Monthly Archives: March 2019

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14 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Democracy, Electoral Commission, Police (local), Voting

Corruption ad poor police investigatillon of it in local elections

“The 2014 election victory by Lutfur Rahman in the contest for Mayor of Tower of Hamlets was eventually over-turned for electoral corruption, but police investigations did not result in criminal convictions. The resulting controversy over the police’s actions resulted in Operation Lynemouth: an investigation into what the police did and why.

The final report from Operation Lynemouth is now out, and it is pretty damning:

“The policing of the election and the subsequent investigation were deficient in too many areas. There was a lack of corporate responsibility, a lack of training and insufficient resources for the MPS’s special enquiry team’s investigation. We were also concerned that, when another MPS department investigated allegations other than electoral fraud, potential lines of enquiry were disregarded. Furthermore, there was an otherwise uncoordinated approach to all the investigations, with little oversight at a senior officer level for the first year, which meant that opportunities might have been missed.”

Scope has also been identified for a new police investigation:

“Operation Lynemouth’s investigators have identified avenues of enquiry that can still be explored, and City of London Police has agreed to undertake an independent criminal investigation.”

Operation Lynemouth: final report

Here is the full report”

Click to access Operation-Lynemouth-review-of-police-handling-of-electoral-corruption-allegations-in-Tower-Hamlets.pdf

https://www.markpack.org.uk/157907/operation-lynemouth-tower-hamlets/

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Hugo Swire, Neil Parish

How did our 2 MPs vote this evening?

In spite of several Cabinet Ministers abstaining to avoid being seen as definitely not following Theresa May’s firm whipping orders, our MPs did exactly as May had ordered them to do, and were in the minority on all votes.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/mar/13/mps-reject-no-deal-brexit-by-majority-of-four

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Affordable and Social Housing, Austerity cuts, Developers/ Development, Planning System

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Today’s promise of 30,000 housing association dwellings put into perspective

Owl says note that the “affordable” hoysing will still be 80% of market value … making these homes still unaffordable for those on low incomes.

Chancellor Philip Hammond has today committed £3billion in extra borrowing to deliver 30,000 new affordable homes in England.

In the Spring Statement, the Chancellor announced that the Government will guarantee the extra borrowing by housing associations to support the delivery of the homes, but did not supply a timetable for delivery.

The Chancellor also announced that £717million from the £5.5billion Housing Infrastructure Fund will be used to help ‘unlock’ up to 37,000 homes at sites including Old Oak Common in London, the Oxford-Cambridge Arc and Cheshire. …”

BUT IN THE SAME ARTICLE:

“In November This is Money revealed that local councils have fallen over six years behind their own house building targets.

Councils’ own figures revealed that development across the UK is moving at such a glacial pace that 316 sites will have fallen short of targets by 889,803 homes within the next eight years. …”

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-6804561/Spring-Statement-Housing-associations-borrow-3bn-build-new-affordable-homes.html

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Axminster, Consultation

Have your say on Axminster’s future

“Community group Light Up Axminster is inviting people to have their say about the town’s future development during a programme of ‘Community Conversations’.

Funded by an Awards for All grant from the National Lottery the group is exploring the things that matter to those that live, work and visit the town.

The aim is to highlight the highs and lows of community life and how the town can shape its future together.

The ‘Community Conversations’ will take place at a range of venues and times throughout March and early April and will be led by Light Up Axminster’s Cindy Furse with film-maker Rich Tomlinson and Actiontrack’s Nick Brace.

Anyone attending is asked to take a photograph, picture, poem, drawing or description of their favourite thing about living in Axminster and the thing that they would most like to change.

These will be used to create a picture of what is important in the community. For anyone who can’t attend the themed sessions there will be a number of drop-in sessions, too.

Contact Cindy Furse on 07930 800225 or email cindy@lightupaxminster.co.uk for more information, or join the conversation on Facebook/LightUpAxminster

Sessions are:

Thursday March 14: The Light House (formerly Marle Gallery):

9am to 10am: drop in; 10am to 12pm – regeneration, development and growth; 1pm to 3pm – education and employment; 3pm to 4pm: drop in.

Friday, March 15, Axminster Guildhall: 9am to 10am: drop in;

10am to 12pm – sport and leisure; 1pm to 3pm – arts, culture and heritage; 4pm to 5pm – drop in.

Tuesday March 19: The Light House: 12pm to 2pm – spaces, places and facilities; 2pm to 3pm – drop in; 6pm to 7pm – drop in; 7pm to 9pm – health and wellbeing.

Wednesday March 20: Millwey Community Hall: 12pm to 1pm – drop in; 1pm to 3pm – education and employment.

Wednesday March 20: The Light House: 5pm to 7pm – drop in; 7pm to 9pm – sport and leisure.

Friday March 29: The Light House: 9am to 10am: Drop in; 10am to 12pm – health and wellbeing; 1pm to 3pm – spaces, places and facilities; 4pm to 5pm – drop in.

Tuesday April 2: The Light House: 7pm to 9pm – arts, culture and heritage.

Thursday April 4: Millwey Community Hall: 6pm to 7pm – drop in; 7pm to 9pm – regeneration, development and growth.”

https://www.midweekherald.co.uk/news/community-conversations-planned-to-help-shape-the-future-1-5934595

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Austerity cuts, Democracy, Health and Social Care (local)

Bojo says historic child abuse inquiries are a waste of money (he wasted at least £940m as London Mayor)

Maybe because several abusers appear to have been MPs or others (still) in power? And he’s the man whose failed Mayor of London projects cost an estimated £940 million!

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/aug/18/bridge-940m-bill-boris-johnsons-mayora-vanity-projects-garden-bridge-routemaster-bus

“Boris Johnson has declared money spent on non-recent child abuse investigations had been “spaffed up a wall”, prompting immediate criticism from Labour for making reckless and inappropriate comments.

The current favourite to succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader was arguing police time and resources were being wasted on crimes committed years ago as he was questioned on an LBC radio phone-in on Wednesday morning.

But he went on to complain: “And one comment I would make is I think an awful lot of money and an awful lot of police time now goes into these historic offences and all this malarkey.

“You know, £60m I saw was being spaffed up a wall on some investigation into historic child abuse and all this kind of thing. What on earth is that going to do to protect the public now?”

Louise Haigh, the shadow policing minister, said Johnson’s remarks were insulting to victims of abuse.

“Could you look the victims in the eye and tell them investigating and bringing to justice those who abused them, as children, is a waste of money?” she asked. …”

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/mar/13/boris-johnson-under-fire-over-remarks-about-child-abuse-inquiries

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, EDDC, Exmouth, Grenadier

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Exmouth: what do they know that they don’t want you to know? You can’t know!

Through the Looking Glass – Queen Alice in Council

An Alice Through The Loking Glass response to a request about the EDDC/Grenadier agreement!

“Thank you for your request for information. Please find the response to your query below.

Q. In the first instance, I wish to know what information you hold about the signing of the agreement between yourselves and Grenadier in regard to the Queen’s Drive development Exmouth.

A. There is a development agreement involving the Council and Grenadier in relation to Queen’s Drive dated 23rd August 2017. This is being dealt with under your other FOI request 101000873196.

Q. Your Council News of 7th March 2019, reported that the agreement was due to be signed in the coming week but, in a social media exchange yesterday, 9th March 2019, Cllr Stott said that it had been signed but then appeared to backtrack and then appeared unwilling to clarify. So, at present, in the absence of anything on your website or from Cllr Stott, residents are still in the dark. If there have been further delays, then we should know. You should be aware that it has been a matter of concern to the community that a considerable amount of work has been done and considerable expenses have been incurred all without the agreement having been signed off.

Can you confirm that the agreement has been signed and, if so, when and by whom (names of all parties signing please). As the requested information must be already known to EDDC I expect this FOI to be answered promptly as the Act requires, not to take the usual 20 working days that many to EDDC do. Why Cllr Stott suggested this way to obtain the information is unclear and in respect of the question of whether it has been signed or not seems an inappropriate use of the FOI but, as she has declined to clarify the matters I must make this request.

A. No information held. You are effectively asking for an explanation of the current position and this is outside the scope of FOI. If you would like to email Richard Cohen at [email address] who will provide an answer to your questions.

I hope this information is helpful but, if you feel dissatisfied with the way we have responded to your request, please contact our Monitoring Officer, Mr Henry Gordon Lennox, to request an internal review [email address]”

You may also approach the Information Commissioner for advice at http://www.ico.org.uk

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/the_agreement_itself_and_i_wish?nocache=incoming-1327721#incoming-1327721

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Austerity cuts, Inequality, Poverty

“Millions in Britain at risk of poor-quality later life, report says”

“A landmark report on the state of ageing in Britain has warned that a significant proportion of people are at risk of spending later life in poverty, ill-health and hardship.

Britain is undergoing a radical demographic shift, with the number of people aged 65 and over set to grow by more than 40% in two decades, reaching more than 17 million by 2036. The number of households where the oldest person is 85 or over is increasing faster than any other age group.

But although we are living longer than ever before, the report warns that millions risk missing out on a good later life due to increasing pressure on health and care services, local authorities, the voluntary sector and government finances.

“Ageing is inevitable but how we age is not. Our current rates of chronic illness, mental health conditions, disability and frailty could be greatly reduced if we tackled the structural, economic and social drivers of poor health earlier,” said Dr Anna Dixon, the chief executive at Centre for Ageing Better.

“Our extra years of life are a gift that we should all be able to enjoy and yet – as this report shows – increasing numbers of us are at risk of missing out,” she added.

The Centre for Ageing Better’s report, The State of Ageing in 2019, warns that today’s least well-off over-50s face far greater challenges than wealthier peers and are likely to die younger, become sicker earlier and fall out of work due to ill-health.

The research brings together publicly available data sources to reveal vast differences in how people experience ageing depending on factors such as where they live, how much money they have or what sex or ethnicity they are.

While people aged 65 can expect to live just half of the remainder of their life without disability, those in less affluent parts of the country will die earlier and be sicker for longer. Ill-health is a major cause of people falling out of work prematurely and can affect quality of life and access to services such as healthcare.

The poorest people are three times more likely than the wealthiest to retire early because of ill-health: 39% of men and 31% of women compared with 6% of both sexes in the highest wealth quintile.

Although we are living far longer, a significant and increasing proportion of people are managing multiple health conditions and mobility problems from mid-life onwards, the report says. Of people aged 50 to 64, 23% have three or more long-term health conditions.

Meanwhile, the poorest men in society aged over 50 are three times more likely than the wealthiest to have chronic heart disease, two times more likely to have Type 2 diabetes, and two times more likely to have arthritis.

The report reveals that pensioner poverty is rising for the first time since 2010 and is more prevalent for women and black, Asian, and minority ethnic groups.

At least 1.3 million over-55s live in homes hazardous to their health and one in four 50- to 64 year-olds have three or more chronic health conditions.

The Centre for Ageing Better is calling on the government, businesses and charities to “rethink their approach and avoid storing up problems for the future”.

“This report is a wakeup call for us all – many people in their 50s and 60s now, particularly those who are less well-off, simply won’t get the quality of later life that they expect or deserve,” Dixon said.

“We must act now to add life to our years; to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to make the most of a longer life. Without radical action today to help people age well, we are storing up problems for the future and leaving millions at risk of poverty and poor health in later life.”

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/mar/13/millions-in-britain-at-risk-of-poor-quality-later-life-report-says

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13 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Audit (EDDC), Consultation

“Spending watchdog consults on new Code of Audit Practice for local auditors”

“The National Audit Office has launched a consultation on the development of a new Code of Audit Practice, which sets out what local auditors of relevant local public bodies are required to do to fulfil their statutory responsibilities under the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014.

The 2014 Act requires that the Code be reviewed, and revisions considered at least every five years. The NAO said the current Code came into force on 1 April 2015, and its maximum five-year lifespan means it now needs to be reviewed and a new Code laid in Parliament in time for it to come in to force no later than 1 April 2020. …

The consultation document which can be viewed here:

Click to access Local-audit-in-England-Code-of-Audit-Practice-Consultation.pdf

supports Stage 1 of the process. …”

https://www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk/governance/396-governance-news/40054-spending-watchdog-consults-on-new-code-of-audit-practice-for-local-auditors

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12 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Developers/ Development, Persimmon

“Persimmon Homes missing fire safety barriers confirmed in Cornwall as well as Devon”

“A Persimmon Homes family say their home is like living in a chimney, after discovering vital fire safety barriers were missing from their home.

The owner of the property, who wished to remain anonymous, asked for his property in Truro to be inspected after reading of the safety issues with homes in Exeter on Devon Live.

In January, a Persimmon Homes whistleblower urged all home owners to have their properties inspected after claiming the problem is widespread. Up until then, the building firm had only confirmed properties in one of its developments, Greenacres, and the Newcourt area near Topsham, had failed inspections.

The whistleblower – a Persimmon Homes employee – alleged the issue was not confined to the one development. Among other developments the employee claimed could also fail inspections were:

Coverdale, Paignton
Harford Mews, Ivybridge
Hill Barton Vale, Exeter
Agusta Park, Yeovil
Heathfield Gardens, Monkton Heathfield, Taunton
Chilmark Glade, Shaftesbury

Since then failures have also been reported at Persimmon Homes in East Devon new town Cranbrook, and now at Lowen Bre in Truro – which is the first confirmation the issue has been highlighted in Cornwall as well as Devon.

The issue was exposed following a ‘ferocious’ blaze which broke out in Trafalgar Road off Admiral Way and Topsham Road, last April, which spread into the roof spaces of two of the adjoining properties.

After reading the whistleblower’s recommendations on Devon Live, the owner of a house in Lowen Bre asked Persimmon Homes to inspect their five-year-old home, when cavity barriers were found to be missing, as well as stops and socks which prevent the spread of fire through walls and floors.

The owner, who asked not to be named, said: “My house is like a chimney because if there was a fire it would spread pretty quick through it. It’s negligence by Persimmon Homes and the National House Building Council (NHBC) who have signed the property off.

“After our home failed the inspection a few days later they returned and they were put in place, but I’m also missing about 50 per cent around the windows. We have 20 odd windows and doors.”

The development the owner lives on has about 160 homes and it is believed letters have been sent to some of its residents.

The home owner said: “I want to make everyone in the development aware of the issue so that they can get their home checked.

“As a national house builder, Persimmon Homes have a duty of care to ensure their homes are built correctly and I feel that this issue shows a lack of adhering to building regulations.

“We have lived in our property since October 2013. All this time we have been at constant risk due to the required fire safety details not being installed. With children in the house whose bedrooms are both on the top floor, it makes this situation even more unbelievable.”

The builder has already come under fire by residents after their voiced their frustrations after it took four years for work began on its promised as a condition of its planning permission.

Residents said they had to endure countless promises of start dates from Persimmon Homes for work at the playground to begin which were then broken the company.

A spokesperson for Persimmon Homes said: “The development as a whole is being inspected as part of the ongoing process. As Persimmon Homes has already confirmed it has committed to a thorough inspection process to ensure the required standards are met and is undertaking remedial work wherever the need is identified.

“Persimmon Homes has a dedicated team in place to deal with any remedial work that is required, and customers on any of our developments can make contact at any time if they have concerns.”

Persimmon Homes did not provide a response to the following questions:

1. Of those inspected so far in Lowen Bre how many ave passed?

2. A list of development where inspections are being carried out in Cornwall, Devon and across the country.

3. The results of those inspections so far.

A spokesman for the NHBC said it had not received any contacts or claims concerning fire safety barriers at Lowen Bre in Truro.

He said: “Any homeowners with an NHBC Buildmark policy who have concerns about this issue can contact our claims team who will be happy to provide them with advice and support. As the UK’s leading warranty provider we care passionately about the quality of new homes.

“We work with builders to help them improve the construction quality of the homes they build for the benefit of our policyholders, the homeowners.

“NHBC’s inspection regime is not a replacement for the builder’s own quality control checks and obligations to build in accordance with building regulations.”

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/persimmon-homes-missing-fire-safety-2633631

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12 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Audit (EDDC), Local Government Finance

Retiring National Audit Office Chief: ministers with no qualifications and “inappropriate bravado when it comes to spending taxpayers’ money”

“The relationship between ministers, accounting officers and civil servants is currently not working, the outgoing auditor general of UK’s spending watchdog has said in his last speech in the role.

Some ministers “see themselves more or less as chief executive officers but without the qualifications”, National Audit Office head Amyas Morse told an event on accountability at the Institute for Government think-tank’s offices this morning.

The comptroller said this meant ministers sometimes made decisions prioritising a project “close to their hearts” – when they should be held accountable but are not – which “has led to the abandonment of good practice”, he said.

The problem rests with the “interaction between ministers, accounting officers and civil servants,” Morse said. “That really needs to be addressed. I don’t think the relationship is where it ought to be at the moment.”

He said he did not see ministers having a say in the appointment of accounting officers as producing a “healthy result”.

Accounting officers can only ensure value for money for the public purse “if they are in a position where they are sufficiently influential to assert the importance of public value”, he added, suggesting they currently do not have this influence.

Morse said the civil service had become much more professional over the past few years, partly through initiatives like the Infrastructure and Projects Authority. The authority is a centre of expertise for delivering infrastructure and major projects.

But he added civil servants, who he noted often feel they need to defend ministerial decisions, required “greater clarity” on how they were was supposed to work alongside those decisions.

Morse talked of the importance of transparency in public life and the “outbreak of secrecy” in government over Brexit.

This secrecy had “slowed down the ability of the civil service to react and may have helped create an element of distrust more widely in parliament,” Morse said.

He suggested there was currently “inappropriate bravado when it comes to spending taxpayers’ money”. He highlighted Crossrail and the probation service’s contracting as examples of where government had recently overspent. “I didn’t have to go far into my in-tray to find those,” he said.

Morse will hand over the reins as auditor general and comptroller to CIPFA fellow Gareth Davies on 1 June.”

https://www.publicfinance.co.uk/news/2019/03/outgoing-nao-chief-questions-ministerial-accountability-over-public-spending1

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12 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Cranbrook, EDDC, Exeter City Council, Transport (local)

Cranbrook suffering from Exeter traffic congestion

“… Exeter has been named as the slowest city in the country in a report published by Sport England in January. In its active lifestyle pilot for Exeter and Cranbrook it states:

“Exeter and Cranbrook is an area of rapid population growth with 22,000 new homes and 12,000 new jobs forecast by 2026. Despite this growth there are some big strategic challenges, namely traffic congestion, with Exeter being the slowest moving city in the country averaging just 4.6mph during rush hour.”

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/exeter-roadworks-helps-countrys-slowest-2635854

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12 Mar 2019

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Affordable and Social Housing, Axminster, Developers/ Development, EDDC, Transport (local)

Shock news: ‘Government Agency ‘U-turn’ puts Axminster relief road at risk…’

EDDC press release:

“The £17m relief road and 850 homes, in the Masterplan for the east of Axminster, have been put at risk by a late change in Homes England funding.

East Devon District Council has reacted with dismay to news that government agency Homes England has changed how it is assessing the council’s £10 million bid for Axminster relief road.

The council bid for a non-repayable grant in 2017. This bid was accepted in February 2018, to be used to help fund the delivery of the crucial new relief road and associated homes, employment land and community facilities.

The council has now been told by Homes England that a new condition of the funding is that the money must be repaid by the development.

Council leader Cllr Ian Thomas is enormously concerned that the decision potentially puts the Axminster Masterplan in jeopardy.

He said: “We are dismayed by this fundamental change of mind. It throws the whole Axminster scheme up in the air and means that the effort we and our partners have put into this critical scheme over the last 12 months may have been completely wasted.

“Since I was first elected leader, I have been absolutely consistent that we don’t simply build homes, we build sustainable communities. The Axminster Masterplan is an excellent example of such a community. It would bring enormous social and economic benefit to Axminster, by delivering high quality affordable housing and employment land, together with other essential community facilities. After this decision from Homes England, it feels like we are back to square one. It’s bitterly disappointing.

“We understand that our scheme is one of a number across the country where similar funding decision changes are being made, as Homes England assesses the viability of schemes on a fundamentally different basis, to that applied in our original agreement with them.

“Our council is now considering its options. This includes taking legal advice to investigate whether we may have strong grounds to challenge Homes England’s decision.

The masterplan for 850 homes with employment land, open spaces and community facilities was endorsed by the council’s strategic planning committee in January. The plan was based on the money from Homes England not being repaid and even then, the development could only be made viable by expanding the site area and increasing the number of homes proposed to around 850. The amount of affordable housing required from the additional 200 homes was also reduced from 50% to 25%.

Following a decision by Homes England last week, it would appear that the development will have to repay the £10 million of government “grant” and the masterplan is no longer viable in its current form.

The council must also consider revisiting the masterplan to understand the consequences of the decision for the amount of affordable housing, employment land and community facilities to make the development viable again.

Throughout the masterplan process, the council has always been clear that the urban extension of Axminster is not just about delivering housing and the relief road but is about helping the town grow as a community in a sustainable way supported by the services and facilities that it needs.

The council is frustrated that Homes England’s change in approach puts this all at significant risk and could make the development undeliverable. It will be seeking an urgent meeting with Homes England to discuss this case and other implications for investment in the district.”

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12 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Austerity cuts, Police (local)

“Axed Devon, Cornwall and Dorset police merger saw [another] £380k ‘wasted’

… not to mention the millions wasted on a Police and Crime Commissioner …

“Almost £380,000 was “wasted” on a failed merger between two police forces, figures have revealed.

Plans to merge Devon and Cornwall Police with Dorset Police were called off in October after a police and crime commissioner (PCC) opposed the move.
The Police Federation said it was “horrified” such a “large amount of money has been wasted”.

Both police forces said work to create a “robust business case” for the merger could be used in the future.
The £376,798 included consultant fees of more than £190,000, police officer pay totalling almost £119,000 and more than £26,000 on equipment and advertising, a BBC Freedom of Information request has revealed. …

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47471442

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12 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Democracy, EDDC, Independent Councillors, Sidmouth/ Sidford/ Sidbury, Voting

Local elections: Many independents throw their hats into ring in Sid Valley

“Sid Valley Democracy is calling for residents to stand as councillors in May for the 19 seats available.

The initiative says it wishes to ensure enough candidates for the seats to be contested after previous elections where there were not enough people, resulting in automatic appointment.

The informal group says 17 people have expressed an interest so far and have hosted meetings for prospective candidates to meet and find out more about the role.

On its Facebook page, the group said: “In most recent elections, so few candidates came forward, they were all automatically appointed – this has been the same for many town councils.

“The people behind this initiative believe that this is wrong.

“So without passing any judgement on the effectiveness of Sidmouth’s current town council, or indeed how democratically it operates, we have started the initiative to see if more people are interested in standing for election, giving Sid Valley residents a real choice come May 2.

“As well as candidates we’re also keen to get more people to vote, turnout at local elections is usually very low.”

The page has announced Charissa Evans, Peter Blackmore, Deidre Hounsom, John Loudoun, Denise Bickley, Cathy Gardner and Marianne Rixson plan to stand for seats.

Nomination packs are now available from the district council for those wishing to stand in district, town and parish elections.

Candidates must complete the forms and send them to the returning officer of East Devon District Council by 4pm on Wednesday, April 3.

The electorate will head to the polls to vote in district and town and parish elections on May 2.

The counting of the votes will take place in two locations at EDDC’s headquarters at Blackdown House, Honiton, and at Exmouth Town Hall.

District council votes will be counted and the results declared on Friday May 3, with contested town and parish elections, counted and announced on Saturday May 4.

If you would like a nomination pack, please contact the electoral services team on 01395 517402.”

https://www.sidmouthherald.co.uk/news/sid-valley-democracy-launches-to-find-candidates-for-town-council-election-1-5925851

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12 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Audit (EDDC)

New audit watchdog will watch audit watchdogs!

Owl says: Alas, it seems the smaller audit companies will remain unaudited!

“The accounting watchdog will be shut down and replaced by a stronger regulator after a government-backed review deemed it a “hangover from a different era”.

Greg Clark, 51, the business secretary, said the government would move ahead with the recommendations of a review of the Financial Reporting Council last year by Sir John Kingman, 49, the chairman of Legal & General.

Sir John said it was “seriously inappropriate” that the FRC, formed in 1990, was funded by a voluntary industry levy and criticised it for hiring executives from the alumni networks of the Big Four firms. Consultation on its 48 recommendations will run until June.

The FRC will be dismantled as part of an effort to restore trust in the audit market after a string of accounting scandals and the failure of large businesses such as Carillion, the outsourcer, and BHS, the department stores chain.

It will be replaced by a new, more powerful watchdog called the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority that will be accountable to parliament. Arga will be able to issue harsher penalties against companies and auditors after corporate failures and will be able to intervene directly in company accounts. It will be run by a new board, recruitment of which will begin immediately.

Arga will regulate the large firms of Deloitte, PWC, EY and KPMG, as well as supervising their audit work. It will have new powers to force companies and their directors to explain why a company failed and to publish reports on their conduct.

“The new body will build on our status as a great place to do business and will form an important part of strengthened public trust in businesses and the regulations that govern them,” Mr Clark said. He commissioned the Kingman review after the FRC was accused of being too close to the largest firms, too slow to investigate allegations of misconduct and not tough enough in punishing audit failings. …”

Source: Times (pay wall)

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11 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Austerity cuts, East Devon Tories, EDDC, Health and Social Care (local), NHS (local), Ottery St Mary, Roger Giles

[Ottery] “Hospital faces 18 month wait to apply for community status”

“East Devon District Council (EDDC) announced on February 27 that supporters must wait until February 2020 before re-applying for the hospital to be listed as an asset of community value (ACV). When a building is listed as an ACV, the local community has to be informed if it goes up for sale and the public can enact the ‘community right to bid’ which gives them a period of six months to determine if they can raise the finance to purchase the asset.

The initial decision not to list the building as an ACV came in December when Ottery was one of four East Devon hospitals to be nominated. EDDC stated that it did not believe the hospital furthered the social wellbeing or social interests of the local community.

At the council meeting on February 27, Cllr Roger Giles, who also sits on the Ottery Town Council, raised the matter and referenced Southwold Hospital, in Suffolk, which was successfully listed as an ACV, before becoming the first hospital in the country to be bought by the community.

As part of the decision to list it as an ACV, Cllr Giles said the strategic director of WDC stated the owner’s assertion there is no evidence of the community social wellbeing being furthered defied common sense.

Cllr Giles said this is a view shared by many local Ottery residents about their hospital and warned that Ottery and other local community hospitals are at risk because of this perverse decision. He said EDDC is suffering reputational damage as a result of this ‘very regrettable’ decision.

Cllr Ian Thomas, leader of EDDC, said each case is considered on its merits and there had been no new evidence to warrant a review for Ottery.

Last week, leading figures from the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and the Northern, Eastern and Western Locality Devon Clinical Commissioning Group attended a discussion to review plans for the building. A statement from the working group said: “A wide-ranging and constructive discussion took place, and a number of tasks were allocated.”

A further meeting will be held in early June.”

https://www.sidmouthherald.co.uk/news/ottery-hospital-wait-1-5930495

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11 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Austerity cuts, Independent Councillors, Voting

“Pork Barrel politics”: why ‘good news’ always comes just before elections

Portishead Independents tell it as it is!

“Pork Barrel Politics

There’s a lot of good news in Portishead at the moment. In our local papers you may have seen headlines like

“£180,000 to be spent on precinct regeneration”
“New investment brings rail line closer”
“New playground opens “

And without a doubt these are all great news stories,but have you ever stopped to wonder why we as a town are suddenly so lucky. Well it’s down to something that the Americans call Pork Barrel Politics.

It works like this a Cllr or two worried about their seats asks their party boss if there is any spare cash available to fund some projects that concern their voters say a new railway line that’s been delayed for years or a shopping precinct that’s in urgent need of repair.

They put out a press release with a quote from the Councillor so that the voters know whose “working hard” for them and just like that they expect the voters to forgot how awful they’ve been the last 4 years and re-elect them.

And if anyone mentions this and complains then the councillors supporters say “look at these people, you see they are never happy”.

Expect the papers in the next few weeks to be full of good news stories.

Why ?

Because they are scared of you, they are scared that you know there’s a better way. They are scared that change is coming to our town.

Portishead independents, your team, your town.”

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11 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Democracy, EDDC, Lib Dem (local)

EDDC Monitoring Officer censures Seaton Lib Dem Councillor Peter Burrows

Recall that Owl broke the original story about Seaton Town Council and EDDC Lib Dem councillor Peter Burrows here:

https://eastdevonwatch.org/2019/01/07/breaking-news-seaton-mayor-peter-burrows-resigns-after-bringing-the-office-into-disrepute/

and the updated story here:
https://eastdevonwatch.org/2019/01/11/seaton-disgraced-ex-mayor-peter-burrows-town-council-responds-names-names/

Although Councillor Burrows resigned as Mayor of Seaton Town Council he did NOT resign as a town or district councillor. It remains to be seen if local Lib Dems select him again to stand for district council elections in May 2019.

Now EDDC’s Monitoring Officer has also given a statement.

“On or around the 1st January 2019, Councillor Peter Burrows posted a tweet on the SeatonTIC Twitter account [which was not an official Seaton Town Council website or an official Seaton TIC but a personal account of Mr Burrows, now closed] which alleged that a local business had bad-mouthed “the Mayor of Seaton” and [he] asked people to avoid [using] that business.

The tweet was a direct response to comments made by an individual who Councillor Burrows believed worked at the business concerned. This was not the case and neither the business nor its owner had any involvement in the making of the comments in relation to Councillor Burrows.

The tweet was inappropriate and breached Seaton Town Council’s Code of Conduct in that;

It failed to promote and support high standards of conduct,

It failed to treat others with respect,

It could not be justified to the public.

Councillor Burrows conducted himself in a manner that brought his office and Seaton Town Council into disrepute.

Councillor Burrows is hereby formally censured for the breaches that have been found in relation to his entirely inappropriate tweet.”

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11 Mar 2019

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Accountability, Hugo Swire, Post-Brexit Adjustments, Sleaze

“Jacob Rees-Mogg ‘has earned £7,000,000 from investments since Brexit’

Isn’t the (dormant) company that Swire owns with his Russian oligarch-serving pal Lord Barker set up to invest in “emerging markets”?

Wouldn’t it be super if profits MPs made while in Parliament had to go to their constituencies!

“The rest of Britain might be fretting about the impact of a no-deal Brexit, but leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg is doing very nicely, thanks. An investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches found that the Conservative MP could have earned up to £7,000,000 from Somerset Capital Managment, which invests in emerging markets such as China and Russsia. In the programme, one expert suggests that the fall in the value of the pound has helped to drive SCM’s profits – but Rees-Mogg dismissed such claims as ‘living in cloud cuckoo land’.

Rees-Mogg refused to disclose his earnings from the firm, of which he owns 15% and which he set up in 2007. Records show that its profits have doubled and it has paid £47m to members since the referendum. Rees-Mogg told Dispatches, ‘The amount that I received is not for public disclosure. I’m entitled to the same privacy in my affairs as anyone else in parliament is.

Mr Rees-Mogg declares in his House of Commons Register of Interests that he is paid £500 an hour for his work at SCM and takes home around £15,000 a month on top of his MPs salary. SCM invests in emerging markets like China and Russia and one expert said that the fall in the value of the pound since the referendum result has helped SCM’s profits. Rees-Mogg also rejected claims that SCM’s decision in the past year to open two new funds in Dublin rather than London had anything to with Brexit.

Our decision to do it predates Brexit,’ he told the programme. Dispatches also revealed how some hedge funds have built up huge bets against British business and hoping to make big profits if the economy hits the rocks after Brexit.

Dispatches reveals that the US investment firm Blackrock holds the most bets against British business totalling more than £1bn. The hedge fund run by leading Brexiteer Crispin Odey is betting almost £500m against British businesses. Odey made more than £200m on the night of the referendum by betting that the value of the pound would plummet.”

https://metro.co.uk/2019/03/11/jacob-rees-mogg-earned-7000000-investments-since-brexit-8884678/