that people get so passionate about new development, even if that passion is often directed to opposing the granting of planning permission. "But consultation exercises are not enough. Especially if they are ignored. "There is nothing more destructive to people’s faith in politics than to have their views sought, and then overruled. That’s why I’m so excited about the development of participatory planning. "Not just coming up with an idea and asking communities if they like it. But actually engaging them at an early stage in developing the whole concept of what is to be built, and how it will work. "People have lost faith that they can influence the world around them. Giving them the tools not only to influence but to shape the physical space around them is the perfect antidote to this loss of power. "A physical reminder, encountered every day, that you as an individual can change, and have changed, the world. In the same way that an unwelcome new development would be a constant physical reminder that you as an individual have been ignored. "Participatory planning shouldn’t be a special process, rolled out for flagship developments alone. It should be part and parcel of the basic structure of our planning system." Tue, 8 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100 Government racks up 810 million in broken sporting promises - Foster http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14636 The Liberal Democrats have revealed that over £810 million promised by the Government for school sport, community sport, and children’s play facilities has not been spent. Research found that: <DIR> <DIR> · Nine years after the Government promised £1.115 billion for sport, targeting the most deprived parts of the country, £490 million has still not been spent · Eight years after the Government promised £750 million for school sports, £140 million has still not been spent · Seven years after the Government promised £200 million for children’s play facilities, £180 million has still not been spent</DIR></DIR> Liberal Democrat Shadow Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, Don Foster said: "Racking up nearly a billion in broken promises is an absolute scandal. "The Government has tried to con the public with headline-grabbing announcements, but they’ve simply failed to deliver. "With schools, councils and community sports clubs crying out for better facilities, it beggars belief that this money has still not been spent. "If the promised money isn’t spent boosting sport and physical activity, the Olympics legacy is in grave danger of being remembered as a missed opportunity. "While everyone accepts this Government on its last legs, the very least Gordon Brown should do is keep the promises it made almost a decade ago." Mon, 7 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100