These slug pellets are responsible for killing Hedgehogs, Birds, Dogs, Cats and many other animals that have ingested the dead slugs that have been killed by these pellets. An example of the consequences of the use of these slug pellets can be found here. https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/please-stop-putting-down-slug-16505226?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar These are innocent victims from the use of these pellets, and this type of toxin should not be used if it kills other innocent wildlife that comes in contact with these pellets. The animals, hedgehogs birds etc. suffer an agonising death as this toxin causes liver and kidney failure, it attacks the nervous system and other vital organs. I myself have had to euthanise hedgehogs that have been brought into our care suffering this poison, of which is distressing as they cannot be treated. The Right Hon Michael Gove former Environment Minister banned the use of these slug pellets, which following a successful legal challenge by Chiltern Farm Chemicals has now been overruled. Much of the British Wildlife is endangered now, with hedgehog numbers diminished to under a million. It is estimated that between 5 and 10 years the British Hedgehog will become extinct. I do not understand why anyone would want to kill the gardner’s best friend an animal that eats much of the pests that cause harm and damage to arable crops and gardens. Metaldehyde is extremely toxic and is extremely harmful to other animals apart from slugs and snails. Morally a toxin that kills slugs and snails without harming other animals should only be used. Metaldehyde is a toxin that has been around for 40 + years now. Surely now there are more up to date methods of keeping slugs and snails away from crops and gardens. It also is possible that Metaldehyde is responsible for the drastically diminishing population of hedgehogs although nothing has been proven, but statistics also indicate a rapid decline of hedgehogs over the last 40 years.

The entire north coast of the Wirral is a site of special scientific interest ! The Dee estuary has been steadily silting up since the last ice age ! This process is now continuing around the corner on to Hoylake beach ! Vegetation is taking hold and a salt marsh will form . The council have sprayed the beach with glyphosate weed killer directly onto the beach !! It goes without saying that chemicals and the ocean don’t belong together!

Quarriers James Shields Project has been delivering vital homelessness accommodation and support to young people, 16 - 25 years old, in the Glasgow area for over 20 years. The young people who use the service have complex situations including, histories of abuse, mental health difficulties and a lack of support. Some are completely isolated Asylum Seekers. This service is now being closed. At a time when Scotland has the highest drug death statistics in Europe and increased suicide, the loss of such a vital service, with no established alternative, will potentially have life threatening consequences for some young people. The safety of young people is the obvious priority for this petition, however Glasgow is also on the verge of losing 28 trained, specialised staff, who have been invested in with tax payers money. It is essential that young people, who have often been unprotected in childhood, continue to have access to safe, supported accommodation when in the crisis of homelessness.

In 2017 I was diagnosed with stage 4 bladder cancer. I live with Spinabifida and am a wheelchair user because I'm paralysed from above the waist down. It is not legally possible to prove, but it is my sincere belief that had I been examined earlier in the year using a hoist and adjustable wide treatment bed, my cancer may have been discovered sooner. Disabled people and particularly paralysed people, don't always feel changes in their body, so require better than average monitoring. This equipment would provide that extra safeguarding and would protect disabled people from developing further physical issues that cost huge amounts of tax payer's money to address and great distress.

Reality TV shows are putting people at risk. Broadcasters are sacrificing the mental health and wellbeing of their participants and countless reality TV stars have spoken out saying that their participation in shows have left them feeling vulnerable, and battling mental health issues. It’s costing lives. This year the Jeremy Kyle Show was taken off air after the tragic death of show participant Steve Dymond. And in March Love Island star Mike Thalassitis was the second cast member of the show to die by sucicide following the death in June 2018 of Sophie Gradon, who appeared on Love Island the previous year. In response to the huge public outcry following these deaths, media regulator Ofcom has proposed new safeguards to protect reality TV stars. Under the new rules, British TV and radio stations will be explicitly required to protect the “welfare, wellbeing and dignity” of individuals who take part in their programmes. But broadcasters are pushing back against any regulations that might hurt their ratings - and we need to make sure that Ofcom stay true to their commitment and introduce new rules to protect the wellbeing of reality tv show participants.

The University of Manchester has one of the largest international student communities in the UK. The International Society, previously housed in the beautiful and spacious William Kay House on Oxford Road, where it hosted events and activities for the international community, has long been a major part of the student experience in Manchester for many international students. In 2016, the University reviewed its support for international students and concluded its preferred strategy is to fund only one organisation to support its many international students. Consequently, it decided that, from 31 July 2019 onwards, direct University funding of the International Society will stop and be diverted to the Student Union instead. As a result, the Society has had to vacate its previous premises and has relocated to the Student Union building, and the Society’s Small World Café, one of the main meeting points for Manchester’s international community, had to be closed. For the time being, it seems the Society will remain a separate charity entity operating from the Student Union premises. However, given the limited space allocated in the Union building and the future uncertainty, this petition calls on all individuals who have enjoyed and benefitted from the programmes of the International Society, to highlight the importance of the existence of an independent International Society for our university community and international community. This petition thus seeks to draw attention to the University management board, and calls for the guaranteed continuation of all the long-running events and activities that the International Society has been able to host throughout its years, which have been a major part of the student experience in Manchester for many international students, including myself. In my personal experience, as an international student, half-German and half-Japanese, born in the UK but raised in various countries, the International Society acted as a home-away-from-home, as it provided a warm and welcoming space for international and British students and staff, as well as members of the local community, to come together and connect with people from every corner of the world. Popping in to meet familiar or new faces, to have a coffee, to play piano, or to work on language skills– the International Society always provided a welcoming and inspiring cross-cultural atmosphere none of the single-country Student Union societies were able to offer. Besides the many language classes, trips, cultural workshops and families groups the Society has been hosting for years, exemplary of this was the "International 16" project which I was predominantly involved in during my past 3 years at our university. It included a series of events to encourage students, staff and all community members to come together in a welcoming place to meet new people and learn about different cultures through cuisine and activities, thereby enriching our cultural awareness and appreciation. Previously supported by all three universities in Manchester (UoM, MMU and the University of Salford), through these activities and events, the Society has thus been positively contributing to community cohesion, and has celebrated cultural diversity since 1966. Run by international staff and volunteers themselves, the Society does an outstanding job at understanding and meeting the needs and wishes of our university’s international community, and as an international student far away from home, it is beautiful to see an entire entity dedicated to the wellbeing of internationals as its top priority and purpose. To sum up, looking back on the International Society as one of the fondest university experiences for many, including myself, this petition strives to ensure that future students, as well as the wider (international) community of The University of Manchester, will be able to continue to enjoy the International Society too.

Having been reassured during July, when the leader of Essex County Council, David Finch, publicly announced that no libraries would close in the next 5 years, the truth came out at the Cabinet meeting. We now know that Essex County Council wants its libraries to be run by volunteers in community buildings. They have asked for groups to put in expressions of interest in running the libraries and have promised the miserly sum of £18,000 over 3 years to resource them. So dedicated library buildings will go, as will the store of books, computers, resources and trained staff. In will come well meaning volunteers working from a shared venue, where there will be no computers and books will need to be packed away at the end of the session. Librarians presently employed by the council, will either be redeployed or lose their jobs. Of the libraries threatened with closure, we know that some 80 groups have expressed an interest in running them. These are developers, parish councils, churches etc, but ALL will be run by volunteers in a non dedicated building. Very little funding will be available with just 250 books per community library, changed every 12 weeks and the hours of opening will be dictated by whenever the community building and volunteers are available. However good the volunteers are they cannot replicate the skill, expertise and professionalism of the present paid library staff. So we ask you to sign our petition to Save our Librarians and ensure that Essex County Council continues to provide the library service which it is legally obliged to. Essex needs fully staffed libraries. The people of Essex have and continue to pay for this service. They deserve a properly funded, properly resourced and properly staffed local library. You can find out more here: https://38d.gs/essex-libraries https://www.facebook.com/SaveOurLibrariesEssex/

A large organisation taking this action against worthwhile thoughtful and brave men while doing a car rescue in their own time is unforgiveable and stupid

Allerdale Borough Council is considering giving retrospective planning to a private nuclear laundry washing up to 7.75 tonnes of Sellafield's dirty washing a day. The Ltd. company has no planning permission but was rewarded a radioactive substances permit from the Environment Agency (following a one month consultation which no one knew about) for every radioactive isotope you can think of and then some. Sellafield has its own dedicated supply of top quality fresh water but it is now using the public water supply to wash nuclear laundry. The nuclear laundry (Energy Coast Laundry) is 16 miles away from the Sellafield site at Lillyhall Business Park, near a college, play facilities for young children and food outlets. Companies House list the laundry as "Washing and (dry)cleaning of textile and fur products." The Company themselves have a crib sheet for prospective employees which states: "“Energy Coast Laundry Ltd is the Nuclear Professional arm and sister company to the Shortridge Group, owned and governed by the same directors but with a particular focus on Nuclear Industry Workwear and the cleaning and presentation of these products to and for our customer Mitie. We deal with six types of article or garment. These are towels, socks, pants, vests, shirts and trousers. We pick up two vehicle loads from Sellafield daily and turnaround the loads within twenty-four hours. Our core working hours are from 0500 to 1700 daily this does flex depending on the business needs. We produce over 6 tonnes a day on normal operation our production record is 7.75 tonnes in a day with equated to 775 10kg bags of clean processed laundry.” This is outrageous.

Youth violence and child criminal exploitation in the UK are at an all time high, and the government aren’t doing enough to prevent it. In the past 5 years, knife crime has increased by 71%, and the number of young people who lost their lives to violence rose by 45% from 2017-2018. And because of massive cuts to funding for youth programs and services, the criminal exploitation of children has sky-rocketed. If the government wants to protect young people in the UK from violence and exploitation, they need to fund youth services that can intervene early in young people’s lives, making sure they have safe places to go to and trusted adults to help them and protect them from harm. I started this petition because I have children myself, and I want the government to do more to give them opportunities, and keep them safe. Please sign and share.

The temporary closure of Mill Road railway bridge has shown us a glimpse of how the area could be. The street has been transformed from a traffic-logged vector into a place for eating, drinking, and community activities. Cycling and walking, have become safer, and sitting outside a cafe or restaurant no longer means breathing endless exhaust fumes. The Parklet is the first foray into a long list of physical changes to Mill Road that could permanently transform it into one of Cambridge's best urban outdoor spaces. Since construction, it has been almost permanently filled by those adding custom to local businesses, or just stopping by to relax and chat on a sunny summer evening. Just as local businesses are realising the potential of such quickly erected street furniture - the primary concern now being that they want it in front of their shop front instead - it would be a huge lost opportunity to rip it out again. Obviously, the closure of Mill Road bridge to motor traffic and the resulting serene street environment has helped the Parklet's success. But an extension past the bridge closure would allow a test of the concept on an open street. If traffic can still be discouraged from Mill Road by one or multiple Parklets whilst the road is open, then we can begin to analyse the impact on the surrounding road network, and on Mill Road itself. In summary - keep the Parklet, even for just a few more months. It's good for the community, it's good for businesses, and it's the first step to transforming Mill Road from traffic-logged vector, to a clean and vibrant public space.

Because Darlaston desperately needs a local police force