Your Monthly update from your LibDem Borough Councillors - covering June 2022

Dear friends, here is our update on local and "not-so-local-but-relevant" developments during June - excluding of course the wonderful win in Tiverton & Honiton which you all know about!

Council updates:

• An update about the Chalk Pit site; at a meeting on 30 June which Julie took part in there was some progress in stopping (in the short-term) the worst part of the noise from the site while various legal routes are being followed. More details on our Facebook post here.
• On Monday 4^th July there will be a meeting of the Strategy & Resources Committee immediately followed by a full Council meeting to discuss alternatives on dealing with the resignation of the Chief Executive. This is important to all residents, since it affects both how the Council is run and the ongoing costs. However, the RA are proposing the meeting is held in private, which we intend to object to on grounds of openness and transparency.
• The paying system for the Town Hall and Hope Lodge car parks has changed, requiring you to use a Pay & Display system that accepts cash, card or RingGo. The old barrier and token system kept on breaking down and the new approach should be more reliable and cheaper for the Council.
• Those of you with an allotment should have received a letter consulting on possible changes to their governance. The deadline for responses to be received is Sunday 3^rd July so if you have not responded, act now!
• This month saw regular meetings of various Committees - but other than the increased costs in producing the Local Plan there was nothing of particular note to report.
• The by-election for the vacant councillor seat in West Ewell will be on Thursday 7 July, and there will be hustings on Monday 4 July organised by the Epsom & Ewell Times.

Other Borough updates:

• We had a useful catch-up with our local police support officer and her team. David flagged the issue around car theft in the area and sadly just last week there was another instance in the Ward - so please follow police guidance on keeping those fobs safe and secure.
• The Platinum Jubilee artwork on the railway bridge on East Street certainly cheers up the street scene. Anyone got ideas for other locations that we could suggest to the Council that could be used by local artists?

County and other local news:

• Despite the climate emergency Gove has given the green light for gas fracking in Surrey, in Dunsfold which next to the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
• The potential changes to how Surrey County Council and the 11 Borough & District Councils in Surrey work together, or indeed become a single entity, rumble on slowly. Nothing substantive to report on yet but we would welcome your thoughts on how to balance the need for efficiency in governance with having local, accountable representatives.

National issues:

Since the Tiverton & Honiton by-election (and Labour's win in Wakefield) gives some cause for optimism in all the gloom around us we've selected some more up-beat articles this month rather than our usual coverage of this government's incompetence and hypocrisy:

• A Cornish village is pioneering a communal approach to low-carbon energy generation which could be a pilot for larger schemes.
• A variety of small items from Country Living, featuring dormice and some re-wilding by councils.
• The Russian winner of a Noble Peace prize raised $100m for Unicef by auctioning off his award (OK, the root cause of this is still depressing, but it does show that individuals can still make a positive difference).
• Some potentially good news on colorectal cancer reported in the Washington Post with all participants in a trial seeing their cancer disappear.

Our monthly podcast recommendation:

The LibDems believe that policy should be based on evidence and research, and political debates rooted in facts. Hence David is a keen listener to More Or Less on Radio 4 with Tim Harford. There are short and full versions that you can subscribe to.

Have a good weekend

Julie and David

Thursday 30 June 2022

• Join our 200 Club and help fund our activities while having a chance to win prizes. Half the donations are returned as prizes (currently £44 and £15 each month for a £1pm ticket), details here or email Bryan Shepherd at bryshe@madasafish.com
• Encourage others to subscribe to these Updates at https://epsom-ewell-libdems.org.uk/en/subscribe-by-email,
• Follow us on our website, or Facebook
• It is now less than a year before the next Borough-wide Council elections in May 2023. If you would like to stand, please contact one of us for more information about what it involves.