Cllr Marc Ramsbottom

City Centre Lib Dem Councillor Marc Ramsbottom has backed plans to revamped the struggling Triangle shopping Centre. Plans by its owners to revamp the listed building were unveiled to the Council which will also include relocating the Big Wheel in Exchange Square. The building, which was original a Produce and Corn Exchange, was heavily damaged after the IRA bomb, and turned into shopping centre in 1997. But the report admits that it's been a commercial failure, suffering from being 'detached and right at the edge of the shopping circuit'. It's problems are exacerbated by the position of the Manchester Wheel and 'excessive clutter and barriers to access'.

Following a Freedom of Information request by Cllr Marc Ramsbottom, Labour Town Hall Parking bosses have revealed that they have raked in £12,930 on the first day after introducing parking charges on a Sunday. The Council confirmed that 431 Fixed Penalty parking charge notices were issued on Sunday 30th October compared to only 126 on the Saturday before - almost a fourfold increase. Many residents and motorists complained they were caught unaware of the exact date when Sunday charges were coming in with only a tiny notice on the parking meters themselves to warn drivers.

In his keynote speech to the Liberal Democrat Conference, Party Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has outlined his goals for the Government and the country over the coming years. He reiterated his commitment to liberal values on the environment and human rights and his determination to ensure a fair chance for every child, saying "every child can do good things, great things, if only we give them the opportunities they deserve."

Within weeks of the local elections, Labour have already broken their promises to city centre residents by voting through a massive 18% rise in on-street parking charges - now making parking in Manchester the highest outside London.

They now also look set to extend charging to Sunday and from 7am to 7pm on other days despite protest from residents. Lib Dems demanded that the increases be reviewed at a recent Council committee, but arrogant Labour councillors described the meeting as 'a waste of their time' and refused to reconsider their plans.

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The by election in Hulme ward on the 4th November is set to be between former Trinity High School pupil Grace Baynham and Labour.

The election, caused by the arrest of Labour's Emily Lomax is embroiled in controversy after environmental campaigners accused Labour of deliberately misrepresenting their views on a local website.

Local Campaigner John Bridges has joined the Lib Dem city centre team and has already hit the ground running taking up issues on behalf of local residents.

John, who is a keen cyclist and works for UK wide campaigning body, has strong local roots in the city centre. He is Vice Chair of the popular Village Football team and chaired a top committee in the city that looked into the affects the new licensing laws. He has also been a governor of a city primary school.

City Centre Lib Dems are urging Town Hall bosses to tackle some of the city centres' major grot spots. Cllr Marc Ramsbottom recently organised and attended a major 'summit' meeting in Chinatown bring together key players after complaints about litter, vermin, fly tipping and anti social behaviour.

Other areas have been the focus for activity with some quick wins such as this area by Victoria Station, where heavy littering has recently been removed.

Manchester has more uncollected council tax than anywhere in England according to government figures. Almost 10% of council tax owed to the Labour-run town hall went unpaid in 2009/10 a new government league table showed. That is the greatest percentage of cash written off by any authority in England.

Lib Dem Parliamentary candidate Marc Ramsbottom saw a swing of more than 6% away from Labour towards the Lib Dems in Manchester Central on election night on the 6 May. His actual vote increased from 7,217 to 10,620 - 26.6% share of the vote. The Tories were way back in third place as predicted.

"I am delighted by the result - a real improvement on the last election" said Marc on the night of of the count. He thank his dedicated team of volunteers who helped in his campaign, and the growing number of residents who backed him this time.