Pensioners are being urged by Cllr Julie Roberts to apply for their winter fuel payments. If you have turned 60 this year then you can apply for the winter fuel allowance of £200 a year for over 60’s and £300 for over 80’s.

This year their will be a one off increase of £50 for over 60’s and £100 for the over 80’s to help with this coming winter fuel bill, which could double due to fuel price increases. Anyone aged 60 or over who is eligible must submit their claim form by 19th September to make sure their claim is processed in time for Christmas.

Cllr Julie Roberts said, “Its important when you turn 60 that you apply for your winter fuel allowance straight away. This year we are going to see our fuel bills increase dramatically and many are going to find it hard to keep up with the increasing bills. So please make sure you claim, now”.   

The Liberal Democrats yesterday set out proposals to help families who are unable to pay their mortgages and are facing the threat of homelessness due to the downturn in the housing market. The plans, which aim to reduce repossessions and increase the stock of social housing, include: 

·       Introducing regulated Mortgage Rescue Schemes to allow families struggling with repayments to sell all or part of the equity in their house and rent it back from a housing association or private firm to help keep them in their home

·      Allowing councils and housing associations to borrow money to buy up land and empty new homes for use as social housing

·      Courts to be given guidelines to only allow homes to be repossessed in extreme circumstances, making the mortgage lenders’ voluntary code binding on all lenders.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Michael Wyatt said: “The Government seems obsessed with fighting a losing battle to artificially prop up the housing market, rather than finding ways to deal with its worst effects.  

“Ministers must act to help the thousands of families struggling to keep a roof over their heads. The Government should allow councils and housing associations to buy up land as well as empty homes to help replenish Britain’s much depleted stock of social housing”.  

“Ministers must also tighten up repossession rules, to ensure that people’s homes are only ever repossessed as a last resort. The Government should introduce regulated Mortgage Rescue Schemes. Under this arrangement, families struggling to pay their mortgage could sell part of the equity in their home and rent it back from a housing association or private firm”.  

“These plans could be funded using money already committed to social housing but currently unspent because of the collapse of new building. They would also save taxpayers the cost of re-housing the homeless without going down the disastrous route of giving open-ended guarantees for new mortgage lending.”

Local Lib Dem councillor Dominic McGill has today called on the Council to close the slip road near Blackbrook Drive, so the area can be made safer for the children who use the play equipment. Your Lib Dem Councillors have been contacted by many parent’s who are concerned about the use of the road by boy racers.

 Cllr Dominic McGill said, “We hae contacted the Council to see if we can make the area in question safer. The idea of closing the road is one which we need to seriously look at. Hopefully we can get an answer soon so we can avoid anyone getting hurt”.

If you have any comments please let us know what you think…

 Your Liberal Democrat Councillors will keep you updated with any further developments

Cllr Michael Wyatt has been pushing the Housing Officers at the council to address the growing need for extra resources to be made available for tenants who need their council property adapted to help improve their quality of life.

Cllr Wyatt spoke at one of the last scrutiny committee’s where he told officers that the council needed to urgently address the growing number of tenants who needed their homes adapted to make their lives easier and their quality of life improved.

At the meeting one of the Housing Chief’s said he agreed with Cllr Michael Wyatt and he reported that all the outstanding adaptations will be put out to tender and completed as soon as practical.

Cllr Michael Wyatt said, “Im really happy to report that the Officers have listened to my concerns, and have finally agreed to put out to tender the very long list of properties, which need adapting so our tenants who have a disability can have the quality of life they deserve”.

Cllr Michael Wyatt would like to thank the many tenants who have contacted him concerning their requests for help with adapting their property due to their needs. 

Yet again another good news story from your Lib Dem Team

Talks are underway to try and secure the Cocked Hat for the local Community, Cllr Michael Wyatt, local Lib Dem Councillor for the Greenhill Ward has asked Officers to try and save the building from demolition, and to see if we can turn the building into a mulit purpose community facility.

Cllr Michael Wyatt said, “I am trying every avenue to try and save this building for the local community. We desperately need a community facility, which will allow us to develop our plans to address the real issues that are affecting local people. I can assure everyone that we are working hard to bring more services and facilities to the residents of the Greenhill Ward”.

The Courts have given the owners until the 23rd August to either renovate the building or demolish it. Cllr Wyatt has asked for more time so Officers can see if we can obtain the building for the local community.

Your Lib Dem Cllrs will continue to keep you in touch. Cllr Wyatt would like to thank the many local residnents who have rang him during the past week, giving their support.

This week the District Council Officers announced they need to identify additional land for housing in North West Leicestershire. The amount of houses the Government have said we need is around 12000. 2000 of this could be built on land off Green Lane/Hall Lane, which is currently farmed.

Cllr Michael Wyatt expressed his concern over the possibility of an additional 2000 houses being built on land, which is clearly green wedge, which stops Whitwick and Greenhill becoming one huge built up area.

Cllr Michael Wyatt said at the meeting “I’m very concerned about the proposed site. The Council have always had a policy of maintaining the green wedge on the A50. I am also very concerned that by building on this land we will not only lose vital green wedge land but also it will cause Whitwick and Greenhill to lose their identity.”

 Cllr Wyatt and the Lib Dem Team have made it perfectly clear they will be opposing any plans, which will see the green wedge between Greenhill and Whitwick being destroyed by developers who clearly do not give a damn about the environment.

Please let us know what you think….

The future of the Cocked Hat public House on Cropston Drive is steadily moving in the direction of being demolished, but your local Lib Dem Cllrs are working extremely hard to see if it can be saved before the court’s deadline of 23rd August, which is the date the owners of the building have been given to improve the site or clear it, which means the building will have to be demolished.

Cllrs Michael Wyatt, Julie Roberts and Dominic McGill are trying to save the Cocked Hat from demolition, Cllr Julie Roberts said, “Over recent months we have had a number of meetings with Council officers to see if we can in anyway save the Cocked Hat from demolition and utilise the building as a Community facility for the Greenhill Ward. One thing we do not have in our area is a Community Building, which provides much needed services”.

Your local Councillors will keep you updated with any further development’s.