Last night was Full Council, when the 51 Councillors from across the Borough come together. It was a slightly unusual meeting in that there were no motions for debate, and so the entire evening was given over to questions to The Leader.

First there was public question time, with questions received about a variety of topics from speed-humps to elderly care. It was great to see that, because sometimes there aren’t any questions from the gallery and I wonder whether anyone knows or cares about our meetings. I was slightly disappointed that the elderly care question was brushed off with a bland “we’ll take your views into consideration” type response. The member of the public asking the question was really in some distress, and I think that it may have been more appropriate to arrange a private meeting for a more detailed discussion on what is clearly a troubling issue.

Normally the Lib Dem group try to ask about five questions to the Leader when members get the chance, and there often are a few others scattered about the place from other members. Last night there were nineteen (!) written questions, including six from a single Councillor, each with at least one supplementary question. There were also about four verbal questions afterwards. The whole process lasted a good hour and a half, and sapped the will from my very soul towards the end.

I asked two questions. First about the promised “deep-clean” of Prestwich, and the general littered natured of our streets. The second was about what powers the Council is using in relation to dog fouling. I wasn’t expecting an answer to the dog question because I gave no advance notice. But the answer I got on street cleaning was very disappointing indeed, and a slap in the face for Prestwich residents who were promised a deep clean which hasn’t happened and which now probably won’t. I was very annoyed.

The final part of the meeting was questions to outside bodies. In the absence of the Council’s Passenger Transport Authority spokesman, I stood in as his Deputy and answered two questions on the TIF bid and congestion charging, and answered a couple of questions on congestion charging, which I will post about in a second.

All in all, an a-typical meeting, but one which covered a lot of subjects, and highlighted the huge agenda which the Council has to deal with.

Rick

Tonight was Prestwich Local Area Partnership (LAP) night, and once again I came away from the meeting feeling more disenchanted and disappointed than anything else. Most of all I was disappointed in myself and the internal screaming I find myself doing when I just can’t help people who come to the meeting so evidently frustrated.

Once again there were probably as many people on the top table as in the audience. With so many problems evident across Prestwich, and so many people frustrated at the lack of action on so many things, it’s a bit shame that more people don’t come to speak to LAP members. Is it because people can’t be bothered, or just that they think their input can’t make a difference?

Sadly, tonight I came away thinking that, whilst it may be the former for some people, it’s the latter in a lot of cases too. Yet again there was a very eloquent and well-put complaint to us about the state of Prestwich Village - the fact that it’s mucky, untidy, never swept or cleaned. This is the same complaint made over and over, and no matter what I do, no matter what my fellow Councillors do, still it’s the same. It’s a shocking dereliction of duty by the Council itself, who are ignoring not only the elected members but the people who elected them in the first place. This isn’t a political issue. It’s not that one party can do it whilst others can’t. It’s that nobody can do it because the Council aren’t fulfilling their part of the bargain which says that we pay them money to keep the streets clean.

Two LAPs ago we got an officer down to the meeting to address us about street cleaning, and yet still nothing has changed. It’s an absolute disgrace, and the state of the Village centre is nothing short of a scandal. I may be a Councillor, but I am also a Council Tax payer and I am frankly fed up with all of my efforts and requests for help falling not only on deaf ears but also to officers who just don’t seem to care. Why should it take me phone call after email after phone call to get bins empties and kebab wrappers swept away? These things should be happening. The service is appalling and I stand shoulder to shoulder with any resident who says so.

I will keep trying. We will all keep trying, but as a relatively new Councillor I sometimes wonder what the hell I’m doing battling against some absolutely shocking non-interest from the Council itself. I was elected to help the people of my ward, to try and give them what they want, and yet all I am met with is excuse after excuse, and my patience is wearing dangerously thin.

Maybe I shouldn’t write this blog when I’m angry, and I am well aware that this posting is clearly lacking in solutions. But I just want any readers of this to know that I am just as angry as my residents are about the state of these services. I am elected to serve and it’s difficult sometimes. And hugely frustrating when I would have gladly spent tonight emptying the bins and sweeping the streets in the rain myself rather than sat in a school hall listening to the same complaints as last time. I’d have had a far better time, and we’d have achieved something at least.

Rick

Christmas is nearly upon us, and resultantly every minute spent in work as opposed to gallivanting around town wearing Santa hats seems to take fifteen times as long as normal.

Still, there’s time for casework, and there have been a few successes and a frustration with ward work in the last couple of days:

The Prestwich Pensioner’s Club approached me with a query about their Council Tax liability the other day. They will have a more peaceful Christmas after I liaised with the Council’s finance staff to ensure that they were granted the necessary exemptions that they are entitled to as a charitable organisation. The Club is a very important social activity for our older people, and as numbers dwindle and the membership gets older, it is important that we are there to help with any issues that they have. I am glad to have been able to help.

On Sunday I was delivering on Hollyedge Drive when I was approached by a resident concerned at the state of the ginnel between that road and Beckley Avenue. I contacted the Council on Monday morning asking for it to be cleaned, and it now has been. So hopefully residents can see the difference. These ginnels can sometimes be a magnet for litter and anti-social behaviour. We can tackle them both, but the easier one is to deal with the litter and show everyone that we care about these pathways.

Unfortunately, my efforts to get one of the streetlights on Clifton Road fixed have stalled for the moment. The light was damaged in a road accident a few days back. United Utilities are working with the Council to fix it, but whereas I originally thought it would be a simple job, it turns out that cabling has been badly damaged. Resultantly United Utilities will be unable to do the work until the new year. I have asked that the work be given priority, because of several vulnerable residents in the area, and the Council assure me that as soon as the cables are mended, the bulb will be replaced and we’ll be back up and running.

Better news for residents of Church Drive who have brought overhanging trees to my attention. There was originally some confusion over the location, and the council pruned back another set of trees (thanks anyway!)! But now we have pinpointed the problem – the trees themselves are on private land occupied by a business, so the Council can’t prune them immediately. Instead, at my asking the Council have written to the business asking them to prune them back within 28 days or else face the prospect of enforcement action. So hopefully that will illicit a positive response!

So, even as Christmas nears, your local Lib Dem Focus team are working hard in the ward for you. If you have an issue you’d like us to deal with, please get in touch. My contact details are at the top right of the page.

Rick  

Last night was the inaugural meeting of the Scrutiny sub-group analysing the Council’s proposals for alternative models of service delivery.

At the moment we are still at the “invitation to tender” stage, which is right at the start of a process which will see a full options appraisal and may end up with that resulting in no action being taken. On the other hand, it may result in a major contract with a partner, so it’s important stuff. It was a good discussion last night and we all got to grips with the issues. There is a lot to talk about, and I have contacted the Council this morning with some further questions which will form the basis for the next meeting.

In the end we will be reporting back to the Council’s Executive with recommendations on how best to proceed.

Also in the last few days, I have been dealing with casework about a number of issues - from pigeons on the precinct, to speeding cars on Gardner Road. And from litter on Butterstile Lane (again) to the land between the Post Office and Tesco, I am currently investigating these issues on behalf of local people. I hope to bring you news on them all in the coming days.

Rick