Please note, I will not be holding a monthly surgery in August but can be contacted by phone or email and also happy to arrange a meeting outwith surgery times if necessary. Next surgery will be Saturday 5th September, 2015.

I will be in Westhill Library tomorrow (Saturday 6th June) from 10-11am. No appointment necessary.

Police Scotland reported the following update at tonight’s Westhill & Elrick Community Council meeting.

There were two reports of vandalism in the Westhill area within the last month, both of which have enquiries ongoing. One of these incidents involved someone smashing a window and the other relates to damage to property with paint. All enquires are currently ongoing to detect any suspects.

Two were detained regarding production and possession of a controlled drug resulting in one being reported to the Procurator Fiscal.

There has been one report of fraud via a computer. Enquiries are ongoing.

There were three reports of theft of diesel. The MO (that’s modus operandi to you and I) involved person(s) forcing open the fuel cap of three vehicles. Enquiries are ongoing into these incidents.

Two assaults were reported. One of these has been detected and there was insufficient evidence to report the other.

With regards to Road Traffic Offences, persons have been reported for the following crimes in the Westhill area; No Insurance, Disqualified Driving, Fail to Stop, Fail to comply with requirements with regards to a trailer, Registered keeper fail to ID the driver and Unauthorised Removal.

In relation to the speed sign,(this is an iniative between Police Scotland and the community safety partnership) we have a number of places in mind to deploy this, however please let us know if there is anywhere in particular you would like to see Police attend.

Police Scotland continues to emphasise the importance of security both in respect of commercial and domestic properties as well as vehicles as the region continues to see instances of theft. It is found that homes are still left insecure and householders should be ensuring that their property is locked especially at night as vehicle keys have been stolen by offenders sneaking into insecure houses whilst occupants slept. It has to be stressed that this crime type has also been taking place during daylight hours also. Members of the public are encouraged to report any instances of suspicious behaviour or activity.

Throughout this month Police units in the Garioch area have been set aside specifically to tackle anti-social behaviour type incidents and to proactively patrol their beats with a view of stopping and speaking with youths, attending all licenced premises and tackling road traffic offences. These patrols have been successful and a number of offences were identified and intelligence gained.

Scottish Liberal Democrats today set out plans to raise the income tax threshold further as the SNP faced further chaos on their plans to hold a second referendum.

On a visit to a successful Edinburgh farm shop with Edinburgh candidate Mike Crockart, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie highlighted his party’s fairer tax plans. It comes as Scots receive their first paycheck after the latest increase to the income tax threshold.

Meanwhile, in the Scottish Parliament today, Nicola Sturgeon again refused to rule out a second referendum in her party’s 2016 manifesto. Former SNP leader Jim Sillars today warned that members would expect another independence referendum within two or three years.

Speaking on his visit to Hopetoun Farm Shop today, Willie Rennie said:

“While Lib Dems set out our plans to give Scots a further £400 tax cut the SNP faces further chaos on their plans for a second referendum on independence.

“Everyone accepts that there will be a hung parliament. So people will be thinking about who is best placed to influence government.

“In each of our eleven held seats, the choice facing voters is clear. The Liberal Democrats will anchor the economy in the centre ground, increasing the Personal Allowance to £12,500 as part of a red line for any coalition negotiation. This builds on the tax cut Lib Dems have already delivered in coalition for millions of Scots.

“Our responsible, stable plans will build a stronger economy and a fairer society, stopping government from veering off left or right.

“The SNP wants to borrow even more than Labour whilst plunging Scotland into neverendum. People will be staggered that Nicola Sturgeon once again refused to set out when she plans to put forward a second referendum.

“If people want to stop the SNP from veering the country away from the economic centre ground, they must vote Lib Dem in each of our eleven held seats.”

Aberdeenshire Council’s Learning Estates Team has been tasked with rezoning across all networks in Aberdeenshire, where school catchment areas have not been reviewed for some time.

It is felt that Westhill would benefit from a rezoning exercise due to the new developments situated to the west of the town. The aim is to realign and safeguard the rolls of all schools, both rural and suburban within the Westhill primary network.

A Survey Monkey questionnaire has been carried out to collect initial responses from local parents. The team had an excellent response to this. The survey asked parents if they felt that their postcode was in the correct catchment areas. The team also met with all Head Teachers in the Westhill network to gain valuable feedback regarding suggested zones.

The Learning Estates Team will be holding an informal public meeting for any interested stakeholders. This will be held over two sessions on Wednesday 27^th May, the first at 2-5pm in Westhill Library and the second from 5.30-7.30pm at Crombie Primary main hall. Parents and interested parties will have the chance to see first proposal maps, based on the feedback received, and to comment and add their own suggested boundaries.

Following this informal consultation period, the team will then use all of the comments to form their final proposals. These will become part of the statutory consultation proposal, which they would hope to launch around the beginning of the school summer holidays. This will provide parents with the summer to review proposals. The consultation would then run for the minimum 30 days during term-time after the summer holidays.

Aberdeenshire Trading Standards are warning residents to be aware of bogus telephone callers claiming to represent Aberdeenshire Council.

The callers have targeted a number of residents across Aberdeenshire and claim to represent their local county council.

Although county councils still exist in England, they were abolished in Scotland in 1975 when a system of large regional councils was introduced, which was in turn abolished in 1996 and replaced by the current unitary council areas.

Aberdeenshire Council’s Service Manager for Customer Services, Morag Esson, said: “The council contacts customers for a variety of reasons but when we do, it is in response to a query a customer has raised or as a result of contact they had initiated.

“All officers would always provide their name, job title and telephone number.”

Aberdeenshire Council’s Trading Standards manager, Wilma Urquhart, said:

“Our advice is never to give out details to anyone who calls you unexpectedly – whether by telephone or by coming to your door.

“Never let anyone inside your home if they call unexpectedly, until you are satisfied they are who they say they are and be vigilant about giving out personal details.”

Complaints concerning the activities of cold callers can be made to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 040506, who can pass details of the case on to Trading Standards.

Any further incidents of this type can also be reported directly to Trading Standards on (01467) 628323 or Police Scotland on 101.

Further information on Aberdeenshire Trading Standards can be found at http://bit.ly/1lMMM1i

What a weekend! With all the excitement of the solar eclipse on Friday followed by our party Spring conference, delegates may be battle-weary, but we’re certainly not beat. Aberdeenshire has hard-working liberals in all three tiers of government, from Woodhill House to Westminster with Holyrood in between; working in our communities, for our communities. Liberal Democrats worked hard to keep Scotland part of the UK last September and it’s hard to see why any No voter would want to send SNP representatives, hell-bent on breaking up the UK, to Westminster.

Following the ramblings of Alex Salmond in Saturday’s P&J, I wanted to share a letter written by a colleague, in response.

“I see the MSP for Aberdeenshire East has been chatting, in his hail-fellow-well-met way, about ‘the total eclipse of the Liberal Democrats’.

“Let me suggest that Mr Salmond casts his eyes skywards; a marked absence of eclipses today – or indeed at any time since about 10.00am on Friday last.

“Liberalism will be around long after his narrow-minded nationalism is gone and forgotten.

“In Scotland, the country of the Enlightenment, the day will come when the centralising tendencies of Scottish Nationalism are understood, when people see the reality of the SNP’s usurpation of power over policing, the planning system and council finances and see how the SNP’s stifling control of our parliament is damaging our democracy.

“Even our Saltire has been commandeered for their own political ends.

“And when power is usurped to such poor effect, the alarm bells should be deafening.

“The Scottish NHS in crisis, Scottish farming in chaos, armed police routinely on the streets, rampant stop-and-search of children, covert plans for a national ID database linked to an ‘entitlement card’ and vast windfarms marching across Scotland’s most iconic landscapes as Scotland is poised to become a net importer of electricity.

“Scottish Nationalists show as little respect for civil liberties as they do for local democracy; these nationalist values are not those which Scotland holds dear.

“The MSP for Aberdeenshire East must take full responsibility for all of this. Perhaps that is why he is now seeking to take the road back to London”.