A special meeting of the council is to be held on 21 December 2009 in relation to revised governance arrangements. It takes place in the Council Chamber, Council House, Lichfield Street, Walsall, at 6pm. View proposal to be considered at special council meeting (PDF 91KB) Appendix 1 (PDF 30KB)

Improving the nation’s health relies on a combination of prevention and treatment. While treating sickness is naturally the preserve of the NHS, many people believe that the public health agenda – promoting and enabling healthier lifestyles – sits more comfortably within local government. Local authorities have a long history of involvement in public health, stretching [...]

  What a sad old world we’re living in! Council workmen have today had to remove New Invention’s ornamental arch at the entrance to the community green on the corner of Lichfield Road with Forest gate. The arch was removed this afternoon because it had been vandalised over the weekend. Someone had cut through three of [...]

Fears were being expressed today that work currently going on between J10 and J10a was set to drag on well into the new year in-spite of claims to the contrary by “The Highways Agency” (a government quango) reports Liberal Democrat councillor Ian Shires. Just a few weeks ago residents and councillors in the area had [...]

MailOnline 29 Nov 09  Banks are back in the news. Just when they hoped quietly to get on with business as usual, we have had sharp reminders of why they can’t. It has emerged that, a year ago, there was a secret £62billion loan to keep leading banks afloat. The Supreme Court has ruled that [...]

After more revelations about standards of care at several NHS hospital trusts, the Liberal Democrats have said the case for a public inquiry is overwhelming. Liberal Democrat Health spokesman Norman Lamb said: “We were told that the Mid Staffordshire case was a one-off scandal. “At the time I called for a public inquiry and it [...]

By Kirsty Walker MailOnline 29 Nov 09  David Cameron’s green adviser Zac Goldsmith is facing calls to resign after admitting that he claims non-domicile tax status. Mr Goldsmith, who is also standing as a Tory candidate at the General Election, is avoiding paying hugs sums of tax on his estimated £200million fortune. The multimillionaire has admitted [...]

Liberal Democrat MEP Liz Lynne has urged local community groups working to fight violence and to help the victims of violence to see if they can apply to an EU fund designed to help such projects work more effectively. The West Midlands MEP was keynote speaker at a seminar for 45 potential applicants to the [...]

The Christmas lights have been switched on across Willenhall in-spite of a Scrooge like attempt by Walsall’s Tory cabinet to restrict the festive lights to District Centres only reports Liberal Democrat councillor Ian Shires. Willenhall Local Neighbourhood Partnership (LNP) sponsored extra lights in Willenhall Town Centre where the town’s Traders and Community Support Group planned this year’s [...]

  The YamYam 29 Nov 09: Beacon Radio 29 Nov 09 Residents in Bentley have told how they took a stand against a group of 60 young people terrorising their estate, of how gangs would smash windows, drink and fight on the streets and scare locals on Western Avenue…