I use Googlemail for my council emails - part of their service is that along the right hand edge of the screen there is panel of adverts that are supposedly tailored to me and the contents of my emails.
Quite why the business of HBBC prompted adverts for ‘The cheapest Martial Arts equipment in the UK’ and ’The UK’s largest supply of swords and armour’ is beyond me.
I am very pleased to see that the website www.activities4u.org has gone live, and is now fully operational.
Many people have said that they only hear about events and activities for young people after the events have taken place - because they don’t know where to go to find out about them. activities4u should help solve that problem, as it allows people to search for all kinds of activities, from sports to volunteering, all on one website which is very easy to use
If this website is publicised properly then it could be a huge success.
Something on Bill Newton-Dunn, our East Midlands MEP’s website caught my eye.
Apparently MEP’s were briefed by European Air Safety Agency (EASA) that emissions from aircraft could be cut by 12% at a single stroke, by creating a single European Airspace. Currently aircraft are subject to the individual air traffic control systems of each country, resulting in a zigzagging pattern across the continent.
If this were to be unified into a single European Airspace, then aircraft could traverse the continet, especially when coming into land, in a straight line - and thus save an enormous amount of fuel.
This seems like something that could and should be implemented, and would do more for the environment than all the Ecover washing up liquid and saved plastic bags in the world. I hope the MEP’s pursue this!
From Stuart Bray’s site:
Liberal Democrats are concerned that Mr McMahon’s decision to retire as the dentist at the Cowper Road dental surgery could leave Burbage without a dentist. Health officials have admitted that alternative provision will be made but this could be outside Burbage. Liberal Democrat Parish Councillors Stuart Bray and Ann Hall tabled a motion at February’s Parish Council meeting urging health officials to ensure Burbage doesn’t lose this vital facility. We also want to put on record our thanks to Mr McMahon for all his years of loyal service on behalf of his 5,500 patients.
I was a patient with Mr McMahon as a child, and while I was an appalling patient, he was (still is!) a great dentist. It’s important Burbage keeps its dentist, and preferably an NHS one!
Thousands say: “Save Our Post Offices”
The Liberal Democrats have today presented a petition of over 50,000 signatures calling on Gordon Brown to reverse his Government’s savage Post Office closure programme.
Labour’s plans to close 2500 Post Offices will hit communities hard across Britain. The closures come on top of a further 7500 already closed by Labour and Conservative Governments.
Speaking outside 10 Downing Street, Liberal Democrat Post Office Spokesperson Sarah Teather MP said:
“Gordon Brown and Labour need to listen to the people who have signed this petition. Post office closures mean that many, often the most vulnerable, are denied access to post office services or face long journeys and even longer queues in other Post Offices.”
“Post office closures lead to the loss of other local shops and businesses ripping the heart out of local communities.”
“Once again the Labour Government is cutting local services for short-term savings while ignoring the long term damage they cause. This is no way to run a country.”
The Liberal Democrats are the only party with a plan to protect and improve Britain’s Post Office network.
ENDS
My colleagues Sandra Francks & Ann Hall have begun a campaign to rid Burbage of plastic carrier bags. I was surprised to learn that over 6 billion of these are given away each year in Britain, and thus unsurprised to learn their environmental impact is large.
I hope people join in with this campaign - an easy way to make a potentially large contribution to the environment. I have joined in - I have not acquired a new carrier bag for a whole week!
Two key documents are currently meandering their way through the Council’s democratic procedures: The Children & Young People’s Strategy and the Participation Strategy. Both of these documents have come about as a result of the Children’s Act (2004).
The former document is the Council’s long term strategy for engaging with children and young people, ensuring that the council is doing the best it possibly can for them. The latter document details the councils commitment to involving children and young people in the the decision making process of the council at all levels.
A great deal of hard work has gone into these documents, and judging from what I have seen from around the country, they should be some of the best examples.
My key concern as a Councillor, and especially as Children & Young Peoples Champion, is that all of this policy endeavour actually translates into some really tangible improvements for young people in Hinckley & Bosworth - it is all too easy to write the document and forget about the practice!
