The council was planning to cut financial support to organisations helping people who were homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

www.bbc.co.uk

It said it provided the money despite not having “a statutory responsibility to do so” and needed to balance the books.

But a coalition of groups, including homeless charities, said cutting the budget could lead to the closure of five homeless hostel services.

Council leader John Hart made the announcement having listened to members of the public speak about the impact the proposed cuts could have on them and others at a special scrutiny meeting.

He said the council needed to “take stock and understand more fully the impact” of any proposal.

“We need to better understand the full impact of such a decision on all aspects of our public services, including the impact on our Team Devon District and City Council partners.

“Therefore, I am putting a pause on the decision, so that we can have a full and frank discussion with our eight district council leaders and officers.”

Mr Hart said he also wanted to involve other agencies, such as the police and public health.

As a result the council’s contracts with providers will now be extended until the end of March 2024.

In the meantime, the council said it would continue to talk to Devon’s district and city councils, to “agree a way forward that ensures ongoing homelessness support across the county”.

[But London recovers more quickly – Owl]

The National Institute for Economic and Social Research said a triple blow of Brexit, Covid and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had badly affected the economy.

By Michael Race www.bbc.co.uk 

It added that the spending power of workers in many parts of the UK will remain below pre-pandemic levels until the end of 2024.

The BBC has contacted the Treasury for comment.

The amount of money made by the UK economy, its gross domestic product – or all the goods and services produced – is not forecast to return to 2019 levels until the second half of next year, Niesr forecast.

This weak “stuttering growth” over a five year period has widened the gap between the wealthier and poorer parts of the country, the think tank said.

In London, real wages are expected to be 7% higher by the end of next year than they were in 2019 – whereas in regions such as the West Midlands they are forecast to be 5% lower, its analysts said.

Despite pay increases, high inflation has forced up prices and the rising cost of living has left households throughout the UK feeling squeezed.

Niesr forecasts that inflation, the rate at which prices rise, will remain continually above the Bank of England’s 2% target until early 2025, meaning the cost of living will also continue to rise. Inflation is currently 7.9%.

It means that people’s wages, when taking inflation into account, would be below the level they were before the pandemic until the end of next year in “many UK regions”, the think tank said.

Prof Adrian Pabst, deputy director for public policy at Niesr, said low-income households would be hit hardest, with real disposable incomes in this group falling by about 17% over the five years to 2024.

“For some of the poorest in society, coping with low or no real wage growth and persistent inflation has involved new debt to pay for permanently higher housing, energy and food costs,” Prof Pabst said.

Last week, the Bank of England put up interest rates for the 14th time in a row as it continued with its efforts to make borrowing more expensive, dampen demand and therefore slow inflation.

But not all economists agree the Bank should be raising rates when many households and business are struggling financially. Raising rates too aggressively could also push the economy into recession, which is defined typically as when it shrinks for two three-month periods – or quarters – in a row.

Niesr said it expected the UK to avoid going into a recession this year, but said there was a “60% risk” of one by the end of 2024.

A growing economy generally means there are more jobs, companies are more profitable, and pay packets grow. Higher wages and larger profits also generate more money for the government in taxes that can be spent on public services.

Prof Stephen Millard, deputy director for macroeconomic modelling and forecasting at Niesr, said the “supply shocks” of Brexit, Covid, the Ukraine war and rising interest rates had “badly affected the UK economy”.

“The need to address the UK’s poor growth performance remains the key challenge facing policy makers as we approach the next election,” he added.

The £5 million pound project includes knocking down the ‘ageing station complex’ in Exmouth’s North Street includes a disused magistrates court and a mothballed civil defence shelter.

Adam Manning www.exmouthjournal.co.uk

The site is currently occupied by officers but currently members of the public cannot enter without an appointment and Crime Commisioner Alison Hernandez says that “maintenance costs over the next 25 years have been estimated at more than £3m.”

The plans would see the 0.4 hectares of the site sold for redevelopment and a two-storey building built on 0.2 hectares of the site. 

The station will be the operational base for about 60 officers and staff including response officers, neighbourhood officers, Police Community Support Officers, and Special Constables and will include a new public enquiry front desk.

The Commissioner’s estates team is preparing to seek expressions of interest from contractors who may be interested in submitting a full tender for the project.

Commissioner Hernandez, who owns and manages the force estate said: “This project makes sense from every angle. Exmouth is Devon’s largest town and sees a huge increase in its population in the summer months. The teams based there, and the community they serve, deserve a station which is fit for the 21st Century, less harmful to the environment and cheaper to run.

“As with other police station building projects, I am insisting that a significant proportion of the public monies that we are investing in this project go to local people so that money benefits the local economy. The release of brownfield development land means additional housing can be provided in the town without greenfield sites being developed.”

She said improving public access to the force was a ‘non negotiable’ part of the project, adding: “When I carried out a public survey to determine which of the 58 possible locations the public would most like to see, a police enquiry office opened once again in Exmouth came eighth. People love the idea that they can walk into a station and talk to a real human being to report crime, receive advice on crime prevention and seek help for victims, so there is no way I am going to miss the opportunity to give this town back its front desk.”

Assistant Chief Constable Glen Mayhew, Force Lead for Local Policing said: “Our officers and staff are part of the local community, and this investment supports them to achieve this. They need a modern base to ensure that we deliver a local service that is effective and accessible to our communities. We are all looking forward to this development taking shape.”

Simon Jupp, MP for East Devon, said; “I am really pleased Exmouth’s new police station has taken another step forward with multi-million-pound investment planned in the town. The new state-of-the-art station will be open to the public with a dedicated front desk which I know is important to residents in East Devon. 

“After successfully campaigning to reopen Honiton police station to the public, I’m delighted to see progress across the district. Working with the Police & Crime Commissioner, I’m determined to improve visibility of the police and make our town centres and streets safer.”

A formal application is submitted to East Devon District Council.

Six English water companies will face legal action over allegations of underreporting pollution incidents and “unfairly overcharging” customers.

Danny Halpin www.independent.co.uk 

Severn Trent Water, Thames Water, United Utilities, Anglian Water, Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water could end up paying over £800m in compensation to more than 20 million customers if the cases are successful.

Professor Carolyn Roberts, an environmental and water consultant represented by Leigh Day Solicitors, alleges the water companies have broken competition laws by misleading the Environment Agency and the regulator Ofwat.

She claims they have been underreporting the number of sewage discharges, resulting in customers being “unfairly overcharged” for wastewater services, and that, had sewage discharge reporting been accurate, it would have lowered customer bills.

The first claim, brought on behalf of eight million people against Severn Trent Water, is estimated to be worth more than £330m.

Further claims will be brought against the other companies in what Leigh Day said is the first environmental collective action case of its kind.

Commenting on the lawsuits, Ms Roberts said: “Like many others across the country, I have viewed with horror the escalating number of stories in the media regarding the volume of sewage discharged into our waterways and on to our beaches.

“The population of the UK has a right to expect that our rivers, lakes and seas will generally be clean, except under exceptional circumstances,” she continued.

According to Ms Roberts, these water companies have dodged Ofwat penalties “because of the serial and serious underreporting at the heart of these claims” that has resulted in customers being overcharged for water services.

Anyone who has paid a water bill to one or more of these companies from April 2020 – or April 2017 for Severn Trent Water customers – may be entitled to compensation if the claims are successful.

Leigh Day is seeking money for customers on an opt-out basis, meaning people only have to come forward to claim their compensation if the case is successful.

It is bringing Severn Trent Water to the Competition Appeal Tribunal and will issue five further claims against the other water companies over the coming months.

If successful, solicitors expect any compensation to be paid by the relevant water company and its shareholders, not by raising customer bills.

Zoe Mernick-Levene, partner at Leigh Day, said: “These claims are hugely significant. Not only is compensation being sought for millions of customers who have and continue to pay higher water bills, but we hope that it will also send a message to water companies that they cannot unlawfully pollute waterways and mislead their regulators without consequence.

“Customers put their trust in water companies, believing that they are correctly reporting these spillages and appropriately treating the sewage so it can safely be returned to the environment,” she added.

“Instead, our client believes they are misleading their regulators and customers are overpaying while England’s waterways are suffering as a result.”

Water UK has been contacted for comment.

The Environment Agency issues “derogations” (free passes) to farmers to pollute rivers while Natural England cracks down on development to stop pollution in similar sensitive areas.

Recapitulation on “Bonkers” plans on barn conversions

Yesterday, Owl reported on the latest bizarre proposal, inspired by Michael Gove, to allow permitted development rights to apply to the conversion of agricultural barns to homes even in “Protected Landscapes”.

Given that a general presumption of permitted development to build a structure for “agricultural purposes” (with much larger footprint than a house requires) already applies to farms greater than 5 hectares (about 12 football fields). This will inevitably lead to uncontrolled peppering of barn-houses all over our countryside.

Housebuilders attack double standards as farmers pollute

Oliver Wright www.thetimes.co.uk

Farmers are being granted special licences to pollute rivers in areas where house building has been banned because of the danger of damaging rare ecosystems.

Over the past two years the Environment Agency has issued almost 500 derogations to farmers in so-called nitrate vulnerable zones.

But at the same time Natural England, another government environmental quango, has effectively banned new housing developments across 74 local authority areas due to similar pollution concerns.

Nitrate vulnerable zones are areas of the UK where rivers are at risk of pollution — in the form of excessive nitrogen and phosphorus from farm fertilisers, animal slurry and human sewage — which damages rivers by causing an overgrowth of algae that can kill off wildlife.

An analysis suggests that the additional nitrates discharge levels being granted to farmers by the Environment Agency is equivalent to the total annual nitrogen that would be produced by hundreds of thousands of new homes.

Under existing legal limits, farmers are allowed to discharge about 170kg of nitrogen per hectare. However, an agreement with the Environment Agency allows farm businesses within nitrate vulnerable zones to apply for an increase to 250kg per hectare. This is particularly used by dairy and cattle farmers as the manure produced is rich in nitrogen.

In the five years to 2022 the Environment Agency granted 99.4 per cent of the 1,191 applications it received for derogations.

Critics claim that the position taken by the Environment Agency is in marked contrast to that taken by Natural England, which has effectively banned housing across large parts of the country because of the risk to rivers.

The housing industry argues that water pollution from homes, which is treated in sewage plants, is a fraction of that from agriculture and that they are working to double standards. It says that every new home would produce 1.4kg a year or 62.5kg per hectare — a quarter of the level for agriculture.

A spokesman for the Home Builders Federation said that the discrepancy in approach between the two agencies was wrong. “It is frustrating that one government quango’s solution is to ban house building, despite its negligible contribution to the issue, whilst another signs off the use of thousands of tonnes of nutrient-rich fertiliser, the main cause of the issue,” they said.

“Everyone agrees action is needed, but the disproportionate move by Natural England is not improving our rivers and instead is exacerbating our housing crisis, preventing the provision of quality homes and costing jobs.”

Natural England was established in 2006 with a mandate to conserve, enhance and manage the natural environment. It has a statutory role to provide advice to local planning authorities on the impacts of development on the natural environment.

The Environment Agency is responsible for regulating water quality and improving standards in agriculture to tackle pollution.

The Times’s Clean It Up campaign has called on the government to maintain the “nutrient neutrality” rules laid out by Natural England. The campaign is also encouraging farmers to curb their pollution of rivers.

A government spokesman said: “The government remains committed to delivering housing in areas impacted by nutrient neutrality and is supporting local authorities and developers.

“We have already worked closely with farmers to reduce pollution and our Plan for Water committed to improving our farm regulations to make them clearer and more effective as we continue to work with the sector on this.”