Recent Local News:

Conservatives Fail to Offer Solution to Post Office Crisis
Is Westfield set to be "White City"?
H&F Council Failing to Curb Energy Waste
Fighting For Fair Trade
Fighting Against More Expansion at Heathrow

Brian Paddick visits H&F

Brian Paddick (right) came to Hammersmith & Fulham on 18 April to see local issues for himself.

He visited Shepherds Bush Market, where local traders told him how policies implemented by Labour and Transport for London were harming their businesses.

Brian is committed to supporting local communities and markets, as well as improving transport in Hammersmith & Fulham and across London.

A former top police officer, he has also pledged to get guns and knives off our streets. Find out more at www.brianpaddick.org

Lib Dems choose Brian Paddick and Merlene Emerson to speak up for London

Read Brian Paddick's first speech as Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of London

Local Lib Dems also chose Merlene Emerson (left) as their candidate for the London Assembly's West Central constituency, which takes in Hammersmith & Fulham, Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster. Merlene said: "I am delighted that I will be working with the existing Hammersmith & Fulham campaign team on the issues that matter to the community. I look forward to meeting as many local residents and business people as I can in person so we can work together to change things for the better."

Merlene is a lawyer with 10 years' experience in the corporate and banking sphere. She is also a trustee of a charity based on Oxford Street and an officer of a housing association. She volunteers as a community mediator in the three boroughs in West Central. She is a mother of three boys aged between 10 and 17. Merlene has long-standing connections with Hammersmith & Fulham and lives a stone's throw from Hammersmith Bridge.

You can find more information about Merlene's experience and background on her website: www.merlene.org.uk

22 January 2007: Lib Dem Leader Ming Campbell and Shadow Home Secretary Nick Clegg today launched the new Liberal Democrat plan to cut crime - Five Steps to a Safer Britain:

1. More police on patrol
   Don't waste billions on ID cards

2. Compulsory work and training in prison
   to cut reoffending

3. Better compensation for victims
   paid for by prison work

4. Take back our town centres
   Let communities close pubs and clubs that cause trouble

5. Make sentences mean what they say
   Life should mean life

Liberal Democrat Crime Success in London
Robbery increased by over 29% in Conservative-run Richmond between 2002 and 2005, whilst next door in Lib Dem-run Kingston, robbery decreased by almost 16% over the same period. Read more

Labour Failures
Tony Blair talks tough but has failed to deliver despite almost 10 years in government. Violent crime has doubled in the last 8 years and more than 3 in every 5 prisoners are convicted of another crime within two years of release, the highest proportion since records began. Read more

Conservative Confusion
The Tories show no signs of a coherent policy on crime. One day they're telling us to hug a hoodie; the next it's slap a hoodie. Where do they really stand on crime? David Cameron worked for the Home Office during the last Conservative Government, during which police numbers fell between 1992 and 1997, while violent crime rose every year during the Tories' 18 years of failure. Read more

Read more / sign petition

Watch the video with subtitles on Google Video

Green Tip - Car Recycling

About 85% of a modern car can be recycled. Due to changes in the law, car owners are now responsible for the safe disposal of their car when it reaches the end of its life.

To find out how to recycle an old car for free, visit www.autogreen.org or www.cartakeback.com

Local Lib Dems Elect New Chair

Lib Dem members in Hammersmith & Fulham have elected Henrietta Bewley as the new Chair of the local borough party. Henrietta said: "Thank you very much to everyone who voted in the election in December for Chair of Hammersmith and Fulham Lib Dems. I am delighted that you chose me, and I hope that together we can make our local party more effective at campaigning and fun to be a member of."

Boundary Changes:
New Borough Structure for Local Party

Lib Dem members in Hammersmith & Fulham have voted for a new Borough structure for the local Liberal Democrat party.

Read full story

H&F Lib Dems Join Green Tax Switch Campaign

Liberal Democrats in Hammersmith & Fulham were out on the streets this weekend (28-29 October) giving out leaflets supporting the national Lib Dem Green Tax Switch campaign ? shifting taxes to help stop climate change.

Local Liberal Democrat campaigner Catherine Reifen said: "We had a fantastic response to our campaign and lots of people wanting to sign the green tax petition.

"Local people are really concerned about climate change and were impressed by our plans to stop it by switching to green taxes. This is not just a global issue, but a local one too - especially with the planned Heathrow expansion and the threat to the Thames Barrier from rising sea levels."

Liberal Democrats want to radically change the way Britain pays tax, taxing good things - like income - less, and switching to taxing bad things - like pollution - instead.

We would give the average family a £1,000 income tax cut. By switching to green taxes instead, everyone can help switch off climate chaos. Then, the more you choose to switch to greener living, the more of your Lib Dem income tax cut you will keep. It's your choice!

While other politicians just talk about the environment, Lib Dem leader Ming Campbel has won praise for his green tax switch plan to actually do something to tackle growing climate chaos.

Catherine Reifen added: "Green taxes can change our behaviour and safeguard our planet for our children and their children. This is about using taxes in a new way to change behaviour, not to raise money for the Government."

Watch the Lib Dem film about climate change

Conference in full

The Lib Dems enjoyed a tremendously successful national conference in Brighton, with substantive policies debates, interesting fringe meetings and inspiring speeches from the leader Ming Campbell, Vince Cable on Tax, as well as rising stars like Nick Clegg on Crime, Sarah Teather on Education and Chris Huhne on the Environment. Read local Lib Dem campaigner Harry Braund's conference report.

Conference also approved a crucial package of tax reforms - the most radical proposed by any major party - aimed at cutting tax for millions of people, while taxing pollution more heavily to help prevent climate chaos. [Join the discussion online]

Watch our film about the threat posed by global warming and our policies to tackle it: The Environment Needs Action, find out more about our environmental policies or support the Green Tax Switch campaign.

You can watch various conference speeches, including Ming Campbell's Leader's Speech, here.

Green Tip - Food Miles

Next time you go shopping for fruit and vegetables, look at the "country of origin". Choose the produce that has travelled the least to reduce your "food miles".

Transport uses energy and emits carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the main greenhouse gases responsible for global warming. Choosing locally produced food saves energy and reduces pollution from ships or planes that bring these goods to the shop.

Labour's "Crime Spree"

Labour has created more then 3,000 new criminal offences since 1997, almost one for every day they have been in power.

Nick Clegg, the Lib Dem MP who uncovered the figures said: ?Labour has failed to grasp that weighing down the statute book is no substitute for good government.?

The Lib Dems want better enforcement of existing laws, not more laws!

The Green Tax Switch

Liberal Democrat leader Menzies Campbell MP has unveiled plans to protect and improve our environment with a major "green tax switch".

The party wants to cut income tax for everyone, and take millions of the least well off out of income tax altogether, whilst instead taxing pollution more heavily.

"We are the only major party which takes the environment seriously and that does mean that environmental taxes will rise, but we will also cut income tax by 2p in the pound and take around three million people out of income tax completely.

This will be good news not just for our environment but for everyone who will benefit from income tax cuts," said Ming Campbell.

Axe the Tax - Council Tax is Unfair at Any Rate

The new Conservative Council is making brave promises to reduce Council Tax over the next few years. Lib Dems believe that even a reduced Council Tax is still an unfair tax.

Local Liberal Democrat spokeswoman Catherine Reifen said, "Council Tax hits pensioners in particular very hard, especially since they often miss out on the benefits they are entitled to. The Lib Dems are proposing a Local Income Tax based on people's ability to pay, not the inflated value of their home."

To find out more or to sign the petition to axe Council Tax, visit Axe the Tax.

Local Elections 2006 - Lib Dems Come Within 29 Votes of Winning in Askew Ward

Thank you to everyone who supported the Lib Dems in the local elections on May 4th. Led by Henrietta Bewley, Sophie Sainty and Thoby Young, we came within 29 votes of beating Labour in Askew Ward, where the turnout was 37% - up 10%. The Lib Dem vote soared by 17% while Labour's vote fell by 13%. The Tories remained a poor third place.

Our vote also held up across the borough, even increasing in some Fulham wards. The new Council has 33 Tory and 13 Labour councillors. If we had a fair voting system based on Proportional Representation, there would have been 23 Tory, 16 Labour and 7 Lib Dem councillors.

Sophie Sainty said: "We had a wonderful time representing the Party. We want to thank everyone who helped. The tide was turning and the Labour vote was collapsing. We just didn't have quite enough resources to gain a victory. However, we are all committed to continue the campaign and want to build on the tremendous support we have developed, so that next time we will win!"