According to a Chinese proverb, 'the heaven is high and the emperor is far away'. The world of the governing authority is often perceived as out of reach and irrelevant to the lives of ordinary people.
Bedford Borough Council is currently undertaking a review which I hope will ultimately put right an unequal, unfair situation in the Borough. For historical reasons local residents in some areas have had a say over local concerns through their parish council. In the Borough they have existed for the rural areas and for Kempston, but not for the other urban areas. Brickhill residents put this right in their area 7 years ago, and since then they have also had their own parish Council. I believe Parish Councils play an extremely valuable role in representing local residents and getting things done for their communities. A 'Community Governance Review' is now underway to find out what people in the 'unparished' parts of the Borough think about having a parish council for their area.
Three amendments were moved by Liberal Democrat Lord Avebury during the Report Stage of the Education Bill last week.
Lib Dem Kent Finance Spokesman Tim Prater has welcomed news that Kent county Council should now recover the large majority of money from its investments in Icelandic banks, but has pointed out that losses and costs over recovery of the funds will still have cost Kent CC around £1.5 million.
Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council have condemned the County Council's Conservative administration after an official survey showed that residents consider them out of touch.
A meeting of the borough council's Environment Committee decided, on the chairman's casting vote, not to convert any of the 20 disabled parking bays back for general use.