Liberal Democrats at Shire Hall today were defeated in a bid to slash by almost 1/3 a fund to help pay for the one-off costs of cuts to Government grants. The council’s transformational reserve contains a one-off sum of £17m, saved to pay for redundancies and other costs – as well as to protect council services if savings programmes are delayed.
Two ceremonial events have occurred over the last week. Last Wednesday, the Houses of Parliament were ‘prorogued’. This is a term that refers to the end of the Parliamentary Session. This Wednesday (9th May), Her Majesty The Queen opened the new Session of Parliament, with her Speech from the Throne.
Mark will be attending the Jubilee Concert being performed by Newent Orchestra.
We are all aware of a significant minority who drink dangerously and cause disproportionate harm in their local communities. The Government recently announced bold steps to deal with these dangerous drinkers, crack down on irresponsible businesses and curb the availability of very cheap alcohol.
Earlier this week, people across England celebrated St George’s Day. In Westminster, the flag of St George was flying over No. 10 Downing Street to celebrate the feast day of England’s patron saint.
Mark will be meeting the head teacher of Heywood Community School and opening the Lydney Golf Club.
Mark Harper, MP for the Forest of Dean, has welcomed the introduction of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 into law, which has introduced a £26,000 cap on out-of-work benefits. This means that no family will be able to receive more in out-of-work benefits than the earnings of the average working household.
Last month, I wrote about some of the headline measures in the Budget, and explained the reasoning behind them. These changes are being debated this week in the House of Commons.
Mark will be visiting Newent Community School and holding a constituency surgery.
Mark Harper, MP for the Forest of Dean, has welcomed a new £60 million Rural Economy Grant Scheme for rural entrepreneurs, run by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
