JOINT STATEMENT OF KETTERING AND WELLINGBOROUGH LIBERAL DEMOCRATS AND NORTH NORTHANTS GREEN PARTY. RELEASED BY DANIEL JONES (CHAIR, KETTERING AND WELLINGBOROUGH LIBERAL DEMOCRATS) AND DEZ DELL (COORDINATOR, NORTH NORTHANTS GREEN PARTY). FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE.

The elections on May 6th are the most important local elections for our county in decades. After our county council was made effectively bankrupt in 2018, we need new voices on the council. With the new unitary council formed this April we have a chance to build a council that listens to all of our voices and delivers for the priorities of local people in North Northamptonshire. As the ongoing pandemic shows, local councils do vital work to deliver necessary services to residents including care for the most vulnerable. If North Northamptonshire is to work for everyone, then this cannot be a business-as-usual election.

Ideally voters would have the chance to vote for both the Liberal Democrats and the Greens in every area, but under the current First-Past-the-Post voting system we have seen the same old faces in the council chambers, and the same problems repeated – services cut, needs ignored, voices silenced.  This new council can be different, and that means taking a new approach. Kettering and Wellingborough Liberal Democrats and North Northants Green Party both support proportional representation but until our broken voting system is overhauled both parties have made the difficult decision to minimise competition between them. We need a council that represents the views of all voters, so we have individually chosen not to campaign against each other.

We realise that fighting elections and keeping in touch all year round takes paper, so we're doing all we can to make that as green as we can.  We also know, as we often deliver our leaflets one or two sheet at a time, it can sometimes seem like a lot of paper. It's often good to put into perspective though: one election campaign uses less paper that one edition of the average free newspaper.  

• Implement the Climate Change Framework for North Northamptonshire which was the result of the Scrutiny Task and Finish Group
• In particular we will want to make £200k available from the council's reserves to kickstart action. This will include convening a citizens assembly as a matter of urgency. Our communities are full of ideas. Liberal Democrats want the council to bring people together to take action. That must be action that our community has helped to specify. It must be done with them not to them.
• We will also want to declare a Climate Emergency at the first opportunity and designate a Cabinet Member with responsibility for the Environment and Climate Change Action.
• We will take urgent action to increase recycling by residents and remove barriers to recycling.
• The council will be a the forefront of action to increase the number of electric vehicle charging points across our area.
• We will urgently brings forward a new local plan with climate change action at its heart and incorporate action on climate change into the council's planning policy. The council will use its powers to improve air quality in our towns.
• We will undertake a feasibility study, paid for out of council reserves, to look at installing microgeneration (solar panels, ground source heat pumps, small scale wind turbines etc etc) on council owned homes to reduce emissions and to put money back into the pockets of tenants.
• We will set up a task force to work with local retailers such as supermarkets and fast food outlets to reduce the waste they generate from excess packaging.
• We will seek to build on and encourage the fantastic litter-picking work done by groups like the Corby Wombles and the Kettering Wombles. This community spirited action needs to be encouraged and facilitated by the council.
• We will work to increase bus use and will explore the possibility of piloting bus subsidies to see if greatly reduced fares increase use.
• We will green the council, further reducing energy use in council buildings and installing solar panels or other microgeneration on council owned buildings. We will move the council quickly to using only electric vehicles. The only exception being where the vehicle performs a specialist function and electric power is not suitable.
• We will plant trees. Our aim is to plant one tree for every resident in North Northamptonshire, every year, for as long as is necessary.

Join Cllr Chris Stanbra at the NNJournal hustings for the North Northamptonshire Unitary Council elections on Wednesday 21st April at 6pm - accessible via Zoom.  Sadly the local Conservatives have been banned by their leadership from taking interviews or attendings hustings.  We hope they change their mind.

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/north-northamptonshire-election-hustings-tickets-150934524225

Incompetence by the Conservatives who for years ran Northamptonshire County Council has led to a financial crisis never seen before in local government. At the end of the 2017/18 financial year, the County Council declared a balanced financial position, but audited accounts showed that this was “not accurate” - the true position was a deficit of over £35,000.000. 

It cannot and must not be underestimated, the world faces a real threat from climate change. Understandably, the focus for most of 2020/2021 was on the major health crisis that is Covid-19. But in the hubbub of news, we should remember that this health crisis is part of the same unfolding story. Nature and the environment are connected.  We have all seen the reality of global warming in melting ice caps, raging fires and extreme weather. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported that to cap the rise in global temperatures below 1.5oC this century, emissions of carbon dioxide would have to be cut by nearly half by 2030. Many experts say we have a small window of 10 years to do this. 

Voting by post is likely to be the safest way to vote in the upcoming local elections this May.  You can use this tool to generate the form (although it does need to be printed, signed and posted).

https://www.libdems.org.uk/postal-vote

The first ever draft revenue budget for North Northamptonshire Council was approved for consultation by the council's shadow executive on Monday, December 7th and now they’re seeking your views on the proposals for when the council comes into existence in April next year. To take part in the consultation follow the link here 

Tory attacks are designed to allow govt to act with impunity  

Responding to reports that Dominic Cummings has attacked judicial review as a “farce”, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:

“Dominic Cummings seems to believe that he, Boris Johnson and Tory Ministers are above the law. They are not.

Our candidate, Suzanna Austin will be at these hustings events this week.  Can you come along and support her?

Wed 4th December 19:30-20:30 Park Road Baptist Church, Park Rd, Rushden NN10 0LH

Thurs 5th December 19:30 - 21:00 Glamis Hall, Goldsmith Rd, Wellingborough NN8 3RU

If you wish you can arrive a little early to chat to Suzanna.