Log, May 2006

Here’s a quick summary of news, events and casework for May 2006

31st – the death of Viv Bell, Mapperley resident, and Labour Chair of Notts Social Services for four years in the eighties, is announced; 

31st – Police investigation launched after a man's body was found on Ball Street;  

25th – attend meeting in the Meadows where Alan Simpson MP proposes new technologies to secure sustainable and secure forms of energy supply for the future; 

25th – get car, parked badly on Boynton Drive, removed after pressing to establish whether the owner could be traced;

24th – presentation on the proposed Nottingham Midland station improvements at the Council House;  

23rd – Executive Board;  adopt the corporate plan - with a new focus on 5 priorities - - Choose Nottingham; - Respect for Nottingham; - Transform Nottingham Neighbourhoods; - Nottingham People; - Serving Nottingham Better. 

22nd – meet the managers of the childrens home on Tavistock Avenue with residents at a meeting chaired by the Police; improvements to communication are agreed, to build on the improvements in the running of the home seen since the matter was raised at the MPRA AGM;

22nd – protests are made about yet another national survey that gets information about crime in Nottingham wrong;

22nd – Nottingham's entry to Digital Challenge reaches the regional stage; 

22nd – Proposals for changes to Primary School provision in St Ann’s and Mapperleyannounced - Walter Halls to expand slightly; St.Anns Well Junior to be combined with St.Ann's Wells Infants, on the Infants' site; it's better to spend money on teaching and learning rather than on empty or under-utilised classrooms;  

20th – Mo Munir and I deliver a leaflet on the Millennium car showrooms;  meanwhile, the Tories have put out a leaflet playing the issue down, despite over 70 households having objected; 

18th – More LibDem letdowns; Leicester Liberal Democrats split in Leicester; this after a failed attempt by the Derby Liberal Democrats to form a coalition with the Tories in Derby, only having reported the Derby Tories to the Police a fortnight before; the 11 Nottingham Liberal Democrats split 6-5 only 2 months after being elected in 2003 - when challenged to vote for Labour's anti-social behhaviour measures;   

17th – Development Control committee refuse outline planning application to develop on Millennium car showrooms; report recommending refusal is agreed;  

16th – Mapperley & Sherwood Area Cttee.; 

16th – tackling dependency on Incapcity Benefit in Nottingham is debated at Parliament; 

14th – 17th – tssa annual conference at Llandudno;  I represented local branch, AtosOrigin East;

13th – NEP report on Millennium's planning application; 

10th – 12th - Big Spring Campaign cleaning up in and around Pearmain Drive, Pippin Close, Woodlane Gardens and Emneth Close; 

10th – Honeywood Estate Action Team meeting;  main item - future of garages on the estate; also discuss new Honeywood community centre and the road works on Porchester Road;  

9th – leader of Chinese city, Ningbo, visits The Council House, to improve partnership arrangements with Nottingham;

8th – received a complaint from a resident in Folkton Gardens that an abandoned but taxed car was both being damaged and attracting criminal activity to the area; had the car removed by 5p.m.; 

8th – full Council; Mo Munir nominated for Deputy Lord Mayor;  John Pennington, Mapperley Labour Party member, honoured for his work for the city as an Honorary Alderman; 

7th – walk from Astley Drive to Coppice Grove park to Byford Close to report a number of neighbourhood issues; 

5th – over 70 objections to the outline development proposed for Millenium showrooms; 

5th – Ministerial re-shuffle - John Heppell MP remains a Government whip; whilst Vernon Coaker, MP for neighbouring Gedling, becomes a Home Office Minister; 

5th – 2 potholes in Penarth Rise patched - just a small part of the day job;  holes on Mission St. to be repaired soon too;   

4th – local elections; 

1st – May Day - and nine years of progress for the trade union movement under Labour;