After a long battle we have finally persuaded our Council to sign up to cyclescheme. This allows employees to buy a bike at a good saving and thus reduce the amount of cars on the road. Several Council employees have been contacting me over the last few months encouraging me as I worked to get our Conservative cabinet to agree to the scheme and get it in place.

Next step is now to get proper facilities in occise so that people who do cycle in have proper storage and cleaning facilities. So qustion to the next cabinet meeting as follows

To Cllr Gerrish from Cllr Crossley

Now that the Council has signed up to the “Cycle to Work” scheme with the Bath company Cyclescheme, will the Cabinet member be looking to sign up to the full “Cycle to Work Guarantee” (http://www.cycletoworkguarantee.org.uk/) to further encourage employees to cycle to work?

In the 2007 elections the Conservatives used a scare tactic in Bath that the Liberal Democrats were planning a fortnightly refuse collection services. This falsehood had the desired effect and was the reason why they won the two Abbey ward seats. Now their colleagues in North Somerset - who are adopting a slash and burn approach to services there - are introducing fortnightly waste collections. Story on the BBC here.

We shall have to keep an eye on them here to make sure they do not try and sneak that service change in here. And all the while the seagulls continue to grow in number because our Conservatives keep delaying the introduction of a separate food waste service.

Crime over the last year has shown a 7% reduction. Well done to all in the police. The PCSO teams have been working well providing an invaluable service in several communities. And one of the local innovations has been a much better reporting back by the police to victims on how their crime is being investigated and followed up. Not surprisingly customer satisfaction has risen.

The secretary of state has just made the wrong call on the Bath Transport Package. It should be going to a full public enquiry to look at the flawed process that has led to this scheme that will cost a fortune and not deliver any real savings to congestion.

The Conservatives refused to consider alternatives put forward by the Liberal Democrats and are continuing to push ahead withan absurd 2 lane highway.

The question increasingly on the doorstep is Why do Richter’s Conservatives hate bath so much?

So the Conservative-Labour coalition has won this phase but the dispute will certainly carry on. Ombudsman is the next step

Bath MP Don Foster has commented on today’s announcement that the Secretary of State will not be calling in the proposed-Bus Rapid Transit link through Newbridge (along with the Newbridge Park and Ride extension) for his own determination.

Don said, “I am deeply disappointed with the decision made by the Secretary of State.  However, this does not change my view that processes followed by the Council throughout have been seriously flawed. I, along with Liberal Democrat colleagues on the Council, will now talk to residents to see if they wish to make a complaint to the Ombudsman.”

ps