David Simpson, Hampshire County Council

(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/

Hart Elections have left :
16 Conservative councillors
10 Liberal Democrat councillors
7 CCH councillors
1 Independent councillor
1 Non Aligned councillor (Disillusioned Tory who left them)

The conservatives lost three seats – Crondall and Fleet Courtmoor to CCH and Fleet West to Independent.

This is the last time only part of Hart will be up for election as in two years time boundary changes mean that there will be 11 wards with 3 councillors each – a reduction of 2 councillors – and those councillors will then be up one at a time for each year (with smallest majority serving one year the next 2 years and so oon for the first term in office) except the fourth year when the County Council elections are held.

Hart Council comes up for election in thirds so it is quite likely there is no election in your area on May 3rd.

In this County Division the only election is in the ward of Yateley West, that means Bramshill, Eversley, Hartley Wintney, Heckfield, Mattingley and Yateley North do not have elections this year.

NEXT YEAR 2013 are the County elections and that means there is an election everywhere that two or more people are nominated.

In 2014 Hart will have “All Up” elections as a result of boundary changes and a reduction in the number of councillors from 35 to 33.

In 2015 we have a General Election so make the most of your break this year as we have three years of “All Up” elections coming!

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.

We can be proud that the biggest tax cuts in today’s Budget go to millions of working families.

As a result of this Budget, someone working a full week on minimum wage will see their income tax bill cut by over 50% compared to under Labour.

Increasing the personal allowance to £9,205 takes us within touching distance of our number one manifesto pledge – ensuring no one pays any tax on the first £10,000 they earn.

Thanks to our changes, a basic rate taxpayer will be paying £45 a month less in tax than they would have been under Labour.

We can be proud that we’ve ensured the richest in our society will be paying more, much more.

The Tycoon Tax, an increase in stamp duty for high value properties and other new taxes on wealth will raise five times as much as the 50p tax rate. Those with annual incomes of more than £150,000 a year will be paying on average an additional £1,300 a year in tax, as a result of this Budget.

Of course, this is a Coalition Budget and we did not get our own way on everything. Conservative priorities are not ours. But as on so many other issues, we have made sure that there is a real Liberal Democrat stamp on this Budget.

Lower taxes for more than 20 million working people; effective new taxes on the rich.

This is a Budget we can be proud of – a Budget for the many, not the few.

Best wishes,

2012 is going to show the best of Britain. With the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, we’ll be celebrating our past but with our face to the future and the change it will bring. In Government, the Liberal Democrats are at the heart of that change.

Of course, times are tough. Families are under pressure, worried about paying their bills. That’s why we’re cutting tax for working people while calling time on the tycoon tax dodgers.

From next month, 25 million working people will have more money in their pocket, because of us. You can help spread the word about our £60 tax cut by clicking here.

Going green is not a luxury for the good times – Liberals have always fought to protect the environment, and that’s why we’re part of the greenest government this country has ever had. Not only are we making the right choices for the environment, we’re putting green policies at the heart of our economic recovery.

This is a liberal nation with liberal values; hard work, fair play and a sense of freedom. I’m proud that the Liberal Democrats in Government are repairing Labour’s industrial-scale destruction of that liberty.

Just think for a moment what we’ll have achieved by 2015. The first gay marriage, and end to child detention and the first elections to the House of Lords, to name just three.

These are just some clips from the speech Nick Clegg MP,  Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister made to the Gateshead Lib Dem conference, for the text of his full speech click here.

This ahs probably been the most shambolic affair locally in years. Sout East Water wanted a larger pipe and to dig up the road last year.
After many negotiations they finally agreed it was best to do the worst part during the school summer holidays ie the stretch from the A30 to Frogmore road.
They started last July and caused, as I and my fellow County Councillor Adrian Collett had predicted, absolute chaos on the roads.
They were meant to finsh in late November or early December. When they finally finished in late December the road was re-opened to a collective sigh of relief from Yateley residents and those farther afield.
Then they closed it again to test for leaks.
This brand new pipework had more holes than a second hand dartboard!
They think they will be able to finish it by the end of April.
They intend to close Frogmore road and then from there to the A30 for up to six weeks.

Currently residents of Frogmore road have problems merely crossing the road as much of the normal traffic now uses it as a shortcut instead of the posted diversion.
Cricket Hill has again been left with long traffic queues.

Cllr Collett and I demanded a meeting with Hampshire Highewyas and the contractors Bam Nuttall plus SE WAter.
This occurred last week, earlier than S E WAter wanted.
At the meeting we inissted on traffic lights once again being installed at the Criket Hill Handford Lane junction. We also said we wanted the last stretch to be closed during the summer holidays in order to minimise the traffic problems that atre being caused.

The traffic lights are being put in but they want until the end of this week to decide on whether to carry on and finish or stop and start again in the Summer.

Unbelievably although Hampshire has responsibility for the road the Utility companies can dig it up almost at will.

Wokingham Borough Council (WBC) is persisting in their Plan to build 3,500 homes at Arborfield.
This will cause massive disruption to the North East Hampshire area and in particular The Street in Eversley. The main A327 goes from Reading through Arborfield then Eversley and up to the A30. Before it crosses the River Blackwater it has a right hand bend and then immediately crosses the bridge into the narrow section of Eversley called The Street.
WBC insist there will be no adverse impact upon Hampshire and all its traffic figures were confined to their side of the river.
Hampshire County Council issued Judicial Review proceedings in the High Court after I notified them of the problems this would cause.
Meantime WBC are trying to negotiate with Hampshire County Council and admitting they, i.e. the Developers, may need to do some remedial highway work in Hampshire.
All along WBC have been chanting the mantra that they are merely giving the MOD the right build upon MOD land and that the country needs the money. In reality only about 40% of the land is owned by the MOD with the other 60% being private land.
WBC also claim their proposals will have a “nil detriment” affect upon each locality.
Clearly their idea of nil detriment is different from what the average person would believe.

Meanwhile the Legal profession gets rich as WBC tries to do defend not doing all the things it should have already done.