Sharon Bowles officially became a Liberal Democrat Member of the European Parliament on 25th May 2005, taking over from Chris Huhne who has been elected to the Westminster Parliament. As the Liberal Democrats latest addition to the European Parliament, Sharon now represents South East England alongside Emma Nicholson MEP.
The new enlarged Surrey County Council (now with 80 members) met formally for the first time on 24th May. A new chair (David Davis) and vice-chair (Angela Fraser) were elected. The previous leader Nick Skellett was re-elected and announced his new cabinet, including three new faces.
John Phillips, who was elected as the Conservative County Councillor for Frimley Green & Mytchett in 2001, has sensationally resigned from the Conservative Party. More remarkably, he has urged local voters to support Duncan Clark, the Lib Dem candidate to succeed him at the County Election to be held on 5th May.
The Liberal Democrats in Surrey have launched their manifesto for the County Council elections on May 5th. The manifesto includes the Liberal Democrat "Programme of Action" for Surrey from 2005 to 2009 and highlights their "Top Ten" priorities for action to improve services for Surrey residents.
The Lib Dem "Top Ten" Priorities for Surrey are:
Liberal Democrats welcome the single figure increase in Council Tax and the Tories allocating £1m to key worker housing and £100,000 to improve the energy efficiency of the Council's buildings in response to Liberal Democrat initiatives. However, we oppose the way this figure has been achieved because this Conservative budget is not only a missed opportunity to improve services for Surrey's residents by cutting wasted spending by the Council, but it carries hidden risks that could lead to cuts to Council services later in the year.
