Another case of government unpreparedness.

All MPs and peers have been asked to come up with solutions to the social care crisis, after Boris Johnson admitted his claim to have a plan was untrue.

edition.independent.co.uk

In an extraordinary letter, Matt Hancock, the health secretary, has asked them all to “share their views” – with the aim of kickstarting talks in May. The move comes after the prime minister acknowledged he had no proposals, despite claiming – as he entered No 10 last summer – to have a “clear plan to give every older person the dignity and security they deserve”.

Mr Johnson then promised “a plan this year”, but the letter sent to MPs and peers suggests the government is starting with a blank piece of paper, despite the gathering crisis.

Around 1.4 million people in need are already believed to be going without care, and the sector is plagued by 122,000 vacancies – even before a harsh post-Brexit immigration crackdown next year.

“We want to hear your views, your proposed solutions and your concerns about reforming the way that people pay for their care,” Mr Hancock has written.

The move comes after council bosses warned that, without an overhaul of social care, local services in England face a funding gap of almost £6.5bn by 2025.

Labour immediately agreed to join any talks, but warned they were unlikely to succeed without the government putting forward effective proposals. The party is likely to propose its manifesto policy – free personal care for older people and a lifetime cap on care costs – but there would need to be agreement on the tax rises to pay for it.

Barbara Keeley, Labour’s social care spokesperson, said: “The prime minister promised voters that he had a plan to fix the social care crisis but now all we see is an open-ended invitation for comments. As we have repeatedly said, cross-party talks can only be effective when the government comes forward with its proposals for reform. It is clear that it does not have a plan to fix the crisis in social care.”

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, echoed the criticism, saying: “Unfortunately, this announcement, issued on a Friday afternoon, will not fill anyone who cares about the future of social care with much confidence. It is always good for ministers to seek alternative views, but it is very disappointing that they appear not to be offering any of their own at this stage.”

In the letter, Mr Hancock writes: “We need action now, finally, to seek a solution that can support future generations. We will seek to build cross-party consensus so that the reforms we progress will last long into the future, nobody is forced to sell their home to pay for care and everybody accessing care has safety and security.”

But he added: “Of course any solution needs to consider the financial impact on taxpayers.”

The purchase of the Knapp nature reserve has been finalised.

Beth Sharp  www.sidmouthherald.co.uk

East Devon District Council chairman Stuart Hughes handed over the keys of the Knapp to the Sid Vale Association (SVA) vice chair Ed Harrison and Land Trustee Richard Huntington, who is responsible for all SVA land.

The Knapp, an area measuring about 8.4 acres, is located between Peaslands Road and Station Road and joins Peaslands Knapp, which the SVA already own.

The site will continue to be managed as a nature reserve and will remain open to the public.

It comprises an orchard, a pond, a wild flower meadow and two areas of mature trees and saplings.

Most of the mature trees are covered by tree preservation orders.

The SVA is very pleased to have secured this plot from the EDDC for the future enjoyment of Sidmouth residents.

The organisation is run entirely by volunteers and anybody who would like to and help maintain the area would be welcomed.

http://www.sidvaleassociation.org.uk/

The country’s most unproductive areas receive the least investment to boost output, according to new analysis published before next week’s budget.

London and the South East get more per head in taxpayer cash for transport, housing, innovation and culture, says Onward, a Conservative-leaning think tank, in a report that paves the way for changes to Treasury rules.

London and South East enjoy most taxpayer cash

Francis Elliott Political Editor, The Times, March 6

Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, is expected to change rules on public spending that critics say reinforce regional inequality in next Wednesday’s budget.

Boris Johnson has made “levelling-up” opportunity around the country the overarching theme of his government. Today’s analysis shows the scale of the task ahead.

London has received nearly twice the UK average in research and development spending since 2001 and nearly three times as much capital spending on transport as the rest of England since 2007, according to Onward’s analysis. This equates to about £6,600 per head in the capital compared with £1,800 in the East Midlands and £1,980 in the South West.

The analysis also found that between 2016 and 2021, London will get five times as much financial support for affordable housing as the rest of England. It also enjoyed nearly five times as much spending on culture over a seven-year period from 2010.

The think tank is urging the prime minister and chancellor to “take a bazooka” to the Treasury “green book” that lays out the rules and devolve transport policy. It is also urging the chancellor to “use every tool at his disposal” to level up regional growth.

The author of the report, Neil O’Brien, a former Treasury and No10 adviser and now an MP, said: “It is no wonder some parts of the country feel shortchanged. For decades we have piled fertiliser on the parts of our economy that are already flourishing while refusing to water the seeds of growth elsewhere. The PM’s mission to level up poorer parts of the country is vital.

“To change trends that have gone in the wrong direction for decades will need not a few tweaks, but taking a bazooka to the problem. We have to use every tool, starting by rebalancing the types of spending that do most for growth towards poorer areas.”

There is a strong case for new transport infrastructure investment in some cities and large towns. But this only applies to a handful of places where the current transport system is struggling to support the growth of their city-centre economies.

Transport infrastructure investment in cities – Centre for Cities

www.centreforcities.org

There is a strong case for new transport infrastructure investment in some cities and large towns. But this only applies to a handful of places where the current transport system is struggling to support the growth of their city-centre economies.

Poor public transport is not the cause of weak city centres; instead low numbers of commuters, and the ease of driving, make public transport infrastructure improvements commercially unviable. Because of this, funding for new transport infrastructure in these cities will do little to spur economic growth.

Where will transport infrastructure investment unlock city-centre growth?

Only cities with strong and growing centres with high public transport usage but slow journey times need new investment in major transport infrastructure.

London, Manchester, Birmingham, and Leeds stand out as cities that need infrastructure improvements. Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Glasgow also face similar, though less severe transport barriers, for residents and businesses.

Where should cities with weaker economies focus investment?

Before considering public transport infrastructure investment, cities with weaker economies first need to create the demand for it. To do this they should focus on growing their city-centre economies and making them attractive places for high-skilled employers to locate. Primarily, this means investing in skills and further education provision.

Without doing this, the existing transport network is likely to be sufficient. However, these cities should still have access to funding to support improvements to the existing local transport infrastructure and services.

How should the Government invest in transport infrastructure to boost city-centre growth?

The Government should invest the £31 billion identified by the National Infrastructure Commission for new major transport infrastructure in priority cities outside London. The money should primarily be focused on cities with strong economies and growing city centres where public transport usage is high and journey times are relatively slow. This money should be available to cities providing they meed two conditions:

1. Cities contribute a share of the costs locally so that risks are shared between local and national government; and
2. This local contribution includes revenues from a city-centre congestion charge. If these cities are serious about improving their transport networks, they need to also take politically-tough decisions locally to do so.

Cities and large towns that need new infrastructure should use extra capital to enlarge the public transport network. The exact nature of this should respond to the specific requirements of each city centre: whereas some may benefit from a new tram line, others such as Manchester will require tunnelling to provide the space for extra trams or trains to enter and exit the city centre.

If new infrastructure investment were coupled with initiatives to better manage existing transport, particularly buses, this would further boost the efficiency and equity outcomes of investments. All cities and large towns should look at how to improve the management and efficiency of their existing networks.

Daniel Wilkins  www.exmouthjournal.co.uk 

A possible case of coronavirus at East Devon District Council has forced the closure of the authority’s headquarters.

Blackdown House was closed to the public at noon today (Friday, March 6) as a precautionary measure after a possible case of Coronavirus was identified in a member of staff who was returning from a high-risk country.

The district council said it will continue to provide services and apologises for any inconvenience caused.

An EDDC spokesman said: “They are displaying potential symptoms and although the risk is very low, we are taking the correct measures.

“All members of staff have been sent home and the majority will be able to continue working remotely.

“The offices will be thoroughly cleansed, according to recommended guidelines, over the weekend and we anticipate reopening early next week.”

More information and advice on Coronavirus (COVID-19) can be found on the Gov.uk website

George Osbourne’s austerity programme was aimed not only at balancing the books but in shrinking the state. His toxic legacy has left a hollowed out civil service unable to cope with unexpected events. Boris Johnson has made a bad situation worse by centralising decision making in his group of “weirdos”. Inability to act decisively has become apparent. Compare UK slowness to repatriate people first from China then Japan. Now we see paralysis to deal with the effect of the collapse of Flybe on regional connectivity, not just from Exeter, but across small regional airports in UK. Nils Prately puts it succinctly:

Nils Pratley, Financial editor, The Guardian Business View 6 march 2020

No soft landing

The easy part for the government was refusing Flybe’s request for a £100M loan. The Connect consortium that owned Flybe – Virgin Atlantic, Stobart Air and the US hedge fund Cyrus Capital – had only woolly investment intentions. It was puzzling how the terms of any loan could qualify as “commercial” if no commercial lender was willing to step in. The spread of the coronavirus might quickly have made £100m an inadequate sticking-plaster, as argued here yesterday. Ministers had little choice.

But there is still a big job to be done – minimising the fallout from Flybe’s failure. On that score, the new aviation minister, Kelly Tolhurst, came to the Commons bearing only good intentions. The government “stands ready” to help regional airport and regional connectivity, she said.

Come on, the government has had seven weeks to prepare for Flybe’s demise. Many routes will be picked up by other airlines, but not all. By now one would expect ministers to have decided which of the marginal routes will be protected via public service obligation subsidies, as already applied to Flybe’s London-Newquay operation.

Details, it seems, will follow in the “regional air connectivity review” commissioned in January. The government needs to step up the pace. There is an obvious danger of a domino effect in which regional airports are thrown into financial crisis after the disappearance of their largest customer. The way to address that is not by “standing ready”. It’s by making some decisions, sharpish.

Owl has already posted the history of how this project, conceived at the beginning of the century as the “Iconic” building that would do for Exmouth what the Tate has done for St Ives, has been dogged by failure. You, the  Council Tax payer have now bought it at the full asking price.

Meanwhile EDDC plans to double down on its success with further seafront regeneration!

Are Council Tax payers the buyer of last resort if it all goes wrong again?

Daniel Wilkins  www.exmouthjournal.co.uk

A prominent entertainment destination on Exmouth seafront has been purchased by the district council.

East Devon District Council has confirmed it has completed a deal for Ocean, in The Esplanade, and announced LED Leisure Management Ltd will continue to run the facility and pay rent to its new landowner.

The authority completed the £2.7million purchase using funds from a £20million commercial investment fund.

This acquisition is the first EDDC has made using this fund, designed to generate £450,000 per year to support council services and activities moving forward.

The council said this will help address future budget challenges for the council.

Cllr Geoff Pook, portfolio holder for asset management, said: “Investment in this and other properties over the next few years will help the council towards financial self-sufficiency along with giving the council a further and direct stake in the growth, prosperity and place making aspirations across East Devon.”

Good news. Axminster Carpets has been bought out of administration by a group of investors which includes former owners. 

Owl wishes them well and hopes they have learned the lessons from the previous failure.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51758433

Axminster Carpets has been bought out of administration by a group of investors which includes former owners.

The royal warrant holder was bought by ACL Carpets, which will change its name to Axminster Carpets in the near future, administrators said.

The company went into administration on 19 February, and 80 jobs were then lost.

The business had built up debts of nearly £8m, but is now debt free, Axminster Carpets said.

The Dutfield family, which controlled the company until 2016, is part of the group of investors.

The company will continue to operate from its head office and manufacturing facility in Axminster.

Robert Day, who led the private investors, said: “The business has never been in a better position to again become a significant player in the sector.”

Joint administrator Benjamin Wiles, of Duff & Phelps, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be able to announce today that we have secured the future of Axminster Carpets, one of the best-known British brands, following the successful sale of the business and assets of the company.”

Axminster Carpets was previously rescued in 2013. It had gone into administration, also overseen by Duff & Phelps, but was bought out by a consortium led by private investor Stephen Boyd. `

The firm lost about 300 of 400 jobs at the time. It had been one of Devon’s largest private employers. 

Owl remembers when Axminster Carpets went into administration in 2013

www.independent.co.uk   21 February 2013 

Axminster Carpets has signalled its fortunes were unravelling rapidly after it filed an administration notice, leaving 400 jobs hanging by the proverbial thread.

The carpet maker, based in the eponymous Devon town, now has a moratorium of 10 working days’ protection from its creditors to stitch together a rescue package after it filed a notice of intention to appoint the advisory firm Duff & Phelps as administrator.

Joshua Dutfield, the managing director at Axminster Carpets, said: “Trading has been difficult and the management has been working with key suppliers, creditors and the lenders in an attempt to resolve the company’s financial difficulties.

“We continue to be committed to working to achieve the best-possible outcome for all concerned and most importantly the staff and suppliers.”

Before its financial crisis struck, Axminster Carpets nearly doubled its profits to £415,000 over the year to December 2010, on flat revenues of £32.7m, according to its latest accounts. Perhaps worryingly, its shareholders paid themselves a dividend of £500,000 that year.

The airline’s pension scheme is registered in the Isle of Man – meaning its members aren’t protected by the lifeboat fund

By Jessica Beard, PENSIONS REPORTER www.telegraph.co.uk

The collapse of regional airline Flybe has put more than a thousand savers at risk of losing their pension money.

Members of Flybe’s pension scheme stand to take a heavy financial blow as they are not protected by the UK’s lifeboat scheme, the Pension Protection Fund (PPF). 

The 1,350 people are not entitled to compensation because the British Regional Airlines Group Pension Scheme is not registered in Britain but in the Isle of Man. 

This means the scheme does not qualify for protection from the PPF, which is a statutory fund that was set up to guarantee that pension scheme members can retain a large portion of their savings in the case that a business ceases operations. 

The pension scheme owes more than £170m in retirement benefits to its members, according to a breakdown given at the firm’s year-end in 2017. However, the entire liability could be wiped out since Flybe has entered administration. In November 2018, Flybe had a pension shortfall of £11.6m. 

Dan Mindel, of covenant adviser Lincoln Pensions, said there are a number of “final salary”, also known as “defined benefit”, pension schemes that do not fall into the PPF net. 

He said: “At least with the PPF there’s a floor as to what their pension would be. In circumstances where there’s protection and there is a shortfall, there is no floor. It looks like the scheme is underfunded currently and how much people will receive depends on if Flybe gets funding back from administration, which seems unlikely.”

Warnings that Flybe pensioners could face financial ruin were made in February last year, amid concerns that the takeover bid made by Virgin would fail. 

People in the scheme should contact the trustees, Mr Mindel said, as there is going to be a period of uncertainty. 

Those who are currently retired and receiving their pensions are likely to be prioritised over those who are not yet withdrawing, he added.  

The ailing airline became the first British business to be forced into administration as a result of the coronavirus, after a government rescue bid fell through. 

Flybe cancelled all flights after the last plane landed yesterday evening, ruining travel plans for all of its passengers. 

The carrier had about nine million passengers annually and is owned by billionaire Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic, as well as by shareholders Cyrus Capital and Stobart Group.

Brought down by coronavirus? Well, hardly. Chronic mismanagement and greedy owners, more like. Covid-19 might have dealt the final blow to Flybe. But it’ll be no consolation to the airline’s 2,400 staff that its minted shareholders had the financial fuel to keep it flying.

Alistair Osborne  www.thetimes.co.uk

They just didn’t want to put any money in. And, in a sense, who can blame them: an ownership trio starring Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic and the UK-listed Stobart, each with 30 per cent, plus New York hedge fund Cyrus Capital, the holder of the rest. But to let the carrier keel over just a year after they bought it? Call it an unlucky takeover if you like. But cynical would be a better word.

They knew Flybe was a financial black hole with wings: floated at 290p a share in 2010, bought in February last year for just 1p a share, or £2.8 million. And, even during the bid, the acquiring trio showed their colours. For months, they messed around Flybe’s management with mooted offers as separate bidders. Then, with the airline running out of cash, they joined forces, cut the price by more than nine-tenths and made a take-it-or-leave-it rescue bid. When Flybe’s furious shareholders protested, they dodged round them and re-cut the deal to buy the assets out of the holding company. Nice work.

Still, all of that might have been forgiven if they’d made any effort to deliver on their promise to “provide a strong foundation to secure the long-term future of Flybe”. They pledged to “deliver more choice to customers”, rebranding Flybe “under the Virgin Atlantic brand” and incorporating its feeder services into Virgin’s “extensive long-haul network”. And they claim to have invested “more than £135 million”.

Reality tells a different story. As Stobart admitted, once Flybe had failed, the cash hit on its investment was just £7 million. The rest of its contribution was its fledgling airline Stobart Air and its aircraft leasing wing, ludicrously valued at £43.3 million — or about five times what they’re worth. The owners have routinely failed to admit how much cash actually went in.

In fact, each investor had different reasons for buying Flybe. Stobart wanted an outrageous price for its aviation assets and more traffic through its Southend airport: one reason it was about to add Flybe flights to Jersey and Belfast, even though the airline flew the same services from London City. Virgin’s chief interest was nine pairs of lucrative slots at Heathrow — scandalously switching the taxpayer-subsidised Newquay service to Gatwick to free up four of the slots. And Cyrus wanted a quick flip — even if no windfall to match the $1.4 billion it shared with Branson from selling Virgin America.

All wanted as little financial risk as possible, underlined by them instantly taking charges over Flybe’s assets — or at least those that couldn’t fly off. Lessors had security over most of the 67 turboprops, but anything unencumbered was divvied up. Companies House filings show that “clear and distinctive” labels were affixed to all kit valued “in excess of £10,000”.

Nowhere was there a viable business plan, requiring cost and route cuts. Or the promised rebranding that involved hard cash. No wonder credit card companies held back £50 million of passenger fares. Who’d release money to this business?

And then, when cashing in on Flybe turned out to be trickier than thought, the owners demanded a taxpayer bailout — pretty demeaning for the Necker island knight, apparently worth £4 billion. Or Virgin Atlantic’s co-owner Delta Air Lines, valued at $30 billion. Or Cyrus boss, Stephen Freidheim, managing $4 billion of funds and the owner of a Manhattan penthouse.

Yes, they persuaded ministers to give them a £10 million holiday on air passenger duty. But a £100 million soft loan when they’d patently failed to invest enough themselves or produce the promised turnaround plan? No big surprise new chancellor Rishi Sunak saw through that. As British Airways-owner IAG put it: if Flybe’s “wealthy shareholders didn’t wish to fund its survival, it would have been preposterous for the government to do so”. You don’t need coronavirus to tell you that.

On Friday, the Great South West will address a room of the South West’s best and brightest businesspeople at the South West Business Council’s quarterly conference at Exeter Racecourse. (see article below)

So this will be a “preaching to the converted “session. Owl desperately wants to see a thriving region but is confused as to who actually speaks for the region, and under what authority. Owl is also underwhelmed by the Great South West case which seems to emphasise presentation over substance. The “bottom line” of their prospectus seeks £2M handout from government over three years to create a team to flesh out a case (which they describe as “working at pace”). Heart of the South West has been plotting strategies to double the local economy in 20 years since 2014. All seem to agree that increasing productivity is an essential component.

So there is something the brightest and best business people could do right now, at no cost to the taxpayer. Read on.

In a recent article David Smith, economics editor for the times  www.thetimes.co.uk wrote

Productivity and investment are intimately related. The main reason that France has higher productivity than Britain, to the puzzlement of many, is that its businesses invest more. Capital per worker is higher, and so is labour productivity.

Investment matters for productivity growth. If business investment falters, as it has done in this country for the past three to four years, it means that a poor outlook for productivity turns into a terrible one…

……“There has been a major change in the incentives of senior management through the way and amount they are paid. Incentives determine behaviour, so we should not be surprised that behaviour changes when incentives change. Pay packages for management are formed today in a way that discourages investment.”

How? Executives are rewarded not for ensuring that the businesses they run are good and competitive in the long run, but on the basis of short-term performance — the average tenure of FTSE 100 chief executives is three to four years — and in particular share price performance. Investment often depresses short-term performance and the share price. Alternative uses of resources, such as share buybacks, do nothing for underlying performance but are popular with shareholders because they push up the share price. Fund managers, whose performance also is assessed on a short-term basis — quarterly, or even monthly or weekly — have an incentive to support buyback programmes because they flatter their investment records.

Charlotte Turner  www.devonlive.com

Representatives of the Great South West will be reminding the Prime Minister to put his words into action to back the region.

The Western Morning News’ editor-in-chief Bill Martin and David Ralph, CEO of the Heart of the South West LEP, will be speaking about the campaign which has stepped up its fight for investment and recognition – and they will be urging Mr Johnson to ensure he follows through with the pledges he made to the Great South West last year.

In December, a high-level delegation from the Back the Great South West campaign was invited up to Number 10 to discuss the needs for the area and how the Government can step up to help it thrive.

Mr Johnson told the Great South West partners from the region how important the South West was to him personally, as well as putting his backing behind the campaign.

At the time he said: “We want to address some of the infrastructure issues in the region, as well as other vital services. Because it is the mission of my Conservative Government to unite and level up the country, and the South West has potential in all sorts of areas – from the spaceport in Newquay to farming, fishing, tourism and technology.

“I want to see improvements to infrastructure and technology, better rail and roads, more schools funding and investment in health services. We’re One Nation Conservatives and we believe in a dynamic economy. The South West campaign is a great one and your region is an absolute priority to me. So I can assure you that we want to support and champion everything you do.”

On Friday, the Great South West will address a room of the South West’s best and brightest businesspeople at the South West Business Council’s quarterly conference at Exeter Racecourse.

The presentation is a chance to show how the Great South West is progressing and how the region’s ability to collaborate and speak with one voice has put it in a unique position in relation to a new Government that has vowed to level up the regions.

Something positive to report on health care

Claire  claire-wright.org 

After two years work, today a piece of work that has been close to my heart has been published.

Devon County Council’s Health and Adult Care scrutiny review on unpaid carers, has recommended 12 separate areas for action, starting with central government, in a paper that will go before its committee on Thursday 12 March.

I proposed the review almost two years ago when it became obvious from a carers survey I saw, that satisfaction rates are declining and unpaid carers were finding things increasingly tough.

It took several committee meetings before I could get agreement for the review to take place, which I then chaired from its start last summer.

I wanted it to be a truly thorough and extensive piece of work so that unpaid carers had the confidence we would make some strong and effective recommendations.

We spoke to around 100 carers across Devon, travelling out to all parts of the county, in order to hear what pressures carers were facing.

It was tough hearing the stories. Our hearts went out to people who told us repeatedly that they felt trapped, stressed, were responsible for caring for their loved ones 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Added to this were people who are worried about the future. Stressed about the uncertainty of how they will manage an increasingly frail partner, with a paucity of options available.

Often unpaid carers are unwell themselves, as they neglect their own mental and physical health, with the demands of caring for their husbands or wives, mothers or fathers.

The pressures that austerity has created relating to there being less paid personal care, an ongoing shortage of paid care workers, the closure of many residential homes, including Devon County Council owned homes, has taken its toll.

Paid care is not only hard to find, it is expensive.

Adult Social Care budgets have been eviscerated under this government and it has also been remiss in not providing a solution to the resulting crisis, where people are at risk of losing their life savings if they need non-NHS care.

It is grossly unfair for people to be means tested for basic care if they have dementia, yet receive care for cancer under the NHS.

Quite clearly, in an evolved democracy and the sixth largest economy in the world, we must provide much better support for our vulnerable citizens.

There must be urgent action from central government on this and new funding needs to be provided to ensure that unpaid carers and those they care for are fairly and adequately provided for.

This is ultimately, where the buck stops.

There are also a raft of more localised recommendations for Devon County Council carers service, as well as Devon’s NHS Clinical Commissioning Group.

The most often cited request, was simply: I need a break. But the only break I get is an hour in Tesco’s once a week.

Many carers told us that they were struggling financially and had trouble claiming the benefits that they were entitled to, despite letters of support from their GP.

There are recommendations for central government on this too.

I am confident (hopeful!) that our recommendations address the most pressing issues that were raised with us and that we have been assertive and frank in our recommendations.

I’d like to thank scrutiny officer, Dan Looker, for managing the review. And I’d also like to thank my task group colleagues for leaving politics at the door and working effectively as a team to help produce this report.

Councillors will be asked to vote to approve the report at the next Health and Adult Care Scrutiny meeting on next Thursday (12 March).  The meeting starts at 2.15pm.

There is an option for public speaking but you will need to register four working days in advance with Gerry Rufolo – Gerry.rufolo@devon.gov.uk

The full report is here – https://democracy.devon.gov.uk/documents/s30160/04%2003%2020%20Carers%20Spotlight%20Final.pdf

The meeting’s webcast will be available here – https://devoncc.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/455423

Pic: Devon County Council’s Health and Adult Care Scrutiny Committee.

By Robert Plummer, Business reporter, BBC News www.bbc.co.uk

Although it has been around under various names for the past 40 years, Flybe was never an airline for the masses.

The number of passengers it carried pales by comparison with better-known budget carriers such as easyJet or Ryanair.

As a travel company, it is only a tenth as big as collapsed holiday firm Thomas Cook.

But those who have habitually chosen Flybe see it as a vital service, because it reaches the places that other airlines fail to touch.

“Mainland UK doesn’t understand how vital Flybe is to Northern Ireland,” tweeted one regular passenger, Jason, back in January when the airline narrowly avoided going bust, only to limp on for another two months.

“As someone who travels with them frequently for work, Flybe’s collapse would be a disaster for the NI economy.

“If this happens, Belfast City Airport will have only four flight routes. FOUR.”

Wider connections

Despite Jason’s heartfelt words, there are a number of other locations that owe just as much to Flybe in terms of connections to the wider world.

Cornish holiday resort Newquay, for one, has no direct rail services from London for much of the year and the journey takes about five hours. But Flybe could get you from London Heathrow to Newquay airport in little more than an hour.

Flybe was due to re-route its Newquay flights to Gatwick at the end of this month, but that plan has now fallen victim to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on demand for air travel.

If you live in the Isle of Man, Flybe’s service has literally been a lifeline.

The airline had a contract with the government to transfer NHS patients from the island to medical facilities in Liverpool when they required treatment that could not be provided closer to home.

At the moment, it is unclear what will happen to that service.

Small wonder, then, that Ben Bradshaw, the MP whose Exeter constituency is close to Flybe’s base, has spoken of the “valuable connectivity” that the carrier provides.

In fact, he described the airline as “a strategically important business”.

Thanks to Flybe, Mr Bradshaw’s constituents were able to fly from Exeter direct to a variety of destinations including Amsterdam, Paris and Geneva – places that would otherwise be accessible to them only after a lengthy trek via other places.

And Flybe’s community links with the area go further, since it has sponsored Exeter City football club since 2003 and has its logo prominently displayed on players’ shirts.

Other regional airports where Flybe has a significant presence are Birmingham, Southampton, Manchester and Cardiff. Some of them may have difficulty continuing as going concerns now that Flybe has gone into administration.

Friends and relations

As well as business people and tourists, Flybe has also helped many far-flung friends and relations to maintain links.

Alex Simpson, who is British but lives and works in the Netherlands, said on Twitter: “I fly with Flybe regularly from Amsterdam to visit my family in Devon.

“Compared to other airlines, it is punctual with charming staff. I do hope that a solution is found that allows it to continue to operate long-term and sustainably.”

Freelance art director Sarah Ward, who divides her time between London and Cornwall, is another Flybe frequent flyer. She tweeted that she would have to move house if the airline ceased to exist.

In an appeal to her local MP, Derek Thomas, she asked: “What are you doing to protect such vital infrastructure?”

In a country where costly infrastructure projects such as HS2 and Crossrail take an eternity to build, Flybe has provided a nimble solution to tough transport problems.

Its demise will leave a vacuum that is hard to fill – and pose a dilemma for many people whose lifestyle depends on the routes that it serves.

What happens to Flybe’s routes now?

If an airline goes out of business, no other operator automatically takes over their routes and there is no guarantee any would.

However, rival companies can bid to buy take-off and landing slots previously used by collapsed airlines.

In November 2019, EasyJet and Jet2.com bought all of the UK airport slots owned by collapsed travel firm Thomas Cook.

The slots can be highly sought after: those at London Gatwick and Bristol cost EasyJet £36m.

For regional airports, the withdrawal of routes can have serious consequences.

Flybe is Europe’s largest regional airline, a main operator at both Exeter and Newquay airports, and the major provider of flights for the Channel Islands.

Owl knows that to save carbon emissions we need to move from away from air transport. Rail is the obvious replacement for most regional transport in the UK. But the rail link, even from relatively well connected Exeter, to the Midlands and further North and Scotland, compared to London, is poor.

Sidmouth district and county councillor Stuart Hughes is so concerned about the state of the cliffs, he is funding the survey “himself” out of his locality budget. (Elections coming up?) Cliffs erode as part of a natural process – that’s why they look like they do – Owl’s advice is not to stand close under them! 

Philippa Davies   www.sidmouthherald.co.uk 

Sidmouth’s crumbling cliffs are to be surveyed to assess the rate of erosion, following Monday’s rock fall at Pennington Point.

He has already called on East Devon District Council to take immediate action to reduce the risk of further collapses, given that the start of the beach management plan is 12 to 18 months away.

Cllr Hughes said: “The large cliff fall on Monday has made the need to carry out emergency works even more urgent, as what has now been exposed is very loose Triassic sandstone that will soon fall victim to more rough seas.

“I have agreed for the use of some of my locality budget to be used to carry out a further cliff survey by the county bridge engineers, which will give accurate and vital information on the rate of erosion since the last survey was carried out in 2015.”

He expects the survey to be carried out as soon as possible, with the results available about three weeks later.

He said the district council could carry out emergency work on the cliffs without the need for a planning application, but approval would be needed from the Environment Agency.

Owl is a little wary of promises on broadband.

Jurassic Fibre has announced its commercial launch following a successful test phase near Exeter.

In the coming weeks, several smaller communities will receive the full ultrafast broadband offering including Clyst St George, Clyst St Mary, Ebford, Exton, Lympstone, Woodbury and Woodbury Salterton.

Daniel Wilkins  www.exmouthjournal.co.uk

Ultrafast broadband being rolled out in smaller East Devon communities could reach Exmouth by this summer.

By early summer, the network will have reached Exmouth – the first large town to have access.

Michael Maltby, CEO of Jurassic Fibre, said: “I’m proud to announce that we will be bringing full fibre ultrafast broadband with speeds of up to one gigabyte per second to thousands more people in local communities.

“We’ve completed the test phase to the east of Exeter, which was a great success, and our first customers have started to benefit from ultrafast fibre direct to their door.”

To mark the roll-out towards Exmouth, more than 60 of the company’s team gathered on the town’s beach to recreate their fossil-shaped logo, which could be seen thanks to aerial photography.

Exmouth town councillor Pauline Stott said: “We desperately need better broadband in Exmouth and so it is very positive that Jurassic Fibre is bringing their network to the town.

“I am really pleased that we are finally getting better connected in this part of the world, as this area has previously been overlooked.

“I am certain that it will help businesses and residents enormously.”

The roll-out has been welcomed by chamber of commerce chairman Ian MacQueen.

He said: “The chamber very much welcomes the significance and opportunities for businesses and households that the arrival of ultrafast broadband will generate.

“This will provide a more reliable, resilient and faster connectivity.

“The potential benefits for the local ecomony are considerable and will make the town a more viable choice for businesses to open and relocate.”

Five-star Lympstone Manor, owned by celebrity chef Michael Caines, was one of the first businesses to sign up to Jurassic Fibre.

Mr Caines said: “We pride ourselves on providing guests at Lympstone Manor with the best of everything, and that now includes ultrafast broadband.”

Faster implementation of District Heating Networks planned in East Devon’s West End is being facilitated by the council. (Too much management speak for Owl).

Order aims to speed up East Devon’s District Heating Networks

Daniel Clark  www.devonlive.com 

East Devon District Council’s Development Management Committee on Tuesday morning unanimously agreed to go out to consultation on a draft Local Development Order (LDO) for District Heating Networks.

The LDO will reduce the regulatory processes and delays associated with the submission of planning applications and facilitate faster implementation of the District Heating networks, councillors were told.

Already the Skypark Energy Centre provides hot water and heating to housing in Cranbrook and commercial buildings at Skypark as well as a private wire to the Lidl distribution centre, while the Monkerton Energy Centre is in the process of being commissioned and will provide hot water and heating to housing around Monkerton and Pinhoe and also commercial buildings at the Science Park.

Frances Wadsley, Project Manager Simplified Planning, in her report to the meeting said that decentralised heating systems result in significantly lower carbon emissions than conventional heating systems, helping to achieve sustainable development and resulting in a positive impact on climate change.

She added: “District Heating networks are an essential part of East Devon’s plan to facilitate more sustainable forms of energy consumption. As well as decreasing carbon emissions they reduce heating bills for both domestic and commercial customers.

“The LDO is seen as an effective tool for simplifying and speeding up the planning process. It is a proactive approach to planning which provides certainty and clarity to developers and landowners and supports the objectives of the Enterprise Zone

“A Local Development Order will enable simpler and faster implementation of the decentralised heating systems which are currently being delivered within East Devon’s West End.”

Chris Rose, the council’s development manager, added that the LDO would remove the need for developers to apply for planning permission for the installation of pipes, cables and wires, heat exchange equipment and ancillary engineering works, provided the development complies with the limitations and conditions set out in the Order.

Cllr Helen Parr proposed that they approve going out to consultation on the LDO, saying: “This will assist us in a key aim of the council plan to be carbon neutral by 2040.”

Statutory consultation on the LDO will now be carried out with a report on the revised draft of the LDO, following any representations received, will be presented to the Development Management Committee and then sent for Adoption of the LDO by the Full Council

Does EDDC ever learn lessons from the past? Many of their decisions don’t seem to stand up to the the test of time.

Owl has just received this from a correspondent:

“EDDC officers paid full asking price for a building that’s been on the market for three years. The white elephant known as the Ocean in Exmouth. £2.7 m wasted to save the bacon of LED the tenant. We already prop up LED with £1.5m borrowing. All with our money.”

The long, sorry, back-story

The Bowling Alley (now the Ocean) was considered, at the beginning of the century, to be the single “Iconic” building that would regenerate Exmouth, rather in the way that the Tate regenerated St Ives. It gained initial planning approval in 2002. But Its construction was dogged by the need subsequently to submit 16 revised plans. During construction the site went on hold for a couple of years so that a court case concerning faulty design aspects could be resolved.

So – 25 June 2013  “Spectacular top-floor bowling alley venue on the way”

Exmouth’s seafront bowling alley is set to create up to 40 new jobs when its new wedding and events venue opens this summer.

Sean Keywood   www.exmouthjournal.co.uk 

Workers are currently putting the finishing touches to the Ocean Blue suite, located on the top floor of the Coast complex on the Esplanade.

As well as a large main function room with a permanent stage and bar area, there are also large roof terraces, with weatherproof speakers, enabling guests to gaze out across the seafront.

The venue will also be obtaining a marriage licence, allowing it to host the whole wedding day, and there will be a bride suite and groom suite provided for the wedding couple to get ready.

Coast is setting up its own wedding service to operate from the venue, and proprietor Isaac Robb says the opening of the new facilities – which will also host other events – is good news for the town.

He said: “It’s a really exciting thing, not just for us but for the whole of Exmouth. We want everybody that has functions or events to come and look at the room.

“We think it’ll sell itself by the views it has. Everybody who sees it just gasps.”

Just by word of mouth, the Ocean Blue suite already has five events booked ahead of its August opening, including a charity casino night in December, and Isaac says he is lining up a “very big musical act” to perform next summer.

As part of the new operation, Coast needs to recruit 30 to 40 staff, ranging from a master of ceremonies, events managers and wedding planners, to chefs, bar and waiting staff.

These jobs will add to the 30 already created at Coast since the ground-floor bowling operation opened at the start of the year.

Anyone interested in applying for the new roles should send their CV to Coast by post.

However, within a couple of years EDDC were having to engineer a take-over.

10 June 2015 LED take over lease of Exmouth sea front facility

The lease of the Ocean bowling and restaurant complex in Esplanade has been taken over by LED Leisure Management.

Daniel Wilkins www.exmouthjournal.co.uk  10 June 2015

LED has announced they will be running the sea front entertainment facility with immediate effect.

The complex will continue to offer 12 lanes of bowling, plus a Bar and Grill and Sega Entertainment Centre, on the ground floor.

Later this month a new soft play area is due to open once the fit-out and staff training is completed.

Ocean will also continue to offer a venue for weddings, conferences and other events.

Councillor Andrew Moulding, chairman of Exmouth Regeneration Programme, said: “This is fantastic news for everyone who lives in Exmouth or who comes to the resort for holidays or leisure.

“This is already a wonderful facility in a prime position on the seafront. With LED management, their ideas and marketing expertise, it promises to be a very popular all-weather attraction for families as well as a place for parties, celebrations and meetings of all kinds.

“I look forward to seeing it go from strength to strength in the coming months and years.”

Now in 2020 you the rate payers appear to have bought it outright

Flybe in trouble as £100m loan rejected amid coronavirus flight slump

Jacob Jarvis  http://www.standard.co.uk

Flybe‘s future has been thrown into doubt after it failed to secure a £100 million loan.

The struggling airline was saved from collapse earlier this year but has been unable to obtain further finance it hoped to secure from the Government.

Flybe has also struggled due to being hit by a slump in bookings since the outbreak of the coronavirus.

People briefed on the regional carrier’s situation told the Financial Times the company only has enough resources to survive “until the end of this month”, the Financial Times reported.

As part of the January rescue deal, it agreed an arrangement to defer tax payments of “less than £10 million” with HM Revenue and Customs, while ministers also agreed to hold a review into Air Passenger Duty (APD).

The structure of APD which adds £26 to the price of most return domestic flights such as those operated by Flybe could be altered in next week’s Budget.

Flybe serves around 170 destinations.

It has a major presence at UK airports such as Aberdeen, Belfast City, Manchester and Southampton and flies the most UK domestic routes between airports outside London.

A Flybe spokesman would not comment on its financial situation.

A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: “We won’t comment on speculation.”

At the time of Flybe’s rescue, rival airlines complained that they should not be penalised for their own success. They said they should also be given a tax holiday.

British Airways owner International Airlines Group claimed the arrangements breached state aid rules.

A series of issues have affected Flybe’s finances. 

These include rising fuel costs, falling demand, competition from road, rail and other airlines, plus a weakening of the pound.

It was bought by a consortium comprising Virgin Atlantic, Stobart Group and Cyrus Capital in February 2019, but has continued to make losses.

Rival Ryanair has predicted the drop in demand for flights due to the coronavirus will result in some European airlines failing in the coming weeks.

Additional reporting by PA. 

So that’s it, the new government doesn’t need farmers. They are antiquated, redundant, whingeing and muddy. We can buy in all our food, Tim Leunig, Treasury adviser and friend of Dominic Cummings, said in an email to the National Food Strategy last month.

Britain needs its farmers more than ever

Alice Thomson  www.thetimes.co.uk 

A second government adviser has suggested the return of lynx so we can rewild Britain and leave it to the big cats. Ardent environmentalists want to plant forests of native trees to replace crops, fields and hedgerows. Militant vegans are pushing for all domesticated farm animals in this country to be phased out.

Farmers can just pack up their diesel tractors and trundle off into the history books, along with wooden ploughs and oxen. They only make up 1.5 per cent of our 21st-century workforce, they moan about the weather, their hunting and shooting hobbies are dubious, and their barns make wonderful rustic conversions.

Yet they manage 69 per cent of the land and produce about half of food consumed in this country. And 60 million people need sustenance. Dr Leunig may insist that Singapore, with its population of five million, can import all its edible produce, but if the coronavirus outbreak has shown us anything it is the importance of food supplies. There may be a run on hand sanitisers and face masks, but as panicked shoppers stocking up in Wuhan and Milan know, all you need in a lockdown is food and water to survive. Even in Britain those with allotments and gardens are feeling relatively smug as they remember the days of post-war rationing.

Almost every tale about plagues and nuclear Armageddon focuses on the desperate search for nourishment, from Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year to Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.

We are already too dependent on food imports. About 30 per cent currently come from the EU and 12 per cent from 160 different countries. A typical biscuit now manufactured in a British factory may contain salt from China, calcium sulphate from India, palm oil from southeast Asia, whey from New Zealand, milk and wheat from the EU, sugar from the Caribbean and cocoa from South America. This makes us highly vulnerable not only to shocks such as pandemics, but also to almost any other kind of global meltdown.

It is also environmentally insane to import so much food by ship and plane from less fertile countries when Britain’s climate provides ideal conditions for farming, as Minette Batters, president of the National Farmers’ Union, points out. We are able to produce in season the majority of our needs except chocolate, coffee, sugar and avocados for our toast. British farmers have already shown that they can go carbon-neutral relatively easily, but if you want an orange from Israel, it needs to offset its airmiles. British farmers also lead the way in animal husbandry, but if we phase out all livestock and poultry we won’t be able to monitor animal welfare abroad for the eggs to go on millennial brunches.

Rewilding is not the easy alternative. This is not land abandonment, “wilding” needs constant maintenance and subsidy, as the Knepp estate in West Sussex where it is being trialled proves. As does forestry. Planting a million trees is easy, the expense lies in their management. They need nurturing and protecting until they reach maturity or they will be attacked by squirrels and deer.

Astonishingly, food production was barely mentioned in the government’s original Agriculture Bill, it was all about improving air quality, access to the countryside, preservation of soil, encouraging wildlife and reducing flooding. They’ve had to revise the bill after this was pointed out, but farmers are increasingly bewildered. They have no idea what their purpose is any more. Professor Michael Winter, a rural policy expert at Exeter University, says farmers are “under attack from ministers, lobbyists, environmentalists and vegans” and are increasingly seen as pariahs rather than providers.

The newly proposed system of farm support moving from direct payments to “public money for public good” is in danger of becoming another universal credit-style fiasco, rushed in too quickly by those who have no idea of the hand-to-mouth existence of many tenant farmers and backed by those rich enough to see farming as a hobby rather than their livelihood.

But farming the land and protecting the environment aren’t mutually exclusive, in fact they could be natural partners. We need farmers to produce basic foodstuffs as well as manage the land. They should be urged while feeding us to diversify, nurture otters and beavers, manage moors and streams, restore biodiversity and encourage the return of nightingales. Experts should be helping them with their agri-environmental schemes.

Farmers are bound up in our sense of national identity. Shakespeare and the Romantics revelled in a countryside that has been cultivated by generations of farmers. They are providing the backdrop for ramblers, holidaymakers and tourists and creating serenity in a hectic world. Beauty, history and heritage are in danger of becoming relegated. It’s not just the wildlife that needs space to breathe.

George Eustice, the new environment secretary, needs to reassure farmers as well as revitalise farming. If they quit, we would have to find new custodians of the countryside and it would be far more damaging than if we got rid of government advisers like Dr Leunig.

Charlotte Turner  www.devonlive.com

Exeter-based Flybe’s request for a £100 million Government loan is set to be scrapped, The Financial Times has reported.

New information has surfaced that the airline’s request for the money has not met certain criteria set by the government according to Whitehall officials.

A potential loan from the state has been on the table for almost two months as a measure to rescue the troubled airline.

The FT also reported that the company’s management is now hoping that a cut to Air Passenger Duty in the Budget will help Flybe to continue to operate.

But in February, it was reported that the new chancellor could throw out the plans for an overhaul of Air Passenger Duty.

Industry sources have said that Rishi Sunak is against a cut to the tax, whereas Mr Javid had supported a reduction to attempt to keep the Exeter-based airline from going down.

Cutting Air Passenger Duty (APD) formed part of the rescue deal discussed by ministers after Flybe came close to collapse in January.

Air passenger duty is a tax on passenger flights from UK airports which was brought in in 1994.

Flybe has reportedly complained for some time that APD of up to £26 per flight disproportionately affects its finances, making its UK low cost short trips less attractive than alternatives.

Flybe was saved from collapse a year ago in February 2019, which saw the airline sold to the Connect Airways consortium, backed by Virgin Atlantic and Stobart Aviation.

Travel experts claim floating on the London Stock Exchange was the start point for many of Flybe’s current issues.

The Devon-based airline has reportedly said that if it were to go under, many of the routes it services would probably be abandoned.

The Financial Times wrote that Flybe’s executives have told the government that 88 of its 120 routes are not flown by any other airline, and that according to rival airlines, Whitehall officials are drawing up plans to ensure routes are kept if Flybe fails.

The Government loan was likely to prove contentious, with government support for Flybe having sparked legal threats from rivals including Ryanair and British Airways’ parent company.

Flybe declined to comment.