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How the General Election affects the County choice – vote LOCAL, vote INDEPENDENT
I don’t think Theresa May needed to call a General Election, nor should the opposition parties agree to it. It is simply untrue that the Government was facing obstruction on Brexit or anything else – Parliament has given her everything she asked for. More likely she was worried about the possibility of up to 20 Conservative MPs (and possibly also the Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Commissioner, Alison Hernandez) being charged with breaches of election law in 2015 and disbarred from office.
However the General Election will give people the chance to vote for NATIONAL parties, and in Tiverton and Honiton it is inevitable that Neil Parish will be re-elected for the Tories. It makes it all the more important that in the County election, people vote LOCAL and INDEPENDENT for the best candidate to represent Seaton and Colyton to challenge policies which damage our communities, at the behest of a Government bent on cutting local services and local democracy.
Seaton & Colyton hustings on Thursday 20 April, 7 pm at Marshlands, Seaton
All candidates have been invited by the Town Council. This is the second part of Seaton’s Annual Town Meeting, but all are welcome.
Campaign launched successfully
My campaign launch meeting last Wednesday was attended by 30 supporters from Seaton, Colyton, Colyford and Branscombe. From left, me, Paul Arnott (chair), and Jack Rowland.
Following the meeting, teams of leafleters are completing the first leaflet distribution and placards are going up.
Candidates for Seaton & Colyton
For Devon County Council – you have ONE vote:
- Peter BURROWS, Liberal Democrats
- Jim KNIGHT, Independent (Conservative)
- Ian MARTIN, Labour (from Exeter)
- Helen PARR, Conservative
- MARTIN SHAW, Independent East Devon Alliance
The poll is on Thursday 4 May 2017, 7:00 am – 10:00 pm, and you should now have received a polling card. If not, you have until 13 April to register to vote – go online HERE, and ring 01395 517402 (EDDC) to apply for a postal vote.
Election meeting on Wednesday
As readers know, I’m standing as the Independent East Devon Alliance candidate for Devon County Council in the Seaton & Colyton division. I’m launching my campaign with a Public Election Meeting, ‘A DIFFERENT KIND OF COUNTY COUNCILLOR’, on Wednesday 5th April at 7 pm in the Marshlands Centre, Harbour Road, Seaton (behind the murals opposite the Underfleet roundabout).
Honiton applies for Judicial Review
This statement has been issued by the Save Our Hospital Services-Honiton group:
SOHS – Honiton Steering Group that we will be applying for a judicial review of the CCG decision regarding the beds in Honiton Hospital because it was based on a flawed consultation process. There may also be human rights issues. The steering group have created a crowdfunding page on Just Giving in order to raise £75,000 for the first tranche of funding as lawyers and barristers are very expensive. The steering group believe it’s really important to go for a judicial review as we may well be able to demonstrate that the decision was unlawful. If we can get people to give £10 each we can very soon raise the first round of funding. When you think about it £10 is four coffees or two glasses of wine so we are not asking people to make a massive sacrifice to support the judicial review.” For those who wish to donate the URL is www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/honitonhospitalbeds
The reason why we put “we are going for a judicial review” is because it is not just the steering group ..it is the town, the mayor, the league of friends, senior voice. They have all been consulted and are in favour of a judicial review.
Go to Seaton Heights auction details
Go to https://eastdevonwatch.org/2017/02/27/seaton-heights-up-for-auction-at-2-5-3-million-next-month/
Greater Exeter: bonanza for landowner-councillors?
Did you even know that East Devon is proposing to be part of a Greater Exeter Strategic Plan (GESP)? This could supersede the Local Plan which the district has so painfully drawn up over recent years, and which is supposed to last to 2031.
Ed Freeman, who is the Service Lead – Planning Strategy and Development Management, writes to EDDC councillors on the consultation for GESP:
“… The consultation paper is attached for you to get an advanced preview and we would welcome your comments by 10th April. Alongside this will be a call for sites to land owners and developers for housing and employment land across the area which can then be considered for allocation to meet the needs of the area for homes and jobs in the future.
So if you are secretly sat on a few acres of land and would like to put it forward for development now is the time to tell us! …”
As East Devon Watch, which broke the story, says, ‘yes, you read that right. Let us know about any secret land holdings you are sitting on. NOT so we can report you to the Monitoring Officer for not listing them on your declarations of interest – but so that we can do our best to help you to get them developed.’
This from the Council which gave us Graham Brown, who had to resign in 2013 because he boasted to the Daily Telegraph that he could get planning agreed for £25,000.
