By Peter Dennis
A Wescott resident recently posted on Facebook a picture of lovely Hedgehog; there was a follow-up comment about never having seen one in the area. What a sad indictment of what’s happening to Wokingham!
It’s not just hedgehogs; it’s trees, hedgerows, watercourses and ponds (and the joy of taking children to look at the tadpoles) which contribute to the beauty of our area.
Once gone, they’ve gone forever.
Conservative Planning Laws are giving Developers a pretty free hand. When presenting at the Judicial Review against the speculative development along Finchampstead Road I was dismayed at the dismissive approach, the developer had against the Wokingham Veteran Tree Association.
This whole process is almost designed to trample over the concerns of local people.
We must ensure that development doesn’t have a negative impact on the environment.
For example, chopping down a 200-year-old tree and replacing it with 20 saplings simply does not cut it. If we win control of the council, over the next few years, the Liberal Democrats will plant 300,000 trees across the borough, and in places where they will grow and thrive, not end up as a pile of discarded twigs.
To protect our environment and our quality of life, transport infrastructure is tremendously
important. Just making space for even more cars leads to more costly road maintenance, more pollution, more jams.
Speeding, particularly in both London Road and Finchampstead Road is an issue that needs to be addressed by the council.
As Liberal Democrats if we are running the council, we will look at enforcing speed limits and providing safe options for all forms of transport, be it motorised, ‘pedal power’ or just walking.
This needs more than just ‘magic white lines’.
I’m also committed to protecting ourselves and our children.
I’m really pleased that residents approve of our policy of reducing assessment times for children and adolescents who are showing signs of having mental health issues?
If we are in charge, Liberal Democrats will work to reduce waiting times for an assessment from nearly two years to around six weeks.
This will make an incredible difference to both the child’s life and to their families.
Finally, as Liberal Democrats we must look after your money.
Like many residents across the Borough, I am concerned about the level of borrowing at Wokingham Borough Council.
£750 million by 2024 is an incredibly large figure.
We need to look after resources, ourselves, our neighbours, our environment, and yes, our small spiky friends.
Peter Dennis is the Liberal Democrats Borough Candidate for Wescott. Also standing are: Colin Heath, Labour and Julian McGhee-Sumner, Conservative
