Log, May 2005

Here’s a quick summary of news, events and casework for May 2005

31st – Live 8 campaign for tackling poverty in the world announced to lobby the G8 summit;

29th – France votes “No” on the European constitution;

29th – Green Festival, at the Arboretum; the move to a May Bank Holiday in the Arboretum appears to have been a success with many people passing through; when opening the Festival, I spoke on the need for radical transport policies, given the Arboretum was to take a new Inner city motorway in plans drawn up 1965 – forty years ago – and now we have the tram; A new ’Celebrate Sustainability’ website, showcases activities that contribute to sustainable living in local communities in and around Nottingham, and has been launched for the three-week series of events from May 28 to June 19 that aims to celebrate the achievements of local people who are helping to make this area a cleaner, greener, healthier and safer place; the address is http://www.greenweeks.org/;

28th – a new free festival of music and dance, “One City, One World”, opened in Nottingham’s Old Market Square;

27th – meet delegation from Karlsruhe; Nottingham is forging closer economic development links with Karlsruhe, our twin city in Germany; Karlsruhe has been a designated technology region for almost 20 years and is recognised by the EC as one of the most innovative areas in Europe; the delegation from Karlsruhe has come to discuss opportunities for co-operation and partnership working in the areas of technology and innovation; Nottingham was recently granted Science City status and is a leading national centre for nanotechnology and bioscience innovation;

27th – the latest edition of the Lonely Planet travel guide, says Nottingham is a magnet for people from all over for sightseeing, shopping, business and entertainment; Paul Smith, Trent Bridge, Nottingham Castle, Sherwood Forest, The Galleries of Justice and the Tales of Robin Hood are among the attractions named in the guide, which acclaims Nottingham’s “cultural buzz”;

27th – water consumption down 22% on the previous year following the installation of water-saving systems;

26th – “Building Schools for the Future” meeting at Elliott Durham school;

24th – Mapperley and Sherwood Area Committee, including discussion of Mapperley Park and Alexandra Park conservation area;

24th – Nottingham’s track record in delivering transport improvement and innovation is praised in Parliament by new Transport Minister Dr Stephen Ladyman, who said the city is “constantly cited to me as a source of good practice”;

23rd – visit Bennett Street to discuss parking problems;

23rd – Full Council meets to create 2 Freeman – Tim Reddish, multi award-winning Paralympic swimmer who, as Director of Disability Swimming, led the British team to record success at last year’s Athens Paralympic Games, and Mich Stevenson, who played a key role in the development of the National Ice Centre and the Galleries of Justice and has undertaken a raft of voluntary roles to help in Nottingham’s regeneration;

22nd – Nottingham’s dedicated bus link to Nottingham East Midlands Airport has become a 24 hour service; the service links Nottingham city centre with our international airport every half-hour from 4am to 11pm and now also runs on the hour through the night;

20th – David Miliband, makes his first speech as the new Minister for Communities and Local Government by addressing the Core Cities at The Council House; he focussed on five points of a civic pride agenda that he believes can be shared between central and local government; 1) the need for local government to be a key player in the delivery of central government priorities; 2) a defence of the role of targets and inspections in reinforcing accountability; 3) a belief that civic pride depends upon policy and social entrepreneurs as much as business entrepreneurs; 4) all institutions being ready to question how they can better engage with people and 5) the building of civic pride requiring strong local leadership, which can come from a variety of structures;

20th – Waste Recycling Group presents case for expanding Eastcroft at exhibition; meanwhile City Council has achieved target of 14% of doorstep collections being recycled, up from 8.6% last year – and with the expansion of the brown bin scheme is on target for 18% next year;

19th – Enviroenergy;

17th – a teenager, riding his bike on The Wells Road, is killed in an accident by a motorbike;

17th – Executive Board; approved a phased development of restrictions on smoking in council workplaces leading to a new policy by November 30, 2005; and approved the publication of statutory notices to reduce the number of schools in the Bulwell and Bestwood area from 13 schools on 9 sites to 7 all-through primary and nursery schools on 7 sites;

17th – Queen’s speech, with an emphasis on Respect;

16th – tour of Pearmain Drive and Warton Avenue estates;

12th – Nottingham Development Enterprise; discuss opportunities now that Nottingham is a “Science City”;

11th – “Team Nottingham” focuses on equality and diversity;

10th – Environment Agency dinner;

9th – Wollaton Park, a 500-acre deer park, is the best local authority-run urban park in Britain, according to The Independent; 

8th – Official ceremony for Mo Munir’s appointment as Lord Mayor;

6th – Co-councillor Mo Munir formally appointed as Lord Mayor;

6th – Labour wins Notts County Council;

6th – Labour wins the General Election; Labour holds all seats Notts. and Derbys. and wins back Leicester South;

6th – John Heppell re-elected as MP for Nottingham East; John wins by 6,939, but to our surprise, the media announce the majority as less than a thousand!;

5th – General Election;

2nd – Eric Lunzer, former Professor of Education at Nottingham University, dies;