Liberal Democrats at County Hall have unearthed information that shows that Herts County Council has had to pay out over a million pounds in injury and compensation claims in just two and half years due to highways defects.

After all the self-promoting press releases from Herts County Council over many years, finally an admission of failure, over the queues and early closing of Household Waste sites (‘the tips’).

A report to yesterday’s Resources and Performance Cabinet panel states: ‘High levels of demand resulting in queuing at certain times and centres, with sites having to shut early or operate a reduced service. It appears that the reduction in opening days and hours may have exacerbated these issues at some of the busier centres, with a resulting increase in numbers of complaints’.

Over £7m could be cut from the county council's highways budget in the next five years according to a shock announcement from the Government, reported to the county council's Highways Panel this week.

Liberal Democrats on Herts County Council have called upon the County Council to do more to help refugees from Syria.

Lib Dem health spokesperson Chris White said: 'We must be in no doubt what we are dealing with here. The BBC's insistence, along with other media outlets, of continuing to use the term "migrant" has greatly muddied the debate. Many of those desperately seeking a new home in Europe are fleeing civil war and in particular ISIS, the new barbarians. There is a real parallel with those who fled the Nazis before the Second World War and those who fled the Russians at the end of it.

Chris White, Liberal Democrat county group spokesperson on Health, said in reaction to today's Care Quality Commission inspection report into the West Herts Hospitals Trust (dealing with the Watford, St Albans and Hemel hospitals): 'We had suspected for a while that the report would be bad but this is even worse than was feared - one of the worst ever issued.

Service users, Staff, Volunteers and Councillors alike were stunned to learn on Monday that a Conservative Councillor made the decision to cancel the £395,000 annual grant to HomeStart without any consultation with either HomeStart, the Health Visitor Service or the Children’s Services.

Local Liberal Democrats have welcomed the fact that the Secretary of State has rejected an appeal by Hunston Properties Ltd in relation to proposed major developments at Sewell Park, to the rear of Harpenden Road. The applications were turned down by the district council and were also the subject of a court decision of national significance to green belt policy.

Lib Dem Planning spokesperson Dave Yates said:‘We’re pleased with the outcome, which clearly gives the lie to the threats made that "St Albans would be at the mercy of developers” when in November 2012 we overturned the Local Plan that the Conservatives were then attempting to impose on the District.'

Tim Farron has set about ending the Liberal Democrats’ lack diversity at the top of the party – by naming the most diverse shadow cabinet team in the party’s history to lead the party's fightback.

Liberal Democrats criticised the fact that the condition of Herts schools are in the worst 8% in the country, and called for an improvement, in a motion to Herts County Council last week.

This morning at County Hall there was a heated debate as local staff and volunteers watched to see the fate of the nine Homestart Schemes across the County.

After a petition signed by 2800 Hertfordshire residents was presented by Homestart three motions were presented; one from the Conservative group in favour of slashing funding to the service, and two from the Labour and Liberal Democrat benches seeking to save the Service.