St Albans MP Daisy Cooper and Watford’s Elected Mayor Peter Taylor are calling for urgent changes to the Tier 2 rules governing the sale of alcohol to prevent a devastating number of pubs going out of business over the Christmas period.

The pair, both leading Liberal Democrats, warn that the hospitality industry in Watford and St Albans is facing an existential crisis if no action is taken, with massive job losses to follow and the disappearance of a huge part of our cultural heritage.

Liberal Democrat-led St Albans district council is to forge ahead with the drafting of a new Local Plan that addresses issues such as climate change and sustainability.

The council’s executive cabinet agreed to withdraw the flawed plan drawn up under the previous Conservative administration at its meeting on 19 November.

A petition calling on Herts County Council to support footballer Marcus Rashford’s campaign to ensure no child goes hungry during school holidays has achieved its goal.

The ruling Conservatives on the county council have been forced to step up their support for vulnerable families and commit to extend funding for free school meals up to summer half-term next year.

Herts Lib Dems are appealing to the public to sign a petition calling for the county council to support footballer Marcus Rashford’s campaign to ensure no child goes hungry during school holidays.

Conservatives on Herts County Council recently voted down a Liberal Democrat-led move to ensure that all 19,000 eligible children in Hertfordshire remain fed throughout.

Liberal Democrat district councillor Mandy McNeil has been shortlisted for a prestigious civic award for her work supporting businesses and the community in St Albans.

Mandy was nominated for the annual Cllr Awards run by the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU) in the Finance and Economic Development category.

Daisy Cooper MP has welcomed a grassroots campaign by Build Back Better St Albans calling for a green coronavirus recovery plan for the economy that also tackles social inequality.

Campaigners presented Daisy with a letter signed by more than 20 local groups asking her to write to the chancellor and prime minister urging them to plan for a fair and sustainable recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

It’s highly likely that St Albans City and District Council will need to prepare a new Local Plan after interventions by planning inspectors pointed out deep flaws in the version submitted by the Conservatives in the dying days of their administration.

Liberal Democrats see this as an opportunity to put combatting the climate emergency at the heart of a new Local Plan, in contrast to the Tories’ flawed plan which was sadly lacking in environmental initiatives.

St Albans Liberal Democrats are supporting a county-wide campaign – called 20’s Plenty – to reduce vehicle speeds in residential areas, villages and town centres.

The 20’s Plenty for Hertfordshire campaign has brought together community groups from across the county to call for 20mph to become the normal speed limit where people live, work, shop, learn and play.

There are ‘new and compelling reasons’ why the Government should scrap plans for a Strategic Rail Freight Interchange (SRFI) on the site of the former Radlett Aerodrome, Daisy Cooper has told the House of Commons.

She was speaking in a debate (1 September) on the proposed Park Street rail freight terminal, instigated by Daisy after St Albans District Council was “held hostage” and forced to abandon its own plans to build housing on the site.

Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrat MP for St Albans, has moved swiftly to secure a debate in the House of Commons on the planned Park Street rail freight terminal on the first day parliament resumes after the summer recess. 

She will use the debate to warn the Government and fellow MPs of the huge damage the proposal for the 3.5 million square-metre strategic rail freight interchange (SRFI) will have on the community of Park Street, on the green belt, and on the surrounding roads and commuter rail links.