Safety in Merton

We have all been moved by the awful news of Sarah Everard and send our heartfelt sympathies to her family and friends.

For some, it has triggered painful memories. For others, it has given some awareness about how their behaviour may impact those around them.

The theme of the April meeting of the Council was "Stronger and Safer Communities", and was therefore an opportunity to look at the local response to this, and the safety of women and girls.

But for reasons best known to themselves, local Labour councillors have cancelled nearly all Council and committee meetings between now and the London elections.

There's no legal reason to do this, and many other Councils are not.

They seem to believe giving their councillors more time to campaign for the London elections is a bigger priority than the work of the council.

We think this is unacceptable.

Earlier this week, we submitted a formal request for an Extraordinary Meeting of the Council. This will look at the local response to violence against women and girls. 

We are working to ensure women and girls of all backgrounds have the freedom to feel safe in their communities, to focus on the issues and bring the relevant organisations together.

If there is anything you’d like us to raise, or any ideas you have that we can consider in the debate  - please don't hesitate to get in touch with any of us - https://www.mertonlibdems.org.uk/your-local-team. 

** Update **

The extraordinary meeting we requested will be held virtually on Wednesday 21st April at 7:15pm. Meetings can be watched on Merton Council's YouTube channel.