Press Releases - Liberal Democrat Party
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CONTACT DETAILS |
karen.roberts@rctlibdems.org.uk |
| 01443 433648 |
The Welsh Liberal Democrats have unveiled their candidate for the Rhondda seat for the forthcoming General election.
Karen Roberts, of Clydach Vale, is Chair of the Rhondda Cynon Taff Party
and former Leader of the Council Group.
She is also known locally for her wide ranging community involvement. Vice
Chair of Governors at Cwmclydach Infant School and Tonypandy Community
College, and Chair of the Friends Associations at both, Karen is also
Chair of the very successful Clydach Vale Communites First Partnership,
and Secretary of the Cambrian Village Trust.
"I am delighted that the Party have put their faith in me and chosen me as their candidate for the Rhondda. I am a Rhondda girl through and through and welcome the chance to put something back into these valleys.
I think people here, as throughout the rest of the Country are looking for
change. The Liberal Democrats are the real challenge to the Labour
Government, and I look forward to the battle"
Karen is married with two children aged 13 and 19, and keeps her finger on
the political pulse nationally as well as locally as an employee of the
Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Group.
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The
condition of roads throughout Rhondda Cynon Taff has been a source of
concern and indeed anger for some time, however we are not the only area
with problems. Welsh Liberal Democrat research has revealed that
nearly 7,000 Km of roads in Wales are in need of repair including just
under 9% of motorways and over 11% of trunk roads.
Welsh Liberal Democrat Transport spokesperson, Jenny Randerson A.M.,
commented: "One of the most common complaints we hear about the
transport network in Wales is about the state of the roads. It is clear
that road repair budgets are failing to keep pace with increasing wear and
tear caused by the yearly increase in road traffic. Poor road conditions
cause accidents as well as inconvenience. The Welsh Assembly Government
needs to ensure
that sufficient funding is provided to allow these vital repairs to be
undertaken. At present, the situation gets worse rather than better."
Karen Roberts, Chair of the Rhondda Cynon Taff Liberal Democrats added
"The problem is particularly acute in this area due not only to the
gross underfunding by the Welsh Assembly Government but to successive
Local Authority administrations who have made constant cutbacks in the
Highways budget to fund their own pet initiatives. The residents of RCT
are sick and tired of fancy schemes, action plans, forums and broken
promises.
They want basic services and improvements they can see. Plaid
promised it and failed miserably to deliver. Now the new Labour
administration have announced their commitment to services before
ceremony. Perhaps they can work with their Assembly colleagues to
come up with solutions "
* * * * *
Liberal Democrat Councillors in Rhondda
Cynon Taff have launched their own website, which puts them ahead of the
opposition in the technological stakes. Clydach Vale Councillor
Karen Roberts speaking on behalf of the Group said:
"This puts us at the forefront in communicating with those that
matter most - the residents of RCT. The website is certainly not
meant to replace more conventional means of contact - you can still
contact the Liberal Democrat team by post or telephone; we will still be
producing newsletters; and of course meeting people face to face wherever
possible.
However, this gives an added dimension and allows people throughout
Rhondda Cynon Taff, and indeed world wide, to see just what we are doing.
Internet use is a rapidly growing here as throughout the country and it is
important that we look at all means of communication. There is a
huge untapped potential here which is underused by politicians at all
levels."
The website can be found at www.rctlibdems.org.uk
and was designed by Pontypridd based firm Web Design Wales.
"It was important that the site
projected a professional image whilst at the same time being user
friendly" commented Cllr Mike Powell "and we were also keen to
use local talent of which there is plenty."
Whilst a very small number of Councillors have their own web page, and
there is a Plaid Cymru site for Treforest, none of the other Parties
within Rhondda Cynon Taff have a central website.
* * * * *
Mike German A.M., Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the Assembly visited Rhondda Cynon Taff recently. Included in the brief tour were four local stops.
First visit was to Cwmclydach Infant School in Clydach Vale, where the pupils were dressed in costume to have their Rhondda Leader St David's Day photographs taken. A light hearted chat with the children turned to the more serious matter of the budget, as staff expressed their concerns over the financial situation facing many of our Schools in the coming year.
Photo: Mike German AM (centre right) at Tonypandy Community College.
From
there was a quick journey to Tonypandy Community College, where Mr German
spoke to several Sixth form Students including Sports Academy members.
The College showed off some of the excellent facilities on offer, such as
the drama studio, the new recording studio, and the state of the art
design and technology equipment. A major topic of conversation was
the Football and Rugby Academies which operate for Post 16 Students.
Mr German was accompanied by local Liberal Democrat Councillors including
Karen Roberts, who is a Governor at both Cwmclydach and Tonypandy,
"It is always a pleasure to be able to 'show off' to visitors -
I am very proud of both of these Schools and what they have achieved.
I would like to thank the staff and pupils for their hospitality as
always. We were working to a very tight schedule which meant having
to keep each visit quite short, but we could quite easily have spent hours
at each place discussing the various problems faced and of course their
accomplishments."
A busy schedule did manage to fit in a quick break for lunch at the
Clydach Vale Community Development Centre where Communities First staff
explained just what the project has brought to the area. Then after
a quick detour to Pontypridd and Ynysybwl the tour returned to the Rhondda
to the Arts Factory in Ferndale where Mr German was impressed by the range
of activities and future vision of the project.
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