Christmas Message from the Leader of the Lib Dems on Richmond Borough Council

12.00.00am GMT Tue 24th Dec 2002

The defeat in May after 19 years in power was extremely difficult, not least because of the number of experienced councillors not re-elected.

We have spent time since then adjusting.

Some Conservative initiatives have our support, for example the introduction of police constables attached to specific wards.

We also support the new administration in trying to get a fair share of national resources for the Council.

However, we now see the direction of Tory policy and are determined to ensure that the borough suffers as little as possible by providing constructive opposition.

Education was our flagship. Nationally, we had the best primary schools and overachieving secondary schools. We want the best for local children and are concerned by half baked Tory proposal for introducing small sixth forms into schools at the expense of the successful Tertiary College.

Other areas of concern are proposals to sell off park and allotment land; the introduction of a daily £5 charge for day centres, currently £12 per annum; radical reductions in grants to the much appreciated voluntary sector; pro motorist bias at the expense of road safety; opposition to sustainability; and the plan to spend £505,000 on temporarily grassing over Twickenham riverside.