Many thanks to all the people in Eynsham who voted on 1 May. I was honoured to be re-elected with 48% of the votes cast. I will of course represent all the residents of the villages in the division, whether they voted for me or not. My colleagues have also re-elected me as a cabinet member at the County Council.
The Liberal Democrats now have 36 of the 69 councillors on the County Council, giving an overall majority. This is a change from the previous situation, in which there was a joint LD/ Green/ Labour administration and then a LD/ Green one after Labour chose to pull out. The party make-up of the Council is:
|
Liberal Democrat |
36 |
|
Labour |
12 |
|
Conservative |
10 |
|
Green |
7 |
|
Henley Residents |
1 |
|
Independent Oxford Alliance |
1 |
|
Reform |
1 |
|
Independent |
1 |
There is lots of work to do. Things specific to Eynsham include getting the A40 bus lanes opened, addressing the planning inspection for Botley West Solar Farm, ensuring that there is continued bus service between Eynsham and the local villages, developing the Local Walking and Cycling Plan for Eynsham, and making the Local Government reorganisation mandated by the government work for Eynsham and its residents. There is much more.
We will continue to do the things that got us re-elected. These include helping people to use active travel, particularly pupils getting safely to school. We will continue to do our bit in combatting climate change and supporting biodiversity initiatives. We will press Thames Valley Police to treat road safety and speed management as a key part of its functions. And we will encourage economic growth in the whole County, including Eynsham.
We will continue to make the County Council run as efficiently as possible by carrying on with the streamlining of the number of staff and reducing the number of buildings. We will of course build on the start we have made to improve the provision of support to young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and work with providers of adult social care to help adults stay in their own homes where possible. Children’s Services and Adult Social Care take up half of the County Council’s budget.
And yes, we will fix the roads, after the long years of Managed Decline instigated by the last Tory administration, and we will finally get the A40 bus lanes and new junctions built. There is a record amount of money being spent by the County Council on roads maintenance.
Oxfordshire has been run with great financial prudence, and is one of the more robust local authorities when it comes to its financial health. We are expecting even tighter financial settlements from the government in the years to come, which will be a huge challenge.
One of the key things coming up is Local Government reform. The County Council and the 5 districts in Oxfordshire are all going to be abolished and replaced with one or more unitary authorities. How this is done will be decided by the government. I would like a single unitary for Oxfordshire, as this will cause the least disruption to key services for adults and children, and bring financial savings quickly. We will ensure that decisions in areas like planning are taken as locally as possible and that parish and town councils can have an effective role. The City Council wants an expanded city, taking in places like Eynsham, so that they can rapidly build houses here.
As before, it would be good to hear from residents, with comments, issues or anything else. The best way to get hold of me is via email, at dan.levy@oxfordshire.gov.uk