lewisham central focus febmar 2010
TRANSCRIPT
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8/14/2019 Lewisham Central Focus FebMar 2010
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FocusLewisham Central & Hither Green
[email protected] 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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X
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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.
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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
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
[email protected]://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