Liberal Democrats launch Suffolk County manifesto

9.54.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 13th May 2009

Suffolk Liberal Democrats launch election Manifesto

Liberal Democrats in Suffolk have today officially launched their manifesto for the forthcoming County Council elections on June 4th. They have announced a list of "Six to Fix" which are:

1. Support Middle Schools

Stop the closure of Middle Schools in Suffolk

2. Better Care Services

Review all care service fees and make elderly day care free again

3. Safer Suffolk

Cut accidents on our roads and reduce speeding in town and villages

4. A Better run council

Freeze all council salaries over £50,000 and run services fairly and efficiently

5. Greener Suffolk

Cut the 20 million miles travelled by council staff every year

6. Smarter Education

Reverse the fall in GCSE results and invest in our children's future

They have also produced a set of six postcards and Six to Fix posters, which will be available to download from the website at http://suffolkcclibdems.org.uk in the next few days.

Commenting on the launch group leader Kathy Pollard said "This is a strong manifesto which responds to the concerns expressed to us by Suffolk residents after four years of Conservative control in the County. Falling GCSE results, massive increases in the cost of care to elderly and vulnerable adults and a significant increase in the salaries of top managers are the top 3 issues we want to tackle. In addition we want to halt the closure of the 40 Middle Schools in Suffolk, which has been damaging and disruptive and is totally unnecessary."

There is also encouragement to "Shop Local" by supporting local businesses, shops and farm shops. Liberal Democrats across the East of England have been lobbying the Government to provide automatic rate relief to those businesses which qualify.

Deputy Leader Andrew Cann added "At this time of economic downturn we recognise the need to support local businesses. We have lost far too many Post Offices and local shops in Suffolk. We will do all we can to ensure that those that are still open remain open. Once they close people lose not only a shop but also an opportunity to socialise with fellow residents."

Green issues also loom large in the manifesto and there is fierce opposition to Conservative proposals to build large incinerators. Instead Liberal Democrats favour technologies like Advanced Mechanical Biological Treatment. Two of the sites could be in Great Blakenham. Councillor for the area, John Field commented "I have yet to find any of my local residents who are in favour of an incinerator. Incinerators are expensive and inflexible. They undermine recycling and there are still major health questions about the fine particulates which are emitted and then accumulate in the body. It is not good enough to say that they are much better than previous incinerators. Incineration is an old fashioned technology and the council would be tied into a £650 million 30 year contract. When there are other proven technologies available it would be extremely unwise to commit to such a contract at this time."