Council graffiti response “woefully inadequate” say local Lib Dems

Council graffiti response “woefully inadequate” say local Lib Dems

Local Councillors have reacted with anger after another spate of graffiti in Prestwich, and are calling on the Council to take immediate action to clean up the mess.

DSC_0595

Cllr Vic D’Albert, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Holyrood ward and Chair of Prestwich Local Area Partnership said “I am disgusted that vandals continue to bring misery to local people by daubing our streets with graffiti. And I am equally angry with the Council’s woefully inadequate response. This has been going on for too long now, and it’s about time action was taken. The Local Area Partnership and the Police are already using very tight resources to try to manage this problem, but the Council need to take action now to help us and clean up the streets”

Liberal Democrats at Bury Town Hall have been campaigning for action for months. At a Council meeting in February they staged a demonstration displaying photographs of graffiti which has blighted Prestwich for months. The Council have offered graffiti kits for residents and businesses, but have so far directed no extra resource to clear up a problem which is getting worse.

Lib Dem spokesperson for Environmental Service Cllr Ann Garner said “The graffiti is on everything from streets signs to walls, and from utility buildings to business property. Graffiti kits are not a suitable solution except in limited circumstances. The Council have the power to insist that utility companies clean up graffiti on their property, and need to direct real efforts into cleaning it from their own property. I am proud of what Prestwich has to offer, and it is being ruined by graffiti which goes uncleaned for months.”

Cllr D’Albert concluded “We need to work together on this. Prestwich Councillors are doing their bit by leading the community fight. The Police did their bit by catching offenders, and we are supporting them to try to catch the latest offenders. But the Council are letting us down. They need to take action to clean up Prestwich now. “

Ends

Notes to Editor
Cllr Vic D’Albert is the Chair of Prestwich Area Partnership and is a Councillor for Holyrood Ward in Prestwich
Cllr Ann Garner is the Lib Dem Spokesperson on the Environment and is a Councillor for Sedgley Ward in Prestwich

Children in Bury will benefit from Schools Plan

PROPOSALS from the Liberal Democrats for big improvements to schools and teaching will see around £11 million of extra cash for schools in Bury to boost the education and life chances of thousands of children say local party members.

The plans were launched by Party Leader Nick Clegg and Shadow Secretary of State for Schools, David Laws MP. They call for raising standards in all local schools; closing the gap between children from rich and poor families and ending the era of Government meddling in education.

Speaking about the proposals to a meeting of members and residents, Councillor Tim Pickstone, who leads the Lib Dems in Bury said:

“There are a number of radical ideas to ensure all young people get the best start in life. The extra cash will make a real difference in our local schools.

“I am particularly pleased that funding is proposed to cut infant class sizes to private school levels of 15.

“We will also introduce a £2.5bn Pupil Premium, to ensure that extra funding goes to the pupils with the highest needs, whichever school they are in. And some of that extra money will pay for after school and Saturday classes, and extended school days.

“We will also get central government off the back of schools, teachers and pupils. The days of ministers in Whitehall stifling schools and interfering with everything that happens in the classroom must end.

“Schools here in Bury need to be freed to teach children rather than spend their time obeying ministerial orders and trying to achieve government targets.

“The schools proposals put forward by the Liberal Democrats will go a long way to ensuring that the many thousands of local children who go to local schools have at least as good a start in life as the small number who are educated privately.”

The proposals will be debated at the party’s spring conference in Harrogate in March.

Bury Lib Dems “Ashamed of Pay and Grading Calamity.”

Liberal Democrats on Bury Council are “ashamed” of the treatment of Council staff in the recent Pay and Grading review, according to Liberal Democrat Group Leader Cllr Tim Pickstone.

Cllr Pickstone, speaking at the meeting of Bury Council on February 4th, said “In all honesty, I was ashamed of the review. I was ashamed that that staff were sent letters saying that their salary would drop – only to be sent new letters a couple of months later saying that the rates would fall even more, and ashamed that staff were sent dismissal letters giving over the Christmas holidays, and then saw them withdrawn because of a lack of consultation.”

The Liberal Democrats supported a motion of no confidence in the Conservative Leader of the Council, Cllr Bob Bibby. But Cllr Pickstone said “It is true that the Conservatives run the Council and must take much of the blame for this calamity, but there has been a breakdown in relations between the Council and its staff representatives, and in my view the Labour Party must also take their share of blame because they were in control of the Council when this started.

Liberal Democrat spokesman for Resource and Performance, Cllr Richard Baum said “The Council has not been at its best whilst the Conservatives have been running this process. The Tories made a mockery of the scrutiny process by bending the rules around how decisions are overseen by the Council, and have consistently refused offers of help from other parties to try and work this out.”