That is why I was proud to present Labour’s manifesto for the 2010 local elections. I firmly believe that the policies we laid out would have had the potential to transform our town and our Council and put us at the forefront of the new low-carbon economy.

Years of Conservative administration have left Swindon with only empty words and broken promises. When the Council should be stepping up and finding any way possible to support our citizens, all the  Conservatives have delivered is ideological cuts to vital services and community projects.

A benefits service branded as the worst in the country, failure to deliver regeneration in the town centre, continuing to fail to bring a university to Swindon…  This is the legacy of this Conservative administration.  And it a tragedy that electors will have to endure until May 2012.

Labour promised to run a Council that asked ‘what can we do’ to help our town and our people. We wanted to invest in our future to create jobs and help our children achieve their potential. We still believe in communities and want give you a real say in the decisions made in your name. We will in future commit to building new council houses and ensure that the most vulnerable are given care tailored to their individual needs.

Swindon deserves better than a Conservative administration running our town and our Council down.  Swindon deserves a Labour council with ideas and vision for the future.  Bring on 2012.

Cllr Derique Montaut, Leader of the Labour Group

Labour’s Priorities for Swindon

• Creating jobs for the future in the new green economy.
• Regenerating our town centre for the future.
• Building new council houses.
• Properly funding Council services that support the vulnerable

Tory Record of Cuts & Broken Promises

• Failed to regenerate our town centre.
• Benefits Service branded the worst in the country.
• Benefits Service branded the worst in the country
• Closing & threatening local libraries
• Cutting funding to Council services that support our vulnerable residents

Photo: www.richardmaidment.com

A future Labour Council in Swindon would work to make our town a national example in sustainability and an innovative and integrated transport system is vital to this.  In power, Labour will bring forward plans for a mass transit system for Swindon, catering to individual needs, fuelling local industry,  facilitating the town’s growth and protecting our environment.

We want to support cycling and would work with cycling groups to provide a cycling network that is accessible and takes people where they want to go.  We will support and invest in Park & Ride schemes and bring an end to the Tory policy of short term cuts that cause long term damage.

A Labour Council will never try to force people out of their cars.  We will  instead work to provide people with preferable alternatives that will be quicker, greener and more convenient.

Swindon’s future growth and the future of our economy needs a strong and innovative transport infrastructure.  It is only by electing a Labour Council that will make the investments that are necessary for our future and only a Labour Council that will keep Swindon on the move.

A future Labour Council Would:

• Bring forward plans for an innovative new mass transit system.
• Deliver a cycle network that is accessible and integrated across Swindon.
• Protect and defend free bus passes for pensioners.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Closed Groundwell Park & Ride.
• Wasted time and money removing Safety Cameras, making our roads less safe.
• Failed to tackle potholes around the town by removing £500k in 3 years from the road maintenance budget.

Cllr  Jim Grant, Transport Spokesperson

The Conservatives believe in ‘letting the recession run its course’.  They will never take the action and make the   investments that are required to transform Swindon and deliver the jobs of the future.  They have failed to plan for Swindon’s future, failed to regenerate our town centre and failed to deliver a university to fuel our growth.

It was a Labour Council that delivered the industries in our town today and it is only a Labour Council today that will invest to attract the new industries of the green economy.

A future Labour Council will work to attract innovative new industries to our town, providing jobs for generations to come.  We will create ‘Green Industrial Development Board’ to proactively attract businesses to Swindon and an ‘Eco Park’ to incubate and support new green industry.

New industries will require new skills.  A Labour Council will invest in our young people and forge innovative vocational training opportunities.  We will deliver a university to Swindon to allow our young people to fulfil their potential and fuel our economic growth.

Moreover, we will deliver the regeneration that our town so badly needs and deserves.  We will abandon the expensive and unworkable Tory canal and bring forward plans to make our town centre a place to be proud of.

A future Labour Council would:

• Work to put Swindon at the heart of the new Green economy
• Deliver a university to the town centre to drive our economic growth
• Regenerate our Town
• Centre to attract business, jobs and tourism

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Failed to deliver any large scale Town Centre redevelopment
• Failed to plan and work for Swindon’s economic future
• Failed to deliver a university for Swindon

Cllr Des Moffatt

The Conservative Council have failed to deliver the improvements they promised in Swindon’s schools.  Despite significant improvements thanks to Labour’s increases in funding, our children continue to underachieve in comparison to the national average.  This cannot be allowed to continue any longer.

The Labour government made a fantastic investment in early years  education, making a real impact on the lives of young people.  The planned Tory cuts to Sure Start would see one in five centres close, this would be a disaster for Swindon.  A future Labour Council will invest and further the government’s investment in early years education.

A future Labour Council will work to embed aspiration and a culture of achievement in our schools.  We will work with employers to deliver innovative vocational schemes, building on the government’s new diplomas.  We want to make Swindon a national leader in work based learning to help our young people achieve their potential and deliver the skills that will drive our economy.

A University in Swindon is absolutely vital to our future.  The Tories have singularly failed to deliver this for our town.  Labour will work with higher education partners to deliver an institution to be proud of,  delivering skills that we need and integrated into the green economy that will provide jobs and prosperity for our future.

A future Labour Council would:

• Bring a university to Swindon.
• Work to make Swindon a national leader in vocational training.
• Build on and invest in Labour’s Sure Start programme.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Failed to deliver a university for Swindon
• Failed to deliver promised improvements is Swindon schools’ results.
• National pledge to cut 1/5 of SureStart funding—equivalent to 2 centres in Swindon.

Cllr Fay Howard

The Conservative Council have shown the lack of respect they have for communities with repeated cuts to community facilities, frequent cuts to community groups and meaningless consultations to rubber stamp their decisions.  Already they have closed the Gorse Hill Library and threatened many others with closure.

A future Labour Council will defend these vital community facilities that are so  important to our communities.  These facilities provide vital meeting places and services and help to make a community coherent.  We will look to invest in multi-agency community centres to put council services and information closer to people.

We are committed to protecting our precious urban green spaces.  Access to green space should not be confined to those living outside of urban Swindon.  We will support local communities in registering these key open spaces to protect them and prevent any potential development on them.

A future Labour Council will fight anti-social behaviour and ensure that communities are at the centre of local policing.  We will build on the government’s investment in community policing and ensure that Swindon is a safe and secure place to work, rest and play.

A Labour Council (from 2012 onwards) will

• Protect our precious urban green spaces for the future.
• Defend and extend community facilities across the borough.
• Put you at the heart of community policing.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Closed Gorse Hill library and threatened many more with closure.
• Cut funding to community groups—including a 75% cut to Swindon Dance.
• Denying you a meaningful say in how your council and your community is run.

Cllr John Ballman

The waiting list for houses has ballooned under the  Conservative Council and they have failed to deliver enough affordable homes for average people.  A Labour Council will commit to reducing the waiting list by restarting council house building.  We will build new homes to high green standards to reduce their impact on the environment and keep bills down for the people living in them.

Swindon needs to grow in order to secure our future and help to fuel our economy.  A Labour Council will manage that growth to ensure that it   benefits the borough and contributes to our prosperity.  By building new homes to high green standards we can help to drive environmental businesses and set  an example for sustainable development.

Labour will always oppose the leaked Tory proposals to cram 10,000 new homes into the urban areas of Swindon.  This would threaten urban green spaces and is not a sustainable solution for the future.  Access to open space should not be restricted to those living out of town.  We will ensure that any new large developments in Swindon have registered and protected green open spaces for our new communities.

A future Labour Council will:

• Build new Council houses to high green standards.
• Ensure well managed and sustainable development for Swindon’s future.
• Protect and register Green Open Spaces in any new, large development.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Leaked plans to cram up to 10,000 new houses into the town centre.
• Failed to build sufficient affordable homes.
• Allowed the housing waiting list to rise to over 10,000.

Cllr Steve Allsopp

For all their talk of cost cutting and efficiency the  Conservatives in Swindon have failed to modernise our care services.  They have failed to achieve their promise to reduce expensive ‘out of borough’ placements and they have decided to play party politics on the crucial issue of personalised care to the vulnerable and elderly.

A future Labour Council will ensure that the Labour Government’s policies around personalised budgets and individual care and will assist the Labour Government in bringing further reform.  We want to give people more control over their lives and their services while at the same time ensuring that Council’s money is used as efficiently as possible.

Labour will also work to support people to stay in their own homes where that is their preferred option, allowing people the dignity they deserve and reducing the costs of expensive residential care.

We will work to deliver the services residents need in our communities,   providing easier and more efficient access to support.  Labour’s commitment to community buildings and infrastructure will see us bring forward plans for multi-agency centres across the Borough offering advice and key services to all those who need it.

A future Labour Council will:

• Support people to stay in their own homes.
• Work to build a consensus on the cricial issue of personalised social care.
• Properly fund services that help the elderly and vulnerable maintain a good quality of life.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Failed to reduce expensive ‘out of borough’ placements.
• Played party politics on the crucial issue of personalised social care.
• NCut funding to services that help the elderly and vulnerable maintain a good quality of life.

Cllr Ray Ballman

The future of our economy must be in green industry and technology and a Labour Council will invest to ensure that these key business are located in Swindon.  The creation of a ‘Green Industrial Development Board’ and an ‘Eco Park’ will support us in attracting these key developments.

Labour understands that Swindon needs to grow in the future and that these can help our town prosper.  However, we will ensure that this growth is on our terms and that new homes and new communities meet the highest of environmental standards.  In addition, we will work to protect precious urban green spaces across the borough.

We are committed to bringing forward plans for a mass transit system for Swindon to support our growth and reduce our environmental impact.  We will support people to leave their cars at home by providing them with greener and more convenient alternatives.

The Conservatives talk the talk on the environment but their actions tell a very different story.  In their 2009 budget they closed the sustainable Groundwell Park & Ride service, increasing the number of cars on our roads and forcing people off public transport.  In the 2020 budget they slashed Council services designed to maintain and protect Swindon’s local environment.

A future Council run by Labour will be based on more than just empty words. We will set an example to business and individuals by cutting the council’s own greenhouse emissions by 50%.

A future Labour Council will:

• Protect our precious urban green spaces for the future.
• Lead by example and cut Swindon Borough Council’s  greenhouse gas emissions by 50%.
• Work to put Swindon at the heart of the new green economy.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Closed the Groundwell Park & Ride.
• Failed to deliver a sustainable, integrated transport network.
• Cut funding to Council services that protected Swindon’s local environment

Cllr Jim Grant

In the 2009 and 2010 budgets, the Labour Group put forward proposals to cut Council spending on hospitality and consultants and use the money to save vital services. Despite their cost cutting rhetoric the Tories voted against these proposals. We are committed to driving out waste and giving council tax payers real value for money.  A new Labour administration would introduce a ‘Zero Based Budget’ within the Council to ensure that money is being spent where it is really needed. We will use these savings to ensure that Council Tax will never rise above inflation unless our funding is cut. The Labour Government has shown its commitment to devolving power to a local level through the ‘Real People, Real Power’ white paper.

Labour believes in putting local people at the centre of local decision making. The lack ofconsultation over key decisions from the Conservatives, like Wi-Fi, has been simply unacceptable and must change. The residents of Swindon need to be included in the work of their Council and Labour is committed to making it easier for people to have their voices heard.

In 2010, if elected, a Labour administration would have delivered the people of Swindon a Council to be proud of and a Council that they deserve.

Labour would have:

• Immediately introduced a ‘Zero Based Budget’ round to drive out waste and put money where it is needed.
• Conducted meaningful consultations to put you at the centre of decisions.
• Not raise Council Tax above inflation unless central funding wass cut.

Tory Cuts & Broken Promises

• Voted against cutting Council ‘hospitality’ and consultants.
• Failed to properly consult the people of Swindon over closure of Park & Ride, libraries and day-centres for the elderley
• Hiked the price of residents’ parking permits without consultation.

Cllr Derique Montaut, Leader of Labour Group

1. Immediately implemented a ‘Zero Based Budget’ round to eliminate council waste and focus money where it is needed.
2. Created a ‘Green Industrial Development Board’ to attract Investment and jobs into Swindon and put us at the forefront of the new green economy.
3. Taken control of expenses out of the hands of politicians and into the hands of an independent panel.
4. Scrapped half-baked projects, like the Canal, and focused the town’s redevelopment around workable schemes.
5. Ensured that all new developments included registered ‘open spaces’ to protect green space for the future of our urban areas.