Antony Little for Norwich South

The Government has failed to get costs under control and left passengers facing ever increasing fares, according to Antony Little, Conservative Parliamentary spokesman for Norwich South.

Cllr Little’s comments were made after the news that rail fares are to increase by as much as 6pc in the New Year and that around 300 staff are to be laid off by National Express East Anglia, which is based in Norwich.

He said: “After eleven years in charge of our railways, Labour have totally failed to get costs under control and left passengers facing ever increasing fares. At a time when families are feeling the pinch, it is even more important to ensure passengers get value for money.

“But under Labour, not only are passengers paying more, but they have to put up with extreme overcrowding.  The most packed trains are running at over 170 per cent capacity. This state of affairs is inexcusable.”

The Conservatives’ Parliamentary spokesman for Norwich South has warned the Government that their proposals to tackle human trafficking and prostitution will not protect the most vulnerable victims.

Antony Little, who is also Tory group leader at City Hall, made his comments after the Home Secretary announced a new raft of laws making kerb crawling and pimping a criminal offence.

Cllr Little said: “In the last year alone, the Metropolitan Police’s human trafficking unit has been axed, and convictions for trafficking for sexual exploitation fell by 40 per cent. If the Government was really serious about tackling human trafficking it should create a dedicated Border Police Force.

“It must also address the reasons why so many women find themselves working in prostitution.  Family breakdown, drug and alcohol abuse and poor education all play their part.

“The Government must look at preventative measures, not just reach for more legislation. ”Rather than creating new laws, the Home Secretary should focus on enforcing the existing laws.”

Three areas around Norwich are proposed to have a permanent 20mph speed limit – and the city council wants to know what residents think.

A consultation, starting on Monday (24 November), is to assess what people living in the three areas – one made up of streets around Vauxhall Street and Newmarket Street, another around Knowland Grove, Marlpit Lane, Jex Road and Hellesdon Road, and the last including streets around  Borrowdale Drive – think of the plan.

Councillor Antony Little, Conservative group leader at City Hall, has welcomed the plans but also warned that the new speed limits will need to be enforced.

He said: “Despite many areas across Norwich needing great attention to stop speeding cars, simply putting up new signs is not enough. The new 20mph zones will need to be rigorously enforced to ensure that motorists stay within the letter of the law. That is the only way this scheme will work to make our roads safer for everyone.

“I urge all motorists, cyclists and pedestrians and everyone else who lives and works in these areas to get in touch with the Council and make their views known.”

The consultation survey can be completed online from Monday at www.norwich.gov.uk/20mph or leaflets are available from the council on request. It will be sent out to all homes and businesses in the proposed areas. The closing date is 15 December.

For further information log on to www.norwich.gov.uk/20mph, call 0844 980 3333, email 20mph@norwich.gov.uk, or write to Norwich City Council Transportation Department, City Hall, St Peters Street, Norwich, NR1 2NH.

City leaders have unveiled plans to sell off historic Earlham Hall so it can be turned into an enterprise centre.

The proposals have been welcomed by Antony Little, Conservative PPC for Norwich South and group leader at City Hall, who said that development would be a significant boost to the Norwich economy.

He said: “The Norwich Conservatives completely support these plans to transform Earlham Hall into an exciting centre for business and enterprise, and are glad to see cooperation between the UEA and the wider Norwich community.

“However we hope that the Hall’s historic façade remains intact and that public access to Earlham Park will continue to be available for people to enjoy during the development work and once the new centre is completed.”

Today’s announcement that work to dual a Norwich to London trunk road will be brought forward to 2010 has been welcomed by businesses, transport bosses and MPs across the region.

Commenting on the announcement was Conservative Councillor Antony Little, who proposed the motion to dual the A11 in a recent Norwich City Council Meeting.

Cllr Little said: “I am pleased that the Department for Transport has finally given the green light for these exciting plans. Once this work is complete, the new-look A11 will increase the efficient transportation of goods and people, providing tremendous benefits for the local economy and tourism throughout the whole of Norfolk.

“Improving the transport infrastructure of the county is really is the best possible decision and is also extremely good news for the people of Norfolk.”

The Conservatives would reverse the 24-hour drinking laws and replace it with increased local discretion for licensing, according to the Parliamentary spokesman for Norwich South.

Antony Little was speaking out after a report published by the Home Affairs Select Committee showed that alcohol-related crime has placed a massive burden on police resources and diverts officers from tackling other types of crime.

In 2007, nearly half of all victims of violent crime reported by the British Crime Survey believed their attacker to be under the influence of alcohol. There was also a 22% increase in offences committed between 3am and 6am in the first full year of 24-hour drinking.

Last Monday saw the Carnage pub crawl take place in Norwich, with over 1,500 people descending on the city centre. Emergency services were put on alert and diverted resources to ensure it proceeded without any major crises.

Cllr Little said: “This report is a shocking indictment of Labour’s reckless approach to extended licensing. The Government introduced 24-hour drinking without thinking it through and the consequences have been more alcohol-fuelled violence and disorder.

“A Conservative government would get rid of this top-down approach to 24-hour drinking and ensure that laws passed to deal with alcohol-induced crime are actually enforced. Furthermore we would also slash police red tape, allowing police officers to be deployed onto the streets to deal with drunken violence.”

A leading city councillor has welcomed the decision to save the Post Office Card Account saying that local Post Offices would no longer be under the immediate threat of closure.

Antony Little, who is also the Conservatives’ Parliamentary spokesman for Norwich South, hailed yesterday’s decision as a triumph for campaigners who have fought to save the Post Office Card Account.

The Card Account currently distributes benefits to 4.3 million claimants and faced possible competition for a private company to take it over.

Cllr Little said: “This has been a humiliating U-turn for the Government. The whole tender process for the Post office Card Account has been a waste of time and money, and has been extremely destabilising for post offices in Norwich which are struggling to survive.

“If the Government is cancelling the tender, why on earth did it set up a competition in the first place?”

The Conservatives’ Parliamentary spokesman for Norwich South has called for urgent action to be taken to tackle unemployment.

Antony Little, who is also Tory group leader at City Hall, made his comments after figures were released showing that unemployment had surged to an eleven-year high of 1.82 million people.

Cllr Little said: “The trend in unemployment figures is now becoming really damaging and will be a huge worry up and down the country. We mustn’t forget that so many families and livelihoods are going to be affected by this.

“But what Britain desperately needs now is the kind of employment policy we announced on Tuesday, offering tax cuts for new jobs to keep Britain working. The Government seems to have no idea how to deal with the rising problem of joblessness

“Jobs have to be the priority which is why the Conservatives would let newly-unemployed people to sign up for a full-time training course for up to 13 weeks whilst still being able to claim Jobseeker’s Allowance. This will enable them to reskill and find new work as soon as possible.”

Despite the fact we are in the midst of a recession and the housing market is one of the worst areas hit, Norwich could see a major transformation with plans for more than 200 new homes to spring up at different corners of the city.

The derelict building of the former Shoemaker pub in Earlham West Centre, West Earlham, is set to be knocked down to make way for 18 new homes.

Commenting on the plans was Antony Little, city councillor for Bowthorpe and West Earlham, who said that the new homes would be a very welcome addition to the neighbourhood and could possibly help regenerate the community.

Cllr Little, who is also the Conservative Parliamentary spokesman for Norwich South, said: “The Shoemaker has been deserted for three years has been a constant target for arsonists and vandals so I am extremely glad that it is finally going to be demolished and replaced with new housing.

“This is a long-overdue development and despite the reservations of some residents, I believe that once the 18 new homes are completed the neighbourhood will be safer and more family friendly.”

The two would-be Conservative MPs for Norwich have called on the Government to introduce immediate tax cuts to create new jobs under an innovative scheme which would boost the Norwich and Norfolk economy and help ease unemployment in the current financial crisis.

Both Antony Little, Conservative PPC for Norwich South, and Chloe Smith, who is standing for the Tories in Norwich North, have said that the tax cuts for new jobs would create around 350,000 new jobs over the next year by giving tax breaks worth £2.6 billion to employers, something which would help local firms in Norwich.

Under the Conservative plans employers who take on people who have been unemployed for over 13 weeks would receive credit worth £2,500 against Employers’ National Insurance Contributions.

Safeguards to prevent abuse would be introduced to stop companies from fraudulently claiming the tax cut by making staff redundant.

Cllr Little, who is also Conservative group leader at City Hall, said that the economy was at risk and urgent measures were needed to deal with the recession.

He said: “This scheme will use money that would otherwise be spent on welfare payments to give tax cuts worth £2,500 per head over a year to employers who hire new workers who have been unemployed for three months or more.

“It will be revenue neutral because the money would come from lower spending on unemployment benefits. Simple safeguards would prevent abuse by ensuring that only genuinely new jobs would be eligible.”

Both Cllr Little and Miss Smith have also challenged Charles Clark and Ian Gibson, the current Norwich Labour MPs, to support the Tory proposals which would help the local economy.

Miss Smith said that Norwich jobs and businesses would be better off under the Conservative proposals and that the Government could not be trusted.

She said: “At the moment far too many jobs, businesses and livelihoods in Norwich are at risk and it’s clear that we cannot rely on Gordon brown to produce the positive policies needed to cope with recession. Change is desperately needed and the Conservatives have already announced a comprehensive package of support to help business stave off job cuts and help our economy recover from recession.

“An immediate tax cut for new jobs will provide the economy with even more support in a fiscally responsible way and would reduce the impact of recession on families across Norwich.”