Our MP visits Weybridge Rowing Club

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Our local MP, Dr Ben Spencer, accepted an invitation to row at Weybridge Rowing Club on the 6th June. A former college rower (he’s in the blue t-shirt in the middle of the boat), he was accompanied by Cllr Judy Sarsby, a member of the rowing club, as he rowed around Desborough Island in an eight. It was a good opportunity to point out some of the problems experienced by river users, including the illegally moored boats along the Desborough Cut, which a few weeks earlier had again caused the cancellation of the much-loved Weybridge Ladies Regatta, and sewage discharges by the water companies. He was talked through the key location for the future flood-relief channel into the Thames (the River Thames Scheme) and where the ‘Row Paddle Run’ charity event takes place to raise money for The Grâce Dear Trust for young people’s mental health. He experienced a busy morning of residents using the river for sport and pleasure.

Helping to clean our river – you can join too!

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Councillor Judy Sarsby stepped up the litter picking efforts around Desborough Island this summer, having initiated the Monday morning litter pick on the island two years ago.

Together with rowers from Weybridge Rowing Club, Judy paddled around the River Thames and pulled out floating plastics from the banks. A big thank you to Judy, who works so tirelessly on so many issues!

Keeping our rivers and waterways clean is as important as removing the litter from the land, not only for pollution reduction to enhance life for humans, animals and plants, but also for climate resilience.

If you would like to make an immediate impact locally and help with our litter pick, please get in touch with us at JSarsby@elmbridge.gov.uk. Come and be part of making a better river environment in our area!

Local Election results

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LIB DEM SUCCESS IN MAY LOCAL ELECTIONS

The latest local elections were a resounding success for the Lib Dem party in Elmbridge as Lib Dems gained six new council seats and held on to three. Of Elmbridge’s total number of 48 councillors, the LibDems are now the biggest party with 19, whilst Conservatives have 12 and Residents associations in various groups count 17 councillors.

In a big win, Weybridge Riverside councillor Ashley Tilling was re-elected after serving four years and was also elected to Surrey County Council, the first Lib Dem from Elmbridge! At Surrey, Ashley will represent the Walton South and Oatlands division.

The vote counts for Elmbridge Borough Council for Weybridge Riverside ward were as follows:
Ashley Tilling, Lib Dem 1094 votes; Conservative 754 votes; Labour 220 votes.

Thank you to all who voted, whichever party you supported – the Lib Dems are here to represent all!

Whilst the election was a boost for Lib Dems, the turnout was disappointing at 39.6%, in part as the need for new photo identity proof led some people to turn back without voting. Without a doubt, it was shocking to see a uniformed policemen turned away at St Mary’s School Oatlands polling station as his warrant card with photo was not considered by the presiding officer as proof enough to vote! Those who used a postal vote did not need to provide proof of identity. Do contact Elmbridge Borough Council offices to get on the postal vote list if you need to. Ring 01372 474 474.

Elmbridge’s Vision 2030 – public event 7th March

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Elmbridge’s Vision 2030

On 8 February, Elmbridge Cabinet recommended to Council a new Elmbridge Vision 2030; a Vision that encapsulates Elmbridge’s sense of community, that understands how our residents care about their environment, how they care about supporting each other and how they care about the vibrancy of their towns and villages.

The 2030 Vision has been co-created with our residents, businesses, colleagues, and Councillors, who all understand more than ever that Elmbridge has the potential to grasp the future, to be an enabler for growth and opportunity, that we should be ready to adapt to future working life, future high streets, and future living.

On 7th March, residents, businesses, and local partners are invited to the Civic Centre in Esher to hear more about our Council’s Vision 2030 and our aspirations for Elmbridge.

Timings:

6-7pm arrival and networking
Meeting some of our partner organisations such as Surrey Police, The River Thames Scheme and our waste partners Joint Waste Solutions.

7-8pm Vision 2030 launch
Hear from The Leader, Cllr Chris Sadler, the Deputy Leader Cllr Bruce McDonald and the Chief Executive, Adam Chalmers. There will also be time for questions and answers.

Register your attendance at the launch event via Eventbrite

Council concerns over the expansion of the ULEZ

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From Elmbridge News. Click here for full article.

After a limited period of consultation, the Mayor of London announced last November that London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) would be extended this year from inside the North and South Circular roads to cover all London Boroughs. Whilst Elmbridge has a policy of improving our air quality, through our Air Quality Action Plan, we think a large number of residents and businesses will be impacted by our proximity to Kingston Borough: companies working in Kingston and residents visiting the shops, open spaces, leisure facilities and NHS services.

  • Many of our residents and businesses will be impacted by the ULEZ £12.50 daily charge, and potential large fines for non-compliant vehicles.
  • This is being introduced without the much-requested expansion of TfL’s rail zone 6 beyond Hampton Court and Thames Ditton to include stations such as Esher, Walton, Hersham, Hinchley Wood, Cobham, Oxshott, Claygate, Weybridge and others.
  • the scrappage scheme to help London residents change to compliant vehicles will not be extended into Elmbridge.

In December 2022, we continued to address our opposition to the Mayor of London and have recently received a response from Shirley Rodrigues, Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy. Ms Rodrigues states that Transport for London (TFL) are open to discussing extending zone 6:

“The council resolution raised the issue of extending zone 6 into parts of your district. TfL are constantly reviewing and developing transport provision and are open to discussions with Surrey County Council and Elmbridge borough Council in order to discuss potential holistic transport strategies.”

On the matter of access to NHS services, exemptions and discounts, Ms Rodrigues writes:

“I am happy to be able to inform you that not only have the existing grace periods been retained they have been extended until October 2027. The Mayor also extended the scheme to create two new grace periods for Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles and for recipients of the standard rate mobility component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and certain other specific state benefits, these will also run until 2027. It is not necessary to be a resident of (Greater London) to benefit from these schemes.

“I can confirm that we have retained the arrangements to ensure that NHS patients with an impaired immune system who need to go to essential medical appointments can be reimbursed if they have had to pay the ULEZ charge during their journey. The reimbursement applies to the person who paid the ULEZ charge for the vehicle who transported the patient to the hospital, who may be a friend, relative or carer rather than the patient themselves. The reimbursement is administered by the NHS trusts directly. Again, it is not necessary to be a resident of the GLA area to benefit from this scheme.”

 

A balanced and sustainable budget for Elmbridge

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We remain a financially strong and resilient Council

On 8 February, Elmbridge Cabinet, of which I am a member, will be asked to recommend the council’s revenue and capital budget and the level of council tax for 2023/24. We have been working hard to produce a balanced budget against a backdrop of high inflation, rising interest rates and increasing energy costs, all leading to increased costs for the council.

Our 2030 Vision will help us to focus on delivering the needs of the community. It is a vision that says despite the economic pressures, we will support and enable Elmbridge’s sustainable future, we will back our local businesses and we will enable our community to help us drive Elmbridge forward. To ensure our vision for Elmbridge is more than a strategy document, we have in place a transformation programme that puts us in a strong position to be financially sustainable in future years.

For 2023/24 we are setting a balanced and sustainable budget brought about through a determination to create savings within the council, without reducing service quality.

Our transformation programme is the means by which we shape Elmbridge for the future; it will enable our vision. This programme is already delivering savings which have contributed to the 2023/24 budget, including:

  • A new leisure services contract with Places Leisure which will start in April 2023 and has secured savings of £200k in year one, while further enhancing facilities at the Xcel Leisure Complex.
  • Through service efficiencies, our community support services will save £110k, while developing a connected community to help improve the lives of our most vulnerable residents.

Overall, for our 2023/24 budget, we have identified additional income and efficiency savings of £1.8 million, while using prudently held reserves to meet some of our spending pressures due to high inflation and the impact of operational changes; these include Surrey County Council’s recent decision to withdraw from our joint car parking enforcement contract, which will cost our Council an additional £400k a year.

Supporting our community as costs rise

We never forget that some of our residents are dealing with the cost-of-living crisis every day, and they need us now more than ever.

  • Our 2023/24 budget continues to support our voluntary sector partners by providing core funding of £450k and,
  • through our careful financial management, we can commit an additional £250k to the cost-of-living crisis fund,increasing it to £500k to help the most vulnerable in our borough. We are working with our voluntary and community group partners in Elmbridge to allocate this funding so that it reaches the people who need it most, as quickly as possible.

Investing in a sustainable and thriving Elmbridge

A sustainable and thriving Elmbridge, needs more than efficiencies and cost savings, it needs investment which is what we will be doing to support Elmbridge’s future.

  • We have an ambitious capital programme where we plan to spend £4.2 million over the next 3 years, of which £1.6 million helps us towards our carbon neutral commitment, demonstrating our determination to work towards a sustainable Elmbridge.
  • £1 million of this will be invested in decarbonising our fleet over the next 3 years, with £460K in 2023/24, as set out in the draft Green Fleet Strategy also coming to 8 February Cabinet. This investment is supported by Surrey County Council, as we continue to work in partnership towards a sustainable Elmbridge.

Protecting our community

Working with our partners at the Environment Agency and Surrey County Council, the Elmbridge Drowning Prevention Strategy, sets out to reduce the number of water incidents in the borough through training and improved awareness. Our 2023/24 budget commits £30k for 2023-2024 to deliver additional drowning prevention projects including free swimming lessons for 12- 18-year-old non swimmers during the summer delivered by Places Leisure.

Below inflation increase in council tax

For Elmbridge council tax in 2023/24 we are proposing a below inflation increase of 2.98%, which is an increase of £7.05 a year or 14p a week for a band D property.

We will continue to support residents struggling to pay their council tax.

The future

The increased cost of living, global financial uncertainty and government policy changes means we will continue to face challenges to our financial position in the coming years. However, we have a strong track record of financial management, and we are confident that through our vision for the borough, backed up by the transformation programme, we will deliver a sustainable and thriving Elmbridge for our residents and businesses.

Cllr Ashley Tilling

Weybridge Social and Evacuee Housing

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Officers of both PA Housing and Elmbridge Housing recently met with Cllr Judy Sarsby at Bramcote House, Weybridge, and agreed to allow Ukrainian evacuees to live in the building temporarily. This was a welcome decision that has offered stability to many families who travelled to Elmbridge to escape war in Ukraine. Sadly Bramcote is one of the three social housing buildings in Weybridge destined for demolition by PA Housing and replacement with primarily shared ownership properties. Work has started on St Catherine’s in Beales Lane, and Bramcote and Kemble Houses are due for demolition later this year.

The decision by PA Housing to replace social housing with shared ownership properties, designated as affordable housing, is a concern to local councillors who believe shared ownership housing in Weybridge, where prices are high, is actually unaffordable to key workers. The decisions by PA to replace these buildings were no doubt made before the perfect storm of Brexit/Covid/Ukrainian war and therefore do not reflect the current needs of the town. With the planned rebuilding of medical services on the hospital site with increased capacity and therefore more staff, we need key workers and the stability that secured housing offers to them. Cllr Sarsby is working with EBC to consider options for the future of key workers and Ukrainians in Weybridge.

Voter ID needed for May’s Local Elections

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For next May’s local elections, all voters must bring along ID specified in this list. If eligible residents don’t have accepted photo ID, they can apply for a free voter ID document, which is known as a Voter Authority Certificate. The deadline for this is 25 April. If they use postal voting, there is no voter ID requirement.

The government slipped out quietly last November the regulations listing acceptable ID documents that will allow people to vote at elections. These had not been included in the shameless voter-suppression bill that passed through parliament earlier that year as the Elections Act 2022. The list includes all kinds of acceptable ID that will already be held by the majority of older voters but not by the young or the disadvantaged. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the whole purpose is to make it harder for young people, poor people and those who often move home to vote.

One wonders why a Transport for London Oyster card for 60+ travellers is acceptable, whereas a near-identical Oyster 18+ card isn’t. Voters who don’t have a driving licence or passport or various forms of disabled person’s ID – all of which are more likely to be held by the old – can apply to their local authority for a free plastic voter ID photo card. But how many will bother to do that?

The ridiculous part of this legislation is that it is Postal Voting that has seen some serious electoral fraud but virtually no voter impersonation at polling stations – just one case in the 2017 general election. The cost of imposing the new ID – extra staff at polling stations and councils issuing it – will be up to £180m a decade, according to the Cabinet Office.

15 years more of sewage discharges into our rivers!

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Our MP, Ben Spencer, and many other Conservative MPs have just voted to pass a target which will allow water companies to dump harmful substances into rivers until 2038.

The Environment Act, which was voted on in Parliament last week, set a target of an 80% reduction in phosphates in rivers by 2038. Phosphates are naturally occurring minerals deriving from human waste and too much phosphate can cause a dramatic growth in algae and deplete oxygen levels when they are dumped in rivers. This new regulation would allow sewage to continue to be dumped in rivers for another 15 years.

Recent analysis has already shown the lack of care from the Conservative government when it comes to our rivers. Data from the River Trust shows that in 2021 The River Mole at Cobham and Esher has been pumped with sewage 100 times for a total of over 1000 hours. Meanwhile, for the whole of the River Mole’s catchment area, sewage was discharged over 800 times for a total of 9,120 hours.

Since 2010, the Environment Agency (EA) has been on the end of dramatic cuts to its budget from the Government, this has been reduced by nearly two-thirds from £120 million to just £48 million. This new target can only result in these figures getting worse as the EA struggle to inspect, monitor and enforce regulation.

At Elmbridge Borough Council, the Overview & Scrutiny Committee recently invited the EA to answer questions on their performance, including why they are continuing to fail at tackling the problem of illegally moored boats on the Thames. For the second time in a year they failed to attend. This lack of accountability by a public body is very disappointing and does nothing to help explore ways to resolve matters.

Lloyds Bank in Weybridge to close

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Sad to report that the Lloyds Bank in Weybridge will be closing on 10 May 2023. All regular customers have been notified by letter and we have been informed that the branches at West Byfleet and Walton are staying open and that everyday banking services (paying in cheques and cash, paying bills and withdrawing cash) continue to be available at the Post Office.

The closure will leave another vacant unit on the High Street, although the new businesses that have recently opened, including in the former Barclays Bank, give some hope that it won’t stay empty for long.