By Phil Wilkinson Jones – Local Democracy Reporter
Establishing a publicly-owned bus service and forming a new country park at Powick Bridge are among the pledges in Labour’s election manifesto.
The party also promises to campaign for a Malvern Hills National Park should it win control of Worcestershire County Council at the upcoming election.
Labour says it will create a new fully-funded youth service, re-establish a careers service and tackle education and SEND inequalities.
In its 2025 manifesto, the party says it will use “new legislation to establish public transport provision which is publicly owned and accountable”.
“We will work with providers, so that reasonably priced bus services of adequate frequency are available.”
The document says the creation of a Malvern Hills National Park would bring “investment and more tourism into Worcestershire”.
The Malvern Hills is currently a National Landscape – formerly called an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty – but there have been calls for the area to become a national park in recent years.
This would see the creation of a national park authority and would give the area more restrictive planning rules.
Labour says it would seek “economic efficiency with social justice” in a bid to balance the council’s books and would make an early decision on the future of County Hall.
Richard Udall, chair of Worcestershire Labour Party, said: “We have radical plans for change in Worcestershire, but first, Labour will need to tidy up the mess the Conservatives have left behind.
“This will be our number one priority. We need to recover from bankruptcy and get the county council back on to an agenda for economic recovery.”
Cllr Udall, a city councillor for St John’s and candidate in the upcoming election, said: “We will develop a Worcestershire First strategy, where we will only award contracts to local businesses, keeping the Worcestershire pound within Worcestershire, ensuring local businesses benefit and local people are employed.
“We will support local communities to deliver their own services, including community shops, pubs and transport, we will become a co-operative council.
He said Labour will provide new special schools for the county, in the wake of Ofsted finding “widespread failings” in Worcestershire’s SEND services.
“We will ensure all residents are treated with dignity and respect, we will create a Home Care Co-operative, ensuring people working in the sector will receive the full fruits of their labour, which will enable more recruitment, better pay and better services to the service user,” said Cllr Udall.
“We will start the process to complete the ring road around Worcester, with a new bridge to the north of the city.
“We will set new targets for filling and repairing potholes and will actively promote and support active travel alternatives.
“Worcestershire County Council may soon be abolished, but we have the vision to set the framework for the new councils with new ideas and a change of priorities.”