Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats News Stories (Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats)

Feb 20, 2011:
- Abingdon Traffic Matters
  Abingdon Lib Dems are continuing their campaign for effective measures to reduce traffic congestion in the town to be included in Oxfordshire County Council's new Transport Plan. The new Transport Plan will last 20 years and there is real concern in the town that if serious proposals are not included in this Transport Plan it will be decades before any projects are even looked at. Local Lib Dems have called for: A full diamond interchange at Lodge Hill on the A34 The opening of the slip roads onto the A34 at Drayton Measures to relive congestion on Drayton Road Improvements to how the junctions work round the town centre The Lib Dems handed in several hundred petition signatures supporting their campaign for a full interchange at Lodge Hill and are continuing to collect more. Below - Neil Fawcett and Julia Bricknell handing in the petition at County Hall Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Sep 24, 2010:
- Abingdon Northcourt victory: hat-trick for OxWAb Lib Dems‏
  Town Councillors Julie Mayhew-Archer (left) and Alison Rooke (right) welcome their new colleague, Helen Pighills (centre) Oxford West & Abingdon Lib Dems are celebrating their third local by-election victory in a row since the General Election. Helen Pighills held Northcourt Ward on Abingdon Town Council with an increased majority over the Conservatives. This means that the Lib Dems retain all 21 seats on the Council. Helen Pighills said: I look forward to joining the hard-working and effective team of Lib Dems who are doing such a good job running Abingdon Town Council. Constituency Organiser Neil Fawcett said: After the disapointment of the General Election the local team have picked themselves up and worked very hard in the three local by-elections we have faced since May. Congratulations to Helen and our hard-working team. The result: LD Helen Pighills: 494 (55.3%) [May 2007: 768 (52.4%)] Conservative: 294 (32.9%) [May 2007: 532 (36.3%)] Labour: 105 (11.8%) [May 2007: 167 (11.4%)] This represents a 3.1% swing from Con to Lib Dem. Overall turnout was 24% and the turnout of Postal Voters was 71% Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jul 22, 2010:
- Kidlington North Victory
  Lib Dems tonight celebrated holding Kidlington North (Cherwell District Council). The vacancy was caused by the very sad death of John Wyse - an long-standing and well respected member of the Council. The results were: Alaric Rose (Lib Dem) 526 Conservative 419 Labour 216 UKIP 86 Tracy Wyse, John's daughter and herself a Kidlington Parish Councillor, expressed her delight at the result. She thanked all the helpers and said that John would have been very proud. Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jun 24, 2010:
- Lib Dems Celebrate Victory in Abingdon
  Lib Dems were tonight celebrating the by-election victory in Abingdon Dunmore. The Abingdon Town Council vacancy was caused by the death of Audrey Tamplin. The results were: Julia Bricknell (Lib Dem) 764 Conservative 505 Independent 105 Julia said she was delighted by the result and honoured to step into Audrey's shoes. Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Apr 23, 2010:
- Clegg Scores Second Win in Party Leaders Debate
  An average of five polls conducted immediately after the Sky TV Leaders Election debate on Thursday night put Nick Clegg as the winner, with all instant polls showing him ahead of Gordon Brown. After the Foreign Affairs-led debate from Bristol dominated by issues like Iraq, immigration and climate change, Nick Clegg won 3 of the 5 polls on the night, building on his position after the first debate. The five "instant" poll results on the night: Guardian/ICM: Clegg 33%, Cameron 29%, Brown 29% YouGov: Clegg 32%, Cameron 36%, Brown 29% ComRes: Clegg 33%, Cameron 30%, Brown 30% Angus Reid: Clegg 33%, Cameron 32%, Brown 23% Populus: Clegg 36%, Cameron 37%, Brown 26% Poll Average: Clegg 33.4%, Cameron 32.8%, Brown 27.4% The election has been thrown wide open by Nick Clegg's first debate win. A number of polls have shown that the Lib Dems and the Conservatives are neck and neck, with Labour trailing in third. BBC journalist Michael Crick said on Newsnight "The momentum is still with Clegg." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Apr 21, 2010:
- Second Party Leaders' TV debate: Foreign Affairs
  The second Party Leaders Debate is taking place this Thursday starting at 8pm on Sky News. Nick Clegg, Gordon Brown and David Cameron will again be going head to head in a TV debate in the run up to the General Election on May 6th, this time leading on Foreign Affairs. The first half of the 90 minute Election Debate on Sky News will be devoted to Foreign Affairs, with the rest on any topic. The debate comes from Bristol, and will be chaired by Adam Boulton. Sky are inviting questions before the debate, with more information at http://news.sky.com/skynews/Election/debatequestion You can see the debate live anywhere that you usually watch Sky News: Sky Digital Channel 501, Virgin Media Channel 602 and Freeview Channel 82 and online at skynews.com Live Video Streaming. BBC 2 will also be showing the debate in full at 11.30pm after Newsnight. The third debate will take place on the BBC on 29th April at 8.30pm, focusing on the Economy. Nick Clegg is widely judged to have won the first Party Leaders debate, watched by 9.9 million people, with the ITV/ComRes poll after the debate giving Nick Clegg 43% of the vote. Over the last week, the Liberal Democrats have seen a massive surge in the opinion polls. In polls published on Tuesday, the Liberal Democrats lead in two, and polled between 34-26% of the vote in all of them: Angus Reid for PoliticalBetting: LIB DEM 33%, CON 32%, LAB 23% YouGov in The Sun: LIB DEM 34%, CON 31%, LAB 26% Populus in The Times: CON 32%, LIB DEM 31%, LAB 28% ComRes for the Independent/ITV: CON 35%, LIB DEM 26%, LAB 26% There are a number of ways you can show your support for the Liberal Democrats General Election campaign: You can download free posters to print and put in your window to support the Lib Dems at http://www.libdems.org.uk/posters.aspx You can buy an "I agree with Nick" window poster and badge at http://tinyurl.com/y3tc5hs Over the last week, thousands on new members have joined the Liberal Democrats. If you are not already a member, you too can join today online at https://www.libdems.org.uk/join_us.aspx Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Apr 16, 2010:
- Nick Clegg Storms First Ever Party Leaders Debate
  The polls following the first ever Party Leaders General Election debate on ITV are showing that Nick Clegg has won a convincing victory over David Cameron and Gordon Brown. The debate was the first ever Leaders debate during a UK General Election campaign, and the pollsters are giving it as a big victory for Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrats. The ITV / COMRES poll held by ITV and announced shortly after the debate gave Nick Clegg as the winner by a huge margin: Nick Clegg 43% David Cameron 26% Gordon Brown 20% YouGov, Channel 4, Guardian, Daily Mail, The Times and Angus Reid polls following the debate also scored Nick Clegg as the clear winner of the first Leaders debate. Angus Reid said that 42% of voters were more likely to vote for the Liberal Democrats as a result of the debate. The Daily Telegraph's headline following the debate said "Clegg's star rises in great TV showdown". The Times comment "Enter the Outsider: Nick Clegg seizes his moment in historic TV debate". Even Conservative commentator and blogger Iain Dale said "I think Nick Clegg won the day". In summing up the debate, Nick Clegg said Labour and the Tories have made the "same old mistakes over and over again. Despite all the problems and challenges we have, we can be hopeful about the future if we chose something different." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Apr 14, 2010:
- Fairness - The Liberal Democrat Manifesto Launch
  Nick Clegg has launched the Liberal Democrat General Election manifesto. The manifesto sets out four clear priorities of fair taxes, a fair chance for every child, a fair economy, and a fair deal by cleaning up politics. At the launch, Nick Clegg said: "Every manifesto needs to have an idea at its heart. The basic idea that animates this manifesto is something I have always believed. I believe every single person is extraordinary. "The tragedy is that we have a society where too many people never get to fulfil that extraordinary potential. "My view - the liberal view - is that government's job is to help them to do it. Not to tell people how to live their lives. But to make their choices possible, to release their potential, no matter who they are. "The way to do that is to take power away from those who hoard it. To challenge vested interests. To break down privilege. To clear out the bottlenecks in our society that block opportunity and block progress. And so give everyone a chance to live the life they want. "There's a simple word for those ideas, and it's a word this manifesto is built on: fairness." The Liberal Democrat manifesto outlines 4 steps to a fairer Britain: Fair taxes that put money back in your pocket The first £10,000 you earn tax-free: a tax cut of £700 for most people 3.6 million low earners and pensioners freed from income tax completely Paid for in full by closing loopholes that unfairly benefit the wealthy and polluters A fair future creating jobs by making Britain greener Break up the banks and get them lending again to protect real businesses Honesty about the tough choices needed to cut the deficit Green growth and jobs that last by investing in infrastructure A fair chance for every child Ensure children get the individual attention they need by cutting class sizes Made possible by investing £2.5 billion in schools targeted to help struggling pupils Give schools the freedom to make the right choices for their pupils A fair deal by cleaning up politics Put trust back into politics by giving you the right to sack corrupt MPs Restore and protect hard-won British civil liberties with a Freedom Bill Overhaul Westminster completely: fair votes, an elected House of Lords, all politicians to pay full British taxes You can download the Liberal Democrat manifesto at http://www.libdems.org.uk/our_manifesto.aspx along with summary documents and videos for each of the key areas, order a paper copy and find audio and easy read text versions. Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Mar 29, 2010:
- Victory Vince: Cable Wins Channel 4 Chancellors Debate
  The first ever TV debate between the three candidates to be the next Chancellor has seen Lib Dem Vince Cable win a clear victory. In a Channel 4 on-line poll carried out immediately after the debate, Vince out-polled both Alistair Darling and George Osborne. The Channel 4 vote results are at http://tinyurl.com/yza4m6a and place Vince Cable as clearly ahead of both the Labour and Conservative contenders: 36% Vince Cable 32% Alistair Darling 32% George Osborne BBC Commentator Nick Robinson said on the 10 o'clock news that "it was Vince Cable who generated the most applause." A separate Yougov / Channel 4 poll carried out on the eve of tonight's "Ask The Chancellors" debate on asked voters of all parties which of the three men would be best for the job. 26 per cent picked Mr Cable, against 17 per cent for the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, with just 12 per cent opting for the Shadow Chancellor, George Osborne. You can read more at http://tinyurl.com/yks5lza The Guardian's "Wiintour and Watt" blog at http://tinyurl.com/yl9rf3r said that "The consensus tonight, at Westminster and in the Twittersphere, is that 'King Vince' was the runaway winner of the first major televised debate of the general election campaign." You can watch Vince Cable's closing statement again online at http://j.mp/cyxywl You can join the Liberal Democrats at www.libdems.org.uk/join_us.aspx Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Mar 28, 2010:
- Ask the Chancellors: Live debate on Channel 4
  Lib Dem Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable will take on Alistair Darling and George Osborne in a live Channel 4 debate on 29th March At 8pm on Monday 29th March, Channel 4 will stage a live debate between the would-be Chancellors, Liberal Democrat Vince Cable, Labour's Alistair Darling and Conservative George Osborne. Krishnan Guru-Murthy will be asking the questions. From 7pm on the night, Channel 4 will be hosting a discussion of the debate. You can send questions and comment to chancellordebate@channel4.com and follow the debate and comment at http://www.channel4.com/microsites/A/askthechancellors/ You can also get involved on Twitter by "tagging" your Twitter messages "#askthechancellors". Vince Cable is the Liberal Democrats' Deputy Leader and Shadow Chancellor and one of the most popular current politicians. A 22/23 March poll by YouGov showed more people thought he would make the best Chancellor than either Alistair Darling or George Osborne. Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Feb 16, 2010:
- Controversial scientist to speak in Oxford and Abingdon
  Controversial scientist, Professor David Nutt, the drugs adviser sacked by the Home Secretary Alan Johnson for publicly criticising Government policy on the classification of ecstasy and cannabis, is speaking at public meetings in Abingdon and Oxford this week. Prof Nutt, the former Chairman of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, has been invited by local Lib Dem MP Dr Evan Harris, and will tell the full story about how he came to be sacked, why he thinks the Government has got its drugs policy all wrong, and what the future is for academic freedom of scientists. Dr Harris, who spoke up for Prof Nutt in Parliament, said, "When Alan Johnson dismissed Professor Nutt, after he had also been bullied by Jacqui Smith when she was Home Secretary, it triggered 5 resignations from the Drugs Advisory Council which is now paralysed, and a crisis of confidence in the Government's treatment of independent science advisers, which has still not been resolved. "As well as a leading authority on drug harms, David is a superb speaker and says it as he sees it. The meeting is well worth turning up to whichever view you take on drugs policy," said Dr Harris. Prof Nutt is speaking at Cosener's House in Abbey Close, Abingdon on Sunday 21st February at 4pm and in Oxford, at St Giles Church Hall, Woodstock Road, at 6pm. All are welcome. Science is expected to be a key issue ion the forthcoming election not least in the Oxford West and Abingdon constituency which contains all the University research labs as well as the science campuses at Harwell and Culham. Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Feb 12, 2010:
- Relief as Mill Street probation centre plans dropped
  Evan Harris today welcomed the news that plans for a new mega Probation centre on Mill Street have been dropped. For much of the last year, the Member of Parliament for Oxford West and Abingdon has campaigned with local residents' group WOCAMP to stop this centre from being built in such an unsuitable area. Following sustained protests and objections, in September the owners and developers announced that they were pulling out of consideration for the Probation Service. Today Thames Valley Probation service announced that they had found a new location next to the Police Station on St Aldates for an interim four-year contract. Reacting to the news, Dr Harris said: "I am pleased that the hard work of the local community has paid off. We have been arguing for months that the Mill Street site is wholly inappropriate for such large-scale development, particularly as it is at the far end of a narrow residential street. "I am very relieved that the probation service have finally seen sense and are choosing a more practical area. I will be watching closely to ensure that the Trajan House site is not subsequently used for this purpose. "Nevertheless, the fact is that a massive regional centralisation of probation services is nothing to celebrate. This decision has come about because of cuts to already overstretched budgets. And these cuts will have a big negative impact: probation services are the front line in efforts to stop reoffending and reintegrate offenders back into the community. You can't cut crime if you cut probation." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jan 26, 2010:
- Ivory trade must stay illegal
  Lib Dem Euro MP Catherine Bearder has spoken out against calls from two African countries to temporarily legalise the ivory trade. Tanzania and Zambia have asked for a special allowance to sell their current stocks of ivory at a meeting that controls endangered species trade (CITES) next March. On hearing of these proposals Catherine said, "being the wife of a zoologist, and having lived in southern Africa for many years, I have a huge personal interest in the conservation of these animals." As well as being a member of the Committee on International Trade, Catherine is on the Parliament's delegation to the (ACP) African, Caribbean and Pacific countries. The decision will be voted on at the meeting of the UN's CITES in Qatar next March. Previous 'one off' sales of ivory have led to a rise in poaching and another risk that elephants will become extinct in huge parts of Africa. Many countries across Africa, led by Kenya and Mali, are strongly opposed to the proposal. Representatives from these countries are urging the European Union and Britain not to support these proposals. Catherine argued, "the previous three "one-off" auctions of Ivory Stocks have shown the horrifying correlation between these sales with a rise in elephant poaching and the threat to the lives of many dedicated wardens." "This ban in all African ivory was introduced to strangle the market for Ivory. If trading is resumed, even for a brief period, this demand will be re-established. It is impossible to show which ivory is 'legal' and which is poached once it is turned into trinkets. We need to do all in our power to prevent that from happening." "The EU must take a stand and speak out against these proposals and I will do what I can at the European level to help protect one of the planets most wonderful creatures." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jan 24, 2010:
- Workers should be entitled to protection from their employer
  Commenting on the news that church leaders have warned new equality laws would force them to work against their faith Liberal Democrat Equality spokesman, and local MP, Dr Evan Harris said: "The Europe-wide laws which protect women and gay, divorced or unmarried people from work-place harassment and discrimination is intended to provide a narrow exemption for churches and mosques who appoint people to religious and representative roles. "Christian youth workers for example, should be entitled to protection from their employer over their lawful private sexual behaviour and you should not be able to sack a good head-teacher for getting divorced." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jan 21, 2010:
- Children's rights are human rights, says Bearder
  Lib Dem Euro MP Catherine Bearder today supported calls for greater protection of children from violence. Some 5% of our children are known to live in families where violence is commonplace, and the number of cases where violence goes unreported and undetected could make this figure even higher. In the UK we have incorporated the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into our law, but there are many states in Europe that are yet to follow our lead. Catherine, who spoke in the European Parliament this week against the trafficking of children, said, "the right of children to live free from violence a universal human right. "Violence towards children and violence within the family is an increasingly widespread problem throughout Europe, and we must commit to tackling it and guaranteeing the rights of children in European legislation." "If we're serious about protecting the rights of children we have to approach it as a European issue. Children's rights apply to all children across the whole continent." "It's time for Europeans to show the courage of our convictions on this issue." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Giving hope back to young people
  Do you know a young man or woman who has recently left college or university and finds they can't get a job? The recession is cheating a whole generation of young people. The number of young people unemployed for more than six months has doubled in the past two years. We have to act now to make sure they don't get left behind in any economic recovery. Yesterday, Nick Clegg announced our plans to help young people through the recession. You can read more at http://tinyurl.com/yzjc5qd The Liberal Democrats will cut the time it takes to provide training and education to young people on Jobseekers' Allowance. Currently, young people on Jobseekers' Allowance have to wait 12 months before they are guaranteed a job or training post. We will reduce that to 90 days. We will also invest nearly £900 million to increase the number of further education places, and we'd give young people undertaking an internship a training allowance of £55 a week. Nick also took part in an Online Public Meeting answering questions posed by young people through Twitter and the UK Youth Parliament's online forum. You can see the questions and answers at http://tinyurl.com/yku2ck9. If you know a young person who has been affected by the the increase in unemployment, then forward this email on to them. You can also keep in touch with the latest news from Nick through www.NickClegg.com, and also on Facebook (www.facebook.com/nickclegg), Lib Dem Act (http://act.libdems.org.uk/profile/NickClegg) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/nickclegg). Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jan 20, 2010:
- Comprehensive care for trafficked children
  Catherine Bearder, Lib Dem Euro MP for South East England, has urged the European Commission and Member States to ensure trafficked children are given comprehensive and specialist support. Hours after the Commission announced new legislation to stop the trafficking of children, Catherine called on the Commission and the European governments to prioritise the interests of the victims in its approach to tackling trafficking in Europe. At her hearing in the European Parliament on Tuesday 19th January, Commissioner-Designate for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström, announced the Commission will produce legislative proposals on how to tackle child trafficking before the end of the year. Catherine said, "I want to urge both Council and Commission to be particularly vigilant in setting up supports for the victims of trafficking, in particular the specific needs of trafficked children - which studies have shown are quite different to those of trafficked adults." "There are children in my own region who are trafficked, but we find that even after registration with social services, many disappear - because they remain under the control of the traffickers who find it too easy to take them again for re-trafficking. A comprehensive and specialist approach to their protection and long term support is the only way to combat this." "In the UK, 325 children were identified as being potential victims of trafficking last year, this of course is not to mention the many that were trafficked but not identified by the local authorities. These are people are voiceless and vulnerable and they are relying on the European Union to speak out for them and stop this abhorrent crime." "I will be scrutinising with interest what I hope will be far reaching proposals by the Commission in this area." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jan 19, 2010:
- South East MEP Sharon Bowles welcomes EU's aid pledge of €137 million to Haiti
  Lib Dem MEP Sharon Bowles, who chairs the European Parliament's powerful Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, has welcomed the EU's pledge of €137 million in aid to earthquake-ravaged Haiti. The earthquake, which struck Haiti on Tuesday 12th January and measured 7.0 on the Richter Scale, is thought to have claimed as many as 200,000 lives and has left many survivors without shelter or food. Sharon Bowles said: "I am relieved the EU has pledged this money. I have seen harrowing images of the devastation in Haiti on the news this week and it is imperative that those who have been affected by the earthquake get all the help they need." Commenting on the disaster yesterday, the BBC's Europe Editor, Gavin Hewitt, said: "The EU may be most effective at coordinating medium and long-term development." Sharon Bowles said: "At times like this, the most effective effort is a collective effort. It is a testament to the political will and economic clout of the EU that such a significant sum of money can be pledged so quickly. I just hope the people of Haiti can rebuild what has been destroyed and that everything that can be done to mitigate the effects of another earthquake is put into place." In addition to the European Commission's pledge of €137 million, it is expected that all 27 Member States of the EU will contribute additional sums, with the UK tripling its aid to £20 million. For anyone wanting to donate money to help those affected by the earthquake in Haiti, please visit Save the Children UK's website for further information: http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/en/index.htm ENDS Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
Jan 14, 2010:
- Anglers on the Oxford canal should ignore signs saying that angling has been banned
  Liberal Democrat councillors on Oxfordshire County Council have obtained formal confirmation from the council, supported by the Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT) and British Waterways, that there is no good reason why anglers should not continue to use the Kidlington to Oxford stretch of the canal. Recently, small laminated signs have appeared on posts and trees alongside the canal stating that "due to recent cases of Weil's disease ... angling is currently not permitted ..." Though the signs show the logos of the county council and of British Waterways, both organisations now disclaim all knowledge of who may have produced or installed them. In a full commentary, a representative of the PCT reported that though there have been three cases of Weil's disease in Oxfordshire during 2009, one fatal, none of these was associated with angling. Provided anglers wear suitable protective clothing, ensure broken skin is not exposed to contaminated water, and wash hands before eating after contact with river or canal water, then angling is a low risk activity. Said Cllr Alan Armitage, who raised the matter in council: "At present it is a mystery who may have placed these signs along the canal. It's hard to believe that somebody did it as a prank. But I'm glad that the anglers have confirmation that they don't need to worry, because it's a sport enjoyed by large numbers of people, who disturb nobody and add to the atmosphere along the canal." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Local development must focus on local needs, says Bearder
  Catherine Bearder, Lib Dem MEP for South East England, today urged the European Commission to make local government the bedrock of its regional development policy. At the new Commissioner hearings in the European Parliament, Catherine questioned the Commissioner-Designate for Regional Policy, Johannes Hahn, on his commitment to a locally based regional policy. She wanted to know how he would ensure that local government was closely involved in the formulation of policy. Catherine, who has comprehensive experience as a local councillor, said, "local authorities consider this renewed focus on coordination of development activities at the local level to be essential to the development of a future cohesion policy." "Action must be tailored to local needs, and this means local authorities being brought into the decision making process." "I was a local Councillor at parish, district and county level for many years, so I know how frustrating it is for local people when decisions that affect their lives are made at the national level and they are not consulted. The Commission has decided to focus more closely on getting funding down to the community level, and we need to know that this will not be diverted through, and held up by central government." "Localism must be at the heart of Europe's regional policy." Published and promoted by Oxford West and Abingdon Liberal Democrats, 27 Park End St, Oxford OX1 1HU Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY

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