an interesting point for us is the remark that:
“RDD uses the Mid Devon telephone directory as a sample frame for all Mid-Devon households,” he said. The latest figures from BT, which includes non-BT numbers, shows that ‘the ex-directory figure currently stands at 58% of people registered with the UK Telephone Number Database. Added to that the latest figures from Ofcom show that 16% of the UK homes are now mobile only. I believe it is fair to assume that this figure will hold true in Mid Devon, which means that one in six residents were excluded from the ICM study on that basis.
If we combine both factors by my reckoning that means only 35% of Mid Devon households both have a landline and are listed in the phone directory. To put it another way, the developers’ study excluded 65% of the Mid Devon population. That’s before taking into account the response rates, time of day they called, etc. but they won’t share any further details with me.
“It is quite difficult to imagine how the developers can claim that the locals are behind them when they excluded the bulk of us from their research.”
This, of course, has implications for our missing 6,000 plus voters missing from our electoral roll, since our CEO said to the Parliamentary Committee examining his registration methods, that his choice of using telephone canvassing rather than house to house visits, was superior.
How it can be superior in these circumstances is at best questionable. And we see from a recent Freedom of Information request, he has been asked when, how and with what resources and what results he conducted the telephone surveys.
The response will be extremely interesting.
East Devon Watch 
East Devon District Council are past masters at carrying out ‘consultations’ that have no vaidity whatsoever. Deputy CEO Cohen, when asked to explain the methodology of the Exmouth master plan consultation provided an explanation that subsquently showed it both to be unreliable and based upon an inappropriate outdated Audit Commission model (which the Audit Commission disassociated themselves from) yet you still hear councillors, such as Deputy Leader Moulding, relying on it as ‘ what Exmouth people have said they want’. Nothing could be further from the trusth, as they damn well know.
The only time I am aware of EDDC thinking about carrying out a valid consultation was to do with the proposed successor to the East Devon Business Forum. When contemplating a survey of its potential members it recognised that, for a chance of a bona fide result, subjects had to be randomly selected.
EDDC were once asked via a Freedom of Information Act request, about what recognised research qualifications their staff had- it seems none have any such qualifications.
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