Lib Dems announce improved bulky waste collection service and garden clearance service

Liberal Democrats this week persuaded the council to adopt one of their election manifesto pledges – even though polling day is six weeks away – and announced an expansion of the bulky waste service to include free collection of carpets, bathroom furniture and other household fixtures and fittings.

New Garden Clearance Scheme

At last Thursday’s council meeting Labour and Conservative councillors united to endorse the Liberal Democrat proposal to introduce a garden clearance scheme for older people and residents with disabilities.

Lib Dem councillor for Leyton Bob Sullivan hailed the decision as “the return of the Weedbusters”. He said:

“The Weedbusters project was a popular and much valued scheme to held older and disabled people who could not cope with their garden. Sadly it was axed in a previous round of Labour cuts. I am delighted that the council’s environmental performance has now improved enough that the Liberal Democrats can bring it back.”

Liberal Democrat Leader John Macklin said:

“Introducing the garden clearance service for older and disabled residents in need was going to be one of the Liberal Democrats key manifesto pledges in the forthcoming elections. I am really pleased that we have been able to win support for it six weeks early.”

Free bulky waste collection service expanded

During the debate Cabinet member Cllr Bob Belam announced his decision to expand the free bulky waste collection to include household fixtures and fittings such as carpets, bathroom suites and kitchen units.

“Residents understandably get confused when told that the council will collect their sofas and mattresses for free but not their old carpets or bathroom suites. Sadly some people also choose to fly-tip their carpets and old baths instead of disposing of them properly. This new scheme is fairer to residents and will reduce fly-tipping further,” he said.

The expanded bulky waste scheme is expected to launch in approximately two months time. The expansion of the free scheme will cost £20,000 per year. Free collection will not apply to waste generated as a result of work carried out by tradesman, who will continue to be responsible for disposing of their waste according to the law.

Lib Dems welcome new action on High St traffic

Cllr James O'Rourke (Picture by Roy Tillett, Yellow Advertiser)High St councillor James O’Rourke has been speaking to the local press about a ban on traffic along Walthamstow High Street.

An ‘experimental traffic order’ was introduced by the Walthamstow Town Centre Task Group — a group set up by the high St Liberal Democrats – in August which stops unauthorised vehicles using the High Street in a bid to improve safety for pedestrians.

New signage and barriers have been put up to further enforce the order, which only allows vehicles loading and unloading to market stalls and shops along the High Street.  Street cleaning vehicles are also able to use the High Street to clean the area after the market has been held.

Speaking to Martyn Dalton of the local Yellow Advertiser, Cllr James O’Rourke welcomed the latest additions to the High Street.

Cllr O’Rourke said:

“The experimental traffic order clearly demonstrates that we have listened, engaged and acted with residents, visitors and traders who have asked us to make the High Street a safer environment.

“Unfortunately it was very difficult to enforce the order as there wasn’t proper signage, but now motorists and pedestrians can see that the order is in full operation.”

Cllr O’Rourke has told local people that his long-term aim for the area is to see an enforceable pedestrian zone introduced in the High Street in order to protect residents and shoppers.

Another Lib Dem success story in the bag!

Cllr Patrick Smith, Farid Ahmed (parliamentary candidate for Walthamstow) Cllr Bob Belam, Cllr James O’Rourke and Cllr Bob Wheatley joined residents at the launch in exchanging their plastic bags for linen bags.Liberal Democrat councillors were out in force at the weekend to help launch the borough’s Plastic Bag Amnesty at the Energy Fair in Walthamstow Town Square.

Cllr Patrick Smith, Farid Ahmed (parliamentary candidate for Walthamstow) Cllr Bob Belam, Cllr James O’Rourke and Cllr Bob Wheatley (all pictured right) joined residents at the launch in exchanging their plastic bags for linen bags.

The initiative is a result of a Liberal Democrat motion to Full Council in December 2007 introduced by Cllr Bob Belam and local Lib Dem leader Cllr John Macklin, which will see a raft of ‘green’ measures introduced by the Council, including a ‘climate change impact assessment’ in every council report.

Speaking after Labour and Conservative councillors agreed to accept the Lib Dem recommendations, Bob Belam said:

“These are simple but effective measures that will make the way the Council works cheaper and more environmentally friendly.

“Local authorities are now rightly being put under pressure to deliver practical results with regard to the environment.  Waltham Forest residents are already playing their part through their excellent uptake of waste recycling.

“A Climate Change Impact Assessment will make transparent the Council’s commitment to addressing residents environmental concerns, ensuring that the consideration of climate change issues are at the front and centre of everything the Council does.

“Liberal Democrats want to take a lead on this issue and become standard bearers for our residents, businesses and other local authorities.”

The Council’s plastic bag amnesty runs until 14 November, and during this period the Council will take ten of your environmentally unfriendly plastic carrier bags, send these to be recycled, and give you a neat new reusable cloth shopping bag in exchange.

Sound good? Well, you can make the trade at any WFD shop or, alternatively, have the amnesty brought to you when Waltham Forest staff greets shoppers this Thursday (5 November) outside Leytonstone bus station and tube entrance, or Saturday14 November at Albert Crescent (intersection of Chingford Mount Road and Old Church Road) in Chingford.

To find out more about the plastic bag amnesty call 020 8496 3000 or visit www.walthamforest.gov.uk

Local Lib Dems continue to lead the way on climate change

Action taken by your local Liberal Democrats to combat climate change continues to be felt — both in Waltham Forest and across the country.

Waltham Forest Council are launching a two-week amnesty against plastic bags in the borough that aims to reduce the number in circulation by providing cotton bags for local shoppers use.  You can read more about the initiative here.

The action is being taken because of a motion to Council put forward by Liberal Democrat members Cllr Bob Belam and Cllr John Macklin in December 2007 which ensured that Council would:

“work in partnership with local businesses on proposals to introduce a ‘bag for life’ scheme for shoppers in Waltham Forest, and…launch a borough-wide campaign to gain voluntary agreement to end the practice of providing free plastic bags within the borough”

The recommendation was part of a raft of ‘green’ actions, which have also ensured that Cabinet members have to include a ‘Climate Change Impact Assessment’ in all their reports, ensuring that they pay attention to the local environment.

All this comes as the local Labour party faced more embarrassment from Leyton MP Harry Cohen who helped the Government vote down a Liberal Democrat motion in Westminster that would have seen Members of Parliament sign up to the 10:10 campaign which calls for 10% greenhouse gas emission reductions by the end of 2010.  Campaigners have called the decision “disappointing”. 

Click here for more information on the campaign.

Lib Dems want smarter action to tackle fly tipping

Cllr John Macklin: “I’ll be speaking to the Labour members who are responsible for fly tipping and enforcement, the cleanliness of our parks and Ascham Homes to see how all of these portfolio areas can better tackle the problem.Leading Liberal Democrat councillors are in discussions with Council officers over whether charges for the collection of bulky waste can be relaxed or even cut in order to fight fly-tipping in the borough.

The move is one of several initiatives that Liberal Democrat members are looking to bring forward in order to combat the dumping of waste in Waltham Forest.  Other measures currently being investigated include pre-advertised local skip placements for those struggling to dispose of waste items and further work with letting agents to inform tenants of waste collection services.

Liberal Democrat Group Leader Cllr John Macklin said:

“I’ll be speaking to the Labour members who are responsible for fly tipping and enforcement, the cleanliness of our parks and Ascham Homes to see how all of these portfolio areas can better tackle the problem.

“Our street cleaning is provided on a much smaller budget than some neighbouring London boroughs so we can’t afford to waste money collecting fly tipping.

“The Council’s current rates for catching flytippers are not nearly enough to put off those determined to dump rubbish, so we think that it makes sense to actually take some action now and be a bit more imaginative in how we use our resources.

“I believe that the Council needs to divert more funds to this service.  But it makes sense for all areas of the Council to work harder to ensure that the money we do currently have can be spent efficiently”.

Current Council policy offers each household three bulky waste collections a year, where commonly dumped items such as mattresses and washing machines are collected free of charge.  However a fee is charged for the collection of other items such as dismantled baths. 

Cllr Macklin continued:

“A resident who wanted to dispose of an item not on the ‘free’ list pointed out that the charge could be seen as encouraging people to fly tip in order to avoid paying the fee – and with the Council picking up the tab to clear the item up.

“Budgets are tight in this area, and that’s why I’m asking officers to look at ways to divert more funding to keeping our streets clean. 

What now for our local sports facilities?

Orion Harriers’ junior secretary Steve Timpson. Thanks to Roy Tillett of the Yellow Advertiser for the picture.The local press are reporting resident reaction to Liberal Democrat opposition to Labour plans that cast doubt over the future of the Walthamstow Pool and athletics track.  Click here to see the full coverage!

The plans being pushed through by Labour councillors will see millions of pounds borrowed to fund a leisure pool on the Arcade site in Walthamstow.  £10 million will be raised through the sale of land at the Pool and Track site or another site that has not been named. 

Local users of sports facilities are already voicing their own opposition to the proposals.

Your local Lib Dems want to know:
· What do the plans mean for the future of our competition pool and the borough’s only athletics track in the run-up to the Olympics?
· Why do Labour refuse to allow a full financial check of the plans to borrow millions of pounds to fund their plan?
· Why haven’t local people been asked whether they want a leisure pool at the Arcade site?

Explaining the opposition to Labour’s plans, local Liberal Democrat leader John Macklin said:

“These latest plans will have a serious impact right across the area, affecting the future of our sports facilities and maybe even the planning application for the former EMD cinema.

“Creating such uncertainty for local sports users is completely unacceptable for an Olympic borough”.

Hale and Higham team: What the Tesco decision really means…

Liberal Democrat Hale End and Highams Park councillors have moved to set the record straight after the defferal of Tesco’s planning application to build in the area.

And despite claims of a ‘victory’ for residents, the local Lib Dem team fear that the decision may actually lead to councillors – and residents – losing control over the outcome of the Tesco proposal.

The application was deferred after committee members voted by 5-4 to ask for more information on the proposal.  No councillor voted outright for or against the plans.

In their latest Focus leaflet, the Hale and Higham team – Jane Morgan, Sheila Smith-Pryor and Nick Bason – say:

“This deferral actually means that the decision on the planning application may be taken away from Waltham Forest Planning Committee. Tesco have the right to appeal on the grounds of ‘non-determination’, which means the council have not made a decision on the application in a timely fashion. The application could now be decided by another body unconnected with Waltham Forest.

“The Planning Committee did not get a chance to discuss resident concerns on the impact of the Tesco application on traffic congestion in Highams Park and access to education and healthcare in the area.

“We are also very concerned that the decision may now be taken out of the local council’s hands.”

See the latest issue of Focus (below) for the full story:


 

Decision on Hale and Higham Park Tesco deferred

Cllr Jane Morgan and Cllr Nick BasonCouncillors last night voted to delay their decision on whether to allow a major new development in the Hale End and Highams Park ward.

The planning application by Tesco includes a supermarket, housing and car parking.  With all three Liberal Democrat ward councillors in attendance at a packed Town Hall meeting, Cllr Jane Morgan (pictured left with Nick Bason) spoke on behalf of local residents, detailing the many letters and emails the local Lib Dem team had recieved on the issue and detailing resident concerns about the development.

Adressing the planning committee, Cllr Morgan said:

“We’ve had many communciations from those who do not neccesarily object to the idea of a Tesco, but who have expressed concerns about the scale of this particular application.

“Any scheme of this nature will produce costs as well as benefits.  The proposal aims to create houses and jobs, and they are needed in our area.  Investment in the Highams Park economy is also needed.

“But do these possible benefits outweight the costs of the current scheme?  many of our residents our concerned that the current scale of the development means they do not.”

The planning application will now come back before councillors at a later date. 

See the full text of Cllr Morgan’s speech to the committee below:

Lib Dems opposed to new attempts to close Pool and Track

Cllr John Macklin vists the under-threat Pool and Track facilityLocal Liberal Democrats have confirmed their opposition to plans to close the Pool and Track in order to fund the long-awaited Arcade development before a consultation on the area has been completed.

A new report, which will go to Cabinet on the 15th September, asks senior councillors to agree to authorise officers to find a developer for a “mixed use scheme” on the vacant Arcade site, using £10million from the disposal of the Pool and Track, plus an option of Council borrowing, for a replacement facility on the site at the top of Walthamstow High Street.

And despite forcing last-minute changes to the report – which had already been published for consideration by the Council’s Scrutiny panel – Local Lib Dem Leader Cllr John Macklin has again expressed his concerns that the plans for the Arcade site will have serious knock on effects for a series of redevelopment projects in the area that are not sufficiently covered in the plans.

In March this year Liberal Democrat cabinet members voted against an earlier report laying the groundwork for the plan, with Cllr Macklin telling a cabinet meeting that the Council had  “a history of knocking things down and leaving them derelict and I am worried about swapping one piece of derelict land in Walthamstow for another near the town hall”.

Outlining his concerns, Cllr Macklin claimed that the report would have serious knock-on effects both for the future of the Pool and Track facility and the planning application recently submitted for development of the former EMD cinema.  Cllr Macklin added that, despite last-ditch efforts within the Town Hall to urge Labour cabinet members to postpone the plans, the report will go forward.

Cllr Macklin said:

“I just cannot see the logic in bringing these proposals forward at this time.

“The report regarding the future of the Pool and Track site has not even been completed and an outstanding planning application for the former EMD is yet to be heard.  The approval we are being asked to give in this report will obviously have massive implications for both these developments.

“First and foremost, as a Chapel End ward councillor I am really unhappy with the lack of clear proposals for the area behind the Town hall, including the Pool and Track, the allotments and the playing fields.

“It seems obvious to me that any decision to shut any of the Pool and Track facilities as part of the Arcade development should only be taken when we know what alternatives are being proposed for the Pool and Track site.  I have already met with allotment holders and other site users who are really worried about development on the site. 

“What effects will the closure of the leisure centre have on the athletics track?  The plans for that area currently laid out in the report seem almost laughably vague”.

The report suggests that the land “could become more fully utilised and provide an important resource for residents, and provide a wide range of facilities”.  It also claims that the decision whether to agree to the funding of a leisure centre on the Arcade may be influential to the likelihood of a new cinema being built on the site, a proposal that could have an impact on the outstanding planning application to renovate the former EMD cinema.

Cllr Macklin added:

“I would love to be reassured that the pieces of these various development plans fit together, and that this report isn’t simply part of a financial gamble to get a development of any sort built on the Arcade site, but that is increasingly what this looks like.  The goalposts appear to keep shifting and the reassurances we have repeatedly asked for have not been forthcoming.

“The development of these various sites needs to be part of a clear overall plan for our area, not simply piecemeal building projects that give the impression that the Council is simply chasing its own tail.”

What do you think of the plans to close the Pool and Track?  Do you think the Arcade proposals will have an impact on the EMD planning application?

Below is the original report published on the Council website.  Let us know your views!

More planes, more noise, more pollution – Leyton and Leytonstone under threat!

Cllr Farooq Qureshi with Lib Dem MP Chris Huhne and Leyton and Wanstead campaignersLiberal Democrat parliamentary candidate Cllr Farooq Qureshi has organised a public meeting in response to resident complaints about noise and pollution from City Airport.

The Leyton and Wanstead candidate is angry that the expansion of the airport has been kept from residents, and has seen a rise in complaints from residents about noise and pollution from the increase in planes over the local area.

Local Liberal Democrats have revealed that Newham Council granted permission for an increase in flights from City Airport from 76,000 to 120,000 a year.

The meeting will be held at the Quaker Meeting House on Bush Road (off the Green man roundabout) at 7pm on Friday 2nd October.  Feel free to come along!