Owl’s take on the evening.

This was a civilised debate ably chaired by the Parish Council Chair, Susan Tribble.

It lasted just over two hours and covered subjects ranging from flooding, sewage and river pollution, through housing, education and ending with health.

Local services and infrastructure are crumbling around us. The problem that Simon Jupp faced is how to bat the questions away when the government has run out of ideas. 

He had two options: keep repeating the mantra that money is being spent and the plans are working (arguments that don’t really stand scrutiny as indicated by comments from remote viewers in the “chat box”. See also today’s post on failure to deliver “river restoration fund”); or simply lay the blame on someone else. He deployed both with some style.

Neither line of argument is very convincing from a member of a party in power and controlling events for the past 13 years. The conservatives’ failure is to come up with any credible change agenda.

Richard Foord’s closing remarks (paraphrased by Owl) after the final question on Health:

I want to respond specifically to comments Simon [just] made on the need for cross-party consensus. Cross-party consensus is what governments on the rack tend to plead for. When the government is on the ropes they say: come on, come on and share our pain.

This government deserves, deserves to be criticised.

All politics is about power. This government is making decisions about the health service that are detrimental to the health service and detrimental to the health of people in this country, in this county, and in this community.

I want to link this back to something Simon said on a couple of occasions attacking East Devon District Council for shameful incompetence and the same sort of charge made against our ICB. [Integrated Care Board, the NHS organisations responsible for planning health services for their local population.]

Sitting on the opposition benches of the House of Commons I frequently hear many, many conservative MP and government ministers laying the same charge that the responsibility lies with the locals: with that local authority, with that district council, with that ICB. When you look at it from a “bird’s eye” view you find they are all at it, for example all 39 ICBs are apparently failing or all the local authorities, it’s their responsibility.

Politics is about power; we cannot separate this from [the problems] in the health service. The government is on the hook for this and we need big serious changes to sort these things out. 

These final remarks from Richard Foord when Simon, in his reply, had proposed something along the lines “let’s work together to find a solution” summarises his frustration.

Is this the new Tory rallying cry, being stuffed through our letter boxes? 

“Together we’re making progress”.

[PS. Owl was astounded to hear Simon Jupp blame everything from the lack of social housing and the annual target to build 900 on EDDC pulling out of GESP (the Greater Exeter Strategic Plan). Perhaps people have short memories, but Owl’s view of GESP is that it provided an opportunity for East Devon landowners to “offer up their land” to meet Exeter’s needs. This provided an easy “win win” option for Exeter which has consistently failed to find a five year land supply. Owl notes that since pulling out of GESP a lot more development has been planned within the city and to its western side.]

And thanks to the parish council for organising and hosting the event.