Susan Gaszczak

Hertfordshire's Liberal Democrats have accused the Conservative Administration at the County Council of failing to consult properly on the planned closure of Jane Campbell House in St Albans, which also has worrying implications for other care homes in Hertfordshire.

Even though the care home has an occupancy rate approaching 100%, the County Council has declared that it is 'having problems finding occupants' and that it 'is no longer economically viable'. The introduction of en suite accommodation, planned by the County Council, is impossible on the current site, which has led to the proposed sale of the land.

The first ever review of a County Council Cabinet decision, which had been demanded by the Liberal Democrats, ended in disappointment as the Conservative majority refused to refer the issue back to Cabinet for re-consideration. The one-day meeting highlighted the lack of information which had been given to local groups throughout the process. and raised concerns about the level of uncertainty faced by the groups, even as the County Council continues its plan to sell off the land at the Ariston Works site on Harpenden Rd, St Albans.

Attempts to prevent 12 staff from being made redundant to save just £41,000 were scuppered this week after the Conservatives voted to get rid of the Schools Library Service.

During the debate on the cabinet decision at a scrutiny meeting on Wednesday 25th January, the Liberal Democrat group highlighted that the closure of the service had been agreed without any reference to the County's own Education and Skills Cabinet Panel, despite the service being used exclusively by Hertfordshire's schools.

With the Olympics just around the corner, the Liberal Democrats are fighting hard to ensure that a number of local sport groups aren't made homeless by a decision made at the County Council to sell off the land which they use: the former Ariston Works Site at Harpenden Road.

On Tuesday, members of Hertfordshire County Council's Overview & Scrutiny Committee visited the site to find out more about the site and the groups that use it. They were told that St Albans Judo Club has produced a number of national medal winners and the Pioneer Skate Park has hosted the Girl Skate Jam UK. Some of the councillors seemed visibly shocked when they heard how many young people used the facilities and the wide range of activities taking place there.

Herts Lib Dems have condemned waste by Conservative-run Herts Highways after a pedestrian crossing count - intended to assess the need for a new crossing that could potentially serve three Watford schools - failed to spot any schoolchildren using the road.

The traffic count took place in Woodside Road, Leavesden at the request of Cllr Stephen Giles-Medhurst. The date was set by Herts Highways.

Emergency radio broadcasts could be jeopardised by BBC plans to turn off medium wave radio transmitters and lay off local reporters, council leaders warned today.

In times of crisis such as flooding, severe weather or other major emergencies, town halls and their partner police and fire authorities often rely on local radio to keep residents informed and issue safety advice.

Plans for the relocation of the New Barnfield Performing Arts library have been pushed through by Herts County Council, despite the head of Hertfordshire Libraries recently admitting to local Lib Dem councillor Malcolm Cowan that only one third of the collection will remain on display when the new arrangements come into effect.

With the part-night lighting scheme set to be rolled out to more districts from the start of the New Year, Hertfordshire's Liberal Democrats have once again sounded a warning to the plans by the Conservative administration at County Hall, saying the proposed scheme is too inflexible.

Commenting on behalf of the Lib Dem Group, Malcolm Cowan, Lib Dem County Councillor for Handside & Peartree (Welwyn Garden City), said:

The Coalition Government has approved £76.24m of funding to bring the London Underground to the centre of Watford, the Croxley Rail Link.

Elected Mayor of Watford Dorothy Thornhill said: "This is fantastic news. It feels like an early Christmas present for Watford. We've worked on this project for a number of years, so I'm delighted that all the lobbying and behind the scenes efforts have worked and the government has given the green light to this scheme.

"The scheme will support economic development in Watford and south west Hertfordshire by providing first class transport links to business and retail centres. The experts say it will provide hundreds millions of pounds of benefits to the area and give more people better transport links. It's about investing in the future and will help boost our efforts for the £750 million Watford Health Campus project."

Herts County Council's Schools Library Service is to be axed. The service, which provides staff support to the County's school libraries, will close from next April.

At the Libraries Cabinet Panel yesterday (7^th December), 8 Conservatives voted to end the contract on 31 March 2012, while the Panel's 3 Lib Dems voted against. Labour's representative on the Panel did not attend and did not even send apologies.