Morley Police Station - Saturday Opening delivered!

Regular readers of this blog may remember the issues raised about Morley Police Station. Due to the Police Cuts programme Morley Police Station was likely to have to close over the weekends to make the appropriate savings and prevent cuts to front line policing in the area. Although closure over the weekend was a blow it is clearly important to retain the number of officers on Morley streets to continue the excellent job they do in reducing crime levels.

Many moaned about the closure and our beloved MP Ed Balls sent out another bogus "survey" and held another coffee morning. Indeed when ever Morley faces a challenge - whether its youth unemployment or the weekend closure of Morley Police Station Labour always holds a coffee morning to discuss the matter and then sends out a press release and a photo to show how "concerned" they are. Its a pity they never seem to take action to resolve the issue!

The MBI approach is to attempt to solve the problem. We met with senior police officers and asked them to cost up the option of opening on a Saturday on the basis that - if affordable - we would find the finance for it. The deal that came back would mean Area Committee paying half (not the Town Council as claimed by the YEP!) and the Police covering the other half. This was a good partnership approach and a great deal for local residents. The finance will be agreed at Septembers Area Committee meeting.

The frustration surrounds the Labour Party's claim towards resolving this problem. Other than Cllr Neil Dawson bleating about Police Cuts at a Town Council meeting - no action was taken by the Comrades at all other than the usual press releases, coffee mornings and pictures. Regrettably the Comrades were copied into an e mail about the matter following the meeting and figured out something was about to be announced and launched their own version of events. As ever they attempted to claim credit for other peoples work - not that that is anything new!

Outside this Political Posturing this is still good news for local residents. The Police are to be commended for taking a positive approach to working in partnership with local councillors and this decision will support the great work they do around the area. Confidence Levels in Morley Neighbourhood Policing Team are already some of the highest in the Division. This agreement - along with their continuing excellent work - will increase confidence levels higher.

Gildersome Industrial Estate Campaign and the formation of MARC

I was at a meeting at Gildersome Meeting Hall last night to discuss proposls for a large scale industrial estate on greenland adjacent to Asquith Avenue and Gelderd Road. This green space, which presently operates as a green corridor between Gildersome Village and Morley, is under threat of widescale industrial development.

Over 100 resdeints attended to raise their concerns at the meeting chaired well by my collegue Cllr Tom Leadley. Officers from the Council also attended to answer question on Planning, Highways and Drainage issues.

Gildersome residents clearly oppose this development and raised legitimate concerns about drainage, highways impact at already congested roads around the site and its impact on local residents who live adjacent to the site.

It is clear that residents concerns are genuine and that the debate about the sustainability of this site is an important one being held. At the point where many local industrial estates, such as Treefields at Gildersome and Howley Park in Morley, are not full is there demonstrable need for additional industrial development?

The Highways Agency has presently a holding objection to the application as it wants assurances that the impact of this proposal added to proposals for a hotel at Gildersome Roundabout on the Rowntree site as well as Barratts proposals for 200 homes on Bruntcliffe Road wont overwhelm the local road network. Many residents believe that the impact of all three proposals make the site unsustainable and congestion and pollution levels will rise. I expect to see several hundred objections to this planning application.

Which brings me nicely to the formation last week of the new campaign group MARC - Morley Against Reckless Construction. This group has been formed as an umbrella organisation to bring together groups such as the Stop McDonald's at Tingley along with campaigners against housing proposals at Daisy Hill and Bruntcliffe Road. The aim is to bring all such groups together to support each other campaigns and to speak as a unified voice on matters such as the LDF presently doing the rounds. The new chairman Dave Paul attended last nights meeting to pledge the groups support.

Its clear that the campaign against Inappropriate Development across Morley keeps building momentum!

Metro Meeting

Many readers may have seen the long campaign by residents on Bruntcliffe Road to improve the bus services along the A650 and along Fountain Street. The campaign has taken many years and has been the subject of several public meetings and meetings with the local MP without making much progress.

Bus deregulation in the 1980s has allowed bus companies to exploit passengers and deliver the bus services that make them the most profit. There has been little attention paid to the social needs of local residents and profits have been put before people as the bus companies have thrived and become cash rich. Successive Governments have failed to regulate the buses and the Bus Companies have had a field day!

Many of us have called for the re-regulation of the bus companies for many years. This is secretly supported by many councillors of all political persuasions many of whom disagree with the position of their National Parties on the matter.

Last week Metro voted to introduce Quality Bus Contracts. This is a form of re-regulation which will give Metro the power to compel bus companies to deliver services for the public good. This can only be a good thing and was at the back of our minds when we me with Metro Chairman Cllr James Lewis earlier today. Cllr Lewis was sympathetic to our case and will use Metros increased influence to try and solve this long term problem and return the much needed bus services serving Bruntcliffe Road and Fountain Street.

The bus companies receive public subsidy of around £70 million. Its about time we had some say on the services they deliver. Lets hope this new regime delivers for local bus users.