It now costs the British tax payer more than £6 million pounds per annum to supply public servants with subsidised food and alcohol. Given the recent MP salary increase to £74000 (before expenses) it's not unreasonable to expect that they pay for subsistence in the same way the majority of other workers do. The average wage in the UK is £26000 - £74000 pa from the public purse is quite enough. Equality with other workers!

This petition has been launched by the Protect Frome Valley @ Stapleton Community Association, formed in February 2015 in direct response to a proposed development on green open space adjacent to Eastville Park Lake (see photo opposite) that enjoyed multiple protective designations in Bristol’s planning policies and yet was still extremely vulnerable to what we regard as a speculative and wholly inappropriate development proposal. Bristol needs more homes: we recognise and accept this. We also recognise that this will place increasing pressure on our much loved and used green open spaces. However, Bristol does not need to sacrifice these precious and finite resources in order to meet this need. In its report ‘From Wasted Space to Living Spaces’, the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) identifies that up to 30,000 homes could be built on brownfield sites in the Bristol area. The report, based on research conducted by the University of the West of England (UWE), highlights Bristol as one of the few local authorities already doing much in this regard but acknowledges that more needs to be done – both locally and nationally – to protect green open space from being lost forever. The report’s recommendations call for: A clear and consistent ‘brownfield first’ approach in planning policy Bringing back an effective strategic tier of sub-regional or county level planning Ensuring that strong strategic and local plans are encouraged, implemented and updated across the country Giving the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) greater powers and resources to redevelop large and difficult sites Developing a proactive approach to identifying brownfield land, with increased focus on regenerating large sites with multiple owners Reintroducing mandatory reporting to the National Land Use Database (NLUD) and make its data more accessible Providing assistance to smaller builders by identifying smaller sites and offering incentives for development such as the increased use of local development orders (LDOs) The full report can be found at http://bit.ly/cprerpt. We urge Bristol City Council to use the year of European Green Capital to adopt these recommendations so far as possible at City level, and in so doing develop Best Practice models as an example to other local authorities. As population densities increase, access to green open space becomes ever more important for our physical and mental wellbeing and for our beleaguered wildlife. We must make every effort to keep Bristol the wonderful place it is in which to live and work. If the legacy of our year of European Green Capital is to have any real meaning for the ordinary people of Bristol, it will lie in the quality of the Green Infrastructure that we hand on to the next generation. We urge you to support this petition. Please follow this link to the Bristol City Council e-petition site and sign the petition there , because if we reach 3,500 signatures on the BCC site, it will trigger a full council debate. http://bit.ly/bccpetn Thank You!

What is the point of having all these rules and regulations for the youth of today, when they don't get a say on these matters

The Living Wage is a concept which has been developed independently and it should not be hi-jacked by the Chancellor because he wants to pass the Minimum Wage off as something it is not. Only The Living Wage Foundation can set the Living Wage, by its own independent processes and no one, not even the Chancellor, can think of any other amount and pass it off as the real thing!

Traditionally, the SNP have abstained from voting on policies that do not directly affect Scotland. The changes to the fox hunting bill that are to be voted on in a free vote in Westminster next Thursday whilst not directly impacting on Scotland do go against the wishes of 80% of the UK population. The SNP should make a stand on this breach of democracy as their vote is likely to be the deciding vote. Local MPs - find yours here - (https://www.writetothem.com/)

Imagine if manufacturers had to say how long they expect their products to last and backed it with a guarantee. For the first time people will be able to make a real choice when they buy something. e.g. "Do I get the £15 kettle that lasts 1 year? or the £30 kettle that lasts 5-6 years?" This makes things simple. We deserve to know what we are buying! "Planned Obsolescence" (where manufacturers purposefully design their products to break or be unfixable) is on the rise. It might bring profits in for shortsighted companies, but it is a growing disaster for the environment and it means that we are stuck buying the same shoddy things again and again. Having your kettle/hoover/dishwasher break is not just annoying, it traps people in a cycle of poverty. But there's something we can do! If people know how long something is expected to last, we can see if the "cheap prices" are really worth it. It's likely that companies will realise that have to do better, and up the durability of their products or risk having to publish some dismal figures. Us consumers have been trapped by these companies strategies for too long and it's time for us to get some power back. The power of choice. Please sign the petition. The planet will thank us all. We can do it! Tara PS. Follow and share the campaign with the hashtag #built2break

Because George Osborne and the cabinet are not competent in running the finances of the UK and will cause thousands of children and other families to enter poverty and will cause thousands of more crises within the UK.

Many of the working poor, sick and disabled are on a knife-edge as to whether they lose their homes, can continue working, end up in hospital, breakdown, die or commit suicide. The DWP have been fighting the figures for deaths of those found 'fit to work'. The media typically don't report the plight of the working poor or those needing benefits (in or out of work). Councils are given more and more responsibility so that their spending power looks good when they cry out about cuts. The government cuts-back the funding before handing over responsibility. Councils then have to hurt their residents. The people must be given a choice. If Greeks can do it, so can the Brits.

The bill in its current form with its definition of psychoactive substances would appear to ban things such as herbal teas, botanical substances and herbal remedies with a long standing tradition of use; for example; chammomile, valarian, lavender, st John's wort and things such as essential oils. These substances have a positive effect on human health and in many instances have proven scientific uses that lessen the need for taking toxic medications; for example sleep aids and relaxing herbal teas. The Psycoactive Substances Bill would criminalise law abiding citizens that look to alternative medicines and further remove our freedom of choice in matters of our personal health and wellbeing. Although there is an exemption for "traditional herbal remedies" once again the definition is very subjective and open to broad interpretation. The definition in the act of a psychoactive effect is as follows; "...a substance produces a psychoactive effect in a person if, by stimulating or depressing the person’s central nervous system, it affects the person’s mental functioning or emotional state..." This extremely loose definition could apply to almost anything that a human can find enjoyment in, from a cup of herbal tea, to watching TV, to enjoying a joke with friends. At the very least these definitions need to be ammended to prevent potential future abuses of this legislation.

Deaths of our citizens in a foreign land were enough to secure a minute's silence recently. It's time the government formally acknowledge their complicity in the deaths of the sick and disabled on our own shores by the malicious manipulation and abrogation of the benefits system, when evidence made clear the policy was causing harm.

In 2012 Theresa May announced that from April 2016 non-EU migrant workers will be required to earn £35,000 to stay in the UK, even if they have lived and worked here for more than 5 years. This devastating new immigration rule must be stopped, as immigrants who have lived and worked in the UK for longer than 5 years should have the right to stay regardless of their income. We cannot allow this policy to happen, as it will split up families, jeopardise the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people and severely damage the economy. The Royal college of Nursing recently announced that this policy will cost the NHS MILLIONS because so many of it's nurses are non-EU migrants who earn under £35,000 and who will be deported under this policy. Recruiting new nurses will be time consuming and expensive, and will drain more of the money needed to save the NHS. Also, the average income for a UK born citizen is £26,600, so it is entirely unfair to deport immigrants who may earn more than the average UK born citizen, but less than £35,000. Please sign the petition to hopefully prevent this devastating policy from becoming reality.

To stop the government from killing those most vulnerable in society