Wirral's Five Year Plan

Tonight's council meeting was devoted to Labour's five year plan. I voted in favour but made the following points emphasising in particular the dire implications of the benefit cap for Wirral families:


The Green Party welcomes this report and also welcomes the opportunity for all councillors to comment on it. We recognise the incredibly challenging backdrop given the government's persistent attack on local government. In that context we support the broad thrust of the plan though naturally we would have different priorities. I will restrict my comments to three priorities I would see as especially important.

1. It's a shame the report makes the all too common mistake of separating business and the environment. The clear implication is that business comes first and environment is secondary rather then weaving both into one clear and consistent vision of how we achieve our economic aspirations while fulfilling our environmental obligations. The words "climate change" are sadly absent from this report. Wirral has enormous potential to encourage more people to visit our beautiful heritage sites and coastal areas that provide abundant opportunities for low cost, low carbon activities using our excellent rail network. Tapping into Liverpool's success by encouraging many more to make the short trip across the Mersey to enjoy our environment and heritage is the sustainable option that we should be focusing on. This will not only attract more visitors to Wirral but will also increase the sense of pride and place of those who live and work here.

2. The plan, if delivered, would provide a safe, affordable, well maintained and efficient transport network. It will also encourage residents to live healthier lifestyles and promote physical activity.

All well and good but when reading the papers for last week's council meeting I was struck by the the cabinet report on capital monitoring in which it was claimed that Wirral now has some of the best roads in the country. Well not for cyclists it doesn't and not for pedestrians either. Wirral is part of a city region that has the worst figures for pedestrian casualties in the entire country. Pedestrians here are 44% more likely to be killed or seriously injured than in Greater Manchester and 53% more likely than the UK average. In Wirral, the number of cyclists seriously injured has seen a steep and worrying increase in recent years (22 in 2012, 29 in 2013 compared with average of 15 from 2005-2011). Pedestrian casualties have also increased. Frankly I don't believe either Wirral Council or Merseyside Police give road safety a high enough priority. This document is a missed opportunity to help address this.

3. The plan is terribly vague on homelessness saying only "we will also continue to tackle the challenges and causes of homelessness in Wirral". This is of acute concern to the Green Party.

From April next year, the benefit cap of £20,000 per annum will decimate household finances for many, many Wirral families. Take the example of a couple with three children. Currently they can claim up to £166 per week in housing benefit. From April this figure will plummet to just £50/week.

Over 1,700 families in Wirral are set to be acutely affected by the benefit cap. Many will inevitably face eviction. Given Wirral's duty to provide temporary accommodation to homeless families for up to two years how will this be funded? A conservative estimate suggests additional costs to Wirral of £9 million pounds per annum.

This is an enormous sum that threatens to undermine service provision across the board in Wirral. Affected families are entitled to know how their local authority plans to support them yet this document provides no guidance on how Wirral will cope with what is likely to be its biggest challenge over the next five years.

More property marking dates

The police have provided me with more dates when you can get your
valuables (bikes, phones etc.) security marked at local railway
stations. These include October 7th at Conway Park.

09th June 2015 0900-1200 at New Brighton.

11th August 2015 0900-1200 at West Kirby.

07th October 2015 1700-1900 at Conway Park.

09th December 2015 1700-1900 at Hooton.

Conway Street car parks

Last year a planning application for two car parks on the grassed area of Conway Street that borders Parkfield Avenue and Simpson Street was rejected.

Unfortunately, the applicant has appealed this decision. Below you can read my submission to that appeal:


I would like to make the following points regarding this appeal:

• As you will be aware, the planning committee was unanimous in its view that the original application should be rejected. There was overwhelming opposition to the proposal.
• The area directly opposite this site (which includes Europa Pools) is currently the subject of a major regeneration proposal. In that context, it would be unwise to allow proposals for additional car parking to proceed until those regeneration plans are finalised.
• As stated in the original officer's report, "there is no requirement for additional parking provision within this locality". There are currently six council owned car parks within 500 metres and a further four privately operated car parks. In total, these provide 2,187 spaces. The site is extremely close to Birkenhead bus station and Conway Park railway station so there are clear, more sustainable alternatives. The national planning policy framework says local authorities should support a pattern of development that facilitates the use of sustainable transport. This appeal clearly runs counter to that objective.
• This land is designated as primarily residential. Moreover, the established community on Simpson Street/Parkfield Avenue clearly benefit from the grassed area along Conway Street. This is complemented by a similar strip on the opposite side of Conway Street. This provides an important buffer against noise and pollution. This. This will change completely if this development proceeds. I cannot agree with the officer's report which states this development "would not have an adverse impact onto the character of the area or existing residential amenity," Residents in the surrounding streets are united in their opposition to the proposal for car parks. You will be aware of the petition against the proposal but I would like to add that I have not spoken to a single resident who feels there is any merit in converting this land for car parking.
• I am particularly concerned that vehicles exiting the Simpson Street car park will not necessarily turn right onto Conway Street. Traffic here frequently backs up from the junction with Exmouth Street. There will be a clear temptation for vehicles to exit left out of the Simpson Street car park and access Conway Street via Simpson Street and Parkfield Avenue. I therefore cannot agree, as stated in the report, that "there are no highway safety issues relating to the proposal". Additionally, there will be a further erosion in air quality in the immediate area.

For these reasons, I urge you to reject this appeal.
 
Cllr Pat Cleary, Birkenhead and Tranmere ward

Merseytravel's Walrus Card: What's the point?

I'm a frequent public transport user. I tend to travel off peak and at irregular times so I generally buy a Saveaway. It's flexible (buses and trains) and reasonably priced by today's (inflated) standards.

Recently, Merseytravel introduced the Walrus card. It's being trialled in Wirral before a planned roll out across Merseyside. It was dubbed an Oyster card for Merseyside. This sounded great as the Oyster card is really flexible. You load up your card in advance and travel when you need to so no need to queue at the station and fret about missing your train.

Only Walrus isn't like that. You have to load the card on the day you travel. And, it's quite slow to load based on the experience at my local newsagent.

Previously you could buy Saveaways in advance, scratch them off on the day of use and off you go. I always kept a stash at home and never had to worry about buying a  ticket on the day.

So what's the point of the Walrus card? My newsagent reports a huge dive in sales of Saveaways since Walrus was introduced.

We all want public transport to be as flexible as possible. At the moment Walrus is a real step backwards in flexibility as it doesn't allow purchase before the day of travel.

Hopefully Merseytravel are working on this. Otherwise sales of Saveaways are likely to fall and fewer people will be using public transport.

More security tagging dates

British Transport Police have contacted me about some more sessions for
people to get their phones, bicycles etc. registered. Details below
including several at Conway Park station. This is a really practical way
to help fight crime and assist victims whose items are subsequently
recovered.

09/02/2015 Starting 1700 – 1900 hours at Rock Ferry

13/02/2015 Starting 1600 – 1900 hours at Hooton

14/02/2015 Starting 1000 - 1200 hours at Hooton

22/02/2015 Starting 1000 - 1200 hours at West Kirby

28/02/2015 Starting 1300 – 1600 hours at Conway Park

08/03/2015 Starting 1600 - 1900 hours at Wallasey Grove Road

21/03/2015 Starting 0900 – 1200 hours at Conway Park

02/04/2015 Starting 0830 – 1130 hours at Conway Park

Austerity axe strikes again

Wirral Council's latest budget proposals mark a new low for people of Wirral as a further £38 million is sucked out of the local economy with drastic effects on services and spending power.

Tory and Lib Dem councillors should hang their head in shame at the appalling impacts their disastrous state-shrinking policies are having on a borough already riven by gross inequalities.

As a result of their policies and the further deep cuts contained in these budget proposals further misery will be heaped on our most stressed communities already struggling with poverty pay, benefit sanctions, the bedroom tax and, most shameful of all, the mounting queues at food banks.


Serious Questions for Labour

But Labour have serious questions to answer if they really expect the people of Wirral to believe they are committed to protecting the vulnerable and reducing the gap in inequalities. In particular,

• How can Labour claim a commitment to fairness having just voted through an eye-watering 30% increase in the chief executive’s salary. Not only is this an insult to the council employees facing redundancy and reduced pay, it shows a leadership out of touch with reality and missing a glorious opportunity to set an example to others and rein in excessive pay in the public sector.
• How can Labour moan about the Tories state-shrinking agenda when they have accepted the Tory bribe to freeze council tax and shrink Wirral’s tax base which is so important in supporting and sustaining public services. Yet this is the same council that has forced the unemployed to pay council tax and has now scrapped discounts for the over 70s.
  
• How can Labour cut jobs and services even as it spends seven figure sums on a Town Hall that will never be fit for purpose as most residents in Wirral find it hopelessly inaccessible due to its location?
  

Perhaps, most worrying of all is the nonsensical claim that a Labour government would reverse these cuts. Just this week Ed Balls has reiterated his ruthless approach promising “spending cuts every year” In other words, under Labour we will face more cuts, more austerity, more poverty, even more inequality.

Austerity is not inevitable

Austerity is a political choice supported by Tory, Lib Dem UKIP and Labour.

Only the Greens are offering an alternative to austerity based on taxing the wealthiest in our society, rolling back the cuts, ending poverty pay and investing in jobs and vital public services. Specifically the Green Party would 

• Impose a wealth tax on the wealthiest 1% generating over £20 billion per annum.
• Introduce a Robin Hood tax on financial transactions generating a further £20 billion per annum.
• Replace council tax with a land value tax requiring wealthy land owners who benefit from massive Common Agricultural Policy subsidies to pay something back to society.
• A 50% tax rate on salaries over £100,000.
• Scrap Trident and HS2 saving over £100 billion.

What's really the point of "Free after 3"?

Localism is at the heart of Green philosophy and it is incredibly
important that we support local shops and promote effective measures
that encourage people to use their local shopping centres all year round.

However, are Wirral council plans to introduce "free after 3" parking
during the remainder of December really the best we can do to support
the local economy?

Having read what the recent car parking scrutiny review has to say about
"Free after 3" it was revealing to learn that we have no idea how many
motorists took advantage of it in the past and therefore we have no idea
what the cost to the council was or what the benefit to local shops was.

When I enquired what the expected cost of the current proposal is I was
told a budget provision of "up to £20k" had been allowed.

But clearly we don't know the cost which is worrying in itself and leads
me to believe that this is primarily a political gesture.

Now it is instructive to me that we hear and read far more about the
cost of parking than we do about the cost of public transport which of
course has been driven upwards by the misguided policies of the current
government.

So, given that, as a council, Wirral is tasked with supporting local
business, reducing inequalities and improving our environment shouldn't
we be diverting scarce resources to help those people without private
transport access local shopping centres. It is worth remembering the
huge transport inequalities that prevail across Wirral. In Birkenhead
and Tranmere, 56% of households do not have access to a vehicle and are
therefore reliant on public transport.

So, if we are going to spend "up to £20k" on supporting local shops lets
do it in a joined up fashion that supports other key objectives. We
could use that money to reduce bus fares or increase frequency. Or we
could use it to expand 20 mph zones in our town centres and make them
more attractive places to visit. Or we could improve pedestrian/cyclist
infrastructure and achieve more long lasting benefits.

"Free after 3" is a political gesture of minuscule benefit to the local
economy. Unfortunately, it serves the interests of local politicians
more than local traders.