Pete Levy

At the launch of the new Draft Bill on energy, Liberal Democrat Secretary of State of Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey, writes:

Over the next decade, around a fifth of existing power plants are due to close, against a background of increased energy demand and increasing prices. We need new investment simply to keep the lights on.

But more than that, we need a clean energy revolution to meet our ambitious climate change goals and make this the greenest government ever.

That’s why I am bringing forward a new Energy Bill today.

You can read more about our clean energy revolution here.

We also need to transform our energy market to reduce the risk and cost of low carbon technologies.

That’s what our Bill does.

The UK is fast becoming a world leader in renewable energy, especially in off shore wind. I want us to lead the world in Carbon Capture and Storage too.

And we are also tackling rising energy bills. Without reforming the energy market bills will rise by around £200 in the coming years. Our reforms will mean bills are around 4% lower than they otherwise would have been.

Going green is good for the economy, good for Britain and good for you.

Yours,

Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

(Image licensed under Creative Commons from DECC)

This is being held this evening kicking off at 7pm at Upper Horfield Community Trust, Eden Grove

There’s lots to discuss so it’ll be good to see a good turnout. We’ve had quite a lot of emails opposed to the Junction Proposals for Filton Road / Toronto Road / Monks Park Avenue. This is only a consultation phase at the moment and we have Simon Groves, the Principle Traffic Signal Engineer from Transport Services coming along this evening. He’ll be able to discus this issue with residents and hopefully answer any questions and concerns. In addition to meeting up with the Police team and other Councillors we also have other Council Officers attending. We’ll have either Emma or Jan from the Garage Strategy Team to discuss and respond to residents questions regarding garage sites. Apparently we also have Simon Wood, Director of facilities for North Bristol NHS trust coming along for the last hour. The issue of car parking around Southmead Hospital is bound to be raised again. There will also be a ‘Community Steward’ from May Gurney as well as a rep. from Resources Futures who’ll be on hand to discuss the new recycling regime with us. We’ve had numerous emails since the recycling contract changed hands so it’ll be good to get these addressed.

Two other issues that are relevant at the moment will be the Memorial Stadium development planning application recently submitted by Sainsburys as well as the issue of a community facility and car parking issues in and around Manor Farm.

Please drop by if you want to discuss these or any other issues. The next Horfield Neighbourhood Forum will be on the 5th September at Upper Horfield Church of England Primary School, Bishop Manor Road

We’ve been advised that as part of their ongoing consultation regarding the proposed development of the memorial Stadium that Sainsbury’s are hosting a public information day in the Bristol Room at the Stadium this Saturday (Saturday 19 May), 9.30am – 4pm. As with the public exhibition in February, around 5500 local residents have been sent invitations and they are hoping to see as many as possible at the event.

The purpose of the information day is to bring people up to date with the revised proposal. Some may already have seen the revised plans at the presentation on Wednesday 25 April or at the drop-in session for the site’s residential neighbours on Thursday 3 May. I’ll be hoping to pop along quite early on Saturday so if you make it please say ‘Hello’

(Click picture to play video)

It is shameful that, despite all the promise on a four or five year old’s first day at school, or the passion of their teachers, you can all too often plot that child’s path just by asking how much their parents earn.

The £2.5billion Pupil Premium was one of the four pledges on the front page of our manifesto.  And now, with Liberal Democrats in government, schools are using the money for things like breakfast clubs; homework clubs; or to provide one-to-one-tuition. These are the sort of experiences many middle class children take for granted but a poorer child might rarely enjoy.

Yesterday I visited a fantastic primary school to see how they are spending their Pupil Premium, highlight our new Summer Schools to ease the transition from primary to secondary, and to set out our plans to reward teachers and hold schools to account.

The Pupil Premium shows that, in tough times, we are implementing Liberal Democrat values and prioritising help for those pupils who need it most.

Best wishes,

Nick Clegg MP

Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister

PS Click here to find out how much money your local school will receive from the Liberal Democrats’ Pupil Premium.

This week, Paul Burstow (Liberal Democrat minister at the Department of Health) has launched a national £4 million lung cancer awareness campaign. The campaign, the first of its kind, will use TV, radio and press adverts, and advertising on pharmacist bags and inside GP surgeries, to raise awareness of the disease.

One of its aims is to persuade anyone who has had a cough for more than three weeks to see their doctor.

You can find more information about coughing and lung cancer at the Department of Health website, here: http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/2012/05/coughing-could-be-a-sign-of-lung-cancer-2/

With 33,000 new cases diagnosed each year, lung cancer is a blight on the lives of far too many of our families and an early diagnosis can make all the difference. Please take the opportunity of the Be Clear on Cancer campaign to find out more about prevention and diagnosis, and to visit your local doctor if you’ve had a persistent cough – it is always better to be safe than sorry!

http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/tag/be-clear-on-cancer/

The minutes of the above are now published on line on the Council’s website through this link.

Official reports have confirmed that no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has increased council tax for their residents. This is unlike both other major parties, many of which are increasing council tax by up to 3.5% this year.

Commenting on Labour and Conservative councils’ record on Council Tax, Liberal Democrat Party President, Tim Farron said:

“While Labour and the Tories fight over how many of their councils raised Council Tax, it’s clear that with the Liberal Democrats your money is safest: no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has raised Council Tax.

“Ordinary working families are struggling already with paying bills, without their councils increasing the burden.

“The choice in next month’s elections is clear: vote Liberal Democrat for financially responsible councils that create jobs. Vote Labour and the Tories for waste, mismanagement and tax rises.”

As well as freezing council tax across the country, Liberal Democrat councils are protecting front-line services, fighting to keep libraries and Sure Start centres open. This is in addition to the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in government, which after the Budget include a £130 income tax cut for all working families, the largest-ever rise in the basic state pension, an increase in child tax credits for the poorest families, and an increase in the Lib Dem Pupil Premium to £600 for every pupil receiving Free School Meals.

At every level of government, the Liberal Democrats are cutting taxes for low- and middle-earners and better targeting help to those that need it the most. It is a record of financial responsibility of which we can be proud.

A first look at part of this week’s Liberal Democrat Local Election Broadcast. This clip looks at our key pledge to cut taxes for working families, and celebrates the fact that Liberal Democrats in government have achieved:

• The biggest-ever single uplift in the tax-free personal allowance
• A £3.5 billion tax cut for working men and women
• 840,000 of the lowest earners in the country lifted completely out of paying Income Tax

Next year, the allowance increases again (to £9,205) – within touching distance of our manifesto promise to increase the Income Tax threshold to £10,000.

These are all significant achievements that are already making a difference for millions of hard-working men and women across Britain. Real change for real families in tough times – promised and delivered by the Liberal Democrats.

The website regarding Sainsbury’s proposal at the Memorial Ground has been updated to include a summary of consultation feedback. This link will take you to the website. Please go to the ‘Consultation feedback’ page.

Bristol Trading Standards are warning people to look out for the scam letters which illegally use the Olympic and London 2012 logos and tell recipients they have won a prize of £525,000.

The letters claim that all recipients have to do is return a payment processing form, by fax, with their personal details to receive the full sum of money. However, these personal details are actually being forwarded to criminal gangs operating abroad.

“They use the information residents send to claim their non-existent prize to carry out identification theft” said Phil Parkyn, Principal Trading Standards Officer. “The letters use false names and addresses, usually of large office blocks, and they have bought ‘0207’ telephone numbers to give the impression they are based in London when they are probably somewhere in Africa. This scam has all the hallmarks of a 11 advance fee fraud and I suspect that the operators are certainly overseas”.

Bristol Trading Standards is issuing the following advice and guidance:

- It is unlikely that London 2012 will be asking individuals to pay for goods or services, whether directly to it or through agents, other than ticket sales and official London 2012 merchandise. Therefore such lottery letters are almost certainly going to be bogus.

- Bogus Olympic information will typically use poor quality reproductions of the Olympic logos.

- Trading Standards do not know of any official lottery operators who ask for fees to collect winnings – any request for a fee payment is a good indication that someone is a fraud.

- Never respond to these lottery letters – this will only lead to further contact.

Cllr Guy Poultney, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods said: “People should be aware that it is very likely that Olympic related scams will be on the increase. So it is vital that people remain extra vigilant around this time. It is important to trust your instincts as if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.”

Scams can be reported to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 08454 040506.