(And one from South West Water as reported by the BBC)

South West Water (SWW) is urging people to give “the region’s sewers a fat-free Christmas” by not pouring greasy substances down drains.

In 2022, bosses said the utility dealt with more than 7,000 blocked sewers – with more than 20% of them caused by greasy substances being poured down drains.

SWW said the substances could clog up pipes and, if left unchecked, could cause waste to back up into homes.

Andrew Blake, project manager at SWW, said: “It’s important to ensure that festive roasting juices, gravies, sauces, and creams are not being poured into the sewers.”

He said: “The Christmas season can be challenging for our sewers due to the increased fat and food waste generated by food businesses and households accommodating more guests.

“While we want everyone to enjoy themselves, we also want to encourage kitchen staff and householders to be mindful of what they’re putting down their drains.

“By changing your practices, you can easily help prevent blockages and avoid damage to properties, sewers and the environment.”

A Christmas Carol: an update (31.12.21)
(from Fables for Our Times – Mike Temple)

Once in Little-Britain City
Lived a Tory known as Scrooge.
Stranger he to Truth and Pity
But his assets were quite huge;
His cash was tax-free, stashed offshore.
He didn’t care about the Poor.

He cut their benefits and “credit”,
Ignored the homeless at his door;
“Want” was “humbug” (yes, he said it).
His friends grew richer than before.
Bob Cratchit was this Tory’s stooge,
Kept on low pay by the said Scrooge.

Bob Cratchit on his low wage went
To nearby Food Banks every week.
He spent so much on heat and rent
His prospects did look very bleak,
While for his son called Tiny Tim
The future really did look grim.

At Xmas-time Scrooge went to bed
But didn’t sleep a wink at all;
He’d drunk a lot and was well fed
But saw a Ghost upon the wall
Who oped his cloak, and what Scrooge saw
Were kids called “Ignorant” and “Poor”.

This Ghost was from the Tory Past,
From just about three years ago;
The kids were mean, also low-classed
And marked with misery and woe.
They looked at Scrooge as if to say:
“Your policies turned out this way.”

Next night our Scrooge was sleeping when
The Ghost of the Time-Present came
Who showed the children once again –
It was indeed a crying shame –
The kids were hollow-eyed and thin
With little flesh, just bone and skin.

The third night’s Ghost from Future Time
Brought on the double-act once more,
Both skeletons – it was a crime
And done by those who’d made them poor.
The “Poor” kid now was Tiny Tim
And millions more were just like him.

Simon Jupp, who is self-isolating from those living in the real world, won’t know which way to turn.

Tories could face a Canadian style wipe-out.  – Owl

Harry Yorke www.thetimes.co.uk 

The leader of Reform UK has privately given his senior team “cast-iron guarantees” that general election candidates will not be told to step aside for Tory opponents in a move that could split Rishi Sunak’s vote in key seats.

Richard Tice has offered written assurances to key party figures that they will fight the Conservatives right up to polling day.Reform has already selected candidates for 440 seats and intends to stand in all constituencies bar those in Northern Ireland.

It fought the 2019 general election as the Brexit Party, led by Nigel by Farage, changing its name afterwards

It posed a significant threat to Boris Johnson’s chances of winning a majority — until Farage decided to stand down 317 candidates to help ensure Jeremy Corbyn did not secure the keys to Downing Street. While Farage said he had put country before party, it caused significant anger among many Brexit Party candidates and supporters.

Tice, who took over as leader from Farage — currently Reform’s honorary president — has vowed not to repeat the move next year. He has given “concrete” assurances in writing to members of his top team and several parliamentary candidates who have been recently recruited. They include Ann Widdecombe, the former Conservative minister who is now Reform’s spokeswoman on immigration, and Ben Habib, its co-deputy leader.

The commitment was intended to convince many of the party’s high-profile figures that it is serious about fighting a major campaign at the next election. Several, including Habib and Widdecombe, are former Brexit Party MEPs who have rejoined in recent months after the promises were made.

Tice told The Sunday Times: “In the 2024 election year we will be ready whenever it comes, spring, summer or autumn. We will be standing in seats everywhere in England, Scotland and Wales. Many, including Tory MPs and commentators, still don’t believe us, but I have news for them: you are seriously underestimating our intent to have a massive impact in this coming election.”

The disclosure of Tice’s tactics poses another major headache for Sunak, whose party trails Labour by as much as 20 points in the polls and appears increasingly to be heading towards a landslide defeat.

Reform, meanwhile, is polling at around 9 per cent, with Conservative MPs concerned the rival party threatens to erode their vote share still further.

While Reform’s current polling numbers suggest it will not take seats directly from the Tories, it could steal enough Conservative votes to hand dozens of tight marginals to Labour. This has already been demonstrated in two recent by-elections in mid-Bedfordshire and Tamworth, where the number of votes cast for Reform was greater than the Labour majority.

A recent analysis by the pollster More in Common suggests support for Reform at the ballot box could cost the Tories 35 seats. These are likely to be pro-Brexit areas in the north and Midlands. Reform’s popularity is expected to grow in the new year, amid mounting speculation that Farage is preparing to return to frontline politics after his widely publicised stint on I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!.

Farage and Tice have been speaking regularly since the former’s return from Australia and over Christmas are expected to discuss Farage’s “future role” in Reform. Tice is to hold a press conference on January 3, setting out Reform’s plans for the coming months, with Farage this weekend remaining tight-lipped about whether he will attend.

Tice is expected to use the event to ratchet up his attacks on the Conservatives while also seeking to appeal to pro-Brexit voters in “red wall” seats, who remain reluctant to return to Labour.

“Our view is that the toxic Tories are done and they are finished, and we will attack them mercilessly,” a senior Reform figure said. “But we are also now turning our guns onto Labour and the weaknesses of Keir Starmer. People will notice a significant stepping up and a shift in the way we attack the main two parties.”

Since taking over Reform, Tice has insisted publicly there will be no repeat of the concession made to the Conservatives in 2019. However, to convince former Brexit Party figures to rejoin, a senior source said he had made written commitments to each of them individually. This includes promising that all major decisions relating to the election campaign will be subject to consultation and not made unilaterally.

“[The decision to stand down candidates in 2019] has caused a great deal of hurt and upset among many of our Brexit Party people up and down the country,” they added. “You carry the scars with you, as the leadership team. Richard recognises how important that loyalty is and he isn’t doing that again. Keir Starmer is not Jeremy Corbyn, there is no threat of a Labour-SNP coalition, there is less chance of them overturning Brexit.”

Widdecombe added: “The situation is completely different now. In 2019 if we had not stood down Labour could have won and there was a real chance that Brexit could have been overturned. This time Brexit has been done — at least legally. Yes, Starmer will do some things that we don’t like, but the Conservatives are doing that anyway.”

Similar reassurances have been made to a number of parliamentary candidates and party staff. In several instances, these commitments were given after candidates said they had been contacted by Tory MPs they are due to stand against, who urged them to consider contesting another constituency instead.

Tice has made clear internally that no concessions will be granted and that the party will contest 630 seats across the UK, excluding Northern Ireland. He wrote in the Telegraph following the Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth by-elections in October that he was “delighted to have made the difference by stopping the Tories from winning not one but both by-elections in their ‘safe’ seats”. Labour took both.

Reform has already recruited about 440 candidates, with 220 attending a training day in Wakefield in November. Reform intends to have confirmed the remaining 190 by the end of February.

The party is also stepping up its programme of events for the coming election year. Tice is due to host a Welsh conference in Port Talbot, home to one of the biggest steelworks in the world, on February 4, with Reform holding its national spring conference in Doncaster three weeks later.

Senior party figures believe that if Farage does return to the front line, the party’s popularity will continue to grow. This, one predicted, could lead to an electoral wipeout akin to that suffered by the Progressive Conservative Party in Canada, which, in 1993, after a decade in power, lost 167 seats and was left with just two MPs.

They insisted that, unlike in 2019, the government’s alleged failings on Brexit and failure to pursue “genuine” conservative policies mean that Reform was determined to remove the Tories from power.

“My gut feeling is if Farage was properly engaged, 8.5 per cent [in the polls] would become 13 per cent overnight,” they added. “You do that to the Tories and you are looking at a Canadian wipeout. That’s exactly what we want.”

“Economic optimism is increasing, consumer confidence is increasing, growth estimates are being raised.” (Six months ago)

UK economy on brink of recession after growth falls

Economic growth performed worse than expected this year, with official figures for the last two quarters showing the UK is on the brink of a recession.

Mehreen Khan www.thetimes.co.uk

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) cut its initial growth estimates for gross domestic product (GDP) to a fall of 0.1 per cent in the third quarter, from a first calculation of 0 per cent, and said the second quarter’s 0.2 per cent expansion was revised down to 0 per cent.

The downgrades confirm the weak growth performance of 2023 when the economy was hit by the impact of steadily rising interest rates and high inflation for most of the year. The figures also show how close the UK could have come to a formal recession, which is marked by two consecutive quarters of negative growth. Another three months of falling output would confirm a recession at the end of the year.

The downgrades mean that the economy has expanded by 0.3 per cent so far this year, down from economists’ projections of 0.6 per cent, and the economy overall is 1.4 per cent larger than pre-pandemic levels.

Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, said the country’s growth outlook was “far more optimistic than these numbers suggest”. He said: “We’ve seen inflation fall again this week, and the Office for Budget Responsibility expects the measures in the autumn statement, including the largest business tax cut in modern British history and tax cuts for 29 million working people, will deliver the largest boost to potential growth on record.”

The UK is on course to post growth of about 0.2 per cent to 0.4 per cent in the final quarter of the year, with economists expecting better consumer spending and a recovery in the growth-driving services sector to ensure a recession is dodged heading into 2024.

In the three months to September, the output in the services sector, which makes up around three quarters of the entire economy, fell by 0.2 per cent, with declines in household spending and business investment in the third quarter. There was positive news for households, whose disposable incomes rose by 0.4 per cent when stripping out the impact of inflation, continuing from the 2.3 per cent expansion recorded between April and June.

Thomas Pugh, an economist at professional services firm RSM, said there was still a “significant risk” of a formal recession at the end of the year if weak growth projections for the fourth quarter disappoint.

“The economy will continue to stagnate through most of 2024, though, only returning to sustainable growth in the second half of the year,” Pugh said.

The ONS said its revisions were driven by analysis of the latest monthly VAT data and its regular business surveys, which “show the economy performed slightly less well in the last two quarters than our initial estimates”.

Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said: “The broader picture, though, remains one of an economy that has been little changed over the last years. Later returns from our business survey showed film production, engineering and design and telecommunications all performing a little worse than we initially thought.”

Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said he expected growth to hold steady in the final three months of the year, “before then rising at an average quarter-on-quarter rate of 0.3 per cent during 2024”.

South West Water has met the deadline. So it’s going to get worse before it gets better! – Owl

The milestone of almost 100 per cent monitoring on storm overflows is likely to mean the number of spills will look worse when new figures are published next March, potentially posing a headache for ministers in the run-up to an election.

Adam Vaughan www.thetimes.co.uk

England’s era of sewage spill blindspots has drawn to a close. Water company data released to The Times shows that by the end of December, monitoring will be in place for all bar one of the 15,000 pipes that act as relief valves for England’s sewer network.

Known as storm overflows, the pipes are designed to release raw sewage into rivers and seas only during heavy rainfall to avoid it backing up into homes. Water companies face a legal deadline of December 31 to install “event duration monitoring” equipment to track when the discharges stop and start during overflows.

Environmental information regulation requests revealed that six of England’s nine main wastewater companies were still striving to install the final monitors this month. The other three, Southern Water, South West Water and Severn Trent, had all met the deadline.

By mid-December Wessex Water had five remaining and Northumbrian Water had 11. Another three companies had one monitor each to complete. These five said the final monitors would be in place by the end the month.

The not-for-profit operator Welsh Water, which maintains more than 100 storm overflows in England, could not guarantee the remaining unmonitored overflow pipe would be ready in time. This outstanding pipe is in Hereford, located by a busy A-road, and the monitor work will require temporary three-way traffic lights that are not yet in place.

A spokesman for Water UK, which represents the industry, said: “England is the first country in the world to achieve full monitoring of all 15,000 of its storm overflows. This information will allow the sector to target investment at those sites that most urgently need improvements.”

The trade association said that the installations were only a “first step” and that its members were planning to spend £11 billion by 2030, which it hoped would mean 140,000 fewer spills a year.

The milestone of almost 100 per cent monitoring on storm overflows is likely to mean the number of spills will look worse when new figures are published next March, potentially posing a headache for ministers in the run-up to an election.

Data showed there were 300,000 ­releases of raw sewage, lasting 1.7 million hours, in the previous year. The government said the figure, which was a small reduction on the year before, was only down because it had been a dry year. This year has been wetter and there are now more than 600 extra monitors than when the last statistics were published, implying an increase.

The spills are one of the most visible examples of water pollution, and have been the target of campaigners angry at rivers being spoiled. While discharges are only meant to happen during rainfall, there is growing evidence that companies are illegally spilling on dry days.

The government has set targets for water companies for the 2030s to curb the spills, with 2050 being the deadline for effectively ending spills for good. The Times’s award-winning Clean it Up campaign has called for earlier targets and faster investment to tackle the problem affecting British waterways.

Due to planned engineering works, no trains will be servicing the line between London Paddington and Reading on either Christmas Eve – Sunday, December 24 – or Wednesday, December 27.

www.southwalesargus.co.uk

Network Rail is set to begin work on the new HS2 station at Old Oak Common.

Services are not scheduled to operate on Christmas Day or Boxing Day. 

Tickets for trains travelling towards Devon and Cornwall on Friday, December 22 and Saturday, December 23 are already almost sold out. 

The following changes are being made to the London Paddington services while the work is ongoing:

• Most GWR services start or terminate at Reading instead of London Paddington;
• Limited GWR and Elizabeth line train services will run between Reading and Ealing Broadway;
• Connecting Underground services will run from Ealing Broadway into central London;
• Customers travelling to or from central London can do so using London Underground’s District or Central line services at Ealing Broadway, as the Elizabeth line will not be in operation between Ealing Broadway and London Paddington;
• South Western Railway will accept GWR tickets on these days between Reading and London Waterloo, as will Chiltern Railways between Oxford and London Marylebone. 

Passengers are also advised that no Heathrow Express services will run during this time. Customers travelling to Heathrow Airport from central London should use the Piccadilly line instead. 

Operators have said anyone who needs to travel on Sunday, December 24, or Wednesday, December 27, should allow plenty of time to reach their destination as journey times will be significantly longer than normal.

Great Western Railway say services will also finish earlier than usual on Sunday December, 24 and all journeys will need to be completed by approximately 10.30pm. 

People who do need to travel on these dates are advised to travel before 9.30am. 

For the latest information, please click here. 

“It was great to chat with @ClaireWrightInd at Exeter Central today about our local rail services – in particular the vulnerability of the East Devon line. Passengers need a more reliable service, so they can commute with confidence.”

Richard Foord of course, not Simon Jupp. Simon is becoming increasingly isolated.

MP calling for improvements on Exeter-Waterloo railway line

Adam Manning www.midweekherald.co.uk

Liberal Democrat MP Richard Foord has called for urgent work to be undertaken to improve the Exeter-Waterloo railway line in the wake of flash flooding, which saw services between Exeter and Yeovil junction cancelled for ten days. 

Speaking in Parliament this week, Tiverton & Honiton MP Richard Foord raised the issue with Rail Minister, Huw Merriman, and asked for the line to be dualled between Chard Junction and Axminster, and a passing loop at Whimple would allow trains to pass. 

In response to Mr Foord’s calls, the Minister committed to reviewing the proposed project and said he would take extra steps to reduce disruption for people living in East and Mid Devon.

Bad weather saw huge levels of rainfall, which triggered a landslide near Crewkerne. This caused train services to be cancelled for more than a week, as there is only a single track on this section of the route.   

This was not the first time this route has been blocked following heavy rain. In November 2022, the service between Exeter-Waterloo had to terminate at Axminster for several days due to a landslip near Honiton. 

Mr Foord said: “Everyone living in our corner of Devon knows just how well-used our rail services are. They offer a vital commuter link to Exeter and London, as well as being a gateway to the wider West Country for tourists and visitors. 

“However, we’ve seen multiple issues in recent years that have caused many trains to be cancelled or delayed. In particular, the fact that there is only a single track between Chard and Axminster throttles capacity, meaning that one minor issue can derail services for everyone. 

“Solutions could include dualling the line, or adding a passing loop, so that services can move back and forth more easily. We also need to see greater investment in flood defences along our railways, to avoid more damaging landslips that can block the line. 

“I am glad that the Minister agreed to look into these proposals, which would benefit our communities and everyone who regularly uses rail services. I will continue to push for the signal to go green, so that this much-needed work can begin.” 

Liberal Democrat MP Richard Foord is calling for more to be done to tackle so-called broadband ‘not-spots’ in East Devon.

Adam Manning www.midweekherald.co.uk

Speaking in Parliament, Richard Foord MP highlighted the case of two communities who have been left lagging behind on broadband – Northleigh and All Saints residents say they struggle to get even a basic internet connection. 

The Honiton MP said that it was rural areas in East Devon where speeds were the slowest, clocking in at almost half the UK average. 

Communities such as Sidmouth, Axminster, and Seaton rank in the worst 10% of the whole country for broadband. Even places like Honiton, where speeds are notionally better, the average connectivity is still in the worst 30% in the country. 

Highlighting the impact this patchy connectivity has on people’s ability to access things like online banking, to work from home, and stay in touch with loved ones, Richard Foord is now calling for the Government to step-up efforts.  In Parliament, Richard called on the Minister to get people online with speeds that bring people into the 2020s. 

Richard Foord MP said: “It’s a scandal that rural towns and villages like ours are being left struggling to get even basic broadband access, all while urban areas surge ahead. 

“In recent years we’ve seen so many banks close branches on our high streets, forcing people to rely upon online banking to manage their finances. There’s also been a rise in online bookings for travel, particularly when it comes to our railways.  

“But all of this isn’t possible if you cannot get a reliable connection. For far too long, people in our part of the world have been neglected by this Government, which seems out-of-touch with some of the challenges we face on a daily basis.  

“Devon is tired of being left at the back of the queue. That’s why we need to see real action to fix this situation and to help our communities get online, ensuring that the South West – and East Devon in particular – catches up with the rest of the country.” 

East Devon District Council has apologised after the premature withdrawal of some council tax payments this month. The authority has blamed a ‘technical glitch’ which meant a payment was taken on Friday rather than on December 27.

Daniel Clark www.devonlive.com 

The council has said that they understand the financial impact this may have on households, especially at this time of year. They said: “We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused.”

For residents who do not have enough money in their account to cover the payment. EDDC, suggests they contact their bank and ask them to stop and/or reverse the transaction. If the banks do this the funds should appear back in their account on the same day, and they should avoid any fees.

A statement issued on Friday said: “ East Devon District Council deeply regrets the inconvenience caused to our residents due to an unforeseen error which has resulted in the premature withdrawal of some council tax payments this month.

“On Friday, December 22, a technical glitch occurred in our payment processing system, causing some residents to experience an early debit of their council tax payment. The normal date for payments (the 25th of the month) should have meant the 27th December was the date banks would have taken payment. We understand the financial impact this may have on households, especially at this time of year and we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused.

“Where the payment has been made by a resident’s bank and the loss of funds causes hardship, residents should contact their bank and ask for the payment to be reversed under the direct debit indemnity, EDDC will then make contact with residents in the new year to arrange for payment of the instalment.

“For residents who do not have enough money in their account to cover the payment. EDDC, suggests they contact their bank and ask them to stop and/or reverse the transaction. If the banks do this the funds should appear back in their account on the same day, and they should avoid any fees.

“If it is too late to contact the bank and fees are incurred due to this error, residents are asked to provide evidence of the fees incurred and email these to counciltax@eastdevon.gov.uk and the council tax team will look to recompense the fees incurred.

“For those who experience financial difficulties from this error, our financial resilience team will be dealing with emergency requests on the mornings of the 27 and 29 December. To submit a request for financial support, please click on the council website.

“The council wants to assure residents that steps are being taken to prevent the recurrence of such incidents and East Devon District Council remains committed to helping anyone affected by this error.”

The most recent figures showed one in 24 people in England and Scotland had Covid on 13 December, up from one in 55 two weeks before.

Matthew Weaver www.theguardian.com

The Royal College of Nursing has warned of an increase risk of Covid among hospital staff and patients due to the NHS’s failure to follow World Health Organization advice about infection control during a current spike in cases.

The most recent figures showed one in 24 people in England and Scotland had Covid on 13 December, up from one in 55 two weeks before.

On Tuesday, the WHO expressed concern about a new subvariant of Omicron, labelled JN.1, after its rapid spread in the Americas, western Pacific and European regions. To tackle the increase, the WHO advised that all health facilities “implement universal masking” and give health workers “respirators and other PPE”.

Now the RCN has written to the four chief nursing officers in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland asking why this guidance has not been introduced across the NHS.

The letter, seen by the Guardian, points out that existing guidance in the national infection prevention and control manual (NIPCM) does not mandate hospital staff to use masks. It also leaves decisions about respirators to local risk assessors.

The RCN says this guidance to UK hospitals is “inconsistent” with WHO advice.

The letter by Patricia Marquis, the RCN’s director for England, calls for urgent revision to the NIPCM guidance to ensure the “universal implementation” of masks and respirators for health workers.

Marquis wrote: “I am mindful of the current unsustainable pressures on the health service, with … a rise in cases and hospitalisations with Covid-19, alongside other respiratory viruses in general circulation. I am concerned that without proper protections ill-health and sickness will continue to rise in nursing staff and impact on their ability to deliver safe and effective patient care.”

She added: “We are also concerned about the increased risks to patients from hospital-acquired respiratory infections.”

Marquis also raised the issue of ventilation in hospitals. She said: “We also have concerns about the adequacy of ventilation in general ward and outpatient areas within hospital buildings and believe that action must be taken to assess and improve this.”

In Tuesday’s update, the WHO said the global health risk posed by JN.1 was “low” based on the available evidence. But it added: “Despite this, with the onset of winter in the northern hemisphere, JN.1 could increase the burden of respiratory infections in many countries.”

It also pointed out that Covid “is not the only respiratory disease circulating. Influenza, RSV and common childhood pneumonia are on the rise”.

The UK Health Security Agency, which is responsible for the guidance, has been approached for comment.

Christina Pagel, a professor of operational research at University College London, suggested JN.1 was likely to cause a wave of infections second only to that recorded in England in March 2022, which was driven by the Omicron variant.

“After a quieter 2023, it’s a sign that we can’t just assume that Covid has gone away or can’t cause us significant issues any more,” she said, adding as many people had not been eligible for recent booster programmes, they had not had a Covid vaccination for two years.

“This will likely mean they feel sicker [if they do catch Covid] and also [have an] increased risk of long Covid too,” Pagel said. “Given we’ve got millions of leftover vaccines from the autumn booster campaign, why not try to put them in people’s arms instead of the bin and open them out to the general population?”

Long-established Christmas seaside swimming locations have been flooded with sewage over the last year, prompting concern that swimmers could fall ill.

Aletha Adu www.theguardian.com 

They would not be able to claim compensation, as Tory MPs earlier this month blocked a Lib Dem amendment that would have allowed anyone who got sick as a result of illegal sewage dumping to claim from water companies.

During the festive season, swimmers traditionally wear cheery fancy dress as they plunge into the sea at beaches from Eastbourne, Sussex, to St Ives, Cornwall.

Statistics analysed by the Lib Dems have found that this year, festive swimmers will be using beachfronts where 4,574 hours of sewage has been spilled. Between the 32 event locations analysed by the party, almost 1,000 sewage spills were found to have occurred this year.

The former party leader Tim Farron said there needed to be a ban on sewage dumping in swimming areas.

In Sale, Greater Manchester, swimmers attending a Boxing Day charity event will be exposed to waters that have had 94 sewage discharges nearby. On the same day, an event in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, will expose swimmers to waters in which there have been 67 sewage discharges lasting a total of 405 hours over the last year.

A New Year’s Day swim location in Saunderfoot, Wales, has had 1,244 hours worth of sewage pumped into nearby waters this year.

At Brighton, which holds a festive swimming event, Southern Water fails to even monitor sewage, leaving revellers oblivious to the water quality.

Two years ago, outdoor swimmers in Oxfordshire were forced to cancel their Boxing Day swim after Thames Water announced a sewage dump on Christmas Day.

Farron, now the Lib Dem’s environment spokesperson, criticised the “Christmas stink” left by Conservative ministers. He expressed fears swimmers who could be made ill by the sewage, with no compensation from water companies after Conservatives blocked a proposed new law in parliament earlier this month.

MPs rejected the amendment, tabled by Farron, to the victims and prisoners bill by 267 to 27, a majority of 240, with the Lib Dem MP calling the result an “absolute disgrace”. He said Conservative MPs had “yet again voted to let water companies off the hook.

“This is a real Christmas stink for so many hoping to enjoy their traditional festive swim. The freezing cold water should be the only thing swimmers worry about, not sewage floating by them,” Farron said.

“It’s disgusting that our coastlines and lakes have been polluted by this foul habit. There needs to be a ban on sewage discharges in swimming areas. When will Conservative ministers finally clamp down on profiteering water firms who are destroying our environment?

“It was shocking to see Conservative MPs block plans to compensate swimmers made sick by sewage. Not only are they letting them pump sewage into waterways, but they are also content for swimmers to get sick.”

A report from the marine conservation charity Surfers Against Sewage found 1,924 cases of people getting sick because of suspected sewage pollution over the last year, nearly triple the number of cases reported in the previous year.

The shadow environment secretary, Steve Reed, accused the government of turning a “blind eye to corruption and cover-ups” in the water industry.

He was referencing a BBC Panorama report that examined sewage releases into waterways by companies deemed to have good environmental ratings. It found United Utilities, a water company in the north-west of England, wrongfully downgraded 60 incidents to the lowest possible category, meaning they officially caused no environmental harm.

The environment secretary, Steve Barclay, insisted the government was taking a tougher approach to monitoring and penalties, and said spills from storm overflows were worse in Labour-led Wales.

A spokesperson for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “This year 96% of our bathing waters met minimum standards with 90% now ranked as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ – up from just 28% in the 1990s.

“Our Plan for Water is delivering more investment, stronger regulation, and tougher enforcement to clean up our waterways and bathing waters, including £1.7bn of this being used to tackle storm overflows to cut over 10,000 discharges by 2025.”

Claire Wright calls out Simon Jupp for blocking his constituents from his twitter account for any uncomfortable questioning of what he says.

Claire Wright:

“I have to rely on other methods to view my MP’s unworthy tweets as I’ve been blocked (like many other constituents) for pointing out uncomfortable truths……It looks like Mr Jupp is losing his head at the thought of @RichardFoordLD winning #GE24 !”  

“Blocking constituents without legitimate cause is a serious failure of democratic accountability by a sitting MP”

The following three councillors have also been blocked: Paul Hayward, Dan Wilson and Joe Whibley. 

Owl has received complaints about blocking from various correspondents as well.

Unnamed land owner secretly and successfully applied to the Forestry Commission  to fell ancient trees in Colaton Raleigh.

Not yet reported in local press only in the national press! – Owl

‘Horrified’: Devon village in shock at felling of 100 ancient beech trees

Rachel Hall www.theguardian.com

Not much happens in the sleepy village of Colaton Raleigh, where almost half of the residents are retired. So local walkers were horrified when they woke up one morning to an act of “environmental vandalism” that left behind the maimed stumps of 100 ancient beech trees.

Residents in the east Devon community are grieving the loss of the beloved trees, which were located in a special conservation area and site of special scientific interest, home to lots of local plants and animals, after they were felled by a government agency without consulting the community or council.

An application was made by a local landowner to the Forestry Commission, a branch of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It would not comment on individual cases, but said all decisions were taken in line with its standards.

Alan Pearce, a tree warden from the area, said: “It certainly ought to be a fairly wide consultation because it’s part of our heritage, grown-out hedges that go back hundreds of years. Once they’re gone you’re talking about 200 years to regrow. The stumps look nearly all of them perfectly sound and solid. I can’t see they can say they were diseased or dying. We’re meant to be planting trees, not felling them.”

He said people were “absolutely horrified”, with one walker in tears over the decision, which he suggested may have been taken in order to improve grazing land in the adjacent field.

Fiona Carroll, another resident, said: “Many people walk in this area as it is part of a large expanse of heathland and they are at a loss as to why this has been allowed to happen. These were, in my view, valuable landscape and wildlife trees situated along an extensive ancient Devon bank. The roots had grown into large supporting structures giving many a distinctive look. My current impression is that this destruction is nothing short of an act of environmental vandalism.”

Ewan Macdonald, who researches how people engage with the environment at the University of Oxford, said he was not surprised the felling had provoked such an emotional reaction because of the way people connected with trees.

“It highlights how intrinsically bound up things like trees, the environment and conservation are with our culture,” he said. “The value of trees gathers importance with age, so I can see why removing them is upsetting. It’s a natural thing that people form an attachment to things they can personify or build a relationship with.”

He added: “I do think it is always important to engage the local community with any decision that is made about conservation. That’s not to say that the Forestry Commission didn’t have good reasons for removing the trees, but communicating those reasons to people and making sure the community feels engaged and brought into that is an important thing. It shows it’s hard for anyone to own nature wholeheartedly.”

The beech felling is not the first to provoke ire. Most recently, the felling of 40 palm trees in Torquay in Devon that appeared in 1970s sitcom Fawlty Towers prompted accusations the council had wrought “total destruction” on the seafront.

This followed a similar controversy when 110 trees were removed under cover of darkness in March 2023 in Plymouth as part of the relandscaping of the city’s Armada Way, ultimately leading to the resignation of the council’s Conservative leader.

And in 2016, five people were arrested in a bitter dispute with the council over tree felling in an affluent Sheffield suburb. Nick Clegg, then the constituency’s MP, described the incident as “something you’d expect to see in Putin’s Russia, rather than a Sheffield suburb”.

Another dollop of catch-up ketchup misses the target. – Owl

An official social media post boasting that money earmarked for transport improvements in the north would be spent on road repairs in London has been criticised by MPs and local leaders.

Ben Clatworthy, Aubrey Allegretti www.thetimes.co.uk

The Department for Transport (DfT) posted a graphic celebrating the new Network North project, which will pump £235 million into improving roads in the capital.

The poster also claims the money has become available because of Rishi Sunak’s decision to cancel HS2’s northern leg from Birmingham to Manchester.

The prime minister insisted the £36 billion saved by not finishing the project would go towards the Network North plans, which include more than 100 regional transport projects.

However, the money earmarked would only be spent between 2029 and 2040, during the period it would have been used to build HS2’s route from the West Midlands to Crewe and from Crewe to Manchester.

Louise Haigh, the shadow transport secretary, said: “When Rishi Sunak went to Manchester to cancel the northern leg of HS2 he claimed he would ‘join up our great towns and cities in the north and the Midlands’. Now he is promising to repair roads in London as part of a ‘Network North’, showing just how ludicrously out of touch he is.”

The DfT faced a backlash on social media while MPs and local leaders in the north were left bemused.

Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “Network North seems to include everywhere — except the north.”

Steve Rotheram, the mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “Unless Network North is shorthand for Network North Circular, I really fail to see how fixing roads in London will help to improve journey times between Liverpool and Manchester, get more freight onto rail, or make a jot of difference to a single person in the north.

“It’s more smoke and mirrors from the government. A PR stunt from a photo-op prime minister who is more interested in shiny graphics for social media than tackling the issues facing real people.”

Ben Bradley, the Conservative MP for Mansfield and leader of Nottinghamshire county council, told colleagues in a private WhatsApp group that sending a message that “we scrapped £9 billion of investment in the Midlands and north to invest in London roads” was “not helpful”.

Sarah Dines, a former minister and Tory MP for Derbyshire Dales, also complained that the news was “good for London but my constituents are revolting”. She posted a picture of a pothole with the caption: “Virtually everywhere in Derbyshire”.

Dines added: “We have had extra money in Derbyshire for potholes, but this is peanuts compared to London. I have had a flood of emails today. What do I say?”

Andy Carter, the Tory MP for Warrington South, Cheshire, and aide to Mark Harper, the transport secretary, was on the receiving end of the backlash after he announced news of the funding to the “Transport Support Group” of Tory MPs.

“Positive news for London colleagues — fixing potholes in the capital,” he said.

Carter told Dines he believed that Derbyshire had had a 30 per cent increase in road repair funding.

Critics of the decision to scrap HS2 questioned the claim that the London funding — £7.5 million made available between now and March, followed by a further £7.5 million in 2024-25, with the remainder extending until 2034 — was made possible by axing the scheme.

Henri Murison, the chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said: “Having cancelled the northern section of HS2, it is important to be straight with the public about where the money is really going.

“I do not critique previously promised essential road maintenance in London and short-term bus fare incentives across England. However, as Phase 2 of HS2 had already been delayed so much so little money can be saved to cover the immediate revenue and capital commitments included here that it seems implausible.”

Sunak has previously been forced to defend pumping money from HS2 into projects in the south of England.

He told the BBC: “I’m not apologising for the fact that Bristol and the West Country or the south of England is going to get more money as a result of this decision. It’s not a criticism that these things are not in the north.”

The government published plans for Network North, including a full list of projects, immediately following Sunak’s announcement that the northern leg of HS2 was cancelled at the Tory party conference in October.

However, some pages were quickly deleted including some where the government pledged to “revolutionise mass transit in Bristol”. A page about reopening Transport North East’s Leamside Line was also removed.

Harper said that “every penny of the £19.8 billion committed to the northern leg of HS2 will be reinvested in the north”.

He added: “Every penny of the £9.6 billion committed to the Midlands leg will be reinvested in the Midlands. The full £6.5 billion saved through our re-scoped approach at Euston will be spread across every other region in the country.”

Watch this “space”! – Owl

Will Goddard www.exmouthjournal.co.uk 

A temporary building at Greendale Business Park used as a vaccination centre during the Covid pandemic must be demolished by New Year’s Day after an application to keep it was refused. 

The 72-metre-long structure was originally built under emergency regulations in 2021, and East Devon District Council later agreed it could stay in use by the NHS until the end of 2022, but that it had to be removed by December 31, 2023.  

Paul James of FWS Carter & Sons, which owns and operates Greendale Business Park, had applied to keep the building permanently for a range of purposes including commercial, residential and medical uses, but also said it could just be used by the NHS. 

Planning officers recommended that councillors refuse the application, as the building goes against its ‘local plan’, a guide for new development in the district, which does not permit the outward expansion of the business park.

They also had other concerns such as its visual impact on the landscape. 

The NHS said it needed a “surge vaccination centre”, in the event of another pandemic, but officers felt they had not seen enough information to be sure there was no other suitable site.

Some councillors agreed with the officers, but others thought it should be allowed to stay.  

Cllr Geoff Jung (Lib Dem, Woodbury and Lympstone) said: “A large regional centre made strategic sense but obviously it is not required now.  

“Existing local surgeries and pharmacies are now more than willing and able to provide the flu and Covid jabs and they welcome the beneficial income that this provides. 

“Is this site suitable for commercial use? It’s not supported by our agreed local plan, it’s not agreed by our adopted villages plan… because this large business park is considered to be an unsustainable location and increasing it would be detrimental to the local landscape.”

Cllr Ben Ingham (Conservative, Woodbury and Lympstone) said: “The NHS are the body best placed to advise on medical need and they say they need it.  

“The Covid inquiry stresses the importance of preparing for future pandemics and learning from the mistakes of 2020 when we could not respond to Covid-19 at short notice.  

“Our communities need it to safeguard our public health. It really is that simple.” 

Cllr Mike Howe (Independent, Clyst Valley) said: “There is no policy support for this at all.  

“If you want to barge a horse and cart through our local plan as it stands today, carry on ahead. We haven’t got the proof from the NHS.” 

Cllr Ian Barlow (Independent, Sidmouth Town) said: “I speak to the people I represent, and whenever you say to them, they want to remove the vaccination centre… they can’t believe it.  

“The whole point of planning is to plan for the future. What difference does it make what it’s for?

“If the NHS has quite rightly said they’d like to save some money. If they can do a deal, surely that’s the sort of thing we want to encourage. They’ve done a deal that this building is for the NHS, on short notice it can be cleared if it is required.  

“We didn’t know about the first pandemic. We will not know about the second pandemic.” 

Woodbury Parish Council also supported the application to keep the building. But, after a vote, permission was refused.

MPs may be getting a pay rise in April – and junior doctors in England have started another wave of walkouts over their salary, meaning people are inevitably drawing parallels.

Kate Nicholson www.huffingtonpost.co.uk 

The union British Medication Association (BMA) claims junior doctors have had a real terms pay cut of 26.1% since 2008-9. How have MPs’ salaries’ fared in the same time frame?

Both roles are subject to extra cash boosts depending on their seniority. For junior doctors, the number of hours worked and where they work can cause further fluctuations in their overall pay.

So, HuffPost UK has just compared the base-level each role could earn every year at a minimum, based on the gov.uk website and the BMA’s website.

Comparing MPs and junior doctors’ basic pay:

2008: MPs – £61,820, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2009: MPs – £64,766, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2010: MPs – £65,738, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2011: MPs – £65,738, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2012: MPs – £65,738, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2013: MPs – £66,396, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2014: MPs – £67,060, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2015: MPs – £74,000, first year junior doctors – £28,274

2016: MPs – £74,962, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2017: MPs – £76,011, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2018: MPs – £77,379, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2019: MPs – £79,468, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2020: MPs – £81,932, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2021: MPs – £81,932, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2022: MPs – £84,144, first year junior doctors – £32,398

2023: MPs – £86,584, first year junior doctors – £32,398

The base-level pay for MPs over the last 15 years has gone from £61,820 in 2008 to £86,584 in 2023.

The base level pay for junior doctors in their first year (in the same time period) has gone from £28,274 to £32,398.

However, as they gain experience, junior doctors can earn more.

Between 2008 and 2016, they could earn up to £57,570.

Between 2016 and 2023, they could earn up to £63,152.

What has happened to MPs’ pay?

MPs are expected to all get a 7.1% pay rise in April, taking them from £86,584 to £92,731 for their basic salary level.

Frontbenchers then get an extra boost, depending on how senior they are – but these rates have been frozen since 2014.

Since 2015, it has used the average increase in public-sector earnings for the three months leading up to October to work out the yearly raise.

By the time April rolls around, inflation is expected to have fallen to around 2%.

But, the IPSA can also block the expected increase to MPs’ salaries, as it did in 2020 when a £3,000 rise was seen as inappropriate at the height of the Covid pandemic.

The Westminster watchdog will make a final decision in the New Year on how much to hike increases for 2024.

What has happened to junior doctors’ pay?

Junior doctors went on their 26th day of strikes on Monday, in a walkout expected to last three days. Another six-day walkout is planned at the start of January.

It comes after the BMA’s talks with the government broke down in December.

Nearly half of NHS doctors are junior doctors, as the term encompasses both those who are just out of university and some who have more than a decade of experience.

Two-thirds of junior doctors are part of BMA, which is asking for an extra 35% to their salaries to make up for below-inflation pay rises since 2008.

That’s much higher than what the government has already offered.

Sunak said in July that a 6% rise and £1,250 added to their salaries would be the government’s “final” offer, and there would be no more negotiation.

More recently, the government offered an additional 3% rise – but the union rejected it, noting it was “unevenly spread across doctors’ grades”.

The union said: “The approach from [health secretary Victoria] Atkins and the team has been productive but ultimately that alone is not sufficient to make up for 15 years of declining pay.

“A year after our dispute started, we are still too far from turning the tide on plummeting pay, morale, and retention of doctors.”

Critics have spoken out in frustration about a report aimed at drawing a line under the 3 Rivers housing firm debacle in Mid Devon that they say leaves questions unanswered.

Bradley Gerrard, local democracy reporter www.radioexe.co.uk 

A working group of four Mid Devon councillors and one council officer presented a ‘lessons learned’ report to the scrutiny committee this week aimed at assessing what contributed to the failure of the soon-to-close housing firm, and what should be done differently if a similar entity is launched again.

The report highlights mistakes around the company’s set-up in 2017 and its subsequent operation. Its 10 recommendations lay bare various shortcomings.

The topic dominated public questions at the meeting, with concerns about the working group’s short timeframe to conduct its work, worries about its remit, the transparency of the evidence the report relied on, and claims of factual errors.

The report noted that the council and the company had different attitudes to risk, meaning that a development company was “not the most appropriate form of commercial enterprise for the council to initiate to supplement its income.”

It continued: “With hindsight, the challenge in bringing two organisations with fundamentally different cultures together required greater thought and consideration, and that challenge ultimately proved too difficult to achieve in this instance.”

It paints a picture of an authority trying to mitigate the risks associated with 3 Rivers, but not fully aware that these actions curtailed the firm’s flexibility and its ability to make quick decisions.

The separation between 3 Rivers, a commercial entity, and the council, a political body and lender, was “never wide enough to enable the board of 3 Rivers to take timely, independent, operational decisions.”

It outlines an instance where Mid Devon’s planning committee refused a 3 Rivers application, which the company successfully appealed, and was awarded costs.

It added that the decision to take on the “difficult site at St George’s Court” was “influenced by political considerations regardless of the fact that anticipated returns, though positive, were low”, and that “no advice” was sought from an independent commercial or banking lender as to the structure or viability of the business plan.

Specialised commercial property development skills at inception “would have significantly strengthened the board”, it said.

Councillor Gordon Czapiewski (Liberal Democrat, Tiverton Lowman), who chaired the working group, said it looked at council minutes, external reports, written submissions and letters from the public.

He outlined the 10 recommendations, which included that if a similar company was set up again, at least two board members should be unrelated to the council, that there should be “necessary distance” by the council from commercial decisions, and that an exit strategy should be in place from the beginning.

Cllr Czapiewski acknowledged it had not been possible to interview everyone who had experience of the company since its launch in 2017, or to scrutinise every single document, but that the relevant material was made available to the working group, including documents from confidential sections of council meetings when the press and public are excluded, known as Part 2.

Barry Warren, who chairs Willand Parish Council but was speaking in a personal capacity, asked who had set the timeframe for the working group to operate in and who had decided which materials were made available for it.

He also questioned whether audio recordings had been listened to, and whether the working group would make a comment on the “loss of millions of pounds.”

Cllr Czapiewski said council leader Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat, Bradninch) had set the timeframe in agreement with scrutiny committee chair Councillor Rachel Gilmour (Liberal Democrat, Clare & Shuttern), and that the working group had access to all the material it required.

He acknowledged that audio recordings were not listened to, primarily because much of the previous debate on 3 Rivers had been in Part 2 proceedings, and so weren’t recorded.

Speaking after the meeting, Mr Warren said he had not been interviewed by the working group, in spite of being leader of Mid Devon when the authority decided to limit 3 Rivers to completing its two remaining projects in Tiverton and Bampton.

Another resident, Paul Elstone, asked why former council leaders were not interviewed in person, especially when the working group was “made aware of threats against them,” adding that evidence was available that conflicted with some statements in the report, and that the working group hadn’t stated who should have prevented the failings and how.

“Why was the root cause not addressed in the report, as that is something that is a serious omission,” he said.

He claimed he had seen an email that “can only be described as explosive” in terms of identifying a possible reason for the firm’s failure, and queried whether the working group had seen this.

Andrew Jarratt, deputy chief executive at Mid Devon, said a “six-figure sum” had been spent by the authority on external reports into 3 Rivers, including on one by its external auditors Grant Thornton investigating allegations of fraud and malpractice.

Cllr Gilmour, echoing the ‘lessons learned’ report, said these allegations had proved to be “unsubstantiated.”

Nick Quinn, another resident, also queried what he called some “factual errors” – including a suggestion that there were four directors of the company at launch when Companies House shows three – and questioned why the working group had not been given longer to complete its work, as well as whether the report would be debated by full council.

He was told that the working group “do not accept any statements are incorrect” and that it had “not been shown evidence to suggest that,” while also being informed it was “too late for further evidence” and that the report would not be debated by other council committees.

Councillor Rhys Roberts (Conservative, Cadbury), a member of the working group, acknowledged he would have “preferred more time” for the report as it would have “given us an opportunity to talk to more people who were involved and had knowledge of the company and were part of the decision-making process.

“But, given the timescale, I’m comfortable with the fact that we spoke to key stakeholders and decisionmakers, and were able to question them freely, with those people having no prior knowledge of the questions we wanted to ask.”

He added that nobody declined to speak to the working group and that information it requested from interviewees was freely given.

“This report comes on the back of numerous independent reports that have already been published about the company and its failures,” he said.

“It’s a catastrophic failure, a financial failure for the council, and that’s why we are spending so much time looking at the implications for the future so it doesn’t happen again.”

Another member of the public, Kate Clayton-White, said constituents wanted accountability, and so the fact former councillors were able to give statements to the working group anonymously was “preposterous.”

“I’m yet to hear anyone praise the way the council is handling this matter,” she said, adding: “This committee needs to scrutinise properly and make all its findings available with nothing hidden behind Part 2 confidentiality.”

Cllr Gilmour said some interviewees had requested anonymity, and so the working group had decided to grant it to all those who contributed to the report’s findings.

“Had we not done so, it is likely the statements would have been superficial and not helpful,” she said.

Last month, Mid Devon said it estimated that £3.7 million would need to be written off in the current financial year in relation to 3 Rivers, and that the value of confirmed impairments had reached £5.3 million as at March this year.

seatonmatters.org

Labour has published a full list of its 211 ‘non-battleground’ seats, i.e. the seats they don’t aim to try to win. They include the Honiton & Sidmouth seat (which includes Seaton and Axminster), and also Exmouth and East Exeter.

In these seats, voters who want to get rid of the Tories should back the Liberal Democrats. Voting Labour (or Green) will only split the anti-Tory vote and potentially let the Tory in. Remember that Simon Jupp has jumped ship from Exmouth to stand in our area – he thinks he can win. Let’s make sure he doesn’t – support Richard Foord, our excellent Lib Dem MP!

Read details here

[We now await the selection of the Lib Dem candidate for Exmouth and East Exeter and, crucially, whether the chosen candidate is someone Claire Wright will endorse as she has with Richard Foord for Honiton & Sidmouth. – Owl]

Sunak challenged by watchdog over claim to have cut public debt

The head of the UK’s official statistics watchdog has challenged Rishi Sunak over his claim to have reduced public debt, saying the prime minister’s definition of this was so specific and limited that it risked being misleading for voters.

Peter Walker www.theguardian.com 

Sir Robert Chote, the chair of the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA), said Sunak’s claims last month “may have undermined trust in the government’s use of statistics and quantitative analysis in this area”.

Writing to Sarah Olney, the Liberal Democrats’ Treasury spokesperson, Chote said the Office for Statistics Regulation, the UKSA’s regulatory arm, would “work with the prime minister’s office to ensure further statements on debt levels adhere to our guidance on intelligent transparency”.

Olney raised the issue with Chote’s office after Sunak said “debt is falling” in a No 10 social media video posted on 7 November, the day of the king’s speech, and then said “we have indeed reduced debt” during prime minister’s questions on 22 November, the day of the autumn statement.

Downing Street told the UKSA that both claims referenced forecasts by the Office for Budget Responsibility that net debt would be falling as a proportion of GDP during the final year of the five-year forecast, in the context of the autumn statement meaning 2027-28.

In both cases this was mainly happening due to changes to the OBR’s fiscal projections, with government decisions on tax and spending actually making debt higher.

Chote’s letter noted that while it was fair to use debt as a proportion of GDP rather than absolute numbers, the “average person in the street” would most likely have taken Sunak’s statement to mean that debt was already dropping and that government decisions had helped do this – “neither of which is the case”.

“This has clearly been a source of confusion and may have undermined trust in the government’s use of statistics and quantitative analysis in this area,” he wrote.

“Members of the public cannot be expected to understand the minutiae of public finance statistics and the precise combination of definitional choices that might need to be made for a particular claim to be true.”

Olney said Sunak had “reached for the Boris Johnson playbook and is undermining trust in politics”.

She said: “Rishi Sunak knows he has no good story to tell on the UK economy so he has resorted to making one up. This is desperate stuff from a desperate prime minister and it is right that he has been called out on it.”

A government source said: “The OBR is crystal clear – thanks to the long-term decisions we have taken, we are on track to get debt falling.”