The Government has introduced new legislation which means photographic identification will be compulsory for anyone voting in person in this year’s elections.
Voters attending the polls on Thursday 4 May will be refused a ballot if they do not show Government-approved photo ID. Accepted ID includes:
passports
driving licences
concessionary bus passes
a PASS card (Proof of Age Standards Scheme)
Blue Badge
Voter Authority Certificate
Expired ID is also accepted as long as the photo is a true likeness. You can visit the Electoral Commission website for a full list of accepted forms of voter ID
If residents don’t have any of these forms of ID, they can apply for a free voter ID which is also called a Voter Authority Certificate. A website has been set up to register for free voter ID
People can also get help getting online at any library if they need some support, or the Elections Team is able to answer question and they can be contacted at 0161 770 4318 or elections@oldham.gov.uk
You can also register to vote by post as normal, and postal votes will not require further ID. For more information, visit www.oldham.gov.uk/voterid
My question relates to roadworks across Oldham and what I and others would describe as March the Month of Madness.
Next week more 25 streets have programmed works then there will be the emergency ones or late notice on top of that.
Our roads are in a crumbling state of neglect. Because of this, emergency repairs are often needed and even though these can be disruptive, I think most people in Oldham accept that they are necessary.
What people are sick and tired of Madam Mayor, is what is now becoming known as the March Month of Madness on our roads.
Every year it seems to get worse and worse. Jobs that could have been prioritised are just rolled into March and the result it is mayhem on the roads.
Is it because we aren’t taking the utility companies to task?
When, instead of applying for permits to do planned work they lazily say the work is deemed an emergency repair and get on with it when it suits them and their shareholders, not when it suits the people who rely on those roads every day?
The council also does a disproportional amount of work towards the end of the financial year in rush to spend up.
So, when you add UU, Gas, Electric, broadband, and Council you get road works everywhere. This is not just an Oldham problem.
It impacts on all road users, bus timetables become meaningless.
The road works that impact around Oldham town centre is worth a special mention for the chaos they cause and continue to especially at peak times.
There must be a better way of doing this.
Does the Leader agree that we need a proper enforceable licensing approval scheme in place?
And will she start to take a tougher approach with utility companies to ensure that works are carried at the earliest opportunity and for the benefit of people who use the roads, rather than being crammed into March – which has become the Month of Madness on our roads?
Clean Air Zone Camera Use
Madam Mayor, we’ve all seen the latest from Mayor Burnham in the Clean Air Zone saga.
After nearly two years, three Prime Ministers and countless back-and-forth exchanges between the Manchester Mayor and the government. We are now told that the Clean Air Zone will only be a charging zone in Manchester and in Salford.
At least £3.3 million has been spent on signage across all Greater Manchester, including across Oldham Borough. A scandalous example of reckless spending.
We’ve had the creation of a new clean air committee across Greater Manchester. You would think after the farce they made of the Clean Air Zone, Labour would want this to be a truly cross-party and collaborative committee.
But no. It’s not politically balanced and you need three members to agree a call-in. So, nothing will happen on this new committee unless Labour say so.
One thing that should concern us in Oldham is the use of the cameras that have been put up across our borough for the enforcement of the original clean air zone.
These cameras are no longer needed for their original purpose.
So, what will they be used for? Are they going to be turned over to Greater Manchester Police? Is there going to be any public consultation on their use?
We already have more CCTV cameras per head of population than any other democratic country Madam Mayor. And Greater Manchester is the second city after London by number of cameras
Is all of this helping GMP catch criminals? Not with 96% of burglars going uncharged in 2022 Madam Mayor.
So does the Leader agree with me that the future usage of these cameras must not be decided in a back room somewhere.
What is her position on the future use of these cameras? And if we need these cameras at all, will she make sure that the people of Oldham and Greater Manchester are consulted on their use?
New figures reveal that more than half of all cancer patients in Oldham are having to wait more than two months for vital treatments.
New research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats has revealed that 913 people were stuck waiting for more than two months before receiving treatment with Northern Care Alliance (NCA), the NHS Trust that covers Oldham. The shocking figures mean that, in 2022, 52% of patients had to wait more than two months for treatment to start.
Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “Northern Care Alliance has not hit the target of 85% of patients receiving a first treatment for cancer within 62 days of an urgent GP referral since 2020. These figures are absolutely horrifying.”
Nationally, more than 66,000 patients were forced to wait more than two months for their first treatment last year after a referral.
Councillor Sykes said, “Targets exist to save lives. We need urgent action to get Northern Care Alliance back on track.”
“Liberal Democrats are calling for the Government to hire more staff, especially specialist cancer nurses. There needs to be a comprehensive strategy to ensure all those who have been left behind are offered timely cancer diagnosis and treatment.”
Councillor Sykes, who represents Shaw ward, has previously called for a new scrutiny committee to drive improvements across Northern Care Alliance services. The Labour administration has so far refused to commit to this step.
With just over two months until voters go to the polls, Oldham’s Liberal Democrats have branded government plans to introduce photo ID checks at polling stations as “chaos”. New figures reveal that a shocking 1% of the near 2 million eligible voters without ID have applied for an acceptable form of photo identification.
Leader of Oldham Liberal Democrats councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “The government have rushed these laws through with no time for councils to implement them. It’s very likely that the result will be people in Oldham are denied the right to vote because they don’t have ID or don’t know to bring it with them to the polling station.”
Councillor Sykes said, “Liberal Democrats have been opposing the Voter ID regulations since they were first introduced into Parliament via the Elections Act. The Labour Party had the chance to block these new laws as they passed through the House of Lords, but they chose to stand by and let them pass.”
Liberal Democrats in Parliament are calling for the rollout of photo ID requirements to be halted and for the regulations to be immediately revoked.
If you don’t want to vote in person, or cannot due other commitments (work/ill/away etc.) at the elections on Thursday 4 May, 2023, for any reason, then you can apply for a postal vote by writing to:
Elections Office, Oldham Council, West Street, Oldham OL1 1UL. Or calling: 0161 770 4718. Or emailing: elections@oldham.gov.uk
Completed applications need to be returned NO LATER than 5pm on Tuesday 18 April.
I have just been informed that following the significant downfall of snow they have experienced disruption to our waste collections.
Please note we have outstanding waste and recycling collections in Royton, Shaw and Crompton.
Residents are advised the following:
General waste/Paper card/Glass, cans, and plastic bottles– crews will return for outstanding work first collection on Monday (13th March) morning
Food and Garden collections – we will collect any additional waste next Friday (17th March), so residents are advised to return their bin/food caddy back to their property.
Liberal Democrat Opposition councillors are set to force a vote calling for Oldham to withdraw from Places for Everyone, Greater Manchester’s regional housing strategy.
At next week’s meeting of the Council (March 15), Liberal Democrat members will push for Oldham Council to withdraw from the controversial plan, which would large scale developments on a number of green spaces across Oldham.
Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “Places for Everyone does not work in the best interest of Oldham Borough. It will do nothing to clean up and repurpose brownfield and ex-industrial sites. All of that is considered too difficult. Instead, the priority is to use precious green spaces. Once they are gone, they are gone forever.”
In December 2022, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities removed the mandatory housing targets that plans like Places for Everyone are based on.
Councillor Sykes said, “The Labour ruling group in Oldham have always claimed that government housing targets were forcing them to build on green belt. Well, those top down, mandatory targets no longer exist.
“So, it is time to remove Oldham Borough from Places for Everyone as an immediate priority. Liberal Democrats recognise that tackling the housing crisis is essential. But we will not do that by allowing developers to stick mansions on all our green spaces. A plan that works for all of Oldham Borough must include much more ambitious use of our brownfield and ex-industrial buildings.
“Crucially, that plan should be drawn up here in Oldham, by Oldham Council in consultation with the people we represent.”
Full council 15 March 2023 – Notice of Opposition Business (Liberal Democrats)
Motion: Removing Oldham Borough from Places for Everyone
Proposed by: councillor Sam Al-Hamdani
Seconded by: councillor Hazel Gloster
This council notes that:
In December 2022, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities made a statement in the House of Commons in relation to an update on the Levelling up Bill.
This statement effectively represented a move away from top-down, mandatory housing targets.
The Secretary of State further added it will be up to Local Authorities, working with their communities, to determine how many homes can actually be built, taking into account what should be protected in each area, be that in our precious Green Belt or National Parks.
The Secretary of State further outlined how those local authorities with local plans at an advanced stage of preparation who will not benefit from these provisions can take advantage of transitional arrangements to produce plans that are compliant with the new guidance.
It has always been the position of Oldham Council that Places for Everyone (and the Green Belt development therein) was only necessary because of the top-down, mandatory housing targets that the government was imposing on local authorities.
This council believes that:
Although this Council is part of the Places for Everyone submission, we have no adopted local plan.
As such the housing need calculation made within Places for Everyone is now obsolete and not in line with national guidance.
Tackling the housing crisis is essential, in order to provide fairer futures for the next generation; and that a plan that works for all of Oldham Borough is best developed in Oldham Borough, by this Council and in consultation with the people we represent.
This council resolves to:
1. Withdraw Oldham Council from the Places for Everyone Plan as an immediate priority.
2. Develop a joint approach to calculating housing need though community consultation; with a reinforced brownfield first policy and a focus on ex-industrial clean up and repurposing of Oldham’s industrial legacy buildings.
3. Reaffirm our commitment to the preservation of Green Belt and the places of natural beauty that make Oldham Borough unique.
4. Failing the above the Council seeks an urgent review of housing allocations in Places for Everyone Plan, to ensure the numbers are reduced and are reduced specifically on green sites in Oldham.
5. Write to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to request a national brownfield first policy along with the funding to enable decisions to build the houses we need to be made, in the places we need with the infrastructure we need such as health services, schools and transport
Oldham’s Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE has warned council bosses of the increased risk councils face from cyber-attacks.
Councillor Sykes said, “Experts in cyber security have been telling us for some time that councils are at risk from cyber threats. Some councils have already fallen victim to attacks, resulting in the loss of cash and interrupting essential services to vulnerable residents.”
A freedom of information response made available to Oldham Liberal Democrats has revealed that there was an attempted cyber-attack against Oldham Council in 2020.
Councillor Sykes said, “The risk will only increase the longer the government and council bosses go without acting on these warnings.”
In January, MPs heard from victims of cyber-crime at a meeting of Parliaments’ joint committee on national security strategy. In some cases, local councils do not have – or cannot afford – the insurance that protects them in the event of a cyber-attack.
Councillor Sykes said, “We know we are at risk in Oldham, so council bosses must ensure the best protections are in place to guard both services and residents against the threat of cyber-crime. I have written to the Chief Executive of Oldham Council and hope he can reassure me all possible steps to protect the Council and its residents have been taken.”
