FROM today, every GP practice in England will have to offer online appointment bookings throughout the day reports the BBC The move, ordered by the government, is aimed at reducing the so-called ‘8am scramble’ to get through to practices on the phone. Surgeries will have…

HARLOW Council has delivered a dramatic turnaround, transforming its housing repairs service and cutting the longest standard repair waiting times from 270 working days to just 25. The new Housing Repairs Policy, which locks in these improvements and sets clear standards to ensure residents get…

HARLOW MP Chris Vince MP responds to PM’s speech: Our community is about hope, not division Mr Vince said: “What struck me most about the Prime Minister’s speech was not the policy announcements about gold-standard apprenticeships, further investment in our further education colleges, or even…

LABOUR’S Chris Vince has welcomed the Chancellor’s conference speech, setting out the difference a Labour Government is already making, and will continue to deliver, for working families, communities, and young people. After the Chancellor’s speech, Chris Vince commented “Labour is rebuilding a renewed economy for…

MAKE UK has appointed Rt Hon Robert Halfon as its new Executive Director responsible for Policy Membership and External Affairs. He replaces Ben Fletcher who has left to take up a Chief Executive role with another trade body. Robert Halfon is a former MP for…

THE Government set a deadline of 26 September for councils in Essex to submit a case for change in local government re-organsiation. A Harlow Alliance Party spokesperson said: “Officers and councillors across Essex have spent thousands of hours to come up with a creditable plan…

HARLOW Council is proud to announce strong progress on the transformation of Terminus Street and the bus station — a flagship project that forms a vital part of the complete rebuilding of the town centre.  The regeneration works are now well underway, with demolition and…

BROXBOURNE Borough Council’s Conservative leader has said that closing the asylum seeker hotel in Cheshunt is her “top priority” reports the Local Democrat y Reporter. Cllr Corina Gander this week joined Broxbourne’s Conservative MP, Lewis Cocking, to present a letter to the prime minister at…

EAST Herts Council (EHC) and Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) have been working together over the last three years to develop a new Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP). This plan will make it easier, safer and more enjoyable to walk, wheel and cycle in…

AS you may have seen, we have just published a letter to the editor, regarding one reader’s experience at the Accident and Emergency at Princess Alexandra Hospital on Thursday night. We have given the hospital a right of reply. Sharon McNally, chief nurse and deputy…

KAO Data, the Harlow-based specialist developer and operator of data centres, launched its award-winning initiative, the Kao SEED Fund, in Harlow this week. The Kao SEED Fund, which stands for Social Enterprise and Environment Development Fund, aims to foster community growth and enterprise. The fund, which…

PEOPLE and businesses who received penalties for deliberately failing to meet their tax obligations of more than £25,000 have been named today.  HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has published 109 cases from across the UK, with penalties totalling over £70 million. In each case, the…

THE cost of the policing protest at Epping is set to cost Essex Police around £1.7 million in additional expenditure, the force has said reports the Local Democracy Reporter. Multiple demonstrations have been held outside The Bell hotel after asylum seeker Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu sexually…

ONE in five ethnic minority staff have been harassed, bullied or abused by colleagues, according to a report from a regional NHS team report the Local Democracy Reporter. Ed Garrett, chief executive of the NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board, said there…