Without it I can’t continue my business

Huncoat Colliery is one of the best places in Hyndburn to see butterflies, wildflowers and other wildlife. Since the Colliery stopped operating in the 1960s, the land has been reclaimed by nature and is now a haven for wildlife. Although classed as brownfield land, Huncoat Colliery is more like a nature reserve. 21 butterfly species are present at Huncoat Colliery, 13 of which are in decline, including 2 species classed as a priority in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (Small Heath and White-letter Hairstreak). Butterflies are attracted to Huncoat Colliery by large areas of wildflowers, including stunning patches of wild orchids. Huncoat Colliery is an accessible site which gives local people easy access to nature, as well as providing educational interest. Sadly, Huncoat Colliery has been earmarked for housing development. This could be terrible news for local biodiversity, as we stand to lose an area rich in wildlife at a time when it’s more important than ever to protect the precious habitat we have left. This site has the potential to be a destination and a contribution to tourism in the Borough.

SSE is a privatised utility building Scotland's flagship renewable energy project. They are in receipt of £2.6bn of taxpayers' money. The ITF union and RMT union have discovered that HM Government has relaxed the rules for migrant workers in order to allow SSE to import workers from Indonesia and Russia and pay them less than the minimum wage, let alone the going rate for British offshore workers and seafarers. Furthermore, this is happening in a region that has already been hit by the downturn in North Sea oil production. Thousands of offshore workers and seafarers have been laid off in the last couple of years so there are local men and women eminently qualified to take up these roles. That opportunity has been denied to them because the UK government is collaborating in importing non-EU workers to undercut local workers and the UK minimum wage. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/oct/21/migrants-building-beatrice-windfarm-paid-fraction-of-minimum-wage

British tax payers are being required to work longer and pay NI & tax but state pension not increased, over 60’s who have worked all their lives have paid their tax dues to the country, majority never claimed a penny in benefits but are punished with state pension age being changed and likely will change again to pre war 70 years of age. It is not feasible for the majority of over 60s to stay in their current jobs I.e emergency and armed services, manual workers etc. When we do receive state pension it is another slap in the face that it is taxed, disgraceful country.

Both the Hope Centre and NAASH offer an unmatched and undeniably crucial role in providing vital services to the towns homeless and vulnerable community. No other organisation be it housing, charity or council come near to the services provided or the compassion and heart they are provided with. To allow a business who's bottom line is about profit to take over this service in conjunction with other organisations that are only interested in control rather than compassion is not in the best interest of the homeless community in this town.

The current plan to close Kendal Post Office and relocate it into the W H Smith store at 46-48 Stricklandgate has generated a great deal of controversy in and around Kendal. Especially the concept of customers having to squeeze into the narrow, cramped and quite inadequate space that W H Smith Kendal currently occupy. SIGN NOW TO SAVE OUR POST OFFICE Kendal's Post Office is the main Post Office for a very busy market town and is frequently packed with queueing customers even with 3 or 4 counter staff in attendance. Ironically the proposed relocation is to an inferior premises, where the new operators are currently feeling the internet pinch. As with other high Street retailers, W H Smith's year on year profits have been falling. It's High Street sector profits has dropped by 3% and six stores have just been earmarked for closure. Which? (magazine) has again named W H Smith as the most hated store on the high street. In fact it has finished in the bottom two for the last eight years. Having stores like the one in Kendal will not have done much to elevate this lowly position.Closure of our Crown Post Offices and relocation to W H Smith also means the loss of prime high street stores and this contributes further to the demise of our town centres. SIGN NOW TO SAVE OUR POST OFFICE This petition has been created with support from the CWU (Communication Workers Union). We believe that this "privatisation by the back door" is not good for tax payers who will be funding the Post Office closures. There are currently 74 of these planned and this political ideology risks the jobs of up to 800 post office employees. The public has never endorsed these closures despite the fact that millions of pounds of public money has already been used in the process. £13 million of public money was used in 2014/15 alone to get rid of post office staff, and the CWU estimates the staff compensation cost for this latest privatisation will be at least £30 million. Franchising means the loss of jobs with good terms and conditions as WH Smith replaces experienced Post Office staff with new employees in typically mimimum wage part time roles. SIGN NOW TO SAVE OUR POST OFFICE The good people of Kendal and South Lakeland deserve to have a properly funded state owned Post Office service as indeed does every community in Britain. According to Gill Furniss MP, Shadow Postal Services Minister " The next Labour Government will end the closures of our Post Offices and give communities the ability to shape their high streets and town centres, by strengthening their powers to protect post offices". PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION and help to stop these nonsensical closures and sell offs. SIGN NOW TO SAVE OUR POST OFFICE

Cammell Lairds has just won £619M worth of contracts to maintain the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Ships, but in stead of reassuring their workforce, they have decided to propose 291 redundancies with the first taking place, just weeks before Christmas. We need to be Turning the tide on Casualisation, we believe it is not acceptable that companies like Peel Ports who have a controlling stake in Cammell Lairds, can take such aggressive steps to maximize profits.

Many teaching staff could not carry out their jobs if it were not for these crucial staff in schools and many, many vulnerable pupils would not get a positive and meaningful experience of education if it were not for Pupil Support Assistants, Classroom Assistants, and Learning Assistants. It is imperative - especially in light of the current campaign for increased teacher pay - that non-teaching staff are also recognised for their enormous contribution to education and the importance of this contribution to both teachers and pupils.

David and Alison Telfer had always been led to believe they would remain on their farm at Cleuchfoot until retirement. But now they're being moved off their family farm so that the Duke can cash in on a grant to grow timber. A Forestry Grant Scheme has allowed landowners to benefit financially at the expense of tenants. And unfortunately, due to the practice of issuing short term leases, the current Duke can terminate the Telfers' tenancy whenever he wishes. So the Duke has split their farm into two lots for sale and is removing part of it imminently.This month they are being forced off a major part of their farm. They have had their case brought into the public domain and this has caused embarrassment for the Duke. A public meeting , held in Langholm, to discuss afforestation created overwhelming support for those such as the Telfers and acceptance by the Estate that there had been a lack of proper consultation. Their case has been raised at Holyrood and the chairman of the Scottish Land Commission has criticised the treatment of the couple. Please support the Telfers, who've leased the farm for over 20 years to remain on their farm until their planned retirement in a few years time.

Grantown Initiative and Grantown-on-Spey and Vicinity Community Council recently wrote to The Highland Council regarding the changes to parking arrangements in Grantown-on-Spey which appear to have been made without due consultation with community organisations or consideration for businesses in Grantown-on-Spey. We believe that changes made to the parking arrangements in Grantown-on-Spey have resulted in a dangerous situation for drivers and pedestrians, are potentially damaging to businesses in the town and generally make the Square far less attractive to visitors. Meanwhile Highland Council has failed to provide adequate additional parking in spite of the fact that it holds land at the former council depot which could be used for such. A review of these newly made parking restrictions and a meeting to discuss was requested by both groups. Whilst we support the principle of Highland Council taking civil enforcement powers in respect of parking in Grantown, we must object to the implementation of this draft Order. We feel that that the Parking Scheme recently introduced in Grantown, over which Highland Council appears to be seeking these powers, is not fit for purpose. Not only does it raise serious safety concerns but it has removed essential parking bays around the Square and along the High Street. Not having had the opportunity to discuss the recently introduced parking scheme, Grantown Initiative now requests that The Highland Council takes immediate steps to rectify these issues enact sensible parking restrictions in Grantown-on-Spey. Specifically we request the following changes; • The removal of the parking bay(s) opposite the Co-Operative which have added to congestion around the busy High street / Seafield Avenue junction and have created a hazardous situation for pedestrians and motorists alike. • Removal of the chicane style parking bays along the length of the square which creates congestion, particularly around the Bus Stops where busses cannot properly access the stops due to parked cars. We would suggest that spaces be realigned to allow easier access for buses and freer flowing traffic and reduce unnecessary congestion. • Removal of the new double yellow lines, which have robbed the square of 20 parking places. • The creation of a new off street parking facility to provide sufficient parking for the town as a whole. This could be provided at the site of the old council yard adjacent to Grantown Primary. This could also be used to provide a safe drop off area for the school. • Provide an opportunity for the community to have a say in parking restrictions in Grantown-on-Spey

Some Fair trade organisations are struggling to balance their books. I do not want to lose Fair trade organisations. They provide help in overseas countries in a way which matters. These organisations give assistance to producers so that they may work and provide for their families and community. This means that they can work their way out of poverty, and with dignity and pride. I am a fair trader in a church in S E London. The goods we sell are of a nice quality, and we are helping in a small way. I, for one, want to see the UK Fairtrade organisations continue with their vital work - bringing help to where it really matters. Help to the producers themselves. We need to bring this to the attention of the UK Government. The aim of the petition is for the Government to help Fairtrade providers to continue. Yes this will include financial help by grant or loan initially. More importantly, the government needs to work with Fairtrade organisations to craft long term trading deals and good practice. The organisations' wealth of experience and trading partnerships should be a model for the government to use in overseas aid.

There are no other leisure facilities in the local area.