A second localised 'surge testing' programme in Woking and the third operation in Surrey will get underway this week - in Maybury and surrounding areas after the identification of a case of the South African variant of coronavirus.

Test kits will be distributed door to door by staff and volunteers from Thursday. A map of the selected area is available here: www.surreycc.gov.uk/surgetesting

Woking Council's recent meeting confirmed the sky high borrowing the borough has taken on.

Having borrowed £1.4 billion from the government funded Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) the Conservative Council's borrowing currently stands at an eye-watering £35,000 for each Woking household.

Last week's Council meeting learned that the Victoria Square development, with its skyscraper towers, will now cost £700 million to complete. The flagship project, running late due to delays in rebuilding a car park and the impact of Covid, was originally to require only a £750,000 contribution from the borough. Victoria Square is due to open later this year, against a backdrop of key retailers such as Debenhams and Top Shop closing down. The borrowing will be paid back over half a century.

In a shock statement during last Thursday's meeting of Woking Borough Council, former Tory leader Cllr David Bittleston apologised for breaking the Members' Code of Conduct, and announced that he was resigning on 30 March, barely six weeks before he was due to retire anyway. Cllr Bittleston blamed his poor behaviour which broke the Members' Code of Conduct on the "stress and strain" of having to stay on as leader through most of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Lib Dems are calling on the Government to "give carers a break" by giving councils immediate emergency funding so they can provide the support services unpaid carers need to take a weekly break.

More than 9,817 people in Woking are looking after elderly, disabled or vulnerable people during the coronavirus pandemic.

Lib Dems at Surrey County Council set out its proposal for a £26m (over 5 years) Road Safety Fund last week. Led by Group Leader Chris Botten, Lib Dem councillors had put together the alternative budget plan in response to the growing number of requests from the public to their Local or Joint Committees, for improvements to junctions, reductions in speed limits or the introduction of other road safety measures. These together with other outstanding local highway schemes amount to around £50m.

Cllr Paul Kennedy, the Liberal Democrat candidate for Surrey's Police and Crime Commissioner, has criticized the decision of Surrey's Police and Crime Commissioner David Munro to press ahead with a 5.5% increase in his council tax precept, ignoring the concerns of the Surrey Police and Crime Panel and the public.

The Lib Dems on Surrey County Council are proposing an amendment to the Council's budget to invest in tackling road safety problems across the county.

Recognising that there is huge frustration in communities about the difficulties in getting road safety schemes funded in a timely manner, the Lib Dems are proposing a Road Safety Fund to ensure that local communities can get the speed signs, crossings or other safety measures which many residents call for. Where there is local support, 20 mph zones, could also be introduced using this potential Road Safety Fund.

Borough and County Council elections are taking place on the 6th May 2021. Woking Liberal Democrats are aiming to take control of Woking Borough Council and win more seats at Surrey County Council.

We have fantastic candidates standing in these elections, each with their own great ideas on how to improve their local areas. Some candidates are new to local politics, some have decades of Council experience, but all of them share a love of Woking and a real desire to improve everyday life for its residents. So let's meet them!

Woking's coronavirus 'surge testing' operation is now in its third day.

More than 74% of residents contacted have returned a testing kit, with results already being issued.

5,029 kits were delivered by the end of Wednesday, with more than half of the selected households visited, and 3,761 test kits had been collected.

Earlier today, it was announced that a localised 'surge testing' programme will be rolled out in parts of Goldsworth Park, Knaphill and St John's following the identification of a specific variant of coronavirus.

Residents within the affected area - as shown on this map - will be visited, with the request that they carry out a covid test whether they have symptoms or not. This will enable the authorities to closely monitor any community spread of the new variant, and restrict further transmission.