Towngate? Where's that?

Tory Councillor Jim Hothersall admitted his lack of local knowledge at a recent Council meeting. Labour Councillor Tony Kelly expressed concern that the new parking arrangements would adversely affect residents whose houses on Towngate back out onto Sumner St car park. Jim Hothersall's reply...."I'm sorry, I am not familiar with the area!" Priceless!!! Cllr Hothersall lives in Middleforth.

Can you Dig it? No, you can't!!

Residents of Fox Lane were given a flat "No" when they asked the Tory Council to release land behind their houses for allotments. Local resident Tony Chetwin addressed the Council directly and asked that the former allotment site, which was mothballed when the Tesco store was being developed, be put back to use instead of lying derelict. Tory leisure supremo Phil Smith was having none of it. "It would be to difficult." seemed to be his main objection to the idea. Cllr Smith lives in New Longton.

'Smoke and Mirrors' masks reduction in free car parking spaces

Labour Councillor Caleb Tomlinson has revealed that the latest pilot scheme for parking in Leyland will result in a LOSS of 26 free car parking spaces. "There are currently 35 free spaces on Sumner St and 26 free spaces behind the Market. The new scheme only gives 35 spaces spread across Leyland. It's typical of the Tories to try and cover up this reduction in free car parking spaces. The launch a new scheme to great fanfare, but when the smoke and mirrors are removed it reveals another attempt to con the public."

Call for a lot more allotments!

The waiting list for allotments in South Ribble has over 100 names on it. At a recent Council meeting Councillor Matthew Tomlinson proposed a motion that forces the Council to take a more proactive role in seeking out new sites that could been used as allotments. “Allotments are growing in popularity, especially as people become more interested in where their food comes from. I think the Council needs to try harder to address this ‘growing’ need!”

West Paddock development dropped

Your Labour Councillors are delighted by the fact that the County Council has pulled out of a deal to buy the green space next to the Civic Centre on West Paddock. Cllr Matthew Tomlinson said “Although the land is set aside for development, there are many local residents who view this green space as a valuable asset. We always had reservations about the deal which would have seen South Ribble simply sell the land to the County Council. We would suggest that, in the current economic climate, the Council drops all plans so sell off this land.”

Residents succeed - with Labour Councillors help!

Residents of Bretherton Terrace were dismayed when planning permission was sought to build three storey houses on a patch of green land opposite their homes. However, with the help of Cllr Caleb Tomlinson and local Labour activist Cheryl Ledward Lee, a campaign was launched to enable local people to voice their concerns. Caleb and Cheryl spoke to residents and help organise a letter writing campaign to let the Council know what they thought. The Council decide to oppose the plans and they were withdrawn.

Giant Veggie Patch up and growing!

Plans to convert a plot of disused land off Bannister Drive into a community asset have come to fruition. Thanks to the efforts of local people, the local Health Service and the Council a patch of derelict land has been cleared and planted ready for the growing season. Cllr Mick Titherington said “This is a great example of local residents working with the authorities to develop a really exciting project. I will be doing all I can to encourage the success of this scheme.”

Tory Council to write off £1m of Icelandic investments?

Your Labour Councillors have been trying to assess the damage caused to the Council by the decision to invest £5 million of taxpayers money in Icelandic banks. The latest news would appear to suggest that the Council could ‘write off’ almost £1m of that investment in the coming year. Councillor Matthew Tomlinson says “Many people will find it hard to understand that a Council who had £5m invested in foreign banks could’nt afford to give the Women’s Refuge a grant of £9,000. Now to add insult to injury, it would seem that almost £1 million of that money will be lost altogether.”

Shock as Turpin Green plan gets the Go Ahead

Councillor Caleb Tomlinson has told of his shock as a plan to build a convenience store on the old petrol station on Turpin Green was passed by Council staff. Caleb said “I handed in a petition of over 200 names objecting to the plan and was intending to stage a protest at the Planning Committee. However it would appear that no-one on the Committee thought it important enough for them to consider. The plan was passed on the say so of a member of staff without even being discussed in public. I am bitterly disappointed.” Two Leyland East Tories are on the Planning Committee, Cllr Mary Green and Cllr Michael McNulty

Two Tories found guilty of rule breaking

Two South Ribble Tories have been found guilty of failing to declare an interest in items on which their votes were crucial. Cllr Jim Marsh and Cllr Barry Yates (a former Mayor) were both found guilty of voting through a Council grant to a club which they were involved with. This was the second time that Cllr Marsh has been found guilty of an offence against the Members code of conduct.

Parking Fiasco

It seems that the Tories are in total confusion about what to do with parking in Leyland. They were elected on a promise to bring back free parking to the Town. When elected they made parking free on one car park, but not the others. Then they hiked the price up from 20p to 50p. Then, after a massive campaign supported by Labour Councillors, they introduced some more free spaces behind the market. Now they want to introduce some more changes, but wont tell anyone what they are!! Confused? You’re not the only one. Labour Leader Councillor Matthew Tomlinson says “No-one likes paying for parking, but what is even more annoying is being fined because the rules are not clear or constantly changing.”

Leyland kids forced to Chorley baths

As South Ribble Tories refuse to join the Governments free swims for under 16’s scheme, it would appear that local children are voting with their pockets and choosing to go swimming in Chorley where the scheme has been enthusiastically adopted. Whilst Chorley Council announced a huge increase in the numbers of people using their swimming baths, South Ribble were admitting that sales were down. Surprise, Surprise!

Council loses ‘Excellent’ Tag

South Ribble Council, rated ‘excellent’ when last under Labour control, has just been told that it is no longer up to the standard required to retain that rating. Just over two years of Tory control has seen the Council fall off the list of the best run Local Authorities. Interestingly, Chorley retained its place as an excellent Council.

More Tories in trouble.

Tory Councillors Barry Yates and Jim Marsh (again!) appeared before the Council's Standards Committee recently to answer charges of misconduct. The charges related to a Grant Application which was considered by the Eastern Area Committee from a local cricket club. Both Councillors were found guilty of failing to declare an interest in the item, as they had connections with the Cricket Club, and then taking part in the vote which ensured that the grant was approved. This is the second time this year that Cllr Marsh has been found guilty of misconduct by the Standards Committee. His punishment? To undergo further training (again)! Cllr Yates, who has been a Councillor for 20 years and is a member of the Standards Committee himself, was ordered to undertake extra training as well. Perhaps he was away when the Standards Committee did their original training?

An Apology

It has been brought to our attention that Cllr Jim Hothersall didn’t say Kingsfold was like Beirut in his ill fated radio interview with Jeremy Vine on Radio 2. What he actually said was that one of the Councillors for Beirut, oops sorry Kingsfold, had made that comparison. We hope that it wasn’t the always sensible Cllr Best, so presumably it was Cllr Renee Blow. The very same councillor who admitted causing a breach of the peace following an altercation with some children in possession of a dangerous football! Our sincere apologies to Cllr Hothersall!