• LOCAL people let down: Conservatives in the House of Lords refused to support a Lib Dem 'fatal motion' that was theonly way to stop the Government's legislation. Local MP Susan Kramer said, "It was great to see so many people come to Westminster to make their voices heard. "But I am saddened that the Conservatives refused to join us to stop these charges once and for all. I want local people to know that I'll keep on fighting tooth and nail to stop these plans."

• LIB DEMS fight plans to cut Barnes ticket office opening hours: Barnes Liberal Democrats are condemning South West Trains' plans for major cuts to the opening hours of the Barnes Station ticket office. South West Trains want to cut opening hours in the week so the office would only be open in the morning instead of all day. At the weekend the ticket office would be closed altogether on Sundays, with opening hours cut to mornings only on Saturdays.

• MP CALLS for bus countdown timer at Hammersmith: Transport for London is still refusing to give passengers travelling by bus from Hammersmith to Barnes a fair deal. Local MP Susan Kramer asked them to install a bus countdown timer in the corridor between the shopping centre and the outdoor bus station, so that passengers can wait in the warm and dry.

• LISTENING to your views on crime in Barnes: After local residents expressed their concerns, your local Police Liaison Group is taking action on: - Speeding along Castelnau - Illegal left-turns into Ranelagh Avenue from Elm Grove Road - Cycling on footpaths Youth Group The first Youth Police Liaison Group meeting was attended by 15 to 20 young people. Their priorities were safety issues at Barnes Station and Barnes Green. They would also like better lighting and more buses

• COMMUNITY toilet scheme: One of the popular initiatives started by the Liberal Democrats on Richmond Council has been theCommunity Toilet Scheme. 90 toilets in pubs, cafés, and offices around the borough are now open to the public. The Council pays the venue £600 a year to allow unrestricted access to the toilets. This is very much cheaper, and offers many more toilets, than the traditional public toilets, which are very expensive to maintain. Just look for the Community Toilet sign outside.

• 16 places in EAST SHEEN, MORTLAKE and BARNES have joined the scheme:Barnes Sorting Office Centre, Bull's Head, Caffe' al Fresco, East Sheen Cemetery, Hare and Hounds,Jolly Gardeners, L'Amandine, Leonardo Caffe, Leonardo Wine Bar,Palewell Common and Fields, Rocks Lane Tennis Pavilion, Sheen Common Pavilion, Sheen Lane Centre,Victoria Sheen, Vine RoadRecreation Ground, and Ye White Hart .

• The Borough's 90 Community Toilets

• [From Comments Winter 2009-10]: Barn Elms plans progress: THE COUNCIL is to invest £250,000 to improve facilities at Barn Elms, in addition to the money raised by Barnes Vision. The Council is also undertaking work to considerably improving drainage of the pitches. This investment is in addition to the £150,000 the Council has allocated to give young people the BMX/Skateboard facility they chose in a vote. £30,000 has also been invested to revamp the running track. Next year, the Council wants to take advantage of the Government's 'Playbuilder' scheme to set up a new-style play area for children appropriate to the area. You can find out more about the Play Builder scheme online athttp://richmondplaybuilderconsultation.co.uk

• Shene School Academy Plans: LAST summerShene Schoolachieved its best ever GCSE results for many years. Plans for millions of pounds of investment in the new academyare progressing with the appointment ofAcademies Enterprise Trust as sponsor. The Trust has a strong record of transforming educationalstandards in schools. Cllr Anna Davies who is a governor at Shene said, "I am delighted that we have found such a high quality partner to sponsor the school." "We will also work with a local university and independent school to strengthen the team." The next step is for the council to approve the "Expression of Interest" document, which contains the vision for the newAcademy, and it is hoped that it would open in September 2010.

• Park parkingcharges: SUSAN Kramer has taken the fight against parkingcharges inRichmond Park to the Government. The MP met withMargaret Hodge MP, the Royal ParksMinister to express the strength of opposition to the plans. The Minister agreed to conduct 'spot surveys' into the demographics of users of the car park, as well as looking at the cost base for introducing charges. "Thousands of people signed petitions against the plans, and the Government must listen," said Susan. "I am very concerned about those on low incomes who use the Park, and about the knock on effect onparking around the Park gates." "Although the Government seems intent on charging, we must keep up the fight to make sure the Government listens and scraps the plans." A decision on the introduction of charges is expected in the new year.

• Shene School bus: SUSAN Kramer renewed the call for a dedicated school bus for Shene School at a cross-party meeting with Transport for London. But the Mayor of London is still refusing to give Shene School a dedicated bus service. In the meantime, Susan Kramer has got TfL to agree to investigate a new option. TfL will look at terminating two 33 buses from the normal route at Waitrose at the end of the school day. The buses would then collect children from inside the school grounds at Shene and continue the route to Hammersmith. It is hoped that this will help alleviate some of the overcrowding at the end of the school day.

• 33 bus to go 24 hour?:TRANSPORT for Londonis consulting on converting the 33 bus to a 24 hour service, running every half an hour through the night. The current N10 service would be withdrawn, with the 10 bus route converted to a 24 hour service from Kings Cross to Hammersmith. The 33 would run its usual daytime route from Hammersmith down Castelnau, via the Upper Richmond Road West to Richmond, then Fulwell. This would make it much easier for residents to get home late at night. Please do let the Lib Dem team know if you support these plans.

• "Hands off our Freedom Pass!" THAT'S what local Liberal Democrats are telling Gordon Brown and the Labour Government. The pass that gives OAPs and the disabled free travel on buses and tube is under threat. The Labour Government plans to take £50 million away from the London Freedom Pass to plug gaps in finances elsewhere in the country. Susan Kramer MP said, "The Freedom Pass has been a lifeline to so many elderly and disabled people and to threaten its future is a cruel insult. "We will continue to fight these cuts to make sure that the Freedom Pass is preserved." It has also been suggested that the Government will introduce means testing for the pass.

• Horse Chestnut trees: VOLUNTEERS who maintain Barnes Common have noticed that some of the horse chestnuts are affected by disease. There are three main causes of this disease, and unfortunately there is no practicable way to control them. The Council do monitor all horse chestnut trees and will undertake remedial works if any trees become a threat to the public.

• Barnes Common: PROPOSED dog control order for the Common: In response to complaints about the excessive number of professional dog walkers on Barnes Common, the Council is exploring a potential dog control order. Residents have expressed concerns about up to six dogs being walked at a time and intimidating children and the elderly, as well as dog mess not being cleared up. Proposals to limit the number of dogs walked at one time are currently being drawn up for consultation.

• GET Fit in Castlenau Recreation Ground: Credit crunched residents of Barnes, who are finding their gym membership is an expensive luxury can keep up their fitness regime for free thanks to new work out equipment at Castlenau Recreation Ground. Richmond Council is installing a Sportpoint - an outdoor nine-piece gym which includes a bench press, pectoral press, T-bar, leg press, abdominal curl bench and pull up bar. The Sportpoint kit goes much farther than the climbing frames traditionally found in parks around the country. It is designed specifically for working out and exercise. It will benefit youths wanting to test their strength as well as adults and older people looking to stay in shape.

David Allister, Richmond Council's Head of Parks and Open Spaces said: "Bringing in the Sportpoint gives 'added value' to Castlenau Rec, and coupled with other improvements currently taking place, I'm confident families and everyone else will continue to get the most out of the area in the future." The equipment will be installed next Friday (May 22) and will be in place initially for six months as a trial. During that time, users can text message, email or phone the Council giving their views on how useful it is. Contact details can be found on signage beside the equipment. If it is well used and receives positive comments, the Council will consider whether to make it permanent. The gym pieces will be available to use whenever the park is open (dawn to dusk).

• [January 17] A MULTI-MILLION pound scheme to regenerate public sports facilities in Barnes will gather pace next week when Richmond Council' Cabinet is invited to select four firms to submit proposals for the redevelopment ofBarn Elms. In September the Council announced plans to fund huge improvements to the pitches and facilities by selling a small proportion of the site to a developer of a health and fitness centre. Seven expressions of interest have been received, from which four firms are being invited to submit outline proposals for the site.

• January 2008: £2m ENVIRONMENTAL improvements planned for five areas of the borough: Richmond Council's Cabinet is being recommended to approve spending of £2 million on the schemes over the next three years at its meeting on January 14. Shopping parades and other public spaces have been identified as the priorities for the five areas: CASTELNAU; Mortlake; Ham; the Hampton Nurserylands; and Heathfield. These have been identified in the Community Plan as being the borough's five areas of relative deprivation.

• From COMMENTS July 2007: Lib Dems invest in local services : After one year the Liberal Democrats are investing millions of pounds in key services for local people. Money from Council Tax reserves is being invested in improving secondary schools, the environment and facilities for young people. Despite already being the lowest spending council in London, the Liberal Democrats have managed to make additional savings of over £4.5m to keep Council Tax down and pay for key service improvements. The increase in Council Tax was only 0.3% above inflation compared to the Tories who in 2003 increased total Council Tax by 15.6% (12.7% above inflation).

• MP demands council tax fair deal: Ministers have sparked anger amongst local residents by cutting Richmond and Kingston's grant from central government, forcing up council tax and threatening local services. Richmond Park MP has hit back with a new campaign for a fair Council Tax deal for Richmond Park constituency, launching it with a debate in the House of Commons in February. Speaking in Parliament Square to a rally of local residents who travelled to Westminster to back the campaign, Susan Kramersaid "Richmond is already the worst funded borough in London. This latest cut is an insult to tax payers. Richmond is one of the best value for money boroughs in the country but because of government cuts it has been forced to increaseCouncil Tax." For 2007/2008 Richmond received £126.08 funding per head of the population compared to £499.75 for the average London borough. While Richmond received just £24 m neighbouring Hounslow and Fulham received £110.06 m and Wandsworth a staggering £136.9 m. Councillor Anna Davies said "Please sign our petition against this unfair tax atwww.susankramer.org.uk". Council tax was introduced by the Conservatives and has been supported by Labour. The Lib Dems believe it is an unfair tax and should be scrapped.

• TORIES slammed over night flight claims: The Conservatives have found themselves in hot water with anti- Heathrow campaigners after making false accusations against local MP Susan Kramer in their literature. They falsely claimed that Susan voted against lifting a night flight ban in the House of Commons. This was completely untrue. Chair of independent anti-aviation group HACAN, John Stewart, set the record straight in a letter to the local papers (See right). The consultation onHeathrow expansion has been delayed yet again until September. To receive updates and to say "No 2More planes" register atwww.susankramer.org.uk

• Richmond tops 'value for money' lists: Lib Dem Richmond Council is among the best in the country for providing value for money services for local residents says the latestAudit Commission Report. The January 2007 findings also state that overall satisfaction with the Council is improving under the Lib Dems.

• Recycling improvements: Doorstep plastic bottle and cardboardrecycling is being introduced in November. The Lib Dems are also currently trialing recycling for small businesses and shops. More than 100 businesses have already signed up to weekly collections of cardboard, paper and mixed glass. Approximately 12% of waste produced nationally comes from commerce compared to 9% for domestic households.

• CHILDREN'S CENTRE PLANNED FOR BARNES: Following the Liberal Democrat Group meeting on Monday 14th May 2007 the administration are pleased to announce that they are determined to find a way of funding a new build Children's Centre to serve the Castelnau Estate in North Barnes. The proposals for the Children's Centre to be built on the site of Lowther Primary School have not received government funding, despite agreeing the plans. The planned centre should offer a hub for a variety of child, family and community services including: Child minder drop-ins; Health Visitor clinics; Midwifery clinics; Family learning; Parent support groups; Adult learning; Child and family counselling; Connexions advice surgeries; Jobcentre Plus surgeries; and Child and adolescent mental health support.