Devon County Council should reverse its 'mean minded' refusal to provide free school meals during the holidays, say Devon's Liberal Democrats.

"The impact of the lockdown and Covid19 on many families across the County is not of their making and money is increasingly tight, especially for those affected by reduced hours, lost jobs, or furlough arrangements," said Liberal Democrat opposition leader Cllr Alan Connett.

The government's White Paper on planning reforms is a missed opportunity to resolve the country's housing crisis and does nothing to address the issues we face in the South Hams, agreed councillors and public at a meeting held on Tuesday October 20^th online.

While the Government claims there has not been enough house building to meet demand, Totnes Councillor John Birch reminded the meeting that planning permission has already been granted for 6,950 dwellings that have not yet been implemented.

The average house price is more than 11 times the average income in the South Hams. If we want young working families to remain here something has to change, writes Julian Brazil, Chair of the Development Management Committee at South Hams District Council.

Our local infrastructure already struggles to cope with the extra pressure of new development. And housing numbers are imposed on us from central government. The latest white paper on planning was an opportunity for change. What a missed opportunity! Far from solving the issues we face; it just amplifies the problems.

Hopefully lots of you have already signed up for conference at the end of the month but for those who haven't yet, this article,detailing why this will be a great conference for first timers may be of interest.

Our first ever full online conference is set to be one of our biggest ever. With a more accessible, affordable, and flexible conference, more members than ever will be able to have their say and vote on some of the fantastic policy motions coming up at Autumn Conference. You can view a full list of the motions that are going to be debated here.

Hopefully you all managed to vote in the recent leadership election. We are glad that we now have a permanent leader in Ed Davey and hope that he can now concentrate on taking the party forward. We know there is national ground to recover and look forward to seeing the party energy revitalised. We were glad to hear that Ed will be launching a national listening programme so voters can tell us what matters to them. Congratulations to Ed!

I live in the village of East Prawle. My Councillor area covers the Parishes between Kingsbridge and Dartmouth. The duties of a councillor are very varied. They can be rewarding, frustrating, humbling and challenging - usually a mixture of all four. It is very enjoyable. I studied Zoology at Bristol University and am a former science teacher. I now do the accounts for a number of local businesses. My main areas of interest are health, education and the environment (former chair of the Green Lib Dems.) I play cricket for the village, and darts and euchre for the Pigs Nose Inn.