Congratulations to Friendship at Home, the befriending scheme operating in Cleethorpes, which was recently awarded funding through the Big Lottery – Reaching Communities programme.

Friendship at Home Manager, Julie Rigby says:

“I’m highly delighted that we have secured funding, which will provide a firm foundation for our service for the next 5 years.”

Julie received support in completing the application from Helen Howard, Funding Advice Development Worker of the Fundraising Plus project, which is also supported by Big Lottery funding. Helen says

“the application process wasn’t quick or easy and I’m thrilled that, as my first client of the project, Friendship at Home has been successful in attaining substantial funding.”

Fundraising Plus aims to support voluntary and community groups to become sustainable by taking a holistic view of

the way in which the group operates rather than just concentrating on a funding gap. As grants become harder to

obtain voluntary and community groups will have to look at other ways of generating the income that they need to undertake their chosen activities. The project is designed to support those groups who typically have an annual income of under £100,000 per year, so quite well established voluntary and community organisations can be eligible as well as the hundreds of groups who exist on significantly less income.

For further information on Fundraising Plus please contact Helen Howard at Voluntary Action North East Lincolnshire(VANEL) on 01472 231123 or helen@vanel.org.uk

The rules governing corporate takeovers must change in the wake of Kraft’s takeover of Cadbury to ensure that they serve the UK economy, Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg announced today.

Launching ‘Enterprise in a Fair Society’, Nick Clegg set out details of the Liberal Democrats’ manifesto pledges for business. The proposals include:

• Restoring a public interest test for regulatory authorities to consider when takeovers are proposed and changing the rules on which shareholders can vote on takeover proposals
• Ensuring affordable access to credit for businesses by creating new mechanisms to provide equity finance to smaller businesses
• Incorporating a ‘sunset’ clause into every new business regulation so that it is time limited unless renewed by Parliament

The document also sets out how the Liberal Democrats would create an education system that provides skilled workers, a stable economy that reduces the public deficit and a fair and stable tax platform on which businesses can operate.

Launching the document while visiting start-up businesses in Warrington, Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg said:

“For too long, Labour and Conservative governments have focused solely on the firms in one square mile in the City of London, while failing to support businesses across the country.

“The Government has failed to force the banks to lend to viable British businesses and won’t face up to the need to break up the big banks to protect the economy.

“Who would have thought that when the taxpayer stepped in to rescue the banks, we would now be funding takeovers like that of Cadbury by Kraft?

“The Liberal Democrats will stand up for strong British businesses by changing the takeover rules to protect them from the short-term speculation of hedge funds and restoring a public interest test.”

Liberal Democrat Shadow Business Secretary John Thurso said:

“Following the banking collapse and the worst recession since the 1930s, the Liberal Democrats want to rebuild the economy very differently.

“We will create the conditions for a thriving, balanced and environmentally sustainable economy with jobs that last. 

“Britain depends on successful profitable businesses to create the nation’s wealth. Only the Liberal Democrats will give businesses the tools to get on with the job.”

“We’re now being offered a series of piecemeal reforms that have not been properly thought through or costed,” said the Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary.

Commenting on Labour’s plans to reform social care, Norman Lamb said:

“After 13 years in power spent ducking social care reform we probably shouldn’t be surprised that Labour has once again hit it into the long grass.

“A white paper without any commitment to substantial change in the next Parliament is barely worth the paper it is written on.

“We’re now being offered a series of piecemeal reforms that have not been properly thought through or costed.

“Seeking consensus is the right approach but that will only work if the cross-party commission is free to consider all ways of funding social care, not just Labour’s preferred policy. The commission should report within a year so changes can be implemented straight away.”

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has announced plans to give further NHS trusts, including North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus, a licence to provide services under a new, tougher system for regulating standards in the NHS.

From April 1, NHS trusts in England will have to be registered with CQC by law to provide care. To be registered, trusts must show they meet new essential standards of quality and safety, which the regulator will constantly monitor.

The new standards cover important issues for patients such as treating people with respect, involving them in decisions about care, keeping clinical areas clean, and ensuring services are safe.

Jane Lewington, chief executive for the CTP, said:

“We are very pleased that we have successfully achieved CQC registration.

“This registration is the final outcome of a great deal of work in collecting key evidence by groups of clinical and non-clinical staff that supported our application.”

Cynthia Bower, CQC chief executive, said:

“It is absolutely the responsibility of trust boards to ensure that standards are in place. These are the standards that every patient should be able to expect when they receive NHS care and they are now legally enforceable. This is a tough new system and we have stronger enforcement powers than ever before to make sure services improve.”

Under the new system, trusts will be judged on the outcomes and experiences of patients, not just whether there are systems and processes in place.

Numbers of inspections at NHS trusts are set to rise significantly, with up to 2,000 reviews of compliance a year, the majority involving a visit. Inspections will involve observation of care, tracking of case studies and talking to patients and staff.

If you missed last nights “Ask the Chancellors” programme, you can watch it again by visitting http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid74425226001

The first ever TV debate between the three candidates to be the next Chancellor has seen Lib Dem Vince Cable win a clear victory.

In a Channel 4 on-line poll carried out immediately after the debate, Vince out-polled both Alistair Cameron and George Osborne.

The Channel 4 poll can be seen at http://tinyurl.com/yza4m6a and it places Vince Cable  clearly ahead of both the Labour and Conservative contenders:

•   36% Vince Cable
•  32% Alistair Darling
•  32% George Osborne

BBC Commentator Nick Robinson said on the 10 o’clock news that “it was Vince Cable who generated the most applause.

A separate Yougov / Channel 4 poll carried out on the eve of tonight’s “Ask The Chancellors” debate on asked voters of all parties which of the three men would be best for the job. 26% picked Mr Cable, against 17% for the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, with just 12% opting for the Shadow Chancellor, George Osborne. You can read more at http://tinyurl.com/yks5lza

The Guardian’s “Wiintour and Watt” blog at http://tinyurl.com/yl9rf3r said “The consensus tonight, at Westminster and in the Twittersphere, is that ‘King Vince’ was the runaway winner of the first major televised debate of the general election campaign.”Vince Cable’s closing statement again online at http://j.mp/cyxywl

You can join the Liberal Democrats at www.libdems.org.uk/join_us.aspx

The Parliamentary Energy and Climate Change Committee has warned that the Government will miss its target remove millions of vulnerable English households from fuel poverty by this year, and another aim to end fuel poverty among all homes in England by 2016 is beginning to looked increasingly unlikely to be reached.

Households are considered to be in fuel poverty if they spend more than 10% of their income on heating their home to a reasonable temperature.

In 2007, which is the most recent year that figures are available, there were an estimated four million households in fuel poverty in the UK, which is double the number in 2004.  

In England 2.8 million households faced fuel poverty, with 2.3 million of those being classed as vulnerable because they include people who are over 60, families with children or those who are disabled or have long-term illnesses.

The Government has set a target to end fuel poverty among those vulnerable households by 2010 in England, and another target of ensuring that no one in England will be forced to live in fuel poverty after 2016.

Despite multibillion-pound schemes, the rising cost of fuel has seen the average gas and electricity bills rise by 125% between January 2003 and September 2008, according to the report.

There is also a danger that rising fuel prices could force another 2.4 million UK households into fuel poverty by 2016, which will raise the total up from current estimated levels of 4.6 million to around seven million.

“This is a shambles that Alan Johnson could and should have avoided if he had respected the proper processes,” said the Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary.

Commenting on Alan Johnson’s announcement that mephedrone is to be made a Class B drug, Chris Huhne said:

“The Home Secretary would have been able to take this decision weeks ago if he had not meddled in independent scientific advice because he did not like what it said.
 
“His intervention sparked a number of resignations from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs and left the Government scrabbling around for independent advice.
 
“This is a shambles that Alan Johnson could and should have avoided if he had respected the proper processes.”

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At 8pm tonight, Channel 4 will be screening the Ask the Chancellors Debate between Vince Cable, Alistair Darling and George Osborne.The programme will be live on Channel 4 and you can also follow it on Twitter and Facebook.

You can find out more details on the Channel 4 website: www.channel4.com/microsites/A/askthechancellors/

During the debate, Channel 4 will be holding an online poll encouraging viewers to rate the performances of the respective Chancellors.

Do tune in at 8pm and give Vince your support.

“This is a very small step in the right direction towards keeping Post Offices open and giving this vital network a sustainable future,” said the Liberal Democrat Shadow Business Secretary.

Commenting on the Government’s proposals to launch a People’s Bank through the Post Office network, John Thurso said:
 
“The case for a Post Bank is compelling after years of neglect and Post Office closures by Labour.
 
“The Government’s apparent deathbed conversion will be greeted with a large dose of scepticism by local campaigners whose views have long been ignored.
 
“The idea of a Post Bank has been around for years now and many of these proposals were already under development.
 
“This is a very small step in the right direction towards keeping Post Offices open and giving this vital network a sustainable future.”

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has announced plans to give further NHS trusts, including North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus, a licence to provide services under a new, tougher system for regulating standards in the NHS.

From April 1, NHS trusts in England will have to be registered with CQC by law to provide care. To be registered, trusts must show they meet new essential standards of quality and safety, which the regulator will constantly monitor.

The new standards cover important issues for patients such as treating people with respect, involving them in decisions about care, keeping clinical areas clean, and ensuring services are safe.

Jane Lewington, chief executive for the CTP, said:

“We are very pleased that we have successfully achieved CQC registration.

“This registration is the final outcome of a great deal of work in collecting key evidence by groups of clinical and non-clinical staff that supported our application.”

Cynthia Bower, CQC chief executive, said:

“It is absolutely the responsibility of trust boards to ensure that standards are in place. These are the standards that every patient should be able to expect when they receive NHS care and they are now legally enforceable. This is a tough new system and we have stronger enforcement powers than ever before to make sure services improve.”

Under the new system, trusts will be judged on the outcomes and experiences of patients, not just whether there are systems and processes in place.

Numbers of inspections at NHS trusts are set to rise significantly, with up to 2,000 reviews of compliance a year, the majority involving a visit. Inspections will involve observation of care, tracking of case studies and talking to patients and staff.