Cranbrook: no road signs, no yellow lines
Daily Archives: 11 Mar 2017
Some questions about the Heart of the South West LEP
If the Heart of the South West LEP is “dead in the water” and “there is no money left”
Where is the £25,000-plus coming from to pay someone to encourage a new threesome of Cornwall and Isles of Scilly, Devon and Dorset?
What’s happening about the divorce from Somerset and are we paying that county’s expenses still?
HOTSW LEP is the vehicle for taking business rates from Enterprise Zones such as the East Devon Growth Point – if it’s defunct what happens to that money?
Who pays Mr Garcia’s salary and those of the 3 or 4 other employees who presumably now have no jobs? Somerset or Devon?
What’s happening about the “Golden Triangle LEP”?
Where does “Greater Exeter” fit in and with whom?
East Devon – where do we fit in? Our Leader is a HOTSW board member and is responsible for HOTSW housing. Is he still responsible for housing in Somerset, Greater Exeter and/or the “Golden Triangle”?
What is DCC’s/EDDC’s role in this – where was it discussed, when and by whom?
Where are the minutes of the meeting where the current deal was dropped and a new deal thought up?
What does Somerset think about all this?
Do YOU recall being consulted on any of this?
“LET’S MAKE BRITAIN GREAT AGAIN. East Devon Alliance joins Devon’s NHS campaigners in Central London.”
“This was one message East Devon Alliance (EDA) representatives took to what the national press called “one of the biggest NHS rallies in history”, in Central London just one week ago ( Saturday 4th March). An estimated crowd of 250,000 from all over the country, included coachloads from Devon’s ‘Save Our Hospital Services’ (SOHS) network of campaigners, strongly supported by EDA. Prominent amongst the East Devon Alliance group were District Councillors Cathy Gardner (Ward Member for Sidmouth Town) and Val Ranger (Newton Poppleford & Harpford), along with Mayor of Axminster,Paul Hayward. Their call to the government is to reinstate the NHS, now being systematically dismantled, and to repeal the 2012 Health & Social Care Act NOW!
In bright sunshine, the marchers gathered in a densely-packed Tavistock Square at midday, to hear speeches. One was on behalf of hard-pressed Junior Doctors (“We have to take this fight to the streets”). Another example, from Devon’s SOHS , “ now a mass movement in the whole of Devon”, told of “cuts of 93 beds in 5 community hospitals, in Seaton, Okehampton, Honiton, Whipton and in Holsworthy” , and of “six-figure salaries of consultants parachuted in to Devon” who say that there will be “no red lines: any service could go”. Hence the SOHS events based on ‘protective red lines’ drawn by the public..in red clothes, hats, ribbons,etc,…around hospital services.
Due to the huge numbers, there was some delay until the procession to Parliament Square could begin, and for the same reason, it took a full 3 hours’ walk to arrive at Big Ben. On the way, SOHS led the chants outside Downing Street, enthusiastically echoed by the crowds, “Hey, Hey, Theresa May, How many beds have you cut today?” Throughout the event, a pervading mood of sincerity, calm determination, and decency, left the police on duty notably friendly and relaxed.
The policy of dismembering the NHS may not be good for the government’s long-term health, nor for ours!
Come and join the ‘Red Line’ actions in East Devon on Saturday, April 1st. Details coming soon.”
Local Enterprise Partnership version 2 – Devon, Cornwall and Dorset
Again, no consultation of the people of these three counties plus Isles of Scilly – just a mad dash to hoover up money – any money – for what the Chair of the Heart of the South West LEP described as a defunct organisation yesterday! And what of the “Golden Triangle LEP” mooted last month? Add in Greater Exeter and we have lots of sows ears to be made into silk purses!
Unfortunately, the closing date is today! And can you IMAGINE the stress of reporting to THREE different LEP CEO’s! Still, at £25,000 plus for 4 days a week for 4 months there will be no shortage of takers.
“South West Partnership Executive”
Heart of the SW, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly, and Dorset LEPs are working together to support the development of cross LEP partnership across the whole of the south west.
We are seeking an individual with the right skills and experience to support and manage these developing opportunities; working with stakeholders from public sector, education and business.
Reporting to the three LEP Chief Executives, this role’s priorities will be: to support the development of a clear set of business propositions around the ‘added value’ of regional partnership; engagement with key stakeholder groups to align partnership working and initiatives; and facilitate use of a common brand.
This is a short term role for 3 to 4 days a week, for the next four months, possibly extendable on a quarterly basis. The ideal candidate will have a background that includes marketing and communications and building or managing partnership with stakeholders from the public, private and education sectors. Some exposure to economic development and related sectoral agendas will be useful.
The role will involve travelling across the south west and attract remuneration in the region of £400 a day plus out of pocket expenses.
Please send your C.V. to Janet.Powell@heartofswlep.co.uk highlighting in a short covering note how you meet the requirements and challenges for this role, and confirmation of your fee rates. The following link provides access to an equal opportunities form which we would also ask you to complete as we are committed to equal opportunities in our policies and practices.”
http://heartofswlep.co.uk/news/south-west-partnerships-executive/
Swire: still battling for the Maldives on behalf of East Devon!
Hot on the heels of his questions about the possible negative effect of the sugar tax on soft drink manufacturers, our Man of the People gets stuck into another East Devon hot topic!
Written Answers – Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Maldives: Commonwealth (10 Mar 2017)
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2017-03-02.66321.h&s=speaker%3A11265#g66321.q0
Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Commonwealth Secretariat on the issue of readmitting the Maldives into the Commonwealth.
Written Answers – Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Maldives: Politics and Government (10 Mar 2017)
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2017-03-02.66322.h&s=speaker%3A11265#g66322.q0
Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the UN on the political situation in the Maldives.
Written Answers – Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Maldives: Politics and Government (10 Mar 2017)
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2017-03-02.66323.h&s=speaker%3A11265#g66323.q0
Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Government of the Maldives on the political situation in that country.
Daily Mail tells Tories to stop playing politics with public trust!!!
Owl says now I’ve heard everything! This could be straight out of Socialist Worker (Middle Class Branch)!
“… It was less than two years ago that the Conservatives went to the polls on a promise, spelled out four times in their manifesto: ‘We will not raise VAT, National Insurance contributions or Income Tax.’
In that now discredited, apparently worthless document, there was no suggestion the pledge referred only to Class 1 NICs (how many voters even knew there were four classes?)
Yet this was the devious excuse offered after the Chancellor increased the rate for Class 4, costing 2.4million self-employed workers some £240 a year each – almost eight times the 60p-a-week ‘average’ he so disingenuously cited.
Not content with this betrayal of his party’s core supporters, he slashed the tax-free allowance on dividends from £5,000 to £2,000. Thus, he hammered family-owned businesses, freelance workers and every saver with stock market investments of more than £50,000.
Meanwhile, tax rises and changes to compensation payments are likely to add £75 a year to car insurance premiums.
But still Mr Hammond hadn’t finished. Having joked he would not exhume Labour’s death tax, he is now pushing through… a huge increase in death tax! …
… And now it emerges the Chancellor has another £700million trick up his sleeve. Complex changes in already baffling tax rules mean some shops and newsagents will see their VAT more than quadruple, while self-employed service-providers will also be hard hit.
So bang goes another pledge that helped sweep the Tories to power in 2015. Indeed, all parties seem to see manifestos merely as vote-winning exercises, to be forgotten once an election is won.
David Cameron is right about one thing. It is indeed ‘stupidity’ to break manifesto pledges. But then look who’s talking! He was the PM who shredded almost every core promise he made in 2010, from cutting migration to below 100,000 to scrapping the Human Rights Act.
Meanwhile, his shameless sidekick George Osborne is becoming a veritable Tony Blair, stuffing his boots with banknotes on the strength of contacts and experience gained in public office.
He even tried to bury news of his one-day-a-week, £650,000 job for a US investment company by sneaking it out on Budget day. No wonder politicians are held in growing contempt. …”
“Surrey council received boost in budget after ‘sweetheart deal’ claims”
“Analysis by Labour shows that out of the £2bn of new money for social care in England announced in Wednesday’s budget, Surrey will see the biggest increase in the share of funding by the 2019/20 financial year.
The analysis says that Surrey will get 1.66% of the money, rising from 0.75% in 2017/18, an increase of 0.91 percentage points in the three-year period – more than double the increase of the second council, Hertfordshire.
Theresa May has repeatedly denied Surrey will receive any form of funding not available to other local authorities, after the council last month called off a planned referendum on increasing council tax by 15% to pay for what it said was a crisis in social care funding.
But soon after the postponement, leaked text messages about a supposed “memorandum of understanding” between the council and government prompted Jeremy Corbyn to accuse May of buying off Surrey with a special deal, which she denied.
The Labour leader reiterated the accusation this week after the release of an audio recording in which the council leader, David Hodge, told fellow Surrey Conservatives about a “gentleman’s agreement” with ministers.
Hodge revealed in the recording that there had been a “series of conversations” with the communities secretary, Sajid Javid, in a car outside Downing Street. That was followed by a second meeting with the chancellor, Philip Hammond, he said.
Later that day, documents released by Surrey under freedom of information rules showed Hammond was among a series of Surrey Conservative MPs who lobbied Javid over the issue.
A new set of correspondence released by Javid’s department shows that on the morning of 7 February, the day Hodge announced he was backing down from the referendum, frantic negotiations were still going on.
At 8.23am Surrey’s director of finance, Sheila Little, messaged Matthew Style, head of local government finance at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), one document showed.
“The leader [Hodge] has just shown me a note from a Surrey MP about a conversation late last night with SJ,” she wrote. SJ refers to Javid.
“Seems to indicate government are willing to get us some extra funding from 2018. V interested in whether this is sincere. As it stands isn’t enough to call the ref [referendum] off? But could it be?”
May’s official spokesman was adamant when asked whether the exchange indicated the prime minister might have misled the Commons over the issue. “No,” he said. “There is absolutely no change in our position.”
A DCLG note released with the freedom of information documents made the same point.
“Whilst the final settlement has yet to be approved, the government is not proposing extra funding to Surrey county council that is not otherwise provided or offered to other councils generally,” it read.
“There is no ‘memorandum of understanding’ between government and Surrey county council.”
However, Labour’s Teresa Pearce, the shadow communities secretary, said the analysis of the extra social care money showed ministers “are busy playing political games with funding allocations in a desperate attempt to hide their sweetheart deal”.
She said: “This week’s budget won’t fix the issues facing social care. What we need from the Tories is a long-term sustainable plan, rather than cosy deals for Tory councils.
“Theresa May has failed to come clean about the terms of the deal offered to Surrey, failed to apologise for her government’s misleading suggestion that there had been no such deal and would not give the assurance that other local councils will get the same treatment.”
Late on Friday night, Labour MP Andy Burnham tweeted that he would raise the question of whether the ministerial code had been broken.
A DCLG spokesman said: “To suggest that any local authority is being given preferential treatment is simply not true.
“The majority of the £2bn of additional funding for adult social care announced at the budget will be allocated in the same way as the Better Care Fund, ensuring those who can raise less through the social care precept benefit most. The remainder will be allocated according to relative need in recognition of the additional challenges which social care places on certain councils.
“This is entirely fair, transparent and consistent with how we already fund adult social care.”
East Devon Alliance’s Paul Arnott challenges Stuart Hughes
“A leading figure in the East Devon Alliance (EDA) is to challenge Sidmouth’s long-standing Tory representative for the town’s seat on Devon County Council (DCC) – with a Labour candidate also standing.
The alliance is fielding three independents to challenge seats in Sidmouth, Seaton and Colyton and Axminster – and the trio have presented a united voice in their promise to fight for transparency and NHS services.
Independents are hoping to see a repeat of their success in the district council elections of May 2015 – when they gained 10 seats across the region and ousted six Conservative councillors in the Sid Valley alone.
EDA Paul Arnott, former chaoorman of the group, will challenge Councillor Stuart Hughes for Sidmouth’s county council seat in the elections on May 4.
An East Devon resident of 20 years and former parish councillor, Mr Arnott is a father-of-four who runs a television production company, along with his wife Lydia, and has had three books published.
As a ‘passionate and outspoken’ defender of the NHS in East Devon, he promises to fight at county level to address the ‘major issues of health, social care and education’ which, he says, are ‘now a matter of urgent concern’.
The EDA says it supports independent candidates who are responsible, and answerable, to the electors, rather than a national party machine.
A spokesman said: “Like all local authorities, DCC is facing an unprecedented long-term loss of funding and jurisdiction. Once elected, Independent EDA county councillors will use their positions to campaign for fair funding for local services and ensure local democratic control – rather than allowing central government and corporations to increasingly privatise everything which affects our communities.”
Cllr Hughes – who is also the cabinet member for highways and represents Sidmouth at town and district level – confirmed he will stand for re-election as a Conservative. He pledged to provide a strong voice for the Sid Valley and give 100 per cent in his community leadership role, working with residents, groups and the town and district councils.
Cllr Hughes added that he will continue to champion the cycle and footpath links across the Sid Valley, fast implementation of the town’s flood alleviation scheme and work on the traffic management plan and Alma Bridge.
Labour’s Ray Davison has also confirmed he will be standing as a candidate for Sidmouth and believes the Tories will be under fire in the upcoming county elections because of the ‘refusal’ by central Government to provide more social care funding.
The father-of-three has lived in East Devon for more than 30 years and pledges to focus on issues of education, transport and education investment in the region.
Further candidates were yet to be announced.”
East Devon Watch 