Boris Johnson’s handwriting and excuses for not meeting with select committees:
Committee chair Sarah Woolaston’s reply:
Berlin to freeze rents for 5 years
“… Berlin’s state cabinet has agreed on a rent freeze for five years to counter rising housing costs in the German capital.
The city’s leftwing coalition government wants to freeze the rent for apartments built before 2014, according to a report by the German news agency dpa.
Only a minority of Berliners own their homes or apartments and rent has been rising sharply in recent years, forcing many to move outside the city. …”
“Plan for fracking ‘years behind schedule’ and has cost taxpayer £32m”
Imagine what we could have done with £32m!
How did our MPs vote?
No surprises – both for exit, both for no scrutiny.
DCC opens up its Local Enterprise Partnership Scrutiny Commmittee to public scrutiny and participation
This positive change has long been requested by East Devon Alliance DCC Councillor Martin Shaw (Colyton and Seaton).
See minutes below for a full account of discussion at the meeting – about what is working well and (more importantly and interestingly) what is not:
https://democracy.devon.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?MId=3572&x=1
“UK to use £1bn meant for green energy to support fracking in Argentina”
“The UK is planning to invest in Argentina’s controversial oil shale industry using a £1bn export finance deal intended to support green energy, according to government documents seen by the Guardian.
UK Export Finance, the government’s foreign credit agency, promised in 2017 to offer loans totalling £1bn to help UK companies export their expertise in “infrastructure, green energy and healthcare” to invest in Argentina’s economy.
Instead official records, released through a freedom of information request, have revealed the government’s plan to prioritise support for major oil companies, including Shell and BP, which are fracking in Argentina’s vast Vaca Muerta shale heartlands.
One government memo, uncovered by Friends of the Earth, said that while Argentina’s clean energy sector was growing, it was “Argentina’s huge shale resources that offer the greatest potential” for the UK. …”
EDDC ex-Tory councillor doesn’t like the idea of a Jurassic National Park
Can leopards change their spots?
Interestingly, his objection seems to be entirely about losing control of housing development:
His objections seem eerily reminiscent of the objections raised when Paul Diviani was Leader of EDDC:
Surely not?
East Devon’s “North West Quadrant” of “linked villages” – or Exeter’s North East suburbs?
“The potential for strategic scale development in the North West Quadrant area of East Devon was identified and a network of linked villages, referred to as Clyst Villages, has been put forward
The concept of a ‘network of linked villages’ being built in the North West Quadrant area of East Devon will be investigated.
East Devon District Council’s Strategic Planning Committee on Tuesday morning unanimously recommends to the Cabinet that East Devon supports the Exeter and East Devon garden communities status.
The Exeter bid would see around 12,000 new homes built in the city as part of the Liveable Exeter vision and has already been agreed by their council. …”
“The villages of Poltimore, Huxham, Clyst St Mary, Clyst St George, Ebford, West Hill, Woodbury, Woodbury Salterton, Exton and Farringdon would be most likely to be included as ones that could be expanded further, based on them being in the quadrant and close to existing infrastructure….”
Cllr Philip Skinner said: “We are going to have the housing numbers whether we like it or not, and we cannot put off and delay this as there is a much bigger vision than just focusing on that. This is a really exciting project and I hope people grasp it with the enthusiasm that I have so we get the good things for the area that we live in.
“This is an extremely important document that we should be signing up to this now and I am bang up for seeing this comes forward in the right way.” …
https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/east-devon-could-getting-network-3454612
Hemingway designs for Exmouth on display 13-14 November: 4.5 hours to view materials, 2 hours for presentation of feedback
Doesn’t seem a lot of time for such an important project … and it sounds like “show and tell” rather rhan “show and listen”.
“Hemingway Design – tasked with creating a vision for the third phase of the seafront regeneration scheme – will outline the feedback they received from an online survey and how those views have guided the proposals.
The phase three site includes the former Exmouth Fun Park and the plot currently occupied by Harbour View Café.
People can view the exhibition materials on
Wednesday, November 13, from noon until 4.30pm at a public drop-in at the same venue.
The event, organised by Hemingway Design and supported by East Devon District Council, will take place between
5.30pm and 7.30pm on
Thursday, November 14, at Ocean.
The exhibition will also look at ways that these opportunities can be realistically implemented.
Commercial property advisors from Lambert Smith Hampton will be on hand to advise on deliverability of the proposals. …”
https://www.exmouthjournal.co.uk/news/hemingway-design-public-exhibition-event-1-6334227
“£14 Billion ‘wasted’ by the government on ‘botched’ outsourcing”
“The government has wasted at least £14 billion between 2016 and 2019 on poorly managed outsourcing contracts finds a report from the Reform Think Tank.
The report is based on an analysis of investigations by the National Audit Office NAO), Parliamentary Select Committees and other statutory bodies. The total value of the contracts investigated was £71.1 billion.
The Ministry of Defence accounts for 27 per cent of this waste. This includes a 17 year delay in the full decommissioning of nuclear submarines and a poorly planned army recruitment programme. This saw soldiers forced into backoffice jobs to clear an IT backlog created by an untested IT system created in partnership between the army and Capita.
Other examples include the vastly expensive liquidation of Carrillion, which cost the government at least £148 million as well as involving the time and resources of 14 government departments and public bodies.
Also the Department for Education continued to give Learndirect £105 million after the programme was rated ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted. This should have led to the funding being withdrawn.
A third of the government’s annual budget is spent on outsourced services, at a total of ££292 Billion.
Reform is now calling for an independent regulator of the outsourcing sector which – unlike the NAO or Select Committees would have the power to enforce change and impose sanctions on failing providers.
Senior Researcher and Reform procurement lead, Dr Joshua Pritchard said “Our public services cannot function without outsourcing. But when it goes wrong, it’s taxpayers who end up footing the bill
“The £14.3 billion wasted as a result of poorly drawn up and managed government contracts is inexcusable.
“We need a new regulator with the power to prevent public money being squandered because of totally avoidable mistakes.”
£14 Billion ‘wasted’ by the government on ‘botched’ outsourcing
“Seaside residents dominate personal debt league in England and Wales”
Owl says: Has anyone seen policies to reverse this trend from our Local Enterprise Partnership? Or even from EDDC? Or DCC?
Hint: development in Exmouth is the “traditional” kind the article points out as leading to problems.
“Seaside towns and cities dominate the list of areas with the highest numbers of people getting into serious difficulties with debt, according to new figures.
Scarborough, the largest resort on the Yorkshire coast, ranked second out of 347 local authorities in England and Wales for personal insolvencies, while Torbay in Devon – which includes the town of Torquay – came third, said the accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young.
Plymouth, on the south coast of Devon, was ranked fourth, while Blackpool was in sixth place.
However, it was the city of Stoke-on-Trent in the Midlands which had the highest rate of personal insolvencies, recording just over 51 per 10,000 adults in 2018. The national average was 25, said the firm.
The insolvency rate includes personal bankruptcies, debt relief orders and individual voluntary arrangements….
Other coastal locations or regions featured in the firm’s “top 20” included Weymouth and Portland in Dorset, which includes the resort of Weymouth, which was in 12th place (39.6 insolvencies per 10,000 adults); the Isle of Wight, in 13th place (39.3 per 10,000); Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, in 14th place (39.2 per 10,000); Cornwall, in 17th place (38.5 per 10,000); and Hastings in East Sussex, in 19th place (38 per 10,000).
The accountancy firm said many coastal towns outside south-east England had struggled to replace their traditional industries with faster growth sectors such as financial services and technology. …”
Bigger problems than Brexit?
“Lord Mervyn King calls for general election to provide mandate for either Leave or Remain.
Brexit is stopping Britain from addressing deep problems with its economy, a former Bank of England governor has warned.
Mervyn King called for an election and a new parliament to resolve the current impasse, claiming that “most people think that this has gone on for far too long and just have the view – ‘just do it’”.
He added that it did not matter whether people voted to remain or leave the European Union.
Lord King was speaking after MPs voted to delay a meaningful vote on the prime minister’s deal, forcing Boris Johnson to write to the EU to ask for a further extension to the Brexit process.
“It’s frustrating parliament can’t make up its mind and hasn’t been able to vote but let’s hope they do,” Lord King told Sky News after his speech at the International Monterary Fund’s annual meetings in Washington.
He warned the all-consuming nature of Brexit meant politicians were not looking at the UK’s underlying economic challenges.
“We have one of the lowest savings rates in the British economy of any country in the G20 save perhaps for Argentina. We’re not saving enough to finance our pensions or care for the elderly, or to finance infrastructure.
“These are the big challenges. What do we do about the education of 50 per cent of people who don’t go to college or university? It’s a great shame [Brexit] has dragged on so long.”
Although he claimed that Britain was “in the middle of the worst political and constitutional crisis for arguably several hundred years”, Lord King downplayed the impact Brexit could have on the UK and world economies.
“The decision to leave the EU is not likely to have a major impact on the UK economy in any way… I think there’s an awful lot of bogus quantification going on to justify positions held for other reasons,” he said. “I don’t honestly believe that Brexit has any great significance even for the rest of Europe, let alone the rest of the world. I don’t think the long-run economic consequences of the UK leaving the EU are particularly large.”
But he warned the global economy was in “great stagnation”, having grown more slowly and for a longer period than before the Great Depression of the 1930s, with levels of debt higher than they were before the 2008 financial crash.
Lord King, who governed the UK’s central bank for a decade until 2013, asserted the global economy would not be likely to suffer another financial crisis in the next 12 months.
But he warned of a global low-growth problem that wouldn’t be solved by another cut in interest rates, exacerbated by “extraordinary uncertainty”, and admitted “no one knows” whether another financial crisis is on the cards.
“We need a much wider set of policies to get out of this,” Lord King said.
The UK economy unexpectedly shrank 0.2 per cent in this year’s second financial quarter – its first contraction since 2012.”
Nearly 75% of government contractors are based in tax havens
“Almost three-quarters of companies who have been given major government contracts have operations based in tax havens, according to a new report.
Value Added, published on Sunday by the thinktank Demos, reveals that 25 of the government’s 34 strategic suppliers – organisations that receive £100m or more in revenue from the government – operate in offshore centres.
According to estimates, they account for about a fifth of total central government procurement spend. Of these, 19 had operations in jurisdictions included on the EU’s “blacklist” or “greylist” of countries that are considered to be non-compliant with EU international standards for “good tax behaviour”, according to the report.
The Labour MP and former chair of the public accounts committee, Margaret Hodge, said it was “perverse that the government continues to pay significant sums of taxpayer money to big corporations that practise tax avoidance on an alarming scale”.
There are claims that aggressive use of tax havens can distort competition.
The Labour peer, Lord Haskel, added: “For too long large international tech companies have failed to pay their fair share of tax while being rewarded with government contracts, leaving British companies at a competitive disadvantage.”
The Demos report states: “Large multinational companies, for example, continue to squeeze their tax contributions ever lower: the OECD estimates that US$100–$240bn (£78bn-£186bn) is lost globally in revenue each year from base erosion and profit shifting by multinational companies.” …”
Sick people in Budleigh area can’t get to medical appointments due to lack of voluntary drivers
“People across Budleigh Salterton are missing vital medical appointments due to of a severe lack of voluntary car drivers.
Transport charity TRIP, which runs Budleigh Voluntary Car Service, has eleven drivers helping out, but most can only do limited times and days.
Neil Hurlock, office manager for the charity, said: “We desperately need more drivers.
“We are turning away several people a week because we have not got drivers.
“We had a case where we had no drivers available one day – this happened two weeks on the trot.”
The car service was created to provide transport by car for disabled people or frail elderly people who struggle to use public transport – either because there is no transport available or because they cannot walk to a bus stop or easily climb on and off a bus.
As well as covering Budleigh, the service extends to residents living in Colaton Raleigh, East Budleigh, Otterton, Woodbury, Woodbury Salterton and Yettington.
Mr Hurlock said a lack of on-call drivers could have serious implications to those relying on the service to get to appointments.
He said: “It means some of our users will not be able to attend medical appointments. If we do not get more drivers, then people are unfortunately going to be continuing to miss appointments.
“That is going to have a knock-on effect on their health because they will not be getting to their appointments at Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital.
“We want to make sure these people are attending their appointments.”
The voluntary car scheme sees people utilise their own vehicles to help people visit hospitals and go shopping.
Anyone can become a voluntary driver and full training is provided by TRIP.
The charity also offers the opportunity for those interested to attend a ride-along to see if they are suited for the role.
The charity offers 45p a mile in fuel expenses.
For more information, drop into the TRIP offices in New Street, Honiton, or call 01404 46529.”
https://www.exmouthjournal.co.uk/news/voluntary-drivers-needed-in-budleigh-devon-1-6329908
Swire and Parish: how did they vote?
Need you ask? For Boris and against Letwin, of course.
Now East Devon is sandwiched between Remainer Bradshaw (Exeter) and Arch Boris Disbeliever Letwin (West Dorset).
“Senior role in East Devon’s ruling cabinet has been axed”
So, the “transformation” role in Ben Ingham’s TiggerTory cabinet has been abolished by said leader.
How convenient – no more pesky questions about the Leader’s pre-election promise to move from a Cabinet system to a committee system, more representative of the diverse groups that now exist.
Councillor Millar, understandably, believed “transformation” meant changes to the way officers AND councillors would work. Instead it seems Leader Ingham sees “transformation” as applying to more commercialisation of council services and more revenue-boosting asset-sweating or selling. In other words, a continuation of the previous Tory policies – local government as business rather than public service.
More BOGOF (buy one, get one free) than transformation!
“… No reason for the decision of the leader of the council to not replace the portfolio holder position is stated in the papers ahead of the meeting. …
Instead, the cabinet collectively will take on responsibility for delivery of the Council Plan and the associated strategies of Fit for Purpose, Careful Choices and Commercialisation of Services.
The report says that Cllr Jess Bailey, Corporate Services Portfolio holder, will take on responsibility for Digital by Design and Systems Thinking, while Cllr Geoff Pook, Asset Management Portfolio holder, will now be responsible for Commercialisation of Assets rather than Revenue Generation.
… Next Wednesday’s meeting will also see changes made to committee membership as a result of the political balance of the council changes following Cllr Millar’s resignation from the Independent Group.
The council now consists of 19 members in the Independent Group, 19 Conservatives, 11 from the East Devon Alliance, eight Liberal Democrats, two Green Party members, and one Independent, Cllr Millar.
Sitting as an Independent, he is entitled to two seats across all the committees, and the full council is recommended to approve a proposal that would see the ruling Independent Group lose a seat on both the Overview Committee and the Licensing and Enforcement Committee.”
https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/senior-role-east-devons-ruling-3442021
Abbeyfield care homes in Budleigh and Axminster under threat of closure
Owl says: The tip of a very big iceberg … with the Titanic speeding towards it.
“Devastated residents and families of those living at a care home which is under threat of closure fear it could result in the deaths of those who are very old and vulnerable.
Long-established Abbeyfield Shandford in Budleigh Salterton provides nursing and personal care for 28 people, and of those five are aged 100 or over. It employs 35 staff.
In January it first announced it was reviewing the service and then stated it would continue to be provided.
However, in September it began a consultation into the future of the home which will run until November.
Abbeyfield Society, who own the home, have said it will carefully consider all submissions from residents, relatives and staff before a final decision is made.
It has confirmed if a decision is made to close the home in Station Road, no residents will be expected to leave until January 2020 at the earliest.
The consultation has resulted in a petition being launched which has already been signed by hundreds of local residents. …
… “Abbeyfield have made out it’s a failing care home and needs huge upgrading and expenditure, but it doesn’t. The last inspection by the Care Quality Commission was this year and it was rated good.” …
[Abbeyfield spokesperson said] “In the case of Shandford, we carefully considered a number of factors, including whether the increasingly complex needs of residents can continue to be well served in a building which requires significant renovations to bring in it line with best-practice standards. …
“”This situation is further compounded by the long-term recruitment challenges we have faced, meaning that we have often relied on agency staff – despite the best efforts of the local management team. This not only places significant further financial pressures on the home at a time when the wider funding of social care is under strain, but also means we cannot always provide the continuity of care that residents deserve. …”
https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/deaths-feared-care-home-closed-3438701
Time to ditch Barclays, before it ditches more of us?
“More than 120 MPs have accused Barclays of abandoning its most vulnerable customers amid a growing backlash over the bank’s move to stop its savers withdrawing cash from post offices.
In a damning letter to chief executive Jes Staley, the MPs criticised the bank for the ‘retrograde decision’, which they warned will only add to the ‘cash crisis’.
The politicians, co-ordinated by Labour MP Chris Elmore, urged the bank to reconsider and offered to meet American Mr Staley.
The Daily Mail has been calling on the banking giant to reverse its decision and has encouraged readers affected by it to write to Barclays.
The 124 MPs said they were ‘extremely disappointed’ by Barclays. Their letter said: ‘Quite simply, amidst the current uncertainty many people face around access to cash and wider banking services, this decision appears to be a retrograde step which will impact your poorest customers hardest.
‘It sends a message – rightly or wrongly – that those who cannot properly access the digital economy will have the carpet dragged from under their feet as our high street banks continue to abandon the communities that have sustained them for decades.’
Barclays faced a huge backlash after announcing it would stop its customers from withdrawing cash at post offices in January. The decision is estimated to save the bank £7 million a year, and comes after 3,312 high street bank and building society branches closed their doors between January 2015 and August this year.
At least 481 were Barclays branches, according to the consumer group Which?.
Gareth Shaw, head of money at Which?, said: ‘Barclays has shown real disregard to the needs of its customers through its reckless move to cease cash withdrawals from the Post Office. MPs are right to challenge this ill-conceived decision that risks leaving many of their constituents facing an uphill struggle just to access the cash they need.
In a damning letter to chief executive Jes Staley, the MPs criticised the bank for the ‘retrograde decision’, over the bank’s move to stop its savers withdrawing cash from post offices, which they warned will only add to the ‘cash crisis’
‘We’re calling on the Government to urgently intervene with legislation that protects cash for as long as it is needed.’
Free-to-use cash machines are also disappearing at an alarming rate. Some 500 were closed every month last year, according to the ATM network Link.
The Access To Cash Review, an independent investigation into the cash crisis, found that about 17 per cent of the UK’s adult population – 8 million people – would find it difficult to function in a cashless society.
Natalie Ceeney, chairman of the Access To Cash Review, said: ‘As [the Daily Mail] has pointed out, this is affecting customers across the country especially those who are older, poorer, living in a remote area or may be disabled. This will be filling up MPs’ postbags, so I’m glad to see widespread support for the campaign.’
Banking trade body UK Finance has repeatedly directed customers who do not live near cash machines or bank branches to the 11,500 post offices across the country which offer everyday banking services. Barclays was also sending out this message as recently as June.
A petition urging Barclays to reverse the decision had nearly 9,500 signatures last night. …”
Is EDDC Leader Ingham “sowing division between communities”?
From a correspondent:
“Like many others, I have a complimentary copy of the Budleigh Journal put through my door which is usually very out of date.
Today –October 17th-I received the October 9th copy. Hence I have just read that EDDC Leader Ben Ingham thinks that it is unfair to villages that they subsidise the Budleigh Salterton free car park on the Green. Originally given to the Town by Lord Clinton.
https://www.exmouthjournal.co.uk/news/consultation-on-pay-and-display-at-budleigh-car-park-1-6304735
What happens to the money received from all the beach huts in BS?
What happens to the money received from the Lime Kiln car park in the summer months, particularly on a hot day when it is difficult to find a car parking space?
And of course towns like BS and Sidmouth do have a very high council tax receipt.
There are cross subsidies on all forms of taxation. We do not expect someone with a chronic illness to pay for their NHS treatment. They are subsidised by those fortunate enough to remain healthy.
It is not helpful or wise for the Leader of the Council to sow division between communities”.
East Devon Watch 