LIBERAL Democrats in Bury have backed plans to help small businesses survive the looming recession. The plan by the party to boost businesses was launched by leader Nick Clegg and the party’s Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable. The plan includes: 

• a substantial cut in interest rates to lower the cost of loans and investment;

• immediately overhauling the Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme to improve government support for business loans;

• banks which receive government financial assistance adopting a new code of conduct on rearranging business credit and overdrafts;

• developing with energy companies an assistance package for small businesses struggling with high energy bills

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of the economy here in Bury,” said Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Bury South. “It is vital that we give them a fighting chance to get through the recession. 

“The government has given a massive bailout to the banks. But ministers must now look at the bigger economy. Small businesses here in Bury, and throughout the country generally, are suffering from the downturn. Profits are being squeezed and jobs are at risk. 

“A big cut in interest rates will be a big boost to many local businesses and could mean the difference between staying open or closing down.

“Nick Clegg and Vince Cable have taken the lead with their plan to help businesses and I am giving it my full backing.”

“As someone that has had experience of running a small business in Bury I know how hard it can be and how susceptible small businesses are to changes in economic fortunes. That’s why I would urge the Government to take on board our proposals and offer as much support to small businesses as possible. We cannot afford to do nothing, the Government must act.”

Intervention by Bury Liberal Democrats has led to concessions by Tory-run Bury Council, and the news that council staff set to lose money after job evaluation will be allowed to attend their appeals in person.
 
Prior to the meeting of Full Council on Wednesday 10th September, the Conservative-run Council had been clear that no personal hearings would be granted. However, following a question by Liberal Democrat Cllr Wilf Davison asking for this policy to be reconsidered, the Council’s Chief Executive today (17th September) sent a letter to all staff informing them that personal appeals would now be allowed.
 
The leader of Bury Liberal Democrats, Cllr Tim Pickstone, said “We are pleased that the Conservatives have finally seen sense. Staff should of course be allowed to attend these appeals, where massive chunks of their salary are at stake. We have always been clear that we want a transparent, open process, and we are glad to have convinced the Tories of this.”
 
Cllr Davison said “At the Council meeting, the Labour group chose to display their unhappiness at Job Evaluation by walking out of the meeting. Liberal Democrats stayed to oppose the Conservatives in a sensible way. I asked for the appeals process to be reconsidered, and now it has been. Liberal Democrats will continue to try to make this process as fair as possible, and challenge every instance of unfairness that we see.””

PLANS to free local police forces from the grip of central government bureaucracy and targets have been welcomed by Liberal Democrats in Bury.

The proposals have been launched by Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary Chris Huhne and will be debated at the party’s conference in Bournemouth in September.

Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Bury South said that police officers would be freed to spend more time policing communities rather than chasing government targets. 

“The police have to be free to police our local communities,” said Vic D’Albert, “Constant interference and targets from Whitehall do little to catch criminals and deter crime. Bury police are far better placed than a government minister in Whitehall to decide what the local priorities are. “

The proposals also call for police authorities to be elected by local people, rather than appointed by ministers. That will mean policing priorities are under the control of local people.

Other proposals to be debated by the Liberal Democrats include appointing 10,000 extra police officers, paid for by scrapping the expensive and bureaucratic National Identity Card scheme. 

The spokesman’s paper from Chris Huhne MP, Cutting Crime: Catching Criminals With Better Policing, is available on the Liberal Democrat website: http://www.libdems.org.uk/media/documents/policies/Cutting%20Crime%20by%20Catching%20Criminals.pdf

LIBERAL Democrats in Bury have described a call by a Conservative-leaning think tank for people from towns and cities of the North to pack their bags and move to the South as appalling.

Policy Exchange, described as David Cameron’s favourite think tank in the media, claimed many towns and cities in the North were failing and regeneration would not save them. They suggested people should move to the South East instead. Policy Exchange was set up by Michael Gove, now a senior Conservative MP.

“The idea that people should abandon the North and move to the already crowded South East, where house prices and living costs are sky high, is an insult to people living here,” said Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Bury South.

“I am staggered that a think tank so close to the Conservatives is making such a call. I am appalled that they are saying that large swathes of the North can simply be abandoned. “It looks like the Conservatives are starting to show their true colours. So the battle at the next election in Bury South will be between the Liberal Democrats with a record of standing up for local people, the Conservatives who want you to move to Berkshire and a discredited Labour Government.

“What the Policy Exchange has done is to highlight the lack of understanding many Conservatives have of the North and to show that they are out of touch and can’t be taken seriously.”

Bury Lib Dems have reacted angrily to news that the Post Office will be going ahead with proposals to close 5 Bury Post Offices – perhaps as early as September.

Post Offices in Radcliffe, Elton, Rochdale Road, Walmersley Road and Greenmount are affected by the decision.

The closure announcement follows a period of consultation with communities about the proposals, a consultation that Local Lib Dems claim was a sham exercise.

Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem Parliamentary spokesperson for Bury South said,

“We have seen a sham consultation followed by a disgraceful act. Disgraceful because it goes completely against what local people and local business want. I believe there was never any intention to seriously consider keeping these important facilities open.
“These closures will bring the total number of Post Offices closed in Bury with the blessing of this Labour Government to 21 since 1999. These closures will effectively rip the heart out of the communities affected, further undermining the needs of many of our more vulnerable residents and adversely affecting small business in the area.

“This Labour Government goes on about helping the disadvantaged and deprived communities and supporting small people – then in cahoots with the Post Office they turn their backs on the very people they claim to support.”

Liberal Democrats in Bury have welcomed proposals made by the party’s Shadow Home Secretary Chris Huhne MP to tackle youth crime.The plans aim to deter crime and get young people involved in positive activities that benefit local communities. They include: 

• The creation of a Youth Volunteer Force, to engage with young people, involve them in community projects and give them skills to benefit them in later life;
• Establish Community Justice Panels across the country, where offenders admit their guilt to the community and agree on a Positive Behaviour Order as a course of action;
• Create a dedicated PCSO youth officer within every Safer Neighbourhood Team to identify and work with teenagers most at risk of offending;
• 10,000 more police on the streets by scrapping the ID cards scheme;
• Intelligence-led stop and search and ‘hot spot policing’ targeted at gun and knife crime;
• Restorative justice programs to be run in every community, specifically targeted at early intervention with widespread use in schools and care homes.

Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem parliamentary spokesperson for Bury South said, “These proposals could potentially go a long way to reduce youth crime. By having more police and by focusing on crime hotspots, we will be able to deter crime more effectively from happening. 

“But we also need to give young people positive alternatives to do. Too often they get into trouble because there is nothing for them to do. The Youth Volunteer Force will be a great way to get young people involved in activities that benefit themselves and the area where they live. “I am also keen to ensure that those who do break the law or cause disturbances or vandalism have to pay back the community they have wronged.  

“That is why restorative justice is important. It will mean that those convicted of offences will have to work on cleaning up vandalism or on projects that benefit communities as part of their punishment. Even now in this area we are seeing the benefits of this approach as some of those responsible for recent graffiti have agreed to clean up the mess and face the consequences of their actions.

 “Residents of Radcliffe, Whitefield and Prestwich often tell me of their worries about youth crime. I believe that the proposals the Liberal Democrats have put forward will go a long way to addressing those concerns.”

Lib Dems are demanding assurances over hospital cleanliness after it emerged that Pennine Accute NHS Hospitals were visited 855 times by pest control officers in just over 2 years to deal with insect and pest infestations.

Pennine Acute NHS Trust covers both Fairfield Hospital and North Manchester as well as hospitals in Oldham and Rochdale.

Pennite Acute came 4th highest on a national list of 89 hospital trusts that had received more than 50 visits between January 2006 and March 2008.

Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem, Parliamentary spokesperson for Bury South said, “This is absolutely appalling. Patients and their families need to have the utmost confidence that treatment and operations are being undertaken in a clean, pest free environment. This once again raises questions about the privatisation of ancillary and cleaning services in the NHS and whether the stringent budget controls imposed by Labour are affecting hygiene and cleanliness.  “These statistics amount to 30 pest control visits per month or 360 per year. It’s a good job they don’t run restaurants – they’d be closed down!““I will be calling on Pennine Acute to make public details of these pest control visits and to explain what actions they are taking to deal with the problem. They need to offer assurances that this issue is both under control and being dealt with.

LIBERAL Democrats in Bury are calling for tougher action against those caught selling knives to children and young people.

Vic D’Albert, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Bury South made the call after being sent figures for prosecutions that were uncovered in Parliament by Chris Huhne MP, the party’s Shadow Home Secretary.

The figures reveal that:
• Only 71 people have been successfully prosecuted for selling knives to children in the last five years
• None were sent to prison and only one was given a community sentence
• 56 people were fined, but 21 of them were given fines of less than £200

“This is a completely inadequate deterrent to unscrupulous shop keepers who flout the law to sell these weapons to children and young people,” said Vic D’Albert.

“These tiny fines and a lack of custodial punishment is the wrong signal to those who profit from the illegal sale of knives.

“These figures are particularly worrying as they came to light only days after the release of other figures showing 2294 serious crimes in Greater Manchester area involved a knife in 2007/8. Knife crime is 20% of all serious crimes taking place here.

“These figures do not record children and young people separately but they do show that knife crime is a serious problem. It is too easy for children and young people to get hold of knives. Too many are being drawn into a culture of carrying and using knives.

“Liberal Democrats believe that the courts must take a much stronger stand against those who are fuelling knife crime by illegally selling knives to children and young people.

“Cutting the supply of knives will be one of the most effective ways to reducing knife crime in the first place.”

Liberal Democrats in Bury have welcomed the launch of the Liberal Democrats’ vision for Britain by Party Leader Nick Clegg MP. Called ‘Make it Happen’, the paper will be debated at the party’s conference in Bournemouth in September. In ‘Make it Happen’ the Liberal Democrats say: 

      They will cut taxes for ordinary families

If your local hospital can’t see you on time, they will pay for treatment elsewhere

They will switch taxes from people to pollution – so it pays to go green

To improve standards in education, they will fund extra help for those who need it most

      They will put Britain at the heart of Europe to make us a force for good in the world

They will stop ID cards so we can keep control of our privacy

They will change the voting system so everyone’s voice counts

They will bring communities together with local people in charge

They will give communities a say in how offenders pay for their crimes 

Vic D’Albert, Bury South Parliamentary spokesperson said, “I am delighted to be able to back ‘Make it Happen’. It sets out how the Liberal Democrats will run Britain. “No resident of Bury has escaped the rising cost of food and fuel. The credit crunch is biting hard and local people are feeling the pinch. “Nick Clegg has set out how we can help ordinary people through cutting taxes on those on low and middle incomes. Thousands of people in Bury will benefit from this. 

“We are taking the plans in ‘Make it Happen’ to the people of Bury during the summer to get their response.  And in September, we will be heading to the Liberal Democrats’ conference where we are looking forward to taking part in the debate.” ‘Make it Happen’ is available at: http://www.libdems.org.uk/media/documents/policies/Make%20it%20Happen.pdf 

The Liberal Democrats have outlined radical plans to tackle youth crime.
The dual approach aims to stop young people committing crimes in the first place by enabling them to play a full role in society through increased training and volunteering, as well as stopping criminal behaviour early by making young offenders face up to their crimes.The main proposals :