We believe the sale of the building to a private company (Forum Cafe Bars Ltd) is being rushed without possible alternatives being considered. The local community has not been properly consulted and the sale process has been neither democratic nor transparent. The building was gifted by Carnegie to serve the people of Walkley. Once it is sold to a private company it will never again be a public resource - there is no going back. This community resource will be lost forever. The proposed arrangements have been described as a partnership but wider community voice has been removed. Some local people have voiced their opposition but have been ignored. There has been little or no consultation, little or no information has been made available to the wider community and specific questions about the sale process have not been answered. It is important that the sale is put on hold until: 1) the community has a say in the future Walkley Carnegie Library building 2) the sale process (removal from public ownership) being followed is documented, made transparent and shared with the community.

MPs already earn over £67,000pa plus expenses plus generous pensions. A 10% pay rise will take them to £74,000 which is around 3 times the national average salary. this at a time when many people are still restricted to zero rises or increments in line with inflation (again, currently at zero percent) To take such arise just shows complete arrogance and contempt for the British electorate.

Britain has the sixth richest economy in the world, yet there is assize inequality. In fact a recent study showed it is the most unequal nation in Europe. We have 4.1million children living in poverty, 3.5million adults starving themselves in order to feed their children and more than 1,000,000 people last year depended on free handouts from food banks because they could not afford to feed themselves. All public sector workers have been enduring a pay freeze since 2010 despite the rising cost of living. Our MP's refused to grant them a 1% pay rise last year, yet now we hear that they are to receive a 10% pay rise. In 2010 David Cameron and George Osborne told us time and again "we're all in this together" but clearly the we they were referring to did not include themselves and other MP's. If we cannot afford a 1% pay rise for our NHS staff, then we certainly cannot afford a 10% pay rise for MP's. Despite huge opposition to this, including from David Cameron and other MP's, the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority announced yesterday that they intend to proceed with this pay rise from the end of June. Let's send IPSA a message, loud and clear, that it is us who pay MP's wages and we say no to the planned pay increase.

Because children are being failed, families are becoming ill with stress and if something is not done now both the children and the local area will suffer in the future.

Rents in Scotland are out of control. Scottish private tenants – those who rent from a landlord or letting agent - have the worst protections against eviction in Europe. Tenants are being forced into poverty, while house prices and a lack of social housing means there’s no alternative. Rent controls are the norm in most of Europe and were used in the UK until the 1980s. Landlords claim that rent controls would drive up prices and cause housing shortages, but this isn't the case in countries like Germany, France and the Netherlands. Moreover, some tenants are evicted because the landlord doesn't want to do the repairs they've asked for, while others worry that a bigoted landlord may evict them because of their beliefs or sexuality. We want the Scottish Government to: 1. Bring rents under control: Introduce rent controls that ensure rents are set at affordable levels, and that increases don't force tenants into poverty. Rents should be determined by the quality, size, location and facilities of the home. 2. Protect tenants from eviction: Get rid of the 'no-fault' ground for eviction, so that tenants cannot be evicted unjustly. Ensure that all grounds for eviction are 'discretionary', so that a tenants circumstances are taken into consideration.

In just a few days, the UK Independence Party will march in London Pride -- unless we stand up. UKIP opposes same-sex marriage. Their leader, Nigel Farage, says immigrants with HIV should be banned from the UK. Secretary general Matthew Richardson has called trans women "she-males." PPC Alan Harris has said "why cant i say in my own bloody country black is still a colour and gay are still queers." https://d8s293fyljwh4.cloudfront.net/petitions/images/107458/hero/6062423-large.jpg The list goes on. There's no place for UKIP in London Pride.

Homeless people could be fined up to £1,000 for sleeping in doorways near popular tourist spots, under new rules launched by a London council. Homelessness charities have condemned the move, saying that it turns rough sleepers - who are often escaping lives of abuse - into criminals. Hackney Council’s Public Space Protection Order bans sleeping in public places - offenders are handed a £100 fixed penalty, which can rise to £1,000 in court.

It is a form of child cruelty. Severe pain and fear is inflicted upon infants unnecessarily. It serves no purpose other than to satisfy the parent's vanity. Other forms of physically harming children are illegal- this should be no different.

A young girl was tragically killed in a recent accident while cycling along this road and there are ongoing concerns relating to this busy stretch of road which many parents have to cross to get to the local primary school. Many cars travel along it at 60 MPH. I think a foot/cycle path that separates people from this road and links them to a safe passage to town and local areas without worry or fear from passing traffic would be a huge benefit to the local community. With all the extra housing and development happening in the area this should have been something that was considered before planning was granted, and been included in the cost of redeveloping the area. It would encourage more people to actively walk or cycle in to town and around the local area that would otherwise drive reducing traffic and keep people active. I'm aware this has been approached before with out success but I hope they would reconsider there plans after recent events in the hope that this can be avoided again as I can't help but think this accident could, correction would not have happened if the above was in place. I see this as a good thing to spend local money on improving connections between all communities.

The global demand for electricity is projected to grow by nearly 80 percent between now and 2030. The over-reliance on fossil fuels and its environmental cost combined with wind energy becoming increasingly cost competitive rests the case firmly with wind. A modern wind turbine produces 180 times more electricity at less than half the cost per kWh than the most efficient turbine 20 years ago. This staggering statistic points to wind energy’s coming of age and its onward journey of promise into a reliable and cost competitive, renewable energy source. The maturing of the wind industry has led to more efficient value chains and growing economies of scale, and can already compete with coal and gas in certain circumstances. As the price of emitting Co2 rises, the relative cost of wind power has improved even more. Neath needs to be in a position whereby it produces its own energy - both from sustainable sources and with an ability to sell it to the National Grid when there is a surplus. Drummau Mountain is the ideal location for wind turbines, as are most hills and mountains within the locale, like Mynydd Marchywel, for example. We call on Neath Port Talbot Council to continue to explore and build renewable energy projects across the county borough, without prejudice, and for the common good.

Many people living in Argyll and Bute are concerned at the serious allegations contained in the Common Space articles written during February and March 2015. Some of these allegations relate to the failed community buyout of Castle Toward which over 10,000 people supported in a previous 38 degrees petition. The Chief Executive of the council, Sally Loudon has been asked by some local residents and by the MSP Mike Russell to instigate an independent investigation into these allegations. So far the response has been they cannot because the allegations are anonymous despite there being precedents for the investigation of anonymous allegations in many areas of public life including the Police, Social Services and Health Boards. Sally Loudon has also given written responses saying the allegations are untrue but without a full, thorough and independent investigation this is unsatisfactory and leaves too many questions unanswered. The General Register of Scotland recently published figures showing a continuing serious decline in the population of Argyll and Bute. We need to know the council is working for the good of the local people and stop this decline in an area rich with natural assets and so much potential for growth.

A backpack is not uniform, nor is it important and the way children have been shamed for not having them, either because they can't afford them or are refusing to buy them because of their poor quality and high price is a disgrace. The idea that there is a 'cheap' version, a 'girls' version and two other versions in the pipeline goes against the principle of a standardised uniform anyway. It is important for children to go to school to learn and make the most out of their education, not to go to school to be bullied by staff because they don't have the right backpack, not to be threatened with isolation and eventually expulsion, not to queue up at a 'poor door' to hand in their non school branded bags and in turn be bullied by students for being poor or different. All of us, adults and children, have more important things to worry about, you'd think a headteacher would too.