From the Essex Lib Dems website:

Essex’s ruling Conservative councillors have voted down a Lib Dem plan to save council taxpayers £21,400.

At today’s meeting of Essex County Council, the Liberal Democrat Opposition Group proposed deleting the Special Allowance for the Deputy Leader of the Conservative Group.

Chelmsford Lib Dem Cllr. Stephen Robinson said:

This post is just not required. The Conservative Deputy Leader of the Council receives £40,000, eight Cabinet members receive £35,000 and the Deputy Cabinet members receive £13,000 each. The Conservative group must recognise that they lost one third of their Councillors at the election and don’t need this extra allowance.”

The Liberal Democrat proposal was supported by Labour, Independent and Green Councillors; UKIP abstained, and the Conservative majority voted it down.

May 16th, 2013 | Category: Council Budget, Essex & East | Comments (1)

Someone asked onlineFOCUS for the timetable for the no.3 bus service to Hyde Hall (a lovely place to visit, especially when the weather is good). We have emailed the timetable to that person, but for anyone else who is interested, here is the timetable. (click on the images to enlarge them)

May 10th, 2013 | Category: Essex & East, Public Transport | Leave a comment

Although the Conservatives took a battering last Thursday, they are still in control of Essex County Council. They have just chosen a new leader and deputy leader, to replace their previous leader who stepped down.

The new leader is David Finch, who was previously deputy leader and represents Hedingham. Rather confusingly, according to the County Council, his home address is Blacksmiths Cottage
Borley, Nr Sudbury , Suffolk. But it seems that the village of Borley is indeed just inside the boundaries of Essex.

The new deputy leader is Kevin Bentley, who represents Stanway and Pyefleet and lives on Mersea Island.

May 6th, 2013 | Category: Conservatives, Essex & East | Comments (13)

Lib Dem Priorities for Essex

County Council Elections – 2 May 2013

Four years of Tory scandal and financial mismanagement

Over the last four years Conservative run Essex County Council has been hit by a series of financial and other scandals

The former Leader, Lord Hanningfield, was forced to resign over his House of Lords expenses for which he was imprisoned
Lord Hanningfield’s ECC expenses were exposed which showed £287,000 had been spent over the five years 2005-10, the previous five years records having been destroyed.

Further revelations showed his office staff claimed £70,000 over three years and ECC paid his £4,600 bar bill at the House of Lords
The Conservatives, with Labour support, refused a Liberal Democrat call for an Inquiry to establish who authorised those payments and why
The use of ‘P’ cards (payment cards) by officers was exposed which revealed £1.7m had been spent on luxury hotels, trips abroad and shopping sprees
Five cases of personal identity data were leaked or mislaid

The revelation that ECC had £14.5m of art treasures hidden away from public view
Developer contributions (Section 106 monies) were lost through inaction

Now is the time to sweep away the secrecy and open up the County Council to public scrutiny

The Liberal Democrats will make that change by:

Council meetings to be web cast
Allowing the public to speak and ask questions at Council meetings
No more decisions made behind closed doors

During the last four years the standard of basic services has fallen. The Liberal Democrats will change that by restoring services and improving others by:

Repairing roads properly, not just patching up
Improving poorly performing schools
Ending the shortage of school places
No more cuts to Library opening hours
Re-opening the Martins Farm, St Osyth Recycling Centre
No more Recycling Centre closures
Ensuring the under 5′s nursery provision is fully taken up
Providing swimming concessions for the under 16′s
Improving youth provision
Providing concessionary fares passes for those on Job Seekers Allowance and undertaking Apprenticeships
No more increases in car parking charges in ECC Country Parks
Protecting concessionary fares for pensioners
Stopping the street light switch off for review
Introduce ’20 is plenty’ – 20mph speed limit near schools and in residential areas

The Liberal Democrats will ensure value for money by:

Cutting waste and bureaucracy at County Hall
Using cash sitting in the Council’s Banks
Cutting business trips and conferences
Reducing the number of Cabinet members and Deputies receiving allowances
Cutting the publicity budget
Slashing the use of expensive consultants
No more gimmicky projects like Banking in Essex which wasted £400,000
Making sure Developers contributions (Section 106 monies) are spent in time and not returned

April 30th, 2013 | Category: Elections, Essex & East, Liberal Democrats | Leave a comment

One of the biggest political websites in England is Conservativehome. (The Lib Dem equivalent is Liberal Democrat Voice). It exists to support the Conservative party, so it’s not surprising that they had an article recently praising the Conservatives who run Essex County Council. What is surprising is that the comments left below the article by Conservativehome readers weren’t supporting the County Council, they were full of criticism! For example:

I live in Essex. Essex CC is notoriously unresponsive and our local (Tory) County Councillor is virtually unobtainable.

Please explain what happened to the “Bank of Essex” which was one touted as the jewel in the crown by Tory candidates four years ago. How much did it lend and how much money did the venture lose before it was wound up?

There is also the little matter of Lord Hanningfield…….

Ah Essex indeed where convicted fraudster,the pig farmer Paul White,who lives with his mum ruled the roost as Tory Leader Lord Hanningfield.
Despite repeated requests Essex will not release audit reports and internal control(weakness) letters from 2003 and 2005 which first highlighted weakness in expense payment procedures.They produced a report saying all is now well and nobody,officers or councillors were to blame.I am ashamed to say that the current Tory Leader is a chartered accountant.

This was the council that set vanity project Banking on Essex to lend to sub prime businesses in cahoots with Santander.They spent £250k to lend £250k.

April 19th, 2013 | Category: Essex & East | Comments (1)

From the Independent last week

It seems that nothing will ever shame the ermine troughers out of claiming from the public purse. Paul White, aka Lord Hanningfield, an ex-Tory peer, has not spoken in the House of Lords, nor tabled any written questions since he was sent to jail for fiddling his expenses, but figures reveal that in November he had his best month yet for pocketing the £300 daily allowance to which he is entitled just for turning up. He signed in on 17 separate days, which entitled him to £5,100. He also claimed £407 travel costs. That means that in the first eight months since his return after his prison spell, Lord Hanningfield trousered a total of £21,000 in daily attendance allowances, plus £1,736 costs.

 

Lord Hanningfield is of course the former Conservative leader of Essex County Council.

April 17th, 2013 | Category: Essex & East | Comments (2)

Essex Liberal Democrats
Our Priorities for the 2013 Elections

Four years of Tory scandal and financial mismanagement

Over the last four years Conservative run Essex County Council has been hit by a series of financial and other scandals
•
The former Leader, Lord Hanningfield, was forced to resign over his House of Lords expenses for which he was imprisoned
•
Lord Hanningfield’s ECC expenses were exposed which showed £287,000 had been spent over the five years 2005-10, the previous five years records having been destroyed
•
Further revelations showed his office staff claimed £70,000 over three years and ECC paid his £4,600 bar bill at the House of Lords
•
The Conservatives, with Labour support, refused a Liberal Democrat call for an Inquiry to establish who authorised those payments and why
•
The use of ‘P’ cards (payment cards) by officers was exposed which revealed £1.7m had been spent on luxury hotels, trips abroad and shopping sprees
•
Five cases of personal identity data were leaked or mislaid
•
The revelation that ECC had £14.5m of art treasures hidden away from public view
•
Developer contributions (Section 106 monies) were lost through inaction

Now is the time to sweep away the secrecy and open up the County Council to public scrutiny

The Liberal Democrats will make that change by:
•
Council meetings to be web cast
•
Allowing the public to speak and ask questions at Council meetings
•
No more decisions made behind closed doors

April 13th, 2013 | Category: Elections, Essex & East, Liberal Democrats, Local Democracy | Comments (6)

We hope our local Conservatives are embarrassed by the figures below. They darn well ought to be.
This is a league table of the money spent on pothole repairs by Essex County Council by district or borough over the last three financial years:

Braintree:- £3,570,000
Colchester:- £3,230,000
Uttlesford:- £3,100,000
Chelmsford:- £ 2,710,000
Tendring:- £2,590,000
Epping:- £2,570,000
Basildon:- £1,910,000
Maldon:- £1,890,000
Brentwood:- £1,440,000
Castle Point:- £ 978,000
Rochford:- £ 920,000
Harlow:- £ 767,000
A127:- £ 605,000

Total £7.888 million

April 8th, 2013 | Category: Essex & East, Highways & Parking | Comments (5)

From the Police and Crime Commissioners Website:

The next Police and Crime Commissioner public meeting, discussing crime and policing issues, will take place in Rochford on March 28th, 2013.  Key topics will include ASB, licensing and the “night time economy”, shoplifting, and vehicle crime, plus any policing or crime subject that members of the audience wish to raise.

Nick Alston aims to hold a public meeting in every district of Essex, twice a year, working with colleagues from Essex Police, Community Safety Partnerships, district and unitary councils, partner organisations and the voluntary sector. These are important events for everyone who cares about the way their community is policed and who wants to know the facts about crime in their area.

Meetings have already taken place in Southend-on-Sea, Basildon, Chelmsford and Dunmow, and the next event is scheduled for:

Rochford:

Time: 18:30 to 20:30, Thursday March 28th

Location: Hawthorn Centre Lecture Theatre, SEPT Rochford Hospital, Union Lane, Rochford, SS4 1RB

Nick Alston said: “It is important that crime continues to fall in Essex – that we have fewer victims of crime and fewer people living in fear of crime. I am committed to the principle of local solutions for local problems, and to ensuring that police, partner agencies, the voluntary sector and residents work together as closely as possible to keep our communities safe.

“The meeting will be two hours long. We’d love people to attend all the meeting, but if you can only make part of it, please still come along. I want your views to be part of the debate about how we can best keep the streets and countryside of Essex safe.

March 24th, 2013 | Category: Crime & Policing, Essex & East, Rochford | Comments (1)

From the Southend Standard:

A FRESH £75,000 of “staggering” expenses claimed by disgraced peer Lord Hanningfield and his staff have been revealed for the first time.
Essex County Council has released details of the spending on credit cards belonging to the former leader’s personal helpers during his time at County Hall – including expensive trips to fancy restaurants, political conferences and the Caribbean.
The new figures also include £4,760 in bar and hospitality bills which were run up at the House of Lords and then charged to Essex taxpayers.
Mike Mackrory, the leader of the county council’s Liberal Democrat group, said he was “stunned” by the new scandal.
He said: “To suddenly have £70,000 of extra expenses unveiled is frankly quite staggering.
“I am stunned. Any reasonable person looking at them would say 60 per cent – at least – are not legitimate.
“It is outrageous that this was allowed to go on and that nobody stepped in to stop it.”

March 22nd, 2013 | Category: Essex & East | Leave a comment

Have you heard of the ActionFraud website? They describe themselves as follows:

Who is Action Fraud?

 Action Fraud is the UK’s national fraud reporting centre where you should report fraud if you have been scammed or defrauded.

We provide a central point of contact for information about fraud and financially motivated internet crime. People are scammed, ripped off or conned everyday and we want this to stop. We believe that we can beat fraud if we talk about it.

The service is run by the National Fraud Authority – the government agency that helps to co-ordinate the fight against fraud in the UK. We work with partners in law enforcement – the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, run by the City of London Police – to make sure your fraud reports reach the right place

Report fraud and internet crime

You can report fraud using our online fraud reporting service any time of the day or night; the service enables you to both report a fraud and find help and support. We also provide help and advice over the phone through the Action Fraud contact centre. You can talk to our fraud specialists by calling 0300 123 2040.

Reports taken are passed to the police who may contact you for further information. Action Fraud does not investigate the cases and cannot advise you on the progress of a case.

 

One recent item involves Essex schools and parents – if you haven’t seen this already, be warned!:

School truancy cold calls

Parents are being warned of a scam where fraudsters are cold calling victims and demanding you pay truancy fines [20 February 2013]

Essex County Council issued the warning after a parent of a pupil received a phone call purporting to be from the Education Welfare Service stating that their child had not attended school that day and as a result they had to pay a fine of £340.

The parent was asked to provide her credit/debit card details so that a payment could be made over the phone.

It is important to remember that The Education Welfare Service do not phone parents demanding payment immediately over the phone.  Invoices and penalty notices are sent via the post, and only then are you given the option to pay by phone.

Read more about the fraud on the Essex County Council website.

March 3rd, 2013 | Category: Crime & Policing, Education, Essex & East, Web Stuff | Leave a comment