More than £40 million in grants channelled by St Albans council to businesses across the district will help keep our high streets vibrant and the local economy to bounce back more quickly, according to Mandy McNeil, Lib Dem councillor and portfolio holder for business, culture and tourism.

Mandy is urging businesses to apply to St Albans council for the latest non-repayable restart grants to help them re-open their doors after lockdown, including those in the non-essential retail, hospitality, accommodation, leisure and personal care sectors.

We appreciate that many residents value this service and will be disappointed that a collection charge is being introduced. We'd like to explain further why this has become necessary:

Ownership of Rothamsted Park is being transferred to the Harpenden Town Council at no cost.

St Albans City and District Council, which has owned and managed the community asset until now, has agreed to hand over ownership. Here's how and why...

Daisy Cooper MP, the MP for St Albans, has joined Matt Hancock, the health and social care secretary, in thanking and congratulating ‘Club Batchwood’ for being one of the best-performing vaccination centres in Britain.

The centre was set up by a group of eight St Albans GP surgeries at the Batchwood Hall nightclub venue, one of the ‘first wave’ of inoculation hubs in the country and among the first to vaccinate all over-80s.

Liberal Democrats at Herts County Council are delighted that at last a new root and branch review of how flooding issues are dealt with has been agreed.

They had been pressing for urgent action on the growing flooding issues. 

City centre shoppers and other fans of St Albans’ historic Charter Market are being asked to give their views on plans to change the look of the market stalls.

The main proposal is to introduce gazebos – decked in the distinctive blue and yellow colours of St Albans – as part of the permanent replacement of the old-style market stalls.

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.