We're currently waiting for our official phones from Bromley Council (expected by 20 May), but if you need to call us before then please phone us on the main Bromley Lib Dem number - 0203 371 1415.

Individual email addresses and phone numbers are shown below but if you have a general enquiry please email [email protected]

Beckenham Town & Copers Cope:

• Will Connolly
  • email: [email protected]
  • Tel: 07971 561 306
• Chloe-Jane Ross
  • email: [email protected]

Bromley Town:

• Graeme Casey
  • email: [email protected]
• Julie Ireland
  • email: [email protected]
• Sam Webber
  • email: [email protected]

You can also follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

For Bromley Town councillors the facebook page is www.facebook.com/bromleytownlibdem and our twitter account is @bromleylibdems.

For Beckenham Town & Copers Cope councillors the facebook page is www.facebook.com/mybeckenham and our twitter account is @mybeckenham.

The past two years have been an experience unlike any other experienced for generations. We’ve all endured periods of anxiety, separation, worry for our loved ones and loneliness. Many of us will have been fortunate to have had the safety, support and security of family to rely on but not everyone will have been so lucky. Now, as we move into an ever more open society, we realise that we still haven’t quite yet achieved the normality we once knew. Crowds aren’t quite what they once were, people are still careful in public places. If anything, these experiences have given us an insight into what life was like before for many and how their life continues today.

Bromley Council now have 5 Liberal Democrat councillors. Sam Webber, Julie Ireland and Graeme Casey were elected in Bromley Town ward, and Chloe-Jane Ross and Will Connolly were elected in Beckenham Town & Copers Cope ward. 

The Elections Bill gained Royal Assent on Thursday 28 April. It is a bad piece of legislation for many reasons, but notably because it increases government control over how our elections are run. Even Tory MPs cannot stomach it – with former Tory minister and Conservative leadership candidate David Davis MP describing the voter ID aspects as “illiberal” and “downright discriminatory”.

The Liberal Democrats strongly opposed the Bill and believe the independence and integrity of our elections is vital to the functioning of our democracy. Politicians should not be interfering in how our elections are run – the independence of the Electoral Commission is key to maintaining a system that is fair for all parties and candidates.

The newly passed legislation allows:

1. the government to issue a “statement of purpose” determining the Electoral Commission’s priorities. Literally the government will be able to direct the Electoral Commission;
2. the relevant minister to attend meetings of the Speaker’s Committee, the statutory body responsible for holding the Electoral Commission to account to check that the statement of purpose is being adhered to. This will increase the political pressure on the Electoral Commission to follow the Government’s directions; and
3. the minister for the Cabinet Office will be able to unilaterally define what campaigning is and which groups can or cannot engage in the democratic process. The list of third-party campaigners the minister will be able to unilaterally edit includes trade unions and conditions for inclusion could be placed upon campaign groups the Government does not like.

Meanwhile, bizarrely, the legislation expressly removes the ability of the Electoral Commission to bring criminal prosecutions against those who break electoral law relating to political parties and campaigns. This would stop the Electoral Commission from taking politicians to court over secret donations and illegal campaigning, placing new curbs on the regulator’s ability to hold people and political parties to account. As we know from the No.10 Covid-19 lockdown parties, this Conservative government does not care about the rules nor like being held to account. This legislation appears to continue that theme.

What can I do about it?

Well on Thursday 5^th May you have the opportunity to give this illiberal Conservative Government a bloody nose. Vote Liberal Democrat to elect local champions to Bromley council who will get things done in your community and send a message to the Government that you will no longer be ignored, no longer be taken for granted and that they should not be messing around with our elections.

As political parties sometimes use different election figures in their literature and bar charts, we would like to provide information on our use of election figures ahead of the 5th May local election.

In our communications and literature, we’re using the figures from the last local election; the election where ward councillors are selected. This is what is happening again in May and this is directly comparable. To use any other election figures, we feel, would be a misleading comparison. Indeed some parties are quoting the 2021 London Mayoral election vote, which is not comparable.

Bromley Liberal Democrats have named Gerda Loosemore-Reppen and Laura Thurimella as their candidates for Chelsfield Ward in the forthcoming elections to Bromley Council on 5 May 2022. Both candidates are campaigning hard against Areli and Bromley Council's plans to replace Orpington’s Walnuts Centre with housing development out of 15 high rise blocks, which are out of keeping with the town's character and which do not guarantee the return of like-for-like leisure, retail or elder care services. They both feel strongly that residents' views have not been properly consulted, nor are they being listened to by Conservative Councillors. Orpington should not bear the brunt of the entire borough's annual housing targets in one small area and is being taken for granted by Conservative-led Council.

YouGov found that only 10% of people believe that the Conservative Party is trustworthy. The scandals and the sleaze have left us all disillusioned.

Bromley Council has issued a “Supplemental Planning Document”, specifically for Orpington,  for public consultation until 1 June 2022. The SPD will introduce specific guidelines for planning decisions in Orpington, and therefore once adopted will become an important document for the future of the town. Sadly the consultation period regarding the SPD has not been highlighted by the current Orpington ward councillors (it was not mentioned in their recent newsletter, InTouch, posted to all residents) nor are we aware of their having expressed any views upon it.  Since the purpose of the consultation is to obtain residents’ views, we think that Councillors for the ward of Orpington should be doing more to bring it to residents’ attention.

Families and businesses in Bromley are facing a £80,420,884 tax bombshell this year due to the Conservative hike to national insurance, research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

National Insurance payments went up last week (April 6) from 12.5% to 13.25%, after Boris Johnson’s decision to break a Conservative manifesto promise and hike the tax.

The latest figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility predict that the country is facing a £10.9 billion tax hit this year from the move, with around 40% of this being paid by workers and the rest by businesses.

It means that families in the Bromley area are set to pay out an estimated £32,168,354  more in National Insurance contributions, or an average of  £225.4 each, at a time when families are already facing soaring heating bills.

The Conservatives’ broken promise is also set to hit the local businesses hard, with a £ 48,252,530 tax raid on local businesses including shops, restaurants and cafes. 

Bromley Liberal Democrats have set out plans to “kill two birds with one stone,” by slashing the top rate of VAT to 17.5% this year. The move would save families an average of £600 and give businesses a boost by encouraging spending and keeping prices low. The party has put the issue at the heart of their elections campaign which launched this week.

Liberal Democrat Candidate for Bromley Town, Julie Ireland, said:

“Families in our area facing an unprecedented cost of loving crisis, with increased energy and food costs. The last thing they need is an unfair tax raid. Yet the Conservatives are piling on the misery by breaking their promise not to hike up national insurance, in a move that will hit our community hard."

“These elections are an opportunity to send a message to this Conservative government that they can’t afford to take people in Bromley granted any longer."

“The Liberal Democrats are fighting for a fair deal that would put money back into people’s pockets through an emergency tax cut. Our plans would kill two birds with one stone, helping those struggling to make ends meet while giving our treasured local businesses the shot in the arm they need.” 

Transport for London (TfL), which runs the trains and the buses we all need, has been treated unfairly by the Conservative Government. Despite being a former Mayor of London, Boris Johnson has now turned against us. It is clear the votes of Londoners no longer matter to him and his Government.