Wealden Liberal Democrats

Following the lively and inspiring virtual Q&A with Lib Dem MP Tim Farron at our virtual AGM in November which left everyone wanting more, we are thrilled that Tim has agreed to return for an hour-long virtual Curious Conversation via Zoom on Thursday January 21 from 7-8pm.

Afterwards, there'll also be the opportunity for some virtual socialising using the breakout rooms function. Please note that this is a FREE online event for all members and supporters but optional donations will be gratefully received!

Our Crowborough campaigners and activists including Lib Dem County Council candidate James Partridge (pictured) will be out and about this weekend delivering the Crowborough 2020 Christmas Focus - and of course everyone is taking care to be fully COVID compliant.

Included in this festive focus is a quiz on local matters - please click here to download the answers.

UPDATE DECEMBER 8th 2020: THIS YEAR'S DRAW TICKETS HAVE PROVED SO POPULAR THEY HAVE NOW SOLD OUT - thanks to all who participated and best of luck for the draw this Thursday, December 10th at 8pm!

Winners will be notified ASAP following the draw, and results will then be published.

The annual Liberal Democrat Draw is a great way to donate to your local party of choice - and gives you a chance to win one of this year's amazing prizes including the top prize of £1500 cash!

We are delighted to announce that the (very!) special guest speaker at our upcoming virtual AGM on November 7, 2020 will be former Liberal Democrat leader and MP Tim Farron.

After a short opening talk at 10am, Tim has kindly agreed to answer some questions, so WLD members and/or supporters who'd like to put a question to Tim are invited to please email it in advance to: lucy@wealdenlibdems.com

We are now producing a quarterly digital newsletter aimed at our members and supporters across Wealden.

Please click on the links below to access our recent newsletters - and if you'd like to subscribe just let us know by emailing us at: info@wealdenlibdems.org.uk

Wealden LibDems Newsletter - Autumn 2020

Calling all Wealden residents - we would love to hear your views!

We've created an online survey for all Wealden residents, which is running in tandem with the more locally targeted paper surveys* currently being delivered to some homes in and around Crowborough, Hailsham and Uckfield. Everyone is welcome to fill out either version, or both.

Thanks to everyone who joined us for our second Curious Conversations event last month, a very lively and informative virtual live Q&A session with Liberal Democrat President Mark Pack, brilliantly hosted by our very own Lucy Buck.

We are currently planning our next Curious Conversation and some other great events too, so please do watch this space!

Across Wealden, there has been a sharp increase this year - both in terms of speed and volume - in the granting of permissions for major new housing developments, including many that local communities have lodged objections to, and even some that had been previously rejected.

The fact that this is also happening alongside proposed cuts to the Fire Service and budget shortfalls for other essential public services, together with inadequate infrastructure (already under-capacity for the existing population) seems odd, to say the least.

Shortly before Christmas, residents of the new Cuckoo Meadow housing development in Hailsham (due to be completed next year) began complaining about foul-smelling water in the continuation pond, which is overlooked by many of the new houses. The pond was also overflowing, so they suspected that sewage was somehow leaking into it. Their plight was immediately taken up by two local Wealden District Councillors, Neil Cleaver (Liberal Democract, Hailsham North West) and David White (Independent, Hellingly), who realised at once that this was an urgent matter. "Not only did the pond water smell terrible," says Councillor Cleaver, recalling his first visit to the site over six months ago, "but it was also constantly overflowing, even during a dry spell."