Because the commons at last got around to debating the Post Office scandal, there was insufficient time left for the second reading of the “Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill” last night.

It will now be “rescheduled”.

Awkward moment for the government (and Simon Jupp) kicked down the road. – Owl

Petition reaches 1.2 million.

you.38degrees.org.uk

Remove the CBE granted to Paula Vennells due to her role in the wrongful prosecution of 550 Post Office staff as part of the Horizon computer scandal.

Evidence has been produced that the Post Office engaged in a mass cover up which led to the wrongful prosecution of 550 Post Office Staff many of whom were subsequently jailed, bankrupted and in some cases, sadly took their own lives.

The initial Post Office investigation in 2012 failed to find any issues and as a result in 2012, Second Sight, an independent investigative firm were brought in to investigate complaints that the Horizon system used in post offices was inaccurate, buggy and could ‘lose money’. Despite pledging full co-operation initially, Post Office subsequently withheld documents from the investigation and Paula Vennells later failed to answer a select committee when challenged on why this documents had not been produced as requested. The damning report, marked as ‘confidential’ stated that the Horizon system was ‘not fit for purpose’ and among their discoveries were 12,000 communication failures every year, software defects at 76 branches and that the system was failing to track money from lottery terminal, tax disc sales and cash machines properly. It concluded that rather than investigate the cause of such errors, Post Office instead accused sub-postmasters of theft. The Post Office dismissed the report which was subsequently leaked to the BBC in 2014.

Despite Paula Vennells assertion that Post Office “have been working with Second Sight over the last few weeks on what we agreed at the outset. We have been provided the information” to Parliament at her select committee appearance in 2015, the lead investigator for Second Sight, Adrian Bailey, when asked if this was the case said categorically, “No, it is not” which meant that he could not access files to back up his suspicions that Post Office Ltd had brought cases against sub-postmasters with ‘inadequate investigation and inadequate evidence’. The requested files had still not been handed over to Second Sight 18 months later.

In March 2015, on the eve of the Second Sight report publication, Private Eye reported that the Post Office had instructed Second Sight to end their investigation, destroy all paperwork and scrapped the independent committee that had been convened.

In 2019, a class action case, Bates & Ors v Post Office Ltd, was settled by the Post Office in favour of the 550 sub-postmasters for over £58 million.

Mr Justice Fraser, the judge in the case concluded that the approach of the Post Office: “amounted, in reality, to bare assertions and denials that ignore what has actually occurred, at least so far as the witnesses called before me in the Horizon Issues trial are concerned. It amounts to the 21st century equivalent of maintaining that the earth is flat.”

Mr Justice Fraser, so concerned by what he had seen in the case, has passed a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions. In the Lords, Baron Arbuthnot of Edrom said in November 2019: “My own suggestion is that the government should clear out the entirety of the board and senior management of the Post Office and start again, perhaps with the assistance of consultancy services from Second Sight, who know where the bodies are buried.”.

Having been handed a CBE for services to the Post Office, and moved out into other senior positions in government and healthcare, it is only right that this award is now withdrawn through the process of forfeiture.

Paula Vennells has subsequently refused to answer questions from these staff as well as the media and has refused to apologise for the cover-up, misery and trauma caused which has brought not only herself but the Post Office, the honours system and government into disrepute.

Link to sign here

The Marsh Family sing about the New Year’s honours in their parody of: “There is nothing like a dame”

Older homeowners who downsize should be exempt from paying stamp duty while those who own a second home should be financially penalised in an overhaul to tackle Britain’s housing crisis, a study has concluded.

Oliver Wright www.thetimes.co.uk

The report, backed by Lord Heseltine and Lord Mandelson, also urged the government to review greenbelt boun­daries to free up land for development and force local authorities to plan for their future housing needs.

Academics at the London School of Economics and University of Sheffield also recommended a revaluation of council tax bands so that the bene­ficiaries of higher-priced properties would pay more to support social house­building.

Their conclusions are likely to be examined closely by senior figures in the Labour and the Conservative parties as housing moves up the political agenda before this year’s election.

The report, commissioned by the Family Building Society, said that tackling the housing shortage could not be dealt with by building more homes alone, pointing out that even a pro-development government would find it hard to add more than 1 per cent a year to the existing stock.

It said the UK had a vacancy rate of only 3 per cent — one of the lowest levels in the developed world — which was “inadequate” to allow normal turnover and mobility. This situation is likely to get worse with latest household projections for England suggesting that the number of households is set to increase by about 1.6 million over the next ten years.

That would mean even if the national target of 300,000 new homes being built each year was achieved, more than half of these additions would go to meet this increase, leaving relatively few to help reduce the backlog of the present unmet need.

In 2000 more than 70 per cent of households in England owned their home. In 2022, the figure was just over 64 per cent. That year fewer than 25 per cent of households aged under 35 were owner-occupiers compared with more than 50 per cent in 2001.

The report’s ­authors argued that much more needed to be done to use the UK’s existing housing stock more efficiently. They pointed out the discrepancy between older homeowners — sometimes living alone — in houses that are both too large and unsuitable to their needs.

But they said that at present there was too little to incentivise these people to downsize as they would incur both the cost of moving and paying stamp duty on their new home.

To remedy this, the report recommended that stamp duty should be waived for downsizing older homeowners, combining it with an emphasis on creating “retirement communities”, which could ease the moving process and help keep people healthier and connected.

It recommended a crackdown on second homeowners and the short-term Airbnb rental market, which it said distorted housing mar­kets, making it harder for local people to get on the ladder. It pointed to Wales where second homeowners faced paying up to three times the normal rate of council tax for a second property.

Mandelson said that facilitating downsizing would be a “far swifter way of easing some of the existing housing problems” than “headline-grabbing newbuild targets”.

He continued: “It can be done quite readily. Stamp duty land tax can be changed easily and its impact, as seen during the pandemic holiday, can be enormously beneficial in overall economic terms. It just requires a little ­creative thinking from the Treasury.”

Heseltine said the report should be “required reading” not only “for those with their hands on the levers of political power but also anyone interested in building a civilised society”.

Christine Whitehead, emeritus ­professor of housing economics at the London School of Economics, said the UK’s housing policy had suffered from a “mishmash” of initiatives. She said that successive governments’ focus on newbuilds would not on its own be enough to tackle the problem, which could be solved only through a range of ideas such as stamp duty reform and a crackdown on second homes.

Two different parking schemes from two different councils are clashing in Exmouth and “were brought in without full consideration of the effects on each other,” according to an East Devon councillor.

Parking in Exmouth just became a problem

Guy Henderson www.devonlive.com 

Cllr Ben Ingham (Conservative, Woodbury and Lympstone) told East Devon District Council’s cabinet this week that EDDC’s all-day £2 winter car park deal and a new Devon County Council resident permit holders’ scheme “are laudable but together are causing a problem.”

The county council’s new permit parking zones in parts of Exmouth came into effect in August. The district council’s all-day £2 winter car park offer, which has also been available in previous years, began in November and will run until the end of March.

Cllr Ingham said: “Whilst the Exmouth residential parking scheme is working for residents within the town, the introduction of the £2 per day parking charge in EDDC car parks has raised an unexpected issue for shoppers and those wishing to use the sports facility at the Exmouth LED.

“As soon as residents’ parking came in, commuters filled the long-stay car park behind the station and therefore residents wanting to go to Exeter for leisure could not park.

“The £2 fee has now meant the short-term car park by the leisure centre is now jammed for all day but not by shoppers.

“The repercussions of this are shoppers cannot park so go elsewhere, gym users cannot park, and annual permit holders cannot park which negates the purpose of having a permit, meanwhile the coach and lorry park remains a largely empty space.”

In response, leader of EDDC Cllr Paul Arnott (Lib Dem, Coly Valley) said the matter will be raised at the next cabinet meeting.

He replied: “I think a difficulty has been created with Devon County Council pushing ahead with their own changes and that was done with very little consultation with us as a council.

“However, we’ve been very aware throughout December, I’ve been personally aware of this as well, that we need to look at what the law of unintended consequences is around the £2 offer.

“Now obviously it’s been welcomed hugely by businesses across the district, but we don’t want it to have any negative effects.

“So therefore, I’m able to advise that our parking officer will be bringing a report to the next cabinet [meeting] in February.”

EDDC also apologised for the situation last month.

A spokesperson for Devon County Council said: “Residents’ parking in the Colonies area and parts of St Andrews Road was introduced following a consultation and concerns raised by local residents who were experiencing difficulties with the current on-street parking arrangements.

“The scheme aims to remove all-day commuter parking in residential areas and ensures that residents have priority to park within their own area.”

Exmouth residents and visiting tourists are at risk of penalty notices if they buy parking tickets on the wrong side of the road along the seafront on Queen’s Drive. The road closest to the beach is operated by Devon County Council; the opposite side is run by East Devon. Charges are different on each side of the road, and anyone crossing over to pay their fee on the other side is at risk of a traffic warden’s wrath.

Some years ago, a whole line of vehicles was ticketed when some parking meters on one side of the road were out of order.

Owl always posts planning applications with at  least a two week lag. Experience has shown that these lists can, occasionally, be amended within such a time.

Over Christmas and New Year Owl has a bit of catching up to do but will keep each week separate.

• Proposal to place an additional conductor to an existing overhead High Voltage line. The route will not deviate from its current position. The alterations start at pole 31ULF2 to 31UL32. Land North Of Moorcox Lane WilmingtonRef. No: 23/2700/OHL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Certificate of lawful development for construction of attic room with rear facing dormer window10 Hawksdown View Seaton Devon EX12 2BJRef. No: 23/2711/CPL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• First floor bedroom partition; raising height of both chimneys by four courses of brickwork and the provision of a 600mm high, clay chimney pot for each chimney. Jessamine Cottage The Green Whimple Devon EX5 2TYRef. No: 23/2710/LBC | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Raising height of both chimneys by four courses of brickwork and the provision of a 600mm high, clay chimney pot for each chimney. Jessamine Cottage The Green Whimple Devon EX5 2TYRef. No: 23/2709/FUL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Erection of a livestock dung storage building Shapwick Grange Uplyme DT7 3SPRef. No: 23/2702/FUL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed replacement windows, change of render colour and new rear dormer Musgrove Farm Lane Past Musgrove Farm House Dunkeswell Devon EX14 4RRRef. No: 23/2705/FUL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed raising lower roof on western elevation with construction of rear first floor dormer. Removal of existing rear single storey extension to be replaced with larger single storey extension and proposed raised rear terrace. 36 Livonia Road Sidmouth Devon EX10 9JBRef. No: 23/2704/FUL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Prior approval for change of use of the second floor of 114-116 High Street Honiton to two residential flats. No external changes are proposed to the building as these are not required (though nor are they allowed under Class MA permitted development rights). A proposed floor plan has been prepared in order to demonstrate that this floor can be converted to two flats while providing natural light to all habitable rooms. 114-116 High Street Honiton Devon EX14 1JPRef. No: 23/2703/PDMA | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed replacement windows, change of render colour and new rear dormer Musgrove Farm Lane Past Musgrove Farm House Dunkeswell Devon EX14 4RRRef. No: 23/2706/LBC | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Certificate of existing lawfulness for use of building and associated land for indoor sport and recreation. 1 Diamond House Reme Drive Heathpark Industrial Estate Honiton EX14 1SERef. No: 23/2691/CPE | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Alterations to existing annexe to create a granny annexe Orchard Lea Church Road Whimple Devon EX5 2TFRef. No: 23/2699/FUL | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Removal of condition 2 (occupancy condition) on permission 96/P1631 following the securing of a Lawful Development Certificate (23/1590/CPE) for occupation of the dwelling without complying with the condition. Four Valleys Colyton EX24 6DURef. No: 23/2694/VAR | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Erection of a single-storey side extension. Construction of brick paver parking bay. Part replacement of the existing fence, forming new entrance to rear garden. 40 Summer Meadow Cranbrook Devon EX5 7DFRef. No: 23/2681/FUL | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Maple: fell. Tulip tree: fell. The White Cottage Cotmaton Road Sidmouth EX10 8QXRef. No: 23/2690/TCA | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• T3, Cedar of Lebanon: install 2×3 way wire rope cable braces at approx. 8 and 12m above ground. Brace to be installed on belts or via invasive bolts. Reduce lateral spread of canopy to south, west and north by 2-3m by a combination of thinning and reduction. Works to specifically target longest branches to reduce risk of branch failure. T1, Western Red Cedar: Crown raise lower foliage over graveyard in order to give approx. 1.5-2 metres clearance over headstones. St Andrews Church ChardstockRef. No: 23/2689/TCA | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Two-storey extension, porch and alterations including replacement garden terrace. 11 Meadow Close Lympstone Exmouth EX8 5LQRef. No: 23/2688/FUL | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Take down and rebuild section of garden wall 3 Sunnyside South Street Colyton EX24 6EPRef. No: 23/2687/LBC | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Take down and rebuild section of garden wall 3 Sunnyside South Street Colyton EX24 6EPRef. No: 23/2686/FUL | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• T1, Holm Oak: lift aspect of crown of tree above road to approximately 5.5m above ground level. Archbrook Lodge 1A Station Road Budleigh Salterton EX9 6RHRef. No: 23/2685/TRE | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of conditions for 22/2680/FUL : Condition 4 (materials), Condition 5 (landscaping)Caravan Littledown Farm Yarcombe Honiton EX14 9LZRef. No: 23/2683/DOC | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Two storey rear extension Stanbury Lyme Road Uplyme Devon DT7 3UYRef. No: 23/2682/FUL | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of conditions for 22/1045/FUL: Condition 6 ( Landscaping) , Condition 8 (Finished Floor Levels), Condition 17 (LEMP), Condition 18 (CTMP), Condition 19 (CEMP) Cowley Barton Farm Cowley EX5 5EJRef. No: 23/2677/DOC | Validated: Tue 12 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of condition for 23/0346/FUL : Condition 4 (Arboricultural Method Statement / Tree Protection Plan) Lower Mead West Hill Road West Hill Devon EX11 1TYRef. No: 23/2680/DOC | Validated: Tue 12 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of condition for 23/1637/LBC : Condition 4 (window and door schedule)Dirks Garden Birchill Devon EX13 7LFRef. No: 23/2673/DOC | Validated: Mon 11 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• T1, Large Turkey Oak: remove deadwood throughout the crown; reduce radial spread over Hillside House driveway and garage by up to 2m radial spread; remove lateral branch growing over the garage roof; reduce radial spread of remaining corwn by up to 2m branch length. T2, Turkey Oak: remove primary stems. The Old Rectory Plymtree Cullompton EX15 2JPRef. No: 23/2653/TRE | Validated: Mon 11 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• T1, Oak tree: reduce the crown height by 2-3m. removing branch lengths of up to 2-3m. and making natural target pruning cuts up to 10cm in diameter. Remaining tree will be 17m in height with canopy spread of 3m (N, E and W) and 2m (S). T2, Horse Chestnut: reduce the crown height and spread removing branch lengths up to 1m, making natural target pruning cuts up 5cm. in diameter, stripping all Ivy from this tree. Remaining tree will be 17m in height with canopy spread of 3m (N, S and W) and 4m (E). T3, Ash tree: crown reduce the height and spread removing branch lengths 2-3m. making natural target pruning cuts up to 5cm in diameter, stripping the Ivy from this tree to enable future tree assessments. Remaining tree will be 17m in height with canopy spread of 3m. T4 and T5, Horse Chestnut: to reduce back all branches to give a half metre clearance from the street lighting which the trees surround, removing branch lengths up to 2m in length making natural target pruning cuts up to 5cm in diameter. Height will remain at 5m with a canopy spread of 2m (N, S and E) and 0.5m (W). 21 Old Manor Gardens Colyford Devon EX24 6TZRef. No: 23/2657/TCA | Validated: Sun 17 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed conservatory to rear of property.25 Jocelyn Road Budleigh Salterton Devon EX9 6SFRef. No: 23/2651/FUL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Erection of a rear orangery, and replacement of the flat roof (over the existing side extension) with a tiled duo-pitched roof (re submission of 23/1204/FUL). 3 Broadoak Close West Hill Ottery St Mary EX11 1XWRef. No: 23/2670/FUL | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Construction of a new dwelling Land Adjacent Fieldside Rhode Lane UplymeRef. No: 23/2644/FUL | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Change of use of the first floor, currently in use as a dental repair shop, to a residential flat (C3) with separate access95A Exeter Road Exmouth Devon EX8 1QDRef. No: 23/2616/COU | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Conversion and extension to existing garage into a studio bedroom with kitchenette and shower room. 19 Richmond Road Exmouth Devon EX8 2NARef. No: 23/2614/FUL | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Construction of an annexe. Saxons Cotleigh EX14 9JDRef. No: 23/2621/FUL | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Removal of brick wall to be replaced with a glazed front and re-roofing of a single story lean-to and construction of open-fronted oak framed porch on the side elevation. Wayside Causeway Beer EX12 3JURef. No: 23/2591/LBC | Validated: Mon 11 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed agricultural building for the storage of machinery and fodder Farm Yard And Buildings To The North Of Green Lane RousdonRef. No: 23/2586/AGR | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed removal of a 4m section of hedgerow to create a new access.Horriford Farm Holyford Lane Colyford Devon EX24 6HWRef. No: 23/2595/HRN | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Construction of raised decking to existing outbuilding Dunscombe Cottage Salcombe Regis Sidmouth EX10 0PNRef. No: 23/2588/FUL | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Removal of brick wall to be replaced with a glazed front and re-roofing of a single story lean-to and construction of open-fronted oak framed porch on the side elevation. Wayside Causeway Beer EX12 3JURef. No: 23/2590/FUL | Validated: Mon 11 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of conditions for 23/1637/LBC: Condition 1 – Works commencement within 3 years; Condition 3 – Materials; Condition 6 – Wall refurbishment.Dirks Garden Birchill Axminster EX13 7LFRef. No: 23/2579/DOC | Validated: Tue 12 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Alterations to the Shopfront, removal of the entrance from New Street to Fore Street, and a new DDA Access. H S B C Fore Street Sidmouth EX10 8AARef. No: 23/2513/FUL | Validated: Thu 14 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Construction of single storey lobby to the existing Annex “Wisteria Cottage” on the north elevation 253A Exeter Road Exmouth Devon EX8 3NQRef. No: 23/2441/FUL | Validated: Fri 15 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision

• Proposed dwelling and off-road parking and double garage within the garden. (Revision of 23/0847 to add a basement level to the dwelling).
  Meadowgate Church Road Lympstone Devon EX8 5JU
  Ref. No: 23/2386/FUL | Validated: Wed 13 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Application to vary the section 106 agreement to amend the tenure split of affordable housing from 7% social rent to 30% social rent and from 63% affordable rent to 40% affordable rent.
  Tithebarn Green Clyst Honiton
  Ref. No: 23/2344/V106 | Validated: Tue 12 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision

• T5: Oak – reduce main southerly limb by appropximately 6m back to growth point distal of potential roost feature. Maximum diameter of cut (MDC) approximately 200mm. T1: Oak – reduce branches from around corner of the house to give 2m clearance. MDC approximately 50mm. Brockhill 23 Thomas Bassett Drive Colyford Devon EX24 6PNRef. No: 23/2753/TRE | Validated: Thu 21 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of Condition for 23/1398/FUL: Condition 6 (Construction Managment Plan) 9 West Hill Lane Budleigh Salterton Devon EX9 6AARef. No: 23/2750/DOC | Validated: Wed 20 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Row1: x12 Leyland cypress – fell to as near ground level as possible. Springfield House West Hill Road West Hill EX11 1UZRef. No: 23/2747/TRE | Validated: Wed 20 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• T1: Oak – dismantle in stages to near ground level. Flat 6 2 West Checkstone Douglas Avenue Exmouth EX8 2AURef. No: 23/2748/TCA | Validated: Wed 20 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Outline permission for the construction of up to six dwellings sought with all matters reserved other than access Land South Of Courtlands Lane ExmouthRef. No: 23/2740/OUT | Validated: Wed 20 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Retrospective new agricultural building for storage and workshop Rosamondford Farm Perkins Village EX5 2JGRef. No: 23/2743/FUL | Validated: Wed 20 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Agricultural livestock building Lane End Farm Broadhembury Honiton EX14 3LURef. No: 23/2731/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Roofing over existing livestock yard area phase 3 Cockhayes Farm Upottery EX14 9RBRef. No: 23/2735/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Roofing over existing livestock yard area phase 2 Cockhayes Farm Upottery EX14 9RBRef. No: 23/2734/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Roofing over existing livestock yard area phase 1 Cockhayes Farm Road Past Cookhayes Farm Upottery Devon EX14 9RBRef. No: 23/2733/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• T1) English oak – removal of lowest primary limb which grows roughly northwards. The diameter of limb is estimated 250x400mm. T2) Holly – crown reduce – height to 4.8m so down to near top of main trunk, skirt lifted to 1.8m and leggy side branches shortened to approx. 1.8m. 1 Moorlands Road Budleigh Salterton Devon EX9 6AGRef. No: 23/2729/TRE | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Upgrading the current supply to Stedcombe House, Axmouth. The supply currently comes from an 11KV spur overhead which is split phase, proposal to add a third conductor to make this spur three phase. Also the line is currently terminated with a single pole and transformer, the transformer will also need to upgrading and in order to do this an additional support pole will need to be added making an “H” pole configuration. From this transformer it is proposed to install a single overhead span of LV conductors crossing the river towards Stedcombe house. This will be terminated with a single pole and stay wire the remainder of the supply will continue underground. Stedcombe House Axmouth Seaton EX12 4BJRef. No: 23/2727/OHL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposal for a new building to house an energy substation with associated vehicle access, boundary fencing, external works, infrastructure and landscaping Exeter Science Park Clyst HonitonRef. No: 23/2722/FUL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Roofing over existing livestock yard area Court Place Farm Wilmington Devon EX14 9LARef. No: 23/2720/FUL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Change of use to form 2 dwellings, 1 x 3 bedrooms and 1 x 4 bedrooms. The Railway Queen Street Honiton Devon EX14 1HERef. No: 23/2716/PDMA | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Certificate of lawfulness for the proposed use of the premises as a Dental practice including consultancy and treatment (Use Class E(e))5 Dart Business Park Clyst St George Devon EX3 0QHRef. No: 23/2715/CPL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed alterations and repairs to an existing agricultural shed Mosshayne Church Pass Road ShuteRef. No: 23/2712/FUL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Single storey rear extension and rendering of brickwork. 8 Nurseries Close Exton Devon EX3 0PGRef. No: 23/2697/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Discharge of condition for 23/1917/FUL: Condition 3 (Tree Protection). 36 East Budleigh Road Budleigh Salterton EX9 6EJRef. No: 23/2693/DOC | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Proposed revised single storey side extension, to replace approved front and side extension, under Householder application 23/0793/FUL. 20 Snowdrop Close Honiton Devon EX14 2UHRef. No: 23/2675/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Agricultural farm building, to store and receive deliveries Land East Of Gosford Road Gosford Road Ottery St MaryRef. No: 23/2672/FUL | Validated: Thu 21 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Demolition of cottage and erection of new dwelling Lily Cottage Goldsmith Lane All Saints Axminster EX13 7LURef. No: 23/2663/FUL | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Demolition of exg outbuildings and construction of 4 chalet bungalows. Bedgales Nursery Manstone Avenue Sidmouth EX10 9XARef. No: 23/2628/FUL | Validated: Fri 22 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Tulip Tree : reduce crown to previous pruning points including reductions over the public highway to maintain statutory clearance. Ernespie Longdogs Lane Ottery St Mary EX11 1HXRef. No: 23/2608/TRE | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Variation of Condition 2 (approved plans) on application number 22/2305/FUL (Replacement of community centre with 4no. residential flats (almshouses) with associated development to include access, landscaping and drainage) – request for revised design and internal layout. Ottery Feoffee Day Centre Brook Street Ottery St Mary Devon EX11 1EZRef. No: 23/2594/VAR | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Retention of loft conversion to create bedroom, study and bathroom with new staircase from first floor to loft with supporting beam; 4no. rooflights on north elevation and pipework and external flue in bathroom. Springfield Farm Sidbury EX10 0QJRef. No: 23/2543/LBC | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Replace 2no. windows at first floor and 1no. window at ground floor on front south east elevation. 17 Bicton Street Exmouth EX8 2RURef. No: 23/2534/LBC | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Agricultural storage building and workshop Great Trill Farm Musbury Axminster EX13 8TURef. No: 23/2526/AGR | Validated: Tue 19 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Installation of additional air source heat pump and associated outbuilding. Change material of front doors for new 3 no. dwellings to be timber stable style front doors Ley Farm Yarcombe Devon EX14 9LWRef. No: 23/2491/FUL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Installation of additional air source heat pump and associated outbuilding. Change material of front doors for new 3 no. dwellings to be timber stable style front doors Ley Farm Yarcombe Devon EX14 9LWRef. No: 23/2492/LBC | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Demolition of the existing dwelling and redevelopment of the site to provide four dwellings and a new vehicular access 87 Sidford High Street Sidford EX10 9SARef. No: 23/2385/FUL | Validated: Mon 18 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision
• Replacement ball stop netting to north eastern boundary of cricket field adjacent to Luxtons Park Ottery St Mary Cricket Club Strawberry Lane Salston Ottery St Mary EX11 1RGRef. No: 23/2372/FUL | Validated: Fri 22 Dec 2023 | Status: Awaiting decision

“I have written to Ofwat’s chief executive to call on the regulator to open enforcement action and consider criminal actions and fines against South West Water for this failure.” Simon Jupp.

Pollution alert after ‘catastrophic’ sewage pipe failure as MP calls for probe

A Devon MP has called on the water regulator to open a criminal investigation into South West Water after i revealed the water company had discharged millions of litres of untreated sewage into the sea.

David Parsley inews.co.uk

The demand from Simon Jupp, the Conservative MP for East Devon, came as the Environment Agency (EA) urged bathers not to enter the sea in Exmouth after it was alerted to a failed pumping station just 200 metres from the two-mile stretch of sandy beach.

Since 11 December, the water firm has been dealing with two major pipe bursts in the town, which has led to untreated sewage being taken by a convoy of trucks to the Maer Road Sewage Pumping Station, just 200 metres from Exmouth’s two miles of sandy beach.

Despite initially denying its Maer Road Pumping Station had failed, a spokesman for South West Water subsequently confirmed one pump at the site had failed only after being presented with photo evidence by i. However, it denied untreated sewage was being discharged into the sea.

On Friday i revealed that South West Water had been accused of dumping millions of litres of raw sewage into the popular Devon beach resort.

A spokesman for the water firm said: “At Maer Road, we have a duty pump with sufficient capacity to pump storm flows. We also have a permanently installed second standby pump should the duty pump fail.

“Because this is a critical site, we have a third pump (a standby for the standby) which we keep on site for emergencies.

“The operational pump was running normally but there was an issue with the standby and it was this standby that was being replaced. At no time was the pumping station unable to pump to full capacity.”

Despite South West Water’s insistence that the pumping station was working at “full capacity” the Environment Agency later confirmed that the site had failed.

A spokeswoman for the EA told i: “We are aware of this issue and currently investigating what has happened.

“Officers have attended the site in question and are closely monitoring activity, as well as working with South West Water to ensure their failed pumping station is back in operation as quickly as possible.”

As late as Friday evening South West Water continued to insist its emergency works were not causing a pollution incident.

In video posted on social media, John Halsall, South West Water’s chief operating officer, told residents that the firm was not pumping raw sewage into the sea.

He said: “So there’s been a lot of suggestion in social media that we are polluting, you’re on a sort of an ongoing basis. The tanking operation is making the situation worse. That is incorrect.

“On no occasion have we have we created additional environmental impact as a result of the tankering.”

However, on Saturday morning the EA urged people not to enter the waters in Exmouth due to sewage pollution the following morning.

Mr Jupp said: “South West Water have failed the people of Exmouth with more potentially illegal sewage discharges into our beautiful East Devon coastline.

“South West Water’s infrastructure suffered a catastrophic failure this week due to their lack of proper investment into the town.

“I have written to Ofwat’s chief executive to call on the regulator to open enforcement action and consider criminal actions and fines against South West Water for this failure.”

Geoff Crawford, the founder of Escape – End Sewage Convoys And Pollution Exmouth – claims that South West Water should have taken the sewage to a treatment works less than a mile away and its decision not to “indicates that they knew the sewage would go almost straight into the sea and didn’t care”.

Mr Crawford said: “They appear to have willfully polluted the sea with millions of litres of untreated sewage.”

Also on Saturday, South West Water delivered more bad news to local residents as it posted a letter through their doors.

The letter said that that while repairs to the pipes in a local park had been successfully completed there had been another failure around 600 metres away from the original burst. Local campaigners attributed this failure to South West Water’s decision to increase the pressure in the pipe that the old network could not withstand.

The letter, which apologised for the inconvenience to locals, added: “Yesterday, we successfully fitted the overland pipe which would take flows around the bursts, and allow the removal of tankers and clearing of the site ready for repair.

“Unfortunately, after setting it up, when we put flows back into the sewer, the build-up of pressure caused another burst further up the sewer.

“Our teams worked through the night yesterday and repaired this related burst. We have laid concrete around it today which will help further secure it.

“This concrete needs 2-3 days to dry fully. Once the concrete is dry, we will be able to introduce flows back into the sewer. Unfortunately, we will have to continue tankering until this is complete.”

A spokesman for South West Water said: “If an investigation is opened, we will work collaboratively with Ofwat and provide necessary information as requested by the regulator.”

Regarding the pollution highlighted by the EA the water company claimed this was due to “permitted storm overflow activation because of extensive rainfall”.

Work to fix a burst sewer in a Devon town has been delayed again, South West Water (SWW) has said.

Jonathan Morris BBC News South West

The utility company had been expected to fix the problem in Exmouth by Saturday, but said work was continuing after another burst.

The sewer burst on 30 December and sewage tankers have been passing through the town to a pumping station while repairs continue.

The Environment Agency has advised swimmers against going in the sea at Exmouth due to sewage pollution since the incident started.

A SWW spokesperson thanked local people for their patience.

“We successfully fitted the overland pipe which would take flows around the bursts, and allow the removal of tankers and clearing of the site ready for repair,” they said.

“Unfortunately, after setting it up, when we put flows back into the sewer, the build-up of pressure caused another burst further up the sewer.”

The repair had been fixed but would take two to three days for the concrete to dry.

“Once the concrete is dry, we will be able to introduce flows back into the sewer,” they said.

“Unfortunately, we will have to continue tankering until this is complete.”

Accountancy firm Grant Thornton has been cut from the industry watchdog’s top tier of audit supervision after removing a number of high-profile clients.

Lars Mucklejohn www.cityam.com 

The Financial Reporting Council demoted the firm from “tier one” to “tier two” status last year, according to regulatory filings from July, which were first reported by the Financial Times today.

Firms in the lower tier are subject to inspections of their “public interest entity” (PIE) audits every three years, rather than annually.

Grant Thornton, the UK’s sixth-largest accountancy firm, removed more than 70 per cent of “public interest” clients between 2016 and 2022, including listed companies and insurers.

It audited 20 PIEs in 2022, while rival BDO had 217 PIE clients in the same period.

Grant Thornton has received several regulatory fines for audit failings in recent years, including £2.34m over collapsed café chain Patisserie Valerie.

Sarah Rapson, the FRC’s executive director for supervision, told the Financial Times that the firm’s demotion did not reflect audit quality but rather a “smaller share of the PIE market”. The regulator’s most recent audit quality report for Grant Thornton noted improvements.

Grant Thornton told the paper: “We are extremely proud of our quality results over the last three years and respect the regulator’s decision to include our firm in its ‘Tier 2’ category of supervision.

“The decision by the FRC has no impact on our audit strategy and our continual investment in audit quality.”

Big Four firms Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC, as well as plus BDO and Mazars remain the only “tier one” firms after Grant Thornton’s demotion.

Raising challenger firms’ share of PIEs is a major part of the government’s long-delayed promises to boost competition in the industry.

City A.M. contacted Grant Thornton for comment.

From an East Devon Correspondent:-

‘The Only One’!

This is a recommendation for East Devon Watch readers who have not yet viewed the ITV drama, ‘Mr. Bates –vs- The Post Office’, to add this 4-part series and the accompanying 1-hour factual documentary (…The Real Story) to their ‘must watch’ list for 2024.

This series aims to, again, draw public attention to one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British history, by focusing on the lives of a handful of sub-postmasters who were key players in bringing the ongoing Post Office Horizon IT scandal to light.

Alan Bates, a north Wales sub-postmaster, established the Justice for Sub-postmasters Alliance after being repeatedly told by Post Office officials/regulators that he was ‘The Only One’ having problems with a newly installed Post Office Fujitsu IT system. Despite this, a handful of sub-postmasters throughout the country contacted each other and quickly found that they were NOT ‘the only ones’! Witness statements presented to the public enquiry (not due to be the finalised until 2025!) repeat the same phrases over and over again – i.e. ‘I was told that I was the only one that had this problem with the Post Office IT system!’

This persisted for almost two decades, from 1999 to 2015, engulfing the lives of over 700 sub-postmasters, who were prosecuted for theft, false accounting and fraud, resulting in unjust losses of their livelihoods, termination of their contracts and businesses, bankruptcy, wrongful imprisonment, suicide and serious mental health issues at the hands of an organisation who, seemingly, paid no attention to their voices, professional opinions or pleas for assistance, preferring to continuously endorse and favour a faulty Fujitsu IT system.

Many sub-postmasters were so traumatised that they remained anonymous and some, (around 50) having now seen this week’s mass media reaction, are coming forward to add to the numbers whose lives were ruined by this shocking injustice. Such miscarriages of justice seem to take a lifetime to be fully rectified and many sub-postmasters have died never having ‘cleared their names’ or been proved not guilty.

By insisting that these Post Office employees were ‘the only ones’ to have IT problems created feelings of isolation, shame, loneliness and hopelessness for these victims, making them reluctant to publicly speak out, which contributed to the prolonged torment of this scandal for so many years. Some were stigmatised within their local communities, labelled as criminals being afraid to venture out and be confronted by finger-pointing and abuse. Those who attempted to defend themselves and fight the false accusations found it impossible to access information and evidence that could prove their innocence, leaving them with no choice but to plead guilty to ‘soften the blow’!

The public believed that The Post Office was a national trusted brand, being a prestigious company with a high reputation – but within its senior management teams there was a flawed culture that the Post Office systems were infallible, making any criticism unwelcome. In 2021 when the Court of Appeal cleared some former sub-postmasters, the Lord Justice stated that the Post Office “effectively steamrolled over any sub-postmaster who sought to challenge its accuracy”.

It seems disrespectful (even offensive) to liken or compare such a massive miscarriage of justice to any other failures experienced by the general public – but sadly too many ordinary people regularly encounter similar arrogance and lack of empathy when communicating with management teams within large powerful corporations or national and local government regulatory authorities, who, like the Post Office, are organisations that are (rightly or wrongly) nationally trusted and revered by the public.

The lessons that must be learned from this dreadful Post Office scandal are that those who hold the power to make decisions do not always get everything correct and professionals and politicians alike would do well to listen to the people in their communities who can offer sound judgments. There are volumes of community associations throughout our country who have formed to offer well-founded counsel and advice for the benefit of local communities – but too often they are rebuffed by those purporting to represent their views.

Many hundreds of local residents have lost count of the times that they have heard the phrase “You are the only one objecting to this matter”, when they have contacted organisations like their local authority environmental and planning professionals, local politicians of varying colours, the Environment Agency and South West Water regarding serious planning and environmental issues that if not addressed could have serious detrimental effects on their communities.

However, despite warnings from local communities of the consequences of building on permeable green fields in the light of future climate change, local businesses and homes are suffering devastating flooding, wading through raw sewage in their streets and homes. The privatised water authorities have failed to invest adequately in vital infrastructure to protect our homes, our communities, our beaches and our waterways, preferring to pay excessive salaries to senior managements and shareholders! Electricity power outages halt the effectiveness of the critical pumps that can barely control the flooding from excessive over-development that was granted planning permission for economic benefits, whilst disregarding the voices of the people who pointed out the fallacy of ignoring the environmental warnings.

Over a 10 year period many local environmentalists have been repeatedly ignored by regulatory authorities looking to flatter their own green credentials. When locals have recommended caution in controlling the excessive development of massive, industrial bio-digester facilities near to residential homes, they are met with the phrase ‘You are the only one who has complained’ whilst the stinking odours and intolerable noises that have blighted hundreds of residents’ lives continue unabated – but apparently decision-makers concur that the economic gains and benefits for a few local landed- gentry outweigh the detrimental social and environmental effects on the communities.

This ITV drama has certainly created a vehicle to channel public outrage, which might, hopefully, bring this dreadful sub-postmaster scandal to a hasty resolution for so many victims.

The final words are dedicated to Alan Bates and the hundreds of sub-postmasters affected by this despicable scandal and there is no doubt that local communities up and down this entire country will want to send their support, in the hope that all the victims will find comfort in knowing that they are NOT ‘The Only One’!

“The planning system encourages and incentivises folly,” 

“We must not incentivise any more building of houses in high-risk flood plain areas.” Local authorities responsible for those areas “must be given a pass”, rather than house-building targets which encouraged them to do “very foolish things”.

James Tapper www.theguardian.com 

People affected by this month’s floods will face the same problems in future because their communities cannot access government support, campaigners have warned.

Small towns and villages affected by floods in England and Wales can ask for flood defences and mitigation through their council or the Environment Agency (EA), but are being turned down because they cannot make a business case, according to the National Flood Forum.

Heather Shepherd, director of operations at the NFF, a charity which supports flood victims, said: “There’s a lady who’s been flooded three times in the past year in Shrewsbury. The EA and the council can’t access help for her because they have to apply for funding – and they don’t qualify.

“I just spoke to Worcestershire council and Shropshire council yesterday. They have people that flood over and over and over again, but they have no hope, because they don’t add up to make a good business case to be able to mitigate the flooding. So it goes on and on. It’s utterly crazy.”

The woman in Shrewsbury already has extensive flood mitigation measures in her home but these were not enough to cope with last week’s downpours, Shepherd said. Storm Henk soaked countryside that had already absorbed heavy rainfall from storms Babet and Ciarán in the past three months. More than 200 flood warnings across the country remained active on Saturday afternoon.

Nottinghamshire county council urged people in 10 towns and villages in the northern part of the county to consider evacuating as the River Trent was at risk of flooding.

“The River Trent has now reached a record peak at the Torksey Lock gauge in Nottinghamshire, with rising waters surpassing the historic levels set in 2000,” it warned. “This means that your communities are at an increased risk of flooding.”

David Walters, who has run Cresslands Touring Park in south Lincolnshire for the past 11 years, said it would cost £20,000 to repair flood damage caused last week. “Debris off the fields that the water has washed through is completely strewn all over everything and everything stinks to high heaven. Because there’s no running water, I can’t clean or mop anything.”

The EA warned there is also a risk of significant river flooding from the Severn around Gloucester and the Thames in Oxfordshire because of the prolonged wet weather and intense rainfall. About 1,800 properties have been flooded so far during Storm Henk.

Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, defended government action on flooding after a National Audit Office reported that 500 of 2,000 new flood defence projects had been dropped, and the number of properties that will receive better protection from flooding by 2027 had been cut by 40%.

He said that flood protection was “a priority” and that since 2015 the government had protected nearly 400,000 homes.

“The reason the National Audit Office say that is because of the impact of inflation, and that is why our number one priority is to bring down inflation,” he said, since inflation had made projects more expensive.

Katharine Smith, flood duty manager at the EA, said that teams had been out operating flood defences and clearing watercourses. “So far, more than 45,000 properties have been protected in the last few days,” she said. “We also urge people not to drive through flood water and follow advice of local emergency services on the roads – flood water is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.”

The government’s policy for people affected by floods focuses on resilience, which means transforming homes so that they can recover from flooding more quickly. That means installing flood-resistant doors, replacing plasterwork, having solid floors without carpets, and raising boilers and electrical devices above the high water line.

People wanting to build resilience measures can apply for a one-off grant of £5,000, or for up to £10,000 through the Flood Re government-backed insurance scheme. Shepherd said that homeowners often needed to spend as much as £70,000.

“We’re going to see this more and more, bigger and harsher floods,” said Shepherd. “Climate change is throwing up ever increasing challenges. The government is eager to tell us that investment is larger than in the past, but flooding is clearly underfunded.”

Shepherd said the NFF helpline was getting increasing numbers of calls from people who had been flooded for the first time and blamed the disaster on new housing estates built nearby.

In 2020, the thinktank Bright Blue estimated that 70,000 homes had been built in high-risk areas since 2008 and others have estimated that 5,000 to 9,000 homes a year are approved on flood zone three areas at the highest risk.

Jonathan Werran, the chief executive of Localis, a thinktank focused on local affairs, said that no single agency was responsible for addressing flooding.

“The planning system encourages and incentivises folly,” he said. “We must not incentivise any more building of houses in high-risk flood plain areas.” Local authorities responsible for those areas “must be given a pass”, he said, rather than house-building targets which encouraged them to do “very foolish things”.

On Monday all “good and faithful” Conservative MPs will troop into the lobby to vote for “Maxing Out”  N Sea Oil & Gas.

Just what do they think they will be conserving? – Owl

Hydrologist Hannah Cloke has a straightforward description of the inundation that has just struck Britain. “Our decorations may have come down but the flood warning map is currently lit up like a Christmas tree.”

Robin McKie www.theguardian.com 

And the immediate cause of this mayhem is clear. A sequence of storms this autumn and winter – Babet, Ciarán, Debi, Elin, Fergus and Gerrit – have turned Britain into “a sopping wet sponge”, as the Reading University researcher put it.

Then came Storm Henk last week. Its intense rainfall had nowhere to go except to pour into our rivers, which burst their banks spectacularly across the country. More than 1,000 homes in England were flooded and some villages totally cut off, with Nottinghamshire, Shropshire, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire worst affected.

This interpretation is supported by figures from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, which last week revealed that the period between July and December in 2023 was the wettest on record for the UK. As to the reason, there is a simple explanation.

“Climate change is warming the atmosphere,” said Linda Speight of Oxford University. “A warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture so that when it rains, the rainfall is heavier and more likely to lead to flooding. In particular, we know that climate change is leading to warmer and wetter winters in the UK. We will unfortunately experience more winters like this one in the future.”

Apart from triggering increases in our atmosphere’s moisture content, other human-induced effects are contributing to increases in flooding, said Christian Dunn of Bangor University. “Nature provided us with an answer to flooding – wetlands. Marshes, bogs and fens act like giant sponges, soaking up vast amounts of rainwater during wetter months and releasing it during drier periods.”

However, Britain has dug up its peatland, drained its marshes and built on its flood plains. As a result, the nation has lost much of its natural protection from the effects of flooding. “We need to manage and conserve our country’s existing wetlands and we need to create more of them,” added Dunn.

As to the future, meteorologists say there is more – much more – to come. “Continued human-induced climate warming in future is likely to result in further increases in peak river flows, which will cause more severe flooding and impacts on people, property and public services,” said Steve Turner of the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

This point was backed by Kevin Collins of the Open University. “When it comes to planning our infrastructure, we need to do less of what we’ve always done,” he said. “We now need to be thinking about the systemic risks to our communities and economy and act to build resilience to these kinds of floods by accepting and adapting with the new normal of climate change.”

Trevor Hoey, professor of river science at Brunel University London, added: “There are parallels here with the national response to Covid-19. It is to be hoped the government is listening carefully to what the inquiry is revealing about risk preparedness.”

…who then posted on “X”:

“Water firm drives 240 truckloads of sewage a day through town ‘to pump into sea’.”

Yep, you read that correctly.

Geoff Crawford  of End Sewage Convoys And Poollution Exmouth (ESCAPE) added a little bit more background for Feargal on the “cause and effect” of the burst sewer and the need for trucks dumping sewage into the nearest storm overflow at Maer 24/7 in case SWW might be a little “economical with the facts”:

“He’s not admitting to the fact that adding a new higher volume pump at Phear Park increased the pressure and burst the sewer. He’s also not saying that the reason they do that was to increase the sewage flow to Sandy Bay treatment works and to allow more overflows to sea. Hence the new £14m pipe line they are installing between Maer Lane and Sandy Bay. There’s a lot he’s not telling you.”

The Environment Agency shows where it’s all being dumped [In case readers really can’t believe that sewage is dumped so close to the beach – and not just at ebbing tides either!]

South West Water – it’s time for “Full Disclosure” !

Swimmers and surfers have reported falling ill after going into the sea on the Sussex coast, where there has been an ongoing sewage spill for eight days.

“Naturally the intense rainfall of recent storms hitting the south coast has led to the storm overflow system operating — it’s designed to protect homes, schools and businesses from flooding.” Southern Water’s bathing water “lead”.

How well is that working? – Owl

Adam Vaughan www.thetimes.co.uk

The spill at Shoreham harbour from a storm overflow run by Southern Water began on December 28 and is still ongoing, as days of heavy rainfall overwhelm sewer capacity.

However, the water company blamed local houseboat toilets for any pollution in the harbour. It said that the firms’ modelling suggested that the overflow was not affecting water quality.

Rob Woodward, a member of a local kitesurfing club, said he had surfed at Shoreham on New Year’s Eve and suffered diarrhoea and vomiting for three days. Emma Kate, a local swimmer, said she swam in the water on the same day and experienced the same symptoms.

“I’m a school teacher which forced me to struggle through my first days back, and my wife and I had a baby due on January 4, so the sickness added to the worry of the C-section,” said Woodward, who lives in Lancing.

He added: “Our south coast could be an absolute hub for water sports, and it’s hindered by poor water quality.”

Campaigners rejected the company’s explanation. Ed Acteson, a campaigner at SOS Whitstable, which has highlighted spills around the Southern Water region in recent years, said he “simply did not believe” that a week of consecutive sewage wouldn’t have any impact. “It’s tantamount to gaslighting for them to claim that,” he said.

He added: “The idea that a few people on houseboats flushing their toilets would have a fraction of the impact of 180-plus hours of sewage from the same location is ridiculous.”

There are many sewage spills around the country due to widespread heavy rainfall from Storm Henk. Run-off into sewers has been exacerbated and the Environment Agency reported the ground across much of England as “completely saturated”.

There are reports of dozens of sewage spills in Kent, Sussex and Hampshire, plus similar numbers in Devon and Cornwall, which is served by South West Water. In Oxfordshire and around London, Thames Water is reporting scores of discharges in its region.

One town’s fight against sewage pollution

Since December 28, the charity Surfers Against Sewage said it had received 38 reports nationally of people getting sick after entering seas and waterways. Most were for gastroenteritis, which causes diarrhoea and vomiting.

At Shoreham beach, one of the two nearest official bathing waters from the Southern Water storm overflow, the charity said it had 40 sickness reports since May 2020. The figures are likely to be a considerable underestimate, as most incidents are not reported.

Alex Lipp, who maintains the website sewagemap.co.uk, said that Thames Water had almost 300 locations spilling sewage on Friday, the most since the company launched its real-time discharges map a year ago.

The Brighton branch of Surfers Against Sewage said it would be holding a protest on a beach in the harbour on Saturday to end sewage dumping there. The group noted that the storm overflow was only 100m from where people swam all year round because it was sheltered from winter waves.

Southern Water is one of only three water firms to offer a real-time sewage spills map; the other six broke a promise made to The Times’s Clean it Up campaign last year to release maps by the end of 2023.

The company, which announced last year it was spending £1.5 billion to tackle sewage spills, said it provided transparent information about transparent discharges but not health advice.

Tom Gallagher, bathing water lead at Southern Water, said: “We provide transparent data on storm overflows for users of designated bathing waters. Naturally the intense rainfall of recent storms hitting the south coast has led to the storm overflow system operating — it’s designed to protect homes, schools and businesses from flooding.

“There are many sources of pollution in coastal areas including road and agricultural run-off, animal waste, discharges from boats and other sources.”

The public have been urged not to enter the water at Exmouth beach following a pumping station incident. Officials from the Environment Agency (EA) are currently monitoring the situation.

Toby Codd www.devonlive.com

Officials say that bathing is not advised due to pollution from sewage. The EA said in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) at 10.11am this morning (January 6): “We are aware of the issue at Exmouth pumping station.

“We are investigating what has happened. Officers have attended site and are closely monitoring activity, as well as working with South West Water to ensure the pumping station is back in operation as quickly as possible.”

Water firm drives 240 truckloads of sewage a day through town ‘to pump into sea’

Statement: “All the pumps at Maer Road are working as expected” challenged by photo evidence.

David Parsley inews.co.uk

South West Water has been accused of dumping millions of litres of raw sewage into a popular Devon beach resort after sending 240 tankers a day to an overflowing pumping station.

At the height of the problems last weekend, 18,000 and 10,000 litre tankers full of sewage were being transported through the East Devon tourist town of Exmouth for 24 hours a day from Friday until New Year’s Day, i has learned.

Since 11 December, the water firm has been dealing with two major pipe bursts in the town, which has led to untreated sewage being taken by a convoy of trucks to the Maer Road Sewage Pumping Station, just 200 metres from Exmouth’s two miles of sandy beach.

Campaigners say that due to the stormy conditions in the past week, the station has been overflowing and had a damaged outfall pipe and a failed pump. Some of the additional waste brought to the site has been seen making its way into a nearby brook that flows directly to the pipe that discharges it into the sea 40 metres from the nearby beach.

Geoff Crawford, the founder of Escape (End Sewage Convoys And Pollution Exmouth), believes South West Water should have taken the sewage to a treatment works less than a mile away and its decision not to “indicates that they knew the sewage would go almost straight into the sea and didn’t care”.

Mr Crawford told i: “They appear to have wilfully polluted the sea with millions of litres of untreated sewage and, as far as we are aware, none of these faults have been reported to Environment Agency by South West Water.”

South West Water, which has apologised for the ongoing disruption, claims that it was prevented from taking the sewage to the nearby Maer Lane Sewage Treatment Works because of flooding on the roads. But i has seen video evidence filmed at the same time the sewage was being transported that suggests the roads were clear.

An investigation by i has also found that at least one of South West Water’s pumps at the station was not working while it was emptying up to 240 tankers of sewage into the site for three days up to New Year’s Day.

The faulty standby pump was one of three, and would have been required in stormy conditions, such as those experienced in Exmouth and across the country during Storm Henk.

When asked about the faulty pump, a spokesman for South West Water initially said that “all the pumps at Maer Road are working as expected”.

However, after asking a worker on the site if a pump on the back of a truck was new, he told i: “No, that is the broken pump we just took out.”

Presented with this comment and photo evidence of the faulty pump, South West Water altered its statement.

The water company’s spokesman said: “The pump you saw was a faulty standby storm pump being removed.

“A replacement pump is kept on site to ensure it can be installed quickly when needed, and this was completed successfully yesterday.

“The standby pump is required during storm conditions if there is an issue with any of the other pumps.”

When asked if the standby pump would have been required in the in the 94mph winds and downpours during Storm Henk, the spokesman said: “At no time was the pumping station unable to pump to full capacity.”

When fully operational the pumping station sends sewage to the nearby treatment plant, but this has also suffered from flooding and over capacity recently.

During times of exceptional rainfall, water companies are permitted to discharge untreated sewage into bodies of water through points known as combined sewer overflows (CSOs) to prevent the system becoming overwhelmed and sewage backing up in peoples’ homes.

Mr Crawford, who has observed the pumping station every day since the sewage tanker deliveries began, added that he had calculated that during last weekend’s peak up to 500 loads were arriving at the site each day.

However, South West Water denies there were that many deliveries.

The company’s spokesman said: “We have 10 tankers transporting flows . . . to keep the burst site clear so a temporary pipe can be installed and a full repair can be made without the need for tankering. Each tanker is transporting up to one load per hour, making a maximum of 240 loads per day.”

Even at a level of 240 tanker deliveries, this equates to around 3.4 million of litres being delivered to the faulty pumping station each day.

While the route from the pumping station to the brook has grills preventing solid matter of more than 10mm to pass through, the untreated sewage is a sludge and contains potential deadly viruses such as Escherichia coli (E. coli) and the Enterococci bacteria.

Exmouth, which is currently a Blue Flag beach, failed to pass water standards in six of the past 10 quality tests since October.

Over the past few years sewage discharged into the neighbouring Sandy Bay has led to its water standard falling from “Excellent” to “Satisfactory”, just one level above the lowest level of poor.

Last year, the boss of South West Water-owner Pennon Group gave up £440,000 in bonuses in the wake of record water quality fines for the company.

Pennon chief executive Susan Davy waived a £157,000 bonus and £283,000 in long-term incentives after the firm was fined £2.15m last April for illegally dumping sewage into rivers and the sea in Devon and Cornwall.

Despite giving up her bonuses Ms Davy, who was paid more £1.6m in the previous year, still took home her annual base salary of £460,000, while the firm’s shareholders benefited from a dividend payout of £122m despite the company making a loss of £8.5m in the financial year to the end of March 2022.

An investigation by the Environment Agency found South West Water culpable for significant environmental harm.

According to South West Water’s own data, 60 beaches across Devon and Cornwall were impacted by sewage spills in recent days, including beaches at Lyme Regis, Torquay, Plymouth and Newquay.

A number of the discharges had been ongoing since before the new year before being exacerbated by Storm Henk.

The spokesman for South West Water added: “We are working around the clock to fix the issue with a pipe in Exmouth.

“We are sorry for any inconvenience caused by this ongoing work, which we’re working hard to resolve as quickly as possible.”

The Environment Agency was asked if it was investigating South West Water’s actions in Exmouth but it had not responded at the time of publication.

Rishi Sunak said in the summer he wanted to “max out” North Sea oils and gas.

MPs will vote for the first time on Monday on the Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill.

How will “I would never vote to pollute our water” Simon Jupp vote?

Meanwhile:

Sunak faces new by-election headache as MP quits over PM’s oil and gas policy

Jane Merrick inews.co.uk

The Government’s former net-zero tsar has resigned as an MP over Rishi Sunak’s plans to allow more offshore oil and gas.

Chris Skidmore, who was chair of the independent government review on net zero and a former energy minister, said he would be stepping down as an MP next week over new legislation which “clearly promotes the production of new oil and gas”.

The move will trigger a by-election in his Kingswood constituency, where the Conservatives have a majority of just over 11,000, ahead of Labour in second place.

MPs will vote for the first time on Monday on the Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill, which is being introduced following the Prime Minister’s decision last year to permit new drilling licences in the North Sea.

The bill would allow the licences to be given the go-ahead annually. Mr Sunak sparked fury from green campaigners last summer when he said he wanted to “max out” North Sea oil and gas, which critics said undermined the Government’s drive towards net zero.

In a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Skidmore wrote: “Next week the Government will be introducing the Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill in the House of Commons.

“This Bill would in effect allow more frequent new oil and gas licences and the increased production of new fossil fuels in the North Sea. It is a Bill that I have already stated my opposition to, by not voting in the King’s Speech debate in protest at the Bill’s inclusion in the Government’s legislative programme.

“As the former energy minister who signed the UK’s net zero commitment by 2050 into law, I cannot vote for a Bill that clearly promotes the production of new oil and gas.”

He went on: “To fail to act, rather than merely speak out, is to tolerate a status quo that cannot be sustained. I am therefore resigning my party whip and instead intend to be free from any party-political allegiance.”

Mr Skidmore, who backed Liz Truss in the 2022 Tory leadership election, had already announced in November he would be stepping down as an MP at the next general election, which is expected in the second half of this year.

But he said he had been forced to resign the Conservative whip because he could not support the oil and gas legislation before Parliament. This decision meant his constituents “deserve the right to elect a new Member of Parliament”.

He said: “I therefore will be standing down from Parliament as soon as possible.”

Alok Sharma, the Conservative MP and former president of the Cop26 UN climate summit, told Politico that the legislation risks damaging the UK’s “credibility” on net zero.

Crisis as multiple issues mount

The NHS in Devon has entered the highest level of escalation because of pressures on its services.

Radio Exe News www.radioexe.co.uk

It comes as they try to mitigate disruption during the usual winter pressures and staff sickness, on top of industrial action.

Now new measures include some hospitals reducing visiting hours or re-directing people from emergency departments to other services.

Dr Nigel Acheson, Chief Medical Officer for NHS Devon, said: “It’s vital that those who need medical help come forward as they usually would – using 999 and A&E in life threatening emergencies and 111 online for everything else alongside their GP practices and pharmacies.

Devon’s acute hospitals in Plymouth, Exeter, Torbay and Barnstaple are seeing increased cases of norovirus this week; a stomach bug that causes vomiting and diarrhoea. 

To prevent the spread of infection, some hospital wards in Devon have closed, reducing capacity at an already exceptionally busy time.

Devon’s NHS say people can help by:

•    Not visiting loved ones in hospital if you have symptoms of a cough, cold, respiratory illness, diarrhoea or vomiting
•    Washing your hands frequently with soap and water as this is the best way to stop it spreading. Alcohol hand gels do not kill norovirus
•    Getting your flu vaccine from your GP practice or local pharmacy. Some people are eligible for the free vaccine, including over-65s, people with long term conditions like stroke or heart disease and pregnant people
•    Getting the covid vaccine. Some people are still eligible for free ones.

Dr Acheson concluded; “January is always one of the most pressured times for the NHS in Devon. Six days of industrial action on top of an already busy time is making it extremely challenging for hospitals to maintain safe services this week.”

Urgent and emergency care remains available during the strikes.

“The people of this country are incandescent at having been gaslighted for so long by a Government packed to the gunwales with tinpot Ministers for whom lying is in their DNA. We’re mad-as-hell at being patronised; stop it, please, with the three-word, jingoistic nonsense.”

Sir Keir Starmer: Labour leader is wrong – we are not apathetic, we are simmering with incandescent anger

Opinion www.yorkshirepost.co.uk 

It is most unlikely that Sir Keir Starmer himself pores over the pages of The Yorkshire Post in search of political inspiration, though quite possible that those around him may, not least Leeds West MP and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves, in order to take the temperature of the region.

For had he the time or inclination to do so, certainly during the course of the past few months and years, he would have seen, in these leading article columns and elsewhere in this newspaper, repeated calls for a return to serious politics, meted out by serious politicians.

He will have seen readers’ letters calling for some of the very promises he made in his speech made in Bristol, when he spoke of ditching pointless populist politics and cutting out embittered cynicism from the thinking of Government.

These things are music to the ears of good, honest people. People who work hard to provide for themselves and their families, but can’t begin to dream of a nice holiday or a new car. Paying the bills alone has become an endurance test that never ends.

So, yes. Mr Starmer can, with authority and authenticity, state that he has in those matters judged the mood of the nation accurately, but he couldn’t be more wrong about one thing. People are not, as he said, apathetic. The electorate is not weary. The people of this country are incandescent at having been gaslighted for so long by a Government packed to the gunwales with tinpot Ministers for whom lying is in their DNA. We’re mad-as-hell at being patronised; stop it, please, with the three-word, jingoistic nonsense. It isn’t clever earworm rhetoric, it’s a disguise for yet more flawed thinking : Stop The Boats. Build Back Better. Stay At Home. The list goes on and on. Well here are three words for Mr Starmer, and any other politician who is looking to secure our vote ahead of the General Election: Must Do Better.