By Cllr Clive Jones
I would like to begin this week’s column by thanking everyone who voted in the local elections last Thursday.
I would like to congratulate all of the councillors who were elected last Thursday for the Borough council and for the Town and Parish councils from all political parties and commiserate with those who weren’t elected.
Local elections are a very important part of our national life so it’s good that people have been able to take part in the democratic process and express their views about who should be running their local councils.
Of course, I am delighted that once again the majority of residents in Wokingham Borough voted for the Liberal Democrats and we will again be forming the administration at the Borough Council and at both Earley and Wokingham Town Councils.
During the last year the Liberal Democrat run council has achieved a great deal working with both Labour and Independent councillors to ensure that the council was run efficiently and was financially stable.
I am very proud that we have been able to produce balanced budgets, something the previous Conservative administration failed to do without raiding the council’s general reserves.
I am also very proud of the Liberal Democrats support for the least well off in Wokingham. We have funded free school meals during school holidays for those children who would have had them in term time. We believe that no child should go hungry.
Liberal Democrats have also created a £250,000 fund to support residents who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
And we have been able to find funding for two new special needs schools, and 96% of children going into year 7 will have been placed in a school of their choice.
Ten minutes after we had taken over the council last May, we were advised that there was no funding beyond October 2022 for 18 bus services. We found the money to keep those bus services going and have funded them for the next three years. Liberal Democrats believe that where we can, we should support bus services and promote active travel through walking and cycling. Not only is this good for individuals but it’s good for the environment.
Recently the government have also given WBC £580,000 to spend on potholes – we will spend all this on potholes. The previous administration received a similar sum last year but put the money in general funds and didn’t spend it on pothole repairs.
My first action as leader of the council last May was to write to the Secretary of State responsible for Housing suggesting ways that the governments new housing numbers for Wokingham could be reduced. I suggested that over delivery should be allowed to be taken into account. It looks as if the government will listen to us and will make this change, I hope they do, it will mean that 2000 less houses will be built in Wokingham over the next 20 years. I suspect that the massive losses suffered by the Conservatives in councils across Berkshire, Surrey and other parts of the Southeast will help our campaign.
What we do need is more affordable homes and more one-, two-, and three-bed houses and bungalows, and we will be working to make sure we get this.
Once again, my sincere thanks to everyone who voted in last week’s local elections.
Cllr Clive Jones is the leader of Wokingham Borough Council, and ward member for Hawkedon
