Ministers have been accused of lacking a “joined up strategy” on woodlands, as one government department spends six times more on a timber-burning power station than another spends on tree planting.

www.independent.co.uk

Annual subsidies for Drax power station in North Yorkshire, a former coal-fired power station which now runs on “biomass” made up of imported waste wood, reached £832m in 2020, while the budget for tree planting and peatland works out at just £130m a year.

Drax was recently named the UK’s biggest single source of CO2 emissions. It releases over 13 million tonnes of CO2 a year, using around 7 million tonnes of wood pellets, the equivalent of about 25 million trees, scientists have said.

Meanwhile, environment minister Zac Goldsmith admitted this week just 2,000 hectares of trees had been planted in England this year. The government has said it is aiming to plant 30,000 hectares of new woodland across the UK each year by 2024, including 7,000-10,000 hectares in England by the end of this parliamentary term.

Labour MPs claimed the “massive subsidies” for burning imported wood at Drax, combined with the low level of tree planting, meant the government’s plan to tackle the climate crisis through planting trees “is in flames”.

Lord Goldsmith has been quizzed by MPs from the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Efra) Committee over why the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was on one hand providing such large subsidies to Drax, while the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), was given less than this one company for expanding forests and peatlands.

He told the hearing: “Drax is a huge beast which requires feeding.”

Though he said he needed to further study the environmental impact of the power station, he added that he “would question the model which requires the import of a vast amount of timber”.

Pressed on this issue, he suggested it was a matter for BEIS. But the chair of the committee, Conservative MP Neil Parish, suggested the environmental impact of the plant was something Defra could comment on.

Labour MP Geraint Davies, who sits on the committee and asked Lord Goldsmith for clarity on the logic of providing greater subsidies to Drax than for tree planting, told The Independent that as the host of the recent Cop26 climate summit, the UK “should hold its head in shame”.

He said: “It is clear that there is no joined up government strategy on climate change, with budgets to plant more sapling trees dwarfed by massive subsidies for burning imported wood leading to the UK making wood more of a problem than a solution for climate change and encouraging deforestation.

“The government’s plan to tackle climate change through planting trees is in flames as it gives over £800m a year to Drax to be the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions from burning imported wood, compared to £650m over five years on tree planting and woodlands.”

He added: “BEIS is in the hands of big business, burning imported wood as if there’s no tomorrow. Meanwhile Defra is not empowered to counteract the impact of wood burning on climate change by protecting and growing forests.”

Luke Pollard, Labour’s shadow environment secretary, told The Independent: “Lord Goldsmith’s evidence made clearer than ever how the Tories are utterly failing on tree planting. Last year, ministers managed to deliver less than half their target of 5,000 hectares of new trees in England. Now he has revealed they will do little better this year or next.

“Not only are they failing spectacularly to plant trees, their planned spending on tree planting is dwarfed by subsidies to Drax to ship and burn timber from around the world with few checks to make sure it’s not from virgin forest. How can the public expect them to deliver the promises they made at Cop26 let alone the faster action required to cut carbon?”

When asked by the Efra Committee about England’s role in reaching the 30,000 hectares of trees which will need to be planted every year by 2050 to reach the UK’s legally binding net-zero target, Lord Goldsmith said Covid had disrupted planting in England.

“Last year we planted around 2,000 hectares, which in truth is less than we’d hoped for,” he said. “Things were heavily disrupted as a consequence of Covid.”

Lord Goldsmith said that although £650m was available for tree planting, it was not the case that the money would be allocated to a tree-planting drive resulting in 7,000-10,000 hectares of trees being planted each year over the five years, but would be used more sparingly to begin with, with an ultimate goal at the end of the five-year period for tree planting to reach that level, with more spending towards the end of this timeframe.

Speaking about the low level of existing planting, Lord Goldsmith said: “The reason that I’m not concerned about the fact that we’re starting at a much lower level than the 7,000 hectares is that we’re trying new things.”

He said: “We are the second-biggest importer of timber in the world, and have been for a long time. And we are one of the most nature-denuded countries on Earth, so we are starting from a pretty low point.”

A spokesperson for BEIS told The Independent: “We are totally committed to eliminating our contribution to climate change by 2050, which is why we only support biomass which complies with strict sustainability criteria. In 2020, sustainable biomass made up around 12.6 per cent of the UK’s total electricity generation.

“Our tree planting plans complement our strictly regulated biomass commitments as part of this government’s wider strategy to slash carbon emissions, and we are proud to have pledged to treble tree planting rates by the end of this parliament, allowing us to protect our peatlands and boost biodiversity as we build back greener from the pandemic.”

Despite concerns about the disconnect between the two government departments raised by Labour, and though The Independent made several requests for comment from Lord Goldsmith and Defra officials, neither Defra, nor the environment minister offered a response, with a spokesperson saying the BEIS statement incorporated Defra input.

A Drax spokesperson told The Independent: “The world’s leading climate scientists at the UN’s IPCC and the UK’s Climate Change Committee agree that sustainable biomass has an important role to play in the decarbonisation of energy systems globally – both by displacing coal and in conjunction with carbon capture and storage to deliver negative emissions.

“Converting Drax power station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal has transformed the business. Drax is the biggest renewable power producer in the UK, generating 12 per cent of the country’s renewable electricity – enough for four million homes. Drax plays a crucial role in supporting the energy system, enabling more renewables to come online, as well as supporting thousands of jobs throughout our supply chains in the north. The conversion has also paved the way for us to deploy the vital negative emissions technology bioenergy with carbon capture and storage – by 2030 we could be permanently removing 8 million tonnes of CO2 each year.”

The last of Britain’s three FTSE-listed water companies is due to report its financial results this week, but there’s little doubt any news on the performance of Pennon will be drowned out by a wider crisis in the industry.

Jillian Ambrose www.theguardian.com 

Pennon, which owns South West Water and Bournemouth Water, is expected to set out an increase in revenues following a boom in holidaymakers to the West Country over the last year that bolstered water volumes. But beyond the regulated returns a set of troubling, but familiar, issues have welled up for the sector.

Water companies have faced calls to be renationalised for years because of ongoing concerns over their financial engineering, tax avoidance, hefty investor payouts and a long list of crimes against the environment.

In simple terms, they are regional monopolies whose prices are set by regulator, Ofwat, every five years to make sure water is readily available at an affordable price. This allows well-run water companies to achieve reasonable and fairly predictable financial returns, and has helped to make listed water companies a favourite of utility and infrastructure investors.

In return, water companies are expected to be responsible custodians of the beaches, reservoirs and waterways they manage. But this fundamental element of the social contract between water companies and the communities in which they work has been repeatedly soiled by the pollution, leaks and spills that have marked their record in the UK.

Following each moment of reckoning the industry has promised a watershed moment of accountability that will result in a more sustainable future. But each time, as sure as the tides, water companies plunge back into scandal.

A recent report, by Surfers Against Sewage, found earlier this month that water companies spilled raw sewage into the coastal bathing waters used by holidaymakers and families over 5,500 times in the last year, a surge of more than 87% from the year before.

Just weeks later water companies were plunged into the centre of a major investigation by the financial and environmental watchdogs after several of them admitted they may have illegally released untreated sewage into rivers and waterways.

The investigation by Environment Agency and Ofwat is expected to demand that water companies reveal the scale of any illegal releases of sewage from their treatment plants, and to explain how environmental performance and compliance has been taken into account when deciding on paying out dividends and executive bonuses.

The companies included in the investigation have not yet been named. But they are likely to include Southern Water – the supplier for 4.2 million customers in Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight – which was fined a record £90m over the summer for deliberately dumping billions of litres of raw sewage into protected seas over several years for its own financial gain.

A month later Southern announced what it called “good news for our customers, the local environment and the regional economy” in the form of the return of Australian infrastructure investor Macquarie. It promised Southern a £1bn emergency equity injection and setting plans to invest £2bn over the next four years, or the equivalent of £1,000 per Southern Water household, on upgrades of half the company’s treatment and sewage networks.

Macquarie is best known in the water industry as the owner of Thames Water between 2006 and 2016, a period in which it raised Thames’s debt and earned billions from the company through dividends while paying next to no corporation tax. Macquarie also oversaw a series of pollution failings, culminating in a £20m fine for tipping raw sewage into the River Thames which was a record at the time.

Why the water regulator allowed an investor like Macquarie another chance to play a major role in England’s critical national infrastructure is unclear, but it is likely to further erode public trust in this vital sector. It is in the regulator’s hands to take action, or watch another chance to reform the industry drain away.

Owl wonders if any other of our rivers have volunteer pollution monitoring teams

Green team monitor water quality levels after pollution fear

Tim Dixon www.midweekherald.co.uk

A team of volunteers has started monitoring water quality levels in the River Kit in Chardstock, following nationwide concerns about the discharge of pollutants into rivers. 

Chardstock Eco Group is co-ordinating the project with the guidance of the Westcountry Rivers Trust (WRT), which aims to restore and protect the rivers, lakes, and estuaries of the region for the benefit of nature, people, and local economies. 

Local residents in Chardstock have been following the recent parliamentary debates about discharging raw sewage into rivers and the sea, and have been wondering how clean is the River Kit. 

“A rural river like the Kit has its sewage problems mainly from faulty septic tanks.  But the main concern is run-off from fields when it rains heavily. 

“We decided to start a citizens’ science monitoring project to find out what’s going on,” said Vicky Whitworth who is co-ordinating the volunteers. 

“We’ll be carrying out monthly monitoring along the Kit. This will look at the water quality, the wildlife in and around the river, phosphate content and try to spot any pollution incidents – like sewage smells which need investigation. 

“We need answers about the state of our river to alleviate concerns about possible health risks, and the impact on fish and other aquatic life. Monitoring the river quality is just one of the things we can do to make things better for both humans and nature.”

WRT has been running its leading Westcountry Citizen Science Investigations volunteer project since 2016. 

Simon Browning, senior monitoring officer at WRT, said: “We are always delighted when people want to take a proactive approach to looking after their local rivers and waterways and we are looking forward to supporting the River Kit Monitoring Project in surveying the river habitat and testing water quality. 

“With more than 850 waterbodies across the West Country, our active citizen scientists make a vital contribution to our understanding of the pressures they face, with data informing our work and having the potential to influence policy.” 

The River Kit Monitoring Project will be using test kits partly funded by the Blackdown Hills AONB and Chardstock Parish Council. 

To kick-start the Monitoring Project volunteers were led on a walk along the river by members of the Axe Vale Rivers Association who showed the team how to spot places where sea trout are spawning at this time of year. 

“It is the first time I feel that I have really looked at the river to understand what is going on…we are so fortunate to have such a feature in our valley and there is real hope for improvements to be made,” said Chardstock resident Paul Hughes who joined the walk.   

Anyone interested in learning more about the project should email Chardstock Eco Group member Vicky Whitworth @ vicky@essenceconsulting.co.uk  

Owl has a number of concerns about the leading role played in “the Great South West” project by the Pennon Group. 

First, the business experience of a monopoly utility supplier doesn’t seem an obvious match to what is needed to chart a way forward for a rural economy based on small businesses with a heavy reliance on the seasonal and low paid hospitality sector. The dominant experience harnessed at the start of the Heart of the South West, (HotSW) Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) experiment, was equally unmatched; it included developers, universities, nuclear and defence.

Second, given the recent exposure of South West Water’s failure to deal with sewage releases into our rivers and bathing beaches, the Pennon Group seems a strange choice to be the authors of a “green jobs boom” report. This is being promoted as the way to level up our region and stop the brain drain of talented young people leaving the region.

Owl also notes the cryptic reference in Johnson’s letter to a “review of Local Enterprise Partnerships”. As with the emergence of HotSW, the “Great South West” has appeared with little or no democratic oversight. Is it about to supplant the LEP?

Hannah Finch www.plymouthherald.co.uk

Boris Johnson has told the South West it must continue to wait for news about the region’s £45billion ambition to become the UK’s ‘natural powerhouse’.

The Prime Minister, in an exclusive letter to our sister print title the Western Morning News, which has been spearheading the #BackTheGreatSouthWest campaign, hinted at good news on the horizon.

The PM writes that the Levelling Up White Paper, due to be published by the end of this year, will provide ‘an important step towards securing the formal recognition and funding that the Great South West Campaign seeks’.

But he has made no firm commitments and a campaign leader today declared: “The region has already been waiting too long”.

Mr Johnson’s comments come in response to a letter to Number 10 sent by Bill Martin, the newspaper’s Marketplace Publisher, and Editor Philip Bowern in September. They urged him to act on his warm words about the Great South West campaign.

At the time, business leaders said they were ‘beyond frustrated’ at the lack of action on their business case which they say will transform the region, delivering £45 billion of economic benefit and establishing the region as the UK’s leader for the green and blue economy.

In his letter, sent in September, Mr Martin explained how it has been five years since the #BackTheGreatSouthWest campaign was launched with the region’s biggest private sector employer Pennon Plc and the backing of MPs, business leaders and LEPS.

The Great South West Partnership set out how it has the potential to become the ‘UK’s Natural Powerhouse’ in its Securing the Future prospectus and presented it at 10 Downing Street in 2019.

The deal asked the Government for £2million over three years to progress its ambitions but nothing has yet come of it.

In his letter, Mr Johnson said that he is a supporter of the greater South West and recognised the work that had gone into the campaign.

He said: “The Government is a passionate supporter of a greater South West and I recognise the work that partners have put into the prospectus, maintaining the partnership and securing the support of MPs, local government and others.”

Mr Johnson added that the Levelling Up White Paper “is an important step towards securing the formal recognition and funding that the Great South West Campaign seeks, whilst providing the right framework for delivering these ambitions”.

But Mr Johnson’s response still falls short on the reassurances that the region is expecting, said Mr Martin.

“The Prime Minister appears to recognise that the Great South West is an opportunity, and his reply seems to indicate this will soon be recognised by Government. The trouble is that the region has already been waiting too long and that is preventing the region from realising its full potential,” he said.

“However we shall await the white paper and will continue to lobby on behalf of the region.”

Business leaders have expressed concern that the rural South West, including Devon, Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset that is represented by the Great South West, will be overlooked in favour of its nearest cousin – the Western Gateway – covering Bristol, Bath, Gloucester and parts of Wales, including Cardiff.

They fear that the Government will want to deal with one entity only when considering the needs of the South West.

But it is not as simple as that, said John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council.

He said: “The economic challenges faced by the Great South West are a world away from Bristol, Bath and Swindon, and demand special recognition by Government in terms of productivity, wages and life chances.

“Our communities have been the poor relations for far too long, but the potential for the Great South West to be England’s green powerhouse is huge.

“Levelling Up is the Government’s golden opportunity to unleash that potential.”

Gary Streeter, co-chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for the Great South West, said further delay is holding the region back.

He said he had recently explained to the Minister for Levelling Up, Michael Gove, that the Western Gateway area does not wish to expand its territory to include the four counties within the Great South West.

“The Government is beginning to recognise the contribution the Great South West can make to Net Zero and the Plan for Growth but we continue to be concerned that Government is focused on our metropolitan areas and doesn’t recognise the huge levelling up challenges particularly to our coastal and rural places.

He said: “Although we can all understand the need for coherence. There is every hope that we will get the right result, but the delay is holding our region back in maximising its unique potential.”

A report published in September called Levelling Up the South West by thinktank Onward warned against a ‘one size fits all’ policy when considering the differing needs across the South West.

And in the Autumn Budget, big transport cash was reserved for areas with metro mayors, including £540m for the West of England Combined Authority (Weca) region – or £568 per head – for public transport in the Bristol and Bath region.

The South West did secure some vital funding in the Autumn Budget including investment through the British Business Bank for South West SME businesses, a major road improvement project in Plymouth and £48.4m for improved Isles of Scilly ferry transport links.

David Ralph, chief executive of the Heart of the South West LEP, said that it is time for the Great South West to get similar funding and recognition as its urban cousins.

He said: “The Western Gateway have clearly set out they have no appetite to extend the borders and that doing so would not be helpful to either area.

“We are collaborating effectively on areas of common interest on the Bristol Channel and aerospace but the Great South West needs to operate on a level playing field with similar funding and recognition. Then we can work directly with Government to accelerate our ambitions rather than continue to operate on the basis of good will and no funding or support.

“The proposition of the Great South West is genuinely as a powerhouse. Whilst other areas in the UK are looking to use power to try to transition to a low carbon economy, the Great South West has the raw materials to supply the rest of the UK with low carbon green power from its huge resource of untapped natural capital. It’s time to back the Great South West.”

Boris Johnson’s letter in full

“The Government is a passionate supporter of a greater South West and I recognise the work that partners have put into the prospectus, maintaining the partnership and securing the support of MPs, local government and others.

“The upcoming Levelling Up White Paper will set out bold new policy interventions that will improve opportunities and boost livelihoods across the country as we build back better from the Covid-19 pandemic. It will also look at how the Government can best work with local institutions. This is an important step towards securing the formal recognition and funding that the Great South West Campaign seeks, whilst providing the right framework for delivering these ambitions.

“I am pleased that the forthcoming White Paper will present an opportunity for councils and local government to be at the very heart of the Levelling Up agenda. Moreover, with the completion of the review of Local Enterprise Partnerships, we will have a greater understanding of how the Great South West can best work across local institutions.”

Is EDDC just lean or “lean and mean”? Could we all afford a bit more to restore some local services? – Owl

Chloe Parkman www.devonlive.com

It is good news for East Devon residents as a new study has revealed that this area has topped the list for having the cheapest council tax across the whole of the UK.

The study carried out by Mashroom, which explores the cheapest and most expensive areas in the UK are for council tax, unveiled that East Devon’s Band A tax (£101.19) is 179 per cent cheaper than the most expensive area, Blaby.

It comes after Devon Live reported that the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that under current Government spending plans, a rise of at least 3.6 per cent on council tax bills will be needed per year just for town halls to keep services running at the levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic.

But the researchers said this would likely be a minimum requirement, with extra cost pressures and demand potentially meaning bills could rise by up to five per cent every year up to 2024/25.

And they said social care aims announced by the Government last month are currently underfunded and would cost £5 billion a year in the long term – almost three times the additional funding allocated over the next three years. Read here.

What is council tax exactly and what is it used for?

Council tax is the money you are required to pay to your Local Council and is different depending on the Council, the money then goes towards funding local services.

The local services that are funded by your council tax include but are not limited to police and fire services, leisure and recreation projects, libraries and education services, rubbish and waste collection, transport services, street lighting and cleaning, road maintenance, environmental health and administration and record-keeping.

goodlawproject.org

It’s not much fun being a Tory backbench MP at the moment. Just when you think things couldn’t get any seedier, No 10 is reportedly threatening to withdraw funding for their constituencies if they don’t toe the party line in Commons votes. 

It appears the Government threatened to punish voters to try to force MPs to support attempts to spare Tory MP Owen Paterson from suspension, after he broke parliamentary rules by lobbying for a private firm that paid him £100,000 a year. One backbencher said MPs were told “they would lose funding for their constituency” if they failed to vote with the Prime Minister, according to the Financial Times. 

This is not the first time we’ve heard of No 10 using this underhand tactic to keep their MPs in line. One backbencher told PoliticsHome in September: ​​”There’s been threats made to a few people that they won’t get funding for projects if they don’t side with the Government… To try and hold back an entire area or prevent regeneration just to get you to vote for something you clearly don’t like, it’s not something I’m particularly comfortable with.”

This is shocking stuff. Not only does it undermine Parliament and weaken MPs’ independence, if true, the allegations are in the realms of criminal offence.

Threatening to cut off funding for local communities to force MPs to vote to save a disgraced MP also reveals the truth behind what the Government likes to style as ‘levelling up’. As always, it’s people from hard-up communities who end up paying the price.

Good Law Project has sent a pre-action protocol letter to Michael Gove inviting him to deny, if he can, that the alleged conduct happened, to turn over any documents evidencing it, and to stop the threats.

The reports suggest a very serious misuse of public money, in the realms of criminal conduct, by or for the Prime Minister. We will not stand by and watch. 

If you are in a position to support this case, you can do so here. 

Read our pre-action protocol (PAP) letter to Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. 

Cllr. John Hart wrings his hands in public about the housing crisis in his press article this week, see below. What is he doing about it?

Describing it as a perfect storm implies a rare combination of unfavourable and unavoidable circumstances. 

Owl believes that much, if not all, of this crisis can be laid at the door of past and present totemic Tory policies. Correspondents can doubtless add to the list.

It starts with Margaret Thatcher’s sell-off of council housing without reinvesting the proceeds in new social housing. Since 2008 it has been exacerbated by austerity, with the South West disproportionately hit, and a general squeeze on local authorities. 

The current acceleration in second home ownership, buy to rent, eviction of tenants in order to exploit self catering holidays through Airbnb etc. has been encouraged by various property tax allowances, ostensibly aimed at encouraging the housing market to grow. Second homers can now usually avoid paying both council tax and business tax. Investment in housing is seen as a one-way bet.

Despite what Whitehall thinks, the CPRE has shown that Devon has been building 30% more homes than required for demographic needs. Who do you think has bought them?

So “build, build, build” is another favoured policy that has failed. Locals can always be outbid by those from the more affluent parts of the country and councils don’t have the cash to build social housing on any scale. The demand is insatiable.

John Hart says: “we need a united, cross-party, cross-council approach so we have a more powerful voice in lobbying the Government for the changes that need to be made.” Though he doesn’t reveal in his article what those changes might be.

In Owl’s opinion the real crisis is that the Government has a long history of taking no notice of the West Country. From a Westminster perspective the region doesn’t matter economically or electorally, electorally it can be taken for granted, its MPs are lobby fodder. In any case we also have a Prime Minister who is unlikely to make “bold” decisions to unwind these damaging policies for fear that they might be unpopular or impinge on personal liberties. He doesn’t “do” rules and regulations. 

Simon Jupp has already been “kicked into the long grass” on this by Johnson.

Perfect storm has created a housing crisis that needs fixing

John Hart www.exmouthjournal.co.uk 

We certainly aren’t out of the woods on Covid yet but across Devon, we are now facing another crisis. And that’s housing.

 House price rises in some parts of Devon are among the highest in the country.

The lack of affordable rental properties means key workers in care, health and education can’t fill job vacancies because they can’t find anywhere to live.

More and more long-term rental properties are being converted to short-term holiday lets or sold off to take advantage of rising prices.

 Now housing is not a county council responsibility but a district council function but this problem is so serious that it needs concerted action.

The county council’s new strategic plan commits us to “doing whatever we can to make it easier for key workers and people on low incomes to find affordable homes”.

Within the next couple of weeks both the county council and Team Devon – which is a partnership of county, district, town and parish councils – will discuss the issue.

County councillors are being asked to back a new strategic housing Task Force in partnership with the districts.

 We will also consider offering accommodation to key workers to attract them to work for us and lobbying MPs to tighten up tax loopholes on holiday rental homes.

The problem is so serious that we need a united, cross-party, cross-council approach so we have a more powerful voice in lobbying the Government for the changes that need to be made.

 Team Devon, which I chair, has already seen some very worrying statistics.

The Office of National Statistics says house price inflation in Devon is running at 13.4 per cent – more than Cornwall or Somerset – and some parts of the county are even higher. North Devon at 22.4 per cent is in the top 10 districts in the country for house price growth with Torridge on 19.8 per cent and East Devon on 14.8 per cent.

We also had figures showing Air B&B offering 253 rentals in Exmouth compared with just four residential lettings. In Ilfracombe the figures were 326 compared to four.

 Hospitality businesses in coastal areas can’t get staff because they can’t find anywhere to live and that is stifling our strong economic recovery.

We also heard from one successful Devon business that is considering relocating some of its operations to Bristol because of the housing situation here.

The county council is struggling to fill hundreds of vacancies for care staff who can’t find anywhere to live. And that has an impact on our hospitals if they can’t discharge patients who could go home with some support from a carer which would free up beds.

Some schools are finding it difficult to recruit staff because they can’t find accommodation.

 Now some of the actions needed will require Government to act but there’s a lot that councils can do.

For example, the county is considering the potential to convert some offices or other properties into housing for key workers and offering grants towards deposits for house purchases.

Team Devon already has a bid for Government cash to help promote small-scale housing projects providing local homes for local people under Community Land Trusts.

Councils can also learn from best practices in other areas and share ideas on how housing and planning policies could be adapted to allocate some affordable homes solely for essential local workers.

There has always been an issue in Devon with young people not being able to live where they grew up because of low wages and high house prices but this is a perfect storm and we need to take urgent action.

He doesn’t seem to be able to handle challenge. – Owl

Former councillor criticises East Devon MP Simon Jupp for blocking Facebook comments

Joe Ives, Local Democracy Reporter exmouth.nub.news 

A former East Devon politician has accused the area’s MP of attempting to “censor” residents after blocking comments on his Facebook page.

Ex-Devon County Councillor (DCC) Claire Wright says Simon Jupp MP’s (Conservatives) decision to stop people from being able to comment on his Facebook posts showed that he was not willing to listen to residents.

Ms Wright stood as an independent against Simon Jupp MP in the 2019 general election, coming in second place. She had previously lost two general elections to Mr Jupp’s predecessor as Conservative candidate, Sir Hugo Swire.

Ms Wright said: “The move to censor comments on his Facebook page comes after a torrid few weeks of being challenged by his constituents and by me on his voting record.

“It also appears to be an escalation of a pattern which has seen dozens of residents who are politely challenging him, blocked from his social media platforms since he was elected in 2019.

“That he has now blocked Facebook comments shows that he is on transmit and not receive. This does not demonstrate the qualities of a thoughtful and effective representative, nor does it demonstrate [a] willingness to be held publicly accountable, or even to listen, except on his own limited terms.”

Mr Jupp responded, saying: “If you live in the East Devon constituency and need my help or want to raise policy matters, the best way to get in touch is via email, letter or phone. Unfortunately, monitoring social media can be a full-time job in itself and I wouldn’t want to miss the opportunity to help a local resident.

“I hold regular surgeries and my office in Exmouth marks the first time that East Devon’s MP has a dedicated office in the constituency. As thousands of constituents have discovered since I was elected nearly two years ago, I am here to help.”

Mr Jupp said that eight people had been blocked from his Facebook page “after continual abuse, defamation and bullying of other contributors.”

Comments have been switched off on the page for everyone. Old comments have not been deleted.

The MP’s Facebook page has just under 1,000 ‘likes’ and almost 1,300 followers.

Simon Jupp blocks Claire wright

https://www.facebook.com/clairewrightindependent/

Simon Jupp in his latest press article says: “The failure of water companies to adequately reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows is unacceptable. The good news is that regulators and the government are stepping in…” 

This was not his initial reaction.

No apology for voting for the government “light touch” environment bill and then against the Lord’s amendment 45  “to make improvements to their sewerage systems and demonstrate progressive reductions in the harm caused by discharges of untreated sewage.“

Hindsight is a wonderful thing! – Owl

Simon Jupp www.exmouthjournal.co.uk

At the end of October, Clyst St Mary residents woke up to some rather unpleasant sights and smells.

 The local drainage system had been unable to cope with torrential rainfall. The worst affected villagers had to wade through sewage and some have been left without usable toilet facilities.

 Immediately, I asked the chief executive of South West Water to urgently get a grip on the situation and liaise directly with the local parish council who were gathering information on the ground.

 South West Water’s engineering director met with the community to explain the short and long-term actions they are now taking. It will include new piping for properties and increasing capacity at nearby pumping stations.

 Yet action over weeks and months is not of comfort to families with young children who are currently having to use portable toilets in their gardens as the nights draw in and the temperatures drop. I met with South West Water and asked them to set out a clear timetable of actions and communicate with residents as often as possible to provide updates on work being done. I will receive these updates too, as will local councillors of all political stripes as we set politics aside to work together for our communities. I have also asked South West Water to provide financial compensation to those most badly affected.

 The failure of water companies to adequately reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows is unacceptable. The good news is that regulators and the government are stepping in. The Environment Agency watchdog has just launched an investigation into more than 2,000 sewage treatment works. And recently, both the Commons and the Lords agreed to the landmark Environment Act that introduces tougher penalties on water companies, new reporting duties, industry action plans to clean up our waterways, and a strict legal framework to ensure these new measures are properly enforced.

 I’ll continue to have regular meetings with South West Water about sewage infrastructure in East Devon. Clyst St Mary residents were unfortunate enough to experience foul flooding. It’s only right that they should get compensation, not just an apology.

The major culprit is Southern Water with South West Water also producing a “notably poor performance for the third consecutive year”. – Owl

Sandra Laville www.theguardian.com 

Water companies spilled raw sewage into coastal bathing waters used by holidaymakers and families 5,517 times in the last year, an increase of more than 87%, new data reveals.

The discharges, through storm overflows, went on to beaches that were supposed to be the cleanest and safest in England and Wales, used by children, tourists, surfers and swimmers.

“We are in the midst of a new wave of sewage pollution,” said the 2021 Water Quality report by Surfers Against Sewage. “There are hundreds of thousands of sewage discharges polluting rivers and coastlines, all of which could impact the overall health of aquatic ecosystems.”

The data is gathered from water company alerts of spills via storm overflows across 308 locations. During the bathing water season – 15 May to the end of September – water companies issued alerts 3,328 times. The rest of the spills took place outside those months.

Storm overflows are supposed to be used in emergencies to ease pressure on the system after extreme weather or exceptional rainfall. But this report adds to the growing evidence that they are being used routinely.

Southern Water, which was fined a record £90m this year for billions of litres of raw sewage spills, issued 1,194 alerts of sewage spills, an average of 38 spills for each bathing water location, compared with an average of between two and eight for other water companies. Almost 30% of the 286 health reports submitted this year came from Southern Water’s operating area.

South West Water also produced a “notably poor performance for the third consecutive year”, with 406 discharges in the bathing water season on to popular beaches.

Hugo Tagholm, the chief executive of Surfers Against Sewage, said: “The findings of our report are shocking and outrageous, but they are by no means unexpected. Time and time again, governments have claimed concern over the pollution of rivers and seas, but have so far failed to take concrete action to change the status quo. Loopholes in laws and systematically defunded regulators have left water companies to run amok.”

For the first time the campaign group carried out testing of water quality at river mouths feeding into bathing beaches. The results were “shocking.” In six out of eight rivers the quality of the water was so poor as a result of faecal contamination that it posed an extreme danger to human health.

The findings come as the Environment Agency continues a major investigation into more than 2000 sewage treatment works after water companies admitted they may be illegally discharging raw sewage. Concerns over sewage dumping into rivers and seas have sparked grassroots campaigns all over the country. Members of the public in Southern Water areas have taken to beaches to protest and some have begun a rate payers revolt.

The citizen testing at river mouths provided a strong comparison to water quality testing undertaken by environmental regulators, and was carried out to fill the gap in the monitoring of river water quality. Only one river in the UK – the Wharfe in Ilkley – is a designated bathing water and therefore subject to the same scrutiny as coastal waters. The rest are not monitored for faecal pollution, despite the fact that 90 percent of storm overflows discharge directly into rivers.

Only 14 percent of rivers in the UK are of good ecological standard, a rating that suggests they are as close to their natural state as possible.

The rivers tested were; Afon Wyre River flowing into Llanrhystud Beach, Hoffnant River, flowing into Penbryn Beach, Figgate Burn into Portobello Beach in Scotland, River Bann flowing into Portstewart Beach in Northern Ireland, Seaton Burn flowing into Seaton Sluice Beach, Northumbria, the River Adur into Southwick Beach in Southern England, the River Ribble into St Agnes Beach in northwest England and the Cadoxton River flowing into Whitmore Bay Beach, Barry Island, south Wales.

E.coli levels in Figgate Burn were continuously at a level that poses an extreme risk to public health.

At the remaining five river locations results consistently showed faecal contamination levels that posed an extreme risk to public health.

Water quality at the River Bann and Cadoxton river was excellent.

Dr Christian Dunn, senior lecturer in natural sciences at Bangor University, said: “Untreated sewage can be a death potion to our rivers and waterways. It is a cocktail of harmful viruses, bacteria and chemicals. Some of these can directly harm aquatic life and others lead to devastating disruptions in the oxygen levels of the water – risking entire ecosystems … Rivers are essential for the health of entire landscapes, our wildlife depends on them, and there’s no surer way to destroy a river than flooding it with sewage.”

A spokesperson for Water UK, an industry body, said the companies recognised the urgent need for action to protect and enhance the UK’s rivers and seas.

“Our recent 21st Century Rivers report sets out the key steps needed to achieve the radical changes we all want to see, including calling on government to bring forward legislation in a new Rivers Act that will provide greater protection for rivers in law. We know we need to go further and water companies want to invest more to improve infrastructure and stop harm from storm overflows and outfalls.

“With our coastal bathing waters we have a good base to build on with more than 70% rated as ‘excellent’, and over 90% as either ‘excellent’ or ‘good’. This improvement has come about thanks to collaborative working between industry, government, regulators and other stakeholders over several years.”

Dr Toby Willison, director of environment and corporate affairs at Southern Water, said: “We share the passion and commitment of Surfers Against Sewage to protect our precious coastal water and the 700 miles of coastline in our region.

“We know our performance has to improve and we are driving a step change in investment spending £2 billion to cut pollution incidents by 80 per cent by 2025.

“Our new task force aims to cut storm overflows by 80 per cent by 2030. Our target is ambitious but all 83 of our bathing waters meet strict European standards and 78 are excellent or good, a challenge which 20 years ago seemed impossible.”

covid.joinzoe.com

According to ZOE COVID Study incidence figures, in total there are currently   76,728 new daily symptomatic cases of COVID in the UK on average, based on PCR and LFT test data from up to five days ago [*]. An increase of 18% from 65,059 new daily cases last week. 

In the vaccinated population (at least two doses) cases have leveled off and it’s estimated there are currently 24,219 new daily symptomatic cases in the UK. An increase of 8% from  22,482 new daily cases last week (Graph 1). 

The UK R value is estimated to be around 1.1 and regional R values are; England, 1.1, Wales, 1.1, Scotland, 1.0 (Table 1). 

In terms of prevalence, on average 1 in 66 people in the UK currently have symptomatic COVID. In the regions, England, 1 in 66. Wales,1 in 51. Scotland, 1 in 81. (Table 1). 

The number of daily new cases among 0-17 year olds is now rapidly rising and is the main driver of the bounce back in overall numbers. The rise in cases is also being seen in the 35-55 age group. There has been no uptick in cases in the over 55s, likely due in part to the third dose (booster) vaccines giving this group better protection. (Graph 2).

Case numbers are rising generally across the UK, particularly in regions of England including the Midlands, North West, and the East of England (Graph 3),  while rates are highest in Wales and lowest in Scotland. 

ZOE’s predicted Long COVID incidence rate currently estimates, at current case rates, 1,268 people a day will go on to experience symptoms for longer than 12 weeks. (Graph 4). 

The ZOE COVID Study incidence figures (new symptomatic cases) are based on reports from around 750,000 weekly contributors and the proportion of newly symptomatic users who have received positive swab tests. The latest survey figures were based on data from 40,707 recent swab tests done in the two weeks up to 20 November 2021. 

Professor Tim Spector, lead scientist on the ZOE COVID Study app, comments on the latest data:

“Seeing cases on the rise again is really disheartening and the recent ups and downs, unlike previous waves, is making it hard to predict where things will be from week-to-week. However, for me, the message is that cases are still far too high. Although we  appear, for now, to be faring better than some European countries in terms of case numbers, the UK continues to have relatively high hospital admissions and deaths, which is a real cause for concern. Given the current overloading of our hospitals, now isn’t the time to portray the UK as a COVID success story, far from it. Whilst the rise in new cases is being driven by children, focusing on them in the short-term would be a mistake. While the government is unlikely to enforce restrictions for Christmas, family gatherings will undoubtedly increase risk, especially for older and more vulnerable family members who haven’t yet had their third vaccine dose. Saving Christmas is up to us. Those of us eligible for the third jab should take it now, and we should be mindful that one in four people with cold-like symptoms have COVID-19. Consider the risks and keep your family out of hospital over the holidays.”

Graph 1. The ZOE COVID Study UK incidence figures results over time; total number of new cases and new cases in fully vaccinated

Graph 2. Incidence by age group 

Graph 3. Prevalence rate by region

Graph 4. Predicted Long COVID incidence over time

Please refer to the publication by Thompson at al. (2021) for details on how long covid rates in the population are modelled

Table 1. Incidence (daily new symptomatic cases)[*], R values and prevalence regional breakdown table 

Map of UK prevalence figures

HM Revenue and Customs has struck a deal to relocate tax officials into a new office complex in Newcastle owned by major Conservative party donors through an offshore company based in a tax haven, the Guardian can reveal.

Harry Davies www.theguardian.com 

The department’s planned new home in the north-east of England is part of a regeneration scheme developed by a British Virgin Islands (BVI) entity controlled by the billionaire property tycoons David and Simon Reuben.

The deal will see officials at the government department responsible for preventing tax avoidance working from a site owned by a subsidiary of a company based in a secretive offshore tax jurisdiction.

The Reuben brothers, their family members and businesses have donated a combined £1.9m to the Tories. Earlier this week, the brothers are reported to have shared a table with Boris Johnson at an exclusive Tory party fundraising dinner.

On Tuesday, officials including the Cabinet Office minister Steve Barclay announced HMRC had agreed the 25-year lease with one of the Reuben brothers’ companies.

The brothers are the second richest family in the UK, according to the Sunday Times’s rich list. David Reuben’s son, Jamie, is a close ally of the prime minister and has served as a Tory party treasurer. He has donated more than £750,000 to the party since Johnson entered Downing Street.

The Reuben family has built a significant presence in Newcastle in recent years and is part of the controversial Saudi Arabia-led consortium that acquired Newcastle United football club in October.

Company filings show the family has frequently used BVI companies to hold its UK business interests, which include a luxury London property portfolio and a string of racecourses.

A spokesperson for HMRC said the office complex in Newcastle is owned and will be developed by a UK company, Reuben Brothers (Newcastle) Limited. However, Companies House filings show the company’s sole shareholder when it was incorporated earlier this year was Taras Properties Limited in the BVI.

Taras Properties first acquired the site in 2013 and transferred ownership of the land to the UK company in June this year for £10m, according to Land Registry records. The BVI company owns multiple large plots of land in central Newcastle in the area surrounding HMRC’s planned offices.

A spokesperson for the Reuben brothers confirmed the UK company is held by Taras Properties, but insisted the subsidiary “operates and pays taxes as a UK company”.

HMRC’s spokesperson insisted the Reuben brothers’ company would be subject to normal UK tax regulation. “The lease payments and any gains on the sale are subject to UK tax,” they said. “HMRC is satisfied the deal represents the best value for money for the taxpayer.”

There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by the Reuben brothers and owning UK property through offshore companies is perfectly legal.

But the government’s decision to move 9,000 HMRC staff to the site comes as it faces calls to honour a commitment to introduce a register of overseas companies owning UK properties. The draft bill, first published in 2018, is designed to crack down on the use of offshore companies to obscure owners’ identities and their source of funds.

Combatting offshore tax evasion and avoidance is described as one of HMRC’s priorities and earlier this year the department unveiled plans to crack down on offshore tax avoidance by targeting UK-based entities facilitating the sale of avoidance schemes using tax havens.

Responding to the move, Dame Margaret Hodge, a Labour MP and chair of the cross-party parliamentary group on anti-corruption and responsible tax, said: “It’s outrageous that HMRC should be using taxpayers’ money to benefit somebody that relies on offshore structures based in tax havens.”

Any of these sites in Devon? – Owl

Filthy business: who will stop Britain’s illegal waste-dumping mafia? 

George Monbiot www.theguardian.com

They made millions from it. They threatened our health and poisoned the land. Among the filth they buried were industrial quantities of syringes, bloody bandages, oily waste from scrapped cars, shredded plastic and asbestos. Fleets of lorries travelled from as far afield as Birmingham to drop their loads at the sites the two men ran in south Wales, to avoid paying landfill tax. Yet these men, though responsible for one of the biggest illegal dumping crimes ever prosecuted, suffered nothing worse last week than suspended sentences, community service and fines and confiscation orders that together amount to around a tenth of the money they are known to have made.

Over the past few months, we have begun to notice the scarcely regulated pollution of our rivers and seas. But hardly anyone is aware of what’s been happening to the land. If anything, it’s even worse. The illegal dumping of waste, much of it hazardous, most of it persistent, is now a massive crisis in the UK, caused by shocking failures of government. Large areas of land and crucial groundwater sources are being contaminated by illegal tipping, and barely anyone in power seems to give a damn.

The disposal of waste in this country relies to a large extent on self-regulation. It’s up to you to check that the person to whom you hand your waste is a registered and responsible carrier. But a study into fly-tipping and unregistered waste carriers in England by Ray Purdy at Oxford University’s law faculty and Mat Crocker, the former deputy director of waste at the Environment Agency, shows that checking is nigh on impossible. Hundreds of different businesses use identical names on the Environment Agency’s official register, which often bear no relation to the names under which they advertise or trade. Many provide false names and false locations, including abandoned buildings, sports venues and, in one case, a Premier Inn. Technical glitches, unfixed after five years, ensure the site is scarcely functional.

Astonishingly, Purdy and Crocker discovered that the Environment Agency had no data for online traffic, and no research into how many people were aware of the register’s existence. There is no facility on the register to report businesses working illegally. Across the past three years, though 140,000 businesses have applied to be listed as waste handlers, the Environment Agency has refused only 19. Despite widespread evidence of fraud and several prosecutions, it subsequently revoked just two registrations. The frequent spelling mistakes in company names and addresses suggest that not even the most basic checks have been conducted.

But this is the least of it. Purdy and Crocker’s research shows that most businesses don’t appear on the list at all. Of the thousands of waste disposers they sampled, they discovered that almost two-thirds were not registered, and therefore operating unlawfully. All together, they estimate, there are over a quarter of a million unregistered waste handlers in England.

Investigating adverts placed by people offering to remove your rubbish, Purdy and Crocker reported that many of those who appeared to be sole traders (“man and van”) in fact belonged to organised networks. Of 10,426 ads on Gumtree they followed, they found that over 4,000 had been bought by just two organisations, which together spend about £300,000 a year advertising on the platform. Yet these ads claim to be promoting small local businesses. Each of the vans in a network, the researchers estimate, could allow the organisation to evade £132,000 of taxes. The return on investment for a company running 100 fake sole traders, they reckon, is somewhere between 40 to 1 and 80 to 1. Here, as in Italy, it seems we have a waste mafia. But unlike the Italian mafia, ours seldom needs to resort to intimidation or violence, because no one stands in its way. All together, the report suggests, between 1m and 6m tonnes of waste in England are handled outside the lawful system every year. Illegally dumped waste contaminates the soil, the water and – when it is deliberately burned or spontaneously combusts – the air with a vast range of toxins, most of which are likely to be unmonitored and unrecorded. The more hazardous the waste, the greater the incentive to cut corners.

We have no idea what the impact on our health and that of the rest of the living world might be, or what the results of this staggering regulatory failure would cost to clean up. During a rare prosecution in 2019, a court was told that a large illegal waste dump in a quarry close to Chew Valley Lake in Somerset might end up costing us as much as £9bn in remediation, if the contaminants leach into the water supplying Bristol and other settlements.

Rusting drums photographed at an illegal dump in Pirbright, Surrey, beside a string of nature reserves, are suspected to contain extremely toxic polychlorinated biphenyls. An unidentified yellow substance has been reported leaking from the site into local streams. If some of this sludge emanates from the barrels, the possible consequences are scarcely calculable. According to the ENDS Report, local campaigners claim that Surrey county council and the Environment Agency have known the identity of the people using this site since 2009, but have failed to take legal action against them.

On the rare occasions when the Environment Agency, or its equivalents elsewhere in the UK, can find the money for a pair of wellington boots and a hi-vis jacket and send someone out to check, they tend to offer repeated warnings before taking action. Even then, the most common punishment is a fixed penalty notice. If a case gets to court, people who might have made a fortune from their illegal activities are fined a few hundred pounds. In a recent prosecution, a man was found to have run an illegal dump that contained over 600 tonnes of waste, and evidence was presented that he had been burning hazardous materials. He was fined £840. The Environment Agency announced, “We hope this case will send a clear message”. It will, but not the one it intends.

It’s a familiar story: of almost total regulatory collapse. The failure of the Environment Agency’s waste register looks similar to the farce of company registration, devastatingly exposed by Oliver Bullough. This story reminds me both of the catastrophic failure to protect elderly and vulnerable people against fraud and of the dumping of raw sewage and farm manure into our rivers and seas.

All these failures are inevitable outcomes of 40 years of “cutting red tape”, of slashing the budgets of regulatory agencies, of outsourcing and self-reporting. We were promised freedom. But the people our governments have set free are criminals. Yet another filthy business is cleaning up.

Boris Johnson ‘failed to wear a mask’ at Macbeth performance

Boris Johnson ‘broke Covid rules by failing to wear a mask’ as he watched theatre performance of Macbeth after week of Tory drama

• Boris Johnson was apparently spotted maskless watching Macbeth at theatre
• The PM has been accused of breaching Covid rules at the Almeida in London
• Mr Johnson’s press secretary insisted that he follows coronavirus rules 

www.dailymail.co.uk 

‘Well done to Siren Libby Darling for doing a great job on BBC Radio Sussex this morning talking about our campaign, and rebutting some of the suspect comments made by Sir Peter Talking-out-of-his-Bottomly.

South Coast Sirens – Clean Seas For All

Use this link to get to facebook page with bbc interview

Who are Conservatives these days? – Owl

Whenever the government faces criticism, one of the first questions commentators ask is whether the latest fiasco will have cut through in the “red wall”. While the red wall does indeed represent one substantial and important element in the Conservative coalition, this focus understates the problem the party faces, by suggesting there is just one restive set of seats they need to keep onside.

Robert Ford www.theguardian.com 

In fact, the Tory coalition incorporates a number of different battlegrounds, with vastly different needs. This makes the government’s task far harder – pleasing the red wall often means provoking anger in other equally important areas.

We can divide Conservative seats into groups based on their electoral context: is the seat marginal? How long has it been marginal? Does it lean towards leave or remain? Who is the local opponent? If we define the red wall seats as newly competitive constituencies with Labour as the local opponent in leave-voting areas, then there are about 70 of these spread across England and Wales.

Traditional swing seats might get less attention but they are just as numerous and count the same towards the outcome. There are at least 50 seats in this category, market towns and “swingy” suburbs whose mixed demographics reflect the nation, and where party control has shifted over many cycles on the ebb and flow of national opinion. They will be as competitive as ever next time.

The Brexit realignment that turned the red wall blue has also had implications elsewhere. There are now about two dozen Conservative seats in remain areas facing a credible Labour challenge, and another 30 also in largely remain areas where the Conservatives need to fend off resurgent Liberal Democrats. This “remain wall” includes many former safe seats where the Tory majority has been slashed since Brexit.

Lost seats in the traditional swing areas are a certainty if the government’s popularity falls. But if these are combined with substantial losses on either of the new fronts, the Conservative majority is immediately at risk. The government therefore cannot afford to alienate either the red wall or the remain wall.

But these seats are poles apart. The red wall is clustered in the Midlands and the north; the remain wall in the south. Red wall seats are working class and graduate light; remain wall seats are middle class and graduate heavy. Red wall seats have low house prices and more voters in council housing; remain wall seats have expensive housing and high home ownership rates.

This divide in outlook and priorities stretches beyond the electoral battleground: many of the 200 or so (currently) safe Conservative seats resemble one of the new battlegrounds, and their MPs will often align with less secure colleagues.

The two new fronts the Conservatives must defend are different worlds, at odds over the government’s domestic policy agenda. Ambitious levelling up investment is what red wall voters want to see; remain wall voters fear higher tax bills will follow. Masses of new, affordable homes are a dream for red wall renters, but a nightmare for remain wall homeowners, for whom the nimby instinct runs deep.

Even the fate of Boris Johnson himself splits the battlegrounds: the prime minister’s distinctive appeal in the red wall would be hard to replace, but Tories in the remain wall would breathe easier with a more traditional figure in charge.

It is no wonder the MPs in these two new battlegrounds object so regularly and loudly to their own government. Their job is to represent their constituents’ interests, and they are emboldened by the knowledge that their leader regularly reverses course under pressure. Johnson has no hope of pleasing MPs on both fronts, yet his constant caving to rebellions brings its own risks, intensifying the perception of a chaotic and rudderless government. Nor can the Conservatives avoid fights by sitting on their hands – the impatient red wall voters, promised “levelling up” and “unleashing Britain’s potential”, have low trust in politics, no inherent love for the Conservative party, and will not accept second best.

Having raised hopes of radical domestic reform, the Conservatives now face a difficult choice: plough ahead and risk defeat on one front, or back off and risk a beating on another. Getting Brexit done, it turns out, was the easy part.

• Dr Robert Ford is professor of political science at the University of Manchester and co-author of The British General Election of 2019

Harlequin centre: “an unattractive, modern ‘American’ style mall of 32 shops, that is also a carpark. It forms one side of the canyon that is the sad fate of Paul Street. Designed by Bruges Tozer of Bristol at a total cost of £6 million in 1987.”

Creates 380+ “bed spaces for co-living” accommodation, twenty per cent of the units will be classed as ‘affordable’, with priority given to key workers.

As one councillor said “This development doesn’t provide extra homes, it provides accommodation for single people only.”

Looks like more student accommodation to Owl.

eastdevonnews.co.uk 

Revised plans to redevelop the Harlequins shopping centre in Exeter – minus a previously-agreed hotel – have been given the go-ahead.

City councillors approved altered proposals for ‘co-living’ accommodation at the Paul street site by ten votes to two at their November meeting, writes Local Democracy Reporter Ollie Heptinstall.

Original blueprints for a total of 251 bed-spaces, as well as a 116-room hotel with bar and restaurant, were backed in October last year.

But developer Curlew submitted a new application saying that Covid had caused ‘significant changes to the economy’.

The revised scheme replaced the hotel with a second co-living block – increasing the scheme’s total number of beds by 132.

Passivhaus-standard energy-efficient accommodation will be made up of self-contained studio apartments with ‘kitchenettes’ along with ‘cluster flats’ that will share amenities.

Twenty per cent of the units will be classed as ‘affordable’, with priority given to key workers.

Applicant Chris Dadds said the units would be restricted to single occupancy only and that minimum terms would be for three months.

The development will be car-free except for two disabled spaces and two electric vehicle spaces, with 280 cycle bays will be provided.

A ‘pocket park’ will be created, along with improvements around Paul Street for pedestrians and cyclists, along with a replacement pedestrian bridge.

Both blocks will operate jointly, with one management team, and residents will have access to amenities including lounges, cinemas, a gym, separate yoga studio and spa suite, laundry, co-working area and a games zone.

Exeter City Council leader Phil Bialyk backed the scheme before citing former United States President Franklin D Roosevelt and saying: “The only fear we have is fear itself – that’s all we’ve got to be frightened of here.

“Come on guys, look at what it’s doing for our housing supply….the availability of housing for people in Exeter.

He added: “I think it’s time that that place [Harlequins] was regenerated in this way.

“We have firm commitments that we do not want to build on the hills and the surrounding green land around this city, and so therefore we have to redevelop brownfield sites. We have to – in effect – go up if we are to defend those.

“It’s make your mind up time on which direction we go, and I think we should be going in this direction.”

Cllr Ruth Williams said: “For me, the additional 132 bed space is really important.

“We have 2,200 people on Devon Home Choice [waiting list for housing], so this makes a significant difference to addressing the shortage of accommodation in Exeter.”

However, Cllr Diana Moore voted the bid, expressing concern over the ‘unclear’ proposed rental value of the units and restrictions on who could live there.

She said: “This development doesn’t provide extra homes, it provides accommodation for single people only.”

Cllr Rob Hannaford voted in favour, but admitted there was some uncertainty. He said: “I think we are looking at a bit of an experiment here and some unknowns in terms of how it’s going to work and what the market is…but I hope that it will deliver what we want in terms of key workers and affordable housing.”

He added: “If, once it’s built, a lot of these units go to students rather than key workers, then we’ll see what public opinion says at the time, but let’s hope it does what it says on the tin and we wish it well.”

Natural England has been tasked by the government to assess the creation of a new National Park based on combining the East Devon and Dorset AONBs.

As with the formative stages of the creation of the Jurassic Park World Heritage Site, all the running is coming from Dorset. Unless EDDC starts to engage with the process, guess who will be left behind again.

For example, the latest Dorset National Park Teams newsletter outlines proposals for a simplified and streamlined approach to planning in the proposed Dorset National Park

A New Approach to Planning

Dorset offers the unique opportunity of a National Park wholly within the boundaries of the Dorset Council area. There is an opportunity to develop a unique, streamlined and cost effective new style National Park.

 ➤ The Dorset Council could have the leading role on the National Park Authority (NPA) Board and in NPA policy development and implementation.

 ➤ It could develop and implement a Local Plan for the whole Dorset Council area including the National Park. NPA staff could be Dorset Council employees, with a single planning team covering all of rural Dorset. 

➤ NPA resources, including central government grant, would benefit Dorset Council, local communities and businesses, help to meet the costs of planning and other functions, and thus release funds for other local priorities. 

➤ A National Park Advisory Board could include relevant Dorset organisations (e.g. the Jurassic Coast Trust, Dorset Local Nature Partnership) and help promote coordination and synergy. NPA funds would support such local organisations (and thus also supplement or release Dorset Council funds). 

➤ Offer a wider range of recreational opportunities than is available in any existing or proposed National Park.

The former Dorset County Council concluded that “the proposal for a National Park could potentially support the Council’s corporate outcomes in relation to a healthy and prosperous Dorset.” 

The Dorset National Park team accepted an invitation from Natural England in the summer to be involved in the further assessment of the Dorset proposal now it has been short-listed for further evaluation. The team looks forward to renewing these discussions with Natural England. 

Dorset has an opportunity to take forward unique proposals for a National Park which would bring economic, financial and environmental benefits for all.

Dubious legality of Tories’ proposal

The Conservative Group at East Devon District Council (EDDC) has failed to get through a new Disclosure and Barring (DBS) policy following the conviction of one their former members for sex crimes against children.

Joe Ives, local democracy reporter www.radioexe.co.uk

Tory John Humphreys was Exmouth’s mayor

Following the jailing in August of John Humphreys, who as well as serving on the district council was a former mayor of Exmouth, the Conservative group at EDDC called for mandatory criminal record checks for councillors and anyone who stands for election to the council in future. 

Now a less ambitious proposal from the Conservative group, asking the council to lobby the government to change the law around DBS to allow councils to carry out such checks, has failed.

Former councillor and alderman John Humphreys, 59, is serving a 21-year prison sentence after being found guilty at Exeter Crown Court of sexually assaulting two boys between 1990 and 2001. He was a prominent councillor whilst the Conservatives controlled East Devon, which since 2019 has been run by a coalition of independents, Lib Dems and Greens.

As it stands, district councils do not have the legal power to ask all councillors to go through enhanced DBS checks – something EDDC Conservatives want changed.

The law already prevents anyone who has been sentenced to three months or more in prison in the five years before the election from standing to be a councillor.

But East Devon Conservatives wanted to go further, and submitted a motion to EDDC’s audit and governance committee asking for the council to lobby the government to introduce mandatory enhanced DBS checks for all district councillors and officers.

The proposal failed after other councillors argued such a law would not create the necessary safeguards. They said it would be insufficient to prevent a similar case to that of John Humphreys in future and that even enhanced DBS checks do not create the protections needed.

Putting forward the motion, Councillor Phil Twiss (Conservative, Honiton St. Michael’s) said a new law requiring all councillors to undergo enhanced DBS checks would mean the public would have “suitably appropriate people representing them and their interests.” 

Cllr Twiss’ proposal also asked for EDDC to pay for the costs of lobbying the government on the issue. It also said EDDC should pay for safeguarding training for all councillors and foot the bill for all DBS checks. The motion didn’t receive enough votes to pass.

Right now EDDC councillors only have to go through DBS checks if they are around vulnerable people or children. A recent report from officers found the law allows the council only to ask councillors to undergo basic DBS checks. 

At present EDDC councillors can voluntarily undergo basic checks, but have to pay the £23 bill personally. If EDDC were to pay all 60 councillors to undergo the check it would cost council taxpayers £1,380.

Basic DBS checks only provide very limited information relating to ‘unspent’ convictions, which generally means very recent ones or those that carry only light sentences. 

Standard checks show spent and unspent convictions as well as police cautions. Enhanced checks detail all convictions and cautions, but also extra information from police. These can only be requested if they are relevant to the role, such as a school governor.

Speaking at the committee, Cllr Steve Gazzard (Democratic Alliance Group, Exmouth Withycombe Raleigh) said he had no problem “in principle” with Twiss’ proposal but it would not reveal things done by a councillor right after a check.

He told the committee: “My only concern is that an enhanced DBS check is only as good as the time you apply for it.

“I don’t think it’s the panacea that some people think. It’s not going to solve all problems.”

Councillor Paul Hayward (Democratic Alliance Group, Yarty) added: “Effectively they’re an MOT certificate. Your car can fall apart the day afterwards but you have an MOT certificate.”

Cllr Nick Hookway (Democratic Alliance Group, Exmouth Littleham) agreed, and said that the most important thing was that the council’s safeguarding measures are “known by all and operated by all.”

Cllr Hooway’s put forward an alternative motion to request that the council’s safeguarding training includes training on the operation of the safeguarding policy. The motion was passed by the governance and audit committee.

As it stands it is not legal to force councillors who do not have access to vulnerable people or children to have enhanced DBS checks. 

However, before the vote on Cllr Twiss’ motion, councillor Andrew Moulding (Conservative, Axminster) said the council should “seriously consider enhanced DBS checks for all councillors and those intending to be a councillor.”

He added: “I am suggesting quite strongly that this council should consider seriously that members of the council should have enhanced DBS checks in order to satisfy our public and constituents that we are suitable people to take that office.”

It was not clear if Cllr Moulding was stating that enhanced DBS checks should be required even if that was not lawful as it stands.

However, Cllr Twiss argued: “Nobody on this council is forcing anyone to take a DBS check, that wouldn’t be legal – nobody is suggesting that.”

He said that his motion was a chance to “get ahead of the curve” before the UK government updates the law.

A private member’s bill, introduced by Tory MP Sir Paul Beresford, could result in tighter rules. The proposed law, still at an early stage, would prevent people involved in some types of sexual offences from taking such a role.

But even if this law had been in place when John Humphreys was a councillor it is unlikely that the DBS checks would have found any wrongdoing unless they had been updated regularly.

As a governor at an Exmouth primary school, it is very likely that former Cllr Humpreys would have undergone criminal records checks. His crimes only became public many years later, after the council had honoured him with the title of ‘alderman’ – an honour withdrawn by EDDC following Mr Humphreys’ conviction.