Our Priorities for the 2017 Elections

End the Tory cuts to public services

Over the last four years Conservative run Essex County Council has been savagely cutting services

• Children's Centres have closed
• Meals on Wheels have ended
• Community Transport has been cut
• Bus services have been cut
• Side roads and pavements have deteriorated
• Care packages for the elderly have been delayed
• Charges for Home Care has increased five fold
• Youth Services have been dismantled
• Recycling Centres restrict home DIY waste
• Local Highways budgets have been halved
• Charges for home to school transport in rural areas has rocketed
• Traffic congestion has got worse

General Election - June 8th 2017

On 18th April, Theresa May announced that there would be a General Election on June 8th, 2017. The Liberal Democrats believe in an open, tolerant and united Britain completely at odds with Theresa May's hard Brexit. Therefore we see this as an opportunity to provide an effective opposition to the Conservative Government. Liberal Democrat Leader Tim Farron said: "This shows it's not too late to prevent a divisive, hard Brexit. On 8th June, together we can change the direction of this country. The Liberal Democrats will be the real voice of opposition to this Conservative Brexit government."

Essex County Council's Conservative group has pushed through a cut of over 14% in the funding for community transport schemes across the county. Essex Liberal Democrats "called in" the cabinet member decision for review by the scrutiny committee last Thursday (23rd March), but the Conservative majority backed the decision.

Essex County Council Election 2017

Liberal Democrat Essex County Council leader Mike Mackrory contacted the Essex Chronicle in response to an article about Chelmsford traffic. You can read it below;

Dear Sirs,

Gridlock in four years

Your front page and extensive report of the traffic congestion facing Chelmsford (Essex Chronicle 2nd March) highlighted many of the concerns I and my colleagues at both Essex County Council and Chelmsford City Council have been raising for several years. The huge increase in housing developments both in the centre and on the outskirts without the necessary transport infrastructure was always going to cause even more congestion on our crowded roads.

A new initiative to reduce traffic congestion and parking problems outside the Tyrell's School in Chelmsford was launched this week. Concerns about the safety of the pupils arriving in the morning and leaving in the afternoon prompted the need for a radical solution.

Local Essex County Councillor Mike Mackrory, who was pleased to be invited to the launch, met with the former Deputy Head a year ago to share his concerns over the traffic and parking problems in Tavistock Road and the roads around the school. His campaign for a pedestrian crossing at Springfield Green and for a 20mph speed limit in the surrounding roads fitted in well with the school's plans too. He was able to get the Local Highways Panel to recommend the scheme to Chelmsford City Council who wanted a school to be a pilot scheme for other schools in Chelmsford to follow.

A call was made this week for Chelmsford council to act urgently on emergency and affordable housing, and to take big steps forward on essential infrastructure (such as roads, schools and health services) that England's newest city needs, given that the road network is at 96% capacity.

Four years ago Chelmsford had 69 households in temporary accommodation; it is now 310. The council's response was going to be buy 36 prefabricated homes but has cut that back to 18.

The City's only Community Dental Practice at Parkside, Melbourne Avenue - used by our most vulnerable residents - is set to close after being taken over by Community Dental Services CIC on 1st October. They have decided to meet the needs of the population of Essex from centralised 'hubs' in the larger population areas.

Even if the government's plans for new customs arrangements with the EU were agreed to by the EU, these proposals will only delay the economic pain caused by leaving the customs union.

The only way to ensure 'free and frictionless' trade with the EU is to remain a full member of the Customs Union and Single Market.

It has emerged that the joint position on Brexit agreed in an article by Philip Hammond and Liam Fox was not even cleared with Brexit Secretary David Davis.

The Chancellor and Trade Secretary wrote a joint article for The Sunday Telegraph calling for a time-limited transition after Brexit that would involve leaving both the single market and customs union.

Today's news that the Garden Bridge project has been officially scrapped is very welcome. The entire project was a "scandalous waste of public funds."

This is the final nail in the coffin of the Garden Bridge.

Over £37m has already been spent on this vanity project by the previous Mayor.

It is a scandalous waste of public money.

It might be the height of the August holidays, but your Liberal Democrat team have been hard at work - as usual this week. Here's what we've been up to:

Friday 4th August

After comments from Sir James Munby - the UK's most senior family judge about a horrifying mental health case, Norman Lamb called for more and better investment in mental health.

Our research has revealed that almost ten fires a day are being caused by faulty white goods such as washing machines, tumble dryers and fridges.

A total of 9,574 fires in the past three years have been caused by faulty white goods according to responses Freedom of Information requests from 30 out of 51 fire brigades.

The Liberal Democrats have backed calls by the Chairman of the Parole Board, Nick Hardwick, for urgent action to address the backlog of people serving prison sentences with no fixed release date.

Indeterminate Sentences for Public Protection (IPPs) were abolished in 2012, but there are over 3,000 people in England and Wales still serving them, with many facing long delays for Parole Board hearings.

Over the summer, we heard that Philip Hammond was courageously fighting off the more extreme Brexiteers. Supposedly he was looking for a compromise to keep Britain within the customs union and single market as long as possible.

The rebellion didn't last very long. He has now teamed up with one of the more extreme and ideological supporters of a 'Hard Brexit.

It is now painfully clear who calls the shots in the Cabinet; it isnt' the Chancellor.

Today, Liam Fox's Department for International Trade has released figures claiming to show that sunglasses, swimwear and ice-cream are all big exports - and that means Brexit is going to be a success.

He also claims that the sale of £1.4m worth of UK flip-flops are "promising news for trade deals" as is the sale of £3.7m in card-games from the UK.