How can the Midweek Herald announce that it entered a voluntary period of purdah until after the General Election and then run (again) an item on the so-called EDDC Tourism Champion on the “possibility” of Jurassic Coast water- borne transport – a project ruled out last year by ALL partners involved because of the prohibitive cost and the difficulty of constructing appropriate jetties?
Where were the balanced comments of other potential town councillors on this already-buried project?
As you can see on our HOME page, several pre-election hustings are being organised by independent bodies around the District. This evening, there’s one in Sidmouth, where for the first time, every single District Councillor is being challenged by Independent candidates. So, tonight’s hustings is a particularly newsworthy event for the press, who will be there.
St Francis Hall, Woolbrook, will be open from 7.30pm, and the hustings will start at around 7.50pm. Questions in advance, please, to Dave Bramley (VgS Chair) or submit them on arrival, to the organisers.
For details of the meeting, and to contact Dave Bramley, click here: https://www.visionforsidmouth.org/calendar/2015/april/district-council-hustings.aspx
The full list of Sidmouth Election Candidates is on the front page of the latest edition (14 April) of Pullman’s View from Sidmouth. You can’t miss the headline: ‘Independent alliance target Sidmouth’!
Press release from Claire Wright, Independent Parliamentary Candidate
Devon East, where the junior Foreign Office minister Hugo Swire was the local MP and who had a majority of 9,000 in 2010, is now a marginal seat according to the Electoral Reform Society.
Meanwhile Claire Wright, with substantial local government experience, and backed by hundreds of local helpers, is considered by Ladbrokes to be the Independent with the best chance of success in the general election of any Independents in the whole of the UK. The bookies confirm that Claire’s odds have improved further and faster than any genuine, non-local issue Independent for many years. Now considered to be the outstanding challenger to the previous incumbent, Claire continues to garner support and to attract financial contributions from individuals as she will not accept donations from big business.
The backing for Independents in East Devon is not confined to Claire Wright. It also applies at the level of district council. At present, the East Devon District Council is dominated by Conservatives, as it has been for many years.
Two months ago, the East Devon Alliance, previously a successful pressure group, announced that it would form an umbrella group to support candidates wishing to stand at the District council election. Of the 29 wards to be contested, 24 will be fought by Independent candidates. A total of 37 Independent candidates will be standing across the district and 22 will be “Independent East Devon Alliance” on the ballot papers and 15 will be Independent.
Other parties will be fielding 96 candidates but, for the first time ever, the number of Conservatives, at 57, will be overshadowed by the number of non-Conservatives, which is 76.
Paul Arnott, the chairman of the East Devon Alliance said that “taken with the unstoppable rise of the Independent Parliamentary candidate for East Devon, Claire Wright, this phenomenal offer by 37 Independents to the people of the district proves that East Devon better represents the desire for a change in democracy than anywhere else in the United Kingdom.”
Westpoint has applied for an exemption to its planning permission to allow timed car trials on its site. Obviously this is a concern as it is likely to be very noisy and could potentially cause additional pollution to the area too..
This is the link to the planning application (15/0139/VAR):
https://planning.eastdevon.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=NIGLWSGHHHM00
Save Clyst St Mary spokesperson, Gaeron Kayley, says:
“Having spoken to The Parish Council, I can confirm there will be a public meeting in the School Hall on Wednesday 15th April Starting at 19.30″
Remember, the Electoral Officer fir East Devon is relying on national publicity only for registration – there will be no special push to enrol voters in East Devon specifically.
If you know someone who has not registered, or you want to do it yourself, it is easy and you can do it here:
https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
IT IS NOT TOO LATE TO REGISTER FOR A POSTAL VOTE
Make sure you return your postal vote so that it arrives by polling day, otherwise it will not be counted. A Freepost envelope is included in your postal ballot pack. But, if you are sending it from overseas, you will need to pay the postage.
If it is too late to send your vote back by post, you can hand it in on polling day to the returning officer at your local council, or drop it off at a polling station. For further information contact the Returning Officer.
About a hundred people from various parts of East Devon gathered on the lawn terraces at Knowle on Sunday afternoon 12th April to listen to speeches from parliamentary candidates and others about the national planning set-up.
The event was part of a nationwide Day of Action called for by Community Voice on Planning (Covop) and was organised by Covop trustees and Vision Group for Sidmouth.
Parliamentary candidates representing all parties, except the Conservatives ( from both the Honiton and Tiverton and the Devon East constituencies) gave their views on the national planning system and in particular the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
All of them promised reforms, mostly involving prioritising brownfield developments, protecting the countryside and building more affordable homes for local people. Conservative candidates were unable to attend and failed to respond to requests to send a written statement.
The first speaker was ex-judge Ian McKintosh, of East Devon Alliance and Covop. After reviewing the situation nationally and locally, he argued that local communities were being ignored in favour of developers.
Caroline Kolek, Labour candidate for Honiton and Tiverton, claimed that Labour would stop land-banking and prioritise brownfield sites. She shared her slot with Henry Brown, district councillor candidate for St Paul’s ward, Honiton,who made the case for more affordables for local young people.
Paul Edwards of the Green party and candidate for Tiverton and Honiton, said the countryside was our greatest resource and should be protected.
John Kelly, standing in for Andrew Chapman, UKIP parliamentary candidate for Devon East, who was indisposed, argued that the planning crisis was caused by EU regulations.
Stuart Mole, Liberal-Democrat candidate for Devon East, contended that the reforms recommended by the recent Communities and Local Government committtee should be immediately instated, for instance the proposal that all planning permissions be counted towards the 5-year land supply.
Claire Wright, Independent candidate for Devon East, put the blame for the massive increase in inappropriate development squarely on the government’s deregulation of the planning system and on the Local Council’s developer-bias and failure to produce a Local Plan.
Robert Crick, for Vision group of Sidmouth, read a litany of some of the inappropriate developments approved in the district in the past three years together with statistics provided by the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England. These included the prospect of about a thousand houses a year in East Devon until 2031.
A Covop petition, to be presented to the new government, was handed out along with a short guide to the planning system and suggested reforms. The petition is available online at https://you.38degrees.org.uk/p/covop2015
An article in ine of today’s newspapers is about health and the figures for Body Mass Index and cholesterol ( Sunday Times). It makes the point that figures for “healthy” BMI and cholesterol were picked arbitrarily and based on little firm evidence and may be quite wrong.
Rather like EDDC’s old AND new annual housing figures.
Several readers have made the point that they can find no evidence at all for the figure of 950 houses a year for the next 18 years in any of the latest Local Plan documents. All sorts of figures are mentioned for all sorts of scenarios but 950 does not seem to be one of them.
Perhaps this is why Mr Thickett, the Inspector who is usually so quick at responding to EDDC, has yet to reply to EDDC’s submission of the new draft which they sent to him on 18 March 2015 (with Community Infrastructure Levy rate information sent on 30 March). He usually replies witin a few days.
This new draft must be giving him much food for thought.
Surely not yet another enormous blunder that will allow a developer free-for-all to continue well beyond the life of this (currently) Conservative-controlled district council with its “economic growth” at all costs mantra?
Usually well-informed sources tell us that Paul Diviani and Andrew Moulding have been seen together being very, very friendly and obliging to an independent candidate.
Now why should that be, when, as Tory Whip Phil “I’ve never whipped anyone in my life” Twiss memorably said: Independents never do anything useful for their electors?
Is it remotely possible that Paul and Andrew are desperately trying to nobble a few new recruits to make up the Tory losses expected on May 7th?
Just two months ago the East Devon Alliance announced that it would form an umbrella group to support candidates wishing to stand at the District Council election on May 7th 2015. Yesterday, nominations closed.
Of the 29 wards to be contested, 24 will be fought by Independent candidates. A total of 37 Independent candidates have come forward to stand across the district, of whom 22 will be “Independent East Devon Alliance” on the ballot papers, and 15 will be Independent.
57 Conservatives will be standing, 19 Liberal Democrats, 6 Labour and 5 Greens. Despite free national news coverage every day for the last year, Ukip can only raise 9 candidates. For the first time ever the number of Conservative candidates – 57 – is overshadowed by the number of non-Conservatives – 76. In an historic first, the people of East Devon now have a genuine free choice at the election to entirely change the guard at their district council.
In the lead up to nominations a Conservative councillor, Phil Twiss repeatedly scaremongered the local electorate by absurdly suggesting the Independent movement was an alliance of left of centre groups. Yesterday this was shown for the false assertion it always was. Between them, the Liberal Democrats, Labour and Greens are fielding no fewer than 30 candidates of their own, who will rightly feel insulted by him.
Of more significance to him and his party comrades is that two of the most outstanding Independent candidates are well-respected members of the EDDC Audit and Governance Committee, who have honourably resigned from the Conservative party in order to stand as Independents in their areas, with the real expectation that they will be re-elected on May 7th.
East Devon Alliance Chairman Paul Arnott said, “Taken together with the unstoppable rise of Independent Parliamentary Candidate for East Devon, Claire Wright, this phenomenal offer by 37 Independents to the people of the district proves that East Devon better represents the desire for change in democracy than anywhere else in the United Kingdom.”
The Express and Echo today reports today that “the surge in Independents going for the seats can be attributed to the East Devon Alliance campaign group, which has transparency and openness at its heart, re-launching itself in February as an umbrella organisation for prospective independent councillors.
The aim was to give independents who share the objectives of the alliance, the opportunity to explain to voters who they are and what they stand for, ensuring they have equal opportunity of notoriety as their party specific counterparts.
In order to comply with electoral law the group had to register as a party with the Electoral Commission.’
“Nominations for the East Devon District Council closed on April 9th, and a published list of candidates is at the link below. The headline news is that there is a genuinely historic representation of Independent candidates. No fewer than 24 of the 29 wards are being contested by an Independent. 37 Independents in total are standing. And 22 of them are standing under the East Devon Alliance banner.
In a comic twist, Conservative councillor Phil Twiss – who was in the local papers again this week trying to characterise Independents as Reds-Under-The-Bed – will have to explain to the public why two of the Independent candidates were, until their honourable resignation from his party, serving Conservative councillors. Like so many of us, they’d had enough. The phoney war is over. Now let’s make every day count.”
Read more at: http://www.eastdevonalliance.org.uk/
Three wards are missing from the list as it is presumed candidates are being returned uncontested:
Beer and Branscombe (Geoff Pook – Independent), Clyst Valley (Mike Allen, Conservative) and Trinity (Ian Thomas, Conservative).
ANALYSIS
37 Independent or Independent East Devon Alliance candidates are standing
1 independent candidate elected unopposed (Geoff Pook, Beer)
so, 15 Independent (including 1 elected unopposed)), and 22 Independent East Devon Alliance
One Independent is former Conservative Councillor Roger Boote (Honiton St Pauls) 2 candidates shown as unaffiliated are recent Conservative Councillors Bob Buxton (Dunkeswell) and Andrew Dinnis (Tale Vale) and two candidates show no affiliation Graham Long (Otterhead) and John Dyson (Sidmouth Town)
Yarty, ward of current council leader Paul Diviani, which was uncontested last time, is now being contested by Diviani again for the Conservatives but he is being challenged by Green Party, Independent East Devon Alliance and Liberal Democrat candidates.
BREAKDOWN by WARDS
Axminster Rural 1 seat: 2 candidates, neither Independent
Axminster Town 2 seats: 7 candidates including 1 Independent and one EDA
Broadclyst 2 seats: 4 candidates including 1 Independent
Budleigh 1 seat, 5 candidates including 1 Independent
Coly Valley 2 seats: 4 Candidates including 2 EDA
Dunkeswell 1 seat: 2 candidates including 1 Independent (former Conservative incumbent Bob Buxton)
Exe Valley 1 seat: 2 candidates including 1 EDA
Exmouth Brixington 3 seats: 6 candidates including 1 EDA
Exmouth Halsdon 3 seats: 6 candidates including 1 EDA
Exmouth Littleham 3 seats: 7 candidates including 1 EDA
Exmouth Town 3 seats: 8 candidates, none Independent
Exmouth Withycombe Raleigh 3 seats: 7 candidates, none Independent
Feniton and Buckerell 1 seat: 2 candidates including 1 Independent
Honiton St Michaels 3 seats: 8 candidates including 1 Independent and 1 EDA
Honiton St Pauls 2 seats: 6 candidates, including 1 Independent (former Conservative Councillor Roger Boote)
Newbridges 1 seat: 2 candidates, neither Independent
Newton Poppleford and Harpford 1 seat: 2 candidates including 1 EDA
Otterhead 1 seat: 2 candidates including one no affiliation
Ottery St Mary Rural 2 seats: 4 candidates including 2 EDA
Ottery St Mary Town 2 seats: 5 candidates including 2 Independent
Raleigh: 1 seat: 2 candidates including one EDA
Seaton 3 seats: 10 candidates including 1 Independent
Sidmouth Rural 1 seat: 2 candidates including 1 Independent
Sidmouth Sidford 3 seats: 8 candidates including 1 Independent and 3 EDA
Sidmouth Town 3 seats: 6 candidates including 2 EDA and one unaffiliated (John Dyson)
Tale Vale 1 seat: 1 Independent (former Conservative Councillor Andrew Dinnis)
Whimple 1 seat: 2 candidates neither Independent
Woodbury and Lympstone: 2 seats: 3 candidates including 2 EDA
Yarty: 1 seat: 4 candidates including 1 EDA
Simon Jenkins believes so. For those who missed it first time round, here’s his evidence…http://www.spectator.co.uk/features/9452952/the-myth-of-the-housing-crisis/
We thought we had one – Mr Gordon Lennox – but he now also appears to be Monitoring Officer (temporary or permanent – who knows) since the last one we (temporarily) shared with South Somerset seems to have gone – all very confusing!
Or perhaps EDDC is expecting SO much work with the thousands of houses to be built the planning department must expand.
And “Strategic Lead – Legal, licensing and Democratic Services” is that Mr Gordon Lennox too? Or someone else? Only recently EDDC made one of its most senior officers redundant and another couple quietly drifted away – are we back to boom after bust?
“Joining our talented legal team, you will support our Strategic Lead (Legal, Licensing and Democratic Services) in providing a highly efficient and effective legal service. You will offer your first-class legal advice in planning and listed building law as well as administrative law to our council officers, committees and sub-committees. You will draft, negotiate and complete related legal documents and you will represent the Council at court and in planning appeals.”
http://www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk/index.php?option=com_jobs&task=detail_job&id=17441:planning-solicitor&Itemid=
Whilst there are government directives regarding the purdah period for councils (to prevent them tying a future to expensive decisions that will affect them) there is no such rule for newspapers.
One local newspaper has today announced that it will operate a purdah period to ensure that candidates are treated fairly, yet another one stated that it would report political news throughout the election period.
Would it be fair if, say, one candidate got a mountain of negative publicity and behaved really badly and one got a mountain of positive publicity and behaved impeccably, to keep this news from readers?
Surely, a fairness policy then appears to protects the least liked and least popular candidates from harm and the most popular and most liked from being given credit. This can then skew election choice. Is that really fair?
Is it perhaps more a case of not wanting to tread on powerful feet?
Click here for details: VGS hustings poster1.pages
No big surprises in the agenda of the final Cabinet of the current council:
Click to access 150415-cabinet-agenda-public-version.pdf
Let us hope for many new faces and MUCH more transparency from the next one, assuming that the next council keeps the system.
However, one thing has been revealed that EDDC has had a very poor record for sickness absence and after attempts to improve it, things have got much, much worse.
Latest figures shows that, after some improvement from April to September 2014 (0.64 – 4.61 days averages) it absolutely skyrocketed between October 2014 and February 2015 (5.64 – 9.39)
Sounds like a lot of people are very sick at EDDC.
A correspondent writes: Streetscene at East Devon District Council are responsible for emptying litter bins and keeping streets and footpaths clear of litter. This is how they dealt with things over the Easter Bank Holiday 2015. Surely our Sidmouth District Councillors should insist that this is better managed?
Two pages of absolutely cracking letter in the “View from …” titles this week.
One from a former recent town councillor in Seaton saying how EDDC ignores some towns and parishes totally, a critique of the “waves sculpture” in Seaton from a local artist, letters in support of Independent Parliamentary candidate Claire Wright, a letter about dinosaurs of the political kind, one about all of us NOT being in it together, particularly Hugo Swire, Phil Twiss yet again desperately attempting to bring down his EDA opponents and one supporting independence in local politics in general.
The View from titles are all available free in various retail outlets across East Devon and also online:
http://www.viewfrompublishing.co.uk/
History in the making!
East Devon Watch 