For many years now local councils have actively promoted households to recycle as much packaging as possible but the amount of plastic packaging that is not currently recycled is unacceptable. How many times have you gone to recycle plastic packaging? only to find that it is not currently recycled. As consumers, we should be able to purchase goods knowing that the packaging they come supplied with can be recycled at a later date. For one week I collected all the plastic packaging that had 'currently not recycled' written on it and was shocked at how much plastic packaging this amounted to. The alternative would be to avoid purchasing the plastic packaging but realistically this is not always an option as the product may only be supplied in that packaging. In the Netherlands, Ekoplaza supermarkets have introduced Europe’s first plastic-free supermarket aisle. "For decades shoppers have been sold the lie that we can’t live without plastic in food and drink... Finally we can see a future where the public have a choice about whether to buy plastic or plastic-free. Right now we have no choice.” (The Guardian - https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/feb/28/worlds-first-plastic-free-aisle-opens-in-netherlands-supermarket). The Guardian’s investigation into supermarkets’ plastic footprint found that leading UK stores create more than 800,000 tonnes of plastic packaging waste every year. However Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Waitrose, Asda and Lidl all refused to divulge their plastic output, with most saying the information was “commercially sensitive”. (The Guardian - https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/feb/28/worlds-first-plastic-free-aisle-opens-in-netherlands-supermarket). Call on supermarkets across the UK to follow Ekoplaza’s example without delay.

Moseley Friends' Institute was gifted to the people of Birmingham by the Cadbury family so that it could be used for the benefit of local people. It has for many years been managed by Birmingham City Council, who are currently considering the future of the building. Although it is currently in need of renovation and repair, it could be an important resource for the community.

Telegraph Hill is a fantastic community park for people of all ages, including children. The upper park is accessed from Kitto Road to the north and Drakefell Road to the south. Drakefell Road is a heavy commuter route, and already has some traffic calming measures including road narrowing and speed humps. However, none of these are aligned with the entrance to the park which is opposite Aspinall Road continuing a footbridge over the railway line for pedestrians and cyclists. Cars still reach significant speeds and parking makes visibility from the kerb tricky for crossing, especially for children. Drakefell Road is therefore a significant barrier to a pleasant car free route that links St Asaphs Road to the south with Arbuthnot Road to the north. Signage identifies this as part of the London Cycle network linking Surrey Queays and New Cross Gate to the north with Crystal Palace and Honor Oak to the south. Installing a pedestrian crossing, whether pelican crossing or even just a traffic island would facilitate access to the park for people of all ages, and encourage non vehicular journeys between New Cross and Honor Oak. Potentially this could replace the width restriction / fire engine gate further to the east.

Plastic bottles, free newspapers and packaged food on-the-go are everywhere on our public transport and on our streets. The government should ensure that everyone has the opportunity to contribute to improving the UK's recycling rates but many of our public litter bins don't have a recycling option. It wouldn't be difficult to commit to ensuring local councils replaced these outdated bins with dual purpose options, as seen in some areas of London, within a reasonable time-frame.

So many cars, and while there are crossings, there are very far away and inconvenient to cross. This prioritising cars in the city and displacing the right of people. Critical to allow pedestrians to have right on the road and hopefully reduce car use.

Please consider any local café, restaurant, pub, clubs/sports associations and village hall a community asset, i.e. somewhere people can gather and socialise and ensure that these establishments are protected under Planning Law. Under current planning law a change of use is permitted through the planning application process, which in turn initiates a "consultation" process i.e. the community has the opportunity to object to an application. However Planning Officers have a tendency to ignore objections and rubber stamp development, a recent example local to me had 700 petitioned objections 13 written and the support of a Local Councillor, planning was still granted. The Government must support the community and prevent Council's and developers ignoring the wish of the local populous. Media reports that society is changing, and that the mental health of the nation is suffering, could this be because people have become insular by not going out. Pub’s, as an example, used to be a place where the local community met, socialised and resolved local issues between themselves, everybody knew their neighbour, their neighbour’s kids, etc. This sense of community is rapidly being lost. People are sitting at home becoming keyboard warriors and panicking over fake-news, they do not have an outlet to talk to others, attributing to the overall mental health of a Nation. Community assets should be protected by Law and encouraged with lesser rents, exemption from business rates, they after all are providing a service to the public, the local community and at times law enforcement. If a building cannot be maintained in it's current use, an alternative use that benefits the community would be preferable, i.e. conversion to a youth club rather that developed for profit.

British territorial waters are some of the most productive in Europe. I started fishing full time 42 years ago. Most of that time under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy. When we joined what was then the EEC we had to sign away equal access to other European countries. Some, like Spain, had no history of fishing in British waters. Others had so little territorial waters of thier own that they must have been rubbing thier hands together with glee at gaining access to our rich and abundant waters. Over the years I have seen the Common Fisheries Policy depress the industry, with once household named fishing ports such as Fleetwood, Milford haven, Lowestoft, Hull and Grimsby all declining. Thousands of people, not only fishermen but those industries supporting them, had to face finding other work or the dole. Whole communities were destroyed. The policy led to overfishing and the consequent decimation of prime fisheries, such as Liverpool bay and the Southern North Sea. The most recent threat has come from Dutch electro pulse fishing. Wiping out whole eco systems on the north Sea in the name of efficiency. I have seen once thriving fisheries that I used to work every year, nearly destroyed. Limiting us to smaller areas and concentrating effort there, instead of the diversity of grounds and fishing opportunities we used to enjoy. We now have the golden opportunity to take back control of what is a national resource potentially worth billions. By putting our own measures in place managing our fisheries effectively and sustainably we could ensure that not only are there fish in the seas but an industry for our children and grandchildren. Those Europeans that have an historic right of access and have fished or waters for hundreds of years, must be allowed to continue within limits but only if they comply with our rules of enforcement.

Hi Everyone, Are you saddened by the state of our litter strewn streets, green spaces and road verges? The effect this has on the Quality of your life. The impression it gives to your children, and visitors to our area. Then please take a minute to sign my petition and get involved. I am fed up of living in an environment resembling some sort of impoverished third world country. Travelling back from out of area I am greeted by litter strewn verges and streets. How will this help the regeneration of Dewsbury and the Spen Valley? This is just not good enough! We need some fresh ideas and out of the box thinking. Sign up for updates etc. You can send me your ideas and suggestions if you click on the contact box on the left

As an answer to austerity, the simplest solution for councils to save money is to just give land away to reduce maintenance costs. Urban greenspace is very important to the community, it is owned by the public (not councils) and may never be returned.

The Haigh Woodland Park is a local treasure and is enjoyed by people from all over the borough for walking, running and cycling. The approach to the Hall is stunning and with the placement of road markings the aesthetic has been ruined completely. Furthermore, these road markings give the clear impression that cars now have the first priority - which should never, ever be the case in a country park where people are trying to enjoy the outdoors and get away from cars for a few hours. There are some great initiatives at Haigh Woodland Park and they should be commended - but this is a disgrace and judging from public sentiment locals and regular visitors are extremely upset and angered by it.

The Isle of Wight cannot afford to have its freshwater drinking supply contaminated by proposed oil drilling. During the drilling process, high strength acids and chemicals are forced into the rock to get to the oil below our pure fresh water source. Sites for oil drilling at Arreton have been finalised but are currently under negotiation. UKOG aim to submit a planning application by the end of Summer 2018. They have announced that drilling will go ahead in 2019 if their planning application to the council is successful. Isle of Wight council should reject UKOG’s planning application when it comes through. Oil drilling would contribute to the destruction of the natural environment on the Isle of Wight, the quality of water and would increase the impact of climate change.

The area has four schools and two playgroups serving hundreds of children and families, as well as many retired residents, cyclists, dog walkers and joggers. The road is a busy route and frequent speeding and dangerous driving has been observed despite the 30mph residential area limit. There have been 10 collisions in the last four years (source: https://www.westsussex.gov.uk/roads-and-travel/road-safety/accident-locations-map) and we want to prevent this happening in the future with the introduction of measures to reduce speeding and make it safer to cross the road. • We are calling for a pedestrian crossing near the junction of St Leonards Road and Brambling Road. • We also want more signage, police patrols and community support to slow down the road. • We urge all drivers to take care and remember the speed limit is 30mph. Please sign our petition urging West Sussex County Council to put in a pedestrian crossing in St Leonards Road before someone dies. Thank you for your support – together we can make a difference. If you have any comments or would like to get involved you can contact us on 07799 267486.