Yesterday I took an officer of the Council and Cllr Graeme Coombes to London to talk to the Government and meet the Minister, Baroness Taylor, to discuss a number of subjects.
Firstly we discussed the financial pressures being faced by the Council, things like flooding, temporary accommodation, and the Cleat Hill situation where two people very sadly lost their lives. Between all these different situations the Council has spent a lot of money and I am very keen for the Government to help our residents going through a very difficult time.
I also explained about the pressures affecting our annual budget in that, because of our unitary status, we have to consult far earlier and any extra money kindly announced from the Government always comes too late to alter our Council Tax discussions.
We talked at length about devolution, Metro Mayors, and how Bedford can engage with the Government better. We also discussed the £24mn that the Government owes the Council for the construction of our SEND School.
Lastly, we discussed the unique opportunity afforded to us by the Universal Studios announcement and the issue it gives us in setting our new Local Plan after the previous Lib Dem Local Plan was rejected by the Planning Inspector.
In all these subjects the Baroness, as a former Council Leader, was very sympathetic. I got the impression that she fully understood our issues and had a good grasp of her brief. She very carefully did not promise any extra money but offered to battle on our behalf on a number of difficult issues. I am grateful to the Baroness for her time and future efforts on our behalf, even fitting us into her diary at short notice.
Once we had finished with the Baroness we took the opportunity to brief our new local MP, Blake Stephenson MP. We talked about many subjects including Bedford Hospital, the Ambulance Station facing closure, Wixams' and Wootton's doctors surgeries, and lastly of course Wixams Station. Blake is a new MP who is already making waves as a real campaigner in and around Parliament. I have been very impressed by the start he made.
