Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council are calling on the Conservative administration at County Hall to stop further investment in commercial property outside of Surrey and to instead prioritise County Council owned vacant buildings to either be used to provide services or to be sold or let.
Liberal Democrat county councillors in Surrey have expressed their disappointment following a decision today by the Conservative Cabinet to slash the opening hours of Community Recycling Centres across the county and increase charges for residents.
Liberal Democrat county councillors have welcomed the decision by the Conservative Cabinet in Surrey to drop its plans to close four Community Recycling Centres after an outcry from thousands of Surrey residents. However, the County Council confirmed that it will proceed with its plans to reduce the opening hours of all the Centres across the county as well as dropping the daily free waste allowance which residents currently enjoy. The proposals are scheduled to be confirmed at the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 26th September. Cllr Stephen Cooksey, Liberal Democrat Environment Spokesperson, said today:
Liberal Democrat county councillors have today welcomed the announcement that the County Council has extended the public consultation on the future of the Surrey Performing Arts Library to four weeks up to 1st October 2017. The Conservative-administration had previously only offered two weeks for library users to respond to the County Council's plans, which include closing the library in order to make savings of £180,000. Cllr Hazel Watson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council, said today:
Thousands of Surrey residents have responded to the County Council's consultation on whether to close four Community Recycling Centres, as well as slashing opening hours and increasing charges at those Centres which remain. The consultation generated 13,637 responses, one of the biggest ever, and now proceeds to the Conservative Cabinet who will make a decision at a meeting on 26th September. The consultation revealed huge support for the retention of the four threatened recycling centres in Dorking, Bagshot, Cranleigh and Warlingham with over 90% of the users of those sites wishing to retain them. Over 75% of those who responded also wished to retain the daily free waste allowance currently permitted by the county council.
The Liberal Democrats have launched a petition to save the Surrey Performing Arts Library which is under threat of closure by Surrey County Council. Surrey residents have reacted with dismay on hearing of the threatened closure and that the County Council's consultation exercise will give residents just two weeks to respond. The Library, which is currently based near Dorking at Denbies Wine Estate, houses a truly unique collection of music, theatre, orchestral and dance materials available for public loan. It also holds a specialist Vaughan Williams collection and permanent display covering the life and works of Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958), commemorating his strong links with the area where he lived and where he composed some of his most important pieces.
