Lib Dems pledge to raise NHS pay
Slough: Group unveils manifesto and calls on residents to back its candidates
Slough’s Liberal Democrats has pledged to fight for a pay rise for NHS staff in the town and hold the ruling Labour group to account over its decisions in its election manifesto.
The party is currently without a serving councillor in the borough but said effective opposition is needed to challenge the Labour-dominated council chamber.
Matthew Taylor, chairman of the town’s Lib Dem branch, said new solutions are needed to tackle challenges facing residents including air pollution, inactivity and transport issues.
He said: “The Labour councillors
need to be held to account when they fail to consult on schemes like the A4 bus lanes and waste money on things like unwanted traffic schemes, but cut valued services such as youth clubs, and push up charges for hiring sports pitches.”
The group said one party could not have ‘all the answers’ to the problems facing Slough and called for a collaborative approach between the town’s different political groups.
Slough Liberal Democrats plan to strongly campaign for a pay rise for NHS and other key workers in the town.
It is also calling on the council to do more to encourage EU workers in health and social care to apply for settled status to remain in Slough.
Sukh Dhillon, prospective candidate for Upton Ward, called for more affordable rates for council sports pitches in the borough in a bid to get more
young people engaged in sport.
Mr Taylor also questioned why the proposed introduction of high-tech city trees by the Slough Conservatives to tackle urban pollution had been swatted away by the ruling Labour Group.
He called for sustainable solutions to the town’s shortage of affordable housing and is proposing a limitation on the number of AirBnb properties allowed to operate in the town.