An ambulance carrying a pregnant Wirral woman was stopped at Wallasey tunnel over £1.70 toll of Friday 7th Aug 2015. An investigation has been launched after the ambulance carrying 31-year-old was made to pull over at the toll booths at the Wallasey tunnel.The mother to be from Birkenhead, was only 29 weeks pregnant but expected to give birth at any point. She was being transferred back to Arrowe Park Hospital from Ormskirk Hospital, where she had been taken due to a lack of space in the Wirral hospital’s special baby unit. But on Thursday night, space was made available for her and she was transferred back to Wirral on an emergency run, although the ambulance’s blue lights were not active. As they approached the tunnel, the woman at the kiosk asked the ambulance driver for a tag. The ambulance driver told her they hadn’t got one because they were from Lancashire and were just on a job. They were then told that they had to pay the toll. The ambulance driver explained that they were on an emergency job, and had a patient in the back who is being transferred’ but the toll operative said they still had to pay. The ambulance was then made to pull to one side while a manager for the tunnel operator was contacted before the issue could be resolved. This could have cost a life for the sake of £1.70p. Why do the emergency services have to pay at all.? Mersey travel estimated that they collected £185,000 last year from emergency services.

Since the education reform act in 2002 schools have been the victims of profit driven organisations and individuals. Out-of-school provisions can generate huge revenue but what is that money used to do? Where does it go? It is being generated from the use of tax payers assets (schools), should society be getting the best value from it? Should it be used to develop better service? Or should companies and individuals use these profits for their own gains? There is a simple solution; Social Enterprise, put people before profits when it comes to providing services for children in or on publicly owned assets, our schools. Many of these still belong to the public and are paid for through the public purse, why should any organisation make profit from providing services on these sites? Yes, let's provide great services but let's get the best value and work to provide more, not declare more divided for Directors or share holders who have nothing to do with the operations of the company!

The potential is huge, it needs to be like the NHS, free at the point of delivery, paid for by the taxes raised in Scotland, the effect would be like turbo charging the whole of Scotlands activities, and would repay the costs many times over., Given it's intended universality, it could decimate government comms costs and underpin the integrity of news services, and even better would work best as a completely un metered service without any admin overhead but the techies and the hardware, no need to bill anybody, we'd all be paying through the tax and spending mechanism, without the expense of billing and collecting it separately, which would also make faster and easier to install, no confusion over who or where, just everywhere, now. It could even be done largely by local people with a little extra training, and tested, configured etc. , from a small number of hubs, keeping the costs closely controlled. How would it work :- Rather in the way that wi-fi works now, as an open network infrastructure, through which you can access services like email, web addresses etc., paying tax is only the general revenue source which pays for the network structure as a facility of the government services open to anybody who is in Scotland. A large part of the costs of running the present networks is caused by the need to generate millions of bills and collect the due payment, and protect those parts of the service providers facilities for which premiums are charged. With an open network, none of that is needed for basic access, and the network can be available throughout the country, islands included. In addition to personal access for the whole population, the commercial service providers could deliver a bigger range of product than possible at present, collecting payment in the pay-per-use manner identified by the MAC address of the device in use, in practice, much simpler and almost cost free. This would deliver a huge boost to the development of new business, social and government activities throughout Scotland for an almost risibly small cost. The health and emergency services would also benefit and be able to extend their coverage and reach virtually for free, allowing things like remote consultations for residents in isolated communities, new businesses could start anywhere and be in the worlds main markets at no cost beyond their own direct costs. it really needs only political support, the technical bit is really straightforward, get the boss's husband on board, I hear he's a well switched on fella, it would be a huge benefit to post-independence business development for both governance and commerce, and would be like switching on the lights for the populace who've been kept in the dark by the MSM.

Justice and plain commonsense.

Sandwell Council is supporting the proposal that it together with West Midlands Metropolitan and City Councils of Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton together with a number of district and county councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships from across the region form a West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA). As part of the proposal there has to be regard to the following in order to establish a new body; - The need to reflect the identities and interests of local communities; and - The need to secure effective and convenient local government. Many within Sandwell have expressed concerns that they have not been given enough information on the structure, powers, accountability and scrutiny that a body of this nature will have. There are concerns that we shall lose our identity and that Sandwell and The Black Country will be engulfed by Birmingham and play second fiddle to it. At a recent Council meeting Sandwell Labour Leader Darren Cooper when asked about holding a referendum replied with “Err No” and “he was not prepared to run a referendum”. There are other considerations that don’t appear to have been discussed at any length one being the EU’s push towards regionalisation which a Combined Authority would be. This is tied to the EU’s City 2020 targets. There is a real danger that local democracy and the voice of our communities will be lost as well as our proud Black Country heritage. You really have to ask why there appears to be a race to create a Combined Authority that could include a number of Council with reported failings coming together. Sounds like having a bosted bucket and trying to fill it with water. In my opinion a decision of such magnitude about the future of Sandwell will impact on us all and generations to come and can not be left to Councillors of which in Sandwell 71 of the 72 are Labour members. In notes available from the Sandwell Council website concerning the meeting held on the 21st July point 6.17 states the Chief Executive in consultation with the Mayor may determine the date of an Extraordinary Meeting. The purpose of which would be to approve the proposal and submit to the Secretary of State in late September/early October in order for the Combined Authority is operational from 1st April 2016. No decision should be made without full, proper and representative consultation and all documents are open to view and upon the result of a referendum of the residents of Sandwell. Due to the timescales involved this petition requires your URGENT ATTENTION.

NHS children's community health services and the inpatient adolescent mental health service in Bristol & South Gloucestershire are in the process of being recommissioned. The first stage of this campaign has already been successful with the recent announcement that the interim contract to deliver community children's health services for one year during 2016/17 has been won by a partnership made up of Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust (AWP) and two social enterprises, Sirona Care & Health CIC and Bristol Health CIC. The adolescent inpatient mental health unit, the Riverside Unit, will also be provided by AWP, with private company The Huntercombe Group, acting in a 'consultancy' role. However, AWP will be running the unit on a day-to-day basis and staff will be employed by AWP, so it will essentially remain within the NHS. The demand that services remain integrated has also been won, with the announcement that for the longer-term contract these services will be commissioned together by the Clinical Commissioning Groups and their partners. However, the campaign is not over yet. The next stage of the process during which the same services will be commissioned for the next 5 or 7 years from 2017 has begun. We must keep the pressure on to protect children's health services in Bristol for the long-term. And now we know it can be done! The next stage of this campaign will focus on bringing all of these services entirely back into the NHS for the long-term. We know private companies are planning to bid to run them. There should not be a role for companies who seek to make a profit or for social enterprises (many of whom operate in a similar way to private companies) in the delivery of our health services. There are two reasons why this campaign is vitally important: Firstly, children and young people in Bristol and South Gloucestershire need to get the best possible care and treatment. This means having services which are integrated and can work together, provided by people who are interested in delivering top quality care, not making maximum profit. Secondly, every time an NHS service in the UK is privatised we are a step closer to a US-style health system which would mean the end of free-at-point-of-need healthcare. The evidence is mounting that this government is not fully committed to a future publicly-owned health service. We are a group of concerned local people, including service users and NHS staff, who understand how damaging the consequences of moving these services to a private provider could be. We think the principle of 'people before profit' in the NHS is fundamental in Bristol, South Gloucestershire and the rest of the UK. Join our campaign at https://www.facebook.com/ProtectCCHP or search 'Protect CCHP' on Twitter for more information.

The library was donated to the town by Andrew Carnegie in the 1900s, and the Carnegie Trust UK maintain the ethos of his contributions to be for "improvement of the masses of people of Great Britain and Ireland by such means as are embraced within the meaning of the word "charitable" and which Trustees may from time to time select as best fitted from age to age for securing these purposes, remembering that new needs are constantly arising as the masses advance." ****We have received over 100 signatures on paper since starting the campaign 2 days ago - please show your support - sign & share the online petition***

Out of 600 staff working at National Museum Wales across seven sites, the front of house/visitor services constitute 300 or nearly 50% of the total. They deliver the services that allow the museums to remain open to the public, from cleaning and maintaining the sites to delivering guided tours, demonstrating traditional crafts and ensuring the safety of the National Collections. In total the seven sites host 1.6 million visitors a year, ensuring the cultural and historical heritage of Wales and bringing huge economic benefits to the country. Front of house staff are predominantly the lowest paid in the museum. Many work as many as 47 weekends a year for which they are paid an allowance to compensate them for the ant-social effects this has on their family and social life. After five years of cuts and pay freezes the Museum Management are now seeking to remove these payments which can amount to £2,000 - £3,000 for full-time staff. Many members are already classified as low-paid and face the risk of being pushed into poverty by these cuts. Members face the risk of using food-banks to survive and the increased likelihood of child poverty amongst their families. PCS are the largest union within this section of the workforce and represent 80% of Front of House staff. They have been fighting management proposals for nearly 18 months and believe it is wrong that those who can least afford it, should shoulder the burden of cuts while Senior Managers enjoy effective pay rises. We believe that pay cuts to the lowest paid is a social justice issue that everyone should be concerned by. Our campaign highlights the real impact that austerity has, with those least able and most vulnerable to cuts facing the heaviest hardship.

The 120 Route connects Hawick, Denholm, Jedburgh and Kelso. The Scottish Borders Council subsidy of the 120 Route is being reduced from 15th August 2015. Without the whole subsidy, the service will be reduced by the operating company. The service will be on a reduced basis meaning cuts to the times and this means that if you dont have a car and still need to travel at those times you will have to travel via Galashiels and then change for Jedburgh or Kelso or Hawick, adding some 30 miles and one hour to their journey. This service is vital for people to get about the borders. It is vital for people who don't have cars to be able to travel not just north and south but east and west. Those who rely on it for work or when they have to get to appointments can't change there schedule around a reduced service so let's keep the fight going hands of the 120. The Population of Hawick is 14,000 The population of Jedburgh is 4,000 and Kelso is another 6,000 with all the combined villages the bus also serves that is 25,000 people that this bus links up which is about 24 % of the Scottish Borders Population.

As you may know we raised nearly 10,000 signatures previously and will raise even more this time if they fail to get the message. Our libraries should be off-limits to all corporate destruction! . Following the initial success, we are well aware the battle is not yet over as the impact assessment forms produced by HCC are a complete travesty, along with consultation guides which still include the original proposal in disguise. This battle continues .... The amazing response to this campaign forced the Tory led cabinet to bring this issue to a full council meeting on the 24th May 2013. A little victory in itself. Volunteers can assist, but not run libraries or museums. For example it requires 18 volunteers to keep Peterchurch Library open for 10 hours per week. Further denigration of services, for instance the cancellation of inter-library lending, have since been introduced without consultation, continuing the secrecy operated by the council cabinet. Illegal under the 1964 act. We apparently have three Turner paintings in the county ... do you think these paintings that belong to us the people should be sold off into the hands of private enterprise? We don't! Many people, of all ages and from all backgrounds, are adversely affected when a local library is closed: • As well as a place from which to borrow books, the local library provides information and free ICT. It’s a place to meet friends and join social activities such as, reading groups, bounce & rhyme sessions, storytelling sessions etc. • Children need libraries to support their literacy and reading development. The library also provides them with a place to study, with staff that can help them with their homework.The Summer Reading Challenge ensures that children continue to develop their reading skills during the long summer break. • There are many people, especially the elderly, and those living alone, who value the opportunity offered by the library and its staff, for conversation and companionship. • The local library is a place where vulnerable members of the community feel safe and receive support. • There are very few indoor, public spaces which are warm and welcoming, where one can linger without spending money. • People visit the local library if they need help; for example with form filling, letter writing, using ICT, or when they need information that they are unable to find elsewhere. There are still large numbers of people who do not have access to IT, other than in their local library. • Job seekers, make use of the library’s ICT to look for and apply for jobs; they also borrow books on job seeking techniques, writing CVs, interview skills etc., and books to help them improve their work based skills. An economic downturn is the worst time to close libraries. • When Universal Credit is introduced applications will have to be made online, those without computers at home will need to make use of ICT in their local library. • Many visitors to the county use the libraries for tourist information; they also value the ICT for communicating with friends and family back home and for printing airline, coach and train tickets for their return journeys. • The provision of ‘Books on Prescription’ supports the work of the health service. • Researchers in, Family and Local History rely on the library to provide them with the relevant source materials. Hereford Library has been closed to the public for 3 months, due to asbestos problems, long known about. One might legitimately ask why they started interfering with the building when already armed with that knowledge. The temporary library is not fit for purpose due to the lack of study space, computer facilities, space for children's activities, homework facilities etc. Herefordshire council is no longer providing the people of Hereford with a 'comprehensive' library service as required by the Public Libraries & Museums Act 1964: http://bit.ly/1Oz7fcK It is surely time to ask Ed Vaizey, Minister of State for Culture Media and Sport, and Jesse Norman local MP and chair of the DCMS committee, to intervene. Contact details for Ed Vaizey: http://bit.ly/1TRuLlt and Jesse Norman : http://bit.ly/1NAwJpn Please share with all who are missing their library service.

I am against the NHS being privatised and this Contract is important as it deals with Patients records and sending letters to Patients . The private Company Capita intends to close 29 offices used now and run from just 3 offices with 800 redundancies of NHS Staff . Local knowledge will be lost with the closure of these offices

Hundreds of PATIENTS HAVE have been patient and tolerant awaiting long and hard for this new Purpose built Centre.Their hearts have been broken by the long delays and dragging of heels by the Scottish Borders Health Board.