You've been conned!

Labour retained the Chesterton seat in Thursday's Borough Council election, with the extreme right wing racist UKIP in second place.

Both Labour and UKIP failed to tell you the truth.

Labour scared you with the idea that changes to the Aspire board would weaken Council influence and lead to higher rents.  It was - and is - utter rubbish.  The best guarantee of keeping rents down is that Aspire is a well-run, thriving company with low costs.  That's why it needs an efficient and competent Board.  Under Labour there were 5 Council nominees on the Board - but the average attendance was only 2.1.   Now there are two Lib Dems on the Board, the average attendance has risen to 2.9.  Labour also failed to tell you that the Tenant representatives on the Board voted unanimously for a reduction in their numbers.

The new Labour councillor (defeated last year) said she had supported the new Chesterton Neighbourhood Partnership.  In fact she took part in a litter pick and came to an open meeting with free food!  She never attended a meeting of the Working Group.   

Labour said Lib Dems were holding back £millions that could reduce Council Tax.  That's absolutely wrong.  The Council has substantial capital reserves which it got, like most other Councils across the country, when council houses were transferred to Aspire.  The interest on that capital helps to keep Council Tax down.  If you spend the capital, the interest drops and Council Tax is forced up.

The only truth I could find in the UKIP election leaflets was the name of the candidate and the date of the election.  Everything else was either made up, wrong or such a distortion of truth as to be unrecognisable.

They said I had voted for wind farms.  There has never been a proposal for a wind farm
in front of Newcastle Council.  Last month I voted against a wind turbine because it was badly sited and would have caused loss of amenity to neighbours.  I did vote for two test masts with wind meters on top.  These masts are tall but only 6in wide - and barely visible from a distance. They will almost certainly be allowed on appeal - probably at some cost to the Council - and that means you pay.

Neither Labour nor the extremists will give you the guarantee of truthfulness that Lib Dems do.

The guarantee no other party will give

Cllr. Mike Dolman joins Lib Dems

I'm delighted that Mike Dolman has decided to join me in the Liberal Democrat group on Newcastle Borough Council.  

We have worked closely in trying to establish the Chesterton Neighbourhood Partnership, and I'm sure that partnership will be even stronger as a result of Mike's commitment to the Lib Dem principles that put as much control as possible in the hands of local people.

If the people of Chesterton elect Trevor Johnson on 3rd May, there will be a full Lib Dem team working for our community.

Commitment on Ibstock bricks

I had a meeting today with other Chesterton councillors and representatives of Renew, Staffs Housing and Newcastle Borough Council.

At my suggestion, we got a commitment to use local bricks for future work. Staffs Housing are issuing immediate instructions to the contractors to that effect. Cllr. Dolman is providing Staffs Housing with all the necessary contact details, and the Council has accepted the principle that renewal is about the whole community, its economy and its self-esteem - not just about refurbishing the fabric.

"This is a major step forward - and possibly the first real achievement of the new Chesterton Neighbourhood Partnership," said Trevor Johnson, Liberal Democrat candidate for Chesterton in the election on Thursday, 3rd May, pictured above in front of the Chesterton Ibstock works.

Spitting bricks!

I'm spitting bricks!

Although I welcome the facelift work that Staffs Housing
and Renew are doing in London Road, I was horrified to discover that the work 
was not using locally made bricks, but some brought up from Birmingham.

We have the Ibstock brick works right here in Chesterton, with a yard
full of bricks and staff on short time.

Renewal is not just about building walls.  It's about building hopes, 
confidence and self esteem.  We need to renew the economy and raise
aspirations.  

I spoke out about this at the Council's Scrutiny Committee this evening
and got an assurance from the portfolio holder for regeneration and
planning that he would make the strongest possible representations to
Renew to use local products wherever possible in future.

If the walls being built now are the last to use imported bricks, we will
have achieved something. Instead of being a constant reminder of
a time when Chesterton's people and products were undervalued, they
can be a symbol of the time that attitudes changed, when service
providers started to take Chesterton seriously.  

I want to see a real understanding between the people of
Chesterton and all the service providers.  That's what the
Chesterton Neighbourhood partnership is for.  And the reason
I'm on the Council is to make it work!

Council passes another milestone

Newcastle's planning department has been taken off the 'danger list' by the Department of Communities and Local Government.

This is another milestone in the Council's recovery from years of Labour neglect.  When we formed the joint Liberal Democrat/Conservative administration last May, the planning department was in a poor state, with many staff posts unfilled.  The DCLG had set a deadline for improvement and, if it wasn't met, Newcastle's planning would be taken out of the Council's control.

The improvement has been so great that this threat has been removed.  There is still some way to go before all the performance indicator targets are met, but we are well on the way.

As a member of the Council's Planning Committee, I am delighted with this progress.

Take care of your car

Chesterton's new PC and PCSOs have told me that there have been some car break-ins recently on Waterhayes and elsewhere in Chesterton.   They advise that any mobile phones, sat-navs or any other valuables be removed or concealed from view while cars are parked on drives or roads.

Please pass this information on to your neighbours.

 

Grass cutting scheme approved

The new grass cutting scheme for the Waterhayes open space was approved by the Council's Cabinet  this week.  It replaces the unworkable scheme that was in place before and will operate in conjunction with the additional tree planting scheme that was approved a few weeks ago.

The new scheme includes:

• areas cut frequently enough for play
  
• areas left uncut for wild flowers and grasses to grow
  
• cutting along 'desire lines' where people want to walk
  
• cutting verges along paths enough to avoid over-growing
  
• cutting round the outside to provide walking ‘circuits’
  
• some additional whip planting
  
• patching of existing areas planted with whips

What we've ditched from the old scheme is:

• generating an unsustainable 'green desert'
  
• requiring heavy machinery on the ground when it is too wet
  
• leaving the whole area uncut with nowhere for play or walking
  
• mowing through the nests and young of ground nesting birds
  
• planting ‘specimen’ trees with a poor chance of survival
  

If we can keep the litter down and discourage people from letting their dogs foul the area, we will have an open space that is fit for purpose - and that covers the wide variety of ways in which people want to use it and enjoy it  - including walking, playing or even just enjoying the growing trees, grasses and wild flowers.

A spot check on the variety of species growing here indicates a ten fold increase in the 'meadow' areas since it ceased to be a 'green desert' - up from a mere 3 species to 33!