Future of Youth Services will be debated and agreed in secret says Conservative Cabinet Member for Customer and Communities

In response to a question raised by Lib Dem Councillor Ian Chittenden, at the County Council meeting (09.02.12), the Conservative Cabinet Member confirmed that the decision on the future of Youth Services will be decided by newly formed 'Locality Boards' (where they exist). These are informal bodies, with no requirement to allow the public to attend the meetings to listen to or join in the debates about changes to their local youth services.

Liberal Democrats at County Hall renewed their calls for an inquiry into the failure of services to children in care in Kent. revealed for the first time that data about vacancy levels in Kent were known to be at high risk well before an unannounced inspection by OFSTED resulted in a critical report.

Questioning by Liberal Democrat County Councillor George Koowaree on payment methods for Blue Badges in Kent has led to Kent reintroducing postal orders as an acceptable means of payment.

Revisions to the Blue Badge application process by Kent had said that in future payments could be by cheque only. George questioned this, and has been reassured that this has now been amended so that postal orders are again acceptable.

Ashford Councillor George Koowaree commented:

"I'm delighted this change has been made - the team that handle Blue Badge enquiries are now aware of this and the application form and frequently asked questions are currently being updated on the Kent Council website.

"Not everyone has access to a chequebook and bank account, and the extra flexibility of accepting postal orders will make applying for Blue Badges easier for some of our most vulnerable residents. Thank you to the Blue Badge team for thinking about my question and revising their application process."

Sharon Bowles MEP, who chairs the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, has said that the ECB's liquidity operations may save the Eurozone today but at the cost of future generations' livelihoods tomorrow.

Speaking from Brussels today, Ms Bowles said:

"We must face up to the impact of the crisis on the next generation, which is more than just the fact that we have devastatingly high numbers of young jobless.

Commenting on the re-election of Sharon Bowles, Liberal Democrat MEP for the South East of England, as Chair of the European Parliament's influential Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee today, Liberal Democrat Leader and Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, said:

"Sharon is one of the most influential thinkers and legislators in Europe on financial services and the Eurozone crisis. Her re-election is good news for Europe and the UK.

"As party leader, I am proud that we have a leading Liberal Democrat in such a prominent and powerful position on the international scene. As UK Deputy Prime Minister, I am delighted and relieved to know that the EU financial services brief is in such expert hands.

"In the wake of the financial crisis, it is absolutely right that we undertake a complete overhaul of the rule book governing global finance and banking at the European, national and international level.

"Ministers and industry figures must now redouble our efforts to re-engage across Europe, pro-actively work with our partners to shape EU legislation that builds a more responsible, safe and successful banking sector, and deploy our financial expertise to help resolve the ongoing Eurozone crisis.

"I look forward to working with Sharon over the coming months in addressing these overwhelmingly important issues for the UK and Europe as a whole."

The Chair of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, Sharon Bowles MEP, has raised concerns that the European Central Bank is dominated by men.

Ms Bowles, who was recently re-elected Chair of ECON, said:

"The ECB is one of the EU institutions where gender balance is most blatantly disregarded. There is currently not a single woman on the Executive Board, nor the Governing Council or the General Council.

"One has to ask why important and influential EU bodies such as the ECB systematically fail to select female candidates. The argument that there are no qualified women for these positions cannot be taken seriously.

"I call on all parties to consider the institutional shortcomings that lead to the systematic absence of women in this crucial area of EU policy and to remedy this situation now.

Sharon Bowles MEP, who represents South East England in the European Parliament, has said the filing for insolvency by Petroplus -Europe's largest independent oil refiner - is a blow to the South East.

Petroplus, based in Switzerland, has been hit hard by the financial crisis and in December had $1bn in credit lines frozen - a move that has pushed the company closer to bankruptcy.

Amid fears that David Cameron's veto had isolated the UK in Brussels, MEPs from across Europe and the political spectrum have today re-elected Liberal Democrat MEP Sharon Bowles as Chair of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee.

The committee, widely regarded as the Parliament's most powerful, is responsible for legislation in the headline areas of economic governance and financial services.

Sharon Bowles MEP, who represents South East England in the European Parliament, has been named on The Times '100 to watch in 2012' list, which includes actors, writers, musicians and world leaders.

Sharon is listed #48, ahead of Boris Johnson (#51), rock band The Stone Roses (#56), and writer Sir Tom Stoppard (#60).

The European Parliament will push the European Commission to come forward with a coordinated EU strategy to halve food waste by 2025.

MEPs in Strasbourg will vote on a report tomorrow to improve the efficiency of the food supply chain from the production stage to storage, processing, distribution, management and consumption. It is estimated that almost 50% of edible food gets wasted along the entire food supply chain each year.