The latest EU Settlement Scheme Statistics, published toward the end of last year by the Home Office, show more than 140,000 EU citizens applied to live and work in the UK after Brexit in November compared to more than half a million submitted in October.

The Liberal Democrats have also raised concerns over the number of applicants receiving neither Settled or Pre-Settled Status. The figures show 361,900 people are still waiting for a decision, with 2,592,800 applications received but only 2,230,900 concluded.

Mayor Dave Hodgson said "Too many EU nationals are deeply anxious about their right to stay. Many of them fill vital roles in our health service, our schools and other important sectors. It's disgraceful for the government to leave them in legal limbo like this."

Over £4,400 has been stolen from parking machines in Bedford Borough in 2019, across over 50 criminal attacks.

There have been incidents across different areas of the Borough, including Castle, off Ampthill Road and De Parys Avenue. These incidents are often occurring the early hours and see both vandalism and theft take place.

After the Christmas celebrations are over and all the decorations are down, if you cannot plant your real Christmas tree in the garden, don't forget to recycle it.

23 tonnes of real Christmas trees were collected from the Council's collection points across Bedford Borough last year; make sure yours is one of the lucky ones sent for composting.

Mayor Dave Hodgson has described today's rail fare rises as 'another kick in the teeth' for Bedford rail users. Rail fares have risen by a further 2.7% - a rise that Mayor Dave has called 'totally unjustifiable'.

"This is another kick in the teeth for long-suffering Bedford rail commuters. They have had to contend with the utter shambles of timetable changes, the loss of peak time intercity fast trains and the forthcoming loss of all intercity trains. In light of all this, it is simply totally unjustifiable that Bedford rail commuters should face yet another fares increase."

Mayor Dave Hodgson has expressed his delight that the Bedford Borough Local Plan 2030 can now be adopted following the Inspectors report.

Mayor Dave said "This is excellent news and I would like to thank everyone involved in the preparation of the Local Plan. It is a testament to their hard work and the in depth consultations that we can now adopt the Local Plan, when other local councils have not been allowed."

The Bedford River Festival 2020 will take place on Saturday 18^th and Sunday 19^th July, and Bedford Borough Council, in just 200 days time!

Bedford River Festival is recognised as one of the largest outdoor events of its kind in the UK, with thousands of visitors over one weekend in July.

River Festival 2018 marked this biennial event's 40^th anniversary, with entertainment, over 100 performances across 6 live music stages, funfair rides, activities on the river and lots happening on our beautiful riverside with St Mary's Gardens and the new Riverside Bedford development joining the fun.

It's now even easier to book tickets for your favourite acts at Bedford Corn Exchange, following the launch of a brand new website.

The new attractive and modern website makes it easy to find and book shows coming to our local performance venue, as well as being mobile and tablet friendly.

Around three-quarters of people visiting the Corn Exchange website do so using a mobile phone or tablet. The new website will resize and change to fit the size of the screen being used, and presents upcoming shows in a way that makes it much quicker for people to see what's on and book tickets.

Mayor Dave Hodgson and Bedford Borough Liberal Democrats send regular email updates with news and information about events in Bedford Borough. You can sign up to these updates here.