Mobile safety (speed) camera locations: Wednesday 22 to Tuesday 28 February 2012

North Yorkshire Police will be carrying out mobile safety camera enforcement on the following roads between Wednesday 22 and Tuesday 28 February 2012.

Those being checked in the York area include:

•A64 east-bound carriageway Bowbridge Farm Tadcaster
•A64 west-bound carriageway, Bowbridge Farm, Tadcaster
•Millfield Lane, Poppleton, York
•Beckfield Lane, York
•Green lane, Acomb, York
•Ryecroft Avenue, Woodthorpe, York
•Temple Lane, Copmanthorpe, York
•A1036 Tadcaster Road, York
•A1237 Monks Cross, York
•Strensall Road, Huntington, York
•The Village, Stockton-on-the-Forest, York
•A1036 Malton Road, York
•A171 Jugger Howe opposite Springhill Farm

The mobile safety cameras will be in operation at the above sites at various times during the dates stated. Cameras will not be in use on the above routes all day, every day.

64% back Council Tax Freeze

64% of residents, responding to a Liberal Democrat Focus survey, have backed a proposal to freeze Council Tax levels in the City for a further year.

The survey was carried out in the Dringhouses and Woodthorpe Ward together with parts of Westfield, Acomb and Micklegate.

The option is being considered on Thursday and is expected to get the backing of both Liberal Democrat and Conservative Councillors.

The option is available as the Coalition government has offered a £1.8 million subsidy to the city if it keeps tax levels down.

Labour are proposing a 2.9% increase with a minimum 2% more to come the following year. This option drew the support of only 14% of respondents.

A third option – to hold a referendum to see whether residents would support an increase of over 3.5% – won the support of 22% of respondents.

Halting the worst of Labours cuts programme

Click to enlarge

Against a background of a difficult national economic situation, there were bound to be reduction in some Council budgets for the forthcoming year.

Labour’s decision to target front line services for cuts is a complete reversal of the promises that they made last year.

Instead they are putting millions into ill defined investment funds and are proposing to borrow £20 million over the next 5 years to prop up their ambitions.

The City simply can’t afford such a “gung ho” approach.

The City’s basic infrastructure has to be maintained.

The alternative budget (right) not only takes advantage of an additional £1.8 million in government funding for Councils that freeze tax levels, but it also follows a clear set of priorities.

These priorities are to sustain investment in:
1. Crime prevention
2. Personal Safety programmes
3. Services affecting vulnerable people
4. Unemployment reduction programmes
5. The quality of day to day services used by large numbers of people
6. York Pride type neighbourhood services

Capital investment would be concentrated on schemes that reduce running costs such as the new Salvage and Recycling centre at Harewood Whin, which is aimed at controlling the escalating burden on taxpayers for landfill penalties. Total expenditure would be limited to income from capital receipts (land sales), government grants like the transport fund and the “new homes bonus”. Apart from the unspecified “Economic Development Fund” activities, all other aspects of the capital programme would continue including the provision of 2 new park and ride sites.
Some schemes might be delayed while others, such as the provision of WiFi access in the City centre, we would expect to be funded by the private sector