The Oldham Council Liberal Democrat Group was disappointed to hear yesterday that the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) has refused to cut Councillor numbers and costs.

Liberal Democrats suggested a reduction in Councillors in their submission to the LGBCE late last year.

Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council currently has twenty electoral wards, represented by sixty elected councillors.  The Boundary Commission called for responses to a consultation to review the number of councillors in November.  

At the meeting of the full council (4 November 2020), the Labour Administration backed a report proposing that the status quo be maintained, but in the vote the Liberal Democrats abstained. 

The Liberal Democrats instead submitted their own proposal that the number of Councillors be reduced to two per ward believing that less councillors are now needed with a Cabinet-run council and with most business being conducted using new technology. 

This is a proposal they have made every year at budget time since 2012.  It is estimated that this measure would save Council taxpayers at least £190,000 each year, but there would be a further saving as there would only need to be two local elections every four years, instead of three at present.

The Boundary Commission chose to reject this proposal.

The Leader of the Opposition, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, said:  “This is disappointing news.  Times have changed since the current councillor numbers were agreed upon.   The Committee system has been replaced with a Cabinet so only a handful of Councillors are involved in daily decision-making.  We now live in a world of social media, emails and online meetings rather than taking letters to a typing pool or resorting to faxes, making the conduct of council business far quicker and easier, without the time-consuming commuting.”

“Even more important the number of staff at the Council and the budget with which the Council delivers services have halved over the last decade,” added Councillor Sykes.  “We believe it is only right and proper that the number of councillors should be reduced and both staff numbers, services and budgets have.”

The government has announced that the 5% Value Added Tax levied on women’s hygiene products for women and girls has been abolished from January 1, 2021 and Liberal Democrat Councillors Diane Williamson and Hazel Gloster were especially delighted to hear the news; for both Councillors had called for an end to the sexist ‘Tampon Tax’ in a motion they proposed at a meeting of the full Council in September 2018.

Councillor Diane Williamson said: “It was scandalous, and sexist, that, whilst men did not pay any VAT on personal hygiene products, women and girls did.  Until 1 January, female hygiene products were classed as luxury products and VAT was levied on them.  These are products which are essential to them during a large part of their lives and I now hope that, with this tax cut, manufacturers will reduce their prices to consumers because at this present time many people are suffering financial hardness and every saving helps.”

Both Councillors are however concerned that a nationwide scheme to provide free sanitary products to girls at school has had a low take-up.  They asked for such a scheme to be established in their motion to address period poverty where girls from low-income families must take time off from schools during their monthly period as they cannot afford sanitary products.

Councillor Hazel Gloster added: “We welcomed the introduction by the Department of Education of the provision of these products to girls in English secondary schools in January of last year.  It was simply not right that students who could not afford sanitary products had to miss days from school, and so lose out on their education. Unfortunately, only 40% of secondary schools have so far taken up the offer of free sanitary products, and the Liberal Democrats want to improve take up locally to ensure all our young people are able to attend school”.

The motion submitted to the Council meeting held September 12, 2018 read:

Motion 2 – Period Poverty

This Council notes that:

• A survey by Plan International UK found that 1 in 10 teenage girls had been unable to afford sanitary products;
• 56% of teenage girls said they would rather be bullied at school than talk to their parents about periods;
• This is particularly problematic for girls from low-income families who see their parents struggling to make ends meet and feel reluctant to ask them to add sanitary products to the weekly shop;
• In many cases, as a result, they may lose a significant number of days of schooling; 
• Regrettably, even women in low-income employment are sometimes unable to afford such products when struggling to meet household bills and feed their families;
• Ironically only female prisoners have a statutory right to access free sanitary products.

Council believes in a country as well-off as Britain ‘Period Poverty’ is a scandal that should be ended.

Council commends:

• The Scottish Government for its commitment to tackle ‘Period Poverty’ by introducing free sanitary products in all educational establishments, and notes that Scotland was one of the first countries to pilot a scheme to young women and girls in need in Aberdeen;
• The project recently established by the 21^st Oldham Friezland Rangers and the charity Red Box whereby members of the public can donate sanitary products in branded boxes located in prominent places for re-distribution to students in need attending our local schools and colleges.

Council resolves to:

• Ask the Overview and Scrutiny Board and Health and Well-being Board, working with relevant Cabinet Members, officers and partners, to explore with local secondary schools and colleges how sanitary products can be made available free to students in their establishments;

• Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State for Education and Chancellor asking the Government to scrap the VAT levied on female hygiene products as soon as is practicable and in the meantime to use the VAT collected on these products to fund the provision of free sanitary products for girls and women in need.

Proposed by: Councillor Diane Williamson

Seconded by: Councillor Hazel Gloster

Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, Leader of the Opposition, received an unwanted Christmas present – confirmation that a revised version of Labour’s plan to build thousands of new homes on Oldham’s green spaces will be brought back in 2021.  It is likely that this, so-called, ‘development plan of the nine’, a reference to the fact that Stockport Council has now withdrawn from the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, will not come back for consideration before the local and GM mayoral elections this May.

Councillor Sykes wrote to Oldham Council Chief Executive, Dr Carolyn Wilkins OBE, enquiring when another meeting would be convened to reconsider the plan and to seek reassurance that the period of public consultation would not be curtailed because of the legal requirements attached to ‘purdah’, a period of several weeks in advance of the date of local elections when there are legal constraints on Council activity.

In a written response, the Head of Dr Wilkin’s office confirmed that “it is unlikely that any revised plans or decisions will be presented back to Council until the new municipal year”; the new 2021-22 municipal year does not commence until after the local elections are held in May.

Commenting Councillor Sykes said: “May’s local election date is also the date that the position of the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham is up for re-election.  Andy Burnham has been the principal backer of the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, the plan to build thousands of unwanted new homes on the Green Belt. The Leader of Oldham Council, Councillor Sean Fielding, and most of his Labour colleagues in Oldham have also backed this plan, as have the other Labour Leaders across Greater Manchester and the Conservative Leader of Bolton Council. 

“Only the Liberal Democrat Councillors in the ten authorities in our city region have been consistently opposed to the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework from day one, so my advice to voters everywhere who are seeking an end to this plan is back the Liberal Democrats in the local and Greater Manchester Mayoral elections.  If you lend us your vote, we will fight to save Greater Manchester’s irreplaceable green spaces from housing development.”

Here is a list of opening times of some of the pharmacies across Oldham for Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. Included in the list below is also a couple of pharmacies in Manchester as they are open for extended hours.

Many council services have changed their opening hours over Christmas and New Year. For a full list of opening and closing times visit the website here.

People who are worried about their wellbeing, are struggling financially, or need food over Christmas, can call our helpline. The helpline, on 0161 770 7007, is available 9am–12noon on the following days:

• Thursday 24 December
• Tuesday 29 December
• Wednesday 30 December
• Thursday 31 December

The council will also be proactively contacting families they usually engage with, to ensure they are receiving support over Christmas.

For real time information: https://oldham.roadworks.org/

Oldham Council has launched a new cash grants scheme to support businesses which supply the hospitality and leisure sectors and have been impacted by coronavirus restrictions.

These grants will support direct suppliers to the hospitality and leisure industries. Businesses that have suffered a loss in trade due to local or national restrictions – including tier 2, tier 3 and the most recent national lockdown – can apply.

Businesses that pay business rates and those who do not pay rates are eligible.  Priority will be given to businesses that operate out of commercial premises but applications from businesses that have at least two employees will also be considered.  

One off grants of at least £2,000 will be available. 

For more information and to apply visit www.oldham.gov.uk/supplychaingrants

https://paladinservice.co.uk/serial-perpetrator-register-and-order/

There will be changes to Friday bin collections only over the Christmas period.

As usual there will be no bin collections on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Bins due to be emptied on Friday, 25 December will instead be collected earlier – on Saturday, December 19 (except for food and garden containers).

Bins due for collection on Friday January 1 (including food and garden containers) will be collected a day later on Saturday, January 2.

In December leaflets will be delivered to households in the areas affected and there will be reminders via social media channels.

Collection dates can also be checked via the online post code checker at www.oldham.gov.uk/waste

After the festive period Christmas trees can be chopped up and put in green bins.

Alternatively, they can be dropped at Arkwight Street Recycling Centre or drop off points at Higher Memorial Park, Royton Park, Werneth Park and Churchill Playing Fields.