Please protect protect the UK public's long term investment in both great serving British institutions and sustain the collaborative, innovative partnership into the future. The Met Office is a trusted and respected world-wide leader in forecasting accuracy. The BBC is making a huge mistake in ending the current contract. It has provided the data used for BBC forecasts since the corporation's first radio weather bulletin on 14 November 1922. The BBC said it had to use licence payers/tax payers money efficiently, so had to use the 'market'. But do we want to continue with the experts in the field, albeit at a higher cost, or do we want to cut corners and give the contract to a foreign company just because they can come in with a cheaper tender? This decision is being made for short term gain rather than long term public infrastructure benefit.

In 2011 the management of National Museums Scotland broke an existing ACAS agreement and arbitrarily and unilaterally imposed a two-tier wage structure upon its lowest-paid workers (principally Cleaners, Visitor Services Assistants, Housemen, Security) without consultation or negotiation with the recognised Trade Unions. Staff employed since 1st January 2011 are on reduced terms and conditions without a weekend working allowance which is paid to compensate for having to work anti-social hours. Many of this lowest paid group only get one full weekend off once every seven weeks, which has a detrimental impact on family and social life. The consequence is that low-paid workers on the same shifts, doing the same work, are being paid up to £3,000 less than their colleagues. These workers make the National Museums Scotland the top rate attraction it is, and it is only fair that they get paid properly for their hard work. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation states that those earning under £17,100 a year are being paid a Poverty Wage, and many of our members earn well below that. Senior Scottish Politicians, in opposition against Westminster, have recently been calling for recognition of weekend working payments for those who give up valuable family and social time. These payments make up a large part of low-paid workers’ take home pay. PCS totally agree with safeguarding weekend working rights, and believe that if it is good enough for other workers, then National Museums Scotland staff deserve this too. Both Museum management and the Scottish Government need to embrace the principle of recompensing weekend work and accept PCS proposals to settle this long- running dispute. We do not believe that low-paid culture workers deserve to suffer at the hands of austerity, especially when heritage and culture contribute so much to the Scottish economy. The Museum’s own figures show that it contributes £65million to the economy. PCS Members at the National Museums of Scotland have been taking part in discontinuous strike action for over 2 years. Despite repeated requests to come to a negotiated settlement with management, this has not happened.

Stroud's current 'temporary' bus station does not have the facilities a bus station should. Proper shelter, waiting room and cafe are examples. A potentially viable alternative site is London Road car park. Bus stops will remain at the current site, while the new site will become the station proper. If this possibility is to be further explored, support is needed from Stroud residents. This petition gives you the opportunity to lend your support to a cause which could benefit Stroud.

The centre is situated in a densely populated, high-need area of the city, which would benefit immeasurably from the restoration of a hub for community life. We believe that given the opportunity, and the necessary backing and resources from the council, local residents will rise to the challenge so that the centre can be run by and for the local community, empowering people in difficult times.

TFL have made all travel for children under 11 free in London on buses, trams, underground and overground trains. In addition other train service providers, also provide free travel to those under 11. However almost all train lines in South London require children aged 5-10 to pay. Those people with young families who live in South London are the losers in this postcode lottery. The main train lines who still make children under 11 pay are run by Southern, Southeastern and Thameslink. This petition is addressed to David Brown the CEO of the Go-Ahead Group; and Alistair Gordon the UK CEO of Keolis Group; as these companies own Southern, Southeastern and Thameslink. Travel should be made free on all trains within London for under 11's - to create a fair price for train services regardless of location. https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/travel-for-under-18s/travelling-with-children

Many elderly residents use buses to meet friends, family and get access to shops and services. In addition, young people and those without transport are finding it increasingly difficult to get to work. https://s.bsd.net/38degrees/main/page/-/CBY/localparty.gif

The Guildhall Walk Walk-In Centre is facing a possible closure due to a decision by health bosses to move the walk-in service to St Marys Hospital. It would be a tragedy if the Guildhall Walk Walk-In Centre is closed down as St Mary's already struggles to provide a service for people with minor injuries and waiting times are often long. The Guildhall Walk Walk-In Centre is very successful and is well used 8am - 8pm, 365 days a year and is available to everyone who wants to see a doctor fairly urgently but can't get in to see their registered GP. If we lose this, we will lose a well-established service and it will be much more difficult to get to see a Doctor urgently in the future. Please sign the petition and Save this Walk-In Centre. https://you.38degrees.org.uk/p/emergencydoctors

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.