Oldham Liberal Democrats back calls for new energy bill debt support
Oldham Liberal Democrats have backed calls made by several charities for the government to introduce “help to repay” support for people who are falling into debt because of rising energy bills.
Leader of Oldham’s Liberal Democrat Opposition Group councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “The cost-of-living crisis has hit families hard across Oldham Borough. But the government could be doing a lot more to help. By closing tax loopholes that the energy giants exploit for profits, the government could fund a ‘help-to-repay’ scheme to support people who have fallen into arrears because of spiralling prices.”
Charities including the Money Advice Trust, StepChange Debt Charity, National Energy Action, and Scope have urged Energy Secretary Grant Shapps MP to introduce a dedicated “help to repay”. An estimated 5.5 million UK adults are behind on their energy bills, according to a survey for the Money Advice Trust; and the charity estimates that 3.2 million people have received demands from their energy supplier for repayments of arrears they cannot afford, the charity has said.
Councillor Sykes said, “There are 2.1 million more people in energy arrears than there was this time last year. Millions more are struggling and not all energy providers are providing support. The government needs to act. The best way to support ordinary families, in Oldham and across the country, is to get tough on the unearned super-profits of the big energy companies.”
We need to concentrate on getting rid of all the invasive Himalayan balsam.
Thursday the 22nd of June 2023 – 10:00am start – meet in Brushes Clough car park. We will finish around 3:00pm. No problem if you can’t stay until 3:00pm, just stay as long as you can, every hour helps.
On Thursday we will be clearing area 2, which is just off the path leading from the car park, down to Pingot. This will be followed by area 3. Area 1 was done last Saturday.
Saturday the 24th of June 2023 we will finish any remaining balsam. Time: Meet at 10:30am in Brushes Clough car park and we will only be doing a couple of hours
A campaign to get Shaw a new gym has been launched by the Liberal Democrats in Shaw and Crompton. Councillors say the campaign is aimed at Oldham Community Leisure (OCL) and is designed to take them up on previous expressions of interest to provide a Gym in Shaw.
Shaw Liberal Democrat councillor Hazel Gloster said, “Today we announce our next campaign. We will be working to make sure Shaw gets a new gym and taking up Oldham Community Leisure’s previous comments that they would support a facility in Shaw.”
Shaw baths permanently closed in 2014 after the boiler failed and repairs were considered deemed too costly by the Labour Council.
Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, who also represents Shaw, said, “The Liberal Democrats have a proud history of campaigning for and delivering on what Shaw and Crompton residents tell us they want. Our new Health Centre is on track for completion in summer 2024 after the doubters said it would never happen. There is even scope for the centre to be expanded in the future.”
“The vision for Shaw has always been to create a Health and Wellbeing Hub. We have the Lifelong Learning Centre already, a Health Centre on its way, a new Gym would make that vision a reality,” added councillor Gloster.
Councillor Diane Williamson, who represents Crompton ward, said, “Over the next weeks and months we will be arranging for petitions, surveys so that residents can tell us what they would like to see at the facility. This could be in terms of equipment, types of classes or suggested opening hours. We will also be asking residents for a commitment to use the new facility – the numbers need to stack up if we are to make sure it happens.”
“We will be working with OCL every step of the way because we believe partnership working is key. The Liberal Democrats want better for Shaw and Crompton, and this is the next thing on the list bringing jigsaw pieces together,” stated councillor Williamson.
This Thursday (22nd June) is Windrush Day – this year marking the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush.
As Liberal Democrats, we are proud of the outstanding economic, social, and cultural contribution the Windrush Generation has made to the United Kingdom.
Just over a month ago on Thursday 4 May, Liberal Democrat Tom Penketh made history by becoming the first 18 year old to be elected onto Shaw & Crompton Parish Council in West Ward where he lives with his mum and dad, as well as younger sister, and the youngest person to be elected in Oldham.
He got the highest number of votes on the day out of all the candidates elected to the Parish Council with 812.
Tom was a pupil at Crompton House Sixth Form having just completed his A Levels.
Councillor Penketh became active in the Liberal Democrats some time ago and has become more and more active over the past 12 months; getting stuck in with everything.
“I feel absolutely over the moon to be elected as a Parish Councillor for Crompton West. I helped campaign 12 months ago for the borough seats in Crompton and Shaw, both of which we retained and this year I was campaigning to get myself elected, as well as the borough candidates and it paid off.”
“Going out, door knocking, phone canvassing and posting our Focus gives me the chance to speak to residents and listen to their concerns and what they want to see improved. I want to say a huge thank you to the people of Crompton West who have put their trust and faith in me to represent them and deliver on my promises over the next four years. Residents should know that their issues and concerns will be worked through, with my Borough colleagues, whilst I am elected,” said Tom.
Shocking figures revealed by the Liberal Democrats show that three in four incidents of bike theft (77%) in Greater Manchester ended with investigations being closed without a suspect being identified or further action being taken by police.
Oldham Liberal Democrat Opposition Leader councillor Howard Sykes said, “For all of the talk from local and national leaders about investing in frontline policing, clearly our police forces are struggling to get a handle on basics.”
Data uncovered by the Liberal Democrats also revealed that, of the 2,588 bike thefts that were recorded across Greater Manchester in 2022, only 18 cases resulted in a suspect being charged. Councillor Sykes hit out at the government and at Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, who has responsibility for policing across the region.
Councillor Sykes “Mismanagement and underfunding, both from the government and from Greater Manchester’s Mayor, have created a vicious cycle. The politicians cannot get it right, so residents are left with rising council tax bills which are being used to backfill failing services.”
“Meanwhile, criminals are getting away with taking thousands of pounds worth of property, and our police force is seemingly powerless act. This is highly concerning, and it is a direct consequence of the disappearance of frontline policing in our communities.”
Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE has hit out at council bosses after it emerged that Oldham Council currently has no plan in place for ‘on street’ residential electric vehicle charging.
Councillor Sykes said, “Demand for electric vehicles is on the rise, with record numbers hitting our roads in 2022. Yet Oldham’s leaders have consistently failed to plan for the future. We are already falling behind other parts of Greater Manchester and the rest of the country.”
A council response to a Freedom of Information request (FOI) seen by Oldham Liberal Democrats confirms that there are currently no plans for an ‘on street residential charging strategy’.
Councillor Sykes said, “Parts of our borough are very densely populated. As demand for electric vehicles grows, we need a strategy that delivers for people living on terraced streets and other high-density housing areas were people do not have drives or garages for home charging. But the council continually misses opportunities to deliver.”
“There is a lack of long-term thinking. Whether that is by failing to factor charging points into development plans like we’ve seen over the years with Uppermill Leisure Centre or the Saddleworth Museum; or whether it is by completely failing to develop a strategy for residential charging. Time is running out for the council to get this right.”
The FOI response also stated that Oldham had 102 ‘publicly available’ charging points as of March 2023.
How many public charging outlets or chargepoints for electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles have you installed to date in your local authority? Please provide figures to the nearest possible date and include the month and the year the figures correspond to.
108 (102 publicly available) – March 2023
For Question 1, how many of the public charging outlets or chargepoints are those classed as On-Street Residential Chargepoints, located on-street in residential streets or areas?
Of the 102 publicly available chargepoints across Oldham, most are located in Council-owned car parks, retail outlets e.g., supermarkets, retail parks and outlets, fast food outlets etc.
How many public charging outlets or chargepoints for electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles do you plan to install in the current fiscal year or the current calendar year? Please provide figures to whichever timeframe corresponds with your reporting.
We plan to install 250 charge points (500 sockets) across the next two financial years (by March 2025) overall.
For Question 3, how many of the planned public charging outlets or charge points are classed as On-Street Residential Chargepoints, to be installed in on-street residential areas?
We can’t say at this stage. Using grant funding (if secured) we would look to install primarily standard chargers at publicly accessible locations, which would be supplemented by faster chargers through a commercial agreement.
Do you have a published strategy for On-Street Residential charging infrastructure?
No
Do you have a dedicated Policy Officer (or equivalent) responsible for your electric vehicle charging infrastructure?
No
Has your local authority submitted an application or multiple applications for the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS)?
No
If yes to Question7, how much funding has the local authority applied for in total? The figures can include funding yet to be received.
