Radstock Labour Party is inviting all residents to attend a special public meeting to discuss important issues that have an impact on everyone in the local community.

“We have three key priorities – health, housing and education – crucial issues that affect all of us at many levels,” explains Chris Dando, Radstock’s B&NES Labour councillor. “Our current focus is health and housing. They are strongly linked and very topical given recent consultations organised by the CCG (on NHS community services) and social landlord, Curo (on service charges).

“We believe local people deserve better opportunities to make their voices heard, from Westfield to Westminster. Our public meeting is a first step for real consultation.”

The public meeting will be held on Friday, 11th November (starting at 7.30 p.m.) in the Methodist (Trinity) Church Hall, The Street, Radstock.

The local Labour group says it wants to mobilise a groundswell of support to tackle problems associated with low household income and the profound disadvantages

people face in their day-to day lives.

“We achieved a modest success before the general election when people came together and persuaded First to reverse some of their planned bus fare increases,” says Anne Marie Jovcic-Sas, Chair of the Radstock and District Labour Party.

Cllr Dando points to government impositions on housing associations that include a year-on-year 1% cut in rents and a new right to buy scheme, which “threatens their viability as social landlords across the country.”

“Many Associations borrow money to build new homes based on gradually increasing their overall income, via relatively small rent increases and developing a larger housing stock. It’s a viable long-term strategy that has been ripped up by the Conservatives. Housing Associations now face falling rents and are being forced to sell homes for subsidised prices that are much less than the cost of replacing those homes.

“We already know that less than one in eight of the former council houses sold under right to buy have been replaced. It’s a big problem that will only get worse when more cuts are introduced next week via the latest universal credit rules. This will increase the risk of poorer tenants falling into arrears and suffering dire consequences by default.”

The group say a future Labour Government would be committed to lifting the housing borrowing cap on councils, including a secure homes guarantee, plus a pledge to build a million new homes in five years, including at least half a million council homes. It also promises to end privatisation in the NHS and create a national education service – open to all throughout their lives.

“There are some great policy ideas that we need to take out into the community to explain the clear difference between us and the Conservatives,” adds Mrs Jovcic-Sas.

“The Government will keep on implementing cuts unless we stop them via the ballot box.

“I hope local people come along and contribute to the debate, giving us a steer on how we might go forward together. We are also asking for representatives from both Curo and the CCG to attend.”