Stockport Liberal Democrats

Stockport residents are being invited to take part in a consultation regarding the Council’s budget for next year.

The proposals for the budget for the year 2012-13 have been made earlier than usual so that local residents, businesses, trade unions and other local organisations can have their say on the plans that protect frontline services, including no closed libraries, parks or children’s centres. 

Manor Councillor Sue Derbyshire, said “This is not about closing libraries or providing only critical social care. Instead, in Stockport we are committed to redesigning services so that the savings have as little impact as possible on front line service to people in Stockport.”

This commitment to local services is in stark contrast to the local authorities near to Stockport, where deep cuts to services are being made. 

Rochdale Council is making 160 compulsory redundancies, a third of all Bolton’s libraries are set to be closed and Manchester is cutting more than a quarter of its children’s services, despite having £100 million sat in its bank account.

Labour secrets

While the Lib Dems at the Council are consulting taxpayers and local business about their plans, Stockport’s Labour councillors have refused to reveal their budget proposals to voters.

And Labour councillors have been accused by the government of “playing politics” with the services used by vulnerable people – cynically slashing services in the hope voters will lay the blame at the coalition government, despite everyone knowing that a Labour government would be making almost identical cuts at a national level.

Cllr Derbyshire said: “As we have done previously, we will do everything we possibly can to minimise the effects of the budget reductions on the people of Stockport and the council’s workforce.

“The country’s economic situation requires us to dig deep, think creatively and identify new ways of delivering essential services at a lower cost base.”

Residents can click here to have their say in the consultation which is open until 22 November.

Stockport Lib Dems are letting residents know about the impending night time closure of a section of the M60 motorway.

The closure is because Network Rail is undertaking maintenance work on the famous Stockport Viaduct.

Part of the work is to remove vegetation which has been growing from the viaduct, something local Lib Dems have been campaigning to remove for some time.

The motorway will be closed on the clockwise section between Junctions 26 and 1 and anti-clockwise between Junctions 1 and 27 during the hours 10.00pm-5.00am between October 3rd-31^st.

The work is being carried out at these times to avoid disruption during the day.

Lib Dem Councillor Iain Roberts, the Council’s chief on transport matters, said: “Stockport Viaduct is an iconic regional landmark and a fantastic example of 19th century engineering which has stood the test of time.”

“We would like to thank road users for their patience while this work is carried out and ensure them that everything is being done to minimise any disruption.”

As summer draws to a close the local Lib Dem team are already preparing for next winter in Stockport and are encouraging residents to take advantage of the free cavity wall and loft insulation campaign that the Council is helping to co-ordinate in Stockport. 

One of the biggest challenges residents are facing is with the rising cost of energy bills.  99 per cent of Britain’s energy is supplied by just six companies, and the sources of our energy remain fossil fuels that leave us hostage to global energy markets. 

But Lib Dem councillors are getting behind the “Get Me Toasty” campaign which was launched by the Council today alongside the Energy Saving Trust and British Gas. 

This is offering free cavity wall and loft insulation to ALL owner occupiers and privately renting residents in Stockport regardless of age or income subject to a survey.   

Residents who are interested in the scheme are encouraged to call freephone 0800 512 012 or view the ‘Get Me Toasty’ website for more information.

Stockport’s Lib Dem Councillors have taken action to curb the menace of dog mess on Stockport’s streets.

Thousands of residents – including responsible dog owners who clean up after their dogs – have complained to the Lib Dem team through their Resident Surveys and summer door-knocking sessions about dog mess on Stockport streets.

To take action to combat the problem, Stockport Council has launched a new text message alert system to crack down on irresponsible dog owners.

If residents witness a dog owner failing to clean up after their dog they can text 07624 805 662 with information that will go directly to the Dog Warden so that immediate action can be taken.

Users of the service should text the following so that action can be taken:

• Specific date and time of dog fouling 
• Specific location of the fouling
• Brief description of dog and the owner
• The name of person texting (if they are willing to provide this)

Senior Councillor Sue Derbyshire urged residents to use the service whenever they witnessed irresponsible owners.

“This menace is something that comes up time and time again in our conversations with residents, and we want to give people the power to do something about it. Residents can text the service whenever they come across dog fouling not being cleaned up so the Council can take swift action.”

Stockport’s Lib Dem team are encouraging residents to have their say by contributing to a consultation on the future of leisure services here in Stockport, including a plan to build a new leisure centre that could be located in Adswood or Bridgehall.

The Council has undertaken a full review of the leisure facilities it owns and made a set of ambitious proposals to raise the quality of leisure services throughout Stockport. 

The plans involves building a new leisure centre to serve the town centre, Edgeley, Adswood and Bridgehall, as well as improvement of existing facilities around the borough to ensure they become well used by residents and sustain themselves financially. 

But local Lib Dems are keen that residents have their say on the proposals before the Council moves forward with the plans and are asking people to take part in the consultation via the Council website. 

Local Councillor Ann Smith said of the proposals: “As a councillor representing Adswood and Bridgehall I will continue to fight to make sure residents I represent get their fair share of leisure services.  I hope local residents agree with me and read the proposals, and take part in the Council’s consultation.”

Residents can contribute to the consultation online, or via their local leisure centre or library. 

The Stockport Lib Dem “Focus” team is encouraging residents who live in the town centre to play a part in deciding where taxpayer’s money is spent locally at a community meeting on 30 July.

The Council works in partnership with the local Police and other bodies to provide the ‘You say, we pay’ scheme, which gives residents the chance to decide how money should be spent to improve their community.

After successful events in Brinnington and Adswood, residents of the town centre will now have a chance to have their say on how thousands of pounds of public money is spent.

Residents attending the event will use an interactive voting system to decide which projects they think will benefit the community most

The ‘You say, we pay’ event will be held at Stockport Baptist Church, (Thomson Street, Stockport, SK3 9DR), from 10.00am to 2.00pm on 30 July.

Lib Dem Councillor Mark Weldon, said: “This will be the tenth ‘You Say, We Pay’ event held in Stockport, but the first in the Town Centre. Previous events have proved extremely popular with residents as they are a great opportunity for people to decide how money should be spent in their community.”