Residents of some blocks of flats run by Wolverhampton Homes have told Springvale's Liberal Democrat Councillors that their flats look just as if they were in Beirut. Wolverhampton Homes insist on health and safety grounds that communal hallways should be clear of anything that may burn and residents have had to get rid of carpets and curtains they had put in to smarten up communal areas. Yet nearby in Dudley Borough no such rules apply!
Epsom and Ewell Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) has issued a statement expressing their concern about the impact of the proposed closure of Epsom County Court. The fear is that closure will limit access to justice for residents of Epsom and Ewell. The CAB is also concerned about the adverse effect on the level of homelessness in the borough.
Lib Dem LGBT group Delga have responded to a call from Pink News for LGBT groups to set out their position on equal marriage. The call follows a poll suggesting that an overwhelming majority of Pink News readers support equal marriage. The poll was itself a reaction to Delga's policy motion to Lib Dem Conference in September. This is likely to see equal marriage become official Liberal Democrat policy. The Lib Dems would be the first of the major political parties to have this policy.
Following a Lib Dem council motion it has now been announced that this year a Credit Union will come to aid financially hard-pressed borough residents.
As always at these events, I learn something about a charity that I didn't know before. Apparently it costs £49,000 to breed and train a Guide Dog for the Blind and cover all the costs throughout their life. I had no idea that the charity covers all food, care and medical costs for the dogs, so no wonder they depend on charitable giving.
Welcoming the coalition government's announcement that wheel clamping on private land is to be banned, Serena Tierney, Lib Dem Parliamentary Campaigner for Mid Sussex said:
