Council wants powers to encourage faster roadworks
This would make Buckinghamshire Council one of the first authorities in the country to introduce a Lane Rental Scheme, which would apply to about 8% of roads in the county.
Steven Broadbent, the council's member for transport, said it would lead to "more meaningful options in levying fines to encourage better behaviour from those working on our roads".
Stuart Wilson, leader of the Independent opposition group, said "we welcome the scheme as residents are fed up with endless roadworks and unmanned traffic lights".
If approved by the Transport Secretary, the scheme would complement an existing permit system operated by Buckinghamshire Highways, with charges applying to works promoted by utility companies and highway authorities.
The council hopes this will encourage companies to move their works to less busy times, or complete them in a quicker timescale, to avoid accumulating charges and lengthy disruption to motorists.
Similar schemes already exist in Kent, London, Surrey and West Sussex, and the Buckinghamshire model would apply to more 500 streets, with locations to be reviewed on a yearly basis.
Broadbent, Conservative, said: "While we try to coordinate works to minimise pressures, over recent years we have seen a huge increase in permits for works - and despite the planning, the cumulative effects on road users is a source of frustration."
He added: "Clearly, we cannot eradicate all delays and congestion, especially when it comes to emergency works, but this encourages those working on the roads to better plan their works to take place during less busy times."
Wilson added that "utility companies need to pay the societal cost and do the work quickly and right, first time".
Reform UK councillor, Paul Irwin, said: "For too long our residents have suffered at the hands of utility companies over-running and taking advantage of the rules. The new system will charge per day and make them work more efficiently, so I will be supporting this wholeheartedly."
Susan Morgan, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: "The lane rental scheme is a fantastic idea that emerged from the cross party income maximisation workshop, of which both myself and councillor Jonathan Waters were integral members."
The authority hopes to submit its application to the Department for Transport by the end of the month. If successful, it could be implemented by the end of the year.
Labour and the Green Party have also been approached for comment.
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£13.4m funding approved for link road
'Crater' pothole could be fixed with extra £5m
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Boston Globe
2 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Top US colleges gave $1 billion in grants and discounts to foreign undergrads. In Trump's America, can that continue?
Advertisement A Globe analysis of data from the 100 universities that have the highest number of foreign undergraduate students shows these institutions collectively provided them with more than $1 billion annually in scholarships, tuition discounts, and other financial assistance, in the most recent academic year. The findings counter the widely held belief that international students pay full price to attend American universities. While international students don't qualify for US government grants or student loans, the Globe analysis shows many foreign students receive substantial financial help and are more likely, in some cases, to receive aid. Among the Globe's findings: These 100 schools gave some 40,000 international students, on average, an annual aid package of $27,000. Ivy League institutions were among the most generous, giving on average $81,000 in aid annually. MIT gave three-quarters of its 500 international students financial aid, compared to 57 percent of its total undergraduate population. Similar patterns held true at Ivy League universities, including Dartmouth College, Princeton University, and Harvard. Meanwhile, the bottom lines at other schools are bolstered by foreign students, who receive little or no aid. They include Boston University, Northeastern University, New York University, several University of California campuses, and the Georgia Institute of Technology. The figures were pulled from information colleges report to the College Board known as the Overall, international students make up 6 percent of students on US campuses, according to the Institute of International Education. There were 1.1 million foreign students in the US in the 2023-2024 academic year, about one-third undergraduates. The rest were earning graduate degrees or in training programs. Advertisement Where these students land, and how much aid they receive, is a story of haves and have-nots. The Ivies and other elite institutions with generous endowments can admit students - both foreign and domestic - without worrying about whether they can afford the tuition, giving them scholarships to cover the cost. On the flip side, some state schools and private universities need international students to boost their bottom line or fill empty seats and use tuition discounts to lure them from abroad. Now, these students face tighter visa In late July, the US State Department launched an investigation into Harvard's use of the Conservative critics and even a growing number of liberals argue that elite universities have become too focused on educating and benefiting students from abroad and lost sight of their American roots, while receiving tax benefits and funding from the US government. Advertisement 'The universities are operating as though they are international institutions, but they really aren't,' said Peter Wood, president of the right-leaning National Association of Scholars. 'They have an obligation to support the country that enabled them to rise to the prominence that they now have.' School administrators are steadfast - international students, they say, have become crucial to campus life and even more so, to the US economy. Hans de Wit, an emeritus professor at Boston College and co-editor of the quarterly journal International Higher Education, said the Trump administration's America-first approach to higher education is short-sighted and undercuts the country's global competitiveness. 'I sometimes call it like committing suicide, because we need these people,' de Wit said in an interview. 'We see this nationalistic movement emerging everywhere. Higher education is one of the victims.' 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All applicants are considered in the same admissions and financial aid process, said James Chisholm, a Harvard spokesperson. As a school that makes admissions decisions without looking at whether a student can pay , Harvard meets the full financial need of everyone it lets in, Chisholm said. 'In no way do Harvard College students 'compete' over financial aid,' Chisholm said in a statement. International students have a harder time getting accepted into Harvard, with an admissions rate of 2 percent versus 4 percent for students overall, according to the university's data. Advertisement Harvard's generosity brought Rauf Nawaz, 19, halfway around the world to Cambridge. Nawaz, whose father is a farmer in rural Pakistan, never dreamed of attending Harvard, let alone being able to afford the annual $87,000 price tag. But last academic year, his aid package covered the full cost of attending. 'It cost me less than any university in Pakistan would cost me,' said Nawaz, a rising sophomore. 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Yahoo
6 hours ago
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Ralph Norman launches SC governor campaign by promising to ‘clean up Columbia'
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Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Push to crackdown on controversial property practices as $650 rental slammed over Bondi Beach 'views'
A view of Sydney's Bondi Beach out the window of a rental 14 kilometres from the coast has cast light on frustrations being felt by Australians gripped in a nationwide housing crisis. A listing of a $650 two-bedroom apartment in Leichhardt attracted backlash after being posted online last Wednesday. On first glance, it appears the kitchen boasts a view of the iconic beach; however, it is in fact a vinyl mural that the landlord plastered on the wall outside to give tenants a better view than the concrete wall behind it. Real estate agent Mainstreet Residential Commercial copped a barrage of complaints over the photo, and a spokesperson told Yahoo Finance it was not initially considered vital to clarify this wasn't an actual beach view, given the distance. RELATED Under-pressure landlords offering up to $11,840 of free rent in major 'pendulum swing' St George slammed over 'obscene' cash withdrawal move as thousands struggle Commonwealth Bank reveals LMI home loan changes for borrowers The posting comes as those struggling to find a place to live have had to contend with digitally-altered images filtering onto listings, from making the grass greener or removing mould, to the use of fake furniture to make rooms appear much larger. But the spokesperson said the image was not AI-generated or changed, and that it was not intended to mislead anyone who came across the listing. "The photo is real. It has not been altered in any way, shape or form," the spokesperson consumer activist Simon Berry told Yahoo Finance the real estate agency should have been transparent about the wallpaper. "It would've been as simple as putting in the description that it's a wallpaper on the wall and that it's not actually a view," he said. The mural appears to have been in place for roughly a decade, according to photos of the property posted online. The listing was re-uploaded to online platforms on Monday with a note to applicants. "Please note, the mural of the beach is actually affixed to the back wall of the property and not photo shopped into the photo," the description now states. Is it legal to mislead tenants about the appearance of a rental? Real estate agents need to make sure rental listings are accurate and "do not mislead or deceive, either expressly or by implication". Luke Shumack from O*NO Legal told Yahoo Finance the overall impression of listings mattered and that disclaimers should be used if there was a risk someone could get the wrong idea. "While it may seem self-evident that a unit in Leichhardt does not offer beach views, the overall impression created by the conduct or advertising must be considered when assessing whether it is misleading," Shumack said. "Including a clear disclaimer in marketing materials can help manage consumer expectations and reduce the risk of misleading impressions." Angela Cartwright, CEO of community group Better Renting, said tenants were facing trying times, with some real estate agents making intentional moves to deceive renters. "Renters, already frustrated by queuing up to inspect homes only to find the images in the ad had been photoshopped or taken years before, are now dealing with AI-enhanced images," she told Yahoo Finance. Online criticism can be significant, and in this case, has extended to the listing agent, the Mainstreet Residential Commercial spokesperson said. Property managers often cop the brunt of complaints about rental properties, from landlords and tenants, and also people online. According to MRI Software, 53 per cent of property managers were experiencing psychological distress, while 23 per cent planned to leave the industry due to abuse. Cartwright said the frustration over this specific case highlighted "the importance of accurate listings and enforcement against misleading listings" on all fronts. "I note the agent's assurance that this is a case of covering a wall with wallpaper rather than faking a view, and we can all agree there's no beach in Leichhardt," "It's probably also necessary to mandate disclosure around any enhancement of images so potential renters know when images are a ploy and when they just reflect interesting design choices." The NSW government has proposed a law to parliament to ensure prospective tenants know what they're looking at. If the bill gets approved, real estate agents would have to declare whether a photo on a listing is AI-generated, with penalties of up to $22,000 for in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
