Campaigners continue to fight to save 11 Lime trees on Rustlings Road. They can see no disease affecting the trees, they are not obstructing the footpath, and if there is any damage to pavements or kerbs, there should we ways of correcting this without damaging the trees. Sign the petition.

As far as we know, the Council is still planning to remove the trees as reported in the Guardian on Saturday. Liberal Democrats called for a pause in the tree felling programme until a proper tree strategy had been agreed, but the Council contractors just moved to other areas of the city and carried on removing trees.

Please let us know of any concerns about roadside trees in the Gleadless Valley area.

Liberal Democrats launch manifesto to cut waste, create jobs and save Sheffield libraries

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Sheffield Liberal Democrats will today present alternative budget plans, which will see sixteen threatened libraries across the city saved. (See Lib Dem Budget Amendments 2014-15)
At today’s annual budget meeting (Fri 7th Mar, 14:00) spending plans will face a crucial vote of councillors, including controversial plans to reduce funding for libraries.
Under Liberal Democrat proposals planned cuts to libraries, parks and city-centre events will be reversed. Meanwhile, opposition Liberal Democrats will propose cutting the cost of green recycling bins by a third, reducing parking permit charges and blocking hikes in allotment fees.
Liberal Democrats also want to see more support for businesses by making it free to park in the city-centre on evenings and Sundays.
The Liberal Democrat plan, which has been signed off by independent council finance officers, is partly funded by a proposed reduction in pay for the top 25% of council earners. The proposal could save as much as £2.5 million per year and follows similar plans adopted in Doncaster and Southampton.
Liberal Democrats are also proposing to cut funding for pet projects like Park Hill and the Burngreave New Deal, reduce the amount spent on policy and research and cut costs by sharing services with other councils and local organisations.
Cllr Andrew Sangar, Sheffield Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Finance, said:
“Local people are tired of this Labour Council playing the blame-game – they want to see action instead. No-one denies the need for difficult decisions but Labour politicians just haven’t been honest with local people about the challenges the Council faces.
“Millions have been wasted on pet-projects and high paid-consultants – not to mention the £31 million of uncollected Council Tax. We’ve shown that by making some sensible savings and doing things differently, libraries can be kept open and important services can be protected.
“Independent finance officers have signed off our plans – confirming that all libraries can be kept open if Labour bosses are only willing to listen.”

Sheffield City Council has faced fresh pressure to stamp down on unpaid Council Tax as they set their annual budget this week.
In November, opposition Liberal Democrats discovered that the Labour-run Council had a total of £31 million in unpaid council tax bills, some of which dated back to 1999/2000.
However in the three months since the Labour administration have failed to bring forward policies to crack down on the debt.
The Labour administration face fresh pressure this week as the Council vote on their annual budget (Fri 7th Mar, 14:00), including proposals which could see up to sixteen libraries closed.
The planned saving in the libraries services equates to roughly £900,000 next financial year.
Cllr Andrew Sangar, Sheffield Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Finance, said:
“When these figures were revealed last year local taxpayers were naturally shocked. To allow tax dodgers protection is unfair on the majority of local residents who pay their council tax on time and such blatant abuse makes a mockery of the whole system”.

Libraries in Sheffield remain under threat pending the conclusion of the consultation period on 10th January. As currently planned, there will be 11 fully-supported core libraries, 5 supported community libraries, staffed by voluteers with some Council support, and the remaining 11 either running as independent libraries, or closing. A report in the Star last week identified that the Council may be able to fund running some of the independent libraries by helping with running costs such as electricity bills or possible links to the council computer systems.

At a packed public meeting to discuss the future of the threatened library in Broomhill, Cllr Mazher Iqbal, cabinet member for communities, said: “We will look at how we can provide funding for the 11 independent libraries for 12 months.”

from Sheffield Lib Dems October 28th

New Government powers adopted by Sheffield City Council have seen an 18% reduction in long term empty homes in the city.

In just four months since the introduction of an ‘empty homes premium’ in April, the number of privately-owned homes empty for more than two years has already decreased from 1041 to 856, an 18% reduction.

The empty homes premium, a power to charge council tax of 150% on private properties empty for more than two years, was introduced by the Coalition Government.

Sheffield City Council agreed to adopt the policy in February 2013, following significant pressure from opposition Liberal Democrat councillors.

Cllr Penny Baker, Sheffield Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Housing, said:

“Providing much needed housing is vital to supporting Sheffield families and by bringing empty homes back into use, we can avoid the need to concrete over treasured green spaces.

“I’m delighted that the Government granted powers for an empty homes premium and that after considerable pressure the Council agreed to use these powers.  In the few months that the premium has been operating it’s already had a significant impact across Sheffield.”