Scotland has decided it wishes to remain as part of the United Kingdom by a majority greater than many pundits were predicting. As somebody who is proud to be part Scottish myself, I am relieved, and applaud the good sense of the Scottish people. I think that the whole of the UK is stronger together […]

There has been a lot of debate recently about whether or not 20 mph limits in areas work.         It depends what you mean by ‘work’. If you mean do all drivers start to drive at 20 mph or less, then of course they don’t. Evidence shows that two things happen: the general speed in the […]

Several residents have asked me why the Council is spending a lot of money removing perfectly good paving in the town centre to replace it with new, when they cannot to keep roads repaired in outlying areas like Smithills. First there was the new paving in Deansgate by Marks & Spence and the Natwest Bank – […]

The steps that lead from Bazley Street down to Barrow Bridge Road had got into a very poor state. They were getting overgrown with weeds and slippery. Many people from the village us them. We have got the Council to clean them several times in the past, but this time they were tackled by Community […]

I must congratulate officers of Bolton At Home for their swift action in one recent case. Residents of the bungalows on Moss Bank Way (Johnson Fold) complained to me about the mass of long grass and weeds in front of their homes. This was in the space between a wall and fencing erected several years […]

Liberal Democrats in Bolton have been opposed to the so called ‘Bedroom Tax’ since its introduction. We accept a need to reduce the colossal benefits expenditure, but many aspects of this legislation are unfair. In particular, we believe that it is totally unfair to penalise people who would like to move to smaller accommodation, but […]

Last year we got very positive feedback about the attractive planting of wildflowers on the Doffcocker roundabout (junction of Chorley Old Road with Moss Bank Way). This year we decided to repeat that, but using a seed mix with poppies included to mark the anniversary of the start of World War 1. It is beginning […]

On 3rd May I marked the 30th anniversary of my first election as a Liberal Councillor for Smithills Ward. In those days it had been a relatively safe Conservative seat, but we managed to grab it by a close 151 votes. This year one of the ways I marked the anniversary was by casting a postal […]

On Saturday 5th April Bolton Liberal Democrats hosted a visit by Chris Davies, MEP. Two of the events featured campaigns Chris has been involved in at the European Parliament. Chris has been closely involved in moves to conserve fish stocks, and he had the opportunity to discuss the impacts with stallholders at Bolton Market.        Later in […]

Labour talks a lot about cuts. When last year Liberal Democrats suggested that Councillors should take their fair share of the cuts by reducing the Special Responsibility Allowances (SRAs) paid to some senior Councillors, Labour refused to touch their own, but did reduce those paid to senior opposition Councillors!                                                                                    Many residents were amazed to […]