However, a couple of months on from the announcement, there are still no details about who will take it on and when they will start running it.

Green Councillor Julien Pritchard represents the area and has been campaigning to protect Maypole Youth Centre in the face of council cuts. He is worried about what the Youth Service proposals will mean for the Maypole, and questions why the Council have chosen to stop funding for this particular Youth Centre.

At the last Council Meeting, Julien submitted a written question asking for more details about when they would transfer the ownership and who would take it on. Unfortunately, the Council won’t give any more details about either of these matters. 

Julien said:

“We’re being kept in the dark about the future of the Youth Centre. The Labour-run Council told us two months ago that they wanted to transfer Maypole Youth Centre to someone else, but we still have no more details.”

“As usual it feels like Druids Heath is the easy hit for losing services. The regeneration is yet to bring any improvements to the area, and then the Council decided Druids Heath would be one of the places to lose its Council-run Youth Centre.”

“I have pledged to keep on fighting for the young people who rely on this service. We urgently need clarity on this, and there must be cast-iron guarantees that there will still be a Youth Centre in Druids Heath.”

The post Fears Increase Over Maypole Youth Centre as Community Kept in the Dark about TakeOver appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

The Neighbourhood Overview & Scrutiny Committee, which has a majority of Labour councillors, decided not to uphold the call in request. They also voted down three other requests from other parties.

The councillors asked for the call in because: 

• The decision conflicts with council policies on digital access
• There were a number of concerns around the consultation 
• There was no consideration of the effect of reducing opening hours on libraries’ use and viability. 
• The information around the partner-led proposals was insufficient and potentially inaccurate.

Green Party Councillor Julien Pritchard said:

“This is incredibly disappointing. Many of the points made simply weren’t addressed by the Cabinet Member and officers. Despite this, the Labour Councillors decided not to allow the challenge to the cabinet decision. Yet again, Labour Councillors have shown no regard for the views of residents who rely on these vital community assets in voting for cuts to the Library service.

“Now our Libraries face shorter hours or complete closure for the partner led libraries if they fall through.“

The post Labour Councillors Vote Down Challenge to Library Cuts appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

Green Party Councillors Julien Pritchard and Rob Grant proposed an amendment to put funding back into Libraries, Youth Centres and street cleaning after they were cut from last year’s budget. They are also proposing to reintroduce free pest control for rats and put more money back into flooding, but unfortunately the amendment was voted down by Labour councillors.

They were able to find officially approved savings in communications, the council’s senior leadership team, support to council political groups and the council cabinet, plus a small reduction in allowances for the council cabinet. 

Green Party Councillor Julien Pritchard said:

“Once again this Council budget is cutting services, which means residents will continue to suffer for a crisis not of their making. There’s a lot of talk about tough choices and difficult decisions. It’s not really difficult for the people making those decisions. It’s not hard for those people at the top.”

“As well as the Council’s self-inflicted mistakes and mis-management, Birmingham isn’t getting the funds it needs from the Labour Government to deliver services for the residents of this city. Austerity is well and truly still alive and kicking under Labour.”

“Vital services could be funded by taxing wealth. It seems that Labour would rather make tough choices that mean ordinary residents suffer, than the tough choices that tax wealth.”

“Without the council leadership sticking up for the needs of residents, more Birmingham Council cuts are to come next year, so there’s not much hope things will get better.”

“We’re trying to give a bit of hope and put back some funding into some of those front line services that really matter to residents.”

Green Party Councillor Rob Grant said:

“People will be rightly upset that they are paying more for less. Residents are rightly asking why they should pay when they’re getting so little service.”

“And what role have residents played in setting this Council budget? Residents have had little say in the prioritisation of how the woefully low levels of funds are spent. Their voices have not been heard in drawing up this Labour budget.”

The Green Party Budget Amendment can be read in full here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XUGZz95j8UOUHD1W9AkWzgOlDmE2hcFe/view?usp=sharing

The post Greens push for more cash for Libraries, Cleaner Streets, and Youth Centres appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

The councillors are asking the Neighbourhoods Overview & Scrutiny to call in the decision, which pushes the Labour Cabinet to look again at the proposals. The councillors have asked for the call in because: 

• The decision conflicts with council policies on digital access
• There were a number of concerns around the consultation 
• There was no consideration of the effect of reducing opening hours on libraries’ use and viability. 
• The information around the partner-led proposals was insufficient and potentially inaccurate.

Green Party Councillor Julien Pritchard said:

“Libraries are absolutely crucial to communities across the city. Any changes need to be done carefully. Instead this decision has slashed opening hours and cast uncertainty over several libraries across the city. “

“There’s no consideration of the effect of cutting opening hours on library use, and how to make sure this doesn’t open the door to more cuts in future.”

“The lack of information on the partner led proposals won’t fill people with confidence that it’s not just a fig-leaf to close those libraries.”

“The Labour Administration really needs to think again on this.”

The documents for the cabinet meeting to approve cuts to the libraries can be viewed here: https://birmingham.cmis.uk.com/birmingham/Meetings/tabid/70/ctl/ViewMeetingPublic/mid/397/Meeting/14215/Committee/2/Default.aspx

The call in is here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/12D8Pzq6YyrQrDHNloaY94RSSjCSnGlPo/edit?usp=drive_link&ouid=107060955718882334205&rtpof=true&sd=true

The post Councillors Challenge Cuts to Libraries appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

Because of this, our Labour-run Council is suspending recycling collections, and paid-for bulky waste collections. Instead of that, their advice for residents is to take recycling to the tip themselves.

Green Party councillor Julien Pritchard explains: “The situation is so bad that only grey bins will be collected now. Not even all of those will be done either, because they will be prioritising HMOs, flats and assisted collections.” 

“This isn’t a system; this is a mess. And it’s really not fair to put this on residents. We’ve been pushing the Labour Cabinet Member to sort out collection issues for months. Escalating strikes will mean even dirtier streets.”

Green Party councillors and campaigners across the city will try to keep residents updated on what’s happening as best we can. This web page gives all the latest from the council: https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/industrialaction

The post As Strikes Escalate, Labour Council says ‘Sort out your own rubbish and recycling’ appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

At Tuesday’s Full Meeting of the City Council, Green Party Councillor Julien Pritchard asked the Council’s Labour Leader why the decision on libraries had been delayed from January’s Council Cabinet meeting to February.

Cllr Pritchard also asked whether there was any truth to the rumour that the decision on library closures was delayed from the January meeting was because “The City Commissioners are not happy at the level of cuts”  and want “greater slashing of library Services.”

Labour’s Leader of the Council refused to deny this, saying “My operating rule in these circumstances is to not listen to fear but rely on facts.” However, Cllr Cotton declined to set out what these ‘facts’ were.

When asked later about the Leader’s response, Julien said:

“It’s disappointing, but not surprising, that Cllr Cotton refused to reassure Brummies that there was no truth to the rumour of even greater library cuts.”

“Libraries are absolutely vital for Birmingham residents. The proposed cuts to libraries were bad enough. Any further cuts proposed at the 11th hour would make further mockery of the library plans and consultation.”

Birmingham’s Green Councillors will continue to push for answers on Library Services and demand they are protected for Birmingham’s residents

The post Greens demand answers on library decision delay appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

The Green Party amendment highlighted that efficiencies won’t be enough to bridge the deep budget cuts being proposed, and that to avoid deep cuts to services that will harm Birmingham residents, that the city needs more investment, and all councils need fairer funding.

The Green Party amendment called on the Council’s Labour Administration to write to the new Labour Government requesting:

• Immediate further funding for Birmingham City Council, sufficient to stop the large cuts to services and asset sales over the next 3 years.
• A financial settlement that reverses real terms cuts to local authority funding over the last 14 years and increases funding for all Councils according to their need.

And to work with other Local Authorities and the LGA to secure the much-needed increased funding for local councils.

Unfortunately Birmingham Labour Councillors voted down the Green Party amendment, refusing to endorse the call to write to Labour Government and fund Birmingham City Council and all councils adequately.

Green Party Group Leader Councillor Julien Pritchard said during his speech: 

“There are limits with what can be done through efficiencies. Let us be clear, to carry through the proposed budget cuts this year, next year and the year after, means also deep cuts to services, not just a few more efficiencies.”

“This will keep doing more and more harm to our residents. Means residents lose libraries, get dirtier streets, young people use youth centres, families lose support, vulnerable people are not helped.”

“This Labour Administration has made a real mess, with not resolving equal pay, whatever the true scale of the liability, oracle, and managing previous budgets, leading to the extreme situation we’re in, and now having to put up with commissioners. But even well-run councils are struggling. Local authority budgets have been cut in real terms.”

“This Labour government, could choose if it wanted to, fund councils properly according to what they need, instead of continuing the Tories policy of austerity for councils, raising money through a wealth tax. The Labour Administration, to help fix the mess it has partly created,can ask their colleagues in Westminster to help this city out, and fund all councils fairly.”

“If Labour nationally chooses not do that, and particularly if this Labour Administration chooses, not to ask them to do that, then this is now on Labour, there is no one else to blame.”

Click here to view the full Green amendment

The post Birmingham Greens Call on Labour Government to fund Birmingham fairly and save its services appeared first on Birmingham Green Party.

Sian Berry won Brighton Pavilion, Ellie Chowns won North Herefordshire, Carla Denyer won Bristol Central and Adrian Ramsay won Waveney Valley.

Join the Green Party at the most exciting time in our history.

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You can help send a message to BCC to saying how much we want our libraries protected at Libraries Consultation 2024 – Birmingham City Council – Citizen Space (birminghambeheard.org.uk)

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