County councillors’ January 2012 monthly report

Sue Gymer — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 08:27:17 +0000

Our county councillors’ monthly report for January 2012 is now available on-line. Click on the icon below.

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Cottenham District Councillor’s Report January 2012

Lynda Harford — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 09:56:31 +0000

Click on the icon below for the Cottenham District Councillor’s Report January 2012.

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Lib Dems alternative budget for Cambridgeshire

David — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:34:03 +0000

Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats have revealed their alternative budget investing £10 million in transport over the next five years, supporting schools and young people and embarking on a radical programme of energy efficiency.

The budget identifies around £67 million worth of savings in the years to 2017 while reversing the Tories’ withdrawal of financial support for bus services.

Transport investment includes:

reinstating Cambridge’s city shuttle as the county’s first electric bus;
an extra £300,000 next year for community transport and further cash injections over the following two years making a total of £1 million. A Quality Bus Contract scheme would be used to deliver an improved countywide bus service;
transport interchanges would be built to make sure people in rural areas have better access to services;
the Chisholm Trail, a strategic cycle route linking up Addenbrooke’s Hospital, the CB1 development and the Science Park, would be built; and
the Wisbech to March railway line would be reopened giving an hourly passenger service to Cambridge and allowing people to travel by train to Peterborough and London.

Young people feature high in the Lib Dems’ alternative budget with the promise of a top up to the government’s Pupil Premium for disadvantaged young people by a further £250 per pupil per year.

And there would be free public transport for every young person seeking education or employment. Youth clubs would also be kept open.

Over the next five years £10 million would be spent on maintenance and energy efficiency in schools and a further £1 million on solar panelling.

The voluntary sector would receive £1 million worth of investment over the next two years and Citizens Advice Bureau would receive financial help to assist people facing hardship due to the tough economic climate. Concessionary fares for pensioners have also been protected.

Among savings identified in the budget is £25 million on Northstowe and a further £12 million by replacing the controversial Ely southern bypass project with an underpass under the railway line.

David says: ‘this is a constructive amendment. It focuses investment on Wisbech, young people and the environment and it once again looks at ways to improve the effectiveness of the council. It builds on and is consistent with the alternative budgets of the last 5 years.’

The budget is due for debate next Tuesday, 21 Feb 12; 1030 at Shire Hall.

Probable improvements for the B1049/A14 junction

Sue Gymer — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 12:28:39 +0000

At a recent meeting County Council officers outlined plans to improve the B1049/A14 junction for pedestrians and cyclists. There will probably also be an improvement for south bound road users.

People who use the junction today are well aware of its problems. There’s no protection for pestrians or cyclsts as they cross either down slip road and there’s inadequate capacity for traffic approaching it southwards along the B1049.

But with the aid of section 106 money from the Orchard Park development the officers have developed an elegant and pragmatic way to give the pedestrians and cyclists the protection which they need and, at the same time, to make it easier for southbound traffic.

The officers presented their ideas to a meeting with parish and community council reps from Histon, Impington and Orchard Park, County Councillors and representation from the Cambridge Cycling Campaign. Their ideas were well received and will now go formally to the councils after which there will be a period of consultation before final sign off and implementation in the next few months.

Sue says: ‘This is more good news not just for Histon and Impington cyclists but also those from Cottenham and for people from Orchard Park and the City who go to Histon and Impington for education and employment.’

Click on the icon below for a copy of the drawings related to the proposal.

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Sign the bus cuts petition!

David — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 08:20:09 +0000

A petition has been initiated for people to register their opposition to the County Council’s bus cuts plans.

The petition, called ‘Stopping the cuts to bus services in Cambridgeshire’ reads:

‘We the people of Cambridgeshire are opposed to the Conservative County Council’s decision to scrap 100% of funding for subsidised buses, which led to an application for Judicial Review.

‘Socially necessary bus services are vital to the whole of Cambridgeshire, especially for young people who need to access to centres of employment, those with mobility issues who wish to access the wider community and its resources, and for tackling the root problem of ‘rural isolation’.

‘We also believe that the ‘Cambridgeshire Future Transport’ project, to which half of bus funding has been transferred, is fundamentally flawed and not capable of delivering an adequate replacement for the existing public transport network, never mind the improved system that has been promised.

‘We call on the Conservative administration to reinstate 100% of the cuts to bus funding and to conduct a systematic view of Cambridgeshire residents’ transport needs before making any changes to it.’

Click here to go to the petition.

There are 2 services in Cottenham, Histon and Impington under threat.

One is the weekly 110 Freedom Bus service from Histon and Impington via Cottenham to Ely market. This is well patronised and is an important part of the lives of those that use it. A staggering 50% of its users responded to the recent consultation.

The other is the regular (3 times a day) 106 service from Rampton via Cottenham to Ely. This is a ‘working’ bus. It doesn’t just take people to Ely but it also provides a connecting service to Cambridge. There is talk of a Cambridgeshire Future Transport pilot in Wilburton. If this goes ahead and results in the 106 service being withdrawn the Council could again find itself on the wrong end of a judicial review for ignoring the impact of its actions on local communities!

David says: ‘Lib Dems have not opposed cuts in bus subsidies per se. They acknowledge that some are a waste of money. However they are against their arbitrary withdrawal without prior consideration of alternatives. In our alternate budget last year we would not have cut the expenditure but would have conducted a comprehensive review to ensure that the money was well spent’.

Good news for Histon and Impington walkers!

David — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:58:46 +0000

One of the spin offs from housing and other developments is something called section 106 money. This is money from the developer used to mitigate the impact of its development on local facilities like schools and roads.

Money has just become available in Histon from the Brackenbury development at the end of Kay Hitch Way and following meetings with the parish council it has been agreed to use this to improve the footpath between Kay Hitch Way and the War Memorial. It’s a stretch of footpath which is heavily used by residents including older people living in the Brackenbury development and school children.

Three junctions will be remodelled by the County Council making them easier to cross, improving visibility and fixing defects. These are the junctions with Kay Hitch Way itself, Love Close and Poplar Close.

It is expected that the improvements will be in place within a matter of weeks.

David, who joined the meetings with the parish council, welcomes this news: ‘we need to develop safe routes for walkers thoughout our villages and this is a good first step to fixing one of the main routes.’

A14 briefing: what’s being done now … and possibly later

David — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 08:54:33 +0000

The briefing note below has been prepared by CCC describing:

a broad study of options relating to the A14 now that the previously proposed scheme has been withdrawn;
the ‘A14 challenge’ (a ‘consultation’ looking for ideas; and
the £20million of short-term measures (including some for the Girton interchange)

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County councillors’ December 2011 monthly report

David — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:07:33 +0000

Our county councillors’ monthly report for December 2011 is now available on-line. Click on the icon below.

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Have your say: Fire Authority tax increase

Sue Gymer — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:21:15 +0000

Members of the public are being asked by Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Fire Authority if they would support a council tax rise of 2.5 per cent from April 2012.

The proposed raise would mean an average Band D property would pay an extra £1.44 a year – just a little more than a loaf of bread.

The extra money raised from the council tax increase is needed to meet inflationary pressures and allow for essential investment in Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service’s (CFRS) operational equipment over the year.

If the money cannot be raised through a council tax increase, the fire authority will be forced to take a one-off Government grant of approximately £400,000, which the Government has offered in exchange for fire authorities freezing council tax over this period (2012/13).

However, this is not quite as clear cut as it sounds. As the Government grant is a one-off payment and will not feature as part of the ongoing base budget, it will mean that come 2013/14, the fire authority will have two options:

1. Increase the council tax by a significant amount, over and above inflationary pressures. This will be to cover 2012/13 and also an increase for 2013/14.

Or, if the Government caps a rise on council tax and only allows a certain percentage increase:

2. Add the deficit to the budget cuts that CFRS already face (£4.2 million to £6 million) which could contribute to the loss of more jobs and more resources, such as retained fire engines.

Sue says: ‘it’s important that we set the increase at a sufficient level to fund the resources which we need. I’m sure most people would be willing to pay a modest amount extra in their council tax to ensure that our fire service can do its job properly’.

Members of the public have until January 25 to make their views known by emailing the fire service or by sending a comment by post to Matthew Warren, Director of Resources, Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters, Hinchingbrooke Cottage, Brampton Road, Huntingdon. Cambridgeshire. PE29 2NA.

The fire authority will make a final decision on February 23, once comments have been made.

Find out more about saving energy and money with Sustainable Cottenham

Lynda Harford — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:53:07 +0000

Sustainable Cottenham shared the disappointment felt by many on hearing the government’s plans to reduce Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs) for photovoltaic (PV) electricity generation. The decision to bring forward the cut-off date to 12th December prevented many households from installing PV panels at the FiT rate they had planned for and also had an adverse effect on many of the small companies engaged in their installation.

South Cambridgeshire District Council took a decision not to proceed with the installation of PV panels on the roof of South Cambridgeshire Hall. The contractor that they employed to install panels on the roofs of SCDC housing stock also withdrew, leaving the council and many of its tenants bitterly disappointed.

But the news is not all bad for those of us interested in conserving energy (and saving money):

• The cost of photovoltaic panels continues to come down and, even with the less generous tariff, is approaching the point at which it will still be economically sound to consider their installation on our homes;

• Generous grants are available to improve household insulation. How many of us have adequate insulation in our lofts? Most of us have some, but have you checked whether it is the recommended 270mm (approximately 11 inches)? This is something that costs far less; there are grants available to all; for some the work can even be carried out free of charge;

• The Renewable Heat Incentive is expected to be launched in the domestic sector later in 2012 to incentivise solar hot water and heat pumps; and

• The government is also launching a new programme in 2012: The Green Deal, which will offer benefits to householders.

Sustainable Cottenham will be one of the first members of SCDC’s Sustainable Parish Energy Partnership to promote the new programme designed to increase the number of well insulated homes. This will be one of the features of Sustainable Cottenham’s Village Energy Day, ‘Cosy Cottenham’, on Saturday 14 January 2012, 10.00 to 14.00 at Cottenham Community Centre. Details of the organisations participating and the speakers contributing to the day can be found on our website: www.sustainablecottenham.org.uk.

Lynda says: ‘This will be an event worth attending. The coffee shop will be open throughout and there will be activities for children. We very much look forward to seeing you there.’

Click here to download a poster.

sustainable_cottenham.pdf Download this file