This is an article first published by Labour Councillor for Beaumont Leys and member of the Leicestershire Police Authority, Sundip Meghani, on his blog.

Members of the Leicestershire Police Authority (LPA) voted on Tuesday 21 February to increase the police precept by 2.5% for the coming financial year. Members rejected the Government’s offer of a one-off grant for a 0% precept freeze and opted instead for a baseline increase to secure a stronger financial position in the longer term.

Thanks to a concerted and united effort by Labour Members – Cllr Sundip Meghani, Cllr Barbara Potter, Cllr Lynn Senior (City Members) and Cllr Max Hunt (County Member) – together with the strong support of City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby, the Labour Party managed to achieve a good result for the people of Leicestershire.

All four Labour Members voted in favour of the 2.5% increase whereas two Tory Councillors and one Liberal Democrat Councillor from Leicestershire County Council voted for a 0% freeze. To their credit the Chair of the LPA and all of the independent Members present also voted for the rise.

The 2.5% precept rise means that the average Band D property will pay an extra £4.24 a year. However by securing a 2.5% precept increase Labour has strengthened the position of the Police Authority in the longer term, saved nearly 200 police jobs and safeguarded neighbourhood and frontline policing.

Labour has also listened to the overwhelming majority of people in Leicester and Leicestershire, 75% of whom favoured a rise in the police precept when consulted by the LPA.

The simple truth is that unlike Conservative and Liberal Democrat County Councillors who tried to cut services and police numbers still further, Labour Councillors have succeeded in protecting hundreds of police jobs, protecting neighbourhood policing and protecting the integrity of a truly local and responsive police force here in Leicestershire.

As this Tory-led Government seeks to cut 30,000 police jobs and risk increases in crime and anti-social behaviour, Labour will continue to listen to the concerns of ordinary people, and continue to fight hard to protect neighbourhood policing and officer numbers right across our country.

The City Mayor, in interviews today with BBC Radio Leicester and the Leicester Mercury, highlighted how all but one of the 100 pledges in 100 days had been achieved since taking office in May. The achievements, which covered the breadth of the Leicester Labour Party manifesto, set the tone and pace of the City Mayor’s administration in these early days. It shows that a Labour administration in Leicester can make a considerable difference to the city and people’s lives.

Tough challenges remain with the Tory-led Government having cut £30 million off Leicester City Council’s budget just for this year alone. Peter Soulsby remains committed to delivering the manifesto on which he stood within the 4 years of his term of office and ensuring Leicester remains a proud and confident city even in the face of harsh economic conditions, which have only been exacerbated by a slowing economy and high inflation which is hurting people more and more each day.

You can download a copy of the 100 days programme report from the City Mayor’s website.

The City Mayor and his team today officially launched its radical 100 Days Programme which aims to set out what the Labour administration is seeking to achieve in its first 100 days. It sets out 100 pledges which outlines the priorities envisioned by the City Mayor and some of the big challenges facing the city.

The document can be download from the Leicester City Council website.

Also read the Leicester Mercury article on the launch of the 100 Day Programme and plans for the Leicester Science Park which make up one of pledges.

We’d like to thank the people of Leicester for Labour’s landslide victory across the city yesterday and for putting their trust in us. Labour won 52 out of 54 Leicester City Council seats, with Peter Soulsby becoming Leicester’s first directly elected mayor with an emphatic majority across the city. Jon Ashworth won the Leicester South by-election with an increased majority which capped a stunning political endorsement of Labour in Leicester.

We know that this trust by the people of Leicester puts a heavy burden on us to be accountable, open and honest and we plan to rise to this challenge to build a more confident and prosperous city for all the communities and people of Leicester.

With only one Conservative and one Liberal Democrat Councillor left in the city it has sent out a clear message to the Tory-led Government that their policies are hurting people in their day to day lives.

Read the Leicester Mercury’s opinion piece in today’s paper “A new era for Leicester and city’s first directly-elected mayor”

You can see the full results on the Leicester City Council Website.

With the working-class council estates of Eyres Monsell and Saffron Lane, diverse communities closer to the city centre, traditionally Tory wards on the outskirts and liberal-leaning voters in the areas around the university, Leicester South really is a microcosm of Britain.

Its politics have mirrored the country’s, too. The seat has changed hands no fewer than five times since the seventies. It’s been represented by MPs from all three major parties over the last twenty years with the Lib Dems winning the 2004 by-election.

And when it goes to the polls in the by-election on 5 May it will have the opportunity to speak for Britain again.

Read more of Jon Ashworth’s article on Labour Uncut.