Bucks County Council Elections May 2nd 2013

On Thursday 2nd May residents of Buckinghamshire will be going to the polls to decide who they wish to represent them on Buckinghamshire County Council. 

The County Council delivers important services such as education, roads and transportation, social care, child protection, waste disposal, public health and country parks. In Bucks, we have faced a big reduction in grants and like everyone else our costs are going up. At the same time demands for our services have increased. However we have responded by improving efficiency, cutting out waste and increasing income. 

A Conservative County Council will support those who have worked hard for themselves and their families. We will provide opportunity, encourage aspiration and care for those in genuine need. We will continue to improve efficiency so that we can deliver good value for money. 

CONSERVATIVE RECORD OF ACTION

1. No increase in council taxes for three years running
2. Maintained our excellent education system
3. Continued the investment to protect our most vulnerable residents
4. Worked closely with the Police & Crime Commissioner to allow greater police presence on our streets
5. Protected our environment by more effective waste disposal
6. Improved Council services and cut administration costs

Campaign for Claydon Junction Station

There is a report on the Jan 17th 2013 presentation on the East West Rail plans to the 
Winslow Local Area Forum on the East West Rail website at the link below:

http://www.eastwestrail.org.uk/winslow-and-district-find-out-more-about-east-west-rail/

There is also a Q&A list which includes new information on the discussions around a proposed additional station at Claydon Junction.

5.2 Will there be an interchange station where East West Rail and HS2 cross ?

Opposition to HS2 by both Buckinghamshire CC and AVDC is well documented. We understand that HS2 Ltd is determined that there will not be an intermediate station between London and the West Midlands.

However, if HS2 Ltd should receive Parliamentary approval, there has been some speculation and community interest in a temporary ‘halt’ on the EWR route in the Calvert / Steeple Claydon area to provide access for workers during construction of HS2. If demand warranted it, it would be possible to make this station permanent, to serve both the HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance Depot and the local community.  This would be on the basis that HS2 funded such a station and reached appropriate agreement with Network Rail and the East West Rail Consortium. The station could also offer benefits for people travelling from Aylesbury to Oxford as an interchange station potentially offering shorter journey times compared to changing at Winslow or Bletchley.

If you have particularly strong views on this matter, Rosie Brake, Buckinghamshire CC’s HS2 Engagement Business Manager is happy to hear from you.

So do get in touch with Rosie Brake at Bucks County Council  (rbrake@buckscc.gov.uk)

if you would like to support the proposal for a new station at Claydon Junction.

New all weather pitch at Swan Pool leisure centre

Sports enthusiasts in Buckingham can look forward to much-improved facilities at the Swan Pool leisure centre after Aylesbury Vale District Council secured £100,000 to redevelop the existing all-weather pitch.

Contractors employed by the council will remove the old artificial surface and replace it with a higher standard pitch suitable for football and hockey.

Work on the new all-weather surface is due to begin on 18 February and is expected to take six weeks to complete.

Once open, the sports pitch will be accessible to help local schools deliver their sporting curriculum, as well as being available for hire by the local community.

Funding for the project was secured by the council from Bellway and Bellcross, who were asked to contribute towards improving the local area through a ‘Section 106’ agreement, as part of the planning approval for a housing development off Moreton Road.

Councillor David Thompson, Cabinet Member for Leisure, said: “This is a great example of how positive planning can have a direct benefit on local communities. AVDC is very proud of its sport and leisure offerings and the Section 106 agreements mean we are able to ‘give something back’ and make sure our residents have opportunities to get involved in sport.”

AVDC garden waste collections starting again

Keen gardeners across Aylesbury Vale will be having their garden waste collected by the district council again from February.

Those residents who sign up for the service will start to have collections of their garden waste from 4 February, or 11 February, depending on where they live.

Aylesbury Vale District Council’s garden waste service costs £36 for each 240 litre brown bin collected fortnightly between February and November.

More than 10,000 households have already signed up, saving themselves the task of travelling or arranging private pick-ups to dispose of their garden waste. New customers are welcome to join at any time.

Through the service, residents can dispose of leaves, grass, hedge and tree cuttings, and similar materials. Woody material must be less than 10cm in diameter.

Garden waste collections are made on Mondays only, in the same week a household’s waste bin is collected. The material collected is taken away to be composted locally.

Councillor Sir Beville Stanier, Cabinet Member for Environment and Health, said: “Many residents value the convenience of the kerbside service. It enables householders to dispose of their excess waste or waste that isn’t easily composted that might otherwise have ended up in landfill.”

Residents are asked not to put garden waste in their landfill waste bins. If people don’t sign up for the garden waste collection service, they can take all of their green waste to their local Household Waste and Recycling Centre or purchase a home composter.

To register for the garden waste service, and for further information, visit www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/garden

New station for Claydon Junction ?

Several residents have raised with me the benefits of a station on the East West Rail line at the Claydons where the Aylesbury branch to the south meets the main East West line from Oxford to Bedford.

It would serve the Claydons and all the villages around, who would once again have a train service to Oxford, Bedford, Milton Keynes, Bicester and Aylesbury (from where trains could continue to London and even eventually Heathrow Airport).

It would be at the mid point of the line between Bicester and Winslow stations so would be a logical stopping point.

Travellers between Aylesbury and Oxford (where there are no direct trains) would have their journeys shortened significantly.  Under current proposals they would have to continue to Winslow before they could change to the southbound or westbound line.  A Claydon Junction station would save many unnecessary miles and minutes of travel.  Trains from Aylesbury to Bletchley would be travelling very slowly at this point on the chord line between the two tracks and a stop would add very little to the journey time.

Please get in touch with me to share your thoughts on a new Claydon Junction station on the East West Line.

Update on East West Rail

Network Rail has announced its plan for construction of the western section of the East West Rail link between Bedford and Oxford, Aylesbury and Milton Keynes, as part of their five-year strategic business plan 2014-2019.

The East West Rail Consortium, which includes all the local authorities along the proposed route, has successfully promoted the re-instatement of a rail link between Bedford and Oxford to enhance rail services both within the region and beyond.

With the support and financial backing of the Department for Transport, the Consortium will now work with Network Rail to develop and implement the project, with the aim of having East West Rail services operational for passengers and freight by December 2017. The route between Bedford and Oxford is also proposed for electrification as part of a wider scheme to enhance passenger and freight services between Southampton and the West and East Midlands, and the Consortium and Network Rail will be examining ways in which the two projects can be integrated.

The next steps are for Network Rail and the Consortium to complete environmental impact assessments and obtain any necessary planning consent.

Patrick O’Sullivan, Rail Consultant for the East West Rail Consortium, said:

‘Support for the East West Rail has been tremendous. We shall be talking to parish councils, local residents, businesses owners, rail users and other stakeholders shortly to ensure that we achieve the maximum benefit from the railway and to address any concerns at this early stage in the project. Network Rail and the Consortium expect to start formal consultations in Autumn this year.’

The East West Rail link will enable new journeys and faster journey times, linking major economic centres and centres of economic growth within the region. It will remove traffic from already congested roads and also avoid the need for people to travel via London.

It will also connect with national mainline services East Midlands Mainline (to Derby, Nottingham and Derby), West Coast Mainline (to Birmingham and the North West of England) and Great Western Mainline (to Bristol and South Wales) becoming an important part of the national strategic rail network.

Electrification of the line between Oxford and Bedford will provide the infrastructure for quieter, cleaner and more efficient electric trains.

HS2 compensation consultation closes 31st Jan

The High Speed 2 compensation consultation closes on 31st Jan.

Advice from the Stop HS2 action group:

With the prospect of a few days off work for many of our readers, we thought you might like to take the time to put together a response for the compensation consultation or the safeguarding consultation which are going on until 31st January 2013.

Main link to the Consultations home page: http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/consultations-0

Overview of the Property and Compensation Consultation http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/consultations/property-compensation-london-to-west-midlands/maps-and-plans

Full Property and Compensation Consultation document (49 pages): http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/sites/highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/files/9213-DfT-HS2-01-PCCS01_TAGGED.PDF

How to respond (on-line and paper doc)  http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/consultations/property-compensation-london-to-west-midlands/how-to-respond

We’d love to see a copy of your response: if you want to share it with us, please email a copy to info@stophs2.org

Tips (if you are writing a short response, some of these might not be relevant):

• Start with a direct response to each question such as “No, I do not agree with …. because ….”  If you do not provide the summary of your key points, you leave it to the person analysing your response to make their own summary of your argument – and remember that they are probably temporary staff/students on low wages who know nothing about the issue!
• Do not say things like “as I said above”. The analyst is not allowed to guess which bit of ‘the above’ you are meaning. If it needs saying again in relation to a particular question, then say it again in your response.
• Feel free to use bullet points, numbering, bold and any other device to make your argument and all of its supporting points crystal clear.
• Please remember that all residents (all your family members) can respond.  If you wish to do this online you will need an email address per respondent as the system only allows one reply per email address.
• Look across all of the questions and stick to the specific issue of each question. However, if there is no place for a particular argument then add it in against the ‘next best’ question and ENSURE IT IS INCLUDED IN YOUR SUMMARY. It is notable (and bad practice) that there is no section for ‘any other issues’ in this consultation. If you need such a section then put it in.
  • The Government says it is interested in
    • whether or not you agree with its proposals
    • why you agree or disagree
    • any additional evidence that you feel it should consider in reaching its final decisions
    • and we are invited to attach additional evidence to the response form, making it clear which question it refers to.