30May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
A jubilant year ahead!

A jubilant year ahead!

Borough news
As the gavel was struck on Tuesday 24th May at the Shaw and Crompton Annual Parish Council meeting, Councillor Louie Hamblett was unanimously appointed as Chair of Shaw and Crompton Parish Council 2022-23. Cllr Hamblett thanked council for their support and his predecessor Councillor Berry for his support also. He also added that voluntary service is an integral part of our communities and he will be working to support some hard-working charities this year. His chosen charities are Pennine Mencap (Autistic and SEND Support), Royal British Legion (Shaw and Crompton Branch) and Dr Kershaw’s Hospice. His partner Stephen will be his consort for his civic year and they will become the first openly LGBT+ couple to hold the post, along with Cllr Hamblett being the first autistic Chair for the…
Read More
30May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Sunak treating unpaid carers with “disdain” amid £193m cut to support

Sunak treating unpaid carers with “disdain” amid £193m cut to support

Parliamentary news
Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has accused Rishi Sunak of treating family carers with “disdain,” after they were left out of the government’s cost of living package. The Carer’s Allowance was excluded from the list of benefits qualifying for additional support under the plans set out by the Chancellor yesterday. It comes as new analysis by the Liberal Democrats shows unpaid carers are facing a cut to the Carer’s Allowance of £207 each this year once soaring inflation is factored in. It means the country’s one million unpaid carers receiving the Carer's Allowance are facing a combined hit of £193 million this year. The Government is increasing Carer’s Allowance by 3.1% from £67.60 a week to £69.70, or an increase of just 30p a day, despite inflation rocketing to 9%…
Read More
30May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Six out of nine Conservative Councillors missing from Council meeting

Six out of nine Conservative Councillors missing from Council meeting

Borough news, fairer council
Oldham & Saddleworth’s Liberal Democrat councillors have said local Conservatives have got questions to answer after six of their nine councillors failed to attend the first council meetings to be held after the local elections. Mark Kenyon, Liberal Democrat councillor for Grotton, Springhead & Lees, said: “I’m sure decent Conservative voters in this town will join the rest of us in wondering when Conservative councillors will actually turn up to do the job they’d promised voters they’d do – there’s important questions to ask about CAZ, Labour waste & the investment our town and districts sorely need.” Conservative deputy leader Beth Sharp, joins councillors Luke Lancaster, Dave Arnott and their newly elected colleagues Chris McManus, Robert Barnes and Lewis Quigg in skipping these first meetings held on Wednesday 25th May…
Read More
30May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Sue Gray report: Release emails on any Number 10 meddling

Sue Gray report: Release emails on any Number 10 meddling

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have called for the records of correspondence between Downing Street and Sue Gray over her inquiry to be made public, including emails, letters and messages. It comes amid reports Number 10 put pressure on Sue Gray to water down the report and omit key names and details. The Liberal Democrats also said any correspondence should be handed over to the Privileges Committee investigation into Boris Johnson lying to Parliament. Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper said: "Brandon Lewis' half-hearted denial that Downing Street tried to water down the Sue Gray report simply isn't good enough. "Boris Johnson has lied time and again to try and cover up his law-breaking parties and pull the wool over people's eyes. "We can't trust a word he or his Conservative colleagues…
Read More
30May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
How much public money have you wasted on Clean Air Zone signs Mr Mayor?

How much public money have you wasted on Clean Air Zone signs Mr Mayor?

Borough news, environment, road safety
Oldham’s Liberal Democrat Leader has criticised wasteful clean air signs after Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham was forced to backtrack on his plans for a £60 per week Clean Air Zone. Shaw Councillor and Leader of Oldham Liberal Democrats, Howard Sykes MBE said, “Everybody can see the Clean Air Zone (CAZ) for what it is, a complete and utter shambles. In recent weeks, we’ve had the spectacle of Mr Burnham going cap-in-hand to the Government asking to be allowed to scrap the charges from his Clean Air Zone. This U turn is welcome but why did he not do this in the first place? This is just months after he announced plans to implement Europe’s largest clean air charging zone. And just weeks after he had to scurry around Greater…
Read More
30May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Patients rushed through GP appointments in “postcode lottery”

Patients rushed through GP appointments in “postcode lottery”

Parliamentary news
Well over a quarter of GP appointments are taking less than five minutes in some parts of the country, new analysis by the Liberal Democrats has revealed, raising fears that many patients are not being seen for long enough to properly assess them. The Liberal Democrats said the figures showed a “stark postcode lottery” with people in some areas struggling for weeks to get an appointment only to be rushed through in a matter of minutes. NHS figures show that across England as a whole, around one in five (22%) of the 16.6 million GP appointments in April lasted five minutes or less. Only half of appointments across the country lasted longer than 10 minutes. However, in some areas the numbers of GP patients being rushed through rapid appointments was…
Read More
26May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Liberal Democrat Leader announces real opposition team for 22–23

Borough news, fairer council
Liberal Democrat Group Leader, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, has today announced his Real Opposition team for 2022/23. The announcement comes after a successful set of local elections for the Liberal Democrats which saw the group gain a seat in Saddleworth West and Lees. Councillor Howard Sykes said: “I am proud to be leading the Liberal Democrat Group on Oldham Council and to be leading a team that is ready to hold the Council and Labour to account. This year we are joined by the newly elected councillor Alicia Marland, who is joining Mark Kenyon and Sam Al-Hamdani making up a formidable team of community champions for Saddleworth West and Lees residents. “At a time when so many people across the Oldham borough are facing the effects of the Conservative cost-of-living…
Read More
26May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Levy lite: Windfall tax could have raised £6 billion more

Levy lite: Windfall tax could have raised £6 billion more

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have branded Rishi Sunak’s windfall tax as a “levy lite,” after analysis shows it could have raised more than double the amount if it was tougher and implemented earlier. The Liberal Democrats were the first party to propose a windfall tax last October. Under the party’s plans for a tougher windfall tax, a total of £11 billion would have been raised, including cash that could have helped families through last winter. That compares to just £5 billion being raised under Rishi Sunak’s proposed levy. This is equivalent to each UK household losing out on over £200 because the Chancellor’s windfall tax was too weak and too late. Responding to Rishi Sunak’s u-turn on taxing oil and gas companies, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Christine Jardine MP said: "This…
Read More
24May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
UC uplift: Government heartless as the cost of living crunch bites

UC uplift: Government heartless as the cost of living crunch bites

Parliamentary news
After Simon Clarke ruling out reinstating the Universal Credit uplift , Liberal Democrat Work and Pensions Spokesperson Wendy Chamberlain MP said: “Rocketing inflation and bills are leaving families facing savage cuts to their incomes this year, but still ministers are refusing to act. “This heartless approach will condemn thousands more children to growing up in poverty as the cost of living crunch bites. "It shows just how out of touch this Conservative government is with all those struggling to get by. "Ministers must announce an emergency budget now and reinstate the £20 uplift to Universal Credit. Every day they fail to act means more families being pushed into debt and struggling to put food on the table."
Read More
24May 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Partygate photos: IOPC must investigate Met on why PM not fined

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have written to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, following the publication of photographs of the Prime Minister drinking at a Downing Street gathering on 13 November 2020. Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper called on the watchdog to look into why the Met Police did not fine the Prime Minister for his presence at the gathering, despite being pictured in apparent breach of Covid laws. Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper said: “The Met Police need to explain why Boris Johnson wasn’t fined for this event, despite being pictured in an apparent breach of the rules. “If anyone else had been pictured at a party like this during lockdown, surely this would have been enough evidence for them to be fined. “It does seem that there…
Read More