The results are now in for the 2010 local elections. Unfortunately, I wasn’t elected as your local councillor for Fallowfield this time. Despite the Labour boost from the General Election, it was still the closest result in the ward for four years - and despite Labour’s scaremongering, the Tories are still nowhere to be seen in Manchester.

I’m proud of fighting an honest campaign in Fallowfield, and this is not the end for the Liberal Democrats in the area. Whatever happens over the next few days or weeks in terms of the national parliament, I will continue to be involved in Fallowfield’s communities, and continue to make the positive case for the Liberal Democrats in the city. I honestly believe that local people’s needs are best served by hardworking Lib Dem councillors, and I will continue to work hard all year round to demonstrate that.

Thanks very much to everybody who voted for me, and to the people who supported me and helped with deliveries, envelope stuffing, putting posters in their windows etc. There’s still plenty to be done in Fallowfield, so if you fancy getting involved in any way, please get in touch.

Just a quick reminder that tomorrow (Tuesday 20th April) is the last day for you to register to vote in the upcoming elections. If you haven’t already received a poll card, you may not be registered to vote - and that means you don’t get a say in the future of Fallowfield and Whalley Range.

If you think you are registered to vote, but haven’t received a poll card, contact Manchester City Council’s Electoral Services Unit on  234 1819. You’ll need to download and print off a registration form today and put it in first-class post today, or you can pop into the ESU at the Town Hall (it’s just off the Lloyd Street entrance on the corner of Albert Square) and do it in person, but you’ll need to bring some proof of identity and address.

The upcoming elections could well be the biggest change in UK politics for a century. Polls are currently showing the Liberal Democrats ahead of Labour nationally, and some even put us in first place ahead of the Tories. It seems that the televised Prime Ministerial Debate last Thursday has given people a chance to understand our policies of fairness, and people like what they see. Why not watch the next debates over the next few weeks, read the Manchester News papers we’re putting through your door, or check out our manifestos for Manchester and the country?

The Manchester Liberal Democrats have released a manifesto of what a Lib Dem-run Manchester City Council would do.  Manchester Liberal Democrats are making 5 key promises for the 2010 local elections:

1. Cut Council Tax by £51 for a Band D property
2. Cut waste, including ending the Council Leader’s chauffeur-driven car and claiming back £421,000 owed by other councils
3. Lobby for the return of £82 million Greater Manchester Police Funding, which would pay for over 500 more police on our streets.
4. Spend over £1million extra on gritting and improving our roads.
5. Reverse plans to close Ewing school; and cut truancy levels.

We want to change Manchester for the better, making it safer, greener, cleaner and more local. We will play our full part in the future of Manchester’s City Region. We’ll stand up for the people of Manchester, and give power back to the people.

The Manifesto shows how committed the Lib Dems are to green and environmental issues. Unlike Labour we would include Manchester Airport and aviation in the City’s climate change plan. We would concentrate on improving recycling and reducing waste. Manchester’s Lib Dems are committed to protecting our green open spaces from developers.

Obviously, in a recession, cutting council tax is important to put money back in the pockets of families. Likewise, the main concern that people tell me about in Fallowfield is crime and anti-social behaviour. Increased police funding, and the strong commitment to effective community sentences from the manifesto, will help address these problems and make Fallowfield a safer, happier place to live.

I’m also impressed with the way that the priorities here in Manchester dovetail neatly with the Liberal Democrat’s national priorities. Our tax plans will put more money back into people’s pockets, where it will support struggling local businesses. Our education plans will see the end of tuition fees for students, and more funding and support for our younger children, making sure that our kids have the best chance at life we can give them. Our health plans will give Fallowfield people more say in Manchester’s health services. Our economic plans will see more investment in green local businesses.

The only way to achieve all of this together is to make your vote count, and vote Liberal Democrat for change that works for you in the upcoming local and general elections!

It’s lovely to see some sunshine after the rain in Manchester today. The snow and ice seems so long ago, even though it’s only a couple of weeks since people found themselves housebound.

It’s important to think about what lessons we can learn from the weather conditions so we can avoid them in future. One thing that local residents mentioned to me was the Fallowfield Loop, the cycle path on the old railway line which runs between Fallowfield and Old Moat, from Chorlton all the way round to Openshaw. This path was completely frozen over in many places during the ice. Now, cars might have trouble on ice but at least you can’t fall off a car while driving (unless you’re Brian Harvey). An icy cycle path is completely unusable to cyclists, as well as the pedestrians who use it for recreation, dog walking and so on.

We’re being told that we need to cycle more. Cycling is a great way to commute, when the roads aren’t perilous - even in the rain, you tend to get less wet (or at least feel less wet) than waiting for a bus. It’s cheaper than a car, and quicker to get into town in rush hour. It’s better exercise than a bus, and gives you the freedom to go exactly where you want to go, which is very handy if you’re off the main bus routes or travelling on a Sunday. I’m looking at ways to make cheap refurbished bikes available to people in Fallowfield, like the “Ride Manchester” scheme formerly based in Levenshulme.

However, if Manchester City Council want us to cycle, they need to support the infrastructure that allows us to cycle, and that includes off-road cycle paths. We know that not every road can be gritted in extreme weather conditions, but since a frozen cycle path is even more perilous to its users than a frozen road, and there are not too many of them, then they should be afforded the same priority as other commuter routes. Of course, keeping the gritting up on roads is also important - though road gritting rarely covers the width of the road, meaning that cyclists either have to cycle in the snow and ice towards the side of the road, or try to share the narrow cleared strip of tarmac with cars - this too needs to be addressed.

Local residents have told me that they want to see action on the cyclepaths issue. Having clear cyclepaths all year round means more people getting more exercise, less congestion and more money in people’s pockets, and I think it’s a great idea. Fellow Lib Dems Victor Chamberlain and Cllr. Paul Ankers have also covered this issue. What do you think?