Paddick and Bakhai back calls to save Swallows Gym Club

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Mon 7th Apr 2008

Brian and Nigel speak with club proprietor Mike Swallow

Lib Dem candidate for Mayor, Brian Paddick, and Lib Dem GLA candidate Nigel Bakhai have visited Swallows Gym Club in South Ruislip to lend their support to Hillingdon Liberal Democrats campaign to save the club from closure by Hillingdon Borough Council.

Brian Paddick said: "this is a place where young people can get fit, learn self-discipline and self-confidence and yet the local council is effectively trying to close it down by coming up with some ridiculous "past debts" which the centre allegedly owes them. All we are asking is that these spurious debts be cancelled to allow this fantastic facility to continue its excellent work with local people."

Nigel Bakhai added: "the club is an important local community asset which has been selected a centre for excellence for the London 2012 Olympics. This is the sort of organisation that any normal Council should be supporting to get kids off the streets and encouraging them to take part in healthy exercise, and yet the Tory-run Hillingdon Council are trying to shut it down with their outrageous backdated demands for rent and rates increases."

Cllr Mike Cox, who last week helped to deliver a petition to the Council to save the club, said: "The club is used by thousands of youngsters every month; it is really beyond belief that the Council would even consider closing it. The least the Council leaders could do would be to sit around the table with Mike and Tania to discuss ways in which the club could be saved, but so far they have failed to do even that."

You can sign the petition to save the club here: http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/saveswallowgym