Conservative Claims Won’t Wash!

As the fight for Hampshire County Council seats warms up, conservatives have pushed out election leaflets with wild claims, purporting to set the record straight.

Conservatives are now admitting........

They are very likely to try and reduce local bus services, because the County Council can’t afford to keep the subsidy going.

David says “Local bus services must be kept going, whatever the cost. They are the only means of transport for many people. Parts of Totton and Marchwood will be totally cut off without decent bus services.”

Conservatives admit.......

They have indeed spent over £40 million on plush new offices, including £12,000 on taps in Winchester, whilst closing 6 Care Homes.

David says “They didn’t need to spend anything like as much on the Headquarters. Had they spent a small slice of that on maintaining the Care Homes there would have been no need to close them. Stocklands in Totton has remained empty for ages”.

Conservatives Claim........The future of Totton’s Accredited Community Safety Officers has never been in doubt and nothing to do with the Lib Dems.

David says “The conservative run District Council used to fund the service but decided to stop. I kicked up such a fuss that the conservative run Hampshire County Council were forced into offering a financial lifeline. I’m 100% sure that the service would have been lost if Totton had conservative county councillors”.

Conservatives Claim..... it was good use of taxpayer’s money, spending thousands of pounds on pens and mints given away at conferences outside of Hampshire

David says “Defending this by claiming Lib Dems may have pocketed a pen or two is pathetic. It’s just part of a wasteful £4.5 million that the County spends annually on press & publicity. The money would be better used cutting tax”.

And finally...... do you remember the biggest Tory Whoppers from previous elections ? They all proved to be completely untrue, so watch out for a last minute Tory election whopper this time!

Conservatives Claimed.........”Vote for us and we will scrap car parking charges”

The Truth..... Within months of taking office they introduced a new scheme that meant everyone pays. Local people don’t even get free parking permits now!

Conservatives Claimed........ Voting Lib Dem would mean Totton will become part of a wider Southampton

The Truth..... Total Tory Invention, with no basis in fact – but a good way to frighten voters!

Conservatives Claimed...... The Lib Dems would introduce wheelie bins into the area

The Truth.......Lib Dems have never voted for or supported ending the current system of waste collection

Conservatives claimed and still claim, Lib Dems cost you more..........

The Truth........ No amount of false claims can alter the fact that the Lib Dems proposed zero increases in Council tax this year and will do next year. Every time the Conservatives show bar charts that appear to show Tory Council tax less than Lib Dem tax, they conveniently leave out the impact of inflation (running in excess of 20% under the last Tory government).

& Total Tory Silence on.........

The £350,000 wasted on the disastrous slippery sports hall floors case.

The Rumbridge Street fiasco – a £700k project that ended up costing you, the taxpayer, £1.5 million.... and they refuse to hold an inquiry!

Why they thought it a good idea to base Romsey’s dustcarts in Totton.

Failure to take action to tackle the Air Quality problem in Totton.

Lesson - You can never, ever trust the conservatives to tell the truth.

Liberal Democrat Councillors on New Forest District Council have elected Cllr. David Harrison to serve a second term as Leader.

The 14 strong opposition group have had a good year, holding the ruling conservative administration to account. The Leader of the conservative group has had to offer a public apology following a legal case involving slippery sports hall floors, that cost the taxpayer over £350,000.

Cllr. Harrison says “I’m delighted to have received the support of my peers for a further year as Leader. The group is united and playing a very significant and constructive role on the authority. We will keep working to help make delivery of council services more efficient and continue to argue the case for reducing council tax”.

Campaigning Liberal Democrat Councillor, David Harrison has helped keep up the pressure on the Strategic Health Authority (SHA) on the issue of Fluoride in tap water.

David has been working with the local Conservative MP, Dr Lewis, putting in a joint complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Ombudsman over the way the SHA carried out a flawed consultation. Different parts of the National Health Service were actively promoting the benefits of adding fluoride to tap water, whilst the SHA was claiming to be running an open-minded consultation.

Despite the efforts at promoting fluoride, the consultation showed that 72% of local people are against the proposals. In the face of public opinion, the unelected SHA board decided to proceed with the plans.

In Totton, 8,000 homes will receive the fluoridated water, despite the fact that all levels of local government, Town, District and County have voted against the plans.

Councillor Harrison has collected over 300 signatures in three weeks, adding to over 9,000 signatures collected by the lobby group “Hampshire Against Fluoride”. He presented them to Caroline Place and Myra Metcalfe, local representatives of the lobby group.

Cllr. David Harrison says “It seems fitting to present the petitions at the site of the War Memorial. So many people fought and died in the cause of preserving democracy in this country. It now seems that we are to be forced into consuming this medication without our consent. I thank everyone who has taken the trouble to spell out their feelings. The battle is still ongoing”.

Councillor Harrison plans to join other campaigners on a visit to Downing Street in June, challenging the Prime Minister who has said “It’s for local people to decide”.

Totton’s Conservative Councillors, Lagdon, Russell, Brooks, Lucas, Scrivens, Dart & Britton all turned up to the full Town Council meeting this week so that they could vote for themselves when deciding who gets committee places and installing another Conservative Chairman.

Unfortunately, not a single one of them turned up earlier in the week to the Totton Traffic Management meeting. District & Town Officers were surprised and embarrassed when the only two local councillors to attend were Liberal Democrat County Councillors, Alan Weeks and David Harrison.

Despite the Tory “No Show”, the meeting was very productive. Here is a quick run-down of some of the items dealt with:

Lexby Road, Eling – A residents Parking scheme will be implemented in the programme for next year, subject to certain conditions (including agreement of over 50% of local residents)

Testwood Crescent – Frequent anti-social parking, causing obstructions on the footpath will be reported to the police for action

Eling Lane / High Street – Signage to help HGV drivers will be upgraded
Salisbury Road Shops (opposite Hamtun Gardens)- A new Traffic Order will be progressed to prevent long stay car-parking both sides of the service road.

Commercial Road (near to the train station) – A pedestrian survey will be conducted to see whether there is sufficient demand for a crossing

St.Michaels Road / Testwood Road – Some dropped kerbs to be protected with white lines. The use of wooden posts to protect grass was decided against

Hounsdown, Testwood & Oakfield School – Zig-Zag “No parking” restrictions to be given legal force for safety reasons

Ringwood & Salsibury Road – County Council to be asked if they can monitor HGV movements with a view to implementing measures that will reduce unnecessary town centre journeys.

Sylvia Crescent – Officers to progress a traffic order further restricting parking in and around the junction with Salisbury Road.

Cooks Lane, Calmore – Request for Speed enforcement measures (S.I.D).
Stannington Crescent/ Junction with Salisbury Road – Extending yellow lines to prevent parking at junction.

Downs Park Avenue / Beaumont Road – District Council to be asked to enforce parking regulations during evenings (when pavement parking/ obstructions becomes a problem).

Street Lighting – Both County Councillors to lobby HCC to provide additional street lights in Totton, where needed.

Councillor David Harrison says “It was an extremely productive meeting. I spoke to one Tory Councillor afterwards who told me he had forgotten the meeting was on. The rest of them didn’t even apologise. It tells you something about their priorities”.

Councillor Weeks says “The two of us are really busy, running election campaigns, but we both feel it really important to deal with traffic problems in the town. It’s a shame that our Tory colleagues could not find the time. It speaks volumes that they all show up when they want to vote themselves into the top jobs”.

Ideas to tackle problems with HGV noise nuisance in the New Forest village of Marchwood were discussed this week at the village hall.

County Councillor, David Harrison, called for and chaired the meeting. It included local residents, representatives from the Parish & District Council and the management team at Oceanic Estates, owners of Marchwood Industrial Estate.

Some measures have already been put in place, including re-surfacing of Normandy Way and re-design of the roundabout at the entrance to the estate. However, there is the prospect of further improvements which will reduce noise nuisance, especially at night. Residents of Cracknore Hard Lane and Old Magazine Close confirmed that night-time HGV movements are still causing sleep disturbance.

Bosses of the industrial estate confirmed that they are prepared to support a lower speed limit of 30 mph in Normandy Way. They have also agreed to prepare a traffic management plan and write regularly to all operators on the estate asking them to remind HGV drivers of the need to keep noise to a minimum.

Councillors present agreed to pin-point where the worst problems of noise nuisance occur and extended an invitation to operators to tour the village so that they might better appreciate how HGV movements can impact on the quality of life for local people.

County Councillor David Harrison agreed to re-visit the possibility of additional roadside planting and to see if drains on the road surface could be made level to help prevent clattering as HGV traffic passes over them.

He says “It was a really positive meeting. We don’t wish to inhibit the success of the many business interests using the estate, particularly during a recession. However, the positive steps discussed today should make a real difference”.

Residents in the Rumbridge Street area of Totton turned out in force to express anger and concern about crime and anti-social behaviour. The meeting took place at Totton Civic Centre, Chaired by the Council Chairman, at the request of County Councillor David Harrison.

In recent weeks, there has been a sharp increase in vandalism, drunken behaviour, burglary and people being intimidated by large groups of young people.

The local police inspector and a representative from the probation service was on hand to listen to angry complaints from residents who had suffered at the hands of the youngsters.

Councillor Harrison has collected signatures on a petition aimed at closing a cut-way in nearby Osborne Road, used as an escape hatch by youngsters who had damaged several parked cars. He said “We need a very clear action plan to deal with these problems. I have never known the local community under so much stress. A large part of the problem is the homes for vulnerable young people. They are acting like a magnet for local troublemakers. The residents of the nearby home for elderly folk are becoming too scared to step outside.”

Other Council members attending the meeting were left in no doubt about the seriousness of the problems. Other measures being considered are the introduction of an alcohol free zone in the area, temporary removal of a seat used by the youngsters and even greater police presence.

To illustrate the problems still further, the local Co-op store was broken into the same night. A £600 front door was smashed. Two crates of beer were stolen.

Linden Homes may yet be prevented from developing two sports grounds in Totton with new housing developments.

All local Councillors are opposed to the plans, which will see the further loss of vital green space in the town. The planning application was rejected by New Forest District Council. However, the developers appeared to have emerged victorious following a planning appeal and a determination by a government minister, giving them the go-ahead.

Local Town, District and County Councillor, David Harrison has caused something of a stir by revealing research undertaken by a local historian that suggest the land in question was illegally enclosed and still has grazing rights.

He says “This is a legal matter that stands outside normal planning considerations. It does not matter what the government minister says or whether the time limit for appealing her decision has expired. I’m hoping to employ the full weight of the District Council, The Verderers and local Commoners to ensure that this land can never be developed as proposed”.
Councillor Harrison adds “I’m aware that similar considerations have effectively stopped development elsewhere. Nobody wants to inhibit the ambitions of the sports clubs involved. However, a very strong majority of residents agree that developing these sites would be very bad for Totton”.

County Councillor Alan Weeks, the member for North Totton says “There is no question that most residents are opposed to the plans. Thousands of people signed petitions opposing the schemes. It would be great if ancient grazing rights deliver what democracy should have done”.

New improved signage to Eling Wharf is to be erected in the hope that HGV drivers will be less likely to lose their way.

HGV’s have been regularly turning up at the bottom of Eling Lane, near to the Tide Mill and Heritage Centre. The HGV driver then has to undertake a very delicate and complex manoeuvre in order to drive back out of the area.

The new signs have been requested by local councillor David Harrison. He says “The problem came to my notice following Street Surgeries I conducted in the area. It seems a lot of the drivers are relying too much on Sat. Nav. Systems. A number of parked cars have been damaged by HGV’s turning up in the wrong part of Eling. Hopefully, the new signs will help improve matters”.