Park and Ride lights to be turned off

Wellow Futures, a community group in Wellow, and local Lib Dems hosted an evening showing the film the Age of Stupid last week both in Wellow and at Bathampton Village Hall. It was followed by a far ranging discussion about energy efficiency and moving away from the oil economy.

Gail Coleshill, Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for North East Somerset, said:

“The film outlines what could happen in the future if people of this generation do not make much more effort to save oil and reduce global warming.

We had an animated discussion about what we could achieve locally and ended with how much more could be done with a bit more Government and Council leadership.”

The group has already chalked up one success. Local resident Jane Rees complained that the lights at the Park and Ride at Odd Down did not need to be on all the time and Cllr Neil Butters (Lib Dem, Bathavon South) promised to find out if they could be altered.

This week he received a reply for the Sustainability Officer at B&NES that the lights would be turned off half an hour after the Park and Ride closed.

Cllr Butters said:

“This is a real achievement for the Council working with local residents to effect energy efficiencies. I am really pleased that we were able to make a real energy saving thanks to the observation of a local resident.”

Gail ready for election fight

After 18 months of uncertainty, the Prime Minister has finally called a General Election.
Here in North East Somerset, the Liberal Democrats have re-selected well respected political activist Gail Coleshill to contest the election, which will be fought under brand new parliamentary boundaries.

Gail, who has worked for ten years on community projects and initiatives in the area, said:

“A lot has changed here since the last General Election. Not just do we have new boundaries, but our Labour MP has become even more unpopular and the Conservatives have selected a candidate who has no track record of doing anything in our area.
I’m 100% ready for the election contest and hope the people of North East Somerset will elect me as their new MP.”

The new constituency, previously known as Wansdyke, will be losing the Bitton, Oldland Common area to the north of Keynsham – which has had a Labour MP for the last 13years.
New additions to the constituency include Batheaston, Bathampton, South Stoke and Freshford (a total area of around 7,000 voters) – which have all been served by the Lib Dem MP Don Foster for the last 18 years.

Today, Gail Coleshill has published her four pledges for election to Parliament:

1. Economy: I’ll work with Vince Cable to help working families by raising the individual tax free allowance to £10,000. We’ll cut out tax loopholes for the rich and reduce income tax by taxing pollution.
2. Environment:
· I will continue to campaign to protect the environment, particularly against plans to build thousands of houses on the greenbelt.
· We do need more low cost housing, so I want to bring empty homes back into use for affordable housing and increase the energy efficiency of all houses to save money and keep homes warmer.
· I’ll work with other Lib Dem MPs to push for planning decisions to be taken away from central government and decided locally.
· I would like to make buses and trains affordable and reliable so that people have a real choice on how to travel. Re-open railway lines and stations such as Bathampton, Saltford and Radstock to Bristol.
· I support the local Lib Dems plans’ to give all young people free bus passes so they have better access to services.

3. Education: I plan to give teachers more time in the classroom by cutting administration. Raise standards in every school with a pupil premium for every child. Reduce and eventually eliminate university tuition fees.
4. Democratic Reform: The expenses scandal in parliament has put people off politics. I want to change this by using local groups to bring democracy closer to the people, to give people the freedom to sack their MP, and introduce a fairer voting system where every vote counts.

Gail believes the contest locally is wide open:

“Our canvass results are looking very good, with Labour finishing in third place. Every week I am meeting new people on the doorstep, and they’re telling me they want a change from the old-style politics and break from the two older parties.

As we get closer to polling day, election fever is sure to heat up in North East Somerset.”

To watch Gail’s General Election Campaign video visit http://www.nes-libdems.org.uk/

Work finally begins

Work has finally began on the Two Tunnels project, thanks to pressure on B&NES Council by Cllr Neil Butters and Project Chair Gitte Dawson.

Attracting £1 million of Lottery funding, the project will connect Midford with the centre of Bath to create a new cycle and walking route between thelocations. The multi-user path will join Bath and Midford by an almost-flat system of tunnels and overland paths following the existing railway line that is currently out of use.
Prospective Lib Dem MP Gail Coleshill commented:
“The Two Tunnels route will benefit businesses, residents and visitors. It will encourage visitors to make more use of what Bath & North East Somerset has to offer.
Overall, this is part of the national Sustrans initiative which links up hundreds of walking and cycling routes around the country.”

Fears arise over future of Community Transport

Fears have arisen over the future of community transport in Bath and North East Somerset, following the news that the Council’s designated Community Transport Officer role is being scrapped.

For several years, B&NES has employed an officer to work directly work with community transport groups in Keynsham, Radstock, Bath and elsewhere to liaise on behalf of the authority and represent the views of the groups within the Transport Department.

Now, after years of successful work, Tory-run B&NES Council has decided to pull the plug on the role and leave many of the voluntary groups without this vital support.

Senior Lib Dem Gail Coleshill, who is standing at the next General Election has her party’s choice in North East Somerset, said:

“I was very worried to hear that the Council has decided to scrap this role. Every year, hundreds of volunteers work hard to provide a transport service to the elderly, the disabled, and anyone else who finds it difficult to use Public Transport.

In North East Somerset, groups such as the Norton-Radstock Ring & Ride, Keynsham Dial-a-Ride, Bath Community Transport and the Swan Advice Network play a vital role in offering a life-line to residents.

Many people use these services to do their weekly shop, to visit friends and get to important medical appointments.”

Last year, 14,000 passengers used the Ring and Ride service in Radstock and Midsomer Norton. B&NES currently gives £94,000 a year to support the service, but with severe government cuts on the way this funding could be under threat. Gail added:

“The current government has got its priorities wrong when it comes to using public finances to improve public and community transport. Instead of investing £millions on building bus lanes that no one wants, money should be going towards extending the community transport schemes in rural areas.

Also, if the Tories win the next election, they are telling us to expect big cuts to public services. I wonder if the Tory Candidate for North East Somerset will distance himself from his party’s actions locally and their plans nationally?

I believe that in rural areas such as North East Somerset we can’t under estimate the importance of community transport and I call on the Council to reinstate the Community Transport Officer role before it’s too late.”

Innovative transport designs

Local Lib Dems Gail Coleshill, Cllr Neil Butters and Tim Bray went on a fact finding visit to Stourbridge where there is a very successful light rail link between the station and the town.

The light rail car, or Parry’s People Mover, runs along rails on a 2 litre LPG diesel engine with a flywheel attachment to provide kinetic energy which saves fuel and carbon emissions.

Gail Coleshill was impressed by the possibilities of using such a low energy solution in Bath and North East Somerset.

She said “I can see the possibilities in a number of situations where the track beds of old railways still exist. It could be used in Bath along the old track instead of buses which use the same congested road space as cars. There are also the two tunnels track, the Radstock to Frome track, and maybe a branch line to Swindon.

Parry’s People Mover was first developed for use in the developing world but has been designed in Stourbridge to specifications from Network Rail.

The car which carries 60 people makes journeys every ten minutes along a disused branch line but the design of its body means that it can be extended to travel along tracks in or beside the road.

Gail was particularly impressed by its affordability. She added:

“LPG fuel makes it really cheap to run and the fuel is carried in a large tank within the vehicle. The car is light weight and the flywheel which stores up energy is what makes this such an innovative solution. I believe this could be a useful way to make a link between Bristol and Radstock along the old railway track which still exists most of the way."

Local resident and rail enthusiast Tim Bray thought there were practical applications within the Radstock area.

“I know there are public transport shortages between Farrington and Midsomer Norton and there is a track bed which is going to be an extension to the Greenway. I think this would be an ideal place to try out a pilot scheme for an ultra light railway.”

True cost of bus lane revealed

In the week that Bath and North East Somerset has started further works on the A367 going into Bath, new figures have been obtained which show that the infamous 700-yard bus lane at Odd Down actually cost £72,600 more than was previously quoted.

Last summer Senior Lib Dem Gail Coleshill and Peasedown Councillor Nathan Hartley hit the national press with the news that Tory-run B&NES Council had spent £916,000 on a bus lane which was only 700yards long.

The news attracted criticism from politicians, residents and national motoring group the RAC.
Now, nine months later it has been revealed that the total cost of the bus lane is in fact £988,600. Prospective Lib Dem MP for North East Somerset Gail Coleshill says this money has been wasted on a bus lane that is rarely used:

“It’s a great shame that £988,600 has been spent on a 700yard stretch of road that has not at all helped ease the congestion going in and out of Bath – which is what those that who proposed it thought it would do.

Right from the beginning I knew this wouldn’t work and have been calling for years for alternative modes of travel to be explored to ease the congestion on the roads.

I would rather this money was spent on reopening some of the Railway Stations in the authority in places like Radstock, Saltford and Bathampton and also providing every single teenager in B&NES with a free bus pass.”

Midsomer Norton resident Mike Jakins wonders if B&NES will ever learn from its mistakes. He said:

“Before this bus lane was built drivers would often get stuck in traffic on the A367 trying to get to the Park and Ride. Now the bus lane has been built, they still get stuck in traffic trying to get to the Park and Ride. Nothing’s changed. What frustrates me most is that central government and the council both say they have limited funds for front line services... but can afford this monstrosity of a bus lane!”

Despite attracting criticism from all over the country last year, B&NES has decided to build another bus lane further into Bath near the Red Lion Inn which is only 177yards long. Peasedown Councillor Nathan Hartley added:

“£115,000 of the total £988,600 was spent on consultants. You’d think that they, for that amount of money, would have given the council the simple advice not to spend anymore on bus lanes. Apparently not, the Conservatives haven’t learnt and want to re-live last summer all over again.
Interestingly, even the Council gritters recognise that no one uses the bus lane because there was a perfect sheet of snow over it in January, with the other two lanes cleared from the grit laid by council workmen.”

Almost 150 people have joined a Facebook group set up by Gail Coleshill condemning the bus lane.

The figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats show that the £988,600 was spent on:

Construction (New bus lane, drainage & ancillary works) = £720,100

Internal costs (Project management, legal, property, planning requirements) = £111,400

External costs (Preliminary, feasibility & detailed design consultants) = £115,418

Land (Land purchase, agents & licensingfees) = £37,477

Environmental (Archaeological surveys, site investigation, safety audits, misc) = £14,225

Core Strategy - What does Neil think?

Open Letter to Newspapers:

Dear Sir

I am the councillor for Bathavon South ward, covering South Stoke - where I happen to live, and five other parishes to the south of Bath. I am writing to comment on the Core Strategy document and the proposal to build an urban extension, whether at South Stoke or Newton St Loe.

Exactly 40 years ago, I joined the then Institute of Personnel Management - now the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. I remember well attending an IPM event held at Bristol University a year later where we were told of the remarkable surge in membership that was then taking place. I further recall calculating that if the surge continued at its present rate, almost the entire country would be employed in personnel management by the year 2010! This was of course absurd, and after a while the rate of increase duly tailed off.

I mention this because it seems to me that we are in danger of getting caught up with similar false arguments, involving extrapolation of trends, where housing numbers are concerned.

Yes, it is clear that we do need some new housing. No-one would deny that. But of course the key questions are - how much, and where should it go?

There are currently some 8,000 on the housing waiting list in Bath & North East Somerset, well short of the 15,500 being planned for - never mind the 21,300 the Government is trying to impose upon us.

Let us say we made provision for the entire housing waiting list. We have the three MoD sites to work with; there is Bath Western Riverside; there are the almost 700 empty properties; and there are a number of areas around B&NES where more housing would be warmly welcomed. Further to that, the two universities could be asked to accommodate all first and final year students on campus, releasing large numbers of homes in the Oldfield Park area for normal family use. Ie: it should not be difficult to make up the total required.

Incidentally, I asked recently whether B&NES still had the power to initiate housebuilding itself, if private developers wouldn't get on with it in brownfield areas. The answer was 'yes, indeed they could!'. Food for thought there...

I believe that either proposed extension would cause immense traffic and other problems, and ruin the setting of Bath in terms of its status as a World Heritage Site. Moreover, I strongly disapprove of coalescence between either Bath and South Stoke or Bath and Newton St Loe - which would ruin the character of either village.

As you may recall, I and Gail Coleshill (Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for North East Somerset) presented our own petition from South Stoke to the Government of the South West in October 2008 (pictured above).

Also, I was happy to make the point by voting against the whole Core Strategy document at the special full council meeting on 1st October, and intend to continue in the same vein. Independent campaigners such as Jenny John (South Stoke) and the Newton St Loe Conservation Group therefore have my full support. All power to their elbows.

Yours sincerely

Neil Butters
(Lib Dem, Bathavon South)

Another developer-driven option? - 8th Dec '09

Liberal Democrats, worried about B&NES proposals to build in the AONB in South Stoke, invited MEP Graham Watson to visit Bath and North East Somerset constituencies.

While he was in South Stoke he was keen to sign the petition alongside Cllr Butters, Gail Coleshill and Louise Bray.

Gail Coleshill, who will be standing against Labour and Conservative at the next Election, say this is another example of a developer driven housing option:

“I recently learnt that the landowner has invited Councillors to view the land he is offering in the AONB for house building in an attempt to persuade them to include it in the Core Strategy.

We believe as do the residents that housing development in Bath should be restricted to the known brown-field sites within the city and that the special landscape setting outside the city should be left alone.

And there are better alternatives to the south of the District.”

Printed (hosted) by Google UK Ltd, 76 Buckingham Palace RoadLondon SW1W 9TQ. Published and promoted by Louise Bray on behalf of Gail Coleshill (Liberal Democrats) at 17 Waldegrave Terrace, Radstock, Bath, BA3 3EY, 01225 834673

Local Pressure leads to extension of Core Strategy Consultation - 3rd Dec '09

Local Lib Dem Gail Coleshill is pleased by the Council’s decision to extend the deadline for submissions to the Core Strategy Consultation to the 15th of January.

“I have been supporting residents in Newton St Loe, South Stoke, and Whitchurch who are fighting Developer led plans to build massive new housing estates on Green belt land.”

“Conversely local business leaders in the Norton Radstock area would like to see more land allocated for businesses and housing with the appropriate infrastructure. Their ideas are backed by officers to some extent but always qualified by lack of Government money for infrastructure and transport routes."

Local campaigners in Newton St Loe say that a massive housing estate between them and Twerton would lead to massive increases in traffic on the A4, massive infrastructure problems, and a massive intrusion into the setting of the Newton Park and World Heritage city, Bath. They say:

“NO TO NEW TOWN ST LOE”

Photo showing Newton St Loe campaigners with local Lib Dem supporters.
Front left to right Cllr Neil Butters, Louise Bray, Cllr Sarah Bevan, Gail Coleshill, Cllr Nathan Hartley and local campaigner Jo Tinworth
Keynsham Town Cllrs Roger Clark, far left, and Tony Crouch right of Jo Tinworth, also joined the protest.

Neil at Conference!

Cllr Neil Butters at Lib Dem Conference in Bournemouth, September 2009, with Parliamentary Spokesperson Gail Coleshill and campaigner Louise Bray.

Mobile Library petition handed to deputy Chairman of Council

Gail Coleshill and Louise Bray, representing Mobile Library users across the district, handed in some of the petitions they have collected requesting that the Council retains the rural routes.

Seen here presenting the petition to acting Chair of Council Sarah Bevan, Gail and Louise are concerned many residents who use the mobile library are elderly, not car users, have young children or mobility problems.

In her statement Gail said these are the people about whom the Council should be most concerned in maintaining services in rural areas.

Gail presented the petition to the acting Chairman of Council at a Full Council meeting last night saying that she had received signatures from villagers in Wellow, Bathford, Priston, Hunstrete, Compton Martin, and Hinton Charterhouse and had had messages from people including teachers in Shoscombe, Wellow, Combe Hay and Midford.

Gail said in reply to a question from a Councillor about numbers of users:

“The numbers of users at present may be below in some villages but that is no reason to exclude those villages from the service. More use could be made of the Mobile Library to provide other Council services and to make residents more aware of the visits by the mobile library.”

Louise Bray, who relied on the mobile library service during a recent serious illness, was pleased that the Cabinet member was now proposing to consult other options.

She said:

“I am sure that many residents are relieved to know that the consultation on the Mobile Library route review will now include more options than just scrapping the village routes. I hope the Council will make efforts to consult residents and parish councils in all the villages presently visited by the library.”

Gail Coleshill spearheads campaign to save the village mobile library service

Gail Coleshill, Louise Bray, and Cllr Neil Butters with school children in Wellow next to the mobile library service that could be axed.

Local campaigners including a parish councillor attended Thursday’s Safer Stronger Communities Overview and Scrutiny Panel at the Guildhall in Bath, in order to express their concerns about the proposed review of the mobile library route.

Gail Coleshill representing the views of people living in the rural areas, said:

“I have been speaking to residents in the villages where there is shock and dismay at the proposals. Many users are elderly or have mobility problems and some parents with young children may not get the opportunity to take them to a library any other way.”

Local resident and campaigner Louise Bray told the committee how much she depended on the mobile library when she was unable to drive.

She told the panel:

“It is no good relying on public transport to get you to the main library from Wellow village because there isn’t any. When I had an operation in my eye I could not drive and the mobile library was a Godsend for me. Staff were so helpful and were able to get me talking books.

There is an old English proverb that says a good book is the best of friends. For the people in the villages the mobile library is a friend, and a good friend is someone you might not see for a while, but is always there when you need them."

Gail has launched an online petition against the proposal to cut the service. To sign visit: www.ourcampaign.org.uk/saveourlibraries

By signing, you will also be kept updated on the progress of the consultation and the campaign.

For a paper copy of the petition download one from the website, or contact Gail Coleshill on 01761 432923.

Road surface ‘like Mexico’ says Councillor

Cllr Butters, Gail Coleshill and Elizabeth James inspect the B3110.

Councillor Neil Butters (Lib Dem, Bathavon South), who represents the villages south of Bath, has called for the B3110 between Hinton Charterhouse and the Somerset County Council Border to be resurfaced as a matter of priority. The road is currently in very poor condition with bald patches and loose gravel.

“I recently met some visiting cyclists who were also complaining about the road surface and said it was the worst they had encountered on their travels.”

Councillor Butters said:

“There really is an amazing contrast in road surface quality once you get to the Somerset border. Travelling on the B3110 from Hinton Charterhouse towards Norton St Philip is like going from Mexico into the U.S.!

“I reported this issue to the Cabinet member for Customer Services, who is responsible for Transport at the start of the month. Coincidentally, he will be adopting the programme of road maintenance works in the near future. However despite admitting that he himself had recently reported the problem to Council Connect, there are no plans to resurface the road this year.

“I have written to the Cabinet Member asking him to change priorities and get this stretch of road some attention. However as yet, I have not received a response.”

Local resident Elizabeth James, who drew Neil’s attention to the problem, said:

"The present road surface is bad enough in a car or a bus but absolutely diabolical on a bike where the rough, uneven surface takes away momentum as well. Between Hinton & Norton St Philip it looks and feels as though the road has been scarified and on the way into Midford from Hinton riding over the yellow ‘go slow’ strips is like crossing a cattle grid!

“I recently met some visiting cyclists who were also complaining about the road surface and said it was the worst they had encountered on their travels.”

Lib Dems plea to Council “Leave the mobile library service alone”

News that the mobile library service is proposed for cuts in the very rural areas has caused consternation to villagers who rely on the library van’s regular visits.

Gail Coleshill, Parliamentary spokesperson, representing views from villages like Combe Hay, Priston and Wellow, said:

“I cannot believe that the Council is proposing to take away the mobile library from villages where it is already difficult to explain what they get for their council tax.

Surely rather than a consultation on cuts to the service we should be consulting on how to get more residents interested in using the mobile service and what they want and need from such a service.”

Local Lib Dem Louise Bray is very concerned that it will be young mums and the elderly who will suffer. She said:

“However short, the visit from the library in villages like Combe Hay and Priston is very important for people with young children and the elderly who cannot easily get to places like Timsbury or the main libraries.”

Cllr Neil Butters, Bathavon South ward, is annoyed that this is a cut too far.
He said:

“I am trying hard to get better transport for villages in my ward to save trips by car and then the Council Cabinet seems to do nothing but make it more and more necessary to make car journeys. Villagers in places like Wellow are fed up with being sidelined by the Council.

Creating sustainable communities will increasingly mean getting services to people and communities and not asking them to make lots of individual journeys to centralised locations.”

Gail and Louise will be attending the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Stronger Communities), at the Guildhall on Thursday 23at 10am to represent the views of people who want to keep the mobile library service. Cllr Neil Butters would be pleased to hear views from any residents.

The B3110 - "It's like going from hell to heaven"

Last week, local Councillor Neil Butters met with Elizabeth James and Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson Gail Coleshill on the BANES border with Somerset County Council.

The B1330 is a great example if how Tory-run BANES have lacked any investment in road infrustructure over the last two years. Click here to watch the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hww-0YtlbCU