Essex Liberal Democrats

Essex County Council’s opposition Liberal Democrat group has criticised the Conservative-led council’s recycling target of 60% by 2021 for not being ambitious enough.

In their response to the public consultation about Essex County Council’s Waste Disposal Document, the Lib Dems call for a minimum recycling target of 70%.  They claim that the Conservatives’ lower figure of 60% means that the massive MBT plant at Basildon will have a larger capacity than is necessary.  The Lib Dems say that the need to feed the MBT will remove the incentive to increase recycling.

The Lib Dems also raise concerns about the environmental damage and highway congestion caused by the huge number of journeys across Essex made by large lorries transporting all the residual waste to Basildon.

Mike Mackrory, Deputy Leader of the Lib Dems said:

We have consistently argued over the years that the recycling rates were not set high enough and each time we have been proved right.  The Council must be more ambitious with its target and alternatives for transporting waste – like rail – must be considered.  Otherwise real damage will be caused to the environment.”

Conservative councillor Robert Chambers is facing calls to have the recent investigation into his Police Authority expenses made public.

The calls follow Thursday’s BBC reports that Uttlesford’s finance chief Councillor Chambers, who is also an Essex County Councillor and the former chairman of Essex Police Authority, “has been asked to repay £10,000 in mileage claims expenses.” The BBC report went on to say that “Robert Chambers had been chairman of Essex Police Authority for nine years when he resigned in February 2011, saying he was considering standing as a police and crime commissioner.”

Lib Dem Deputy Leader on Essex County Council Mike Mackrory said “Councillor Chambers has already had to pay back £1,500 of mileage expenses to the police authority.  The fact that he is now being asked to pay a further £10,000 of Essex taxpayers’ money shows that there have been some serious errors here. I will be calling on Essex Police Authority to explain how these overpayments could have been made and what procedures have been put in place to make sure it cannot happen again.”

Councillor David Morson, who is the Uttlesford Lib Dems’ Deputy Leader, commented “We are obviously concerned that the man in charge of Uttlesford’s finances can make such a grievious error in his own financial management.  Essex Police Authority’s own figures show that Councillor Chambers claimed nearly three times the mileage cost of any other member in 2008/9, but he continued to claim and the Authority continued to pay.  The Lib Dems on Uttlesford want to see the results of Essex Police Authority’s investigation made public so taxpayers can see how nearly £12,000 of their money was incorrectly paid to Cllr. Chambers.”

Essex Police Authority published their members’ expenses for the financial year 2008/9.  The full document can be found here. Robert Chambers claimed a total of £7,713.03 for mileage in that year, the highest of any member (the closest claim for that year was £2,817.79).

The original article that was broadcast on BBC Look East on 8 December 2011 can be found here.

The Liberal Democrat Opposition at County Hall has reacted with shock and astonishment at the Conservative Cabinet Member’s decision to go ahead with his decision to close the St Osyth and High Ongar Recycling Centres.

This flies in the face of the recommendation of the Economic Development, Environment and Highways Policy and Scrutiny Committee of 17 November that the Cabinet Member reconsider his original decision pending a scrutiny review into other options.

This urgent scrutiny review was to consider the evidence given at that recent meeting by the local Members, the petitioners and the ‘call in’ witnesses.  It would also include the wider operations of RCHWs in Essex, with a requirement to report before the Cabinet Member’s stated latest decision date of early January 2012.

County Councillor Mike Mackrory, who ‘called in’ the original decision said:

This is a slap in the face for the local communities of St Osyth and High Ongar who worked so hard in collecting the thousands of petition signatures and who constructively presented their case to the Committee in such detail.”

Lib Dem Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has outlined a £1 billion pound Youth Contract to tackle youth unemployment. The aim is to ensure that all jobless young people are earning or learning again before long-term damage is done.

• Over three years, the Youth Contract will provide at least 410,000 new work places for 18 to 24 year olds into work. Starting April 2012
• Including 160,000 wage subsidies and 250,000 new work experience placements.
• In addition, there will be at least 20,000 more incentive payments to encourage employers to take on young apprentices.
• A new programme to help the most disengaged 16 and 17 year olds – getting them back to school or college, onto an apprenticeship or into a job with training.

At this morning’s meeting of the Economic Development, Environment and Highways Committee, the Liberal Democrat ‘call-in’ of the decision to close the Recycling Centres at St Osyth and High Ongar met with widespread support.

The ‘call-in’ was backed up by petitions totalling signatures over 5000 opposing the closures. By a majority of 14:1 Members agreed to refer the issue back to the Cabinet Member for reconsideration.

Councillors and petitioners agreed that alternative ways of keeping the sites operating needed exploring. These included working with Parish Councils and waste operators; reducing the working hours of other sites in Essex and by generating extra income from recyclables.

Liberal Democrat Councillor, Mike Mackrory, who called in the decision said

I am very pleased we had this debate and that the Cabinet Member will now have to seriously reconsider his decision to close High Ongar and St. Osyth sites. There will now be a review into all the sites in Essex which will help that decision.”

The decision to close Household Recycling Centres at High Ongar and St Osyth, and reduce the hours of nine others has been ‘Called-in’ by the Liberal Democrat Opposition at Essex County Council.

County Councillor Mike Mackrory, who issued the call-in, said -

This decision, which affects many thousands of Essex residents, is controversial, and has not been subject to any in-depth scrutiny of either the reduction in hours, or the closure of the two sites.  Members and residents need to have a detailed analysis of each site’s throughput and distances involved to understand the reasons for the selections which led to the decision.  I hope we can persuade the Cabinet Member to think again.”

The following decisions have been made in relation to the operation and provision of the Recycling Centre for Household Waste (RCHW) service:

Close the following two RCHW sites

• Mill Lane, High Ongar
• Colchester Road, St Osyth

Amend the opening hours of all remaining 21 RCHW sites

• Open the sites at 09:00 as opposed to the current 08:00
• Cease the provision of late night Tuesday opening (17:00 –19:00) which currently operates from May to August

To reduce the opening days of the following 9 sites from the current 7
days a week (all sites would remain open on Saturdays and Sundays)

• Burnham on Crouch to operate 4 days a week
• Chigwell to operate 5 days a week
• Dovercourt to operate 5 days a week
• Kirby Le Soken to operate 5 days a week
• Lawford to operate 5 days a week
• South Woodham Ferrers to operate 5 days a week
• Waltham Abbey to operate 5 days a week
• Moutnessing to operate 6 days a week

To adjust the opening days of the West Mersea site from the current 2
full days and 4 half days a week, to 4 full days

Bob Russell MP

Colchester’s Liberal Democrat MP Bob Russell was last night (Monday) elected by fellow MPs to serve on the highly influential Defence Select Committee. His nomination in the House of Commons was approved unanimously.

Throughout his Parliamentary career Bob Russell has been a strong advocate for HM Armed Forces with particular emphasis on the Army and 16 Air Assault Brigade who are based at the Colchester Garrison. He served on the Armed Forces Bill Committee in both 2005 and this year.  He has visited British Forces serving in Iraq and on three occasions to Afghanistan, the most recent in March this year when soldiers from 16 Air Assault Brigade were in Helmand Province.

Commenting on his appointment to the Defence Select Committee, Bob said:

It is a great honour to represent the Garrison Town of Colchester. I am delighted that my Parliamentary colleagues have voted me on to this Committee where I hope that I can play my part in helping to shape this country’s future defence capabilities in the years ahead. These are difficult times for the Armed Forces, but I hope I will be able to help in the changing circumstances which confront us both at home and overseas.”

Bob Russell has twice participated in the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme during which time he spent up to 30 days on each occasion with the Army. In addition to a series of high-level briefings with senior Ministry of Defence officials and leading members of HM Armed Forces, he also took part in an exercise with the Armoured Division in Poland and on a NATO exercise in Germany, camped with the Gurkhas in a remote area of Kenya, visited peace-keeping forces in Bosnia, yomped over the Brecon Beacons in Wales and took part in a night-time exercise on Salisbury  Plain.  For around ten years he was a Parliamentary Advisor to The Royal British Legion.

Schools across Essex will be given £11.3 million extra this year, fulfilling one of the top four Lib Dem pledges at last year’s general election.

The Pupil Premium money will help the most disadvantaged children. The policy is being delivered by Liberal Democrat Government Minister Sarah Teather, who says:

This is a policy devised by the Lib Dems and put at the heart of our Coalition negotiations. Now it is a reality, making a difference to the school down your road.”

“It helps tackle Labour’s shocking legacy where the richest 16-year olds are three times as likely to get five good GCSEs as the poorest.”

Liberal Democrat Chelmsford Councillors Jude Deakin and Tom Smith-Hughes were recently presented with a petition by parents at , which is on Melbourne Avenue, at the junction with North Avenue.

They are calling for an urgent highways review in the area to provide for a safer crossing, in particular for those approaching from the Anderson Avenue side of Melbourne Avenue, and would like a 20 m.p.h. restriction to be imposed.

Said Councillor Jude Deakin -

It is confusing for children – who are taught to recognise the difference between a pavement and a road by the kerbstone – that, outside the Nursery gates, there is a raised area of road, level with the pavement, which is a form of traffic calming, and not for pedestrian use.  This should be reinstated to normal road level, or barriers placed on the edge of the pavement on both sides of the road.  This is one of a number of road safety issues I and my colleague councillors are taking up.”

Said Councillor Tom Smith-Hughes –

The current right of way is for traffic approaching the roundabout, leaving Melbourne Avenue, which often causes a tailback of traffic around a roundabout and down North Avenue.  Reversing the priority should be considered, which would be an effective traffic calming measure.”

A bid by Essex Liberal Democrat County Councillor Mike Mackrory to stop a fare increase at the newly opened Chelmer Valley Park and Ride has been turned down by Essex Conservatives.  Cllr Mackrory ‘called in’ the Cabinet Member’s decision to increase the charges from October 10 because he was very concerned that the recent increased usage of the site would be put at risk.  Cllr. Mackrory commented:

I am very disappointed that only 6 months after the site opened they are already putting the charges up.  We are trying to encourage people to use Park and Ride to ease congestion and pollution, rather than drive into town.  I am particularly keen to see University students and staff make use of the site rather than clog up the residential streets near the Campus.  This increase is too soon – they should have waited at least a year before any increase.”