Plans by Transport forLondonto cut the 236 night bus service have been slammed by Highbury Liberal Democrat campaigners.

The 236 bus route is a 24-hour service that runs betweenFinsburyParkstation and Hackney Wick and is used by 1,000 local residents a week at nights. It provides a vital link between Highbury and theHomertonHospital, used by Islington residents living in the east of the borough, and serves residents with some of the lowest car ownership levels inLondon.

Moves to save Islington resident lives and unite the borough's political parties were derailed last week after Labour councillors preferred instead to play politics.

Conservatives on the London Fire Authority - backed by Mayor Boris Johnson - are pushing to privatise the Fire Brigade Control Room that handles over 200,000 emergency 999 calls a year. They intend to push their controversial plan through before voters get a say in next May's Mayoral and London Assembly elections, when the controversial Conservative LFEPA boss, Brian Coleman, risks being ousted.

Islington residents will be put at risk if Conservative plans to privatise the Fire Brigade's 999 call-handling system go ahead, the borough's Liberal Democrat councillors have warned.

Conservative on the London Fire Authority - backed by Mayor Boris Johnson -propose to contract out the Fire Brigade Control Room that handles over 200,000 emergency 999 calls a year. They intend to push their controversial plan through before voters get a say in next May's Mayoral and London Assembly elections, when controversial Conservative LFEPA boss Cllr Brian Coleman risks being ousted.

Islington Council should give the money it saved on staff salaries during the industrial acion last week to local charities and elderly groups, Islington Liberal Democrats have urged.

As a result of the national industrial action last Wednesday over proposed reforms to public sector pensions, Islington Council saved around £51,000 on its wages bill. Liberal Democrat councillors have now called on the council to use this funding as a goodwill gesture in the run-up to Christmas to help local community groups and the voluntary sector in Islington.

Moves by the Labour council to charge residents more to use two of the borough's most popular leisure centres will lead to a two-tier service, Islington Liberal Democrats have warned.

At the last meeting of the council's Executive, Labour councillors nodded through a new policy to charge users of Highbury Pool and the new Ironmonger Row Baths - set to open next year - a premium rate significantly higher than other Islington leisure centre users.

Responding to the news that Islington Council will be extending its borough-wide 20mph speed limit to include main roads managed by the council, Highbury Liberal Democrat councillor Julie Horten said:

"Residents, campaigners and Liberal Democrats have been calling for this move for months now so I am pleased the council has listened and roads such as Hornsey Rise,HighburyParkand Highbury Grove will now have 20mph limits.

A massive £35million of planned council spending will not take place this year, a shock report has exposed.

The council's capital budget is projected to be underspent by £35million by the end of the financial year in April 2012. This represents almost 20% of the planned overall capital budget. This funding is used to build new housing, improve the borough's schools and roads and provide local jobs.

Islington's Labour council has failed to spend over £10 million on local services in the past two years, shock new figures have revealed.

Last year the council underspent by £9million and a report to the Council's Executive highlighted that £2million would not be spent this financial year. The £11million underspend comes at a time when the Labour council is making £x million of cuts this year. The council cut services by £7million last year.

Shock figures have revealed that serious crime in Islington has soared over the past year after the first year of Labour running the council.

In a report to councillors, it was reported that last year in Islington:

• serious youth violence was up by 59%
• knife crime went up by 37%
• gun crime rose by 48%
• personal robbery increased by 58.2%
• residential burglaries was up by 11.5%

Plans agreed by Islington Labour councillors to reduce library opening hours and slash £650,000 from the libraries budget have been slammed by Liberal Democrats.

Measures agreed recently by the council's Labour Executive include:

• introducing self-service machines in libraries.
• twinning libraries so they will open on alternate days with reduced opening hours.
• increases in fines.