Until the formation of the SDP in 1981 neither of the two pre-merger political parties that became the Liberal Democrats had any success in Dacorum. Then a guy called Bill Faupel won a by-election in Grove Hill, shortly followed by another by-election in November 1981 when a certain Nick Hollinghurst was elected when the Labour councillor resigned.

299,020 GP appointments within the South Lakes lasted less than five minutes in the last year, new research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

The Liberal Democrats have warned the Conservative government that their failure to recruit more GPs has meant patients are waiting weeks for an appointment which they are rushed through in a matter of minutes.

After a long Count the results of this year's Mayoral Election have been announced.

Sadly Mayor Dave Hodgson did not win, although it was very close.

Congratulations to Tom Wootton for winning with 15,747 votes - I received 15,602 votes.

Dave Hodgson said "Being Mayor of Bedford Borough is undoubtedly the best job in the Borough if not the world. I wish Tom luck in the role. I would like to thank all the residents for their support over the last 13.5 years - and special thanks to all the Officers at Bedford Borough Council.

Today, on the floor of the House of Commons, Cumbrian MP Tim Farron has called for banks to pay larger dividends to Post Offices for the banking services that they provide.

During an urgent question on Post Office Executive bonuses to Kevin Hollinrake, Minister for the Department for Business and Trade, Tim raised the issue that dozens of Post Offices have closed in recent times. Within Cumbria, the Shap, Natland and Hawkshead Post Offices have all recently been forced to close their doors.

On Friday 5th May the final votes were counted the Liberal Democrats won 28 Councillors, (15 in Hemel, 13 in Tring & Berkhamsted area)

As Liberal Democrats gained nine seats while the Tories lost 13 seats in the elections, Lib-Dems becomes the administrator for the first time in Dacorum.

Election results per ward are as follows;

The Polls have now closed in today's elections.

The Count will take place tomorrow and we will post the results as soon as possible at www.bedfordlibdems.org.uk on facebook at www.facebook.com/BedfordLD and on twitter at www.twitter.com/BedfordLibDems

Polling day is well underway for the crucial Mayoral and Councillor elections - polling stations are open until 10pm tonight.

The election for Mayor is between Mayor Dave Hodgson and the Conservative candidate, Labour came a poor third last time and the Greens were even further back in fourth place, a vote for anyone other than me will only help the Conservatives.

These are critical elections with a lot at stake - please use your vote! For a Mayor and Councillors who work hard all year round and will get the best for your community, please vote Liberal Democrat.

Polls have now opened for elections for the Mayor of Bedford Borough, Borough Councillors, Town and Parish Councillors. You can vote until 10pm.

Please support our Liberal Democrat candidates - you can see a full list at https://bedfordlibdems.org.uk/listofcandidates

We are ambitious for Bedford Borough and you can read our manifesto at http://www.bedfordlibdems.org.uk/manifesto

Bedford Borough Council has added 16 new electric vehicles (EVs) to its fleet as part of its plans to increase the number of EVs used in operations.

The Council is using these new EVs to replace the least environmentally friendly vehicles in the fleet. This will help to drive down its CO2 emissions and achieve the commitment of Bedford Borough Council's Carbon Reduction Delivery Strategy, which sets out the approach that it will take to become net carbon neutral by 2030.