Liberal Democrats at Surrey County Council today opposed the ruling Conservative administration's 4.8% rise in Council Tax and condemned a cut in roads and schools maintenance spending. Highlighting her group's alternative proposals, Liberal Democrat leader Cllr Hazel Watson (Dorking Hills), said it would be possible to limit the Council Tax rise to 4.5%, a saving of £1.5m.
The Liberal Democrat Group recently tried to get the majority Conservative group on Surrey County Council to back the campaign for an "in or out" Euro referendum. The Lib Dems say this referendum would be an opportunity for the British public to determine whether Britain should continue to be a member of the European Union or not.
At the recent Council meeting, Liberal Democrats proposed a motion that Surrey County Council should come out against further expansion of Heathrow.
In answer to a question from John Doran, Lib Dem transport spokesperson, the Conservative executive member for transport on Surrey County Council admitted that the council was on target to under-spend its roads budget by nearly £1 million pounds. Mr Munro said "£1 million is about right".
Tory-led Surrey County Council voted today to keep the freeze on youth service recruitment, despite the obvious damage it is causing to youth services throughout Surrey. Liberal Democrat Councillor Diana Smith (Knaphill) put forward a motion calling for an immediate end to the recruitment freeze, put in place in December 2007. But the ruling Tory group voted to keep the status quo.
The 'equal preference' system for school admissions was first used for admissions to Surrey schools this year, September 2007. It means that parents don't have to worry that they will lose a place in the second or third of their preferred schools if the first school is full, just because they did not place those schools first.
