A referendum on the issue of an elected Mayor took place on July 3rd, when local people were asked whether they wished to change the way the Council is run. The option to replace the current system with an elected Mayor was defeated.

Commenting on the result, leader of Bury Liberal Democrats, Cllr Tim Pickstone said, “The Lib Dems in Bury campaigned hard for a “No” vote in the referendum, and I am glad that the idea of an elected Mayor has been rejected by local people.”

The “Yes” campaign suggested that the voting for a Mayor would help defeat plans for a congestion charge. Cllr Pickstone rejected this view,: “The idea that a Mayor could stop the congestion charge was always false, and I always thought that local people wouldn’t believe it. Bury Lib Dems continue to oppose the congestion charge, and the Council is now free to carry on working hard to get improved public transport for Bury without this additional tax.”

Cllr Pickstone added, “The issue of the Mayor was always about more than the congestion charge. A Mayor would have meant a less democratic system for local people, and would have cost a small fortune every year. Liberal Democrats believe that decisions should be taken in local communities, not by one person at the Town Hall. We also believe that tax payers money should be spent on better services and lower taxes, not on a big car and a big office for an elected Mayor. The rejection of the Mayor gives us the best chance to continue fighting for real power for local people, and better local services for everyone.”

Today polling stations are open in the referendum to decide whether Bury should have an elected Mayor.
People should vote at their normal polling stations (that we used for the elections in May). The polling stations are open from 7.00am - 10.00pm. You do not need your polling card to vote.
If you have a postal vote which hasn’t yet been returned, you can fill this in in the normal way and take it round to your local polling station.

The local Liberal Democrats are urging everyone to vote NO in the election because we believe this to be an undemocratic waste of public money. Lots of people have questions about this important issue, the local Lib Dems have produced this factsheet
to answer some of your questions.

On July 3rd, the people of Bury will be asked to vote in a referendum. You should have already received your polling cards and people who have a postal vote should have received their ballot papers in the last few days. Everyone will have their chance to say whether or not you want the way the Council is run to change, so that it is led by an elected Mayor.

Lots of people have questions about this important issue, the local Lib Dems have produced this factsheet
to answer some of your questions.

PLEASE SUPPORT YOUR POST OFFICES - SAY NO TO CLOSURE

Under proposals submitted by The Post Office and supported by the Labour Government, a further 5 Post Offices are being proposed for closure in the Bury area.

They are at Limefield on Walmersley Road, Ainsworth Road, Radcliffe, Elton, Greenmount and Rochdale Road.

We believe these are much valued community facilities that are depended upon by many in our communities, especially the elderly.The Post Office is now consulting on their proposals. Please sign and encourage friends to sign. The more support we can get the more likely we can make The Post Office listen to local people.

Sign the petition here

Commenting on the news that nearly 1m people have lost their NHS dentist since the Government introduced a new contract for NHS dentists in March 2006, local Lib Dems accused the Government of “ignoring the plight of the low paid and building a dental health time-bomb.” 

According to figures from the NHS Information Centre a total of 338,000 people lost their NHS dentistry in the last three months of 2007 - 3,674 people a day.

In the North West the number of people treated plummeted by 61,000 in the 24 months to December 2007, compared to the period up to March 2007.  4 out of 10 North West residents were not treated in the last 24 months.

Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Bury South commented. 

“If evidence were needed that the new dental contract is failing then this surely is it.” “This Government is overseeing a crisis in NHS dentistry and as a result more and more people either don’t have a dentist, can’t find an NHS dentist or can’t afford the exorbitant cost of treatment. With dentists and hospitals treating more and more serious dental problems it’s now clear that the long term legacy of this Governments mishandling of NHS dentistry is a dental disease time-bomb.
” We need an urgent review into why reforms undertaken just two years ago have completely failed to improve access and action to get NHS dentistry back on track.”

A leading local Liberal Democrat has called on the Government to start tackling knife crime head on, by first dealing with knives in the home. 

In response to health service research that has identified that most knives used as weapons are kitchen knives, Vic D’Albert, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary spokesperson for Bury South is calling on the Government to press for changes to kitchen knife design. 

Vic D’Albert said, “Most kitchen knives have a sharp pointed end which is rarely if ever needed. Most kitchen knives are needed for chopping and cutting and we just don’t need a pointed end for stabbing! Even my bread knife has a pointed end – god only knows what that is needed for. “Health research has proven that many of these knives end up being used as weapons. If the Government is serious about reducing knife crime then every avenue has to be investigated.  

“Clearly it is a traditional that knives have a pointed end, even when not required. In my mind it is blindingly obvious that at a stroke we could make the home safer and cut the number of dangerous knives in the public domain by designing out the problem. Its time manufacturers responded and the Government needs to make sure that they do”. 

A UK-wide campaign to encourage people to recycle more of their household waste has been backed by Liberal Democrats in Bury. 

National Recycling Week is being held on 2^nd – 8^th June. This is the fifth year it has been held. It is run by Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP), a national organisation set up to help people produce less waste and advise on how best to deal with rubbish in an environmentally friendly way. 

Vic D’Albert, Parliamentary spokesperson for Bury South said, “In Bury the recycling and composting rate is 23%. That means we still have a long way to go before we are dealing with our waste in a way that does not leave a lasting problem for generations to come. 

“Liberal Democrats in Bury are delighted to be able to back National Recycling Week. We are encouraging as many residents as possible to make small changes in their lifestyles which will make large strides to ensuring we do not wreck our environment. 

“We waste a huge amount of food each year – on average we throw away 112kg of food each, most of which is still usable. People can avoid this waste by doing simple things such as producing a shopping list of what food is needed, rather than wandering around the supermarket buying what takes your fancy! 

“Last year in the

UK, it was estimated that we spent £8 billion on food that was still fit to be used when it was thrown away. Being green can save money! But if you do produce food waste, why not get a compost bin if you have a garden? 

“People should also try to buy food and other goods which have less packaging. And full use should be made of recycling facilities to dispose of waste. It is better that waste is turned back into something that is useful rather than dumped in the ground. 

 “There is a limit to how much rubbish we can throw into holes in the ground. There comes a point when we have to say that we cannot go on getting rid of waste in this way. 

“I am therefore we could support National Recycling Week  and I hope by highlighting the issue nationally it will be a great success and will help residents of Bury to cut waste and live greener lifestyles.”

Besses - Labour hold 32.44% turnout
Besses - Labour hold 32.44% turnout
Baum, Julie (Liberal Democrat) 614
Boden, Derek (Labour) 1084
Douglas, Adele Naomi (Conservative) 584
Morris, Stephen (English Democrats) 354

Church - Conservative hold 44.29% turnout
Chesters, Linda (Labour) 789
Kay, Julia (British National Party) 292
Thomson, Tamsin (Liberal Democrat) 287
Walker, Roy Edward (Conservative) 2425

East - Labour hold 33.17% turnout
Byrne, John (Labour) 1148
Davison, Emma (Liberal Democrat) 384
Hussain, Azmat (Conservative) 1023

Elton - Conservative hold 36.57% turnout
Carter, Simon Richard (Labour) 775
Creswell, Yvonne (Conservative) 1861
Sloss, Robert (Liberal Democrat) 405

Holyrood - Liberal Democrat hold 36.54% turnout
DAlbert, Vic (Liberal Democrat) 1632
Hague, Matthew (Conservative) 852
Shatliff, Benjamin Francis (Labour) 669

Moorside - Labour hold 35.66% turnout
Cane, Angela (Conservative) 1197
Cassidy, Dot (Labour) 1279
Finney, Nissa (Liberal Democrat) 223
Hagan, Victor (Independent) 130
Sedman, Phil (British National Party) 317

North Manor - Conservative hold 47.32 % turnout
Arthur, Ewan (Liberal Democrat) 338
Gunther, Dorothy Lyn (Conservative) 2694
Mitchell - Male, Lynette Elaine (Independent) 66
Nuttall, Tom (British National Party) 162
Parnell, Nick (Labour) 577

Pilkington Park - Conservative hold 37.60 % turnout
Burrows, Wayne (Liberal Democrat) 304
Campbell, Gill (Labour) 637
Wiseman, Michelle Jacqueline (Conservative) 1908

Radcliffe East - Labour Loss, Conservative gain 36.37% turnout
Halsall, Mike (Liberal Democrat) 308
Hurst, Sam (Conservative) 1384
Johnston, Daisy (Labour) 907
Rosser, Tom (British National Party) 466

Radcliffe North - Labour loss, Conservative gain 41.50% turnout
Chamberlain, Timothy Paul (Labour) 1265
Hallows, Peter (British National Party) 472
Harris, Jackie (Conservative) 1656
Molloy, Lynn (Liberal Democrat) 220

Radcliffe West - Labour hold 33.18% turnout
Clough, Stewart (British National Party) 484
Greenhalgh, Harold (UK Indepenence Party) 89
Isherwood, Tony (Labour) 1187
O Hanlon, Joanne (Liberal Democrat) 175
Slingsby, Bernard (Conservative) 727

Ramsbottom - Conservative hold 36.70% turnout
Robinson, Val (Labour) 872
Theckston, Barry (Conservative) 2010
Turner, Janet (Liberal Democrat) 354

Redvales - Labour loss, Conservative gain 38.55% turnout
Ahmed, Ijaz (Conservative) 1465
Brison, Bill 98
Harling, Mike (Independent) 104
Jenkins, Paul (Liberal Democrat) 302
Jepson, Brian (British National Party) 317
Southworth, Susan (Labour) 1093

Sedgley - Liberal Democrat hold 41.86% turnout
Adam, Frank (Labour) 906
Garner, Ann (Liberal Democrat) 1488
Grosskopf, Jonathan (Conservative) 1238

St Mary’s - Labour loss, Liberal Democrat gain 37.15%
Mary D’Albert (Liberal Democrat) 1308
Kevin Lee (Labour) 1013
Raymond Solomon (Conservative) 692

Tottington - Conservative hold 37.48% turnout
Roger Brown (Conservative) 1700
David Foss (Liberal Democrat) 456
Jane Lewis (Labour) 614
Reginald Norris (BNP) 210

Unsworth - Conservative hold 43.42% turnout
Ann Audin (Labour) 1165
Sam Cohen (Conservative) 1821
Theodor Tycyzyna (Liberal Democrat) 24

Liberal Democrats have continued to move forward on Bury Council making another gain from Labour and holding off a challenges from the Conservatives. This is the fifth election in a row in Bury where we have made gains.

Full results to follow, but in our key wards in Prestwich the results were as follows:

Holyrood
Vic D’Albert (Lib Dem) 1632
Labour 669
Conservative 852

St Mary’s
Mary D’Albert (Lib Dem) 1308
Labour 1013
Conservatives 692

Sedgley
Ann Garner (Lib Dem) 1488
Labour 906
Conservatives 1238

Across Prestwich the share of the vote was:
Liberal Democrats - 45%
Labour 26%
Conservatives 28%

The Liberal Democrats now have ALL NINE councillors in Prestwich. We’ll be doing our best all year round to stand up for the local community.

Across the motorway Lib Dem candidate Julie Baum put in a stunning performance to move into second place with a 50% increase in the Lib Dem vote.
Besses
Julie Baum (Lib Dem) 614
Labour 1084
Conservatives 584
Others 354

Well done to all our candidates, but particularly to re-elected Councillors Vic D’Albert and Ann Garner, and to new Councillor Mary D’Albert.
A huge thank you to the whole Lib Dem campaign team for a stunning result. Full results to follow.