East Devon’s Liberal Democrats have taken another district council seat after winning a by-election in Seaton.

Bradley Gerrard, Local Democracy Reporter www.devonairradio.com

The contest was prompted by the decision of independent member Del Haggerty deciding to resign from East Devon District Council, as well as his from his seat on Seaton Town Council.

[Note from Owl: Del Haggerty was originally a Conservative councillor but changed to become Independent, latterly joining the governing Democratic Alliance group in EDDC.]

Stephen Hunt, a Liberal Democrat candidate, secured the seat in the by-election this week (Thursday 11 December) with 789 votes [41.3%], comfortably ahead of second-placed Simon Day, who gained 565 votes for Reform UK [29.6%].

That performance pushed the Conservatives into third place, with Karen Boyes securing 400 votes (20.9%), ahead of fourth-placed Paul K Johns, an independent candidate.

In written campaign material, Cllr Hunt, a retired managing director of a welding company, said he had more recently been a carer for his family, who have lived in the town for decades.

“I am standing to be a local councillor to give something back to the community he is proud to call home,” he wrote on his campaign material.

He said he had been a district councillor previously, and so “brings experience” to the role, including having worked to protect the environment and local wildlife, and supporting efforts to deliver affordable homes with the infrastructure needed for local people.

Cllr Hunt added that he would use his voice on the council to “campaign against sewage spills, helping protect tourism, hospitality businesses, and Seaton’s coastline”.

Around a third of eligible voters turned out for the by-election, meaning 1,919 voted for their preferred candidate out of the 6,042 residents who could have voted.

The win for the Lib Dems comes just a week after they held the Exmouth Halsdon ward, with their candidate Cllr Fran McElhone becoming a member of the district council.

It will mean the party has 21 members on East Devon District Council, one less than the council’s array of independent members.

But the council is run by a democratic alliance including Lib Dems, some independents, and Green Party members.

Honiton and Sidmouth MP Richard Foord has asked the Environment Agency (EA) to review South West Water’s performance on the River Otter, warning of high phosphate levels, repeated permit breaches and delays to treatment upgrades.

Richard Torne www.midweekherald.co.uk

In a letter to area director Mark Rice following a joint meeting on October 20, he sought clarification on phosphate sources, the condition of the river, and the decision to remove a planned Honiton sewage treatment works (STW) upgrade from the 2025-2030 investment programme.

Foord’s office told this newspaper that SWW confirmed in October that “no phosphate-reduction schemes are currently planned before 2030”, despite earlier public statements about lowering phosphate in treated discharges.

The MP has written again to SWW chief executive Susan Davy asking for a detailed plan and calling for Honiton STW’s upgrade to be completed by 2030.

ORCA data gathered from bi-weekly water tests across 12 sites indicated phosphate concentrations double below the Honiton STW, adding that they remained above safe limits downstream.

Meanwhile, Devon Wildlife Trust and Westcountry Rivers Trust studies show the River Otter has at least twice the phosphate levels of other South West rivers.

The EA attributes 70 per cent of the phosphate load in the Middle and Lower Otter to SWW, while Honiton STW has breached its phosphate permit in three of the past six months.

East Devon District Council’s November Water Cycle Study reportedly found that the Honiton STW was exceeding its dry-weather treatment capacity by about 40 per cent, noting that it requires a 73 per cent increase to support planned housing growth.

Councillors have warned that development may have to be delayed unless capacity and phosphate removal improve.

In response, SWW said it is planning a phosphate-reduction scheme at Feniton before 2030 and is delivering “targeted interventions” as part of a £125 million programme in Honiton and Sidmouth.

In a statement, the company said: “Where our assets are not performing as they should, or where they are causing environmental harm, we will act.”