LOCAL ELECTION: Yet to vote today? Here are the main party statements

Labour

LABOUR in the Vale has delivered a level of investment in our communities not seen in decades.

In five years we have invested £83million in new schools, transformed parks and play areas across the Vale and breathed new life into Barry Island and Penarth’s Pier and Esplanade.

The Labour-led Vale Council has been the best performing council in Wales for the past two years and is in the running to be judged best in the UK.

We want to do even more.

We want a positive future with good education and jobs for our young people, an active future with care and dignity for our older residents and a prosperous future for all from the new £1.29bn City Deal and Enterprise Zone.

Getting the basics right is important.

Although 92 per cent of residents are satisfied with the council we want to be even better.

We will focus on litter and dog-fouling and spend even more fixing pavements and potholes.

We will explore solutions to parking problems that blight people’s lives and damage our town centres.

But we can’t do it without your help.

Please vote Labour to help us build an even brighter future for communities across the Vale.

Green Party

Wales Green Party are standing candidates across the Vale in this month’s Council elections, including Penarth where the Party is standing in every ward.

We are standing because we believe that the Council needs a strong, independent Green voice. A Green voice will bring fresh energy and new ideas and speak out strongly for our area.

Green councillors will fight to bring the quality of our environment, where we live and work, to the forefront of all decision making. We will work for better public transport, improved access for cyclists and pedestrians, and safer streets for all users. We will push strong Green policies to tackle the growing air quality crisis in pollution hot spots.

Greens recognise the vital importance of local independent businesses to our local economy and will ensure that they are supported in every way possible. As councils across Wales face further budgetary constraints due to the politically driven ‘Austerity’ agenda, Green councillors will fight to protect vital services, including our many parks and green spaces that are so important for our community’s wellbeing.

We will work with our communities, for our communities. A Green voice on the Vale will mean an end to ‘Business as Usual’.

Ukip

The Vale of Glamorgan UKIP Branch has been growing in size and strength and is standing candidates in Thursday’s county council elections.

Our aim is to provide the Vale with a fresh start.

We will always act in the community’s best interests, unlike some inactive independent councillors and will vigorously oppose the stagnant politics of the Conservative and Labour parties in the council chamber.

By voting for UKIP, residents will be opting to elect councillors who put their community before politics.

UKIP councillors have no party whip and will always put the wishes of local people ahead of party affiliation.

In recent months, UKIP activists have been working closely with residents also in Barry to help solve the daily problems caused by anti-social behaviour.

Only a vote for UKIP will ensure a zero-tolerance approach.

UKIP are committed to reducing council tax and prioritising housing for veterans and the most vulnerable in society. For too long, local people in the Vale have witnessed a reduction in council services, yet have continued to feel the sharp cost of the tax.

Conservatives

Only the Welsh Conservatives can take control of the Vale of Glamorgan Council from Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party and deliver for local people.

A Welsh Conservative Council will provide the strong and stable leadership that the Vale needs to build a stronger local economy and more effective public services.

Local Conservatives are committed to securing a by-pass for Dinas Powys, improving local bus services and re-surfacing the roads. Conservatives will make local social care fit for the 21st century and ensure that monthly bin collections are not introduced.

A Conservative Vale Council would work with local champion Alun Cairns to secure a better future for the Vale over the long-term, helping to deliver his vision of a better-connected Vale of Glamorgan with bustling high streets and strong local communities.

A vote for independents or Welsh nationalist activists at this election is effectively a vote for Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party, as only the Conservatives can take control of the Council and deliver change.

Conservatives believe that there is a bright future for the Vale in the years to come, but need your vote on May 4th to make the plan a reality. The alternative is a coalition of chaos.

Liberal Democrats

The Welsh Liberal Democrats team have been listening to views and concerns of residents.

It is clear we need to act on the state of the roads and pavements.

We need to fix the large number of potholes; we need to clean up and fix our pavements.

We will also work with residents to improve public transport to and around the area, reduce speeding in residential areas, improve traffic flow at key junctions to minimise the impact of idling traffic on local air pollution and prevent the use of short-cuts, which impact on local resident’s streets.

Your Liberal Democrat candidates will work to protect local services such as libraries, post offices, cultural venues and banks. It is very important to us that local assets have a sustainable future.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats offer a positive vision of what Wales can achieve.

We want councils to be fairer and more democratic, putting people back in the driving seat.

Please support your Liberal Democrat team on the May 4.

Plaid Cymru

Plaid Cymru –The Party of Wales has been campaigning harder than ever in Penarth to win seats on the Vale of Glamorgan Council and Penarth Town Council.

We have an excellent group of candidates in Anne Greagsby and Aled Thomas for St Augustine’s, Lewis Greenaway and David Wilton for Cornerswell, Sandy Clubb for Stanwell and Gareth Clubb for Plymouth.

We urge voters to consider who have been the most vigorous campaigners in this election and give us the chance to bring our enthusiasm and campaigning skills to the councils.

Just think what a difference it would make to have some new blood representing Penarth on the county and town councils.

During this campaign, Plaid has been highlighting local issues, such as making our streets safer for walkers and cyclists and tackling litter and dog mess.

We have also campaigned on the state of the pavements, air pollution, public transport, overdevelopment, protecting trees and preserving the town’s heritage, including the St. Paul’s and Headlands buildings, the Pier Pavilion and Cosmeston Lakes Country Park.

We’re hoping for a good result as voters come to realise that only Plaid Cymru – The Party of Wales puts Wales and the people of Wales first.