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News from the Liberal Democrats

Mayor Dave Hodgson with village tour signs

Village Tour Update: 60 in 30 becomes 19 in 7

I'm back out on the Village Tour trail again tomorrow, with surgeries in Oakley, Stevington, Turvey, Riseley, Swineshead, Melchbourne and Yelden. The '60 in 30' Tour is now down to 19 in 7, with 19 villages left in the schedule in the remaining 7 days of the month. The tour so far has been excellent, with 200 people coming out to talk to me about the issues on their minds in villages from Farndish in the north westof the Borough to Stewartby in the south and another 39 in between. So far 199 people have come out to talk to me about the issues on their minds.

23 Sep 2011
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Lib Dem logo bird projected on blockwork

Survey Reveals St Mary's Street is in Danger of Collapse – 8 Weeks of Works Ahead

As you may have seen or heard through local media, a survey has revealed that St Mary's street in the centre of Bedford is in danger of collapse. Astonishingly, the road was only resurfaced fewer than ten years ago by the former County Council. Sadly, however, as has been the case in areas across the Council, we are clearing up the former County Council's mess, after they didn't tackle drainage problems and simply put tarmac over the existing road surface. As the local business owners along the street, which runs off the Town Bridge to the south (from the Park Inn hotel), have made clear to me, the build up of surface water on the road causes them real problems. So, we've been aware of the lack of drainage, but it is only now a full survey has been done that the extent of the damage to the road caused by this has been revealed. It has shown that the road is in danger of 'failure' (i.e. collapse) at some point, and therefore urgent works must be undertaken. And this time we'll do a thorough job which lasts.

24 Sep 2011
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Dave Hodgson paints railings at a Rivercare event by the river near Aspects and the Embankment

Real Community Spirit on Show at Final Rivercare Event of 2011

Before setting out on the village tour trail on Saturday, I went along to the final Rivercare event of 2011. Rivercare events are run by the Coucil, and are open to anyone to come along and help improve the riverside environment in Bedford. Saturday's 'Green and Arty River Clean Up' concentrated on the area near Aspects and Longholme Way. In addition to the usual litter pick, a mural was also painted in the underpass which links Aspects to the embankment, while the railings were also repainted. My talents were best suited to repainting the railings, as you can see from the photo! It was really enjoyable to work alongside the numerous local volunteers young and old who gave up their Saturday morning to make a positive difference to our shared riverside environment. I want to say thanks once again to all those who came out and got stuck in. They provided an example of real community spirit in action, in common with all of those people across Bedford Borough who take care of their local environment .

26 Sep 2011
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Dave Hodgson on the track at Bedford Athletics Stadium

Olympic Festival Fun For All!

Tomorrow the Council will be submitting a bid to the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) for the Bedford International Athletics Stadium to be granted the status of an 'Olympics Live Site' next summer. If successful, this will see us awarded a grant of £7,500 and will enable us to stage a free fun-filled festival of sport at the stadium during the Olympics, featuring a big screen showing all the action live, including the men's 100 metre final, and opportunities to have a go on the top class facilities on offer, especially for young people.

29 Sep 2011
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Mayor Dave Hodgson with Jo Dring of Charles Wells Ltd and Staff at the Fox and Hounds, Riseley

Pints in the Parishes is Back - New Schedule of Dates

Having written on here recently that 'Pints in the Parishes' is re-starting soon, I can now confirm a full, new schedule of these events at local village pubs around the Borough. I wrote out to all Parish Councils in July, asking if they would like to nominate a local pub which might be a suitable venue for me to visit one evening and give local residents the chance to talk to me directly about any issues they want to raise, in an informal environment. Once again I got an excellent response from the Parish Councils, and I must thank them for their suggestions. I then drew pub names out of a hat, after at first restricting the initial draw to those villages in which I have not yet held a Pints in the Parishes session. I then contacted the pubs to check that they are happy to have me, and can now confirm the full list of new dates and venues. Please have a look and see if I'm coming your way at all. It's always great to be able to talk to a good number of people and gather views on the issues of importance for

30 Sep 2011
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Mayor Dave Hodgson talks to local residents during the 2012 Village Tour

Village Tour - My Thanks to All Who Came Out to Talk

The Village Tour 2012, or '60 in 30,' is now over, and I want to thank everyone who came out to speak to me at the 60 mobile surgeries across 60 villages in September's 30 days. The fact that so many residents talked to me to share their views on the important matters for our communities was very much appreciated, as was the welcome I received. A variety of weather conditions were experienced, and I am particularly grateful to those who braved wet and windy evenings or sweltering afternoons (we had both of these extremes, and plenty in between!) in the cause of taking the opportunity to talk to me directly while I was in the neighbourhood.

7 Oct 2011
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