The Oldham Liberal Democrats are disappointed that Chancellor Rishi Sunak has chosen not to make the £20 uplift in Universal Credit permanent in the March Budget.

Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, who also serves as Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group at the Local Government Association, joined over 30 Liberal Democrat Council Leaders and elected Mayors in England in writing to the government on this issue last month.

Despite their plea to the Chancellor Rishi Sunak MP to respect January’s vote in Parliament calling for a permanent increase, the Chancellor has chosen only to extend the extra £20 per week uplift in Universal Credit benefit payments until the end of September. 

Councillor Howard Sykes MBE said:  “Millions of people are suffering in this country as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the uplift in Universal Credit has been a lifeline to them.  Today’s news is a big disappointment.  Yes, the uplift will continue to be paid for a further six months, and that is a small comfort, but in the autumn recipients of Universal Credit will be facing penury as benefit rates fall to pre-COVID levels. The Liberal Democrats shall continue to try to change the Chancellor’s mind, because the economic downturn and mass unemployment will not be going away anytime soon.”

Labour in Oldham voted against the construction of three health centres in Shaw & Crompton, Chadderton and Saddleworth, while voting to carry on spending more than £68 million on the renovation of Spindles shopping centre in the next five years.

Liberal Democrat Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani said: “During the council meeting, there was a very emotive speech by one of the Labour councillors about being unable to put money towards health centres while there was hunger in the borough. I don’t understand why that doesn’t apply when it comes to spending on shopping centres.”

The £68.3 million spending is in addition to the original purchase price for the centre, which was more than £10 million.

Councillor Al-Hamdani continued: “Regeneration of the town centre is vital. We need to have ambitious plans for Oldham. But the Labour Council hasn’t even finished its consultation on what to do with the Spindles, and yet it has already budgeted for the work it is going to do.

“Sounds more like Spendles than Spindles to me!

“They say they have provided ‘more detail’ to the Towns Fund on its plans for the Spindles, in order to try and ensure that they get that funding. Where has that detail come from, and does it allow for the public’s response to the consultation?  Or is that consultation just a sham and they already decided what they are doing.

“The whole discussion seems riddled with inconsistencies. They are saying we can spend money on the Spindles while children are hungry, but we can’t spend it on health centres – health centres that were in the Labour’s Budget last year, but they have axed this year.

“It just leaves the Liberal Democrats asking more and more questions about how this Council is spending, or choosing not to spend, taxpayers’ money.”

Shaw Councillor and Liberal Democrat Leader, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, wants to see Shaw host a monthly farmers’ and producers’ market to ‘showcase’ local fare.

In his letter to Sara Hewitt, Oldham Council’s Markets Manager, he suggests that such a market would be ‘a new and exciting opportunity to shop and sell in our borough post-Lockdown.’

Councillor Sykes explained: “Oldham people have been turning more to local producers and suppliers for their groceries and household goods to help support local businesses and for the extra-special service they offer.  Money spent with these businesses stays local and because everything is locally made and transported there are fewer food miles which is good for the environment.  I want to see us capitalise on that loyalty by offering these producers and suppliers a ‘new shop-window’ in Shaw after Lockdown ends.”

Farmers’ and producers’ markets sell locally sourced goods such as meats, vegetables, cheeses, artisan breads, cakes and pastries, jams and preserves; beer, cider, and cordials; soaps and other fancy goods.

“Farmers’ and producers’ markets are very successful elsewhere and we already have one in Uppermill”, added Councillor Sykes.  “Having a second of these markets in Shaw on one of our traditional Thursday market days every month would be a novel way to revitalise our local market which has been in decline in recent years and a new way to bring more people into Shaw for a great day out.”

Oldham’s Labour Council has against delayed agreeing its equality objectives, some 15 months after they were legally required to be updated – meaning that they are now unlikely to be introduced until well after the elections in May.

After numerous delays, they updated objectives were due to come to Council for agreement in March, but after an administrative error, they still have to go to be reviewed by four other bodies before they can be approved by the Council.

Local Liberal Democrat Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani said: “The Council’s equality objectives should be championing the needs of the elderly, the disabled, the poor and the working class – anyone who is disadvantaged, for whatever reason. 

“For 15 months, the Labour Council has failed to support those people, by setting any objectives. If you are discriminated against, these objectives are supposed to be here to help you.”

The objectives must legally be updated every four years, meaning that the Council has not had anything in place since the 2015–19 objectives went out of date. 

Councillor Al-Hamdani continued: “Another delay to this is ridiculous. I fail to understand how this Labour Council can have again failed to get this organised. 

“I first raised this early last year, when I realised that the Council had missed the statutory deadline for updating the objectives. I was assured, repeatedly, that matters were in hand, and that it was merely a case of ensuring that the objectives and the strategy for delivering them were developed hand-in-hand. A year later, and nothing has yet come forward.

“Again, I ask the Council leadership, if you really care about equality and fairness, how can you not have brought this forward yet?”

All schools, colleges and early years settings will begin wider reopening of classrooms to all pupils from Monday, 8 March.

This is an important time for our borough as people increasingly move around, make journeys and interact with people again. The importance of managing this is key to avoid Covid rates rising in the borough.

Lateral flow testing is key to this managed return, and each school and college has a plan in place to test staff and young people three times in the first ten days back before home testing begins.

Young people and their families may be anxious and so the council have produced the following video with members of our youth council and Oldham College students to alleviate some of this concern. Watch the video online here.

Liberal Democrat Councillors Diane Williamson and Hazel Gloster have sent a joint letter to all of Oldham’s state-funded schools and colleges on International Women’s Day (8 March) calling on them to sign up to a government scheme which provides free sanitary products for low-income students. An inability to access or afford sanitary products prevents some students from attending classes. With the post-Lockdown return to education planned from today, this issue is even more important.

Councillor Williamson explained:  “The 8 March is celebrated every year as International Women’s Day.  The advancement of girls and women in our society has been greatly enhanced by their ability to participate in, and benefit, from education at all levels, yet the attendance of girls and young women from lower-income households at their school or college has sometimes been impeded by their inability to access sanitary products every month.  This isn’t right – a bodily function should not prevent any student being able to access education as this can lead to an inability to access university or employment opportunities in adulthood.”

Both councillors proposed a motion to the September 2018 meeting of Oldham College calling for free sanitary products to be made available to school and college students and for an end to VAT being charged on sanitary products.

Councillor Hazel Gloster added: “In January this year we celebrated when the government scrapped the ‘tampon tax’ lowering the price on sanitary products, but were disappointed to hear that one year after the Department of Education introduced, as we suggested, a scheme to make free sanitary products available to schools and colleges that only 40% of those eligible have signed up to the scheme.”

Councillor Williamson and Councillor Gloster are hoping that their appeal will encourage more Oldham schools and colleges to take up the offer.

“COVID-19 has placed increased financial pressure on families, with 30% of girls reported to have been struggling to access the period products they need during lockdown”, Councillor Williamson concluded. “Ideally we would like to see every eligible school and college in Oldham sign up as the situation in a poor borough like ours is likely to be much worse.”

The rapid Coronavirus testing facilities continue at four centres across the borough. Tests are available for people who cannot work from home, who work with members of the public, and who are not showing any symptoms.

All public-facing staff are encouraged to get a test twice a week. Testing centres are located at:

• Shaw Life Long Learning Centre, High Street, OL2 8RQ. Opening Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 7am-5.30pm. Wednesday 10am-8pm

• Failsworth Town Hall, Oldham Road, M35 0FJ. Opening Monday to Friday 9am-5.30pm

• Oldham Leisure Centre, Middleton Road, OL9 6AF. Opening Monday to Friday 7.30am-5.30pm. Saturday 10am-4.30pm

• Uppermill Civic Hall, Lee Street OL3 6AE. Opening Monday to Friday 8.30am-5.30pm

Testing is quick and easy. Appointments aren’t necessary – just turn up. For more information, visit https://www.oldham.gov.uk/keyworkertesting

https://www.internationalwomensday.com/Theme

A challenged world is an alert world. Individually, we’re all responsible for our own thoughts and actions – all day, every day.

We can all choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality. We can all choose to seek out and celebrate women’s achievements. Collectively, we can all help create an inclusive world.

From challenge comes change, so let’s all choose to challenge.

Commonwealth Day is an annual celebration observed by people all over the Commonwealth in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Americas, the Pacific and Europe.

https://thecommonwealth.org/

This year Commonwealth Day will be centred around the same theme as last year, which is also the theme for the forthcoming 2021 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

The theme – ‘Delivering a Common Future’ – highlights how the 54 member countries in the Commonwealth family are ‘innovating, connecting and transforming’ to help achieve some of its biggest goals, like fighting climate change, promoting good governance and boosting trade.

Crompton Moor may have featured recently on a BBC Countryfile programme as a place of beauty and wonderment, but Shaw Liberal Democrat Councillor and Chair of Crompton Moor Users Group, Howard Sykes MBE, is concerned that the protection of the moor and our borough’s other much-loved open spaces is threatened by the Council’s failure to properly publicise the local orders that prevent irresponsible behaviour.

Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) allow local authorities to proscribe certain types of behaviour, imposing financial penalties upon those offenders who choose to ignore them.  On moorland, a PSPO would typically prohibit the lighting of fires, the use of Chinese lanterns and irresponsible cycling and motor-cycling other than on certain defined routes, and place certain restrictions on dog-walking, hunting and dog fouling  They are intended to keep the public safe and prevent harm to the natural environment.

Councillor Sykes wrote to Council officers asking why Oldham Council’s website had not shown details of the PSPOs in place across the borough for many months and why signage on the moor has not replaced.  Commenting, he said: “Regrettably our green spaces are from time-to-time invaded by a few selfish and mindless idiots who chose to despoil our green spaces and ruin the quiet enjoyment for the vast majority.  PSPOs are one means we can fight back against this lawless minority, but we cannot prosecute them if we do not publicise them.”

In the response, Councillor Sykes was informed that, after a review of over 200 existing PSPOs as required by law last year, the Council’s Legal Services Department is now authorising the new orders and will place the details on the Council’s website by the end of March, following his intervention.  As to the physical replacement of the signs, there is still no news!

“It is disappointing that we shall have to wait another month for the website to show the details, but more worrying that there was no confirmation about the replacement of the physical signs”, added Councillor Sykes.  “I am going to keep badgering Council officers on this as anti-social behaviour has gotten worse over the Lockdown and my wager is that it will become worse still when this is lifted.”