Road Safety on the Coast Road

Road Safety on the Coast Road was a key topic of discussion at last nights Southport Area Committee - you can see the report here.

There have been 11 fatalities on this stretch of road over the last 10 years in addition to a large number of other road accidents - usually shunts.  For those of you not familiar with Southport, this road runs from the end of the "sea front" to Woodvale and is used by most people as a by-pass around Southport - you can see the satellite picture of the road here  Admittedly, from the map, the road looks like a nice pretty straight route but the road cuts through the sand dunes that make up part of  the Birkdale and Ainsdale Sandhills Nature Reserve.  This effectively means there is no where to go if motorist get into difficulty and although it looks straight there are some deceptive bends which make judging distances difficult.

The report put forward a number of proposals but I, for one, think we need to go further. During the debatet a number additional ideas were suggested including a reduction of the speed limit for the whole length of the road.  Now don't get me wrong, I am not pro-speed however I believe that simply reducing the speed limit from 50mph to 40mph here will not solve the problem and may in fact make the problem worse .  One of the contributory factors in most accidents has been inappropriate overtaking something which I believe is likely to increase if you get motorist travelling at 40 or even 30 miles and hour.  It makes sense then to couple any reduction in speed with measures to prevent overtaking either for the whole length of the road or for specific sections of the road.  A point I made during the debate last night and one which was supported by Police Inspector Fairbrother.

A further report including this suggestion is set to be debated at the Southport Area Committee meeting in July .

Cricket Balls & Lord Denning

A number of residents have contacted me regarding the on-going problem of stray cricket balls in their gardens which they feel is having a direct impact on their quality of life.  Since the local cricket season started residents have felt so unsafe that they are no longer sitting or even going into their gardens on match days.

It seems however that this is not a problem with an easy solution and in fact there are a number of court cases dealing with exactly this issue, including Miller v Jackson [1977] QB 966 in which Lord Denning began with a rather lyrical opening "In summertime village cricket is the delight of everyone." and the case of Bolton v Stone [1951] AC 850, [1951] 1 All ER 1078 which actually went to the House of Lords.

What's done is done

Last night my husband took me out in Liverpool -  well maybe not the most exciting opening sentence to a blog post I admit but since it doesn't happen very often I thought I would share it with you. Anyway given the infrequency of this can you imagine my even greater delight to find out that he had got tickets to see David Morrissey in Macbeth at the Everyman 

Macbeth is one of my favourite plays with  its politics, power struggles and episodes of madness  not to mention 3 witches with the power to determine fates.  I have studied the play several times whilst at school but have never seen it.  You could almost taste the tension as the stage was set for the first act and the Everyman was a fantastic venue.  The way that the spaces within the theatre were used by the actors meant everyone in the audience felt a part of the production.


The performances of the whole cast were great and being a bit of a David Morrissey fan I thought he blew the place apart as Macbeth. And when the last curtain call came the whole cast were greeted by a standing ovation.


David also introduced the audience to the charity CAST - the CREATIVE ARTS SCHOOLS TRUST that he is actively involved in which takes all aspects of the performing arts to those places worlwide that have no artistic provision or facilities. 


A great night and well worth a trip (if there are any tickets left)

Local Election Results 2011 - THANK YOU

Unfortunately Cambridge Ward local election this year was won by the Conservatives with a majority of just 16 votes. Obviously your Lib Dem Team are disappointed by the result however 16 votes is not a landslide and we will be working hard to retake the seat next year.

We had a great candidate in Lauren Keith who was set to replace the retiring Lib Dem Councillor Carmel Preston. Lauren worked hard during the campaign showing a great enthusiasm, commitment and energy which will make her a brilliant councillor in the future.

In the main, our support held up strongly but, as in many other places, national politics overshadowed the local campaign.

A huge thank you to everyone in the ward, from Lib Dem members, supporters and residents who helped with the campaign.  A big thank you also to all those residents who did vote for Lauren this year and who continue to recognise and support the work of the Liberal Democrats both here in Cambridge ward and across Southport.

Lauren and Sue preparing for election day 2011

Phone Mast Application S/2011/0362

An application seeking planning permission to erect a mobile phone mast within the grounds of the Fleetwood Hesekth Sports & Social Club has been submitted  to Sefton Council.

The application is to install a 12.5m high slim line monopole supporting 6 antennas would be sited behind the current conifer hedge along Fylde Road. Click here to view the application in full and enter S/2011/0362.

We have demanded, and made sure,  that this planning application is properly considered by the full Sefton Council planning committee of councillors because of concerns expressed by some local residents.  The meeting takes place on 4th May at Southport Town Hall at 6.30pm.

To object, write to Sefton Council’s Planning Department, Magdalen House, 30 Trinity Road, Bootle L20 3NJ or use the on-line comments form. The deadline for receipt of objections is 10am Thursday 28th April however given the Bank Holiday weekend and the Easter break the sooner objections are received the better. A petition from a minimum of 25 residents and signed/supported by a local councillor (which we, of course, would agree to do) gives one of the petitioners the opportunity to speak for 5 minutes at the planning committee meeting.

We should tell you, in all honesty, that the legally valid reasons for turning down such an application are limited. Councillors on the Planning Committee are required to work within national planning legislation. For example, health concerns are technically not lawful reasons for rejection, although that does not, of course, stop you saying what you feel. Issues worth mentioning include things like loss of visual amenity overbearing nature of the mast and, of course, anything that you personally think is important.

It would be misleading of us to suggest or forecast the outcome or build up hopes of refusal given the fact that whatever the planning committee decides, the phone company usually appeals and an independent Planning Inspector subsequently gives permission. And that decision is final with no further right of appeal.

Crocus Walk 2011

The annual Crocus Walk for Charity Breakthrough Breastcancer was a great success.

It was a good turnout despite the fact that the weather wasn't quite as glorious as it had been the rest of last week. Since it began nine years ago the event has raised more than £16,000.

We are in the process of collecting the final bits of sponsorship money, and will let you know the final amount raised soon.

I do need to apologise to the people who lost their balloons due to my inability to tie string to things. Its one skill I really need to hone!

Sefton Budget Meeting

I attended Sefton's Budget meeting on Thursday expecting to hear arguments from both sides relating to the national political situation. I knew what was coming. Labour Councillors would shout that our party had sold itself down the river and had willingly and eagerly submitted to be the sword sharpeners for the killer Tory cuts. Our side would scream back with equal vehemence that Labour spent needlessly and recklessly and that is the reason why cuts have to be made.

I mistakenly thought (and hoped) that there would then be some sort of rational discussion regarding the actual budget. I thought that Labour would have their fun, and then be sensible.

Sadly not. They voted against the proposed £2.5 million cuts because they argue that it is not necessary, that local communities will suffer and jobs will be lost. They claimed that it is they alone who care about the interests of workers and residents of Sefton. If this was really the case they would not have been rubbing their hands in as much glee as they were doing last Thursday. One Councillor claimed that he couldn't wait for May 5th to come to see the Lib Dems fall at the electoral hurdle. Another shockingly claimed that the Liberal Democrats should be held responsible for any suicides of young adults. Added to this were the (now incredibly tiresome) coalition jokes relating to bed sharing, and another one gave us an attempt at a bizarre potted history of the banking crisis.

What any of this had to do with children's services, or the wasteful millions of pounds being spent on the Southport market that could have been stopped at the meeting, but which Labour clings to is anybody's guess. You can argue until the cows come home about the speed and scale of cuts and the fact that this debate has split economists, let alone politicians, highlights that there is certainly a lot of debate to be had. However, a local council budget meeting is certainly not the place.

Regardless of whether Councillors agree or disagree with Government decisions, a local budget has to be set. Because of the make-up of our Council, and the positions on the Cabinet that the party occupies means that they are at the heart of this decision making process. Of the £44 million that have to be made, they have voted against £39 million.

Their colleagues in Liverpool City Council have been able to work constructively with the Liberal Democrats to produce a budget, so it really begs the question of why the Sefton group think they have the right to be so intransigent.

They cling to national arguments and jokes because they are the only things they have to say. They have not engaged in the process of budget scrutiny because they have decided they don't want to. Yet things are not as black and white as they portray. They claimed that the Liberal Democrats were against creating jobs because we are opposed to the £3 million being spent on Southport Market. I really fail to see how shelling out on £26,000 on granite seats is going to boost local employment. Ploughing money into a scheme will not make it a success; and less money invested in a more sensible manner would be far more productive.

The fact is there is not the money available to deliver services in the way that we are all used to. Children's Centres and Youth Centres simply cannot be maintained in the form in which they currently exist. That's why Conservative and Liberal Democrat Councillors voted for less money to be taken out of their budgets for this year to keep the centres open. This will mean more time to look at how the services can be kept going in the future. Cuts do not have to mean the end; In fact this is an opportunity for local communities and charities to play more of a part in running institutions.

So, while the two other parties have had sleepless nights, have done all that they can to make tough decisions in a short space of time, Labour Councillors have taken the easy way out. They have kicked back on the sidelines, abnegated responsibility and been paid for this by the very same people that they are claiming to want to help and support. Frankly its a very poor idea of public service.

And just to clear up the Labour myth that the state of our nations finances is a nice cover dreamt up by a spin doctor to legitimise ideological cuts. Here is a quote from an article in The Observer no less, in May 2008:

"Brown's love affair with the city was at first a welcome break from the Spartist tendencies of old Labour, but there was far too little challenge to monstrously bloated bonus packages and the sort of inventive banking practices that led to the Northern Rock debacle. Public spending continued apace long after the International Monetary Fund began issuing pleas for restraint. Government borrowing as a proportion of national income is now higher than that of most other G7 countries, leaving only a thin cushion against the impending economic headwinds."

Sefton Labour Councillors must be very glad that they didn't win the election then. They would have been denied their set pieces and had to face reality.