Cllr Jason Brock
Next Thursday, May 4, is election day in Reading. As is usual in our town, one-third of the Council’s seats are up, plus an additional by-election seat in Park ward.
As is also usual, I’m sure you’ll have had leaflets through your door and candidates coveting your vote. We have a strong culture of local democracy here in Reading, aided by an annual cycle of elections and a strong local media that ensures all councillors are kept on their toes.
I think this matters because, fundamentally, local elections should be about competing visions for the town. Every party should have a cogent and holistic narrative of what Reading should be like and, vitally, how we can achieve it.
As the Labour Leader of a Labour council, I don’t have the ‘luxury’ of simply appealing to populist sentiment or chasing every passing campaign bandwagon – which are always popular pastimes for the opposition parties here.
If Labour did this, we would end up with contradictory promises in different neighbourhoods and grind ourselves – and our hometown – to a halt.
Instead, I’m very proud that Reading Labour have once again laid out an aspirational and ambitious agenda for your consideration at the elections, which you can find at readinglabour.org.uk/reading-labour-manifesto-2023. As ever, we build on our track record of delivering for Reading and all its residents.
North, south, east, and west, whichever way you look across the town, big improvements are happening in 2023.
You may have already visited the new community swimming pool and gym in east Reading at Palmer Park Leisure Centre and Stadium. Or, looking towards the north, perhaps you’ve watched the new flagship Rivermead leisure centre taking shape on the banks of the Thames.
In the south, Reading’s first new train station for 117 years is now just weeks away from public use at Green Park Station. Delivered by the Council along with its rail partners, I’m certain it will prove to be a welcome new option for residents living nearby and for Royals fans getting to and from home games.
And in the west of the borough, the modernisation of Reading West Station is fast taking shape. It is now nearing completion with new entrances and a brand-new station ticket office on the Oxford Road.
We are also modernising playgrounds all over Reading, including a brand-new flagship playground for the town at Prospect Park, which joins our recently opened activity centre and mini-golf course.
Looking across the Borough, you’ll see evidence of Labour’s biggest Council house building project in a generation. We’ve expanded our ambition and now have over 400 Council homes in the pipeline, including provision for key workers and for the older residents. We are also retrofitting hundreds of existing Council homes, making them warmer and cheaper to heat.
And we continue to invest in low carbon technologies, building on the town’s 55% reduction in its carbon footprint in just 13 years – the 4th best in the UK (and once again recognised internationally in the Carbon Disclosure Project’s Global A-List).
Recognising our responsibility to keep the town on a path to net zero, Reading Labour continues to invest in easy, realistic, cheap, and sustainable new travel options for residents. Our new segregated cycle lane along Shinfield Road is progressing at pace.
Work begins later this year on new cycling and walking facilities along the Bath Road and Castle Hill. We also are investing in Reading’s award-winning bus services, utilising technology to make travelling by bus easier and offering cheaper fares for passengers.
All of this is against a backdrop of major challenges faced by every council. Just as the cost of living crisis impacts on your household budget, inflationary pressures will cost the Council nearly £9 million extra this year, at a time when revenues remain down from the ongoing impact of the pandemic. And despite repeated promises, the continued failure of the Conservative Government to solve the national social care funding crisis means we have also had to budget for an additional £4.4m this year for Adult Social Care to provide for those residents who rely on us alongside an extra £2.5m for children’s services.
We know that in difficult times some communities are impacted more than others, and we are again maintaining our vital financial support for our incredible voluntary sector in Reading, who help us reach and support communities and residents who are struggling.
The balance between maintaining a strong local economy, investing in modern new facilities for residents and providing support to those who need our help the most during a cost of living crisis, is not an easy one to strike, but I believe our plans achieve just that.
Our priority remains helping Reading realise its potential by creating new opportunities so that everyone who lives and works here can share in the benefits of our amazing town’s success. If you share our vision of a successful, fairer, greener, cleaner town, I hope you’ll lend Labour your vote on Thursday 4th May.
Cllr Jason Brock is the leader of Reading Borough Council and ward member for Southcote. He is not a candidate in this year’s local elections
