8/14/2019 Lewisham Central Focus FebMar 2010

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FocusLewisham Central & Hither Green

tam@lewishamlibdems.org.uk Feb / March 2010

Focus is paid for and delivered by Lib Dem volunteers at no cost to local taxpayers

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Lib Dems launch fair tax policy

Tam Langley, local candidate for Parliament,says the Lib Dem tax plans will help ordinaryfamilies - Labour have helped the wealthiest.

Liberal Democrat MPs Nick

Clegg and Vince Cable have

launched Britains fairest tax

policy.

The Lib Dems plan to reduce

tax bills for most workers by

700 per year. No-one will payincome tax on the first 10,000

they earn, so millions of low

paid workers and pensioners will

stop paying taxes altogether.

The plans will be funded by

closing tax loopholes for the

very rich, and introducing a

mansion tax. Under Labour,

many of the richest people have

paid a lower rate of tax than the

rest of us, by using the capital

gains tax system.

The gap between rich and

poor is now bigger than it was

under Margaret Thatcher, more

than twenty years ago.

Labours unfair taxes dont

stop at income tax; in Lewisham

Labour have set the highestcouncil tax in inner London!

Instead, Lewishams Lib Dems

will freeze council tax for two

years.

Tam Langley, Lib Dem

candidate for Parliament says,

Our plans would help ordinary

families and the low paid, while

Labour have helped the

wealthiest in society. Its time

we made taxes fairer.

INSIDELocal Labour councillor runs up huge

taxi bill at taxpayers expense

Hundreds sign our train petition

Fair rents for pensioners campaign

Meet Tam Langley - your next MP?

REMEMBEROur next MP will be eitherLIB DEM or LABOUR - the

others cant win here!

700lesstaxeachyearformostworkers

Millionsoflowpaidworkersandpensione

rs

wonthavetopayapennyintax

Taxloopholesfortherichestwillbeclosed

tofundfairertaxesfortherestofus

LibDemsFairerTaxes LaboursTaxShame

Gapbetweenrichandpoorhigh

erunder

LabourthanunderMargaretThatcher!

Labourallowedsomeofthewealthiestto

payalowerrateoftaxthantherestofus

LewishamLabourhaveset thehighest

counciltaxininnerLondon

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Focus talks to rising star Tam Langley and finds outwhy she is running to be the local Liberal Democrat MP.

It's easy to be cynical aboutpolitics, says the thirty four yearold Liberal Democrat candidate for

Lewisham Deptford, Tam Langley.But actually, we can't affordcynicism any longer. We have tospeak up for a real change.

And Tam Langley is the kind ofwoman who gets things done. She'sa tough minded campaigner withthe interests of local people atheart.

Tam's already been a success in thebusiness world. As a Director incharge of many major campaigns,

she has worked on new ways to cutcrime, and raised hundreds ofthousands of pounds for research

to save honey bees.

Campaigning matters to all of us,every day, she says. It's aboutwhat to do when you feel scaredwalking on your own down a darkstreet because there are too fewlights and you haven't seen a policeofficer in weeks. It's about trying toget a decent school place for yourchild. That's my kind of politics.

Tam has recently been tipped a'rising star' by Company magazine.

But she's keeping her feet on theground. Having a baby daughterlast year made me even more

passionate about changing ourcountry for the better, Tam says,Whether it's fighting against cutsto trains services or protecting ourNational Health Service, it's greatto see the possibility of a fresh startfor Lewisham after 38 years ofLabour.

Local residents have expressed

astonishment that the Council are to

spend 200,000 on "temporary

landscaping" to replace a row of

Victorian shops in Lewisham town

centre.

After the Labour Mayor failed to

regenerate Lewisham town centre,

these shops, opposite the police

station, were left to rot.

Local Lib Dem campaigner Max

Cal says, Labour promises of 200

million of private investment to

redevelop Lewisham town centre has

been replaced by a 200,000 bill for

the tax payer to get rid of what

remains of a fine row of shops.

Maybe the Council are trying to

convince people that the town centre

redevelopment has finally started,

even though it may never happen,

added Max.

Council to spend 200,000on temporary landscaping

New Countdown

bus displaysTransport for Londonare consulting councils

over where the new

generation of

countdown bus stop

displays will be.

However, a map of

proposed locations for

our borough show none are planned

for Hither Green Lane. Local Lib Dem

campaigners, Max Cal and James

Jennings, will be making

representations on behalf of local

re si de nt s. S ee th e n ex t f or

details of how you can have your say.

8/14/2019 Lewisham Central Focus FebMar 2010

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Maines4Mayor

By Chris MainesLiberal Democrat candidatefor Mayor of Lewisham

Where thebuck stops

Lewisham Council is different from most

other councils - Lewisham has a directly

elected mayor. Unlike other areas where

the mayor is just symbolic, Lewisham's

mayor has control over everything the

council does. The buck stops with the

mayor.

In Lewisham, it's Labour's mayor who's

responsible for the local housing chaos.

20,000 people are on the waiting list and

70% of council homes fail to meet the

government's .

Labour's mayor has given Lewisham the

highest council tax in inner London.

The council has a key role working with

the police to make our area safer.However, under Lewisham's mayor

violent crime has risen, particularly

among young people.

Lewisham's appalling recycling rate and a

25% increase in landfill is due to the way

the council runs its recycling - and

Labour's mayor has done nothing to sort

this out.

A Liberal Democrat mayor would open

up the council and share decision making

with local residents. There would be a

programme to build new council homes -

the first for a decade.

A Lib Dem mayor would freeze council

tax for at least the next two years. Local

police teams would be strengthened to

ensure they work more closely with

young people.

Doubling recycling and reducing landfill

would be priority for a Lib Dem Mayor of

Lewisham.

At the last mayoral election for

Lewisham, the Liberal Democrats came a

close second. This May the choice is

clear - between the Liberal Democrats,

wanting real change in Lewisham, or

complacent Labour, who no longer care.

Your localLib Dem team

Max Cal8690 4242

maxcalo@lewishamlibdems.org.uk

Cllr. Dave Edgerton8691 3052

cllr_david.edgerton@lewisham.gov.ukwww.davidedgerton.mycouncillor.org.uk

James Jennings07957 421919

jennings@lewishamlibdems.org.ukwww.thiswaytolewisham.blogspot.com

Cllr. Andrew Milton8698 5119

cllr_andrew.milton@lewisham.gov.ukhttp://20six.co.uk/andrewmilton

http://maxink.wordpress.com/

REMEMBEROur next MP will be

either LABOUR orLIB DEM - the

Tories cant win here!

Local Labour councillor

runs up 1,300 taxi bill

Lib Dem MayoralCandidate, Chris Maines(left) says the Lib Demswill continue to speakup for local rail users

Fair rents for pensionersLocal Liberal Democrat councillor, David Edgerton,has been fighting for local pensioners who are

being charged unreasonably high rents for theirhousing.

Pensioners living in sheltered housing locally facerents of between 90 and 150 a week, but receivea basic pension of only 95 a week. Often a weeklyservice charge is added. The average charge forsimilar housing owned by councils is 60 a week.

David, who has set up a petition athttp://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/FairRentsForPensioners,says, "Pensioners have worked hard all their livesand have saved towards a pension. This is nowbeing swallowed up by the high rents. I urge peopleto sign my petition for fair rents for pensioners."

Councillor Dave Edgerton has launched acampaign calling for fair rents for

pensioners in sheltered accommodation

Lib Dem pledge for schools

Lib Dem leader, Nick Clegg, says onlyproper funding for education will give allour children the fair start they deserve

A Lewisham Labourcouncillor has spent1,300 on taxis in justone year - enough to geta black taxi toEdinburgh. This taxi billwas charged to council

taxpayers.Labour councillors thenfailed to publish theseexpenses on the councilwebsite, despite thecouncil agreeing to publishall councillors expenses.

After a petition by a localLib Dem campaigner, MaxCal, the expenses havenow been published on thecouncil website, and can befound athttp://bit.ly/56n6R1

Labour councillors haveclaimed 3,400 for taxis inthe last year - compared tono claims at all byLewisham's 17 LiberalDemocrat councillors.

Liberal Democrats do not

claim for taxis for localduties because councillorsalready get an allowancefrom the council.

This news comes asLewisham Councilconfirmed that in 2010/11it will keep the extra 2.5%put on council tax in2009/10, on top ofincreases in previous years.

Train misery