tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15601052231617927792024-03-05T06:50:58.705+00:00Cllr Dick ColeParty Leader :
Mebyon Kernow - The Party for CornwallDick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.comBlogger1516125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-47378206852793512862023-11-25T23:08:00.000+00:002023-11-25T23:08:11.131+00:00MY LATEST CORNWALL COUNCILLOR REPORT<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZvhxrThI2ValW2qGezo6lYd79x90nLa0j45gE8CVZf57fhfFu0zkjlrpihi8mZQt4mV2lOTlw9BVS8mlavKfJUTiJMlgSh6EUfP__lLyn7qmAgIJC_Ceq_ir56gi4JrQNXz420F1PlxEqcxu7-m-E0VXXKn9v-4iGUCYQ3ezk1EvgYHqbWBSCofkOzo/s2848/Group%20shot%20in%20front%20of%20the%20Youth%20Club%20Building%20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1868" data-original-width="2848" height="421" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZvhxrThI2ValW2qGezo6lYd79x90nLa0j45gE8CVZf57fhfFu0zkjlrpihi8mZQt4mV2lOTlw9BVS8mlavKfJUTiJMlgSh6EUfP__lLyn7qmAgIJC_Ceq_ir56gi4JrQNXz420F1PlxEqcxu7-m-E0VXXKn9v-4iGUCYQ3ezk1EvgYHqbWBSCofkOzo/w640-h421/Group%20shot%20in%20front%20of%20the%20Youth%20Club%20Building%20.jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br /><b>Time period: 25th September – 25th November 2023. <br /><br /> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> Over the last two months, I have attended a range of Cornwall Council meetings. These include Cabinet and Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee (which I attended to make representations about the Homechoice Review); Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee and two associated meetings about the refresh of Cornwall Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy; Constitution and Governance Committee; China Clay Area and Luxulyan Community Area Partnership (2); meetings with the link officer for the CAP (2); a training day for elected members; and a meeting about highway matters with the local Cormac officer. <br /><br />I have attended a range of online meetings via Teams / Zoom video-conferencing. These have included sessions with the link officer for the China Clay Area and Luxulyan Community Area Partnership (3), a get-together for councillors from the China Clay Area and Luxulyan CAP, a pre-agenda session for the national minority working group, briefings on Good Growth and People Hubs, the Mid Cornwall Metro project, the “level 2 devolution deal” (2), group leaders and a training / development session with councillors and senior leadership team from the unitary authority.<br /><br />I attended a drop-in session organised by Cornish Lithium at ClayTAWC; St Dennis and Nanpean Community Trust (incinerator fund) (2); St Dennis Parish Council (3) and St Enoder Parish Council (3) <br /><br />In addition, I have had informal meetings with a wide range of groups and individuals. <br /><br /><br /><b>FUNDING FOR LOCAL GROUPS</b><br /><br /><b>2.0 Applications </b><br /><br />In recent months, a key priority for me has been working on funding applications for a number of local groups. <br /><br /><b>ClayTAWC </b><br /><br />I submitted an application for £95,000 from the Community Levelling Up funding, administered by Cornwall Council, to purchase the building and safeguard the Centre for the community going forward. The application has been appraised and it went to a meeting of the funding panel of the China Clay Area and Luxulyan CAP. I am chuffed to be able to confirm that I have been successful and I have just received the offer letter. This funding will be match-funded with a grant from the St Dennis and Nanpean Community Trust. <br /><br /><b>Indian Queens Recreation Ground </b><br /><br />Following the completion of the extension to the Indian Queens Youth Club, I submitted an application to the National Lottery Awards for All programme for £10,000 towards the cost of resurfacing the original parking area in the Recreation Ground and the creation of a disabled car parking space next to the Youth Club.<br /><br />I am very pleased to be able to report that the application was successful and the works have commenced. <br /><br /><b>Indian Queens Under-Fives Pre-School</b><br /><br />I have been working with the team at the Pre-School to secure funding for improvements to the existing Pre-School building. The cladding around the exterior of the structure has been failing for a number of years, and we are seeking funding for new external cladding. Linked to this, we are also looking to improve the internal walls of the Centre, install a new non-slip floor surface and refurbish the kitchen. <br /><br />The Pre-School is working hard on raising funds, and I have submitted two funding applications on their behalf. The first application was through the Cornwall Community Foundation. It was for £5,000 and I am pleased that it was successful. <br /><br />The second application is for £70,000 and has been submitted to Cornwall Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy fund. I understand that a decision will be made in December. <br /><br /><b>Fraddon Millennium Green </b><br /><br />I have also submitted an application for £42,000 to Cornwall Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy fund. This will be to install a wooden tractor and trailer slide (in the location of the locomotive that had to be removed) and the replacement of the existing safety surfacing across the park with a newer “wetpour” surface. Linked to this, I have also submitted an application to the National Lottery Awards for All programme for just under £7,000 to match-fund the CIL funding and pay for landscaping improvements around the Millennium Green. I am hoping to hear positive news in December. <br /><br /><br /><b>CORNWALL COUNCIL <br /><br />3.0 Homechoice </b><br /><br />A couple of months ago, I submitted a detailed response to the consultation into the Homechoice system, through which publicly-owned rental properties are allocated. I argued that there should be greater support for local households to secure homes in their home parishes. <br /><br />A series of recommendations have been produced by officers, some of which I disagree with. <br /><br />Positives first. There is a proposal for “local letting plans,” which cover communities, such as St Dennis Parish, where not enough properties have been going to households from the host parish. I believe this came about, in part, because of representations that I made. <br /><br />But there is also a proposed policy shift for Section 106 properties. At the present time, most of these agreements state that properties should go households with links to the host (primary) parish, but if there are no bids it will go to a neighbouring (secondary) parish. <br /><br />The proposed change would prioritise households in the following order: <br /><br />· “Band A” households from the primary parish<br />· “Band A” households from secondary parishes<br />· “Band B” households from the primary parish<br />· “Band B” households from secondary parishes<br />· “Band C” households from the primary parish<br />· “Band C” households from secondary parishes <br /><br />There also plans to abolish “Band D” and reduce options for households in the lowest-priority “Band E.” <br /><br />I do not agree with this and the inevitable consequence that people in housing need with an established local connection to a primary parish will miss out. <br /><br />St Dennis Parish has a population of 2,880, while secondary parishes have population of 20,930 made up as follows: Roche (3,680), St Columb (4,690), St Enoder (5,000) and St Stephen (7,560). St Enoder Parish meanwhile has a population of 5,000, while secondary parishes have a population of 25,470, made up as follows: Colan (2,900), Ladock (1,820), Roche (3,680), St Columb (4,690), St Dennis (2,880), St Newlyn East (1,940) and St Stephen (7,560). <br /><br />It seems to me that giving greater priority to secondary parishes (eg. secondary Band B over primary Band C) will greatly reduce the number of housing units going to primary parish households – 20,930 / 25,470 is a lot of people! <br /><br />It is my view that the proposal goes against the legal agreements signed by Cornwall Council and changes are not in line with council policy, and because of this could do reputational harm to the local authority. <br /><br />The report was submitted to a meeting of the ruling Cabinet on 8th November. I attended the meeting and, as a consequence of my representations, they agreed to a further two-week consultation (which closed on Friday 24th November). I have submitted two further documents in my own name and assisted both St Dennis and St Enoder Parish Councils with further submissions. <br /><br />A meeting has been arranged for me on Thursday 30th November to meet with the portfolio holder for housing, senior officers and the chairman and vice-chairman of the Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee to discuss my concerns further.<br /><br /><b>4.0 “Level 2 devolution deal” </b><br /><br />The latest “devolution deal” was published by the UK Government on 22nd November. Overall, it is extremely under-whelming and does not include the transfer of far-reaching powers from Westminster to Cornwall as has happened in Wales and Scotland since 1999. The deal is simply a range of accommodations between central government and Cornwall’s unitary authority. <br /><br />The key headlines are local control over the existing Adult Education Budget and £500,000 for Cornish culture and the Cornish language. The deal will be reviewed by the Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Monday (27th November) and I anticipate it will be endorsed at a meeting of the Cabinet on Tuesday (28th November). <br /><br />I will report more fully in my next monthly report.<br /><br /><b>5.0 China Clay Area and Luxulyan Community Area Partnership </b><br /><br />As the Chairman of the new China Clay Area and Luxulyan CAP, I continue to spend considerable time with officers collating information about the needs of the China Clay Area. I am pleased to report that the CAP has secured £50,000 from Cornwall Council to spend on research for projects. The money has been awarded is in lieu of “Town Vitality Funding,” which went to towns with smaller populations than Clay Country. <br /><br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES </b><br /><br /><b>6.0 Planning matters </b><br /><br />I am monitoring a number of planning applications in St Dennis Parish. These include the following: <br /><br />· <b>Battery storage areas [PA23/04504 / PA23/06527].</b> The first successful planning application for battery storage was approved on 2nd February 2022. It was for about 100MW. This is immediately to the rear of and adjoining the existing Indian Queens Power Station. There are two live applications for battery storage on this same piece of land. This is not additional battery storage, but two separate solar companies seeking to, in effect, split the existing consent into two new consents. The Parish Council has raised concerns about the risks relating to developments of this type.<br /><br />· <b>Construction of a house [PA23/04860].</b> This is proposed for Hendra Road, next to Jubilee Terrace, and the Parish Council has raised a strong objection. <br /><br />· <b>27 dwellings at Hendra Prazey [PA20/11311].</b> This application has been with Cornwall Council for nearly three years. There have been numerous issues about the location for the development. Most recently, the Council has raised concerns about the ecological impact of the development, as it is adjacent to a Site of Special Scientific Interest. <br /><br /><b>7.0 Highway matters </b><br /><br />In my meeting with the local Cormac representative on 17th November, I discussed a range of highways-related issues in St Dennis Parish. This included the following: <br /><br />· The Parish Council’s plan for the erection of a series of poles for mobile speed visors. <br /><br />· The poor quality of road surfaces in a number of areas, where resurfacing is needed. These include Carne Hill, part of Hall Road including pavements, Gothers Road and Trelavour Road.<br /><br />· The recently completed drainage works on the road near Domellick / Indian Queens Power Station and the need for future monitoring. <br /><br />· The large amount of lineage in the village which needs repainting.<br /><br />· My plan to do a re-consultation on a possible traffic calming at the southern entry into Hendra Road as a previous consultation received a limited response. <br /><br />· My request to investigate the possibility of a streetlight in Downs Close. <br /><br />· Complaints about speeding in a number of locations, including Enniscaven. <br /><br />· Representations about an accident between Foxhole and Nanpean.<br /><br /><b>8.0 Possible multi-use trail </b><br /><br />I am continuing to make representations about the possibility of building a project to create a multi-use trail along the old railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor nature reserve. I can confirm that a meeting has been arranged with senior council officers on 18th December. <br /><br /><b>9.0 Cornish Lithium </b><br /><br />Following the public meeting organised by Cornish Lithium at The Pitch, which I could not attend as I was on holiday, I was pleased that they agreed to my request to hold further “drop-in” sessions in the village. Two have been held, one of which I was able to attend. <br /><br /><br /><b>ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />10.0 Planning matters </b><br /><br />As always, there continue to be a number of significant planning applications in St Enoder Parish. Listed below are a few applications with updates.<br /><br />· <b>69 park homes at Gnomeworld [PA22/07277].</b> This application is for residential units, which would replace holiday caravans. Cornwall Council expects an off-site financial contribution for affordable housing from such schemes. The applicant is presently discussing the scale of such a payment and viability issues with the unitary authority. <br /><br />· <b>18 dwellings opposite New Row, Summercourt [PA22/08134].</b> The Parish Council has supported this application. I understand that officers from Cornwall Council are presently seeking slight changes to the pedestrian access into Carnego Lane and further testing of the proposed development site in terms of its drainage details. <br /><br />· <b>Solar farm at Burthy Row / Chytane, Fraddon (PA23/01893).</b> The planning officer has visited the site to consider revised screening near one property. It is my understanding that proposal is likely to be recommended for approval and that it will be considered at a meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee on 14th December. I do not know if the application will be approved, but I have been making representations about the proposed community benefit associated with the scheme. The applicants originally offered a one-off payment of £150,000, which was initially upped to £180,000. When I became aware that an applicant for a solar farm in a neighbouring parish was proposing an annual payment of £20,000 (index-linked), I challenged the applicants for the Burthy Row / Chytane scheme. They have subsequently come back with a revised offer of £17,000 per annum (not index-linked) for a period of 40 years. I have written to them again, challenging why they cannot protect the payment against inflation over the lifetime of the solar farm. <br /><br />· <b>Holiday lodge at White Cross [PA23/04485].</b> The Parish Council has objected to this retrospective application. The lodge was complete, before any planning application was submitted. <br /><br />· <b>28 dwellings to the rear of Lindsay Fields [PA23/04991].</b> This application is place of a previous consent for 20 properties. The Parish Council has objected as the proposal did not contain two car parking spaces per unit as expected from the St Enoder Neighbourhood Plan. We are waiting to see a revised plan for further comment. <br /><br />· <b>Extension to existing commercial industrial unit, Indian Queens Industrial Estate [PA23/05424].</b> This application was in a location, where a copse of trees had previously been removed. This proposal has been consented, but with a condition to enhance the screening between the extension and Moorland Road. <br /><br />· <b>Holiday accommodation to rear of Silver Birch Gardens, St Columb Road [PA23/05462].</b> This application is on the same footprint as a previous application for fifty houses, which was turned down by Cornwall Council in 2021. There have been numerous local objections, including the Parish Council. I am expecting another refusal in this area. <br /><br />· <b>Storage yard at Toldish [PA23/06705].</b> A number of local residents have objected to the development, which has already happened without planning permission. The Parish Council has also objected to this retrospective application. <br /><br /><b>11.0 Highway matters </b><br /><br />In my meeting with the local Cormac representative on 17th November, I discussed a range of highways-related issues in St Enoder Parish. This included the following: <br /><br />· The Parish Council’s plan for the erection of a series of poles for mobile speed visors. The suggested locations are Chapeltown, Penhale, Newquay Road in St Columb Road and Trevarren Green. <br /><br />· The poor quality of road surfaces in a number of areas, where resurfacing is needed. These include a section near St Enoder Churchtown and along the road between the Arrallas turning and Mitchell. <br /><br />· The road surface by the new zebra crossing in Chapel Road, Indian Queens, is disappointingly breaking up a bit and the white bits on the speed humps need re-doing already. <br /><br />· Some of the red surfacing outside Summercourt School is breaking up. <br /><br />· Double yellow lines need to be redone close to the crossroads at Summercourt following the A3058 works [signalised crossings]. <br /><br />· The large amount of lineage in the village which needs repainting. This includes the bus stop markings in St Francis Road, St Columb Road, by Summercourt School, and Beacon Road, Summercourt. <br /><br />· Complaints about speeding in a number of locations. <br /><br />· Concerns raised about parking on Moorland Road, linked to the Industrial Estate. <br /><br />Also ongoing is the proposed safety works at Sea View Terrace on the road to St Stephen and my follow-up on the Cormac study [Penhale – St Columb Road], plus how I might be able to link this to the Council’s commitment to 20mph speed limits in built-up areas [timetabled for 2024].<br /><br /><b>12.0 Youth Club </b><br /><br />I was pleased to attend the “opening” of the new Youth Club building on 3rd October, when representatives of the Parish Council met with the youth workers from Young People Cornwall who run the Club. The chairman of the Parish Council Alan Shaw symbolically handed over the key. <br /><br />The original building was constructed in 2014 but proved to be too small for the number of children attending Youth Club sessions at the venue. The Parish Clerk Amanda Kendall and I submitted an application to the unitary authority’s Community Infrastructure Levy fund to double the size of the structure. This was successful and £60,000 was secured towards overall costs of £74,000. <br /><br />The enlargement works were carried out by local builder Nathan Chapman (N&S Builders Ltd) from Fraddon. <br /><br /><b>13.0 School visit to Council offices </b><br /><br />As a councillor, sometimes you just get to do nice things. On 9th November, I was one of the elected members who supported a visit to the council offices in Truro by children from schools within the Aspire Academy (including Indian Queens and Summercourt). The children were a credit to their schools, and it was great to see them learning more about democracy and public services. <br /><br /><b>14.0 Remembrance Sunday </b><br /><br />I was pleased to attend the annual Remembrance Sunday event at St Enoder Churchtown on 12th November and to read out the names of the fallen. I was also pleased to supply information about three servicemen (William James Bailey and Richard Enoder Tonkin who were lost in the First World War, and Maurice Sloman who was lost in the Second World War) and whose lives were featured in the church service. <br /> <br /> The service at St Dennis was held at the same time as the St Enoder event and I was therefore unable to attend. I remain grateful to the Chairman of St Dennis Parish Council, Julia Clarke, who ensured that a wreath was laid on my behalf at the St Dennis commemoration. <br /><br /><b>15.0 Newsletter </b><br /><br />As previously noted, relatively recently, I distributed a newsletter around St Dennis Parish, but because of my workload I have not yet been able get one produced for St Enoder Parish. My present plan is to draft the leaflet in December and deliver it immediately after Christmas. <br /><br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /><br />16.0 Advice</b><br /><br />In addition, I have assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics.Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-85136878011047511602023-05-08T14:48:00.000+01:002023-05-08T14:48:04.798+01:00MY LATEST CORNWALL COUNCIL REPORT<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0EZOOkEJf1mIsNimuD-yLu_Bak5fC2GAfjlaRsmuUD9ib_V0zed8YlTmHVBRMDMUUN0a33tDIXhtMvF3608OEO54wuvCTvDwDbkRqllCTrdMq4RRX4sZGp_9cP_oo30Gl6wERFs0NbH5d-0ZRWqnot8NdZVTOzI3FAbBCIgovj1TUFZ-pXI45jkNp/s4080/Trees%20in%20Strongman's%20Field.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3060" data-original-width="4080" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0EZOOkEJf1mIsNimuD-yLu_Bak5fC2GAfjlaRsmuUD9ib_V0zed8YlTmHVBRMDMUUN0a33tDIXhtMvF3608OEO54wuvCTvDwDbkRqllCTrdMq4RRX4sZGp_9cP_oo30Gl6wERFs0NbH5d-0ZRWqnot8NdZVTOzI3FAbBCIgovj1TUFZ-pXI45jkNp/w400-h300/Trees%20in%20Strongman's%20Field.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /> Time period: 20th January – 23rd April 2023 <br /><br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings of Cornwall Council during the last three months, I attended Full Council (3), Cabinet (3), Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Constitution and Governance Committee (2), China Clay Area Community Network (2), a meeting about Community Levelling Up (Good Growth) funding for the China Clay Area, meetings relating to a peer review into the Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (3), stakeholder events for a review into the Homechoice system for the allocation of publicly-owned rental properties (3), a visit to the Council call centre at Camborne through the Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, a meeting about the proposed new CAPs (Community Area Partnerships), and a stakeholder event about health provision in the China Clay Area linked to the “eco-town / garden village” development near Penwithick. <br /><br />Further meetings through Teams video-conferencing included gatherings of Cornwall Councillors in the China Clay Area (2), sessions about Community Levelling Up (Good Growth) funding for the China Clay Area (3), Cornish National Minority Working Group (2) and an associated public forum (plus three associated sessions), briefing on Cornwall Council residents’ survey, a training session about the new Climate Change Development Plan Document, a policy briefing about the proposed “devolution deal,” Group Leader meetings (3) and briefings in advance of Full Council meetings (2). <br /><br />Other physical meetings have included St Enoder Parish Council (4) and St Dennis Parish Council (4), the Incinerator Community Forum, St Dennis and Nanpean Community Trust (trustee), Board of ClayTAWC (chairman) (3), Indian Queens Pit (trustee) (2) and a public meeting organised by Cornish Lithium at The Pitch. I also attended Annual Assemblies for both parishes. <br /><br />ClayTAWC is hosting a multi-agency community hub on the first Wednesday of each month at which a range of organisations are present to give advice to local people. I attended the hub in February. <br /><br />I also had further online meetings about a range of local issues. <br /><br /><b>2.0 CORNWALL COUNCIL</b><div><b><br />2.1 “Devolution deal” </b><br /><br />The ten-week consultation into the so-called “devolution deal” agreed between the UK Government and Cornwall Council closed in March. I can confirm that I submitted a detailed response on behalf of Mebyon Kernow, which called on the Conservative unitary authority to seek a better “deal” and to use their political influence to secure a more meaningful deal that should include the transfer of far-reaching powers from Westminster to Cornwall as has happened in Wales and Scotland. <br /><br />I also took part in a debate about the “deal” at the university at Tremough on 6th February and I was a guest on the BBC Politics Show on 10th February, on which we covered the same subject. <br /><br />At the meeting of Full Council on 18th April, I proposed a motion seeking greater devolution for Cornwall. The motion argued that Cornwall merited parity with Wales and Scotland in terms of devolution and sought to “commence negotiations for a proper devolution settlement similar to those enjoyed in the other Celtic parts of the UK (such as a National Assembly of Cornwall or Cornish Parliament).” <br /><br />The motion was lost by 38 votes to 36. Supporters included all MK, Green, Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors, plus all members of the Independent Group – bar one – and three Conservatives. It was opposed by 35 Tories, one “Conservative aligned independent,” one non-aligned independent and the one member of the Independent Group. <br /><br />Interesting, a number of councillors from the Conservative administration expressed some sympathy with the move for more extensive powers for Cornwall, and I will continue to do all I can to persuade my colleagues to be more ambitious for Cornwall. <br /><b><br />2.2 Review into Homechoice</b><br /><br />Cornwall Council and a series of Registered Providers (Housing Associations) have commenced a review into the Homechoice system for the allocation of publicly owned rental properties. I attended a meeting of the Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee about this on 28th February, and argued that all the partners should be prioritising the provision of affordable housing to local people. I also sent an email to other councillors and officers dealing with the review. It was as follows: <br /><br /><span style="color: #2b00fe;">I am a strong supporter of assisting local people to access affordable housing in their local parish. Indeed, I feel that the whole concept of affordable / local-needs housing is greatly undermined, if processes make that difficult for local people. <br /><br />Obviously, local people have a preference for properties, where occupation is controlled by Section 106 agreement or a nomination agreement. <br /><br />But I believe it is extremely important that a significant number of those affordable homes without S106s / nomination agreements (such as old council housing) should also have a local (parish) connection applied. This is especially important, where there is a high percentage of “old” affordable housing units. <br /><br />About 12 months ago, I did a study into the provision of affordable housing in one of the two parishes that I represent (St Dennis). At that time, there were a total of 236 publicly-owned rental units in this parish. Of these, 190 (80%) had no “parish connection” criteria, while 20 units (9%) were tied by a Section 106 agreement and the two most recent affordable housing developments totalling 26 units (11%) were controlled by nomination agreements. <br /><br />I wrote the report because, due to mistakes, the nomination agreements on the 26 properties noted above were not applied. On one of the developments (ten units), not one went to a family with a parish connection to St Dennis. <br /><br />Through this study, I looked at lettings over a three-year period. I identified 33 rental properties, for which no S106s or nomination agreements had been applied and for which I was given letting information. I can confirm that only eight (24%) went to households with a parish connection to St Dennis. <br /><br />There is considerable anger at what has happened in St Dennis Parish and I believe that any review of the allocations system must look to apply “parish connection” criteria on a significant number of non-S106 properties in such places. <br /><br />Over this same three-year period in the other parish I represent (St Enoder), I can confirm that nine non-S106 properties came up for re-let. Only two (22%) went to local households. In St Enoder, local households very much have preference for the newer S106 properties (most of which are the more expensive affordable rent units), but are largely missing out on the older “social rent” units. <br /><br />I do not think it appropriate that households with a parish connection are, disproportionately, missing out on social rent properties in their home areas. <br /><br />It is my view that considerable work should be done to understand the split of Section 106 / non-S106 properties and social rent / affordable rent units in all parishes across Cornwall, which can be used to boost the provision of parish connection in parishes such as St Dennis and St Enoder. <br /><br />It is my intention to update the evidence in the coming days and I will formally submit this as part of the review. </span><br /><br />Three stakeholder events were held in April and I attended all three. I continue to argue that the “local connection” aspect of the allocations should be strengthened for parishes such as St Dennis and St Enoder. I am presently collating further evidence to submit into the review. <br /><br /><b>2.3 Full Council meetings</b><br /> <br />Since my last report, there have been three meetings of Cornwall Council. The first of these was an extraordinary meeting, which dealt with the completion of the Community Governance Review that considered changes to parish council boundaries. I was heavily involved with this and I am pleased that the attempt by St Austell Town Council to extend its boundaries into Treverbyn Parish was not successful. <br /><br />The second meeting agreed the Council’s budget for 2023/24. It included a (maximum) 4.99% increase in council tax and was voted through by the Conservative majority on the authority. The Mebyon Kernow / Green Group did not support the budget and challenged the leadership of the unitary authority and Cornwall’s six MPs to better lobby for fair funding for local government in Cornwall. <br /><br />As noted above, at the third meeting, I moved a motion about greater devolution for Cornwall. <br /><br /><b>2.4 China Clay Area CAP?</b><br /><br />Cornwall Council’s Cabinet has taken the decision to change the present 19 Community Networks into 12 Community Area Partnerships (CAPs). I am pleased to be able to report that the new CAP for our area will largely cover the same patch as the existing Network. <br /><br />It will cover the five China Clay Area parishes, plus the parish of Luxulyan. This new CAP will start meeting from May onwards and will have some say over the allocation of elements of Shared Prosperity (Community Levelling Up) Funding. <br /><br /><b>2.5 Fire Control Room </b><br /><br />I attended the meeting of Cornwall Council’s Cabinet on 22nd March and I was pleased that the decision was taken to keep the Fire Control Room within Cornwall and rejected the option to out-source it to the east of the Tamar. <br /><br /><b>2.6 Peer review into Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy</b><br /><br />Between 21st and 23rd March, a team of Local Government Association representatives and peers from other councils visited Cornwall to review the unitary authority’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. As I had chaired the councillors working group, which was a key element in the production of the Strategy, I attended two discussions and a feedback session. A full feedback report will be published in the near-future. <br /><br /><b>2.7 My Community Chest</b><br /><br />As a Cornwall Councillor, I am allocated £3,000 per annum, which I can grant to local organisations. I can confirm that for 2022/2023, I awarded grants to the Community Larder for Indian Queens and District, Indian Queens Youth Football, St Dennis Carnival, St Dennis Multi-Agency Hub, St Dennis Youth Club, the Wesley Pre-School at Indian Queens, and Wheal Rose Football Team at Mitchell. Anyone wishing to apply to my community chest for 2023/24, should give me a call to have a chat. <br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES <br /><br /> 3.0 Multi-use trail </b><br /><br /> In January, I reported that I had secured funding from Natural England to produce a report scoping out what would need to be done to turn the section of the defunct railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve into a multi-use trail. Sustrans were commissioned to do the study and I was pleased to visit the old railway line with them on 9th February. <br /><br />A first draft of this study has just been completed. I will be attending a meeting with the charity and Cornwall Council in the next few days to discuss the initial findings. <br /><br /><b>4.0 Footpath 20 </b><br /><br />I am pleased to report that Cornwall Council has inserted a gate into a wall on the route of footpath 20 to the north of St Dennis Church. <br /><br /><b>5.0 Path between Manson Place and Trelavour Road</b><br /><br />I was also pleased to meet up with some St Dennis Parish Councillors on Sunday 5th February to help cut back vegetation growing out into the path which extends from Manson Place to Trelavour Road. <br /><b><br />6.0 Cornish Lithium meeting </b><br /><br /> I attended the public meeting held by Cornish Lithium in The Pitch on 22nd March. A detailed update was provided, which included an acknowledgement that the firm is carrying out some geo-technical work on one of the two most dominant skytips above St Dennis (namely Pointy). Obviously, it is not yet known what the conclusion of the assessment will be, but I know the importance of Flatty and Pointy to the local area and I will be carefully monitoring the situation as it develops. <br /><br /><b>7.0 Planning matters </b><br /><br /> Last year, a planning application was submitted for a new dwelling on Hendra Road, which was opposed by the Parish Council. It was subsequently withdrawn, but a fresh application has now been submitted (PA23/01263). The Parish Council has, once again, raised an objection and I will be keep an eye on what happens with the proposal. <br /><br /><b>8.0 Litter pick </b><br /><br /> It was great to join parish councillors and local residents at the litter pick in St Dennis on 15th April. It is worrying how much waste you can pick up in a couple of hours. <br /><br /><b>9.0 Annual Assembly </b><br /><br /> It was also a pleasure to attend the 2023 Annual Assembly for St Dennis on 18th April. I presented an annual report summarising key elements of my work over the last 12 months. <br /><br /><b>10.0 ClayTAWC </b><br /><br /> As the Chairman of the Board at ClayTAWC, I am putting a significant amount of time into the safeguarding of the future of the centre. Our 25-year lease for the building ends in about 18 months, and we are presently seeking funding to purchase the building so that it will be protected as a community-owned asset at the heart of the village. It is hoped that the funding will come from the St Dennis and Nanpean Community Trust (incinerator fund) and Shared Prosperity Funding through Cornwall Council. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />11.0 Youth Club </b><br /><br />As previously reported, the Parish Clerk (Amanda Kendall) and I submitted an application to Cornwall Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding towards the extension of the Youth Club building in the Indian Queens Recreation Ground. I am delighted to confirm that the funding application for £60,000 was successful and it is hoped the works to double the size of the youth club building will commence in Spring / early Summer. <br /><br /><b>12.0 Orchard planting</b><br /><br />I was also pleased to be involved with the planting of 11 apple trees and four cherry trees on Parish Council land near to Indian Queens School on 23rd March (see above image). The works were carried out by the Parish Clerk, the Parish Council handyman (Nigel Trebell) and myself, with the assistance of over seventy children and some of the School’s teaching assistants. <br /><br />The handyman has also installed three picnic benches in this area, along with two rubbish bins. <br /><br /><b>13.0 Planning matters </b><br /><br />There continues to be a large number of live planning applications in St Enoder Parish. Listed below are updates on a couple of them, which will soon be considered by St Enoder Parish Council. <br /><br /><b>13.1 Housing development at Summercourt (PA22/08134)</b><br /><br />I hosted a meeting at the New Memorial Hall in Summercourt on 23rd February, at which residents of New Row met with representatives of the owners of the land opposite their properties, where a development of 20 new dwellings (ten affordable) was proposed. Cornwall Council had also raised concerns about the application as originally submitted and I confirm that a slightly reworked scheme (of 18 units) has been submitted by the applicants. <br /><br /><b>13.2 Solar Farm at Burthy Row / Chytane (PA23/01893)</b><br /> <br /> The application for a 50mw solar farm at Burthy / Chytane near Fraddon has just been submitted. It has been validated and residents can now formally comment on the proposal. <br /><br /><b>14.0 Highway matters<br /><br />14.1 Pedestrianised crossings in Summercourt </b><br /><br />Works to install three pedestrianised crossings on the crossroads are nearing completion. I had a number of concerns raised with me about the time that the works have taken and related matters, which I have passed onto Cornwall Council. <br /><br />The new lights are up and final works relate to the replacement of some granite kerbing, after which the new arrangement will be fully operational. <br /><br /><b>14.2 Zebra crossings </b><br /><br />Last year, zebra crossings were installed on Chapel Road and St Francis Road, Indian Queens, along with some associated calming measures. I have just been supplied with new speed data reports, which show that the installations are slowing speeds in the area – especially along Chapel Road. The figures are as follows: <br /><br /><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Chapel Road</span></b></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><br /></b>North-eastbound<br />Pre-scheme<br />o Mean speed – 26.3mph<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 77.5%<br />Post scheme<br />o Mean speed – 19.2mph (7.1mph reduction)<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 99.3% <br /><br />South-westbound<br />Pre scheme<br />o Mean speed – 29.5mph<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 51.6%<br />Post scheme<br />o Mean speed – 20.8mph (8.7mph reduction)<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 97.8% <br /><br /><b>St Francis Road </b><br /><br />North-westbound<br />Pre scheme<br />o Mean speed – 25.5mph<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 84.9%<br />Post scheme<br />o Mean speed – 23.1mph (2.4mph reduction)<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 96.0%</span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><br />South-eastbound<br />Pre scheme<br />o Mean speed – 25.5mph<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 79.6%<br />Post scheme<br />o Mean speed – 23.4mph (2.1mph reduction)<br />o % compliance with 30mph limit – 95.0%</span><br /><br />I hope that people will agree that this is a positive impact for the local community. <br /><b><br />14.3 Pocohontas Crescent / Princess Parc</b><br /><br />I have made numerous representations to Cornwall Council in recent years about the state of the road in Pocohontas Crescent and I am pleased that Cormac have recently been on site carrying out “works to repair the carriageway surface” in Pocohontas Crescent and Princess Parc. <br /><br /><b>15.0 Annual Assembly </b><br /><br /> It was also a pleasure to attend the 2023 Annual Assembly for St Enoder on 11th April, at which I presented an annual report summarising key elements of my work over the last 12 months. <br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 16.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last three months, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics, including housing, planning and fly-tipping.</div>Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-23291192728381967482023-01-30T10:03:00.002+00:002023-01-30T10:03:50.266+00:00MY LATEST REPORT ON MY COUNCIL DUTIES<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZFl8vyO7tJhaU6gRRkSj6f50870MhYd_Xq9SJ4F_7diy4zVjQlw5tDDg7mVYA-StUW9quaj1E0Nl8xnaGsaI8Y7ZIU1Jpbbeegakg7ioogWv_x0e5e_fDB6bpLyiN4GCKpev_Bm1acC6cRXWpdoS-y9RjUm5SR1Y5suH51ekRx7RwVd-GkteL-KeQ/s1239/St%20Dennis%20Trail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="818" data-original-width="1239" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZFl8vyO7tJhaU6gRRkSj6f50870MhYd_Xq9SJ4F_7diy4zVjQlw5tDDg7mVYA-StUW9quaj1E0Nl8xnaGsaI8Y7ZIU1Jpbbeegakg7ioogWv_x0e5e_fDB6bpLyiN4GCKpev_Bm1acC6cRXWpdoS-y9RjUm5SR1Y5suH51ekRx7RwVd-GkteL-KeQ/w400-h264/St%20Dennis%20Trail.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Time period: 2nd December 2022 - 20th January 2023 <br /><br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings of Cornwall Council during the last two months, I attended Full Council, Strategic Planning Committee, Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Constitution and Governance Committee, China Clay Area Community Network and a meeting of Chairs and Vice-Chairs of Network Panels to discuss proposed new Community Area Partnerships. Other physical meetings have included St Enoder Parish Council and St Dennis Parish Council (3). <br /><br />Further meetings through Teams video-conferencing included an informal session of Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee (about the devolution deal), preparatory session for Constitution and Governance Committee, Cornish National Minority Working Group (plus two associated preparatory sessions), monthly meeting for China Clay Area members (2), briefing in advance of Full Council, Group Leaders’ meeting (2) and a briefing on proposed Shared Prosperity Funding (Community Levelling Up). <br /><br />I also had further online meetings about a range of local issues. <br /><br /><b> 2.0 Cornwall Council <br /><br />2.1 “Devolution deal” </b><br /><br />The ten-week consultation into the so-called “devolution deal,” agreed between the UK Government and the Conservative administration in Truro, continues until 17th February. <br /><br />During the last few weeks, I have studied the deal in detail and I have been involved in various informal discussions about what had been proposed. I have been very critical of what has been agreed and, as I have written previously, the deal does not include the transfer of far-reaching powers from Westminster to Cornwall as has happened in Wales and Scotland. The deal largely comprises accommodations between central government and the unitary authority in Cornwall. <br /><br />To me, the inadequacy of the deal is shown by paragraph 24 of the document. This lists the functions that the “Government will devolve to Cornwall Council.” But only two are listed, namely (i) adult education and skills, and (ii) housing and planning. In terms of adult education, it would mean decisions about an existing budget would be taken in Cornwall. While for planning / housing functions, it would allow the proposed mayor to “designate a Mayoral Development Area” and “set up a Mayoral Development Corporation” to push forward certain “strategic” developments. This is certainly not about devolving control over the planning system in Cornwall and, if anything, takes authority away from elected councillors. <br /><br />It is true that the deal does include more money for Cornwall Council, principally through a promise of a “Cornwall Investment Fund,” which would be worth £12million per annum for 30 years. There is a further £30 million of more immediate funding. In overall terms, this funding is extremely limited in scope. The fund itself represents less than one percent of Cornwall Council’s annual budget, and I would question why such funding needs to be linked to a “devolution deal” and the imposition of a mayor. <br /><br />Also, throughout the document, there are repeated “commitments” from central government. A wordsearch of the document shows that there are 27 pledges to “work with” the unitary authority on various matters, eight pledges to “consider” specific proposals and 17 pledges to “explore” certain initiatives. I struggle to take such “aspirations” seriously in this time of ongoing austerity. There is no guarantee that such “commitments” will lead to anything. It is also the case that some of the funding and some of the proposals are subject to business cases (that have to be approved by central government). Some commitments are further undermined as the text says they will be taken forward “where appropriate” – further reducing any certainty of delivery. <br /><br />Anyone who wishes to take part in the consultation should go to:<br /><a href="https://letstalk.cornwall.gov.uk/">https://letstalk.cornwall.gov.uk/</a> <br /><br /><b>2.2 20mph limits </b><br /><br />As previously reported, Cornwall Council has a commitment to 20mph limits in villages and towns across Cornwall. At a recent meeting of the Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee, it was confirmed that the new speed limits would be introduced across the China Clay Area in 2024. Some key roads may stay as 30mph zones and local Cornwall Councillors have already requested a discussion about how such “exempted” roads might be identified. <br /><br /><b>2.3 China Clay Area CAP?</b><br /><br />In my role as Chairman of the China Clay Area Community Network Panel, I attended another meeting about the decision of the Council’s Conservative administration to change the present 19 Community Networks into 12 Community Area Partnerships (CAPs). At the present time, the option going forward to Cabinet in February includes a proposal for a China Clay Area CAP, though the possible addition of a single extra parish (Luxulyan) is being considered. These new CAPs, if agreed, will have an important role going forward, as it is proposed that the decisions behind the allocation of some Shared Prosperity Funding (Community Levelling Up) will be taken by the CAPs.<br /><br /><b>3.0 Solar farms </b><br /><br />The planning application for a solar farm at Tregonning Farm (PA22/01511) in Newlyn East Parish was presented to a meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee on 12th January. While the actual solar farm is not located in my division, the cabling for the scheme would be excavated through St Enoder Parish for a distance of more than 4.5 miles. This would be partly through fields before going along part of the old A30 through Fraddon and Indian Queens, and then onto Indian Queens Power Station in St Dennis Parish. The solar farm did secure planning permission at the meeting. I spoke and successfully sought changes to the planning conditions to ensure that the trenching was also covered by the Construction Management Plan for the scheme. <br /><br />When the application was submitted, it included provision for a community payment to Newlyn East Parish. This is normal practice for renewable energy planning applications. During the consideration of the application by planning officers, it was noted that the construction of the scheme would lead to some disturbance in St Enoder Parish. As a consequence, when the solar is built, St Enoer Parish will receive a one-off community payment of £25,000, which could be used for local projects. <br /><br />I also attended the pre-application consultation event on another solar farm, which took place on 7th December. This solar farm is proposed for land at Burthy Row / Chytane near Fraddon. In addition, I can confirm that the promoters of another solar farm at Trerice in St Dennis Parish will be looking to do further community consultation in the next couple of months. <br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 4.0 Multi-use trail </b><br /><br /> In previous reports, I have noted how I had submitted unsuccessful applications to the G7 Legacy Fund and a Natural England “seed corn” fund to support the work to scope out, design and cost what would need to be done to turn the section of the defunct railway line (see above image) between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve into a multi-use trail. <br /><br />2023 certainly started with some good news for me. I am very pleased to be able to report that Natural England had an under-spend and it has just been confirmed that funding has been found for Cornwall Council to carry out these scoping works. The Council has commissioned Sustrans to do the study, which needs to be completed within the next ten weeks. <br /><br />I will report the findings as soon as I have them. <br /><br /><b>5.0 Footpath 20 </b><br /><br />Footpath 20 to the north of St Dennis Church leads over a stile which is very steep and difficult for many people to negotiate. In recent years, walkers have been going through a gap in the stone wall boundary, but this was recently repaired. Cornwall Council has been in discussions with the landowner and it has been agreed that a gate is to be inserted into the boundary to ensure that people can continue to take walks in this area. Works are anticipated to progress in the very near-future. <br /><b><br />6.0 Highway schemes </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council recently consulted on two small highway schemes in St Dennis Parish, which have been brought forward through the Community Network Panel’s highway scheme, following representations from local residents. These were an additional pinch-point at the southern end of Hendra Road (to slow traffic entering and leaving the village) and a small degree of parking restrictions near the kebab shop (where some households have had difficulty in gaining access to their homes). I will soon be updated on feedback to what has been proposed in the near furture. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES<br /><br />7.0 Planning application for six extra gypsy / traveller pitches at Little Meadows, Toldish (PA20/03553)</b><br /> <br /> In August 2020, Cornwall Council refused planning permission for six additional gypsy / traveller pitches at Little Meadows, Toldish, because of the adverse impact on the local countryside. The applicant appealed the decision to the Bristol-based Planning Inspectorate and a hearing was held in the council offices in Bodmin on 2nd November. At this hearing, I presented evidence on a range of matters on behalf of St Enoder Parish Council and others. <br /><br />The decision was published on 12th December, when planning permission for the development was confirmed. <br /><br />Central to the consideration of such applications is the target in the Cornwall Local Plan of 318 gypsy / traveller pitches, which need to be provided in Cornwall between 2015 and 2030. This target was founded on an accommodation assessment, which identified need figures in four different areas across Cornwall (North Cornwall – no target; Mid Cornwall – 113; South East Cornwall – 14; West Cornwall – 190). <br /><br />In terms of what has been consented, I can confirm that since 1st November 2015, a total of 143 gypsy / traveller pitches have been given planning permission in Cornwall.<br /><br />In relation, the targets in the accommodation assessment, I can report the following: <br /><br />· North Cornwall – 2 pitches consented in an area without a regional target (N/A)<br />· Mid Cornwall – 121 pitches towards 113 (107% of 2030 target)<br />· South East Cornwall – 5 pitches towards 14 (36% of 2030 target)<br />· West Cornwall – 15 pitches towards 190 (8% of 2030 target) <br /><br />I can further report that 107 pitches were located within the China Clay Area / Luxulyan / St Blazey. This equates to 88% of traveller pitches approved in Mid Cornwall and 75% of traveller pitches approved across the whole of Cornwall during the last seven years.<br /><br /><b>8.0 CIL application </b><br /><br />As previously reported, the Parish Clerk and I submitted an application to Cornwall Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding towards the extension of the Youth Club building in the Indian Queens Recreation Ground. I can confirm that planning permission for the extension has been secured and we are expecting to hear about the funding application within days. <br /><br /><b>9.0 Highway matters<br /><br />9.1 Pedestrianised crossings in Summercourt </b><br /><br />In my last report prior to Christmas, I gave an update on the timetable for the installation of the pedestrianised crossings on the three arms of the crossroads at Summercourt. I was told that the works would be carried out during March-May 2023, but I have recently received an update that this has been moved forward to February-March 2023. <br /><br /><b>9.2 Penhale double yellow lines </b><br /><br />Many people will have seen that the double yellow lines near Penhale Cottages, adjacent to Kingsley Village, have finally been completed. The necessary legal order has also been lodged and everyone needs to be aware that, as of 4th January, the parking restrictions became enforceable. <br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 10.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last month, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics. Over the last few weeks, I have reported a number of issues to the unitary authority including fly-tipping, and problems with streetlights and pot-holes.<br /><br /> Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-80315475352127661872022-12-05T09:51:00.006+00:002022-12-05T09:51:37.962+00:00MY LATEST REPORT ON MY COUNCIL DUTIES<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKs2mY8KophvTBqRn3GwISXctmA6IJOUSpAiVMiBmGvL8Sh-yAfNYC3m9fiSN-YqjL0gz12NgoeDosuuCHsUT9eA-nwvjKPnkD7v-T_8JFtSgl6HqJ7VnHvthng0VjvsYrroc-kI7DbtpqVVN000oLWy2Bb6DF18COGvNzSAjoKFChp2QyZ9ewzjQQ/s1840/New%20County%20Hall.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1840" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKs2mY8KophvTBqRn3GwISXctmA6IJOUSpAiVMiBmGvL8Sh-yAfNYC3m9fiSN-YqjL0gz12NgoeDosuuCHsUT9eA-nwvjKPnkD7v-T_8JFtSgl6HqJ7VnHvthng0VjvsYrroc-kI7DbtpqVVN000oLWy2Bb6DF18COGvNzSAjoKFChp2QyZ9ewzjQQ/w400-h213/New%20County%20Hall.JPG" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Time period: 25th September – 2nd December 2022 <br /><br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings of Cornwall Council during the last two months, I attended Full Council, Central Sub-Area Planning Committee, Constitution and Governance Committee (dealing with the final phase of the review of parish council boundaries), Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee plus the councillor working group on the consultation linked to Cornwall Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (in advance of the next Customers and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee), China Clay Area Community Network, and a series of meetings (as a member of the Chief Officers Employment Panel) linked to the appointment of a new Monitoring Officer. <br /><br />Other physical meetings included St Enoder Parish Council (five), St Dennis Parish Council, St Dennis Parish Neighbourhood Plan meeting, St Dennis and Nanpean Community Trust, briefing with Cornish Lithium, and meetings about a housing development and the Thomas Playing Field, both in Summercourt, plus a visit to St Dennis Youth Club. <br /><br />In addition, it was great to attend the celebration for the 20th anniversary of the Cornish language being recognised as a minority language. <br /><br />I have also attended a range of meetings via TEAMS video-conferencing. These included Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Cornish National Minority Working Group (and associated briefing), monthly meeting for China Clay Area members and an associated meeting about a Strategy for the China Clay Area with senior officers, catch-up about road safety matters, council briefing in advance of the latest Full Council meeting, two meetings about the 2021 census with the Office of National Statistics, briefings about a proposed “devolution deal” (three), proposed investment zones, the cost of living crisis and ash die-back. <br /><br />I also had further online meetings about a range of local issues. <br /><br /><b> 2.0 Cornwall Council <br /><br />2.1 “Devolution deal”</b><br /><br />On Friday 2nd December, a Government Minister (Dehenna Davison) and the leader of Cornwall Council (Linda Taylor) signed a “devolution deal” for Cornwall. The Conservatives will soon be launching a ten-week consultation on the document, which will start on Friday 9th December. <br /><br />From my perspective, the promise of additional funding for Cornwall in the “deal” is to be welcomed, but the “deal” itself is not devolution at all. And as someone who has campaigned for meaningful devolution for his entire adult life, I am desperately disappointed that this is the best that governing politicians in Westminster and Truro can come up with. It does not include far-reaching powers being transferred from Westminster to Cornwall as happened in Wales and Scotland, which have their own parliaments. The “deal” is simply a range of accommodations between central government and the unitary authority. <br /><br />I will be making further comment on the “deal” in the near-future but, in the meantime, the devolution deal can be viewed at:<br /><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cornwall-devolution-deal-kevambos-digresennans-kernow">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cornwall-devolution-deal-kevambos-digresennans-kernow</a> <br /><br /><b>2.2 Fire Control Centre at Tolvaddon </b><br /><br />As reported in September the Conservative administration is planning to close the Fire Control Centre and centralise this important service to a “partnership” based outside of Cornwall. I oppose this proposal, but was away on holiday when the issue was discussed by the Neighbourhoods Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 6th October. I did however produce a statement which was read out by one of my colleagues in the Mebyon Kernow / Green Group. It was as follows: <br /><br /><span style="color: #2b00fe;">I am sorry that I cannot make today’s meeting, but I have asked my colleagues to pass on my views. <br /><br />The leadership of Cornwall Council is presently talking about a “devolution deal,” that would bring more powers to Cornwall. <br /><br />In this context, it would be ridiculous to close the Fire Control Centre. We should not be giving up “control” of the Control Centre, and allowing it to be lost to centralisation. We should not be giving up control of any of our public services – as once lost, we may never get them back again. <br /><br />Any loss of the Fire Control Centre would also weaken the very basis of Cornwall’s Fire Service, and leave it open to be merged with upcountry brigades. We must do everything to protect all aspects of our Fire Service.<br /><br />As the leader of the MK / Green Group, I would appeal to all members of this Scrutiny Committee to reject any proposal to take away Cornwall’s Fire Control Centre. Please show solidarity with the staff at Tolvaddon and the wider Fire Service. <br /></span><br />Councillors were not overly supportive of the proposal, and I hope that the further scrutiny work, that they agreed to do, will rule out the loss of the Centre. <br /><br /><b>2.3 2021 census </b><br /><br />For many years, I have been involved with the campaign to secure a Cornish nationality tick-box on the 2021 census. I was very disappointed when the Office of National Statistics (ONS) and the UK Government refused to allow such a tick-box, especially after they recognised the Cornish as a “national minority” in 2014 and promised to treat the Cornish in the same manner as the “UK’s other Celtic people, the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish.” <br /><br />Between 29th November and 2nd December, it was confirmed that 108,860 people (across Cornwall, England and Wales) wrote-in Cornish on the census – a 30% increase on the 83,499 who did so in 2011. In Cornwall, 17% of residents (96,380) recorded their nationality as Cornish. <br /><br />I am heartened that so many people made the conscious decision to write-in Cornish. This is a powerful statement of the strength of our national identity, and it strengthens my resolve to press the ONS to include a Cornish tick-box in the next census and, more immediately, to challenge all Government departments and agencies to include Cornish as an identity option on official forms. <br /><br /><b>2.4 Loss of affordable homes </b><br /><br />Ocean Housing recently took the decision to sell-off one of their rental properties at Manson Place, St Dennis. This is the third property in my division that this registered provider has placed on the market this year. The others were at Hall Road, St Dennis, and Beaconside, Summercourt. This follows another sale in Indian Queens (Barnfield Terrace) in 2018. <br /><br />Their reasoning is that the properties are in poor condition and it would be expensive to make them meet modern environmental standards, while income from the sales would be used to improve other existing properties. I do not agree with the sales and I have spoken to Ocean about my fears that a large number of the older “council houses” will be lost to the local rental market. I have asked them for some form of moratorium on future sales. <br /><b><br />2.5 20mph limits </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council has a commitment to 20mph limits in villages and towns across Cornwall. This year, a pilot was carried out in two Community Networks (Camelford and Camborne / Redruth), and the feedback was positive. I recently attended an informal briefing at a meeting of the Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee about the wider roll-out of the scheme. Once agreed by Cabinet in early 2023, the work programme for the various Network Areas will be confirmed. <br /><br /><b>3.0 China Clay Area <br /><br />3.1 China Clay Area Community Network</b><br /><br />As noted previously, in my role as Chairman of the China Clay Area Community Network Panel, I have attended a range of meetings about the future of the Networks. The Council’s Conservative administration wishes to reduce the number of Networks and, at a recent meeting at Indian Queens Victory Hall, councillors were tasked to come up with suggested boundaries for a total of 12 Community Area Partnerships (CAPs). <br /><br />At the present time, the geographical options include a China Clay Area CAP. The wider proposal was recently discussed by the Neighbourhoods Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and will soon be considered by Cabinet and the Constitution and Governance Committee.<div><br /><b>3.2 Clay Area Strategy</b><br /><br />On 1st November, a meeting was held between a number of senior officers from Cornwall Council and councillors from the China Clay Area to discuss the “Towards a Strategy” document for Clay Country. Some progress was made about greater support for economic development in our area. I will report more, when the nature and extent of the support is confirmed. <br /><br /><b>3.3 Parliamentary boundary review </b><br /><br />The review into the boundaries of the UK’s 650 parliamentary constituencies commenced in 2021 and came up with a proposal that would split Clay Country between a revised St Austell and Newquay Constituency and a revised South East Cornwall. I am pleased that the plans have been modified and Clay Country will now be kept together in a new St Austell and Newquay seat. <br /><br /><b>4.0 Solar farms <br /><br />4.1 Renewable energy</b><br /><br />There are now four proposals for solar farms in and around the St Dennis & St Enoder division (totalling over 130MW of installed capacity). <br /><br />I thought it would be good to understand the context for these applications within the need for local energy generation in Cornwall. <br /><br />Cornwall Council’s Climate Emergency Development Plan document sets out a target of 100% renewable electricity supply by 2030 [Policy RE1]. Figures from the unitary authority shows that Cornwall’s present “installed capacity” for electricity is 783.59 MW, which equates to 40.49% of what is needed in Cornwall. I have therefore calculated that the total amount of energy needed in Cornwall at the moment is 1,940 MW (rounded up). <br /><br />St Dennis & St Enoder Division (4,878 hectares) is 1.37% of the land mass of Cornwall (356,300 hectares). Presumably, little or no renewable energy will be provided in areas of AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) and I would note that the St Dennis & St Enoder Division is 1.87% of “Cornwall minus AONB” (260,500 hectares). <br /><br />So, it could be argued that if renewable energy was delivered equally across Cornwall, the local share of the target could be deemed to be 1.37% - 1.87% of 1,940 MW, namely 26.6 - 36.3MW. <br /><br />I have looked at what installations already exist in the parishes of St Dennis and St Enoder, and I have already identified 37.5MW of installed capacity for renewable energy. <br /><br />Trefullock Moor Solar Farm (PA10/06679) - 5MW <br />Ennis Barton wind turbine (PA10/08030) - 0.5MW<br />Glebe Solar Farm (PA12/05890) - 1MW<br />Gaverigan wind turbine (PA12/09923) - 0.5MW<br />Melbur wind turbine (PA12/03846) - 0.5MW<br />Burthy Solar Farm (PA13/05983 / PA18/01710) - 13MW<br />Goonabarn wind turbines (PA13/00848 / PA17/00957) - 1MW<br />Incinerator - 16MW <br /><br />Please note that the above figure does not include energy from small-scale installations (eg. solar panels on domestic and commercial properties). <br /><br />In addition, I have been supplied with information about the biogas plant at Fraddon (NR/08/00389/WSENV / PA13/09571 / etc). <br /><br />The information I have is that the facility produces biogas (not electricity), therefore a MW capacity figure cannot be given for electricity. But has the capacity to produce 1,000 cubic meters of biogas per hour and 1,000 cubic metres of gas per hour would equate to 11.36MW per hour capacity of heat. This, in theory, is enough to produce enough gas for approximately 2,000 households. <br /><b><br />4.2 Solar farm applications </b><br /><br />The planning application for a solar farm at Tregonning Farm (PA22/01511) in Newlyn East Parish will be going to a meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee on 15th December. I understand it will be recommended for approval. While the solar farm is not in my division, the cabling for the scheme will be excavated through St Enoder Parish, including along the old A30 through Fraddon and Indian Queens. <br /><br />There will be a pre-application consultation event on another solar farm, which is proposed for land at Burthy Row / Chytane near Fraddon, on 7th December. It will be held at Fraddon Village Hall, between 2.00 and 7.00. There is also a website associated with the project. This can be found at <a href="https://fraddonsolarfarm.co.uk/">https://fraddonsolarfarm.co.uk</a> and it will have a virtual consultation, which is going live at 2.00 on 7th December. <br /><br />Local residents may also remember that a company called Statkraft did consultations on two potential solar farms in the Spring of 2021. These were located on Tresithney Farm between St Columb Road and Whitecross (St Enoder Parish) and at Trerice (St Dennis Parish). There have been no updates for the last twelve months, so I recently contacted the company. I had a conversation with a representative of the company and received the below follow-up email message. <br /><br /><span style="color: #2b00fe;">“The solar team at Statkraft has been recruiting for new team members over the last year after some long standing Solar Century staff left unexpectedly. This has meant the team has been significantly under-resourced at a time when other projects were in later stages of development and not been able to engage at the level that Statkraft expects on our projects in Cornwall. I apologise for this and the concern that it has caused the local community.<br /> <br /> “Statkraft aims to bring a ‘good neighbour’ ethos to all of its projects. I would like to assure you that our communication will be a lot better going forward and I trust that we can have a good working relationship with yourself and the community. In this, I will be supported by internal communications colleagues as well as our communications consultants but as I say I am personally open to discuss the project at any time.<br /> <br /> “With the Trerice site, we will be reopening consultation in the New Year with the community and with some new surveys, etc, and will be hoping to make a planning submission around April/May next year. I will be in frequent communication regarding this going forward.<br /> <br /> “With regards to the White Cross site, this is in a less favourable position in terms of planning and we are aware of the potential risks and effects it could cause. As such we are doing some more surveys on this at the moment and seeing how best it could be shaped/reduced to minimise any effects. There is a chance we will not move forward with this project if the risks are still too great.” </span><br /><br />I will publicise further news as and when I get it.<br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 5.0 Multi-use trail </b><br /><br /> In previous reports, I noted how I had submitted an unsuccessful application to a Natural England “seed corn” fund to support the work to scope out, design and cost what needs to be done to turn the section of defunct railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve into a multi-use trail. <br /><br />I have been contacted because Natural England have an under-spend and it looks like these works can now be funded after all. I am presently liaising with Cornwall Council, the G7 legacy project and Natural England to making this happen. <br /><br /><b>6.0 Cornish Lithium <br /><br /> 6.1 An investment zone?</b><br /> <br /> On 19th October, Cornwall Council confirmed that it had submitted a bid for 17 distinct areas to be covered by investment zones. In Clay Country, three sites have been identified, namely Cornish Lithium at Trelavour, British Lithium near Roche, and the so-called garden village (eco-town) at Penwithick. <br /><br />I would add that the decision to bid for an “investment” zone was made by council officers and senior members of the administration. I was not involved and I was not told about the bid until after it had been submitted. <br /><br />In terms of Cornish Lithium, the proposed area is small and covers the Trelavour Kilns area, where it is proposed that processing works would take place. By comparison, the site at Roche covers a massive area covering the whole of Hensbarrow and Goonbarrow, which has much wider implications. <br /><br />I understood that businesses on the specified sites, if they had been successful, would benefit from tax incentives, for example, relief on business rates and national insurance, plus tax mechanisms to support capital investment. There have been comments that there will be some de-regulation in terms of planning and environmental controls in “investment zones.” <br /><br />However, following the resignation of Liz Truss as Prime Minister, it was confirmed in the subsequent Autumn Statement that all local authority bids for zoning would not be taken forward. It is understood that the UK Government will keep the policy but, in the future, will re-engineer it to focus on a smaller number of locations. <br /><br /><b>6.2 PA22/08714</b><br /> <br /> Cornish Lithium and Imerys have submitted a proposal to install two temporary mobile units for use as office, welfare and amenity accommodation for staff and equipment at the Trelavour Kilns complex. This was deemed “permitted development” and therefore did not need a formal planning application as such. <br /><br /><b>6.3 Meeting</b><br /> <br /> On 8th November, I was pleased to have a meeting with a number of employees of Cornish Lithium at the Trelavour site, in order to discuss their project and how they will keep local people informed. <br /><br /><b>7.0 Planning matters <br /><br /></b></div><div><b>7.1 Proposed dwelling off Hendra Road (PA22/02138) </b><br /><br />I referred the above planning application to a meeting of the Central Sub-Area Planning Committee, which took place on 24th October. Kieran Sinnott spoke on behalf of the Parish Council and raised concerns about the access and junction with Hendra Road. <br /><br />I meanwhile raised concerns about the (i) change in character of the historic lane and how the creation of a ‘new’ access would damage the edge of the existing lane, which may or may not be outside of the applicant’s ownership, the (ii) likely discordant impact of a new dwelling in a location, which is significantly below the level of the nearby parking area for Hendra Heights, and the (iii) lack of consideration given to issues such as screening for neighbouring properties. <br /><br />I made as strong an argument as I could against the development, but the Committee granted outline planning permission for a dwelling. The detail will need to be the basis of a further reserved matters application. <br /><br />The planning meeting was recorded and can be viewed at:<br /><a href="https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/the-council-and-democracy/councillors-and-meetings/webcasts/archived-webcasts/">https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/the-council-and-democracy/councillors-and-meetings/webcasts/archived-webcasts/</a> <br /><br /><b>7.2 Proposal for solar farm at Trerice</b><br /><br />See section 4.2 for update <br /><br /><b>7.3 St Dennis Neighbourhood Plan </b><br /><br />I also attended a meeting of the Parish Council’s working group on the Neighbourhood Plan, and I am pleased that we will soon be reporting back on some of the findings of the questionnaire that was distributed earlier this year. <br /><br /><b>8.0 Highway schemes </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council will soon be consulting on two small highway schemes in St Dennis Parish, which have been brought forward through the Community Network Panel’s highway scheme. These are an additional pinch-point at the southern end of Hendra Road (to slow traffic entering and leaving the village) and a small degree of parking restrictions near the kebab shop (where some households have had difficulty in gaining access to their homes). <br /><br /><b>9.0 Warm hub </b><br /><br />As Chairman of the Board at ClayTAWC, I am pleased that we have secured some funding for the Centre to be a “warm hub” this winter. Linked to this, on the first Wednesday of every month (between 1.00 and 3.00) there will be drop-in session where local residents can get advice from a range of bodies about benefits, education and training, energy advice, social prescribing and more. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />10.0 Planning <br /><br />10.1 Gnomeworld (PA22/07277) <br /></b><br />A planning application has also been submitted for the stationing of 69 residential park home dwellings at the Gnomeworld complex, in the place of most of the holiday caravans. <br /><br /><b>10.2 Housing development in Summercourt (PA22/08134) </b><br /><br />A number of local residents have raised objections to the affordable housing led development of 20 dwellings in Summercourt, opposite New Row. Cornwall Council has also raised queries about aspects of the proposed scheme. I have met with objectors on a couple of occasions. I also recently chaired a meeting between a representative of the landowners and the objectors to discuss how elements of the development might be redesigned to address their concerns. <br /><br />It is anticipated that a revised scheme for further consultation will be completed in the next few weeks. <br /><br /><b>10.3 Solar farm proposals in St Enoder Parish </b><br /><br />See section 4.2 for updates. <br /><br /><b>10.4 Six extra gypsy / traveller pitches at Little Meadows, Toldish (PA20/03553)</b><br /> <br /> Cornwall Council refused planning permission for six additional gypsy / traveller pitches at Little Meadows, Toldish, because of the adverse impact on the local countryside. The applicant appealed the decision to the Bristol-based Planning Inspectorate and a hearing was held in the council offices in Bodmin on 2nd November. At this hearing, I presented evidence on a range of matters on behalf of St Enoder Parish Council and others. The decision is expected in a matter of weeks. <br /><br /><b>10.5 St Columb Road (PA22/07995) </b><br /><br />The application for four two-bedroom flats at St Columb Road, by the road going to the rear of the Co-op has been refused because of an under-provision of car parking spaces. <br /><br /><b> 11.0 Parish Council <br /><br />11.1 CIL application </b><br /><br />I have worked with the Parish Clerk to submit an application to Cornwall Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding towards the extension of the Youth Club building in the Indian Queens Recreation Ground. I can confirm that the funding application has been completed and sent in for assessment. <br /><br /><b>11.2 Strongman’s Field </b><br /><br />I have also been working with the Parish Clerk to scope the necessary landscaping and other works to complete the works on land between Indian Queens Primary School and the Harvenna Heights estate. <br /><b><br />11.3 Football and Indian Queens Recreation Ground </b><br /><br />In addition, I have been involved in discussions with the adult and youth football teams about the use of the Recreation Ground for matches and training. <br /><br /><b>11.4 Meeting with HAGs <br /></b><br />On 16th November, there was an important meeting with HAGs (who installed the play area in the Thomas Playing Field) about the future maintenance of the equipment. Also present were the Parish Clerk and Cllr Mark Kessell.<br /><br /><b>12.0 Highway matters <br /><br />12.1 Pedestrianised crossings in Summercourt </b><br /><br />The timetable for the installation of the pedestrianised crossings on three arms of the crossroads at Summercourt has just been confirmed. The works will be carried out during March-May 2023. <br /><br /><b>12.2 Study into road through Fraddon and St Columb Road / Improvements at Sea View Terrace </b><br /><br />I had a meeting with a senior highway officer on 3rd November about two ongoing assessments of local highway issues. I can confirm that a draft of a road safety audit from Penhale to the Halloon roundabout has been completed and I fed back some of my initial thoughts. A further follow-up meeting will be held quite soon. <br /><br />In terms of proposed road safety improvements at Sea View Terrace, on the road between Fraddon and St Stephen, Cornwall Council is proposing two vehicle-activated signs warning people to slow down as they approach the terrace of houses in the locality, along with an improved parking area for residents. I hope to have finalised plans in the near-future. <br /><br /><b>13.0 Remembrance Sunday </b><br /><br />I was pleased to attend the annual Remembrance Sunday event at St Enoder Churchtown on 12th November and to read out the names of the fallen. I was also pleased to supply information about three servicemen (Wilfred Howard Pearce, Wallace Ambrose Truscott and Trevor Carus Wilson) who were lost in the First World War and whose lives were featured in the church service. <br /> <br /> The service at St Dennis was held at the same time as the St Enoder event and I was therefore unable to attend. I remain grateful to the Chairman of St Dennis Parish Council, Julia Clarke, who ensured that a wreath was laid on my behalf at the St Dennis commemoration. <br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 14.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last month, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics. Over the last few weeks, I have reported numerous episodes of fly-tipping.</div>Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-70931412533696408382022-10-18T21:42:00.000+01:002022-10-18T21:42:18.166+01:00MY LATEST REPORT ON MY COUNCIL DUTIESTime period: 1st August – 25th September 2022<br /> <br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings of Cornwall Council during the last two months, I attended a Full Council meeting, Constitution and Governance Committee, Chief Officers Employment Panel and three meetings of Network Chairs about the review of Community Network Panels and the Prosperity Fund. Councillors from the China Clay Area also met the Corporate Director for Neighbourhoods at the Wheal Martyn Museum to discuss local issues. <br /><br />In addition, I attended a Cost of Living summit at Tremough, one meeting of the St Dennis and Nanpean Community Fund, plus three meetings of St Enoder Parish Council and two meetings of St Dennis Parish Council. <br /><br />I have also attended a number of meetings via TEAMS video-conferencing, including three Group Leaders meeting (which included discussions about the County Deal), a monthly meeting of councillors from the China Clay Area and an all member briefing about the Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy which I have been involved with.<br /><br />I also had further online meetings about a range of local issues. <br /><br /><b> 2.0 Cornwall Council <br /><br />2.1 Financial problems at the unitary authority </b><br /><br />At the most recent Full Council meeting on 21st September, the Deputy Leader of Cornwall Council stated that the authority is “in a hole” and facing a deficit of £62million in 2023/2024. The present administration has stated that it may have to prioritise statutory services and stop providing certain services which it does not have a legal obligation to provide. It is all very worrying, especially as the promises of fair funding for local government have not materialised. <br /><br /><b>2.2 Fire Control Centre at Tolvaddon </b><br /><br />The Conservative administration is also planning to close the Fire Control Centre and centralise this important service to a “partnership” based outside of Cornwall. I reject any assertion that this important control service could be better provided by people based to the east of the Tamar, who will have little knowledge about Cornwall. I have also made it clear that I do not support the closure of the Control Centre, which I intend to oppose. <br /><br />At the time of writing this report, I am pleased to see that more than 6,000 people have signed a petition opposing the loss of the service. <br /><br /><b>2.3 Cornwall Aviation Heritage Centre </b><br /><br />I am also disappointed that the Conservative administration in Truro is refusing to allow the Cornwall Aviation Heritage Centre to remain on Newquay Airport. In the spirit of openness, I will add that the Centre includes the extensive model collection of my late uncle Barry Cole. I recently visited the Museum and met with the director of the Centre. I also challenged the approach of the Council at the Full Council meeting on 21st September. <br /><br />At the time of writing this report, I am also pleased that more than 20,000 people have signed a petition in support of the Centre. <br /><br /><b>2.4 China Clay Area Community Network</b><br /> <br />As noted above, in my role as Chairman of the China Clay Area Community Network Panel, I attended three meetings of Chairs and vice-chairs of the Community Network Panels. Two of the meetings were focused on the plan from the Council’s Conservative administration to reduce the number of Networks. In the second of the two meetings, we were tasked to come up with suggested boundaries for a total of 12 Networks, and I have been doing my best to argue for the continuation of a China Clay Area Community Network.<br /><br /><b>3.0 Cost of Living summit </b><br /><br />I was among the councillors to attend the summit on date at Tremough, which brought together representatives from Cornwall Council and a range of charities and third sector organisations. It would be an understatement to describe the present circumstances as worrying and I used the opportunity to network with others at the event. In particular, I was checking what additional support we might be able to generate for projects in the China Clay Area. <br /><br /><b> 4.0 Community Chest </b><br /><br />As a Cornwall Councillor, I am allocated £3,000 per annum which I can grant to local community organisations. I can confirm that I have so far supported Indian Queens and district food larder, St Dennis Carnival and Indian Queens Youth Football. Half of the money has yet to be allocated, so please get in contact if you would like to discuss the possibility of a grant for your organisation. <br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 5.0 Planning matters<br /> <br /> 5.1 Housing development at Hendra Prazey (PA20/11311)</b><br /> <br /> In terms of the proposed housing site at Hendra Prazey, I requested a site visit at Hendra Prazey with the planning / highways officers at the unitary authority who are dealing with the application. This was held in mid-August. The highways officer has withdrawn his objection following the submission of further information by the applicant’s consultants. It is fair to say that the officer did not think that the highway set-up was particularly good, but he seemed to think that it might meet a very low threshold that could be acceptable in the overall planning process. <br /><br />At the meeting I queried whether the officers dealing with the biodiversity and drainage aspects of the application had looked in detail at the scheme. It has since transpired that the Council’s ecologist had raised concerns with the proposal. Concerns include that drainage works for the site could unacceptably impact on the adjacent Site of Special Scientific Interest, that some of the wildlife surveys are out-of-date and the calculation on biodiversity net gain are questionable.<br /><br />There will therefore a further delay before Cornwall Council makes a decision on this application. <br /><br /><b>5.2 Proposed dwelling off Hendra Road (PA22/02138) </b><br /><br />The planning officer dealing with the above application has contacted me to say that she wishes to approve the development. As St Dennis Parish Council has objected to the scheme, I have informed her that the application will need to be referred to a meeting of the Central Sub-Area Planning Committee. <br /><br /><b>5.3 Indian Queens Power Station (PA22/05961) </b><br /><br />In terms of the application for the installation and operation of a 47.5 megawatt battery energy storage system on land immediately to the west of Indian Queens Power Station, there have been no objections from local residents. St Dennis Parish Council has however raised concerns about the lack of supporting information linked to the application. <br /><br /><b> 6.0 Proposed multi-use trail from St Dennis to the Goss Moor</b><br /> <br /> In previous reports, I have written about how I had submitted an application (on behalf of Cornwall Council and St Dennis Parish Council) to the G7 Nature Recovery Project to investigate the possibility of turning the section of defunct railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve into a multi-use trail. It was unsuccessful, but I was very pleased to be approached by Natural England to discuss a potential application to a “seed corn” fund to support the initial phase of the project. Unfortunately, this application was also unsuccessful, but I have been told it is on a “reserve list” should there be an underspend during this financial year. <br /><br />I did take the opportunity to take two senior officers from Cornwall Council to the site, to seek their support for the project. <br /><br /><b>7.0 Highway issues </b><br /><br />I have been continuing to follow up on a range of highway matters with Cornwall Council / Cormac. Sadly, progress is slow, for example, on the improvement of the conditions of double yellow lines and the poor state of the road surfacing in certain areas. <br /><br /> I have reported concerns that the two sets of barriers on the path that leads from Manson Place to Trelavour Road, because it prevents people with motorised buggies using the path. The inner barrier is on land owned by Ocean Housing and the Parish Clerk is in contact with them. The outer barrier is on land owned by Cornwall Council and they have agreed to remove it, but I have been told that the works will be timetabled for February 2023. I have challenged the delay and asked for the works to be brought forward. <br /><br /><b>8.0 Ditch to rear of Hall Road </b><br /><br /> For more than 15 months I have been following up on concerns about the condition of a ditch (vegetation and silting) that runs down the eastern side of Hall Road. It takes water from the downs and it has been historically maintained by Restormel Borough Council and subsequently the unitary authority. <br /><br />It was my understanding that the works were going to be done this year, but the unitary authority and the landowner (Tregothnan Estate) are in discussions about what had historically been agreed. It seems that neither the Council or the estate can find the relevant paperwork, and there have been other discussions, for example, with Imerys. I am continuing to push for the works to be carried out and I understand that Cormac are costing the necessary works.<br /><br /><b>9.0 Footpath to north of church </b><br /><br />I have been following up on the concerns about the footpath that extend northwards from the Church. Councillors will recall that the definitive map shows the path leading over a difficult stile over a wall though, for many years, people have walked through a gap in the wall, which was recently blocked up. A footpaths officer visited the area in August and is the process of approaching the landowner and occupier to see if a compromise can be reached and a gate inserted into the wall, where the breach had previously been located. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES<br /><br />10.0 Parish Council projects <br /></b><br />I am continuing to work closely with the Clerk of St Enoder Parish Council, on a range of issues. These include the following: <br /><br /><b> 10.1 Field between Indian Queens Primary School and Harvenna Heights <br /></b><br /> I am pleased that the landscaping works have almost been completed along the new footway between Indian Queens Primary School and Harvenna Heights. The new walling at the south end of the field has been vandalised and needs to be rebuilt, and grass seed will soon be sown. It is good that we can now move onto placing some picnic benches and rubbish bins into the area, along with some tree planting. As previously stated, I personally favour the provision of a cluster of apple trees. <br /><br />The Parish Council has also agreed to place some signs in the field, which will be known as Strongman’s Field. This was the name of the enclosure recorded on the 1840 Tithe Map, and obviously the name includes the surname of an individual or family associated with the land. <br /><br /><b>10.2 The Kelliers / G7 Nature Recovery Project </b><br /><br /> The Clerk and I also met with representatives of the G7 Nature Recovery Project to consider what support they might be able to give the Parish Council in our plans to enhance the nature conservation and public access elements of the Kelliers near Indian Queens. <br /><br /><b>10.3 CWGC plaques </b><br /><br />Given my involvement with remembering the history of the fallen servicemen of our area, I am pleased that, following the request of the Parish Council, the Commonwealth War Grave Commission has erected plaques at the old St Enoder and Indian Queens cemeteries. <br /><br /><b>11.0 Planning</b><br /><br />As always, there continues to be a range of planning applications in St Enoder Parish. Shown below are updates on a number of applications. <br /><br /><b> 11.1 Leisure building at Carvynick (PA22/04257)</b><br /> <br /> As previously reported, on 3rd June 2019, the owners of Carvynick near Summercourt secured an outline planning permission for 38 residential dwellings at the site, plus a leisure / office building (PA18/04360). The specific details (reserved matters) for the 38 dwellings have been agreed over the couple of years and the applicants have secured planning permission for a further 21 dwellings – making a total of 59. <br /><br /> The reserved matters application for the leisure / office building was submitted in May. Letters of support (linked to previous applications) submitted by the applicant stated that the leisure building would “provide a community hub,” a “state-of-the-art gymnasium” and a “swimming pool for locals to not only exercise but also to learn how to swim.” The proposed building is much smaller than that on the original plan, and included a badminton court and a small gym, that is of a size little more than two car parking spaces. There was no swimming pool as promised. <br /><br />St Enoder Parish unanimously objected to the application, and the applicant then changed the plans and added a swimming pool in the place of badminton court. The building remains less significant than promised, but the application has been consented. <br /><b><br />11.2 Housing development in Summercourt </b><br /><br />An application for an affordable housing led development in Summercourt, opposite New Row, has just been submitted. It is for 20 housing units, of which half will be affordable. There has been a previous consent on this site and a more recent pre-application discussion and many people who live opposite the site raised concerns. <br /><br />The application is still going through the registration process and will likely be discussed by the Parish Council at a meeting in October. <br /><br /><b>12.0 Highway matters </b><br /><br />I have been dealing with a large number of highway issues. A few are listed below: <br /><br /><b>12.1 Zebra crossing in St Francis Road, Indian Queens <br /></b><br />Last year, Cornwall Council installed the two zebra crossings in Indian Queens – after many years of lobbying. Unfortunately, the installation by the Victory Hall was initially too high and the raised crossing was reduced in height. In mid-August, Cormac revisited the site to remodel it again, so that it met their specifications. It has all been very frustrating and the Parish Council has complained to Cornwall Council about the failings. <br /><br /><b>12.2 Double yellow lines at Penhale </b><br /><br />The double yellow lines at Penhale are not yet competed, and there is one section that still needs to painted on the road. Delays were caused by the parked cars and there has been objections from a local business. <br /><br />The lining is part of a wider group of double yellow lines across Clay Country and will not be legally enforceable until all have been completed and the necessary legal order has been signed off.<br /><br /><b>12.3 Pocohontas Crescent </b><br /><br />The road condition in this estate is quite poor and I have been pushing for resurfacing for a considerable time. I had hoped it would be done this year, but I have now been informed that it will be considered for inclusion in the programme for 2023. <br /><br />I am continuing to lobby that greater priority is given to Pocohontas Crescent. <br /><b><br />12.4 Study into road through Fraddon and St Columb Road </b><br /><br />A meeting is being set up for me to meet with council officers to discuss their road safety audit from Penhale to the Halloon roundabout. I will give more feedback in the near future. <br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 13.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last month, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics.Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-86494097429857244902022-08-21T19:30:00.001+01:002022-08-21T19:30:22.783+01:00PUBLIC OWNERSHIP OF ENERGY COMPANIES MUST BE CONSIDERED<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLLpHkjDdUJBgoWj5NzbbbjY6boPftT6vUgEBDe2jtFzvpQYGTlLATBNZYFReC6f3xHRpvpeYGcE0LHa2Cw6-AU_GFtFN6BoHJLWK3NJqfkOKMA2iQQ6W7yL-bNli0o5Mie5cE-_AOFrF0418-s2kCVtZQ9Nl-2j2UvbCFyzpK-F06o7TPNsRa5JU3/s3333/EnergyVF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1667" data-original-width="3333" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLLpHkjDdUJBgoWj5NzbbbjY6boPftT6vUgEBDe2jtFzvpQYGTlLATBNZYFReC6f3xHRpvpeYGcE0LHa2Cw6-AU_GFtFN6BoHJLWK3NJqfkOKMA2iQQ6W7yL-bNli0o5Mie5cE-_AOFrF0418-s2kCVtZQ9Nl-2j2UvbCFyzpK-F06o7TPNsRa5JU3/w400-h200/EnergyVF.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In my article in the most recent edition of the <i>Cornish Guardian </i>newspaper, I backed public ownership of important services such as energy. It was as follows: <br /><br />Only a few days ago, it was projected that average energy bills would soon reach £3,600 a year. The figure presently being quoted is £5,000. That is simply untenable and will do immeasurable harm to ordinary households across the whole of the UK. <br /><br />Martin Lewis, from the Money Saving Expert website, has described the situation as a “national crisis on the scale of the pandemic,” adding that unless “Britain’s zombie government” acts it will leave “millions destitute and in danger this winter.” The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has meanwhile produced an open letter to the two contenders for the leadership of the Conservative Party, which has been signed by over 70 charities. It calls for compassion, and for them to show leadership to “tackle this issue head on.” <br /><br />But I am extremely fearful that the interventions from new Prime Minister will be inadequate to combat the magnitude of the crisis. Indeed, the latest tax plans from Liz Truss have been rubbished because analysts have estimated that the lowest paid will receive an uplift which is less than 2% of the likely price hikes. <br /><br />It is good to see opposition parties putting pressure on the Conservatives with calls for a freeze on price caps, possibly paid for by a windfall tax on the profits of the energy companies. <br /><br />This is vital in the short-term, but shouldn’t we be going further? I am proud that Mebyon Kernow has long maintained that important services such as energy, water and rail should be publicly owned and publicly accountable, with the focus being on community, social need and environmental protection. <br /><br />I agree with Delyth Jewell, one of the Plaid Cymru members of the Welsh Parliament. She has described the energy market as a “failed experiment” and is arguing that the concept of profit has no place in domestic energy supply. As she wrote in a recent article, “nothing short of fundamental and radical reform, based on public ownership, will ameliorate the crisis that’s looming over the coming winter months, and help save millions of people from abject suffering … and it is frankly appalling that reform of this kind hasn’t come before now [because] the vested interests of shareholders have been allowed to trump the needs of millions of consumers in the UK, which is not the case in other states.” <br /><br />As she says, it is shameful that the “market revolves around keeping companies in profit” rather than ensuring that the people who need the energy to stay alive are able to afford it.<div><br /></div><div>Above image from <a href="https://weownit.org.uk/public-ownership/energy">Let's take back our energy (weownit.org.uk)</a><br /><br /></div>Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-31830921870150585452022-08-13T10:28:00.002+01:002022-08-13T10:28:48.464+01:00REGIONAL INEQUALITY – PAY AND INVESTMENT<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLlctgJtNhufnTulXcHaUeYaHx7LK0BCzovRa9X5hNKUlVBF0a4wA8raSEDoc8Yn_mMSH-EgOUTDX0M_u3CJW3AzK2We8v11dn1kHrAfFo0g2K8w_1I3pwYKGdi1fjLk1iX-Rh0Ba2E45feNsAgzU5r_kkCvT2-jcxlMl4sL51j_zN7DJKgLwjHI_j/s1121/Cornish%20Guardian%20SMALL.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="1121" height="95" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLlctgJtNhufnTulXcHaUeYaHx7LK0BCzovRa9X5hNKUlVBF0a4wA8raSEDoc8Yn_mMSH-EgOUTDX0M_u3CJW3AzK2We8v11dn1kHrAfFo0g2K8w_1I3pwYKGdi1fjLk1iX-Rh0Ba2E45feNsAgzU5r_kkCvT2-jcxlMl4sL51j_zN7DJKgLwjHI_j/s320/Cornish%20Guardian%20SMALL.png" width="320" /></a><br /><i>This was my article in the Cornish Guardian on the 10th August. </i><br /><br />Levelling up was a key theme in the Conservative manifesto for the 2019 General Election. One section of the document stated: “Talent and genius are uniformly distributed throughout the country. Opportunity is not. Now is the time to close that gap – not just because it makes such obvious economic sense, but for the sake of simple social justice.” <br /><br />But more recent statements from the two contenders for the leadership of the Tory Party show that their commitment to tackling regional inequality is pretty lacking. <br /><br />Liz Truss came up with a proposal to introduce “regional pay boards” so that civil servants and public sector workers outside of London would be paid less. Unequal wage levels across the UK are a direct result of an unbalanced economy, while regional pay agreements would reinforce such inequities and make them worse. <br /><br />As reported in last week’s Cornish Guardian, local MP Steve Double did describe the proposal as a “terrible idea” which “would be hugely damaging to public services in Cornwall.” He said it was “leveling down, not up.” One Welsh Conservative MP meanwhile estimated that 430,000 workers in Wales, including police officers and armed forces personnel, would facing a pay cut of around £3,000. He also described the proposal as “levelling down.” The mayor of Tees Valley – also a Conservative – said the proposal was so bad that he was “speechless.” <br /><br />Liz Truss did an extremely quick u-turn, but later claimed that her comments had been wilfully misrepresented. But another prominent member of her party promptly pointed out that journalists accurately quoting a press release from Team Truss was not misrepresentation – wilful or otherwise. <br /><br />Whereas these critics of Truss happened to be supporters of Rishi Sunak, they must have felt extremely let down when the video footage of a speech from their own preferred candidate soon after emerged on social media. <br /><br />Speaking to a gathering of the party faithful in Tunbridge Wells, Sunak told them that the Conservatives had “inherited a bunch of formulas from Labour that shoved all the funding into deprived urban areas.” He said that he had “started the work of undoing that," so more funding would go into areas such as Tunbridge Wells. <br /><br />There is significant poverty across the whole of the UK – including in towns in Kent – which needs to be properly dealt with. But the crassness of the former Chancellor’s words is worrying, and comes just three months after the announcement that Cornwall would receive less than half of promised monies through the Shared Prosperity Fund.<br /><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-58241808709241937452022-08-13T10:25:00.002+01:002022-08-13T10:25:21.355+01:00A MORE EQUAL SOCIETY?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOUHVKZiVcVdceZBpjfP7PnUKCN-vp83uq0XRBxyw3-uIdZe0xXW8a7ryGN2ULYm7LXzYNQPhCRkWuYElMDJGNF-oCGExcsDc_m2FyPDEjK0yAjW1tiOf9FaQ5uWWcUGt-oLJ3LTgCmtU6vE8cKAowPdbwnUOnrYEn4Ykvh1dC9Wq2oJTBajDHFW6/s1121/Cornish%20Guardian%20SMALL.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="1121" height="119" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOUHVKZiVcVdceZBpjfP7PnUKCN-vp83uq0XRBxyw3-uIdZe0xXW8a7ryGN2ULYm7LXzYNQPhCRkWuYElMDJGNF-oCGExcsDc_m2FyPDEjK0yAjW1tiOf9FaQ5uWWcUGt-oLJ3LTgCmtU6vE8cKAowPdbwnUOnrYEn4Ykvh1dC9Wq2oJTBajDHFW6/w400-h119/Cornish%20Guardian%20SMALL.png" width="400" /></a><br /><i>This was my article in the Cornish Guardian on the 3rd August.</i><br /><br />It is my sincere belief that politics should be about making society more equal and tackling the inequities experienced by individuals and families, as well as by communities in the different parts of the United Kingdom. But the last few days have shown that Westminster politics is failing to rise to this important challenge. <br /><br />The cost of living crisis is getting worse and worse. But as so many ordinary households struggle to pay their basic bills, and millions and millions worry about how they will cope in the coming winter, some of the UK’s largest energy companies have announced bumper profits. <br /><br />At this time of great crisis, shareholders are due to receive significant dividend pay-outs while the executives of these companies – some of whom already have salaries in excess of a million pounds – will receive massive bonuses. This includes the CEO of Centrica (which owns British Gas), who already earns £875,000-a-year and, according to some reports, he could receive additional bonuses totalling £2.87 million – a sum that an average Cornish worker could not earn in a hundred years. <br /><br />It is little wonder that newspaper headlines shared the anger at the obsceneness of it all. One questioned how the executives slept at night, while another described the payments as “profits in misery."<br /><br />And then there was the report from the Institute of Public Policy Research (North). This was very critical of the Government’s so-called “Levelling Up” agenda, which is meant to be tackling regional disparities across the UK. Obviously, the focus of the document was about flagging up concerns relating to the extent of public spending in the north of England, but the key statistic was that London – the wealthiest part of the UK – had seen the highest increase in government investment in recent years. This is the exact opposite of levelling up. <br /><br />I attended a scrutiny meeting last week at which councillors were informed that the much-awaited proposal for local authorities to charge extra tax on second homes will not happen until 2024, or possibly even 2025. In addition, it was suggested that a promised review of the present funding formula for local government is likely to be delayed until 2026. We have to ask: where is the priority for housing justice and fairer funding for councils? <br /><br />Also last week, there was confirmation that the new women’s and children’s unit at Treliske – misleading called a “new hospital” – has been delayed, while the plan for a much-needed extension to West Cornwall Hospital has been paused. <br /><br />It is hardly surprising that so many people – myself included – are questioning the Government’s commitment to building a fairer and more equal society.<br /><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-60181926817972828942022-08-12T18:06:00.001+01:002022-08-12T18:52:31.376+01:00MY LATEST REPORT ON MY COUNCIL DUTIES<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ52oFFh8YRy6u4kZrcvzGwvINPB7MxQSqWl52ohHrJXD_CP8RsKgAz2k0GjM67jgzaMCTLfClWY_oAjNa96933MUO4y2cx01-R-Cfp4ifHChBaPT5jXoRd1t0_XMFNj46vnTnahtQh1Z4K0upCRohWUvIj4QKQy35tmaHeBFFE0o2v-TCJgKL8It0/s4128/Strongman's%20Field.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3096" data-original-width="4128" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ52oFFh8YRy6u4kZrcvzGwvINPB7MxQSqWl52ohHrJXD_CP8RsKgAz2k0GjM67jgzaMCTLfClWY_oAjNa96933MUO4y2cx01-R-Cfp4ifHChBaPT5jXoRd1t0_XMFNj46vnTnahtQh1Z4K0upCRohWUvIj4QKQy35tmaHeBFFE0o2v-TCJgKL8It0/w400-h300/Strongman's%20Field.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Time period: 25th June – 30th July 2022<br /> <br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings during the month, I attended a Full Council meeting of the unitary authority on 12th July, plus the Community Forum linked to the incinerator, the annual general meeting of the St Dennis & Nanpean Community Fund, and the South & East Cornwall Local Action Group. <br /><br />The vast majority of my Cornwall Council meetings have been via TEAMS video-conferencing. These have included Cabinet; three briefings for upcoming meetings of the Constitution and Governance Committee about the completion of the Community Governance Review (parish boundaries) on the Constitution and Governance Committee; Cornish National Minority Working Group, two associated briefings and an engagement forum for members of the public; Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee; a meeting of Community Network Chairs and Vice-chairs; a meeting of councillors within the China Clay Area; Group Leaders’ meeting; briefings on the ecological emergency facing Cornwall and the wider world, plus an update on proposed “county deal.” <br /><br />In addition, I have attended two meetings of St Enoder Parish Council and two meetings of St Dennis Parish Council. <br /><br />I also had further online meetings about a range of local issues. <br /><br /><b> 2.0 China Clay Area Community Network</b><br /> <br /> As previously reported, the administration at Cornwall Council wishes to reduce the number of Community Network Panels from 19 to 10 (and merge Clay Country with the Bodmin Network in the process). <br /><br />In my role as Chairman of the China Clay Area Community Network Panel, I attended a meeting of Chairs and vice-chairs of the Community Network Panels and I can report back that there is widespread opposition to the reduction in the number of Community Networks. I will be attending a further (face-to-face) meeting about this on Wednesday 27th July.<br /> <br /><b> 3.0 Shared Prosperity Fund</b><br /> <br /> Cornwall Council’s Cabinet has published its approach to the spending of the monies that will be made available through the Shared Prosperity Fund (which has been set up in place of the EU structural funds that were previously available).<br /><br />It states that the three priorities will be business, communities and skills, while there will be specific efforts to tackle inequalities in deprived areas. Assurances have also been given that all areas will have a “fair chance” to bid for the funding which will total £132 million over the next three years. <br /><br />Some of the paperwork refers to the Community Network Areas, which is a further reason why we need to ensure that the China Clay Area has its own powerful Network that can deliver for this area. <br /><br /><b>4.0 Mid Cornwall Metro </b><br /><br />One of Cornwall’s first applications to the Government’s Levelling Up Fund is for a new “metro link” to improve rail services between Newquay and Par, and Falmouth and Truro. Works are expected to increase the regularity of trains on the branch lines and will include a new siding / crossing place on the Goss Moor. <br /><br /><b>5.0 Royal Cornwall Museum </b><br /><br />The decision of the ruling administration at Cornwall Council not to support the Royal Cornwall Museum with funding from its new Culture and Creative Investment Programme (which replaced the cultural revenue grants programme) led to the Museum announcing that it was under threat of closure. <br /><br />Mebyon Kernow councillors on the unitary authority (including myself) have been among those making strong representations for the Council to do more to safeguard Cornwall principal museum. <br /><br /><b>6.0 Solar farms</b><br /><br />I continue to get a number of contacts about the number of solar farm applications in Mid Cornwall. These include the proposals for Trerice in St Dennis Parish, Tresithney in St Enoder Parish – though the actual planning applications have yet to be submitted. In addition, there is a live planning application for Tregonning in Newlyn East Parish (though the cabling would go through St Enoder Parish to the Indian Queens Power Station on the road to St Dennis and there is another emerging proposal for a farm to the south of Mitchell. <br /><br />I have written to a number of the planning officers involved with the applications to seek guidance how they will be assessing the applications and addressing subjects such as cumulative landscape and other impacts. <br /><br /><b> ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 7.0 Social / affordable rent properties in St Dennis</b><br /> <br /> In my last report, I confirmed that, in the future, the Sanctuary Housing element of Hendra Heights and the Coastline estate at Wesley Place will be advertised with a “parish connection” label to ensure that the properties will go to individuals or households with a connection to St Dennis. This follow my investigation into (accurate) complaints that properties had not been going to local people and nomination agreements were not being complied with.<br /> <br /> I am very pleased to be able to confirm that Ocean Housing have agreed to apply a “parish connection” label to their older housing stock (that have no nomination agreements or other restrictions on local connection) to boost the chances of households from St Dennis Parish securing affordable housing in their own village. I am most grateful for the assistance of Ocean Housing on this matter.<br /> <br /><b> 8.0 Planning matters<br /> <br /> 8.1 Housing development at Hendra Prazey (PA20/11311)</b><br /> <br /> A site meeting was held by the Parish Council (with a representative of the applicant) at Hendra Prazey to discuss the application for 27 housing units (of which 23 would be affordable). The Parish Council’s Planning Committee had a follow-up meeting and have maintained a strong objection to the proposed scheme. The vote was unanimous. <br /><br />I am presently seeking further information from the relevant officers at the unitary authority about how they wish to respond to the various objections and how they intend to deal with the application. <br /><br /><b>8.2 Indian Queens Power Station (PA22/05961) </b><br /><br />An application has also been submitted for the installation and operation of a 47.5 megawatt battery energy storage system on land immediately to the west of Indian Queens Power Station. <br /><br /><b> 9.0 Proposed multi-use trail from St Dennis to the Goss Moor</b><br /> <br /> In a previous report, I reported how an expression of interest had been submitted to the G7 Nature Recovery Project to investigate the possibility of turning the section of defunct railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve into a multi-use trail. The EOI was unsuccessful, but I was very pleased to be approached by Natural England to discuss a potential application to a “seed corn” fund. I can confirm that a funding application has been submitted to support the initial phase of the project, which would scope out, design and cost the project over the next six months. This report will then, hopefully, be able to be used to underpin the main funding applications to make the project a reality. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES<br /><br />10.0 Parish Council projects </b><br /><br />I am continuing to work closely with the Clerk of St Enoder Parish Council, on a range of issues. These include the following: <br /><br /><b> 10.1 Field between Indian Queens Primary School and Harvenna Heights </b><br /><br /> The new footway through the Parish Council was constructed in the latter part of 2021, and I am now pleased that we have moved onto the next stage of the project. The Council’s handyman is presently working in the field with some landscaping works and, when that is done, some picnic benches will be placed in the area along with rubbish bins. I am hopeful that there will also be tree planting and I personally favour the provision of a cluster of apple trees. <br /><br /><b>10.2 Youth Club building in Indian Queens Recreation Ground </b><br /><br /> The Parish Council has a project to double the size of the Youth Club Building and an EOI has been submitted to Cornwall Council’s CIL (Community Infrastructure Levy) funding pot. I can report that we have been invited to proceed to the next stage (full application), which the Clerk and I have started to work on. <br /><br /><b>11.0 Planning <br /><br /> 11.1 Carvynick, near Summercourt</b><br /> <br /> Further to my update on Carvynick in my previous report, I can confirm that outline planning permission has been granted for “up to 40 tourism lodges” in the field on the eastern side of Carvynick. The consent conditions that the “the development … shall be used as holiday accommodation only and shall not be occupied as a person's sole or main place of residence.” <br /><br />In the past, the owners have argued that the holiday use at Carvynick had made the site “brown-field” or “previously developed land,” which led to an inspector from the Bristol-based Planning Inspectorate allowing residential properties within the site. As a consequence of this, Cornwall Council has added the following condition: <br /><br />“When the use hereby permitted ceases or the commercial operation of the land becomes redundant all lodges, buildings, structures, tracks, materials and equipment brought onto, or erected on, the land or works undertaken to it in connection with the use shall be removed, and the land restored to its condition before the development took place. The land shall thereafter revert to use as a pasture field or other agricultural use.”<br /><br /><b>12.0 Highway matters </b><br /><br />Last year, Cornwall Council installed the two zebra crossings in Indian Queens – after many years of lobbying. Unfortunately, the installation by the Victory Hall was not done properly and Cormac will be remodelling the platform, etc, from the 15th August onwards, when the road will be closed. This is all so, so frustrating. <br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES</b><br /> <br /><b> 13.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last month, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics including planning matters, housing need, social care, environmental issues and more. <br /><br />Please note that my next report will be published towards the end of September.Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-19071692065260083482022-07-06T17:08:00.006+01:002022-07-06T17:08:59.587+01:00The cost of living crisis, solidarity and the Stadium<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJrZHWlT2h1Bg0pAJ-OQhWUkICx80oh-tGyZ3WsXTbCl_b95YbK3aU7v5VRixwJXvfh1HnJL8TeedqJIkwCfPnGVfc3raxkpDfqAYeXUl7zLYUctzMO1N5cF86DUrY1_EkLx_HuwMmxQlVlQUg9_zFUum7MODT5JOaiQqjIWlML3-z4B0XcA0iO1P/s1200/Stadium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJrZHWlT2h1Bg0pAJ-OQhWUkICx80oh-tGyZ3WsXTbCl_b95YbK3aU7v5VRixwJXvfh1HnJL8TeedqJIkwCfPnGVfc3raxkpDfqAYeXUl7zLYUctzMO1N5cF86DUrY1_EkLx_HuwMmxQlVlQUg9_zFUum7MODT5JOaiQqjIWlML3-z4B0XcA0iO1P/w400-h300/Stadium.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />My article in today’s Cornish Guardian newspaper covers three subjects. It is as follows: <br /><br />1. The latest report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation makes for very hard reading. Titled “Not heating, eating or meeting bills: managing a cost of living crisis on a low income,” the new research demonstrates the “precarious position of the worst-off 40% of households.” <br /><br />The Foundation considers that the packages of support put in place by the UK Government do “not go far enough to support those who came into this crisis in a tough financial position.” It has stated that, for many families, the payments “will barely touch the sides, let alone help prepare for the winter that is coming.” <br /><br />The findings show that “some seven million low-income households” have been “going without at least one essential (such as a warm home, enough food, appropriate clothing or basic toiletries)” while over two million families were “neither eating properly nor heating their homes adequately.” The seriousness of the cost of living crisis is further shown by the statistic that 4.6 million households are “in arrears with at least one bill, with the average amount owed around £1,600.” Significantly, the report adds that almost all families on means tested benefits are having “repayments for certain types of debt taken directly from benefits” and 93% of these are going without “at least one essential.” <br /><br />The shocking evidence in the JRF report sends a clear message to central government that their priority should be the less-well-off in UK society. <br /><br />2. Interestingly, the Economics Editor of the Guardian, Larry Elliot, recently wrote how “two years ago Rishi Sunak stood outside 11 Downing Street” flanked by the TUC and the CBI. He noted that the “photo op was meant to demonstrate a new spirit of tripartite solidarity” during the pandemic. Sadly, I share Elliot’s view that the “spirit of consensus has departed” as shown by the UK Government’s approach to the industrial dispute with rail workers, which has been revert to “union bashing” – rather than seeking to reach out at this time of crisis. <br /><br />3. As a Cornwall Councillor, I would like to disassociate myself from the decision of the Conservative administration to stop seeking funding for the Stadium for Cornwall. I don’t think the excuses, about business cases or the nature of “Levelling Up” funding, stand up to scrutiny. I was a candidate in the 2015 General Election and I recall the day when the Tories announced they would fund the Stadium. There were no caveats or conditions, just a straight-forward pledge to voters. By not delivering on that promise, it will forever be remembered as a cynical ploy to harvest votes, and nothing more.<br /><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-32504150042817804392022-07-05T20:38:00.002+01:002022-07-05T20:38:37.673+01:00CORNWALL NEEDS HOUSING JUSTICE<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwDiIXjLXB6ULnZOQ1GTA2B6i1q-ae6ce11B3Z0GMRmuVxEj7cDiIVxZnMmYbEUFmttdisEwpZuiMzxsnw01IBUYvpbdcDHNJQ1y58rQF30crAl4jizsZ1lZHZTheCPKPs1FkWW7JFId0P9IGXp3hO6JRAdCuzy7Vmdi_OrONdu6xAbIRc_5h3-Zz/s960/First%20homes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="806" data-original-width="960" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwDiIXjLXB6ULnZOQ1GTA2B6i1q-ae6ce11B3Z0GMRmuVxEj7cDiIVxZnMmYbEUFmttdisEwpZuiMzxsnw01IBUYvpbdcDHNJQ1y58rQF30crAl4jizsZ1lZHZTheCPKPs1FkWW7JFId0P9IGXp3hO6JRAdCuzy7Vmdi_OrONdu6xAbIRc_5h3-Zz/w400-h336/First%20homes.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />One of my recent columns in the <i>Cornish Guardian</i> addressed the inequality at the heart of the housing market. The article was as follows: <br /><br />Ten years ago in the Cornish Guardian, I wrote about how figures released by the Office of National Statistics showed Cornwall to be the “second home capital” of the United Kingdom, and that the National Housing Federation had warned “second homes” were increasingly pricing local people out of their communities with the countryside becoming a “place for the well-off to enjoy at weekends." <br /><br />This was also at a time when a prominent London author and journalist had written a piece about how he had "agonised" about buying a “second home,” stating he initially feared he would be seen as an absentee "invader." But somehow, he came to the conclusion that: "However unfair it is that some people can afford holiday homes while young locals find it impossible to get started on the property ladder, Cornwall would die without second homes." <br /><br />I described this as “twaddle” and quoted a local journalist who wrote: “The last thing any struggling community needs is to be patronised and treated like a basket case by those who have, by their greed, been the architects of many of its ills. By purchasing a property in a village, holidaying there a couple of times a year, and thereby transforming that village into a playground of the rich, these leeches suck the heart out of communities.” <br /><br />It was my view that the housing market was in crisis and “totally out of control.” One decade on, the situation is even worse, not least because of the inaction of the UK Government. <br /><br />While there are a range of factors making the present housing crisis so bad, there are an increasing number of metropolitan commentators, once again, trying to rubbish concerns about second homes – particularly to the west of the Tamar. <br /><br />One recent article in the Daily Telegraph was nonsensically titled: “Why Cornwall can’t survive without second home owners.” The piece was extremely insensitive. It promoted the argument that second homes are good for the economy. It described concerns about the impact of the multiple-property-owning households as “attacks,” it was critical of the proposed registration of “rented holiday homes” and, unbelievably, described the need for lifeboat volunteers “to live within five minutes of the station for a shout” as a “niche local issue.”<br /><br />A separate piece in the same newspaper misrepresented the comments of the airbnb boss Brian Chesky to generate a deliberately inflammatory headline that said: “Cornwall risks becoming 'xenophobic' without outsiders.” <br /><br />Such crass comments should not deter campaigners for housing justice, and we should be ever more determined to build a new political system that prioritises need over wealth and privilege.<br /><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-78732172151948212312022-06-29T11:13:00.000+01:002022-06-29T11:13:44.082+01:00MY LATEST REPORT ON MY COUNCIL DUTIES<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNP62jWj-FeAL0Q61t-hEkdu5u72P3wK9XEcHmcJsQ8w9CRgG-vEiDDgtIci8TJjPlPBjHzbMlE_juQwL5BlwjykrE6RbI_nnMg7h5dGPLZCYxBuA5yqkXVTgb0tVzkrDTT-f3YlGZJJeqDwFwo7pfyXqz7Pbu3eOq2N1rKoUBLBLybGPc-GuKn62g/s4128/Beacon%20Road.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3096" data-original-width="4128" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNP62jWj-FeAL0Q61t-hEkdu5u72P3wK9XEcHmcJsQ8w9CRgG-vEiDDgtIci8TJjPlPBjHzbMlE_juQwL5BlwjykrE6RbI_nnMg7h5dGPLZCYxBuA5yqkXVTgb0tVzkrDTT-f3YlGZJJeqDwFwo7pfyXqz7Pbu3eOq2N1rKoUBLBLybGPc-GuKn62g/w400-h300/Beacon%20Road.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><b>Time period: 1st April – 24th June 2022 <br /><br /> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings of Cornwall Council during the last three months, I attended Full Council (2), Chief Officers Employment Committee, Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Customer and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee (CASSOSC), four meetings of an Inquiry into Equality and Diversity Indicators (EDI) through CASSOSC, and the China Clay Area Community Network Panel. <br /><br />Other meetings of the unitary authority via TEAMS or ZOOM video-conferencing included two briefings for a Full Council meeting, Group Leaders meeting, meeting of the EDI Inquiry, China Clay Area Community Network Panel, meeting of members from the China Clay Area, briefing for group leaders on a “county deal,” all-member-briefing on the Shared Prosperity Fund, climate literacy training and a meeting to evaluate the Local Listing project for the China Clay Area. <br /><br />In terms of my role as the Chairman of the Cornish National Minority Working Group, I gave evidence to a Council of Europe Committee relating to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, hosted two meetings of the Working Group, a forum for members of the public, an associated all-member briefing, and I took part in a session investigating the collection of data about Cornish people. <br /><br />In addition, I have attended five meetings of St Dennis Parish Council and seven meetings of St Enoder Parish Council, which included the Annual Assemblies for both authorities and I presented annual reports. <br /><br /> I also had a number of further online meetings about a range of local issues. <br /><br /><b>2.0 Strategy for the China Clay Area <br /></b><br />Over the last three months, I have been promoting the “Towards a Strategy” document for Clay Country, which local councillors had produced with the support of staff linked to the China Clay Area Community Network. I was pleased to do an interview with a local journalist and the resultant news story received significant coverage in both the Cornish Guardian and the St Austell Voice.<br /><br /><b>3.0 China Clay Area Community Network </b><br /><br />I was pleased to be re-elected Chairman of the China Clay Area Community Network Panel at a meeting on 13th June. <br /><br />As previously reported, the administration at Cornwall Council wishes to reduce the number of Community Network Panels from 19 to 10. <br /><br />The proposal would link Clay Country with the Bodmin Network (which includes rural parishes stretching almost as far east as Altarnun). At this most recent meeting, the participants were unanimously against the change and I made a further representation to relevant officers. <br /><br /><b>4.0 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy </b><br /><br />Over the last few months, I chaired an Inquiry into Equality and Diversity Indicators through the Customer and Support Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee. <br /><br />I am pleased that this work has fed through into the Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2022-2026. A consultation on the document has been launched on the Let’s Talk part of the Council’s website and lasts until 14th September. <br /><br /><b>5.0 Shared Prosperity Fund</b><br /><br />A key talking point of late has been the formal announcement about the Shared Prosperity Fund. The Conservative Government has repeatedly promised that the funding Cornwall should receive through the Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF) would, at least, match the level of EU structural monies that would have been received.<br /> <br /> Cornwall Council has estimated that this should equate to £100 million each year, which had been supported by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Leadership Board (which includes Cornish MPs amongst its members). The most recent report produced by the Conservative-controlled authority states that, “in order to be no worse off,” Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly would “need to receive £700 million from the UK SPF over the coming seven years.”<br /> <br /> The actual funding announcement of £132 million over the next three years – less than half of the anticipated £300 million – has gone down badly. I was among the “opposition” politicians who challenged Conservative MPs on this broken promise.<br /><br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES</b><br /><br /><b>6.0 Road safety matters <br /><br />6.1 Double yellow lines at Wesley Place </b><br /><br />Following the re-consultation into the proposal for double yellow lines near Wesley Place, a number of responses were received. These were quite varied. Cornwall Council chose to modify the proposal and reduce the extent of double yellow lines. The lines have installed, and I asked Cornwall Council to inform nearby local residents about their decision in advance of the works. <br /><br /><b>6.2 Speed readings </b><br /><br />At the request of St Dennis Parish Council and I, Cornwall Council has carried out speed readings at a number of locations in St Dennis. These include: <br /><br />· West of St Dennis School (20mph limit). The average speed (south-west bound) was 19.1mph, with 66.7% of vehicles within the speed limit. The average speed (north-east bound) was 21.7mph, with only 36.7% of vehicles within the speed limit.<br />· Fore Street near junction with Parc-an-Bre Drive / Hendra Heights (30mph limit). The average speed (south-west bound) was 23.4mph, with 94.2% of vehicles within the speed limit. The average speed (north-east bound) was 21.9mph, with 92.2% of vehicles within the speed limit.<br />· Hall Road (20mph limit). The average speed (south-east bound) was 21.1mph, with 44.2% of vehicles within the speed limit. The average speed (north-west bound) was 23.5mph, with only 24.9% of vehicles within the speed limit.<br />· Trelavour Road (30mph limit). The average speed (south-east bound) was 24.0mph, with 81.2% of vehicles within the speed limit. The average speed (north-west bound) was 25.8mph, with 76.3% of vehicles within the speed limit. <br /><br />I can supply copies of the above reports to local residents on request. <br /><br /><b>6.3 Meeting with Cormac representative </b><br /><br />In early June, I had a TEAMS meeting with the local Highway & Environment Manager for our area. A large number of topics were covered. These included: <br /><br />· The condition of double yellow lines and other road markings within St Dennis. It has been agreed that a review be carried out.<br />· Potholes in a range of locations, including the poor condition of sections of roads and pavements along Hall Road. I was informed that Hall Road is on the surface treatment list for the next financial year.<br />· Request for a bollard at Little Trerice, where vehicles mounting the pavement have damaged a manhole cover. This has been agreed for installation. <br /><br /><b> 7.0 Social / affordable rent properties in St Dennis</b><br /> <br /> As previously reported, I produced a report into complaints about affordable housing in St Dennis not going to local households. In particular, this related to the Sanctuary element of Hendra Heights and the Coastline estate at Wesley Place. Both Housing Associations have acknowledged that mistakes have been made and a series of meetings have been held with Housing Associations during the last month. <br /><br />Sanctuary have acknowledged that the nominations agreement for Hendra Heights (which prioritises households with a local connection to St Dennis) was not applied and, as a consequence, less than 25% of the properties went to local families. Sanctuary Housing have confirmed lettings will, in the future, go to local households and they will also strive to be more proactive with their advertising to ensure that local families do not miss out on the opportunity to bid.<br /><br />A similar nominations agreement should have been put in place at Coastline’s Wesley Place development but, because of failings at both the local authority and the registered provider, this was not done. As a consequence, none of the properties went to households with a St Dennis connection. Coastline Housing have agreed to enter into a nominations agreement and lettings will, in the future, go to local households. <br /><br />I am pleased that Sanctuary’s most recent re-let at Hendra Heights was advertised for local families, which shows that the new arrangements are now functioning. <br /><br />In addition, I am also optimistic that Ocean Housing will agree that a “local connection” label can be applied to their older housing stock (that have no nomination agreements or other restrictions on local connection) for a period to boost the chances of households from St Dennis securing affordable housing. A meeting has been held but an accommodation has yet to be reached, because Cornwall Council has been slow drafting an agreement. It is worth noting that, because of the delay, three Ocean properties have been advertised during the last two months and not with any “local connection” label. <br /><br /><b>8.0 Neighbourhood Plan</b><br /> <br /> The period for responding to the first questionnaire for a Neighbourhood Plan has concluded and I am looking forward to the next phase of the project, when we will be looking closely at the feedback from local residents and how this information can be used to inform the Plan. <br /><br /><b>9.0 Planning matters </b><br /><br />There are some live planning applications, for which I have updates. <br /><br /><b>9.1 Housing development at Hendra Prazey (PA20/11311) </b><br /><br />An application for 27 housing units (of which 23 would be affordable) was submitted in December 2020. There have been a number of objections from local residents (because of the location and road network) and consideration of the application has been slow because Cornwall Council officers have been concerned about the road layout in the area. <br /><br />The applicant has prepared further information about highway issues, which has been submitted to the unitary authority. The Parish Council has been reconsulted on this additional information and they and others can make further comment. <br /><br /><b>9.2 Solar farm near Trerice </b><br /><br />The application from Statkraft has yet to be formally submitted and I have received no further information about how the proposed development may vary from that consulted upon about 12 months ago. <br /><br /><b>9.3 Proposed dwelling off Hendra Road (PA22/02138) </b><br /><br />St Dennis Parish Council has objected to a dwelling on land associated with Hendra Heights, but which would be accessed from Hendra Road. I have raised these local concerns with council officers and I will report back when I have more information.<br /><br /><b> 10.0 Proposed multi-use trail from St Dennis to the Goss Moor</b><br /> <br /> I have previously reported how St Dennis Parish Council has requested that Cornwall Council investigate the possibility of turning the section of defunct railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve into a multi-use trail, and that I had submitted an expression of interest from the G7 Nature Recovery Project. <br /><br />Unfortunately, I recently received confirmation that the EOI was unsuccessful. The response to me states that the “G7 Legacy Project did not receive the full amount of funding” and the “proposals were highly over-subscribed.” <br /><br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />11.0 Road safety matters <br /><br />11.1 A3058 improvements </b><br /><br />I am pleased that the two vehicle activated signs have been erected on Beacon Road and St Austell Street, which relates to the first part of the A3058 Safer Route improvements in Summercourt. As previously reported, the timetable for the second phase of works around the installation of the signalised pedestrian crossings at the crossroads has yet to be finalised. <br /><br /><b>11.2 Double yellow lines at Penhale </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council commenced the installation of double yellow lines at Penhale, near the Kingsley Village complex, on 14th June. I am extremely disappointed that the works have not been completed, as it seems the contractors did not attempt to get the parked cars on the northern side of the road moved away in advance of works. In addition, the extent of lines on the southern side of the road was greater than agreed and a section of the lining had had to be taken up. <br /><br />A number of the cars parking on the road in this area have been workers at Marks and Spencers, because they have not been allowed to use the parking area associated with the shopping complex. But I am pleased to be able to report that the ownership of Kingsley Village has changed hands and the management company tasked with overseeing the site have told me that staff will in future be allowed to use the main car park. <br /><br /><b>11.3 Road safety audit of road through Fraddon and St Columb Road </b><br /><br />I have just been supplied with a draft road safety audit for the stretch of road extending Penhale to the Halloon roundabout (including the area around the Co-op), and I will soon be having a meeting with council officers to discuss the provisional findings. It is my intention to publicise the report and recommendations as soon as it is finalised. <br /><br /><b>11.4 Meeting with Cormac representative</b><br /><br />In early June, I had a TEAMS meeting with the local Highway & Environment Manager for our area. A large number of topics were covered. These included:<div><br />· Non-maintenance of garden and grassed area in Clodan Mews. I have been promised (again) that the area will be better maintained in the future.<br />· Over-grown hedges in a number of places, which are impacting on street furniture. These are being reviewed and various property owners approached.<br />· Lack of progress with surface repair in Pocohontas Crescent, Indian Queens. This is currently “on the list for this year, but with no programmed date.” I am pushing for this to be prioritised.<br />· Request for junction lining at Pit Lane / Higher Fraddon junction. This will be done this year.<br />· Concern that faded bus bays need repainting. This is being looked into.<br />· Potholes around the St Enoder / bridge over A30 to Summercourt area. This is also being reviewed. <br /><br />In addition, we discussed complaints about speeding traffic and related issues along Moorland Road, Indian Queens, Toldish and Ruthvoes, which I am following up. <br /><br /><b>12.0 Planning </b><br /><br />There continues to be a significant number of ongoing planning matters in St Enoder Parish. Listed below are some which may be of particular interest. <br /><br /><b>12.1 Six extra gypsy / traveller pitches at Toldish (PA20/03553) </b><br /><br />On 28th August 2020, Cornwall Council refused planning permission for six additional gypsy / traveller pitches at Little Meadows, Toldish. The applicant has appealed the decision to the UK Government’s Planning Inspectorate. I have produced a representation on behalf of the Parish Council, which has been submitted to the Planning Inspectorate. <br /><br /><b>12.2 Two dwellings in Trevarren (PA21/03330)</b><br /><br />An application to demolish one house at Trevarren and replace it with two houses was rejected by Cornwall Council. The Council took the view that the “application site currently occupies a prominent location to the street scene and forms an attractive rural-residential setting to the edge of a settlement,” and “the proposal, by reasons of its siting, massing and appearance, would introduce a development at odds with the established low density built forms of the immediate surrounds and a car dominated layout to the front of the site which would disrupt the continuity of the rural character of the adjoining lane.”<br /><br /><b>12.3 Six flats at St Columb Road (PA22/00228)</b><div><br />I previously reported that St Enoder Parish Council has objected to the proposal for six two-bedroom flats on the right-hand side of the road to Clodan Mews and rear of the Co-op. The proposed three-storey scheme would only have six parking spaces, which is less than the two parking spaces per housing unit specified in the St Enoder Neighbourhood Plan. I can report that the application has been withdrawn by the application. <br /><br /><b>12.4 Solar Farm at Tresithney </b><br /><br />The application from Statkraft has yet to be formally submitted and I have received no further information about how the proposed development may vary from that consulted upon about 12 months ago. <br /><br /><b>12.5 Solar Farm at “Trendeal” </b><br /><br />I attended a recent consultation about a proposed solar farm, as the location was described as Trendeal, which is on the edge of St Enoder Parish. It turns out that the development – associated with the Trendeal farm business – is outside of St Enoder Parish and lies to the south of Carland Cross and Mitchell. <br /><br /><b>12.6 Applications at Carvynick, including leisure / office building (PA22/04257) </b><br /><br />On 3rd June 2019, the owners of Carvynick near Summercourt secured an outline planning permission for 38 residential dwellings at the site, plus a leisure / office building (PA18/04360). I did not support the application as I did not think that residential dwellings in this location would be appropriate. The consent was not achieved through Cornwall Council, but the Government’s Planning Inspectorate on the basis that the holiday park was “brown-field” / “previously developed land.”<div><br />The applicants argued that the site would be both for holiday and residential uses, and the indicative layout with the original application showed 38 simple holiday-type lodges and an impressive leisure / office building (including a swimming pool). Indeed, they argued that the residential element of the scheme was necessary to justify investment in facilities at the site (most especially the leisure building). <br /><br />Reserved matters for the details of the 38 dwellings have been submitted and agreed. These houses are larger than the lodges on the original plan, while being less dispersed across the site. Further applications have been submitted and accepted for another 16 houses on some of the remaining land within the main complex, which the Council could not refuse as the principle of development had been established through the appeal. <br /><br />Linked to the PA18/04360 consent, the owner has therefore now achieved planning consent for 54 housing units. There will be no affordable housing on site, but the applicant has negotiated to pay off-site contributions to provide affordable housing elsewhere.<br /><br />There was a fair amount of local support for the original application, because it included a leisure building that residents of the Parish could use. Letters of support prepared by the applicant and signed by local people stated that the leisure building would “provide a community hub,” a “state-of-the-art gymnasium” and a “swimming pool for locals to not only exercise but also to learn how to swim.”<br /><br />The reserved matters application for the leisure / office building (PA22/04257) has now been submitted. The proposed building is now much smaller than that on the original plan. It appears to be based around a badminton court and a small gym, that is of a size little more than two car parking spaces. There is no swimming pool as promised. St Enoder Parish has unanimously objected to the application, not least because it is not what was promised by the applicant.<br /><br />There is a further application for another ten houses at Carvynick (PA22/04474), some of which would extend development into the open countryside. St Enoder Parish Council has unanimously objected to this application as well.<br /><br />In addition, the owners of Carvynick have submitted a further outline application for “upto 40 tourism lodges” in the field on the eastern side of Carvynick. The Parish Council has not objected to this proposal, but sought confirmation that it would be properly controlled as a tourism site and not be allowed to become a residential site.<br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 13.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last few weeks, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics including planning matters, housing need, social care, environmental issues and more.</div></div></div><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-35283253964875307932022-06-27T21:07:00.001+01:002022-06-27T21:07:53.721+01:00REMEMBERING 1497 AND 1997: LOOKING FORWARD<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9gvY3ZLWn40VB-J07-_xSAafHzkt-xTcUFarbstW3Q8U3tCcjKa0aWj_981FTnEAR61IuSDwtcQ7su3Gl16AYkM02FT5AniqI4ge2IwqGhep6-iN-AF_nUATTvPvrBVCU5dwbxN-4mumpOM1Bza2fYVjTPDeBc9uTCDvh1w_Q-E4jf26pwG52Mgig/s698/An%20Gof%20and%20Flamank.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="523" data-original-width="698" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9gvY3ZLWn40VB-J07-_xSAafHzkt-xTcUFarbstW3Q8U3tCcjKa0aWj_981FTnEAR61IuSDwtcQ7su3Gl16AYkM02FT5AniqI4ge2IwqGhep6-iN-AF_nUATTvPvrBVCU5dwbxN-4mumpOM1Bza2fYVjTPDeBc9uTCDvh1w_Q-E4jf26pwG52Mgig/w400-h300/An%20Gof%20and%20Flamank.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />June 2022 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Keskerdh Kernow commemoration of the quincentenary of the 1497 Cornish rebellion, which MK leader Cllr Dick Cole is covering in two articles for the Cornish Guardian. The first article appeared last week and the second will be in this week’s newspaper. <br /><br />The articles are as follows: <br /><br /><b>ARTICLE 1 </b><br /><br />525 year ago, the people of Cornwall rebelled against the English state after King Henry VII demanded additional taxes from the impoverished province to fund a war in Scotland. <br /><br />Thousands of Cornishman marched to London during June 1497 to air their grievances. They were led by Michael Joseph “An Gof,” a blacksmith from St Keverne, and Thomas Flamank, a lawyer from Bodmin, and were joined by a noble, Lord Audley, as they moved through Somerset. The Cornish host camped near Blackheath on the 16th June, but were attacked by state forces on the following day. <br /><br />The three main leaders were captured. An Gof and Flamank were executed at Tyburn on 27th June, with the blacksmith telling the crowd that he would have "a name perpetual and a fame permanent and immortal." Audley was beheaded on the following day. The bodies of the two Cornishmen were decapitated and the fragments of their remains were placed on display in various locations. It is documented that the heads of the three men were placed on poles on London Bridge. <br /><br />The discord between Cornwall and the English state during the 15th and 16th centuries was significant. There was a second rebellion in 1497 linked to the pretender Perkin Warbeck, plus the 1549 rebellion caused by opposition to the “Act of Uniformity,” which imposed religious changes and an English language prayer book on Cornwall. The impositions of the Tudor period undoubtedly did much to undermine the Cornish speaking basis of much of Cornwall at the time. <br /><br />As An Gof predicted, he and the others have not been forgotten. This year also marks the 25th anniversary of the quincentenary of the rebellion, which sent out a powerful message about the continuance of Cornish culture and identity.<br /><br />Thousands of people took part in the various commemorations in 1997, which were principally structured around a re-enactment of the march. Some thirty people trekked all the way from St Keverne to London. I don’t have the space to name them all but they included the late Howard Curnow, Ann Jenkin who soon after became the first female Grand Bard of Gorsedh Kernow, her daughter and my predecessor as leader of MK Loveday Jenkin, Julian German who became the leader of Cornwall Council between 2019 and 2021, and the present Grand Bard Pol Hodge.<br /><br />I served on the organising committee that made the commemorations happen and, though I was only able to join the march for a few segments of the route, I was privileged to speak at an associated event at Tyburn, which marked the 500th anniversary of the executions of An Gof and Flamank.<br /><br /><b>ARTICLE 2 </b><br /><br />In last week’s newspaper, I wrote about the twenty-fifth anniversary of the commemorative march which marked the quincentenary of the 1497 Cornish rebellion. This is a topic I wish to return to this week. <br /><br />The march was a powerful display of Cornish pride and resilience, that surpassed all the expectations of the organising team. It was very much promoted as a cultural celebration, but there were obviously political aspects to the whole endeavour. <br /><br />The <i>Western Morning News</i> rightly noted it was “about much more than simply remembering and revelling in the past,” adding that Cornwall still suffered “injustice and hardship compared to other parts of Britain.” <br /><br />And when the marchers arrived in Blackheath on Saturday 21st June 1997, they issued a bilingual Blackheath Declaration. <br /><br />The Declaration stated: “In recent years, Cornwall has once again not been treated fairly in proportion to our needs – particularly in comparison with the assistance rendered to our Celtic cousins in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.” It had four specific demands: a Cornish Development Agency (CDA), a specific Cornwall seat in the European Parliament, a university campus in Cornwall, and the teaching of Cornish history, culture and language in schools. <br /><br />Twenty-five years on, it is right that we look back at what progress has been made with the demands. Starting with the biggest positive, university education is now a reality, but we never did get our own Development Agency or Euro-seat. <br /><br />I remember how, in early 1997, Cornwall County Council had supported a CDA (by 71 votes to one) but, weeks after the Blackheath Declaration, councillors ditched this position and acquiesced to the Government’s preferred option of a “SW RDA” stretching past Bristol. In terms of the Euro-seat, an inquiry was held in Taunton and Cornish representations were ignored. From 2009 until Brexit, Cornwall ended up in a multi-member SW constituency, and Westminster politicians continue to refuse to legislate to protect Cornwall’s territoriality, as shown by what happened with the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 2020. <br /><br />Great work is being done with regard to the teaching of the Cornish language in schools through Go Cornish, and Cornwall Council is working with local schools to build a Cornish curriculum. But central government is dodging its obligations and cut funding for the language in 2016, which restricts what can be achieved.<br /><br />In 1997, there were also numerous calls for more powers for Cornwall and a parliamentary Early Day Motion praising the marchers called for a Cornish Assembly. Twenty-five years on, establishment politicians are talking about “devolution,” but they are only promoting tweaks to local government – not meaningful self-government for Cornwall. <br /><br />Looking forward, the campaigns for Cornish recognition must continue.Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-86381932633878873502022-05-20T10:33:00.000+01:002022-05-20T10:33:42.516+01:00 MK COMMENT ON QUEEN’S SPEECH<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFdGiVsiiHj4xRd_SzEiL_5oukPhsA7Ldqge46okLzb1MLQ8A4ibpSRS-eqbivQ7X64C1A6pqODUSGUYYGHnEUEYoQMx6AQ1PkWm9ag9_cNlumrGZXEdaImNZFVk0I5XmL5qHh2CDb6OuoHji_mTecC0077gg_e1mo9iSt9x-FH3-ik4LhwbY-pMUF/s275/Queen%20Speech%20crown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFdGiVsiiHj4xRd_SzEiL_5oukPhsA7Ldqge46okLzb1MLQ8A4ibpSRS-eqbivQ7X64C1A6pqODUSGUYYGHnEUEYoQMx6AQ1PkWm9ag9_cNlumrGZXEdaImNZFVk0I5XmL5qHh2CDb6OuoHji_mTecC0077gg_e1mo9iSt9x-FH3-ik4LhwbY-pMUF/w400-h266/Queen%20Speech%20crown.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In his article in this week’s Cornish Guardian, MK leader Cllr Dick Cole commented on the UK Government’s proposed legislative programme. It is as follows:<br /><br />Through the spectacle of the Queen’s Speech on Tuesday 10th May, the UK Government announced its legislative programme for the next parliamentary session. It includes a total of 38 bills and the key criticism from political opponents has been that not enough is being proposed to tackle the present cost of living crisis. <br /><br />While I have not studied the full detail of many of the proposed bills, there are some elements to be welcomed, ranging from legislation to better combat modern slavery and to more effectively regulate social housing. There will also be a Renters Reform Bill and it is good that this will abolish “no fault” evictions, though I am not sure I can be supportive of all aspects of that particular legislation.<br /><br />The element of the Speech that has been getting the greatest degree of discussion is the wide-ranging Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which covers the so-called “county deals” being considered in Cornwall and elsewhere, as well as reforms to the planning system. <br /><br />The “devolution” proposals are still inadequate for the needs of Cornwall, but the supporting information published with the Bill is full of hyperbole about giving “local leaders and communities the tools they need to make better places,” providing opportunities to “increase innovation and enhance local accountability” while increasing the “transparency of local leaders.” The words do not match the reality of their timid and unexciting proposals.<div><br />In terms of planning, some of the extremely unpopular measures outlined in the 2020 “Planning for the Future” White Paper, such as the zoning of land for immediate “in principle” consents, have thankfully been ditched. But once again there are claims about changes giving “local communities control over what is built” in their area, but the reality will be very, very different.<br /><br />The Government has confirmed that a revised, top-down, National Planning Policy Framework will be produced and there will be a consultation about a suite of “national” development management policies, that will have primacy over policies devised in Cornwall. This disturbs me.<br /><br />The Bill will also include a discretionary council tax premium on second homes of up to 100%, which is being widely welcomed. But this does not go far enough. The “premium” is less than that to be charged in Wales, there is no proposal for planning controls to stop and reverse the spread of such part-time dwellings, while the document is also silent on the adverse impact of holiday lets and airbnbs on the housing market.<br /><br />This is frankly so disappointing when so many people are struggling to secure a first home for rent or purchase.<br /></div>Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-44248357215064791042022-05-19T16:14:00.007+01:002022-05-19T16:14:39.697+01:00 RIGHT TO BUY IS THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT IS NEEDED<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwZrIeLzr3iBmsGYzbQNDbGpc0vPpSfJ5xSVolR0FvAkaa6VPugbLWr3gw6_eWkD1IkZs6e36NdClXy2QkFiDjSY09kIByxGCOgiShnI34n0KFKFzyo6HIJ4eKyiDQ8AXHIZF2X-QJ9JDfD7UB0zN7FeGZGAq1gmoTTf59Ye_VowXBA19d6vYaWLpG/s725/Right%20to%20buy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="725" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwZrIeLzr3iBmsGYzbQNDbGpc0vPpSfJ5xSVolR0FvAkaa6VPugbLWr3gw6_eWkD1IkZs6e36NdClXy2QkFiDjSY09kIByxGCOgiShnI34n0KFKFzyo6HIJ4eKyiDQ8AXHIZF2X-QJ9JDfD7UB0zN7FeGZGAq1gmoTTf59Ye_VowXBA19d6vYaWLpG/w400-h165/Right%20to%20buy.png" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In my column in last week's <i>Cornish Guardian</i>, I addressed the rumoured expansion of the Right to Buy scheme, which would lead to the loss of much-needed affordable housing. It was as follows:<br /><br />In 1980, Margaret Thatcher’s Government introduced Right to Buy through its first Housing Act, and the legislation allowed council tenants to purchase their homes at a significant discount from their open-market value.<br /><br />As a consequence, some two million rental properties were sold. I agree with the view of Polly Neate, the Chief Executive of the homelessness charity Shelter, that this tore “a massive hole” in the stock of much-needed affordable housing. <br /><br />I would add that the loss of so many social rent properties over the last forty years – which were largely not replaced – has been a significant contributory factor to the out-of-control, dysfunctional and unbalanced housing market that exists today.<br /><br />I was therefore extremely alarmed to see newspaper reports that state the Prime Minister is looking into re-energising the concept of Right to Buy by extending it to tenants of Housing Associations. <br /><br />I could hardly believe what I was reading. A “government source” was quoted as saying that: “The Prime Minister has got very excited about this. In many ways it is a replica of the great Maggie idea of 'buy your own council flat.' It is 'buy your own housing association flat’.” <br /><br />It is a bonkers plan. There is so much that needs to be done to combat the housing crisis, but selling off social rent properties is not any part of any answer. <br /><br />Again, I agree with the comments of Polly Neate. Extending Right to Buy is indeed “half-baked” and a “hare-brained idea.” It is the “opposite of what the country needs” and “there could not be a worse time to sell off what remains of our last truly affordable social homes.” <br /><br />There is obviously a political dimension to what the Prime Minister is considering, as the Conservatives believe Right to Buy could be a popular policy. But a prominent thinktank has rightly pointed out the inequity at the core of the proposal, noting that it “offers huge financial benefits to those who qualify for social housing” – perhaps many tens of thousands of pounds – “while providing nothing for those … who pay much higher rents in less secure private tenancies.”<br /><br />It is telling that progressive governments in the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales abolished Right to Buy in 2017 and 2019 respectively. I understood that the Northern Ireland version of the scheme will end in August.<br /><br />Right to Buy should also be ruled out in Cornwall and England. Politicians should instead be prioritising the provision of proper local-needs housing, legislating to protect those in private rented accommodation and to control rents, while rolling back the spread of second homes and airbnbs.<br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-1542700331042128022022-05-16T16:56:00.001+01:002022-05-16T16:56:11.149+01:00WILL CORNISH BE INCLUDED IN THE BROADCASTING BILL?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6s5pngD0j3XZpc6AuLf_brpviM7zt5mXQfW6TU1Qgx6Uk5PKxj_GoGgjwJQsmmzXxct1dhS6RNSWOrPlK67Ej3KtvyGkTmXHXAO2s83MGb1yU-TKx_COGxaCZUEcs7PqFXNPbaD3UAsxMdsytA1O3OAYqmKIih1pB4n5qcp7o4v6m2nEroF8TAcK/s4000/Go-Cornish-Launch-31-Jan-2019-HI-RES-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2667" data-original-width="4000" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6s5pngD0j3XZpc6AuLf_brpviM7zt5mXQfW6TU1Qgx6Uk5PKxj_GoGgjwJQsmmzXxct1dhS6RNSWOrPlK67Ej3KtvyGkTmXHXAO2s83MGb1yU-TKx_COGxaCZUEcs7PqFXNPbaD3UAsxMdsytA1O3OAYqmKIih1pB4n5qcp7o4v6m2nEroF8TAcK/w400-h266/Go-Cornish-Launch-31-Jan-2019-HI-RES-18.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In a recent article in the <i>Cornish Guardian</i>, I wrote about the UK Government’s “blindspot” when it comes to regional / minority languages and Cornish. It was as follows:<br /><br />The eighth anniversary of the recognition of the Cornish through the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities has just passed. To mark the occasion, the unitary authority issued a positive press release about all the work being done to protect and promote the unique culture and distinctive language of Cornwall, reminding one and all that the UK Government had pledged the Cornish would have the “same status” as “the UK’s other Celtic people: the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish.”<br /><br />But sadly, we cannot forget that the UK Government is failing to meet its obligations to the Convention in so many ways. Westminster denied the Cornish a tick-box on the 2021 census and, when it agreed the process for setting boundaries for future parliamentary seats, refused to protect the territoriality of Cornwall in law. Cornwall has not secured a meaningful devolution settlement in line with the other Celtic nations, and is not represented on the British and Irish Council.<br /><br />I am in the fortunate position of being the Chairman of Cornwall Council’s working group on national minority status and, a short time ago, I hosted an engagement forum with interested members of the general public.<br /><br />We were addressed by Denzil Monk, a film maker and a lecturer in film at the School of Film and Television at Falmouth University. He spoke about the campaign for public service broadcasting in and for Cornwall, which has the full support of the unitary authority. At the forum, there was a discussion about ongoing representations to the BBC about how their commitment in the 2016 BBC Charter to “regional and minority languages of the United Kingdom” ridiculously does not extend to Cornish. The document restricted its definition of such languages to “Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Irish and Ulster Scots.”<br /><br />By coincidence, the UK Government published its latest White Paper on the following day. It was titled: “Up Next: The Government’s vision for the broadcasting sector.”<br /><br />Disappointingly, the document is silent on the request for public service broadcasting for Cornwall while, in the section on regional and minority languages, the Cornish language is ignored. The languages mentioned in the document are again Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Irish and Ulster Scots.<br /><br />This is so unsatisfactory, but the White Paper does present an opportunity. The Government now says that the “importance of programmes broadcast in the UK’s indigenous regional and minority languages” will be made “clear in legislation.”<br /><br />Cornwall’s MPs will therefore be able to make representations to the Minister and the wider UK Government to ensure that any future provision for regional and minority languages also includes Cornish. I have already written to them and asked then to do exactly that.Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-32623328592911672102022-04-22T14:30:00.004+01:002022-04-22T14:30:31.241+01:00STATEMENT ON SHARED PROSPERITY FUND ANNOUNCEMENT<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZk7ydCj6Mp0RMlpYVWmYr2opVMJrmTn2ZPQOi3lOx7LYJRPCqP_zdDaWLyeYZKhLQUxlc1gSxSJti2qwY1IIzTwv49cTIJaee1mzQzRCx9YHb6sPqrTFeXEvgz-8MaXrqQM6zMeWwy6OIYGKg5cUr4rDS8Ljd--EoAddL0We0eCtZzLhGD_R-5R5z/s680/Cornish%20Guardian%20cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="552" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZk7ydCj6Mp0RMlpYVWmYr2opVMJrmTn2ZPQOi3lOx7LYJRPCqP_zdDaWLyeYZKhLQUxlc1gSxSJti2qwY1IIzTwv49cTIJaee1mzQzRCx9YHb6sPqrTFeXEvgz-8MaXrqQM6zMeWwy6OIYGKg5cUr4rDS8Ljd--EoAddL0We0eCtZzLhGD_R-5R5z/w325-h400/Cornish%20Guardian%20cover.jpg" width="325" /></a><br /><br />The Conservative Government has repeatedly promised that the funding Cornwall is to receive through the Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF) would, at least, match the level of EU structural monies that would have been received.<br /><br />Cornwall Council has estimated that this should equate to £100 million each year. The most recent report produced by the Conservative-controlled authority states that, “in order to be no worse off,” Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly would “need to receive £700 million from the UK SPF over the coming seven years.” <br /><br />It is hardly surprising that the actual funding announcement of £132 million over the next three years – less than half of the anticipated £300 million – has gone down badly. <br /><br />We must not forget all the promises made by Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak, Michael Gove and local MPs, plus the written statements confirming that funding through the “UK SPF will at a minimum match the size of EU funds in each nation and in Cornwall, each year.” <br /><br />But the reality is that the main UK SPF budget has also been cut. I understand that the figure will now be £400 million in 2022/23 and £700 million in 2023/24. It will not rise to the level of “average annual EU funds” of £1.5 billion until 2024/25. <br /><br />Some of the supporting information in the Government press release makes comments about the “allocation formula” taking into account local population data and a “broadly based measure of need, including factors like unemployment and income levels.” But this is all a distraction, because the promised level of funding will not be delivered. <br /><br />The “cuts” have also been widely condemned across Cornwall, Wales and the North of England. But prominent Conservatives in Cornwall have welcomed the funding and, though it may well be true that we will still be getting more funding “per head” than elsewhere, I really struggle to see how they can justify the position of central government. After all, for the next three years, £132 million is not the promised £300 million. <br /><br />It was only 18 months ago that one Cornish MP suggested that statements from a Government Minister had “shot down claims from Cornwall Council that Cornwall will be short-changed” under the SPF. He went on to challenge the-then Liberal Democrat / Independent council to “retract their damaging statements” and to “move on” from “always thinking the worst and taking a pessimistic view.” <br /><br />At this time, it seems that the pessimism was well-founded. But I can confirm that I will be positive about the SPF when Boris Johnson’s Government delivers the promised £100 million a year to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. <br /><br />This is my article in this week’s <i>Cornish Guardian.</i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-82206742749368350392022-04-19T19:29:00.000+01:002022-04-19T19:29:55.346+01:00MY LATEST M0NTHLY REPORT<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhfoHCGWrcPiodwXFVgXCqv0a4sd9WmFqlQCyeWaDqwopggpgWnM6-wKTVsgLRRHuwjz2EPiZgeR9ven6k9KxJ_jOjhlqaQxkyIW9r8KINv3EwP2nIUrsF86HAdm1wxqllS4JIR-KJzMa-gXJ6m_20GCOHarYX5e29dazHV6k2Dbk6L3b1chAqmUFr/s4128/Zebra%20crossing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3096" data-original-width="4128" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhfoHCGWrcPiodwXFVgXCqv0a4sd9WmFqlQCyeWaDqwopggpgWnM6-wKTVsgLRRHuwjz2EPiZgeR9ven6k9KxJ_jOjhlqaQxkyIW9r8KINv3EwP2nIUrsF86HAdm1wxqllS4JIR-KJzMa-gXJ6m_20GCOHarYX5e29dazHV6k2Dbk6L3b1chAqmUFr/w400-h300/Zebra%20crossing.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Time period: 23rd February – 31st March 2022 <br /><br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings during the last few weeks, I attended Customer & Support Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee plus the first meeting of an Inquiry into Equality and Diversity Indicators (EDI) for the Council (for which I am the lead member), Chief Officers Employment Committee, Constitution and Governance Committee, and two briefings for Group Leaders about a possible “county deal” for Cornwall. <br /> <br /> Other meetings via TEAMS or ZOOM video-conferencing included Support Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee (meeting following the call-in of the Cabinet decision to close the Ships and Castles pool in Falmouth), Economic Growth & Development Overview & Scrutiny Committee, and an all member briefing on a possible “county deal.” <br /><br /> In terms of our local area, I have attended online meetings with Cornwall Councillors for Clay Country, meetings of St Dennis and St Enoder Parish Councils, and four consultation events linked to the production of a Neighbourhood Plan for St Dennis Parish. <br /><br /> I also had a number of further online meetings about a range of local issues.<br /> <br /><b> 2.0 “County deal” for Cornwall</b><br /> <br /> A “Levelling Up” White Paper was published by the UK Government in early February, and it invited Cornwall Council to commence negotiations about “devolution” through a “county deal.” The Conservative administration at the Council submitted a proposal on 25th March. <br /><br />I am extremely disappointed that the “devolution” on offer to Cornwall is certainly not the meaningful devolution achieved in Scotland and Wales, but it represents extremely limited accommodations with local government. The leader of the Council is working within the strict and limiting constraints set out in the White Paper, which would include the need for a directly elected mayor or leader. I have appealed to the administration to seek to go beyond the unambitious constraints of the present “devolution” debate as configured by the UK Government, and argue for a more comprehensive settlement. I don’t think this is happening. <br /><br />As this debate continues, I will provide regular updates. <br /><br /><b>3.0 Community networks </b><br /><br />I have previously reported that the administration at Cornwall Council has commenced a review of Community Networks. It has been widely suggested that the number of networks will be reduced. In my position as the Chairman of the China Clay Area Network Panel, I have written to the Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods expressing concern at the possibility that the China Clay Area Network could cease to exist. I will be making further representations in the coming weeks. <br /><br /><b>4.0 Update on Cornwall-wide roll-out of 20mph speed limits </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council has confirmed that it will be putting in place 20mph speed limits across the built-up parts of two Community Network Areas (Falmouth / Penryn and Camelford). This is the “pilot” phase of the council administration’s plan to make 20mph the default speed limit for residential roads across Cornwall. Feedback from this initial phase will be reviewed by the Economic Growth & Development Overview & Scrutiny Committee in order to inform or guide the wider roll-out of the project. <br /><br /><b>5.0 Drive EV2 (Electric Vehicle Charging) Project</b><br /><br />The unitary authority has secured funding to install 150 charge points for electric vehicles across Cornwall. It is proposed that the majority of these will be located in Cornwall Council car parks, where there is a significant through-put of people and vehicles. The initial list shows there will be some points in all Network Areas – except the China Clay Area. <br /><br />I have contacted the team and asked whether they could also identify sites within Clay Country. As they have been focusing on council-owned car parks, I have suggested that they might consider an installation in the Wellington Road car park in St Dennis. <br /><br /><b>6.0 Homechoice</b><br /> <br /> At the most recent meeting of the Economic Growth & Development Overview & Scrutiny Committee, it was confirmed that there is to be a review of the Homechoice system, through which affordable housing is allocated. I have already raised a number of concerns with senior officers, and I will be making further detailed representations in the coming weeks. This will principally relate to putting in place more mechanisms to ensure that a higher percentage of the affordable homes go to households with ties to the local community. <br /><br /><b>7.0 Community Chest</b><br /> <br /> As a Cornwall Councillor, I am awarded £3,000 each year to support local groups with small grants. I can confirm that, for the 2021-2022 year, I supported the following organisations with funding: British Divers Marine Life Rescue, Indian Queens Band, Indian Queens Community Choir, Indian Queens Under Fives, St Dennis Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Committee, St Dennis Ukulele Group and Treverbyn Community Trust (for mobile community larder and emergency food bags). <br /><br />My allocation for 2022-2023 has just been confirmed. If any local groups would like further information about the grants, please get in contact with me. <br /><br /><b>ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 8.0 Social / affordable rent properties in St Dennis</b><br /> <br /> As previously reported, I produced a report into complaints about affordable housing in St Dennis not going to local households. This was submitted to Cornwall Council in December 2021 and I received a written response in February. A follow-up meeting was held with the Head of Housing and Planning, Head of Housing Delivery, and an Affordable Housing Manager on 30th March. <br /><br />The Council has confirmed the following: <br /><br />· A nominations agreement was in place for the Sanctuary Housing development at Hendra Heights, which prioritises households with a local connection to St Dennis. But due to an “internal” error, the register provider failed to apply the agreement. As a consequence, only four of the 19 lettings during 2018-2021 went to local households. <br /><br />· A nominations agreement (to prioritise households with a local connection to St Dennis) should have been put in place at Coastline’s Wesley Place development but, because of failings at both the local authority and the registered provider, this was not done. Coastline did however produce a local lettings plan for lettings, but this prioritised households with a local connection to the town of St Austell! As a consequence, none of the 11 lettings at Wesley Place went to households with a St Dennis connection. <br /><br />This therefore shows that, of the 30 lettings (2018-2021) on the two sites which should have prioritised St Dennis households, only four went to people with a parish connection. <br /><br />In the meeting with council officers, I was told that because the agreements were not tied to a Section 106 legal undertaking, they were deemed “voluntary” and the Council would not be in a position to take enforcement on past errors. <br /><br />However, Sanctuary have acknowledged their error and agreed to do more to ensure re-lets in the future go to local families. I understand that after the initial lettings, the nominations agreement states that 75% of voids should be awarded to local households. But they have suggested that, for the next two years, this should be 100%. At the meeting with officers, I have requested that discussions be had about whether that two year period can be significantly longer. <br /><br />Coastline Housing are aware of the requirement to enter into a nominations agreement. One is presently being drafted by the Council’s legal team for future lettings, and I hope to soon have sight of it. <br /><br />I have also requested that Cornwall Council approach other registered providers operating in St Dennis to explore how they can help to ensure that more rental properties in the Parish go to local households. I have already spoken to key officers at Ocean Housing about this. <br /><br />There are some aspects of my report which I am still following up with Cornwall Council, and I will report back further when I have more news. <br /><br /><b>9.0 Neighbourhood Plan</b><br /> <br /> I was pleased to assist parish councillors with the delivery of questionnaires for a Neighbourhood Plan around St Dennis, and it is good to see completed forms coming back to ClayTAWC. If you haven’t filled in one yet, the deadline is 16th April. In addition, I attended the four consultation events held on 15th, 23rd, 30th and 31st March. <br /><br /><b>10.0 Planning matters <br /><br />10.1 Proposed dwelling on Hendra Road (PA21/10233) </b><br /><br />St Dennis Parish Council objected to the proposal for a single dwelling to the south of Jubilee Terrace. Concerns included the plot being too small for a dwelling. I raised these worries with the case officer and, after a site visit, he came to the same conclusion. The application was then withdrawn by the applicant. <br /><br /><b>10.2 Proposed solar farm near Trerice </b><br /><br />The application has yet to be formally submitted, but the applicants (Statkraft) have lodged information about archaeological remains within the proposal site with the unitary authority for “pre-application” advice. <br /><br /><b> 11.0 Highways</b><br /><br />As previously reported, Cornwall Council has just relaunched its Community Network Highways Scheme. <br /><br />The four councillors for Clay Country have been informed that our area will receive £45,864 a year for each of the next three years. We have agreed that the funding will be divided equally between the four elected members, which means I will have just over £34,000 to spend across the parishes of St Dennis and St Enoder. <br /><br />I can confirm that I have asked highways officers to explore a (i) potential scheme to slow traffic entering Hendra Road from the south, and (ii) something to prevent access being blocked to properties located to the rear of the kebab shop. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />12.0 Planning </b><br /><br />There continues to be a significant number of ongoing planning matters in St Enoder Parish. Listed below are some which may be of particular interest. <br /><br /><b>12.1 Land to rear of Unit 2, Indian Queens Industrial Estate (PA21/01683) </b><br /><br />I have previously reported that, on 2nd August 2021, the Central Sub-Area Planning Committee of Cornwall Council unanimously rejected the planning application for four commercial units at the rear of Unit 2 on the industrial estate at Indian Queens, which included a new access from Moorland Road.<br /> <br /> Local residents were concerned about the traffic problems that a new access onto the old A30 would cause, and also raised concerns that the screening (trees and shrubs) previously located within the area had been removed. There had been a petition of 92 names against the development. <br /><br />The landowner appealed the decision to the Planning Inspectorate, and I produced a detailed representation (of over 4,500 words) on behalf of the Parish Council and local residents. I am very pleased to be able to report that the Planning Inspector listened to local people and rejected the appeal. In his ruling, he stated the following: <br /><br />“An access point, in itself, may not be uncharacteristic of Moorland Road, but at this location would result in removal of the existing hedgebank and opening up of the frontage. The new access could be formally landscaped and managed in a tidy manner, with some ecological enhancement. However, the presence of the access, along with the service yard between Moorland Road and the new buildings, would result in an uncharacteristic, strong frontage relationship of industrial activity to Moorland Road. <br /><br />“As a consequence, commercial activity would be more readily visible in the street scene. The industrial area would cease to be contained, inward looking to the estate road and would begin to creep into the residential area, leading to a harmful dilution of the residential character. The proposal would harm the character and appearance of the area. It would conflict with those aims of Local Plan policies 2 and 12 that seek to protect the distinctive characteristics of the local area.” <br /><br /><b>12.2 Tregonning Solar Farm (PA22/01511) </b><br /><br />A solar farm is proposed for land on Tregonning Farm, to the east of the Dairyland complex, in St Newlyn East parish. The proposed scheme lies immediately adjacent to the boundaries of St Enoder Parish. However, the cabling will run through St Enoder Parish, linking the solar panels to Indian Queens Power Station in St Dennis Parish. The cabling would cover a distance of about four miles. The first two miles would be across farmland, but the second two miles would follow the local road network through Fraddon (Barton Lane, the old A30 and Fraddon Hill) and Indian Queens (Chapel Road and Highgate Hill), before passing Gaverigan to the power station. Anyone wishing to comment on this application can still do so on Cornwall Council’s planning portal.<br /><br /><b>12.3 Tresithney Solar Farm </b><br /><br />The application has yet to be formally submitted, but the applicants (Statkraft) have lodged information about archaeological remains within the proposal site with the unitary authority for “pre-application” advice. It should be noted that there is evidence of significant prehistoric settlement remains in the north-west corner of the farm, covering an area of over 25 hectares, which would be impacted upon by the development. <br /><br /><b>12.4 Class Q development in Chytane Woods area (PA21/08165) </b><br /><br />I am very unhappy about the decision of Cornwall Council to allow “permission” for a dwelling in countryside off New Road near Fraddon, where residential properties would not normally be allowed. <br /><br />The UK Government brought in a policy known as “Class Q,” through which an agricultural building (if it meets certain criteria such as being structurally sound) can be converted into housing. It is not a formal planning application as such, but simply a “prior approval” or notification process, which the local authority can “refuse” if the supporting evidence is lacking. <br /><br />The building for this application was built without planning permission in the late 2000s. The building lies within a piece of land measuring only two-and-a-half hectares, which contained no residential properties. There was an investigation, but no enforcement action could be taken as more than four years had expired since the structure had been erected At the time of the enforcement investigation, officers of the authority referred to it as “agricultural.” In their application, the new owners of the site have argued that it the building was agricultural – which the Parish Council and I have challenged in recent months.<div><br />I have found everything about the application to be a nonsense and I am preparing a detailed representation to Steve Double MP seeking a review of the whole “Class Q” aspect of planning. <br /><br /><b>12.5 Proposal for six flats at St Columb Road (PA22/00228)</b></div><div><br />St Enoder Parish Council has objected to the proposal for six two-bedroom flats on the right-hand side of the road to Clodan Mews and rear of the Co-op. The three-storey scheme would only have six parking spaces, which is less than the two parking spaces per housing unit specified in the St Enoder Neighbourhood Plan. The lack of parking provision was considered especially inappropriate in such a congested part of the Parish. <br /><br /><b>13.0 Update on highway improvements <br /><br />13.1 Zebra crossings in Indian Queens </b><br /><br /> As I write this report, I am pleased that the two zebra crossings and associated highway works (on Chapel Road and St Francis Road) have been largely competed. <br /><br />As many residents will be aware, the raised platform for the St Francis Road crossing was initially built too high and had to be reduced in height. This was disappointing, but I am pleased, after pushing for these safety measures for so long, to see them in place. <br /><br /><b>13.2 Summercourt School </b><br /><br />I am also pleased that the promised permanent vehicle activated sign has been erected on the approach to Summercourt School. This was funded through the old Community Network Highway Scheme. <br /><b><br />13.3 A3058 improvements </b><br /><br />Works for the first phase of the A3058 Safer Route improvements in Summercourt are ongoing. In St Austell Street, some road markings have been redone and the column for a permanent vehicle activated sign has been erected. I have just been informed that the actual sign will be installed in the week commencing 25th April. The other vehicle activated sign on Beacon Road will also be erected in that week. Related works to extend the 30mph speed limit on Beacon Road are in progress. <br /><br />The timetable for the second phase of works around the installation of the signalised pedestrian crossings at the crossroads has yet to be finalised. <br /><br /><b>13.4 Other updates </b><br /><br />The road safety audit of the road through Fraddon and St Columb Road (between Penhale and the Halloon roundabout) is also ongoing and I have asked officers to include congestion / road safety issues in the Co-op area into the review. This has been agreed.<br /><br /><b>14.0 Newsletter</b><br /> <br /> Having completed a newsletter around St Dennis Parish in recent weeks, I will soon be distributing a newsletter around St Enoder Parish.<br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 15.0 Advice<br /></b> <br /> Over the last few weeks, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics including planning matters, housing need, adult social care, educational matters, environmental issues and more.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-15449552565431369842022-02-28T10:30:00.000+00:002022-02-28T10:30:04.043+00:00MY LATEST MONTHLY REPORT<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnEvfm3jvX5qla5tMAtrXoaxuUnu-3LKkXehO39WthmcP-pN2XdkCNZlxU8BkZuy46xZ9aNLuAUtHqITB9tHniKROvD1Gig2FQpCQzDIACVaSQMvbekwm-pIBMArVXgK8Qc3dqHCk0Wi-GdTdHlzHSlZKJyuIMwDpu90jvpKAyJlVbr0zKyPpfyQim=s4128" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3096" data-original-width="4128" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnEvfm3jvX5qla5tMAtrXoaxuUnu-3LKkXehO39WthmcP-pN2XdkCNZlxU8BkZuy46xZ9aNLuAUtHqITB9tHniKROvD1Gig2FQpCQzDIACVaSQMvbekwm-pIBMArVXgK8Qc3dqHCk0Wi-GdTdHlzHSlZKJyuIMwDpu90jvpKAyJlVbr0zKyPpfyQim=w400-h300" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Time period: 24th January – 22nd February 2022 <br /><br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings during the last few weeks, I attended Full Council, Customer & Support Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Chief Officers Employment Committee. I was also present at a conference about the housing emergency, which took place at the Bedruthan Steps Hotel, on 11th February, as well as meetings of St Dennis Parish Council and St Enoder Parish Council.<br /> <br /> Other meetings via TEAMS or ZOOM video-conferencing included three meetings relating to equalities monitoring (Customer & Support Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee), informal meeting of Economic Growth & Development Overview & Scrutiny Committee, briefing for forthcoming Full Council meeting and Group Leader meeting, Cornish National Minority Working Group and associated briefing, plus a forum. <br /><br /> In terms of our local area, I have attended online meetings with the China Clay Area Community Network and a meeting of the four local Cornwall Councillors, plus meetings about the development of a strategy for Clay Country with the economic development team plus the new highways scheme. In addition, I met with the Service Director for Planning & Sustainable Development and the Head of Development Management about planning matters in Mid Cornwall. <br /><br /> I also had a number of further online meetings about a range of local issues.<br /> <br /><b> 2.0 Cornwall Council budget</b><br /> <br /> The Conservative administration presented its budget to a meeting of the unitary authority on 22nd February. It includes cuts of over £50 million, more than 400 job cuts and a maximum increase (2.99%) in council tax. <br /><br />As the leader of the Mebyon Kernow / Green Party Group, I spoke against the budget and pointed out that local government in Cornwall is in a parlous state because it is greatly underfunded and it has suffered a decade of savage cuts. My assertion that local government is not a priority for central government funding was not contested. <br /><br />The budget was voted through by 48 to 30. <br /><br /><b>3.0 Community networks </b><br /><br />The new administration has also announced that it is doing a review of Community Networks, which could be reduced in number. I am extremely concerned that the China Clay Area Network could cease to exist, which would be a disaster – especially given our recent efforts to secure greater financial and other support for our Area. I have already made representations on this matter and I will report more in the future.<div><br /><b> ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 4.0 Neighbourhood Plan</b><br /> <br /> I am very pleased to have been able to assist the members of St Dennis Parish Council in the production of a detailed questionnaire for the work towards a Neighbourhood Plan. The document is at the printers and will soon be distributed to homes across the Parish. <br /><br />In addition, four consultation events have been organised to allow local people to meet members of the steering group and give further information about what you want for St Dennis Parish. <br /><br />The events will be held at ClayTAWC, at the following dates and times.<br /><br />Tuesday 15th March / 6pm-9pm<br />Wednesday 23rd March / 2pm-5pm<br />Wednesday 30th March / 2pm-5pm<br />Thursday 31st March / 6pm-9pm <br /><br /><b>5.0 Proposed solar farm near Trerice </b><br /><br />The proposed solar farm near St Dennis has been in the news recently, because the Cornwall branch of the “Campaign for the Protection of Rural England” issued a press release criticizing the development of “industrial-sized solar arrays” and the “loss of farmland.” <br /><br />I phoned Statkraft, the company which is working up the local scheme, and was told that it will still be a few weeks before the application is formally submitted. I previously reported that Cornwall Council had told the applicants that they needed to do an Environmental Impact Assessment on their nearby proposal at Tresithney near St Columb Road, but not the St Dennis one. Statkraft have however confirmed that they have chosen to do EIAs for both schemes.<br /><br /><b> 6.0 Social / affordable rent properties in St Dennis</b><br /> <br /> In my last monthly report, I published my report which investigated complaints about affordable housing in St Dennis not going to local households. On 14th February, I had a meeting with a senior officer in the housing team and received initial feedback from the authority. He agreed that I had identified significant problems with how rental properties were being allocated and I am awaiting a more formal (written) response. <br /><br />I can confirm that I will be attending a meeting of the Economic Growth & Development Overview & Scrutiny Committee next week, when it will be considering a review of the Homechoice allocations system. I intend to make further representations at this meeting. <br /><br /><b> 7.0 Proposed double yellow lines near Wesley Place</b><br /> <br /> I previously reported that there was a 21-day consultation on parking restrictions on Carne Hill, near Wesley Place, in November, and that I was informed that the Council had received no responses from residents in the immediate area. I have just circulated an additional letter in the area seeking feedback.<br /> <br /><b> 8.0 Newsletter</b><br /> <br /> In recent weeks, I have been out and about delivering my (six monthly) parish-wide newsletter across St Dennis Parish. I have covered about 80% of the Parish and hope to have completed the newsletter drop within the next few days.<br /> <br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES<br /> <br /> 9.0 Update on highway improvements <br /><br />9.1 Zebra crossings in Indian Queens </b><br /><br /> Local people will have seen a zebra crossing on St Francis Road is presently under construction and it is provisionally timetabled that the construction of a second zebra crossing and associated works will be undertaken on Chapel Road commencing on 9th March. <br /><br /><b>9.2 A3058 improvements </b><br /><br />As part of the A3058 Safer Route improvements, a permanent vehicle activated sign will be erected in St Austell Street in the week commencing 28th February. The dragons teeth in the road will also be renewed at this time. In addition, the erection of a permanent vehicle activated sign, the extension of the 30mph speed limit and related works, will take place on Beacon Road over a two-week period commencing on 8th March. <br /><br />The installation of the signalised pedestrian crossings at the crossroads has yet to be timetabled. <br /><br /><b>9.3 Other updates </b><br /><br />The road safety audit of the road through Fraddon and St Columb Road (between Penhale and the Halloon roundabout) has commenced and I am feeding in local concerns to the officers undertaking the review. <br /><br />I have also been promised an update, later this week, about the road safety audit at Sea View Terrace on the road between Fraddon and St Stephen. I will update further when I have more information. <br /><br />I have also received a petition about speeding traffic in the Toldish area and on rural roads extending from St Enoder Parish through towards Ruthvoes, Castle an Dinas and St Columb. I am investigating these concerns as well. <br /><b><br />10.0 Proposed solar farm at Tresithney</b><br /><br />As noted above, the application for the proposed solar farm at Tresithney near St Columb Road has yet to be formally submitted. The applicants (Statkraft) are currently carrying out an Environmental Impact Assessment on their scheme. <br /><br /><b> 11.0 Newsletter</b><br /> <br /> As noted above, I have nearly finished distributing my newsletter around St Dennis Parish. I am presently looking to timetable the delivery of a newsletter around St Enoder Parish in the month of April.<br /> <br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 12.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last few weeks, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics including planning matters, housing needs, environmental concerns and more.</div><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-18186048156456403452022-02-16T08:30:00.000+00:002022-02-16T08:30:44.299+00:00DEVOLUTION ASPECTS OF WHITE PAPER ARE WEAK AND CONFUSED<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhywPzRd7PgqrDe9ufhgtIOtXJPEEYvgr-t19X1D_T0Gs3y7QwTJLSKtjSUHipcQsINaCmq0iFJQeBdFq3K0GMbXKikrn2hglLpZN5lZ211hbnmCRFFIIHd7l0slMjEoDYoYXECIpG4vZn5E8NRi0v-mY2AFRMxjtSrlpJVuBotOjJbdYj4LCCUEuD0=s300" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="195" data-original-width="300" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhywPzRd7PgqrDe9ufhgtIOtXJPEEYvgr-t19X1D_T0Gs3y7QwTJLSKtjSUHipcQsINaCmq0iFJQeBdFq3K0GMbXKikrn2hglLpZN5lZ211hbnmCRFFIIHd7l0slMjEoDYoYXECIpG4vZn5E8NRi0v-mY2AFRMxjtSrlpJVuBotOjJbdYj4LCCUEuD0=w400-h260" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The Government’s “Levelling Up” White Paper contains a pledge to “give every part of England that wants it a devolution deal with more regional powers and simplified, long-term funding.” But in terms of what the Conservatives are calling a “devolution revolution,” it is all very confusing. <br /><br />The associated press release claims that it represents the “biggest shift of power from Whitehall to local leaders in modern times” offering “London-style” powers and a mayor. <br /><br />The role of London Mayor is associated with a London Assembly, sitting above local councils. The Mayor also has control over the Metropolitan Police. <br /><br />Yet the White Paper lists Cornwall as one of nine areas which have been invited to “start formal negotiations” for a “county deal.” Such so-called “devolution” arrangements are limited in scope and appear to be accommodations with local council structures. There is no offer of a Cornish Assembly or a Cornish Police Force. <br /><br />The document also includes a “devolution framework,” which shows that ministers want to see these deals linked to an “elected mayor” or governor, while deals without such individuals in charge would be even weaker. <br /><br />In addition, the White Paper refers to “trailblazer deeper devolution deals” for “Mayoral Combined Authorities” in Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. This suggests that these urban areas will be offered greater powers, but the detail is lacking. <br /><br />Trying to understand the Government’s approach to the UK’s political geography is also impossible. Yes, the White Paper does mention Cornwall in relation to a “county deal” but, in the section on employment and productivity, it references “every area of the UK” with each of these areas “containing a globally competitive city.” I presume that this is a reference to government regions such as the “South West” one that stretches as far as Bristol! The document also mentions the “Great South West” project, through which some interested parties wish to link Cornwall to the three English counties of Devon, Dorset and Somerset. And the White Paper adds that the Government plans to give more powers to partnerships led by unelected nominees from private sector businesses. <br /><br />It is a total mess, and I have no confidence that MPs will deliver meaningful devolution to Cornwall. <br /><br />From my perspective, Cornwall desperately needs a new democratic settlement and that means the Celtic-style devolution that exists in both Scotland and Wales. <br /><br />Surely now is the time for one and all in Cornwall to come together to build a campaign for the formal government recognition of Cornwall as one of the historic nations of the United Kingdom, represented by our own National Assembly or Parliament.<br /><br />[This is my article in this week's Cornish Guardian].Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-87615266581468907932022-02-07T16:26:00.009+00:002022-02-07T16:26:56.824+00:00"LEVELLING UP" WHITE PAPER IS A LET DOWN!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgA9vTO5KYZA9PXO67_Fl0bSfjXln5x_bQhI_Wkzto1qCUyeOHS8tPZpT6xOI_1wUhwq4n1Oz0DWI2pThoh4KmkFXyBRaZQHyS29Fd5m4nChR1Y4zF6YkO1PetIBXFsfA6cjHyE04KAkAq2KSzObY08jpBmIslRSqBmcGXOdNrDxDWD-4nhWnPWvbyw=s300" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="195" data-original-width="300" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgA9vTO5KYZA9PXO67_Fl0bSfjXln5x_bQhI_Wkzto1qCUyeOHS8tPZpT6xOI_1wUhwq4n1Oz0DWI2pThoh4KmkFXyBRaZQHyS29Fd5m4nChR1Y4zF6YkO1PetIBXFsfA6cjHyE04KAkAq2KSzObY08jpBmIslRSqBmcGXOdNrDxDWD-4nhWnPWvbyw=w400-h260" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The Government claims that it has a “defining mission” to “level up” by “tackling the regional and local inequalities that unfairly hold back” so many parts of the UK. The long-awaited devolution White Paper – re-engineered as a “levelling up” policy document – was published last Wednesday. It is massively, predictably, disappointing. <br /> <br />The Guardian newspaper described the White Paper as “anaemic and inadequate,” the Economist magazine said it “falls short” and “fails to devolve enough power and money,” while the Independent news website called it a “plan that’s big on problems – but not on how to fix them.” <br /><br />A prominent member of the SNP has meanwhile branded it as “underwhelming” and a “damp squib,” adding that the UK needs “policies of substance” rather than “glib soundbites and photo opportunities for ministers in hard hats and hi-viz vests.” <br /><br />Launching the White Paper in the House of Commons, Michael Gove started by outlining the need to “tackle and reverse the inequality that is limiting so many horizons,” while closing the “gap between much of the South-East and the rest of the country in productivity, in health outcomes, in wages, in school results and in job opportunities ...” <br /><br />He somewhat ridiculously went on to add that “this is not about slowing down London or the South-East … but rather about turbocharging the potential of every part of the UK.” But how do you level up without properly addressing the dominance of the over-heating South-East? <br /><br />One of the key criticisms of the While Paper is that there is little “new money.” I agree with Faisal Islam, the BBC’s economics editor. He has noted that where “levelling up” has actually been a success, as in “post-unification Germany,” there have been “massive fiscal transfers from rich regions to poor ones” and “entrenched patterns of economic geography” cannot really be changed “without footing a very significant bill.” The White Paper doesn’t even come close! <br /><br />The document largely lists projects and funding that have already been announced, though it is admittedly good to see the Government reaffirm its pledge to “match EU Structural Fund receipts” in future funding for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.” The principal new announcement for Cornwall is an Education Investment Area. <br /><br />Worryingly for Cornwall, Michael Gove’s parliamentary speech was very political and geared towards the protection of new “red wall” seats in the north. He name-checked Bishop Auckland, Bury, Derbyshire, Durham, Manchester, Stoke-on-Trent and Warrington, and spoke about “20 new urban regeneration projects, starting in Wolverhampton and Sheffield, and spreading across the Midlands and the North.” <br /><br />Cornwall needs so much more out of these levelling up proposals. <br /><br />[This is my article in this week's<i> Cornish Guardian</i>].<br /><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-16771896401086662332022-01-26T11:08:00.000+00:002022-01-26T11:08:08.084+00:00My latest report for St Dennis and St Enoder Division<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj0lqGxcT85kdlRE_0tEf4oUA3M6bJ2x47UUOEnkvr-NMXUNDL0UmwkQ_EGwITKUYEdG71EFopL2N8ky3VyLZniV1uWnT-Hfg-xZ8gaeMm5h-VS67AsYlPtcgwcs-nJoxrt0ph7osSkIeJ3P8dLvzR4wpdSWOU3GquoZl-6Q4WTi4jVV16hiA2KZX_b=s4128" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3096" data-original-width="4128" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj0lqGxcT85kdlRE_0tEf4oUA3M6bJ2x47UUOEnkvr-NMXUNDL0UmwkQ_EGwITKUYEdG71EFopL2N8ky3VyLZniV1uWnT-Hfg-xZ8gaeMm5h-VS67AsYlPtcgwcs-nJoxrt0ph7osSkIeJ3P8dLvzR4wpdSWOU3GquoZl-6Q4WTi4jVV16hiA2KZX_b=w400-h300" width="400" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Time period: 22nd November 2021 – 23rd January 2022 <br /><br /><b> 1.0 Council and other meetings</b><br /> <br /> In terms of physical meetings during the last two months, I attended two meetings of Full Council, Customer & Support Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Chief Officers Employment Committee, Constitution & Governance Committee, as well as meetings of St Dennis Parish Council and St Enoder Parish Council. <br /><br />Other meetings via TEAMS or ZOOM video-conferencing included the <br /><br />Cabinet, Economic Growth & Development Overview & Scrutiny Committee and an associated briefing session, Central Sub-Area Planning Committee, Local Heritage List Advisory Group, Cornish National Minority Working Group, two meetings relating to equalities monitoring, Race Equality Core Group, South & East Cornwall Community-Led Local Development Group, two briefings for forthcoming Full Council meetings and two Group Leader meetings. <br /><br />In terms of our local area, I have attended China Clay Area Community Network, China Clay Area Community Support Group, a meeting of the four local Cornwall Councillors, plus two meetings in relation to the development of a strategy for Clay Country.<br /> <br /> Some of the above meetings are referenced elsewhere in this report, and I had a number of further online meetings about a range of local issues.<br /> <br /><b> 2.0 Cornwall Council budget</b><br /><br />Over the last two months, Cornwall Councillors have received more information about the administration’s budget. This will go to a Full Council meeting on 22nd February. I will report more fully in my next monthly report. <br /><br /><b>3.0 Strategy for the China Clay Area </b><br /><br />I continue to be involved with the promotion of a strategy for the China Clay Area, which I helped to write. A number of months ago, we met with senior officers from Cornwall Council and, in January, we followed this up with meetings about housing and transport issues. At these meetings, we requested further information about a range of topics including public transport and local HGV movements. The next meeting will be with the Service Director for Planning and Sustainable Development, and we are seeking engagement with the economic development team. <br /><br /><b>4.0 Network Highways Scheme </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council has just relaunched its Community Network Highways Scheme. The four councillors for Clay Country have been informed that our area will receive £45,864 a year for each of the next three years. We have agreed that the funding will be divided equally between the four elected members, which means I will have just over £34,000 to spend across the parishes of St Dennis and St Enoder. In terms of highway schemes, this money will not stretch too far, but in the coming weeks, I will be discussing options with both Parish Councils in my division. <br /><br /><b>5.0 Local Listing Project </b><br /><br />In recent months, I have also served on the advisory group for a Local Heritage List Project for Clay Country (plus some surrounding parishes). This seeks to identify those historic structures or places that local people deem to be important. It is significant because, as well as being on a “local list,” some of the historic assets could end up being considered for statutory protection through Listing or Scheduling. <br /><br />The China Clay Area has a low level of protected structures and sites. For example, St Dennis Parish has only one Scheduled Monument and St Enoder Parish has just three! As part of this project, I produced a detailed representation about the need to protect historic features associated with the china clay industry, such as local skytips. <br /><br /><b>6.0 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy </b><br /><br />Cornwall Council is developing a new equality, diversity and inclusion strategy. To advance that work, the Customer & Support Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee has agreed to undertake an inquiry to oversee the development of equality objectives. I have been appointed as the lead councillor to take this work forward. <br /><br /><b>7.0 County Councils Network Conference </b><br /><br />In early December, I had the good fortune to attend the County Councils Network Conference (upper-tier local authorities) in Marlow. It was addressed by a range of prominent local government and public sector figures, plus Government Ministers (by video link). There was much rhetoric about the importance of local government, but the sector continues to be under great pressure because of government underfunding. <br /><br /><b> ST DENNIS PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />8.0 Neighbourhood Plan</b><br /> <br /> In recent weeks, I have been assisting the members of St Dennis Parish Council with the production of a detailed questionnaire, which will be delivered to all households across St Dennis Parish (along with a freepost envelope for responses) in a few weeks’ time. The views of local people will then form the basis of a Neighbourhood Plan, which will contain local planning policies for the Parish. I am also pleased to be able to report that I have secured a grant of £2,490 towards this work from the Locality organisation, which distributes funding on behalf of the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.<br /><br /><b>9.0 Social / affordable rent properties in St Dennis</b><br /><br />I have produced a report about the provision of affordable housing in St Dennis Parish. It has been forwarded to senior officers in the housing service at Cornwall Council including the Service Director for Housing, and I have followed up with a number of phone calls. The report was as follows: <br /><br /><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b> - Publicly-owned rental properties in St Dennis</b><br /> <br /> Since I was elected as the Cornwall Councillor for the parish of St Dennis, I have received a number of complaints that families and individuals (with a local connection to St Dennis Parish) have been struggling to get access to social / affordable rental properties in the village. In particular, I was told about a ten-unit development (Wesley Place) constructed by Coastline and informed that none of the properties went to St Dennis households. <br /><br />As a consequence of these representations, I have carried out some research and I am quite shocked at what I have found. <br /><br /><b>- Extent of resource in St Dennis </b><br /><br /> Figures from Cornwall Council state that there are 236 rental properties owned by Registered Providers in St Dennis Parish, split between Ocean Housing (177), LiveWest (33), Sanctuary (16) and Coastline (10). The split is 38 one-bed units, 50 two-bed units, 142 three-bed units, five four-bed units and a single five-bed property. <br /><br />A large number of the properties are over 15 years old and therefore do not have a Section 106 or a local lettings plan / nomination agreement in place that would give preference to parish households. I have further looked at more recent developments to confirm how many of the social / affordable rental homes have legal or nomination agreements to ensure that properties go to households with a parish connection. <br /><br />· Two developments from Ocean Housing (Downs Close: C2/08/01605 and Hendra Heights: C2/06/01242) contain a total of 20 social rent units. I know that the larger Hendra Heights scheme (17 units) was part-funded by Restormel Borough Council. Re-let adverts for these houses specify that a legal agreement gives priority to households from the parish of St Dennis. It should be noted that these properties are being advertised in accordance with the legal agreement for the wider site though they technically sit outside of the Section 106. <br /><br />· Sanctuary Housing built 16 affordable rent properties at Hendra Heights (PA17/00826). The planning consent had been mainly an open market development, but Cornwall Council grant-funded turning 16 open market properties into affordable rent units (at 80% of market rents). Because of this planning history, there was not a Section 106 agreement but, due to council funding, a nominations agreement was put in place. This states that there should be priority for families with a St Dennis connection and households could also under-occupy by one bedroom. Nonetheless, I have found that new and re-let adverts for these housing units have not referred to any need for a parish connection and only a minority have gone to local families. As a result of my research, Cornwall Council has reminded Sanctuary of its obligations to their nominations agreement, though I think much more needs to be done (see below). <br /><br />· In terms of the development brought to my attention (Wesley Place), planning permission was initially given for ten open market properties (PA17/05442). The site was then purchased by Coastline Housing, which developed the houses as affordable rent units. There was no Section 106 agreement because of the nature of the planning consent, but as the affordable housing was funded by Cornwall Council, it was agreed that there should be a “local lettings plan.” This has been referenced in the Homechoice adverts, but it has been confirmed that none of the properties went to St Dennis households. I have been told by a council officer that “Coastline has advised that the properties were not easy to allocate to people with a local connection to St Dennis.” There was a subsequent re-let, which also did not go to a family with a St Dennis connection. I understand that the Council has since instructed legal to approach Coastline to agree a nominations agreement, which will reinforce the need for the property to go to St Dennis families. However, I feel that more needs to be done (see below). <br /><br />In terms of the housing stock, it is therefore my conclusion that St Dennis has: <br /><br />· 190 properties with no legal or nomination agreements in relation to a parish connection. <br /><br />· Three properties covered by Section 106 legal agreements (to ensure priority for St Dennis households). In addition, as noted before, a further 17 dwellings at Hendra Heights are being let in accordance with a wider Section 106 agreement though they are not technically tied by it. These are all deemed S106 properties for the sake of this report. <br /><br />· 26 properties with some form of local lettings plan or nominations agreement, though these interventions have clearly not been working as planned. <br /><br /><b> - Recent lettings </b><br /> <br /> I have approached officers from Cornwall Council / Cornwall Housing about lettings over the last three years (up to October 2021). In particular, I requested information about a total of 42 individual lettings, which I had identified from the Homechoice website. Some of these were first lettings (Coastline and Sanctuary) and some were re-lets. However, incomplete or only partial information was received for six of the units. <br /><br />My key findings are as follows: <br /><br />· Four of the properties have Section 106 controls. The most recent one was advertised in October and we have not yet received the letting information. I understand that the other three all went to households with a parish connection to St Dennis. <br /><br />· Twelve properties were let by Sanctuary and I was supplied with information for 11 of these units. These is a nominations agreement in place, but only three of these properties went to households with a parish connection to St Dennis (27%). I simply cannot comprehend how a development with a nominations agreement did not house more households with a parish connection to St Dennis. <br /><br />· As noted above, in terms of the ten properties developed by Coastline Housing at Wesley Place, plus one re-let, not one went to families with a parish connection to St Dennis. Again, I cannot comprehend how a development with a local lettings plan did not house any St Dennis households at all! <br /><br />· Of the 11 other re-lets (for which we have data) – made up of ten properties from Ocean Housing and one from LiveWest – five went to families with a local connection to St Dennis (45%). <br /><br />· The remaining four properties, for which we do not have the necessary information, two were from Ocean Housing and two from LiveWest. <br /><br />· Overall, this means that of the 36 properties for which we have letting information, 11 went to households with a parish connection to St Dennis (31%). <br /><br />· In addition, of the 33 non-S106 properties for which we have letting information, only eight went to households with a parish connection to St Dennis (24%). <br /><br />· Of the 22 properties with some form of local lettings plan or nominations agreement for which we have letting information, only three went to households with a parish connection to St Dennis. That is an unbelievably and disturbing low figure of only 14%. <br /><br />· If the five non-S106 properties, for which we have no letting information, went to people without a parish connection, it could mean that the number of successful “local” lettings for non-S106 properties over the last three years could be as low as 21%. <br /><br />In my view, it is little wonder that the people of St Dennis are so disgruntled about how the lettings of affordable housing properties have been handled in recent years. The system as presently constituted and / or the approach of Registered Providers is clearly not working. <br /><br /><b>- Homechoice data</b><br /> <br /> To add value to this representation, I feel it is also appropriate to include information about Homechoice. The last time I asked for a breakdown from Homechoice was in July 2021. This showed that the database then contained 122 households (seeking rental accommodation) with a parish connection to St Dennis. It should be noted that 30 of these households were already occupying affordable homes but looking to move.<br /> <br /> Of the ten households in Band A (made up of households in greatest need or existing tenants who were looking to down-size, thereby also freeing up a large property), nine were existing tenants who wish to down-size. It should be noted that there were 31 households in Bands B-C (ie. those deemed in significant need), of which ten were already occupying affordable homes.<br /> <br /><b> - A formal request for further discussions within Cornwall Council and with partners</b><br /> <br /> Given the above evidence, could I formally request a meeting with the Cabinet Member with responsibility for housing and the Service Director for Housing, plus what other officers may be deemed appropriate. <br /><br />The situation that I have uncovered is totally unacceptable. In addition to this meeting, I would like to formally request a formal investigation into why so few of the properties linked to a local letting plan or nominations agreement actually went to parish families, and I am particularly keen to investigate how many St Dennis households applied for such properties but were not offered the homes. <br /><br />I would also request that further meetings be arranged with the necessary Registered Providers to discuss how we can address the failings that I have identified and to see what can be done to better support the population of the parish of St Dennis. At the moment, I feel that, in order to recompense for the recent failures to let to St Dennis households, there should be a new approach where all properties go to St Dennis families for the foreseeable future. </span><br /><br /><b>10.0 Multi-use trail to the Goss Moor</b><br /><br />St Dennis Parish Council has requested that Cornwall Council investigate the possibility of turning the section of defunct railway line between St Dennis and the Goss Moor National Nature Reserve (NNR) into a multi-use trail. It recently came to my attention that funding has been made available, following last year’s G7 Summit in St Ives, for a G7 Nature Recovery Project. <br /><br />The published project area is focussed on Mid Cornwall, and the project partners have written about plans to build greater connectivity between nature reserves, such as the Goss Moor NNR, and other SSSIs, china clay pits and areas of natural and historic interest across Mid Cornwall. There was a request for expressions of interest (EOI) for related projects. I spoke to Cornwall Council and I have submitted an EOI for the creation of the multi-use trail. <br /><br /><b> 11.0 Highway matters <br /><br /> 11.1 Local highway issues </b><br /><br />As previously reported, a number of residents in St Dennis have brought concerns to my attention about various highway matters. I have been following these up with representatives of Cormac and, in early December, the local manager visited a number of locations around St Dennis with me. Issues that we looked at include the poor condition of various roads and potholes, speeding cars, overgrowing vegetation and visibility issues, parking problems in the centre of the village and linked accessibility problems for local residents, and the condition of ditches on the downs. <br /><br />At the request of the Parish Council, I have asked that speed monitoring be carried out in the following locations: Fore Street near ClayTAWC, Hall Road and Trelavour Road. <br /><br /><b>11.2 Proposed double yellow lines at Wesley Place</b><br /> <br /> The 21-day consultation on parking restrictions on the road near Wesley Place closed in November. I have been informed that the Council had received no feedback from residents in the immediate area, and I have offered to do a further letter drop to seek feedback. <br /><br /><b>12.0 Newsletter </b><br /><br />In last year’s election campaign, I pledged that I would produce a parish-wide newsletter roughly every six months, which would be delivered to households across the Parish. I have produced my first newsletter and I have started my deliveries. Once I have completed the distribution of this newsletter, I will be producing one for St Enoder Parish. <br /><br /><b>13.0 Recycling bins in Wellington Road car park - update </b><br /><br />Unfortunately, my newsletter is already out-of-date. In my newsletter I reminded local residents that, in the 2021 local election campaign, the Conservatives pledged that they would re-instate the recycling banks (removed from car parks by the previous administration) where there were requests from the local community. I added that after discussions with the Parish Council, we had formally requested that the bins be brought back to the Wellington Road car park. <br /><br />However, there has been a newspaper report following a meeting of the Neighbourhoods Overview & Scrutiny Committee on 20th January, it was confirmed that the new administration had taken the decision not to reinstall any bins in car parks owned by the Council. It was stated by the portfolio holder that they had “agreed to review the service” but that the bins were too costly to re-install. I have not had any formal correspondence to this effect and I have written to the portfolio holder. <br /><br /><b> ST ENODER PARISH ISSUES <br /><br />14.0 Planning matters <br /><br />14.1 Appeal on Highgate Hill, Indian Queens (PA20/08024) </b><br /><br />On 20th November 2020, an application for the “planning in principle” of five dwellings on Highgate Hill was refused by Cornwall Council. This was because the development was not in an area allocated for housing, and it did not fit the policies in the emerging St Enoder Neighbourhood Plan. <br /><br />The landowner referred the application to the Planning Inspectorate, based in Bristol. The Parish Council backed Cornwall Council’s decision and I produced a detailed representation on behalf of the Parish Council, setting out why the development would be inappropriate. <br /><br />We have just found out that the planning inspector has granted planning permission for the development, even though – as stated by a planning journalist – it was “in a location contrary” to the Neighbourhood Plan. <br /><br /><b>14.2 Appeal on Moorland Road, Indian Queens (PA21/01683) </b><br /><br />On 2nd August 2021, the Central Sub-Area Planning Committee of Cornwall Council unanimously rejected the planning application for four commercial units at the rear of Unit 2, on the industrial estate at Indian Queens, which included a new access from Moorland Road. <br /><br />Local residents were concerned about the traffic problems that a new access onto the old A30 would cause, and also raised concerns that the screening (trees and shrubs) previously located within the area had been removed. A previous consent had conditioned the need for screening. There has also been a petition of 92 names against the development. <br /><br />The landowner has now appealed the decision to the Planning Inspectorate, and I have just produced a detailed representation (of over 4,500 words) on behalf of the Parish Council and local residents, which has been forwarded to the planning inspector. <br /><br /><b>14.3 Central Sub-Area Planning Committee </b><br /><br />A proposal for a farm worker’s dwelling near Blackcross (associated with the dairy farm at Little Gaverigan) was debated at a meeting of the Central Sub-Area Planning Committee on 17th January. A representative of the Parish Council, Ross Wimberley, and I spoke in favour of the proposal. It was approved by six votes to two, with one abstention. <br /><br /><b>15.0 Allocation of affordable housing in St Enoder Parish</b><br /> <br /> Further to my review of affordable housing issues in St Dennis Parish, I have also been looking at the allocation of affordable homes in St Enoder Parish. I have been informed that over the last four years, a total of 36 properties have been let. <br /><br />A new development of 18 properties was completed by Coastline Housing in 2020 near Mitchell (Fair Close / Strawberry Close). This land was in St Enoder Parish at the time of the planning application, but has since been transferred to the parish of St Newlyn East. It had a Section 106 legal agreement, which specified that priority should be given to households from St Enoder and St Newlyn East parishes. Of the first lets, ten went to families with a St Enoder connection, while three went to households linked to St Newlyn East. The remaining five went to new occupants from further afield. There has been a re-let of one property, which went to someone from St Newlyn East. <br /><br />In terms of the properties owned by Ocean Housing, there have been 17 re-lets. Of these, eight were properties with an associated “parish connection” legal agreement and seven went to local families. Of the remaining nine older properties (without a “parish connection” legal agreement) only two went to households with a St Enoder parish connection. <br /><br />Putting this evidence in percentage terms, it means that: <br /><br />· Overall, 23 of the 36 properties went to people with an appropriate parish connection (64%). <br /><br />· Of the 27 properties with S106 agreements, 21 went to households with an appropriate parish connection (78%). <br /><br />· However, of the remaining properties without restrictions only two (22%) went to local families. <br /><br />I am making representations that further preference is given to local families, particularly in relation to the older properties, which do not have Section 106 agreements. <br /><br /><b>16.0 Highway matters</b><br /> <br /> Listed below are those highway matters where I have specific updates. <br /><br /><b>16.1 Local highway issues </b><br /><br />The local Cormac manager visited a number of locations around St Enoder with me in December, so that I could share local representations with her. Issues that I raised include flooding problems, the condition of certain road surfaces, parking congestion, the faded nature of lines on some roads, and overgrown boundaries. <br /><br /><b>16.2 Speed visors</b><br /> <br /> I am very pleased that the Parish Council have purchased two new speed visors for use around the Parish. It was a pleasure to erect them with the Parish Clerk in Mid December. They are presently located on Moorland Road, Indian Queens, the eastern approach into St Columb Road, and School Road, Summercourt. They will moved again in the near future. <br /><br /><b> 16.3 Summercourt School</b><br /> <br /> As previously noted, the sign on the approach towards the School is a temporary one. It is to be replaced with a dual-purpose vehicle-activated sign which, when it is not showing the variable 20mph limit, will flash at vehicles going over the 30mph limit. There have been delays in getting the new sign, but I have been informed that it should erected in February. New “School” signs will also soon be put up.<br /> <br /><b> 16.4 Proposed works on A3058 through Summercourt</b><br /> <br /> The consultation on the A3058 improvements (through the Safer Roads scheme) between Quintrell Downs roundabout and Summercourt crossroads, closed in November. I have been told that the feedback was supportive of the improvements. I have been pushing for the works to happen as soon as possible, and it is presently my understanding that one of the first interventions will be the erection of the permanent vehicle activated signs in Summercourt. The proposed signalised pedestrian crossings at the crossroads will follow. <br /><br /><b> 16.5 Proposed double yellow lines at Penhale</b><br /> <br /> The consultation on parking restrictions in the Penhale area closed in November. There was a positive response to the proposed works. A couple of slight tweaks will be made and the scheme will be implemented later this year. <br /><br /><b>16.6 Penhale to Halloon </b><br /><br />I have previously reported that Cornwall Council has agreed to carry out an audit of road traffic issues between Penhale and the Halloon roundabout. The assessment has started and I attended a TEAMS meeting last week, at which I updated the officers on local concerns that needed to be addressed. <br /><br /><b>167 Sea View Terrace </b><br /><br />I have previously reported that Cornwall Council officers have been carrying out a “road safety” audit of Sea View Terrace, on the road between Fraddon and St Stephen. I have been promised an update of findings in the very near future. <br /><br /><b>17.0 Parish Council projects </b><br /><br />Over the last couple of months, I have been assisting the Parish Clerk with a number of local projects. <br /><br /><b>17.1 Toilet in Indian Queens Recreation Ground </b><br /><br />I am pleased that the Parish Council’s the new public toilets in the Indian Queens Recreation Ground have been completed and opened on 6th January. <br /><br />The toilets will be open from 9.00 in the morning, until dusk, and they will be cleaned every day. The works were carried out by local builder, Nathan Chapman, of N & S Builders, while much of the funding came from a lottery grant that I secured for the Council. <br /><b><br />17.2 Closed cemetery in St Enoder Churchtown</b><br /> <br /> I am also very pleased that the repairs to the wall around the closed cemetery in St Enoder Churchtown have been completed. This is something very close to my heart as the original capping stones for the wall were supplied by the brickworks at Chytane (now Melbur blockworks) where my great-great-grandfather John Cole worked as the agent. This capping stones did not cover the full length of the wall, but the Parish Council has sourced some new capping stones for the remainder of the wall. <br /><br /><b>18.0 Newsletter </b><br /><br />As noted above, when I have finished distributing my newsletter around St Dennis Parish, I will be doing one for St Enoder Parish. <br /><br /><b> HELPING LOCAL FAMILIES<br /> <br /> 19.0 Advice</b><br /> <br /> Over the last few weeks, I have also assisted numerous households and individuals with guidance and advice on a range of topics including planning matters, housing needs, environmental concerns and more.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-54107879140905671302022-01-18T20:46:00.002+00:002022-01-18T20:46:15.476+00:00AFFORDABLE HOUSING NEEDS TO BE AFFORDABLE!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQcYJwqBs2GDTPftOGHSVFtXRzcefnA4xsPg9_U4fJ1PaUzjxvQqZkhUtMgpU1cIRP7v1vyibCFmt1XC_lj3RY_lOw2brSoiXUcNi-N7S1oyyW6KgrFnU1ydeyzGpB11_i1eDd6pa0ZmZ8jsEEQec2rhlT0SwhHxwqqQUlSDtY5VQqX-QKbGwxgwo7=s899" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="899" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQcYJwqBs2GDTPftOGHSVFtXRzcefnA4xsPg9_U4fJ1PaUzjxvQqZkhUtMgpU1cIRP7v1vyibCFmt1XC_lj3RY_lOw2brSoiXUcNi-N7S1oyyW6KgrFnU1ydeyzGpB11_i1eDd6pa0ZmZ8jsEEQec2rhlT0SwhHxwqqQUlSDtY5VQqX-QKbGwxgwo7=w400-h259" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The new administration at the unitary authority has just issued a press release celebrating that Cornwall “delivered the second-highest number of affordable homes in ‘England’ in 2020-21.” This followed the publication of figures from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which shows that a total of 814 affordable homes had been completed to the west of the Tamar last year. <br /><br />The press release was similar to another one from 12 months ago, put out by the previous administration, when 832 such homes were completed for the year 2019-20. <br /><br />Obviously, this comparison between council areas of varying size is quite artificial, and I feel it is important that we look beyond the headline figures. <br /><br />The detailed information shows that 288 of the housing units were for low-cost ownership, discounted sale or shared ownership. In terms of the rental properties, these comprised 47 intermediate rent and 469 for affordable rent, but only ten were for social rent. <br /><br />It is well-known that I have been a critic of the “affordable rent” concept, which sets rents at 80% of the extremely inflated rent levels that might otherwise be achieved on the open-market. <br /><br />The level of chargeable rents are high, though supporters of the model point out that rents are capped at LHA (Local Housing Allowance) levels, which is based on the maximum benefit that could be secured to pay for housing costs. <br /><br />As an example, the LHA figure for the western two-thirds of Cornwall would allow £169.15 a week to be charged for a three-bed property. That could equate to a monthly rent of up to £732.98, which I feel makes a mockery of its description as affordable housing. For North Cornwall, the maximum weekly figure is £149.59, while in South East Cornwall it is £159.95. <br /><br /> By comparison, recent adverts for three-bed social rent properties on the Cornwall Homechoice system showed weekly rents at between £81.91 and £104.76 – a much more reasonable figure. <br /><br />The affordable rent model was introduced by David Cameron’s Coalition Government about a decade ago. Data from the UK Government shows that the consequence has been a near total replacement of social rent properties with affordable rent ones. For example, in the three years between 2008-09 and 2010-11, just before the government-directed change in approach to subsidised housing, the number of social rent units constructed in Cornwall were 441, 562 and 614 respectively <br /><br />I do welcome that Cornwall Council is stating the “focus” of its “current development programme” is social rent. But we need to see the UK Government take the same approach, along with local Housing Associations. <br /><br /><i>This was my article in last week’s Cornish Guardian newspaper.</i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-2519025876827089122022-01-18T20:36:00.008+00:002022-01-18T20:36:35.945+00:00PROPER HOMES OR HOLIDAY LETS?<div class="separator"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgvX0cqLS6n-RLhTbQNBz6HfUGLOJBcrSXNki09wB5zuKxSmwzXE0-qZP1iv_P3vpV0U_RuyRJIC67PHws-2Yj4SvPsysi52sLcTjcJ6vAyfJPKXSGbIQUzrzVZG8RY2fKcJo1zjIVLXIxPc_ptIqwapPY67naR1mTMvXTWEi1XNSfMa3dJ4jth-CbF=s953" imageanchor="1" style="font-style: italic; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="953" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgvX0cqLS6n-RLhTbQNBz6HfUGLOJBcrSXNki09wB5zuKxSmwzXE0-qZP1iv_P3vpV0U_RuyRJIC67PHws-2Yj4SvPsysi52sLcTjcJ6vAyfJPKXSGbIQUzrzVZG8RY2fKcJo1zjIVLXIxPc_ptIqwapPY67naR1mTMvXTWEi1XNSfMa3dJ4jth-CbF=w400-h245" width="400" /></a></div><br />On one of my walks during the Christmas and New Year break, I found myself in a cove in West Cornwall. It included a farm complex, which was fenced off and clearly no longer being used for agricultural purposes. <br /><br />It was a National Trust property and there was a notice which stated that the most recent farm tenancy had ended in October 2018. It added the Trust had a “great opportunity” to manage the farmland “with nature as a priority.” <br /><br />I understand that the larger modern farm buildings are to be removed and the Trust is investigating ideas for how the older traditional farm buildings could be used to “improve the visitor welcome” to the local area. The farmhouse has already been turned into a holiday let, with the promotional blurb for the Listed house specifying that income raised will “help support important conservation work.” <br /><br />I would not question the Trust’s commitment to sustainable farming and the protection of historic landscapes and biodiversity enhancements. <br /><br />But it fills me with sadness to see the loss of another historic holding, where generations have farmed the land. I am very much of the view that organisations seeking to safeguard the countryside, also need to protect the fabric of the human communities that occupy the same space. It is therefore counter-productive and damaging every time a permanent home is lost to become a “second home” or holiday let. <br /><br />I understand why this happens – it is a financial decision! I had a look at the National Trust’s portfolio of holiday properties and the farmhouse would cost between £1,999 and £3,299 to book it out for a week’s holiday. <br /><br />The Trust’s website lists over 500 holiday cottages across Cornwall, England, Northern Ireland and Wales. Of these, 108 are in Cornwall, which seems to be a very high share of the overall number (at over 20%). <br /><br />On its site, the National Trust also notes that it owns around 5,000 houses/cottages and aims to be a “professional and fair landlord” that provides “warm, comfortable homes at a fair market rent for people in more than 40 villages.” Its “overall objectives for housing” include seeking to further its work in local areas “through the selection of tenants with suitable skills” and to help “meet identified social housing needs” where it is a significant housing provider. <br /><br />I have to ask whether the National Trust’s approach to housing in Cornwall is similar or dissimilar to what it does in other parts of the UK? I have written to the Trust to find out and I will report back when I know more.<br /><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>This was my column in the Cornish Guardian newspaper dated 5th January 2022.</i><br />Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560105223161792779.post-24291317214683211462021-12-12T18:34:00.005+00:002021-12-12T18:34:57.240+00:00The 50,000 : what happened after 12th December 2001<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjiJUURHkSbIa2ZdPLHN8grJQZee7B_v1ZpQ3wXDhpGaqo5c22FEsa7DNBKcdQ-K2D0nXigC9wIUhAaVY4rBHe1HfmdLkm6e0QdTX7xX_x6tp09arW6dMXznDxoonpBUfOvHEkksj9WLrlg5YwI6pCCCEs9D7FDreGogap6ciwS9i3tFSD2vpoYVV1T=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1318" data-original-width="2048" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjiJUURHkSbIa2ZdPLHN8grJQZee7B_v1ZpQ3wXDhpGaqo5c22FEsa7DNBKcdQ-K2D0nXigC9wIUhAaVY4rBHe1HfmdLkm6e0QdTX7xX_x6tp09arW6dMXznDxoonpBUfOvHEkksj9WLrlg5YwI6pCCCEs9D7FDreGogap6ciwS9i3tFSD2vpoYVV1T=w400-h258" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><b> This is my article in this coming week's Cornish Guardian.</b><br /><br />In last week’s Cornish Guardian, I wrote about the 20th anniversary of the delivery of 50,000 declarations, calling for a Cornish Assembly, to 10 Downing St on 12th December 2001. I wish to return to this topic and to share how the Westminster establishment dealt with our demand for greater self-government for Cornwall. <br /><br />It remains my view that the 50,000 declarations represented a massive statement of intent from the people of Cornwall. When the signatures were being collected, we were aware that the Labour Government had a position that, if a petition of 5% of voters was collected, it would allow a referendum on changes to local government in a particular area. Obviously, our demands were not about “local government,” but having secured the support of more than 10% of the electorate we felt we had won the “moral argument” to put pressure on the UK Government to support devolution for Cornwall. <br /><br />While there was no formal response from Downing Street, there was hope that our aspirations would be reflected in the forthcoming White Paper. Titled “Your Region, Your Choice,” this was published in May 2002 and studiously ignored Cornwall. Instead, it proposed assemblies for government regions. In the preface, the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, said: “No region will be forced to have an elected assembly. But where there is public support for one, we believe that people should be given the chance to demonstrate this in a referendum.” But for Cornwall, such words were a nonsense. There was no choice. There was just one option - a 25-35 seat assembly for a “South West” which stretched as far as Bristol. <br /><br />At the time Cornwall County Council, four of Cornwall’s six district councils and numerous town and parish councils backed the campaign for a Cornish Assembly and/or a referendum, while hundreds and hundreds of people from Cornwall made similar representations. <br /><br />Sadly, it was to no avail and Tony Blair’s Government refused to even consider the representations for more powers for Cornwall. A subsequent FOI request from MK secured a couple of ministerial briefings from 2002. These set out the “lines to take” when responding to campaigners from Cornwall. One condescendingly stated: “Although the campaign for a Cornish Assembly grabs the headlines, there is a growing but less audible groundswell of <u>informed opinion</u> in favour of a unitary council for Cornwall” adding that the “supporters of a unitary Cornwall could see it nestling happily within a South West Regional Assembly.” I find it so insulting for 50,000 people to be told their opinion is not “informed.” <br /><br />The campaign for meaningful devolution to Cornwall must and will continue.Dick Colehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08887863266989905144noreply@blogger.com0