http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/technology-43292047/burger-flipping-robot-begins-first-shift
Category Archives: East Devon economy
Majority of councils fear effect of Brexit
ALL councils, irrespective of who is in control – scary!
The business rate retention scam
“Allowing English councils to retain more of their business rates revenue could lead to damaging shortfalls in funding and drive divisions between different areas, the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned.
Councils that enjoy the biggest increases in such revenues are unlikely to be those with the biggest spending needs, the think tank said. Levelling the playing field by redistributing the money would address regional disparities but would undermine the goal of encouraging councils to use business rates to boost regional growth.
The government turned the business rates system on its head in 2013 as part of its devolution strategy, when local authorities were allowed to keep half of any real-term growth in revenues or bear half of any real-term fall. Until then, business rates were pooled by central government and distributed back to local authorities as grants.
Five years ago, the ambition was for councils to keep 100 per cent of the change from 2019. That has been revised down to 75 per cent from 2020. The idea was to give local authorities an incentive to boost their revenues and local economies by increasing commercial property development or by cutting rates to attract more business.
The IFS said that the plan may backfire and “lead to divergences in English councils’ funding without promoting growth”. Its analysis of councils’ revenues and spending since 2006 showed that the policy may be flawed.
“The report shows that significant divergences could arise in just a few years under 100 per cent rates retention,” the IFS said. “This is because those councils, which would have seen the biggest increases in their retained business rates revenues, were often not the councils that experienced the biggest increases in their relative spending needs, for example, because their population became older, poorer or sicker.
“It is also not clear that the incentives provided by rates retention will translate into faster economic growth. The report finds no relationship between changes in the councils’ business rates tax bases and local economic growth, or indeed employment or earnings growth, in recent years.”
David Phillips, associate director at the IFS, said: “Areas seeing lots of new developments aren’t guaranteed strong economic growth. And growth doesn’t necessarily rely on large-scale property development.”
Source: The Times (pay wall)
“South West ‘could suffer more than other regions’ after Brexit”
Good luck with that doubling of productivity, Local Enterprise Partnership! (see post below)
“The South West could be hit harder than other parts of England when the UK leaves the EU, according to panel members at a one-off Brexit discussion convened by CIPFA in Bristol.
High numbers of EU workers could be lost from industries in the region, which must get better at ‘fighting its own corner’, attendees at the event on Friday last week heard.
Kate Kennally, chief executive of Cornwall Council, pointed out the South West had a growing number of tech start-ups but it was not good at promoting its own industries.
“We have a big part of the UK that doesn’t have a big voice,” she said.
She added Cornwall voted leave because of “a sense of profound insecurities about public services” and that “this could be a moment where there needs to be a good deal of bravery”.
Kennally also pointed out: “Exeter, Bristol, Plymouth are the cities most reliant on exporting to the EU.”
Nigel Costley, regional secretary of the trade union federation the TUC, said: “I don’t think we are well equipped to respond to [Brexit].
“I fear we are going to be the losers in the South West. I do not see us fighting our corner very well. …”
http://www.publicfinance.co.uk/news/2018/02/south-west-could-suffer-more-other-regions-after-brexit
Our LEP expects our productivity to double – something never done anywhere else in the UK!
“… The Productivity Strategy aims to double productivity in the area over 20 years, focussing on themes including leadership, housing, connectivity, infrastructure, skills and training. It looks at growth, capitalising on the area’s distinctive assets and maximising the potential of digital technology.
Cllr Fothergill said: “We can do some of this ourselves but some aspects will need the support from Government which is why the Joint Committee is so important. …”
https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/south-west-aims-double-productivity-1265805
Right! So, that’s ok then – the government will achieve something here they can’t achieve anywhere else!!!
A new East Devon Business Forum?
And just how will EDDC decide who are the top 50 employers? Turnover, number of employees, closeness to Woodbury or Otterton? Or big developers? Businesses submitting the most planning applications or biggest landholders? Or might it be social responsibility – lol? Environmental credentials – lol? Employee stakeholders – lol?
And how will they treat these “top 50 compared to the bottom several thousand?
Shades of the discredited, run by disgraced ex-councillor Graham Brown, East Devon Business Forum? And, here it comes again – scrutiny … conflicts of interest …
Owl ruffles its feathers …
“For the many or the few” to quote someone-or-other!
“Develop more effective business engagement though:
1) Publishing quarterly business bulletins and increasing SME readership;
2) Identifying and establishing communication with up to 6 Key Ambassador businesses in East Devon
3) developing and maintaining a contact list of our top 50 employers;
4) Identifying and making contact with businesses comprising our 4 GESP priority sectors (Smart Logistics, Data Analytics, Knowledge Based Industries and Environmental Futures).
Click to access 170118-joint-overview-scrutiny-agenda-combined.pdf
“Growth” – shrinking fast!
Never mind OUR Local Enterprise Partnership appears to think that Devon and Cornwall (in spite of getting no budget goodies) will RACE ahead and do FAR better than any other area, not only in England, not only in the UK, not only in Europe but in the WHOLE world!
What busy bees we are in the south-west – or maybe just at Hinkley C!
“… Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, added that the economic forecasts published in the Budget made for “pretty grim reading”.
He highlighted that since 2014 growth in earnings has been “choked off”.
“We are in danger of losing not just one but getting on for two decades of earnings growth,” he said.
“Let’s hope this forecast turns out to be too pessimistic.”
More pain for our LEP’s “productivity strategy”
Office for Budget Responsibility downgrades its productivity growth targets.
Will our councillors on the “Joint Committee” with our LEP show similar responsibility?
“… The Office for National Statistics reported last week that the UK’s level of productivity fell 0.3 per cent in the three months to June, meaning that the national output per hour worked is below where it was in the final quarter of 2007, almost a decade ago.
The OBR said that the recent productivity fall was “almost certainly” exacerbated by the impact of the 2016 Brexit vote, but it added that the weakness in productivity since the financial crisis was a global phenomenon too.
The OBR had projected in March that UK productivity would grow by 1.6 per cent in 2017, by1.5 per cent in 2018, by 1.7 per cent in 2019, and 1.8 per cent in 2020.
“It no longer seems central to assume that productivity growth will recover to the 1.8 per cent we assumed in March 2017 within five years,” the OBR said on Tuesday.
“We expect to lower our forecast for cumulative potential productivity growth significantly over the next five years, without going so far as to assume that there is no recovery at all from the very weak performance of recent years.”
Can productivity and growth be increased outside the South East except for Hinkley C?
Our Local Enterprise Partnership’s draft economic strategy is making enormous claims about how much it will increase productivity in Devon and Somerset – its predictions outstripping those of historic precedent and some of the most productive areas of the UK. This in spite of our ageing population and the effects of austerity on skills and training (our LEP’s investment in this sector appears to be limited to training only for Hinkley C nuclear plant).
Our councillors might well examine our LEPs claims with some disquiet:
“… Cities such as Stoke, Blackburn, Mansfield and Doncaster had productivity 25% below the national average, the Centre for Cities said. Raising all parts of the UK to the national productivity average would increase the size of the economy by £203bn – equivalent to Birmingham’s output four times over.
The report showed that cities outside the greater south-east had weaker productivity because they were failing to secure the higher-skilled work of productive sectors and firms.
“Firms choose to locate their high-skilled operations in cities which can offer them access to a high-skilled workforce and other relevant businesses, and will base lower value components in places where land and labour is cheaper,” the thinktank said.
“Barclays bases its high-value banking activities in London and its low-skilled call centre in Sunderland. Similarly, clothing company Asos has a large distribution centre with low-skilled jobs in Barnsley, but its headquarters is located [in London].”
The report said another factor explaining the regional divide was that highly productive sectors and firms made up a larger shares of jobs in cities in the greater south-east than in urban areas in other regions.
On average, cities in the region had a larger proportion of workers in sectors and firms that contributed most to national productivity – in 2015, the information and communications sector made up 7% of jobs in cities in the greater south-east, compared with just 3% in other cities. The financial services industry accounted for 6% of jobs in cities in the region compared with 4% of jobs in cities elsewhere in the country. …”
BT rural broadband deal under threat
”A proposed £600m deal between the Government and BT’s network subsidiary Openreach to deliver superfast broadband to 1.4 million rural homes faces legal hurdles.
It is understood that legal advisers have raised concerns that a voluntary offer from Openreach could be challenged in the courts as unfair state support.
Talks between officials and the company are ongoing in the hope of finding a solution, but sources said discussions towards a voluntary investment by Openreach were proving “very challenging”. In some areas the upgrade would come on top of £1.2bn in subsidies that funded upgrades for easier-to-reach rural homes.
The Government has the option of imposing new regulations that would force Openreach to upgrade rural broadband lines when requested, but both sides would prefer a deal that they say would deliver quicker results. Ministers are keen for the final 5pc of homes that cannot receive a 10 megabits per second connection to be upgraded by 2022 at the latest.
New regulation would be welcomed by BT’s rivals, however, who fear that Openreach would be able to dictate the technological and financial terms of a negotiated deal. …”
Should the East Devon district be split? The People’s Republic of Eastern East Devon?
A recent commentator on this blog wants to see Sidmouth leave EDDC.
This raises an interesting possibility.
There is a case for EDDC being broken up as it is already the largest District Council in Devon, and the fastest growing. Increasingly, our district council concentrates on its western side – the Science Park, Cranbrook – the LEP Growth Area – and aligns itself more and more with “Greater Exeter” with other communities feeling increasingly out on an ignored limb.
It would seem from anecdotal evidence that he vast majority of Sidmouth residents would vote to leave EDDC, especially when EDDC is cutting all its ties with the town and moving physically and increasingly representationally to Honiton/Exeter.
The interesting bit is whether other communities would wish to join with Sidmouth in a ‘breakaway’. Would Newton Poppleford, Otterton, Branscombe and Beer, Ottery, Budleigh, Colyton and Seaton be up for creating a new largely rural and coastal authority? And what to call it? Eastern East Devon? Jurassic Devon?
There would be no problem over viability. Some functions might still be shared. Others, such as street cleaning, could be devolved to town council level where it belongs.
There would be an obvious improvement in democratisation, and representation, and, crucially, a big improvement in the quality of councillors. There is also an interesting opportunity to create from the outset a non-party-political district responsible for its own planning. Far more people would stand for an authority when they had a much greater say in decisions affecting their own community; when they and they alone decided on such things as health care, education and environment without having to kowtow to “Greater Exeter”.
Jurassic Devon would have a population of about 50,000, which many would say would be close to the ideal.
Time to consider the break away?
Exeter fourth largest growth rate in UK
Surely at this rate the Exeter area economy will become greatly overheated with an inevitable crash, especially as we are told that 70% of its exports currently go to the EU? Will East Devon, with Cranbrook’s creep towards the city just become a suburb of an ever-sprawling Greater Exeter but with no supporting infrastructure to speak of?
“Exeter is in the top five cities in the UK for job creation, new figures have revealed.
The UK Powerhouse report, produced by law firm Irwin Mitchell alongside the Centre for Business and Economic research, provides an estimate of the value of goods and services produced and annual job growth of 45 of the UK’s largest cities, 12 months ahead of the Government’s official figures.
Exeter sees an annual change of 1.5 per cent when it comes to employment, putting it as fourth in the UK.
It also revealed the growing importance that the banking, finance and insurance sector has on the city, revealing that 5,900 jobs were created between 2013 and 2016.
The report also predicts that Exeter’s city economy will grow by 18.1 per cent over the next 10 years whilst employment will grow by 9.4 per cent during the same period.
Jack Coy, economist at Cebr, said: “Despite the UK-level economic slowdown over the first quarter, it is good to see some bright sparks in local economies across the country.
“In particular, the best performing cities have benefitted from a combination of cutting-edge, productive industries and high-skilled workforces.”
Claire Wright on May’s austerity U-turn
Owl says: what an opportunity East Devon missed not electing this bright, sensible, compassionate, grounded woman – but you WILL get at least one more chance East Devonians – choose wisely next time.
“This makes me feel happy and furious all at once.
As a councillor who has seen firsthand the suffering caused by austerity, this statement simply proves it was a fat lie all along.
A big fat lie perpetuated by a bunch of wealthy ruthless people determined to shrink the state and demonise people who have the least.
An obsession by the power hungry elite who have never known a day’s financial hardship in their lives, to reform this country into a tax haven for wealthy businesses, while hollowly claiming that this country must have a “buoyant economy” to fund public services.
Of course, many of us knew we had been lied to but this really takes it to a new level.
It has taken the shock of an uncertain future to get them to admit it.
So are they going to reinstate the billions they have slashed from public services?
Are they going to scrap the despicable sanctions system which penalises the disabled, the unwell, those people who have the least ability to stand up for themselves?
Are they now going to do a major about turn and actually look after the poorest and most unwell people in society?
And what about the NHS, which has seen 15,000 bed cuts in seven years, as well as looming major service cuts centralisation through the sustainability and transformation plans.
If there is any justice they will put right what they got so wrong in the last seven years.
But to do that they must go into a deal with the odious Democratic Unionist Party, whose views are in line with the most hardline right wing party most people could imagine.
The climate change denying DUP is anti LGBT rights and abortion and they’re in favour of the death penalty.
Oh and they have links to loyalist paramiltary groups … didn’t one leader get pilloried in the right wing press recently for claims of similar such links? #DeepHypocrisy
Any such deal could undermine the rather shaky peace in Northern Ireland.
But such is the desperation to cling onto power that all these things are to be swept aside, as a deal is expected to be agreed today.
On the upside the Queen’s Speech is expected to be cleared of any policy that the Tories don’t feel they can get absolute support for in parliament.
This is a new era in British politics. And while there are some despicable deals afoot, I am optimistic that the voters in this country are finally waking up to the lies we have been told for seven years.
Let’s see what happens in the next election, which may not be too far away….”
Stuart Hughes suggests residents and businesses should pay to lure Tour of Britain back
“Would you pay for Tour of Britain to return to Devon
“Residents and businesses are being asked if they would like to see the Tour of Britain come back to Devon – and if they would put their hand in their pocket for its return.
The county council said this month’s stage, which set off from Sidmouth, drew record crowds, with an estimated 250,000 people lining the route.
But it said hosting the race again will require financing – and one option being considered is crowd-funding.
Councillor Stuart Hughes said: “With local government budgets increasingly being squeezed, it is prudent to investigate all opportunities. In 2010, when we hosted a stage in Exeter, we worked with local businesses. After talking with other towns, local authorities and stage partners, this appears to be an increasingly-common funding model. Any future Devon stage would likely need a similar cocktail of funding and we wanted to understand whether there was an appetite from the public for this. We’ve had a positive response so far, with over 90 per cent saying they’d like to see the Tour return to Devon.”
Residents can have their say by visiting https://surveys.devon.gov.uk/s/ToBftr/
http://www.sidmouthherald.co.uk/news/would_you_pay_for_tour_of_britain_to_return_to_devon_1_4717076
What if Honiton raised more money than Sidmouth? What if the Blackdown Hills raised less money than Broadclyst?
Sport being sold to the highest bidder.
Is that even allowed?
Claire Wright acts quickly on Lloyds Bank closures
Although Claire Wright is appealing on behalf of Ottery St Mary, this could equally apply to all the smaller towns of East Devon:
“Following the devastating news this morning about Lloyds Bank proposing to axe 3000 jobs and close 200 branches I have written to the bank’s chief executive, Antonio Osorio…….
Dear Mr Osorio
I was dismayed to read the news this morning about your decision to close 200 branches of Lloyds Bank with a loss of 3000 jobs.
I realise that this must have been a horribly difficult decision to make as it will cause much hardship for your staff and for the communities where branches are closed.
I felt I must write straightaway however, to implore you not to shut our Lloyds branch here in Ottery St Mary.
Ottery’s branch is the only bank now left in the town, which has a population (including nearby villages) of around 10,000. Hundreds of new houses are given planning consent and will be built in the coming months and years.
I know from talking to local people and traders that they really value your bank and whenever I pass it, it always seems busy.
The town’s traders unsurprisingly are finding things tough during these difficult times and several businesses have closed in recent times. If Lloyds closed here it would make things harder for them, as they would need to take a 10 mile round trip to either Sidmouth or Honiton to do their banking, potentially several times a week.
Ottery also has a large proportion of elderly people, many of whom do not have their own transport. I know that many elderly people living here rely on being able to bank in the town. Closing it would mean a 10 mile round trip on public transport. Fine for a fit person but potentially very hard for someone who is not in the best of health or who is infirm. Elderly people would be very disadvantaged by such a decision.
I realise that wherever you close branches people will be upset, but I would urge you to keep Ottery’s branch open for the reasons above.
Kind regards
Best wishes
Claire
Mr Osorio’s email address is antonio.osorio@lloydsbanking.com – please drop him a line urgently if you can, saying how much Lloyds means to you and what it would mean to you if lost!
http://www.claire-wright.org/index.php/post/lloyds_bank_chief_executive_urged_to_retain_otterys_branch_in_face_of_cuts
Note to LEP: south-west economy has weakest growth after Scotland and the North-East
“The South West private sector’s economy has had one of the weakest rises in the UK, a report has revealed.
According to PMI survey data, business activity expanded at the slowest rate since April 2013, and growth was weaker than all other UK regions surveyed except Scotland and the North East, which both saw contractions.
The South West also registered a smaller rise in new business, and a further decline in backlogs.
However, employment growth has remained relatively solid in the region compared with others.
The seasonally adjusted Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking South West Business Activity Index fell to a 35-month low of 51.2 in March, from 52.6 in February. …
… The underlying weakness of business conditions in the private sector was emphasised by data on new business inflows, which increased only fractionally in March. In line with the trend for activity, the South West registered the slowest growth among the ten regions to record expansion.”
Our LEP is dedicated to growth in the South West. Millions of pounds is routed via our LEP to promote growth.
Something isn’t working.
Devolution and “more jobs” – smoke and mirrors
“The following statement by the Core Cities Group is fairly typical of the statements of intent by advocates of devolution:
“Grow the whole of the UK economy, contributing to the elimination of the deficit, for example by generating the potential £222 billion and 1.16 million extra jobs across the eight English Core Cities alone by 2030, which independent forecasts demonstrate is possible with more devolution. That’s the equivalent of adding Denmark to our economy.”
“There is neither realism about the growth outcomes of devolution nor much concern about generating particular benefits for local economic stakeholders, such as residents, local workers, and business owners. NEF’s work on local economies has shown that if cities are to ‘meet their full economic potential’13 in terms of benefiting local economic stakeholders, this will involve:
Supporting people to be financially strong individuals in terms of income-to-cost-of- living ratios and being able to have savings.
Developing a strong local business sector with supply chains connecting small enterprise to big business.
Making more efficient use of distribution of resources, with positive local circulation of money, low levels of wasted resources in local supply and production systems, a high level of staff retention in jobs, and falling levels of inequality and poverty.
In the documents, these sorts of economic outcome for local people are only rarely discussed. For example, reducing poverty is mentioned four times in a total of 1,129 arguments and cost of living is not mentioned at all.
This is a gap in the debate. ‘More jobs’ is the overwhelming focus,14 rather than ‘better jobs and wages’.”
Regenerate, degenerate, exterminate …
Regeneration and Economic Development?
The Watch has already blogged (26 Dec) “East Devon Economy Booming? Not according to cabinet agenda data.” But we now have had time to explore the latest “Regeneration” proposals in greater depth.
A special item in the pack of papers for the 6 Jan 2016 EDDC Cabinet Meeting (page 107) proposes an additional £287,000 be spent in 2016/17 (with similar costs for 3 years) to add three more staff to the three full time and three part time members of the Regeneration and Economic Development Team.
Context – Central government grants are being cut severely and will disappear completely by the end of the current parliament in 2019/20. The Council core funding will then come from business rates, council tax and fee income (eg car parking). The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) predicts the 30% loss from central government funding will be made up from an increase in retained business rates, from the current level of around 25% to around 55% in 2019/20, rather than by other measures such as efficiency savings.
The £287,000 pa will be used directly to promote economic growth and increased business rate income outside the Growth Point and across the district.
The East Devon Growth Point is set to become an Enterprise Zone, where businesses can get up to 100% business rate discount worth up to £275,000 per business over 5 years but we gather that ALL business rates in enterprise zones go direct to the (you guessed it) Local Enterprise Partnership.
So what chance has this team got in succeeding? Aren’t businesses simply going to transfer to the growth point?
We are sure everyone wants to see a vibrant local economy, especially one attracting high value jobs. But why are we so underwhelmed by this proposal that we think this money could be spent in better ways?
It all gets off to a bad start. The proposal itself spells out the lacklustre performance to date of the three full time and three part time Regeneration and Economic Development Team. The economic profile for East Devon (Grant Thornton, Feb 2015) highlights:
•The average gross weekly earnings in East Devon are low at £409 compared with £503 nationally.
•The knowledge economy in East Devon accounted for just 13.5% of total employment in 2013, compared with 18.13% for the SW and 21.75% nationally.
•The self employment rate in East Devon is high and stable by national standards but new business formation rate is very low, ranking in the bottom 20%.
According to the Economics page of the EDDC web site the services industry accounts for 85.7% of the employment in East Devon with a large section of this being in the retail, hospitality and health sectors, all of which it admits are predominantly lower-paid sectors.
The South West Regional Tourist Board data (2011) shows a fall in visitors to East Devon from 800,000 visitor trips per annum in 2005 to 472,000 visitor trips in 2011. The income from overnight stays also fell from £3.7m to £1.8m in the same period. Tourism, according to EDDC’s Cabinet proposal is a key driver!
(The Watch has repeatedly drawn attention to the way EDDC has ignored Tourism and to its deficiencies in rolling out high speed broadband.)
In the proposal the Council claims it is adept at using its assets to “de-risk locations” and attract private sector interest. Two examples cited: the delivery of the new Premier Inn in Exmouth and the commercial success around Exmouth Strand, where the Council has used its land and property assets to achieve this aim.
But none of this is really relevant to realising the stated aim that: “our ambitions lie in high tech growth and an improved knowledge economy, exploiting the opportunities now emerging through our Growth Point and Enterprise Zone”. (It should be noted here that the growth Point was not successful in making Exeter the “Internet of Things” lead demonstrator city – which Manchester won).
According to the proposal, the draft local plan retains a target of 1 job per new house and predicts 18,500 new homes over the 18 year Plan period i.e. delivery of the plan requires the creation of 1,000 jobs every year. The only quantified successes claimed in job creation by the Regeneration and Economic Development Team, 44 jobs at the Exmouth Premier Inn and a projected 45 next year from Seaton Jurassic, represent only 4.5% of what is needed annually. Not much of an achievement is it? It begs the question of whether 1,000 jobs per year are remotely achievable.
The demographic trend in East Devon requires the creation of between 160 and 190 jobs per year. This should be achievable as it assumes average economic growth. In EDDC’s chosen metric this equates to delivering four Premier Inns across the district every year (not just the one held up as an example of success). However, to this total, in their wisdom, EDDC has added in the draft Plan a “policy on” job led growth scenario with a target of an additional 549 jobs a year.
The actual annual target in the draft Plan is still a large figure, and one that is clearly way beyond the Team’s ability to deliver, but is only about 70% of the astronomical 1,000 quoted to the Cabinet. So this is another example of EDDC playing fast and loose with numbers, ratcheting up the growth agenda at every opportunity.
Job creation on this scale should be easy to spot. We are already 2 years into the new Plan period so it should now be possible to review the Team’s progress to date in creating 2,000 jobs. Such a review would form a much better basis for judging the success of past measures and on deciding the direction of future expenditure on the best way to promote growth.
The “aims and objectives moving forward” of EDDC’s proposal contains nothing but platitudes such as: “delivering an economy which stimulates start ups and new businesses to grow to bring better paid jobs and increased wealth into East Devon”. There is no concrete plan, no: how to do it. It is an example of the poverty of ideas that results from Cabinet decisions made in secret.
The people of East Devon are not bereft of ideas or talent but they are never consulted. So here’s a radical idea. Consult the people of East Devon. They are the potential customers for these businesses, and isn’t the customer is always right?
Here’s another: with regions across the country all putting forward their own enterprise plans for devolution the priority might be to put more emphasis on winning the publicity war, though that might be difficult with the whole district a giant building site.
Finally, how does the Regeneration and Economic Development Team reconcile the conflicts between maximising fee income from car parking, and saving the High Street and encouraging Tourism?
East Devon economy booming? Not according to Cabinet agenda data
And just one more from the Cabinet agenda papers for 6 January 2016:
“Local Economic Challenges are identified in the District Profile for East Devon (Grant Thornton, Feb 2015). They include:
The average gross weekly earnings in East Devon are low at £409 compared with £503 nationally
The knowledge economy in East Devon accounted for just 13.5% of total employment in 2013, compared with 18.13% for the SW and 21.75% nationally
The self employment rate in East Devon is high and stable by national standards but new business formation rate is very low, ranking in the bottom 20%.
A key role for the Economic Development team is to create the conditions for more businesses to develop across East Devon and to retain the workforce in the District (Draft Council Plan, 2015). The benefit will be more jobs, money in circulation and business rates income to the Council. The towns to the east of the District have seen less growth than the west end and this presents an opportunity to the Council to assist in delivering this growth.
A key driver behind our regeneration interventions is the improvement of the visitor economy in visibility and mix of facilities and infrastructure. East Devon has much to offer tourists with its world heritage status coastline, beaches, AONBs, attractive towns and villages and numerous attractions that bring people to the district. However, tourism numbers have been in decline in recent years as evidenced in the South West Regional Tourist Board data (2011). This indicated a fall in visitors to East Devon from 800,000 visitor trips per annum in 2005 to 472,000 visitor trips in 2011. The income from overnight stays also fell from 3.7m to 1.8m in the same period.
More changes to planning policies: will they ever get it right?
10 things you need to know about this week’s consultation on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), including proposals to amend the planning policy definition of affordable housing, plans to require higher density development around commuter hubs, and a new presumption in favour of brownfield housing development.
1. Sanctions for under-delivering on housing targets mooted
Local planning authorities that fail to deliver the homes set out in their local plans could be required to identify ‘additional sustainable sites’, which could include new settlements, according to the consultation. It sets out further details on the operation of the housing delivery test announced in last month’s Spending Review. It says that the government proposes to amend planning policy to make clear that where significant under-delivery is identified over a sustained period, action needs to be taken to address this. “One approach could be to identify additional sustainable sites if the existing approach is demonstrably not delivering the housing required,” the consultation says. MORE.
2. Affordable housing definition broadened
The government proposes to amend the national planning policy definition of affordable housing “so that it encompasses a fuller range of products that can support people to access home ownership. We propose that the definition will continue to include a range of affordable products for rent and for ownership for households whose needs are not met by the market, but without being unnecessarily constrained by the parameters of products that have been used in the past which risk stifling innovation”. MORE.
3. Councils told to plan for needs of those who aspire to home ownership
The consultation says that the government proposes to make clearer in policy the requirement to plan for the housing needs of “those who aspire to home ownership alongside those whose needs are best met through rented homes, subject as now to the overall viability of individual sites”.
4. Push for higher densities around commuter hubs
The consultation proposes a change to national planning policy “that would expect local planning authorities, in both plan-making and in taking planning decisions, to require higher density development around commuter hubs wherever feasible”.
5. Fresh policy backing for new settlements
The government proposes to strengthen national planning policy to “provide a more supportive approach for new settlements, within locally-led plans. We consider that local planning authorities should take a proactive approach to planning for new settlements where they can meet the sustainable development objectives of national policy, including taking account of the need to provide an adequate supply of new homes”.
6. A presumption in favour of brownfield housing development
The consultation says that the government will “make clearer in national policy that substantial weight should be given to the benefits of using brownfield land for housing (in effective, a form of ‘presumption’ in favour of brownfield land). We propose to make it clear that development proposals for housing on brownfield sites should be supported, unless overriding conflicts with the local plan or the National Planning Policy Framework can be demonstrated and cannot be mitigated”. MORE.
7. Call for release of unviable employment land
The government intends to amend paragraph 22 of the NPPF “to make clear that unviable or underused employment land should be released unless there is significant and compelling evidence to justify why such land should be retained for employment use”.
8. Scope of Starter Homes initiative widened further
The scope of the current exception site policy for Starter Homes could be widened to incorporate other forms of unviable or underused brownfield land, “such as land which was previously in use for retail, leisure and non-residential institutional uses (such as former health and educational sites)”, according to the consultation document.
9. Neighbourhood planners to identify green belt Starter Home sites
The government proposes to amend national planning policy so that neighbourhood plans can allocate appropriate small-scale sites in the green belt specifically for Starter Homes, with neighbourhood areas having the discretion to determine the scope of a small-scale site.
10. Green belt brownfield policy test faces revision
The consultation says that the government proposes to amend the current policy test in paragraph 89 of the NPPF that prevents development of brownfield land where there is any additional impact on the openness of the green belt to “give more flexibility and enable suitable, sensitively designed redevelopment to come forward”
The consultation closes on 25 January 2016.
Consultation on proposed changes to national planning policy is available here.
http://www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1376060/nppf-consultation-10-things-need-know
East Devon Watch 