Steven Lambert

34 rubbish bags.JPG

This weekend individuals and communities worldwide are encouraged to clean up, repair and conserve their local environment, with people in over 120 countries participating. We did our bit in Coldharbour along with the Coldharbour parish Council and the Fairford Leys WI.

With over 20 volunteers from Fairford Leys, we collected 34 bags of rubbish in just under two hours from the grass verges and riverine corridor. Most of it was cans and plastic bottles and crisp packets. But there were a few larger items that had just been dumped.It’s a shame that we need to do these clean up days, but while the developers and District Council haggle over the adoptions, no one is maintaining these green areas of Fairford Leys.

Surely this is evidence enough that something has to be done and done now, so that this key village feature can be kept clean and enjoyed by the local residents and wildlife? In the mean time, I will continue to press for the adoptions and be on the next clean up the world day with friends and neighbours.

After fixing the technical problem with this website, I’m pleased to be back here blogging away… and while I have so much to tell you that has been going on for the past couple of months, Focus has still been printed and delivered across the ward, so I won’t repeat myself on these articles except to say, that I have been busy working away on issues facing our community. Issues such as:

- Tackling anti social behaviour in our play parks, where I have got the Police to carry out more regular patrols. I had an open air meeting with the police in the main Play Park in Fairford Leys and been on my hands and knees cleaning up the broken glass and beer cans from the children’s play area. I am pleased that we now have the Parish Council grounds maintenance team doing extra clean up patrols on Saturday morning in the main play parks.

- The school catchment debacle continues with Bucks County Council still messing around with our community’s school needs. I am pleased to be joining the Fairford leys parents group at a public meeting on Thursday 9th October at the Church on Fairford Leys, where they will feedback on the fight so far and consider further options. (See their website www.fairfordleysparents.co.uk) for further details

- Taking Andrew Grant the Chief Executive of the District Council on a ward walk all through Hartwell, Prebendal estates and Fairford Leys to show him what our community needs and the issues we face.

- Joining Cllr Paul Hughes on a ward walk with the head of Leisure and open spaces from the District Council through Fairford Leys to talk about riverine adoptions, tree management, Play Park adoptions.

- As you can see its been busy, but a worthwhile summer. More to come in the autumn.

This week I went to the Liberal Democrat party conference in

Bournemouth – and what an exiting week it was! I took part in debates and discussions ranging from renewable energy to how politics is seen by so many as remote and irrelevant. All this confirmed in me, that here in Aylesbury, we can only benefit from the proposals the Liberal Democrats are putting forward.The centrepiece debate of the week was chaired by Cllr Alan Sherwell of the Aylesbury Party and was on ‘Make it Happen’.

It set out our party’s vision and values as well as gave key areas of focus for the party. Make it Happen commits us to being the only party who are committed to keeping British freedoms protected. We are proposing a Freedom Law to get the government of our backs and put in place new protection to keep your personal data private.

Make it Happen sets out our vision of a fair society where no-one is imprisoned by poverty, Families up and down the country are struggling with rising bills, rising prices, and wages that aren’t keeping up. So we will force energy companies to pay a large share of their windfall subsidy to help homes use energy more efficiently.

Make it Happen makes clear that front line services must be protected and we are identifying 3% of government spending that we consider to be wasted or misdirected, identifying £20 billion of savings on things like ID cards, industrial subsidies and wasteful IT projects. We’ll use this money to meet the spending priorities. If there is money to spare, once we have paid for these spending commitments, we’ll channel it into extending our tax cuts

Make it Happen, is local too like not wasting money on expensive office blocks and a new council chamber. Understanding peoples needs on a local level, energising local communities and empowering people.

This is what the Liberal Democrats do best and conference re affirmed this in me. I’m looking forward to making it happen.