• Save Falmouth's Marks and Spencer's from Closure
    Marks and Spencer's Falmouth has proved itself an integral part of the community, the cafe is always thriving with its iconic views of Falmouth bay with many locals including regular old age pensioners not to mention the tourists. The store is always full and busy, I am sure I am not alone when I say that I rely on the local Marks and Spencer for food. Cornwall itself is suffering with many cuts, this is the last thing it needs this will decrease the morale of the town with all the other closures that are happening. The next local store is based in the next town Truro, which does not seem far stretched out the way but when you consider the cost of public transport this will prove too expensive to do a regular shopping trip, or for the poor workers that will now need to make their way to Truro. It would be a huge shame if the space was to be replaced by another Poundland or charity shop. Please support this petition and sign it.
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    Created by Wood Wool
  • Time to Clean up Scotland's Salmon Farming Industry
    Many jobs and much of Scotland's iconic wildlife depend on the health of our coastal environment. But Fergus Ewing, Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy & Connectivity (REC) is determined to expand Scotland’s production of farmed salmon by 2030. This would be an act of sheer recklessness given the grave concerns surrounding the industry as it is practised today. The REC committee will hold an inquiry into salmon farming in Scotland later this year. It is vital that we make our voices heard and let our MSPs know that there can be no expansion of salmon farming without radical reform. Here are the issues at stake: • Scotland's seas are home to incredible wildlife, including wild salmon, sea trout, porpoises, dolphins, whales and seals and are home to a wealth of life on the seabed which is vital to our valuable crab, prawn and lobster fisheries. They are under acute threat because of the harmful impacts of open net salmon farming. • A truly sustainable coastal economy can regenerate around many uses of restored seas and fisheries. Jobs are precious in rural areas. By allowing one industry to pollute the sea, we threaten jobs that use the sea sustainably, such as well-managed fisheries and wildlife tourism. By protecting them, the coastal economy can thrive long term. • Parasitic sea lice, thriving in overcrowded open net salmon pens, are driving wild salmon and sea trout numbers to dangerously low levels. • Toxic chemicals to treat sea lice now exceed safe levels in at least 45 Scottish sea lochs, and studies implicate them in harm to crustaceans and other forms of marine life far from the farm cages. • Some 130 salmon farms on Scotland's west coast use Acoustic Deterrent Devices (ADDs) to scare away seals with loud underwater noises. If the ADDs don’t work, fish farmers are permitted to simply shoot them.These ADDs also affect porpoises, dolphins and whales, even though it is illegal to disturb them. • Now the industry, with the government's support, wants to double its annual production to around 300,000 tonnes of salmon by 2030. The environmental impacts are already dangerous, so if you care about the health of our marine environment, please act now! Tell the Scottish Government that salmon farmers must clean up their act before they are allowed to expand. The Salmon Aquaculture Reform Network Scotland (SARNS) is a growing coalition of community, coastal and environmental groups and concerned individuals from all over the west coast and islands of Scotland. We are campaigning for immediate reform of the salmon farming industry. Find out more here: https://salmonaquaculturescotland.wordpress.com/clean-up-scotlands-unsustainable-fish-farming-industry/ Thank you!
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    Created by SARNS Salmon Aquaculture Reform Network Scotland
  • Keep Bristol's parks advertising free
    Our parks are important spaces for our physical and mental wellbeing; places where we go to play, relax, connect with nature and escape the pressures of modern life. We feel that introducing commercial advertising would undermine these emotional, psychological and health benefits – especially in areas where children play. The Council is accepting responses until Monday 29th January 2018. Let's tell them that we want to keep Bristol's parks ad free. To use the terminology in the Council's consultation, we "Strongly Disagree" with Proposal 2 (introducing ads to parks and green spaces). You can see the full consultation here: https://bristol.citizenspace.com/neighbourhoods/parks-and-green-spaces/
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    Created by Adfree Cities Picture
  • Open fans say "No" to R&A's "No-readmissions" policy
    The R&A has introduced a "no-readmission" policy so that spectators with general admission and hospitality tickets will not be permitted to re-enter the venue after leaving the course unless they pay again. The hundreds of thousands of fans who pay to attend the Open were not asked their opinion. This petition gives Open fans everywhere the chance to be heard and hopefully persuade the R&A to reverse its decision. Generations of fans have attended previous Opens to witness one of the world's greatest sporting events and soak up the off-course atmosphere. But the R&A's "No-readmission" policy will effectively lock them on-course all day - every day unless they pay again. This goes against the 150-year-old tradition of the Open and is not in the interests of spectators who are - only now - beginning to realise the full effects of these restrictions. We think the R&A have made a mistake by saying this policy will guard against the "inferior" and "unofficial" off-course hospitality. This is a slur on the hundreds of excellent pubs, eateries and cafes in all the host venues on the Open Rota. It will also prevent fans from enjoying the legitimate activities of the host communities whose residents, golf clubs, restaurants and other local businesses have traditionally helped Open fans to celebrate off-course by providing festival style entertainment; essential services; and hospitality at prices they can afford. Unless this policy is reversed, fans of the Open will no longer have the freedom of going off-course to stroll around the host town, visit local shops and cafes or enjoy an affordable sit-down pub lunch or restaurant meal. In fact, the wonderful festival atmosphere - which has become synonymous with the golfing prowess of the Open - will be lost. Tens of thousands of fans spend 10 hours or more on-course each day; and many buy a weekly ticket or a weekend bundle. They don't want to be trapped on-course each day - all day long - so the new policy will certainly not improve their enjoyment. It's also clear that only a privileged few can afford the on-course hospitality packages costing between £420 and £900 per person. The new policy is also very unfair and will mean that some of the Open’s biggest supporters will be penalised. It will curtail attendance by the very people who have worked so hard - day after day and all year around - to make our Open venues what they are today. Shopkeepers, club stewards, residents with young children, employees of businesses and many others won’t be allowed to go on and off the course to take care of their family and work based responsibilities so will probably not be able to attend or will have to limit their attendance. So, this policy will most definitely result in lower attendances. The 2018 Open will be staged on Carnoustie Golf links which were uniquely purchased on behalf of the people of the burgh around 1890. A great many of the residents, business owners and employees as well as the clubs who technically "own" the links will face weeks of disruption, loss of business and inconvenience but, because of the new policy, will not get a chance to see this marvellous event being staged on their own doorstep. We feel that this wonderful world class event is being spoiled by a policy designed to monopolise spectator revenues on-course while ensuring that local businesses miss out. It certainly has little if anything to do with making the event more safe or enjoyable for the spectators. In short, the fans who pay for the Open would like the choice but no-one asked their opinion – until now. For these reasons we request the R&A to reverse their decision in time for the 2018 Open and allow spectators with general admission and hospitality tickets to leave the Open course and re-enter the same day without having to pay again.
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    Created by David Valentine Picture
  • Nationalise Carillion now
    UK construction firm Carillion is in huge financial trouble. It is being reported the UK's second-largest construction company is shouldering a whopping £1.5bn debt pile and could collapse into administration by Monday. Carillion runs prisons, schools and hospitals (some 12,000 beds) and employs about 20,000 people in the UK, with more staff abroad. Mainstream news coverage reports the government is in crisis talks with Carillion and lending banks HSBC, RBS, Barclays and Lloyds, who are demanding a taxpayer bailout. After bailing out RBS in 2008 without imposing Government control, it is unthinkable that Government would pour more public money into the coffers of Carillion's PFI shareholders. We believe that the government can help by simply nationalising Carillion and bringing the PFI contracts it manages back into public control. The only way to protect services and the staff is to nationalise, not line the pockets of shareholders, particularly any shareholders who have avoided paying tax on profits. Governments PFI experiment has failed, with 68% of the UK public agreeing PFI deals should be banned. it is now time to accept responsibility and do the right thing by nationalising Carillion. Furthermore, we ask that a forensic audit investigation is commenced into how a consortium which included Carillion - while in acute financial distress, was awarded a £1.4bn contract for the HS2 rail link. Important links The company that runs Britain is near to collapse. Watch and worry : Aditya Chakrabortty “To see what this means, take the HS2 rail link, where Carillion this summer was part of a consortium that won a £1.4bn contract to knock tunnels through the Chilterns. If Carillion goes under, what happens to the largest infrastructure project in Europe? What happens to its partners on the deal, British firm Kier, and France’s Eiffage? The project will need to be put back and the taxpayer will almost certainly have to step in.” https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/12/building-company-carillion-collapse-schools-roads-hospitals-hs2-taxpayers-bill Redefining Corruption - Public Polling on attitudes to PFI by Liverpool University https://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/publications/redefining-corruption Blacklisting, workers rights, and privatisation: 'The day we challenged Carillion' http://peoplevspfi.org.uk/2015/06/18/the-day-we-challenged-carillion/ FT: Vince Cable warns taxpayers must not bear brunt of Carillion bailout https://www.ft.com/content/e9f0f06c-f7b4-11e7-88f7-5465a6ce1a00?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
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    Created by John Burgess Picture
  • Save A+M Hire
    A+M Hire is one of the "Big 3" prop houses in Europe and the UK. It supplies period props and dressing for major feature films and TV dramas like ‘Victoria’, ‘The Crown’, ‘Game of Thrones’, the ‘Harry Potter’ films, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’, ‘Murder of the Orient Express’ and many more. Due to the fact that HS2 require their premises as a construction site and due to circumstances beyond both A+M’s and HS2’s control A+M has to cease trading. As you may be aware there has been an upsurge in the film industry with companies like Netflix, Amazon and Sony making more and more productions in the UK, not only because of the tax breaks but also because of the facilities and skills we provide. Without A+M, who supply a huge amount of the props that are used in these films and dramas, the supply chain will be broken. Their stock is incalculably valuable, both in monetary terms and historically, irreplaceable and very often unique. It will endanger productions as inevitably the art department costs will soar as items, previously easily hired from A+M, will now have to be sourced from elsewhere, and almost certainly purchased, involving more upfront costs and considerably higher transport costs, both financially and ecologically, and of course, precious time. A+M’s collapse will also put all of their staff out of work, cause production costs to rise, and thus discourage companies to film in the UK and damage the film industry as a whole. This will obviously have a knock-on effect for all of the skilled crew that depend on the industry for their livelihood. We urge you to sign this petition, and hopefully prevent this shocking and debilitating loss to the industry.
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    Created by Dominic Devine
  • No Bailout for East Coast Rail Franchise
    The only time this service ran successfully was while it was run by government after National Express handed it back after two years in 2009. In its five years as East Coast, the state-run firm returned a little more than £1bn in premiums, as well as several million in profits, to the Treasury. Detailed financial analysis from the Office of Rail Regulation shows it was one of two firms to make a net contribution to government coffers over the previous two years. Now, history is repeating itself. Grayling is terminating the contract with Stagecoach/Virgin and releasing them from the £2bn worth of payments they were due to make between 2020 and 2023. Guess who will pick up this tab. Not only that, but Stagecoach/Virgin will still be allowed to bid on future contracts. Unbelievable. I want Grayling to hold the franchisee to its obligations or bar them from future government bids. Other private companies in other sectors have backed out of their contractual obligations with impunity if their contract is not profitable within a couple of years, and it is becoming a norm. Public services should not succeed or fail at the whim of private firms' accountants. It is the government's responsibility to consistently fund those services on which the public depends for its health, security, education, transport and energy. If Grayling does not hold Stagecoach/Virgin responsible for its financial obligations or ban it from securing future contracts he should be sacked.
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    Created by John Crellin
  • save families first Johnstone,Foxbar,Gallowhill Renfrewshire
    Families first Johnstone, Gallowhill, Foxbar Renfrewshire provide lots of support assistance and guidance to families in johnstone/ Renfrewshire! These ladies are like nanny McPhee in the sense if you need them they are there!! 😁 They bring communities together and help families thru tough times weather it's providing a listening ear, or giving financial advice to even helping service users get back into work! Many families face challenges on a daily basis and they are there in a crisis to offer support and help families grow in confidence to push thru the hard stuff!! They also run workshops and fun clubs for our children encouraging families to get out learn new skills and meet other people essentially they take away some of the loneliness sometimes many parents face and give our children something to look forward too! if this service was withdrawn from our community there essentially would be nowhere for families to turn too for advice support assistance in a crisis, there wouldn't be any of these clubs for our children, essentialy the heart of the community would be lost! These ladies deserve a Pay rise but instead are faced with losing their jobs, but if we stand together maybe we could turn it around for many more years to come, save our families first Johnstone!! 😁👨‍👨‍👧👨‍👨‍👧‍👦👩‍👩‍👧‍👦👩‍👩‍👧👨‍👩‍👧👨‍👩‍👦‍👦
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    Created by Donna woods
  • Stop 3.6% Increase on Southern Rail Fares in 2018
    For the past 2 years Southern Rail commuters have had to endure a horrendous train service with endless strikes, cancellations and train shortages. There have been people leaving their jobs, moving home and missing out on time with their family and loved ones and all because of the incompetency of the service and the people running it. Why should we now have to pay even more? There should be a significant reduction in the price to go some way towards compensating commuters for the misery they have faced and are still facing with no end in sight.
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    Created by Teresa Baldock
  • SOMERSET NHS under threat - sign and take action!
    This is a big step towards breaking up the NHS in Somerset. It splits up the NHS family, can make services worse for patients, and puts staff at risk from attacks on their pay and conditions. Together we can stop the Trust’s scheme. To do that we need the strength of EVERYONE. Please sign our petition, share with family and friends, and across social media. Let’s get as many signatures as possible. The Trust is currently refusing to consult and engage with trade unions and the public! The 350 workers the Trust is targeting are employed in Estates and Facilities. But if this plan goes through, other departments will follow. Hospital bosses want to make terms and conditions more “flexible” – and we all know that’s code for cutbacks. YDH’s claim that this scheme reduces their VAT payments is misguided. More Parliamentary scrutiny is falling on NHS Trusts who attempt to lower their tax payments. It’s robbing Peter to pay Paul – it doesn’t create any more money for public services. The only people making a profit are consultancy firms “advising” the Trust.
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    Created by Charlie Woods
  • SAVE Winter Wonderland Clacton
    This brings tourists into the town therefore bringing money with it, it's a small local business where now loads of people had lost their jobs so close to Christmas!! This place brings/brought loads of joy to children and adults!!!
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    Created by Jenny Johnson
  • Please replace plastic fruit and veg bags with paper
    Our big supermarkets stock small plastic bags for customers to select their own fruit and vegetables. These bags are usually thrown away after one use, adding to the avalanche of disposal plastics that are littering our oceans and harming our wildlife. It didn't use to be this way. Greengrocers used to provide customers with paper bags that were biodegradable. Let's bring back paper bags. Small changes can make a big difference.
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    Created by Cate Watson