John Cameron and Iain Donaldson, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Burnage Ward, are calling for swift action to save council taxpayers thousands of pounds in the face of an epidemic of drain cover thefts across Manchester.

John Cameron Liberal Democrat Councillor for Burnage Ward, has slammed Labour run Manchester City Council for failing to introduce cardboard and plastic recycling collections across South Manchester.

Liberal Democrat Councillors in Manchester have welcomed a Council report into last month’s staging of the UEFA cup final in Manchester but believe that some questions remained unanswered by the report.

Manchester Lib Dem Leader Cllr Simon Ashley said:

“I have met senior Council Officers and told them we agree with some of the key recommendations in the report:

that Piccadilly is an unsuitable venue for a large event;

that there should be ticketed entry to control numbers;

that there should be better communication with city centre businesses and residents;

that there needs to be better signage, more toilets, bins and better and quicker cleaning.”

Cllr Ashley added:

“However, I think the report fails to answer three questions:

1) Why weren’t more viewing screens made available throughout the City when number estimates kept increasing, to better disperse the crowd numbers?

2) Did the U-turn on the communications strategy on the 8th of May (when instead of saying ‘Don’t come without a ticket’, the city said “Everyone welcome”) contribute to the increased visitor numbers?

3) Was the decision making process transparent and did the organising committee rely too much on intelligence and information received from Strathclyde Police and Glasgow Council?”

Cllr Ashley concluded:

“This report isn’t perfect but is a good start. Manchester needs to learn the lessons of the Uefa final so that the people of Manchester can regain the confidence they have lost in its Council bidding for future events.”

Manchester Liberal Democrats have welcomed Council Leader Richard Leese’s proposal to hold a Greater Manchester-wide referendum on proposed public transport improvements including an element of congestion charging. A referendum, if agreed by Council Leaders across Greater Manchester, would take place after consultations on the funding bid end in October.

Manchester Liberal Democrats have consistently called for a referendum on this issue. Recent polls that showing that 86% of respondents supported having a Greater Manchester wide referendum before introducing a Congestion

Charge.

Lib Dem Leader Cllr Simon Ashley said:

“Manchester Lib Dems have been arguing for a long time that we need a referendum on such a critical issue. I am glad that Labour Council Leader Richard Leese has finally come round to our way of thinking.”

Cllr Ashley added:

“This announcement, if agreed by the ten Council Leaders, means that we can have a proper debate about the Tif bid and congestion charging. This is a victory for the people of Greater Manchester.”

The Labour run City Council have paid out compensation to people who have tripped on broken pavements a staggering 1,473 time since 2000. The average payout is £3290.John Cameron said:“Labour’s policy of only patching up the worst potholes is a false economy. They should properly resurface all the roads and pavements that need it. They could have used the £5M of taxpayers money that they have thrown away since 2000 to do the work.”

Figures show that the council house waiting list in the Manchester has grown again.Since Labour came to power in 1997 the waiting list in the City has increased by a staggering 86%.Councillor John Cameron said:“Access to affordable, decent housing is a right, not a privilege, but Labour have left too many people in South Manchester inadequately housed.“There are now over 18,000 families on the waiting list in Manchester. I know from my advice surgeries that many are stuck in overcrowded or very unsuitable accommodation, with no real chance of being properly rehoused in the near future.”

The passageway leading to Ladybarn Park from Northbank Gardens has been cleared of litter, weeds and graffiti, after local residents asked Councillor John Cameron for the area to be tidied up. John took part in the clean up and said afterwards: “Thanks to everyone who took part in improving this popular route to the park. It looks so much better now.”Do you know of a grot spot or place where there is dumped rubbish, please let us know - you can use the ‘Report a Problem’ page on this website.

New recycling figures show that Manchester is still failing to make the necessary increases. Compared to the same period last year, the figures show that Manchester has made no progress at all in terms of rates for “dry recyclables”, such as paper, metal and glass. In fact the figures show Manchester moving slightly backwards in this category.

Lib Dem Councillor for Burnage, John Cameron, said:

“It is unacceptable that Manchester has made no progress in dry recycling rates over the last year, while other Greater Manchester Councils are recycling more, or making dramatic progress in improving their recycling rates.

“Thousands of homes in Manchester still have no doorstep recycling collections at all and yet the Labour-run Council is resting on its laurels. Everyone knows how important it is to recycle more of our household waste to fight climate change, reduce the amount of landfill and to save money for council taxpayers. It is high time that Labour start to take this issue seriously.”

Notes:

Total Dry Recycling for Manchester, Quarter 4 2006/07: 32429 tonnes

Total Dry Recycling for Manchester, Quarter 4 2007/08: 31657 tonnes

Manchester Liberal Democrats have proposed a cash boost of nearly £ 1.7m to fund an extra 40 police officers on the beat to tackle crime on Manchester streets. The call comes after an alarming increase in gun crime in parts of Manchester.

Opposition Finance Chief Cllr Marc Ramsbottom said:

“Fighting crime has got be our number one priority in Manchester. Labour talks tough, but has failed to deliver when it comes to making our streets safer. Many residents tell us that what the police need is not more laws and ASBOs, but more police on the streets to catch thugs and yobs. We will work with the police to fund an extra 40 police officers dedicated to Manchester to reduce crime and make our communities safer.”

Lib Dems would fund the extra police by reducing the subsidy to URBIS museum and spending some of the cash dividend the Council receives from Manchester Airport. Lib Dems also say they would cut back Councillors’ allowances and get rid of other waste such as bottled water and posting out pay slips to Town Hall staff.

Cllr Ramsbottom also slammed the unfair and unjust Council Tax:

“We believe that the Council Tax is an unfair tax that disproportionately affects people on low incomes, and should be scrapped. Nationally, the poorest 10% pay over 4 times more of their income in council tax than the richest 10%. Therefore we will be proposing a zero increase in Council Tax bills for the coming financial year, ” he said.

Leader of the Opposition on Manchester City Council Cllr Simon Ashley said:

“Our budget delegates more decision making to local communities and Councillors, beefs up the police presence on our streets, takes action to cut truancy, clean our streets, improves recycling, and freezes the country most unpopular tax, the Council Tax.”

John Leech, the Liberal Democrat MP for Manchester Withington, and Liberal Democrat Councillor for Burnage, John Cameron, are calling for 20mph zones to be extended to all Manchester residential streets that are not main roads, as new evidence shows that 20mph zones save lives.

Manchester City Council has announced a dramatic drop in the number of children killed and seriously injured on Manchester’s roads since 2000. The drop has been largely put down to the introduction of 20mph zones near schools.

John Leech MP, who has tabled a parliamentary bill calling for 20mph to be made the default speed limit for residential streets, said:

“It is great news that the number of child casualties on our roads is falling, thanks to 20mph zones near schools. However, children live and play on all residential streets, not just those near schools. If 20mph works to reduce casualties near schools, it would work on all residential side streets.”

John Leech MP has been working with local Lib Dem Councillors to collect petition signatures for streets in South Manchester to be made 20mph zones.

Councillor John Cameron said:

“We have been calling for the 20mph zones to be extended to other streets, such as Barcicroft Road, Overlea Drive, Westcroft Road and Brayside Road. However, the City Council has said that these roads are not near enough to schools to qualify.”

“Liberal Democrat-controlled Stockport Council take a different attitude, and have introduced many 20mph zones in its residential streets. This has left us with the bizarre situation where the half of Barcicroft Road that is in Manchester is 30mph, while the half that is in Stockport is 20mph.”

“It is time that Manchester City Council started to take road safety really seriously and backed our call for 20mph to be made the norm.”