Progress on the Conservative’s promise to build 40 new hospitals has been put to the Prime Minister by a Devon MP. The pledge was in the 2019 Conservative election manifesto and has been repeated many times by Boris Johnson. When, the pledge was first made – many would have assumed that it referred to brand new hospitals, adding to overall hospital capacity.

But in August 2021, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) sent out guidance to NHS trusts on “key media lines” to use when responding to questions about the pledge. It defined a “new” hospital in three ways: A whole new hospital on a new site or current NHS land, a major new clinical building on an existing site or a new wing of an existing hospital, a major refurbishment and alteration of all but the building frame or main structure.

At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, February 22, Liberal Democrat MP for Tiverton & Honiton, Richard Foord said: Of the 40 promised new hospitals referred to by my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey), 11 are in the south-west of England. Three of them—in Barnstaple, Dorchester and Taunton—surround my constituency, but none has planning permission. It has been reported that staff at Eastbourne District General Hospital were told that their town would not get a new hospital, and that it was a “barefaced lie”. Given that the Prime Minister claims his mandate rests on a manifesto that promised 40 new hospitals, when will we see them?”

In response, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “The Government are committed to building 40 new hospitals as part of the new hospital programme. In the south-west, eight out of the 11 schemes do have full outline planning permission approved, and the remaining three schemes would not be expected to have planning permission at this stage, due to when they are due to be delivered. We are working with the trust to go through that process, so everything is on track, and we will bring those hospitals to the people in the south-west.”

Speaking afterwards, Mr Foord said: “People across the West Country feel let down by the dire state of our local health services. It’s clear that we need change and fast. This Government is failing our NHS and local health services up and down the country.

“For too long towns and villages across our region have been taken for granted; ambulance crews are stretched to breaking point, local GPs and dentists are under immense pressure, and A&E waiting times are leaving patients waiting hours for urgent care.

“In North Devon the choice at the next election is clear, 4 more years of Conservative failure or Ian Roome who will be a local champion for the area and stand up for the issues people are facing. People who know Ian will know his great track record on that front.”

Commenting on the lack of progress on the new hospital promised to North Devon in 2019, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate Ian Roome said: “Families right across our area are worried sick about the state of our local health services. We need change.

“For too long North Devon has been taken for granted. Ambulance response times are amongst the worst in the country, GPs are under immense pressure and A&E wait times are often out of hand.

“While our NHS staff continue to work extremely hard, the Conservatives and their delegate in North Devon have let the NHS crisis spiral out of control. Now, they’re failing to deliver the new hospitals they promised and making people wait hours for an ambulance or months for urgent cancer treatment.”

“No doubt they’ll show us a pretty picture or a complex chart. But what they won’t show us is our new hospital, because they can’t – it simply doesn’t exist.”

Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, said: “If the local Lib Dems and the temporary MP for Tiverton and Honiton actually spoke and worked with our NHS Trust, they would be aware of their ambitious plans for redevelopment as part of the New Hospitals Programme (NHP) that is supported by the Department of Health and Social Care.

“The Trust submitted its Strategic Outline Case (SOC) for the NHP investment in July 2021. The case describes a vision for North Devon District Hospital (NDDH) with facilities capable of providing modern and digitally connected care to meet the healthcare needs of the local population. The redevelopment plans also include significantly improved health and wellbeing facilities at NDDH, which will support the Trust’s aims to attract staff and become a great place to work.

“The SOC outline a phased approach to development, to allow the Trust to be flexible and responsive. NDDH has a track record which demonstrates that it delivers quickly and makes the best use of national capital funding when it becomes available for estate redevelopment – recent examples include the new modular ‘Jubilee’ ward for planned orthopaedic surgery to help address waiting lists, built using Elective Recovery Fund money, and the recent diagnostic developments, including a new CT scanner suite.

“The SOC describes an estates solution to a digitally enabled future model of care. Phase 0 of the programme was investment into a shared electronic patient record that is the platform for our merged Trust to deliver patient modern care that empowers patients. This launched in North Devon in July 2022, making NDDH one of the first hospitals within the NHP to implement this mew system.

The SOC indicated a build window of 2025-2027 with enabling works in 2024. The Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England’s central programme team continue to work closely with Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust on the development of their scheme. To date, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has received £14.6million in funding for their scheme, £10million of which funded the implementation of a new digital system, including the roll out of electronic patient records across the whole of Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.

“The Trust has received wider capital funding, including £19.6million from our Elective Recovery Targeted Investment Fund announced in September 2021 for estate works and digital initiatives, as well as £6.7million in 2020-21 and £10.7million in 2021-22 from the A&E upgrades scheme.”

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East Devon Watch

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3 Mar 2023

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Persimmon warns on profits after economic turmoil hit the housing market

Developers usually blame delays in the planning system – this time it’s Liz Truss’ Mini Budget. – Owl

Joanna Hodgson www.standard.co.uk

Persimmon has warned that the turbulent housing market in the months after the fallout from the mini-Budget will result in profits and completions being “down markedly” in 2023.

The FTSE 100 housebuilding giant gave the update as it posted results that showed its current forward order book is worth about £1.5 billion, down substantially on the £2.2 billion recorded a year earlier.

Persimmon said: “Given the economic turmoil resulting from the “mini budget” in September 2022 and the adverse impact it has had on the UK housing market the group’s forward order book, including legal completions taken so far in 2023, is circa 30% weaker year on year.”

Total home sales completed increased to 14,868 last year from 14,551, but Persimmon warned that could tumble to 8,000 to 9,000 in 2023 if the current selling rates continue.

Chief executive Dean Finch said: “Sales rates seen over the last five months mean completions will be down markedly this year and as a consequence, so will margin and profits. However, it is too early to provide firm guidance.”

The order book fall partly came after a strong comparison year, with a housing boom during the pandemic as buyers sought more space and a change of scenery. But the decline also reflects the wider slowdown.

The industry has been under pressure since September, when higher interest rates added to mortgage costs. On top of that consumer finances have been hit from the cost of living crisis, and house prices are expected to fall this year.

Persimmon said sales rates have improved in the first eight weeks of the year, although the level is significantly below the same period a year earlier.

Finch said: “Looking further ahead, the fundamentals underpinning demand for new homes remain strong.” However, he added that market remains uncertain.

Pre-tax profit fell to £730.7 million from £966.8 million last year, reflecting money set aside for potential building safety remediation works.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “Persimmon has ground out a creditable performance considering the challenges of the last year, although the current outlook is rather more troubling.”

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East Devon Watch

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3 Mar 2023

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Cllr Mike Allen accused of bullying council officers at a school event in Honiton has denied the claims.

Registered village greens are protected from encroachment and development. But “development” for the better enjoyment of the green for sports and pastimes is permitted.

If this tree planting was the result of a local consultation, and a planned event, why did Cllr Mike Allen wait until the last moment to object and intervene if he thought he had grounds to do so, taking the law into his own hands?

Was this really the right time and place to do it? In front of children?

It is not unusual to have trees on village greens. For example, the small registered Otterton village green is covered by mature chestnut trees. – Owl

East Devon District Councillor is accused of bullying – but vehemently denies it

honiton.nub.news

Cllr Mike Allen is not a member of Honiton Town Council, but Cllr Jake Bonetta is.

They were due to attend a community event that involved primary school children planting trees at Littletown Green in Honiton.

In a statement read out at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday [ 1 March], Cllr Bonetta claimed he saw Cllr Allen ripping up bamboo shoots and displaying threatening and abusive behaviour towards council officers.

“When I turned up, I was astounded and shocked to see one of our own councillors, Mike Allen, and a member of the public, ripping prepared bamboo sticks out of the ground and throwing them to the side,” he said.

“Not only was Cllr Allen uprooting these bamboo shoots, but he was protesting against the planned works and arguing directly with council staff and myself about the plans.

“As well as this, Cllr Allen was taking photos of the situation and threatening to take further photos of the trees being planted by these children.

“As my four active DBS checks, safeguarding training and experience as a designated safeguarding lead for a not-for-profit has taught me, threatening to take unpermitted photos of kids, whether in an open and public setting or not, is a serious breach of safeguarding responsibilities – on which we have just received mandatory training by the council.”

Cllr Allen vehemently denies the accusations, insisting that he never displayed any threatening behaviour towards anyone. He claims he was calmly trying to prevent work taking place on a protected green.

“This Green was legally granted protection against the wishes of East Devon District Council about 13 years ago,” he said.

“The field had been marked out with bamboo sticks about one metre long and I picked some out and threw them onto the ground as I approached the group of three. I passed by after being told off for pulling up the canes and continued to walk away.

“Town greens must not be dug over or despoiled and have a range of legal protections that were being ignored. I had no intention of bullying anyone, I simply walked to the group and then on past carrying on my protest.

“No children were in the field, nobody was threatened, no voices were raised. Cllr Bonetta joined us later, by which time the two officers had notified their managers who had decided to call off the plantings. The schoolchildren never came near the town green.”

Cllr Allen said that he was taking pictures of digging tools in case he would need them for legal reasons, and never threatened to take pictures of children.

“I am DBS checked and would never threaten or photograph children,” he said. “My little dog Barney and I are well known and trusted by the local residents, children and parents.”

Cllr Allen also said that Cllr Bonetta’s accusations are part of a political game in the run-up to the elections.

The incident ultimately meant that the tree planting activity could not go ahead.

Upon hearing of the allegations, Cllr Paul Hayward (Independent East Devon Alliance, Yarty) called on Conservative leader Cllr Philip Skinner (Tale Vale) to remove Cllr Allen from the party.

“Withdraw the whip from Cllr Allen,” he said at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday [1 March]. “Kick him out of your party and show that you will not tolerate this sort of abhorrent member behaviour. He’s gone too far.

“You need to act and bring Cllr Allen to bear.”

Cllr Skinner will now review both versions of events before making a decision.

“I would see no reason to be withdrawing the whip and I take umbrage to other members of other parties asking me to do so until I’ve got all the facts in front of me,” he said.

“There’s always two sides to every story, so I need to understand what that is first and then we’ll see where we go from there.”

Planning applications validated by EDDC for week beginning 13 February

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Richard Foord MP questions Tory pledge to build 40 new hospitals at PMQs

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Persimmon warns on profits after economic turmoil hit the housing market

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Cllr Mike Allen accused of bullying council officers at a school event in Honiton has denied the claims.

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