Hail Weston Parish Annual Assembly,  May 2006

County Council Report from Peter Downes

The County Council has wide-ranging responsibilities and this brief report can merely highlight major issues. Anybody seeking further details is invited to contact your County Councillor on 01480 398082 or by e-mail to peter.downes@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.

 A new Council

The County Council increased its size to 69 Members after the 2005 election. There are 42 Conservatives, 23 Liberal Democrats and 4 Labour Members. Over half the Members are new to the Council although many of them are already Members of the District and City Councils across Cambridgeshire.  The future structure of local government will be reviewed from June 2006 and this could bring about a further reorganisation.

Council Tax

The County Council has set its tax increase for 2006-2007 at 5% which is the maximum it considered acceptable under the government’s capping regime. This means that there will have to be significant cuts in support to the elderly, those who care for others and disabled children, as well as a range of reduced expenditure on road maintenance and on transport subsidies. Grants to voluntary organisations will not receive an inflationary uplift. There will be some increase in spending on youth services but far short of the amount needed to bring the level of provision up to government recommendations. The consultation carried out with the public indicated that there would have been support for a higher increase to protect some of the threatened services. The budgets for schools are provided by central government and are ring-fenced; these have received a more favourable increase to meet the increased costs of changes in the teacher salary structure.  The indicative budget for 2007-2008 suggests that a further round of cuts will be required. The Cambridgeshire Council Tax is the third lowest in the country.

Children’s Services

Education and social services for young people have been merged into a new single Office of Children and Young People’s Services (OCYPS). There is an Area team for Huntingdonshire and four locality teams within the Area. It remains to be seen how effective this will be in providing ‘joined-up’ services for young people.

Services for older people

The administration of services for older and vulnerable adults is now part of the Office of Environment and Community Services (OECS). The overall policy direction is to try to support people in their own homes for as long as possible.

Transport

The government has approved the introduction of a Guided Bus between Cambridge and St. Ives. News of the A14 up-grade is expected later this year, but the County Council has now published its preferred option for the removal of the A14 viaduct near the railway station and consequential re-configuration of the town’s traffic flow. My initial reaction is a positive one but there are many details to be explored more fully.

Housing

There are to be major housing developments at Northstowe and on the southern and eastern fringes of Cambridge City. These will have a significant impact on traffic flow and on educational provision.

Representation and local issues

I have been your County Council representative since May 2005 and have attended every County Council meeting; I serve on the Children and Young People’s Scrutiny Committee and various other committees relating to education. I am the Liberal Democrat Spokesman for Corporate Services (overall finance, administration, pensions, etc).

I have attended at least part of nearly every Parish Council meeting in order to support the Parish Council on key issues such as road safety and speeding, and to keep the Parish Council informed of any matters directly affecting them. The request for a dedicated right turn lane on entry to the village from St. Neots was a long way from being successful.

I have made my personal telephone number and e-mail address known throughout the village via my Focus newsletter and a number of residents have contacted me for guidance or advice, or to let me know their opinions.

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