Highways

Last week I met with the Leader of Surrey County Council (who is also the Oxted County Councillor) and the East Surrey Highways team to raise a number of issues concerning local people. The Parish Council had submitted a long list of lights not working and potholes in Oxted South, but I mentioned four issues of particular concern (all of which are long standing problems):
1 - Inadequate Drains on Coltsfoot which causes frequent flooding
2- Lack of lighting on the Railway Footbridge connecting the Pollards Oak Road Shops to Nunnappleton Way
3 - The state of the tactile pavingstones outside the Londis on Hurst Green Road.
4 - Poor lighting on a footpath in the Red Lane development.

The Highways team took these away and promised a meeting in the New Year to discuss progress.

More postively - plans for the pavement extension and completing the parking restictions around Mill Lane and Hallsland Way are well advanced and should be dellivered early in the spring (with a possibility that the parking restrictions could be in place before the end of December.)

Voyeurism in Oxted

On Tuesday at Redhill Magistrates Court, 41-year-old Kane Joseph Smithers, of Sheiling Road, Crowborough, was sentenced on two charges of voyeurism of young women committed at Tandridge Leisure Centre in Oxted. Now this is the second such offence that has been publicised in recent months.

He was able to do this because the changing rooms in the Leisure Centre are mixed sex. In both cases no serious offence took place and Tandridge Leisure staff easly caught the culprits but it made me think.

It has always seemed slighty odd that in some areas of the public realm (especially hospitals) that there has been a strong move in recent years away from the two sexes sharing areas, but in others (swimming pool changing rooms) then it seems to be positively encouraged. Moreover, there appears to be a yo-yo effect with some parts of the country going one way while others go the other.

Does this mean that the arrangements in the Leisure Centre should change - probably not from a child safety perepective asthere appear to be pros and cons for both arrangements , but I for one would the ability to have a proper shower after a swim.

Bureaucracy

Is a nightmare at the best of times, but the nightmare created by this government has been highlighted to me not once, but twice in the past week.

1stly - At Thursday's meeting of the Planning Policy Committee we were told that we needed to update a list of milestones (which we are forced by law to have) due to our success in getting our core strategy approved. However, the government has threatened to penalise councils who change their milestones. How ridiculous, force us to have a list and then force us not to change it despite us putting in place a Core Strategy that we are forced to have! What's more the reason that milestones take so long to get approved is that our Planning Department spend 1/2 their time submitting democratically approved and publicly consulted plans up to central government for them to review and change and then wait for them to send them back.

2ndly - Due to the bungling Government consulting the County Council (which has no remit in this area) over funding to improve Play Areas, the Surrey Districts (including Tandridge) had no ability to bid for the funds and the opportunity to bid closed before the County was able to coordinate a response. Madness. Local Councils need to be set free from such a straightjacket. If this didn't mean that children in Tandridge will miss out on around a £million of funding, it would be funny.

Both examles demonstrate that there is ample scope to cut out a wasteful layer of central management which just hinders the ability of locally elected councils to deliver quality services to local people. And on the first example, the leader of the Lib Dem opposition on TDC agreed with me.

Economy has some life left.

I was out doing the rounds, putting out our Autumn 'In Touch' today. It was interesting to note that despite the death of the property market that there are still quite a few for sale boards up, together with some that have sold. Good therefore to see not all of the economy has stopped (despite today's newspaper pointing out that we have again be overtaken by the French!).

But at TDC we are likely to have to tighten our belts in the new year, with prices going up income falling ( have a mentioned before the appalling 0.5% grant settlement we get from central government?), but hopefully one thing that might escape the cut is £14,000 that the Community Services Committee voted to the local Scouts last week to contribute to the rebuilding of their hut following its destruction a couple of years ago.

No Garden Grabbers

Hot on the heels of Tandridge's Core Strategy, which will help to prevent inappropriate development in both local communities and on Green Belt land Conservatives in the House of Lords have defeated the Government on their Planning Bill to give more protection to local communities.

The law will now strengthen the powers of local councils to protect urban green space and gardens, and restricts the power of the Government to interfere in councils which want to protect the character of their neighbourhoods. Gardens will again be classed as green space (rather than brownfield land).

It is very pleasing that Conservatives in Parliament used one of the few opportunities to defeat the government to reaffirm their commitment to local decisions by local people.

Credit Crunched

Is how I feel at the moment and is my excuse for not having blogged recently.

Work is exceptionally busy (and has been for the past year) and trying to juggle that with a family and being a councillor is not at all easy and recently been a bit too much. I have made all my meetings, am following up my casework, though am probably slower than I would otherwise be at getting back to people. However I have not had time to blog.

And unfortunately I haven't really now. The key things locally to note are
1 - We (TDC) have approved and implemented the Core Strategy
2- We (TDC) have listened to residents and not put in place any interim policy for handling applications for gypsy or traveller pitches until the outcome of allocation of sites between council areas is known.
3 - There have been a number of acts of mindless vandalism in Oxted South. The Police are investigating but please let them know if you see anything (or have seen anything) that concerns you.
4 - Times are now hard for the Council as well as for everyone else. The cut in interest rates and our appalling government grant settlement (a cash increase of 0.5% per year or MINUS 6.5% after the effects of inflation) means that we are in for a tough budgeting round this year.

I will not promise to be posting regularly for some time yet, but will try to do at least one post per week.

Tandridge Lesiure

Going back to last week, I along with a number of Councillors was given a tour of the various facilities operated by Tandridge Leisure Limited (TLL) in the district. TLL was formed back in 2000 from the Leisure Directorate of TDC, when the government's funding arrangements made it more sensible to set up a community trust to operate the two leisure centres than for the Council to continue to operate them.

Unfortunately the two swimming pools are starting to show their age and will require substantial investment over coming years. However both are very well equipped - the gyms would put most private health clubs to shame - and very well patronised.

And even more impressive was 'The Arc', a new facility opened on the Caterham Barracks site, which provides a soft play centre and a variety of spaces that can be used from anything to art classes for the disabled to hosting teenage band nights. This is a wonderful space and one TLL are using to the benefit of the community.

TLL also gave us a presentation on the wide range of activities they put on in the community every week, the majority aimed at young people, including the Surrey Youth Games, but many more that are not. They reach 1800 young people per week. I for one was largely unaware of these activities, but having seen just a couple of highlights was convinced that they are doing a great job catering for this unprovided for age group.

I left feeling that Tandridge is much the better for having TLL

Policing Update

The bi-monthly Police Panel took place on Tuesday night. After a very quiet last meeting there was much more to report.

A group of children , some of whom maybe as young as 8 are creating trouble in the Greenway/Boulthurst Way/Red Lane/Holland Lane areas. They appear to delight in throwing gravel, smashing windows and otherwise menacing local residents. It seems one of the ring leaders may well be known to the Police and they will be looking to put a stop to this as soon as possible.

Other anti social behaviour has been taking place in the sheltered housing at the top of Coldshott and in the flats off the Greenway where fire extinguishers have been set off.

Also at Coldshott a couple of cars have been burnt out and two JCBs on the old Ajax site have also been set alight causing £150,000 of damage.

Oxted South and Hurst Green on the whole is a quiet, pleasant and friendly place to live.I trust this is all just a temporary intrusion and things will be back to normal as soon as possible.

Southern Railway - Corporate Lies

I am a little disturbed by the behaviour of Southern Railway. To be fair to them I think Southern is a well run franchise and we are fortunate locally to have such new trains. It would be better if they were more frequent, but that is down to Government and to Network Rail not the local operator.

However they have a nasty habit of telling lies when they have to run 'short trains' out of London Bridge to East Grinstead or Uckfield in the evening rush hour. Every so often when there is a problem with rolling stock (the fact they have no spare stock is also poor) they have to run six, four or even two carriage trains rather than eight. On those occasions the guards have started to repeatedly announce while boarding is taking place that the train will not stop at East Croydon, only as soon as the train has departed to reinstate the stop.

Clearly what they are doing is trying to encourage those who require East Croydon to use another train, of which admittedly there is plenty of choice to free up space for those off to Oxted and beyond. I can see that they think they are doing it for the best of reasons. But even so for a company to deliberately set out to deceive on this minor of matters does not instill confidence that they would tell the truth about more major ones.

Resources Committee

A packed agenda last night, important issues, but not ones that necessarily excite: Pensions, the Council's Medium Term Financial Strategy and the distribution of papers to Councillors.

The most important issue on the agenda, although not the most controversial was the Council"s objectives for the comming municipal year. Rather than a whole list of deliverables I was pleased to see we were focussing on three big issues - Recycling, implementing our new Planning Core Strategy and meeting residents' housing needs.

A clear focus on key deliverables while running and efficent operation will ensure that we deliver our aims to provide high quality services while keeping council tax at the lowest level possible despite our very very low (and very unfair) government grant.

Social Injustice

One of the highlights from my brief time at Conference was a presentation given by Iain Duncan Smith on Social breakdown. it powerfully highlighted the problems faced by children and young people today and he made the point that when the state intervenes to put children in care things tend to get worse. Only 12% of children in care get 5 GCSEs at Grade C or above and nearly half all under 21s in the criminal justice system were in care. And much of the serious crime that occurs on our streets is caused by young people, especially those in gangs, He made clear that the major cause of this is the impact of neglect, with outcomes often being determined in our earliest years. He showed evidence comparing the human brain of a normal 3 year old to one who had been seriously neglected. The latter child's development had been stunted with different parts of the brain unable to make connection

Truly shocking stuff. IDS's Centre for Social Justice is doing sterling work highlighting this issue and proposing solutions - they have 237 proposed polices in the wings. I recommend taking a look at his presentation for more information:http://www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/client/downloads/20080930ConservativePartyConferenceMainstage.ppt

Weekly Recycling to Go District Wide

I returned yesterday from a rather shorter trip than I had originally intended to Conservative Party conference, the current extreme financial market conditions requiring me to be at work instead.

However I was able to hear Eric Pickles, the Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government announce a commitment to allow councils that have dropped weekly refuse collections restore them under a Conservative Government. In Tandridge we have resisted the financial pressures to leave rubbish festering for a fortnight and what's more we have done this while extending the weekly curbside recycling scheme.

And in the same week therefore it is great that the Council have announced that our weekly recycling service, which includes the collection of plastic bottles, will be rolled out across the whole of Tandridge district from 2 February 2009. That means an additional 18,000 homes in Tandridge will be able to take part and have recycling collected every week. And on the same day as the bins are emptied. This means all rubbish - black bags for landfill and reusable waste for recycling can be easily disposed of on the same day.

Care and Repair - Value for Money

The Tandridge Care and Repair Agency helps older and disabled people remain in their own homes.

For a reasonable cost council handymen carry out small repairs and minor alterations to Council and private homes in the district. Things like gutter clearing, outting up shelves or assembling flat pack furniture that most of us take for granted. Last year 962 handyman jobs were carried out.

This is an example of where a local unbureaucractic initiative manages to make a difference to the lives of hundreds of people every year at a very reasonable cost.

Madness of the Government Minister

A small point, but in the Secretary of State's overruling of her expert panel's response to the Regional Assembly (which at least has some democratically elected representatives serving on it), in massively increasing the number of houses some areas (including Reigate and Banstead) will have to allow she appears to have ignored the natural world. I'll elaborate; there if a finite amount of water in the underground chalk aquifer that serves much of East Surrey, including Redhill and Tandridge. By nearly doubling the number of homes needed to be be built in Redhill, she appears to believe that she can apportion some of the water to flow to where it goes now to Tandridge to prevent development in Redhill from causing existing homes to run dry. This appears to ignore the laws of physics. Or maybe she believes that she can direct the natural elements in the same way she directs councils.

Financial Markets and Banks

I am not going to comment much on the current turmoil going on, many others will do that much better than me. But I really feel for those people, whose jobs are disappearing overnight.

More details on the Core Strategy

Having now had a chance to read the inspectors full report, his conclusions are pleasing.

One of the most critical issues the Inspector had to deal with was whether the Council’s strategy for ensuring enough housing is provided while protecting the Green Belt was the right one.He thought it was which is great news for the Green Belt.

A particular additional success was his support for the policy to curtail the activities for garden grabbers which will allow TDC to refuse planning permission for housing schemes of five houses and over on residential garden land, where there is an oversupply of housing.

The Inspector also supported the policies on character, design and density. The Inspector strengthened the policy on town centres by including a reference to the former Rose & Young site in Croydon Road, Caterham and the Oxted gasholder site, because of the importance the Council attaches to the redevelopment of these.

The Inspector has asked the Council to carry out an early review of two particular policies; affordable housing. and the infilling of the villages designated as Green Belt Settlements. But otherwise, apart from some minor criticism of the drafting the Policy was supported.

The Council will now be in a much better position to defend the district against unsuitable development.

Planning and Environment Committee

The first Planning and Environment Committee meeting after the summer break took place on Thursday night.

It started with the Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition tabling an motion commending the officers on the successful adoption of the Core Strategy. This was unanimously approved. Although we do not yet know what changes the Planning Inspector made, we know that to get it approved in any form is much better than most authorities in England have yet achieved.

Much of the remainder of the evening was spent discussing how best to protect the green belt in Tandridge against unauthorised Traveller encampments and how to deal with any urgent need for Gypsy and traveller need while an East-Surrey wide strategy was agreed. Councillors were made very aware of the need to provide for minorities while balancing the interests of the majority of their constituents. In so far as unauthorised encampments go, we all agreed that while Council should support law abiding land owners against what can be a very distressing invasion of their land, land owners also have a duty to protect themselves.

We also discussed the Governments response to the South East Plan - this is deserving of a post of its own!

Police Roadshow to hit Oxted

SURREY Police is inviting the public to its ‘Right Up Your Street’ road show, promoting the fact that every neighbourhood in Surrey has its own Safer Neighbourhood policing team, which comes to Oxted next week as part of a month-long campaign being run by Surrey Police.

The road show will be at Morrisons next Saturday, 20 September, from 11am to 4pm, where Oxted residents are invited to meet the local Safer Neighbourhood team (PCs David Every & Richard Smurthwaite and PCSOs Lisa Cobby and Stephen Winch) and and chat to them as they hand out information and run competitions.

If local residents have any questions for our hard working local police I suggest they head over next Saturday, or alternative attend the bi-monthly Police Panels in Hurst Green. The next one will be held at the Hurst Green Community Association on 22 October at 8pm.

Blogging to resume shortly...

Apologies pressures of work have have stopped me from blogging this week.

When I get a moment I plan to say something about:

- the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government's mad response to the South East Regional Plan
- A Police roadshow to be held at Morrisons next Saturday
- and last night's Planning and Environment Committee meeting.

Core Strategy IS SOUND

The Planning Inspector has declared TDC's Core Strategy to be “sound”. This is only the second Core Strategy to be accepted in Surrey.

This is superb news for residents as it will now be easier to protect Tandridge from inappropriate development. And a superb result for the Council Officers, who worked so hard to convince the Inspector that the proposal from Tandridge's, supported by elected Councillors from all parties AND also local residents, should be adopted and not dismissed as some self-interested developers would have had it.

The Core Strategy is a blueprint for the future development of Tandridge District and was the subject of a public Examination by the Inspector in June and July 2008. The event caused a lot of public interest, including large crowds outside the Council Offices in Oxted.

Some developers and landowners objected to the Core Strategy because they felt it did not allow enough new development. The Council’s approach, based on restraint, has been supported by the Planning Inspector and he has declared the document is sound.

The Inspector’s report is currently being factually checked before it can be made available. Once published, it can be adopted and used to help decide planning applications.

07.35 Train to London Bridge CANCELLED

I am sitting on the train to London Bridge as I write this on my blackberry. Which is pretty apt as last week the Government annouced the names of the four bidders for the new South Central franchise (the area covered by Southern and Gatwick Express at the moment). It seems such a short period since Southern took over from Connex that it can't be time for another change but apparently it is.

I thought I ought to read what was being proposed and I must report to be dismayed that in about three years time they are going to cut the frequency of the Uckfield trains at peak times because of a lack of platform capacity at London Bridge station caused by the Thameslink 2000 project. This will impact on fellow rail paasengers down the whole of the Uckfield and East Grinstead lines as we struggle to get onto what are already overcrowded trains.

The double irony is that 1) The London Bridge works are aimed at increasing capacity on the Brighton main line, which is currently less over crowded that the Uckfield/East Grinstead Lines. 2) Cutting services from Uckfield will actually drive passengers back to the Brighton Line

A partial solution to the problem, suggested by London Travelwatch, would be the electricfication of the Uckfield Line - together with making it double track over its whole length. I hope this suggestion finds favour with those in power, otherwise those of us who commute to London regularly may face a miserable few years.

New Mobile Phone Mast Proposed

Vodafone are proposing replacing their current mobile phone mast next to Hurst Green station with a ungraded version. It appears it will be similar in height, though the footprint on the ground will be bigger.

To see the plans following this link. Given it is merely replacing an exisiting mast and providing an upgraded service then the impact will be broadly neutral, but happ to hear from any residents who diagree.

Footbridge over Railway Closed

The footbridge connecting Nunnappleton Way with Pollards Oak Road has been closed off by Surrey County Councill. Their statement (available in the depths of their website states that this is : due to 'the likelihood of danger to the public and will be in operation for a period of six months from 11 August 2008 or until completion of the works, if earlier and while the relevant notices are displayed. That period can be extended by the Secretary of State for Transport if required.

The prohibition described above will only be operative while the County Council, or an authorised person acting on its behalf, displays signs prohibiting the said vehicular movements.'

Unfortunately Surrey County Concil have not publicised this locally but I can confirm it has now been blocked off. I hope that this will be shut for as short a period as possible.

Update: I have now viewed the footbridge from the Nunappleton road side and there is a sign stating that the path will be closed until the 28th.

Make Sure You Can Have Your Say

It only takes a couple of minutes to do, but if you don't do you will not have a say in who runs, Tandridge, Surrey or the UK.

The Register of Electors annual canvass takes place in Tandridge from the end of August. A form which shows all the details the Council has about households on the current electoral register will be delivered to all 34,500 residential properties in the district.

Letting TDC know whether the information is correct (by phone or internet) or if not (by post) will not take more than a few minutes and by doing so will ensure that come election day all adults in a household can vote

The information from the canvass is used to create the register which will be printed on 1 December.

Hurst Green Police Panel

Last night, in wet and autumnal conditions the bi-monthly Police Panel took place at the Hurst Green Community Centre.

Attendance appeared to have been hit by the poor weather and holiday season, but the police were able to report that things were very quiet in Hurst Green, so quiet that that there were no priorities to take away from the meeting.

Speeding on Mill Lane was discussed again and the Police will be considering what steps to take over the next few weeks now the casualty reduction officer is back at work.

On the Greenway, much of the graffiti that appeared there has been cleared up by TDC and the Police are perusing the perpetrators. A meeting at the Community Centre will be held on 1 September for Greenway residents interested in forming a neighbourhood watch.

The Oxted Pram Race passed off broadly peacefully, but one man was arrested and will be prosecuted for a number of offences.

Following suggestions at the meeting the Police will be speaking to residents on Pollards Wood Road as to what the options for off street parking might be in order to reduce parking near the junction with Pollards Oak Road.

The Oxted Pram Race passed off broadly peacfully, but one man was arrested and will be prosectuted for a number of offences.

Following suggestions at the meeting the Police will be speaking to residents on Pollards Wood Road as to what the options for off street parking might be in order to reduce parking near the junction with Pollards Oak Road.

Councils Offering Mortgages

This idea has been rumbling on over the past few months and appears to have reached a head in a letter to the Times today. I think it is absolutely bonkers, though it right that locally communities should decide whether to go ahead with it. The idea that in the current tough economic conditions councils can take on mortgage lending without a very significant risk to the local council taxpayer is just naive.

Councils are not set up to undertake the type of risk management that is required from operating a mortgage book and the statement from Liverpool City Council which said “We are talking about people who were offered a mortgage a few months ago, when the lenders were offering 95 per cent mortages, but are unable to do so now that deposits of 15 per cent are required,” just shows the lack of understanding about the risks involved. There is a good reason why Banks are asking for 15% deposits - it is to prorect their balance sheets. Local authorities have a duty to protect their balance sheets also.

Labour isn't Working

Labour have always claimed to be the party that best represents the disadvantaged in society. This claim has always been false, but yesterday's report from George Osborne just shows how fale it is. Since coming to power in 1997 Labour has presided over:

- 900,000 more people in extreme poverty and the gap in life expectancy becoming greater than in Victorian times.
- the imposition of stealth taxes most heavily on the poor. Mr Osborne asks: "Is it fair to reward enterprise and effort, yet for someone earning £100 a week, for every extra pound they earn they take home just 6p?"
- a failure to undertake schools reform meaning that the gap between the poorest and richest pupils is widening. Social mobility is falling too. This year just 176 pupils on free school meals got three As at A-level.
- a shift of burden from today's Britons to the next generation: As Mr Brown seeks to save his skin he is doing so by recklessly increasing public borrowing to pay for tax give aways today that will have to be paid for by future generations.

Fairly daming stuff

Hat tip: Conservative Home

Gold again

We are now up to 12 Golds in the Olympics - the most satisfying point for me is that we are ahead of both Australia and Germany. Now we just need to make sure it stays that way. Go Great Britain Go

Gold, Gold, Gold, Gold

Now I am not that into the Olympics, but to get 9 medals in one day - 4 of them at Gold is a superb effort by the Olympic Team and just shows what the combination of some very hard work by our athletes and better funding via the National Lottery can produce.

Well done all and Come on Britain.

Local Conservatives will need Localism

As this Labour government staggers on through a summer and the economic news worsens I was mulling this evening how the future will pan out.

If, as currently seems likely, the Conservatives win the election what will they face? With the public finances shot and the prospect of a long period of low or negative growth will the public put up with the necessary long period of restocking the nation's coffers? Hopefully the our experience in the the early 1980s will prove an accurate predictor of the future - a Conservative administration rescuing the country from ten years of economic mismanagement - with the repairs that can be made in the first years of a Cameron administration serving the country well for the decade to come.

However national successes will likely come at a price, and locally the key challenge will be for a Conservative Council to survive any dissatisfaction from voters in the challenging early years of the next administration.

Again I conclude that the link between central and local government should be loosened with real power needs being devolved to local level. Only by doing this will we stand a chance of people voting on local issues to when they come to elect local representatives residents.Treating all elections as an opinion poll on central government needs to end.

Effects of competition

Oxted has long been a haven for the more independent shop, with national chains being far outnumbered by local businesses. I think it is too early to say that is going to change but I spotted today that the Costcutter on Station Road East has closed. (Now I accept that this is not a particularly local company but bear with me.)

I expect that the one factor that has contributed most to its demise was the re-opening of a Sainsburys in town. This is despite the Sainsburys being much smaller and without much of the range that Costcutter stocked. But the combination of long opening hours and better positioning clearly did for Costcutter, in the same way I expect that Sainsburys might have been the final straw for the greengrocers which has now been replaced (to some protests) by a Costa Coffee.

Only time will tell whether Costa will kill off other local rivals, but I sincerely hope not. The lesson here is that all businesses (whether independents or chains) need to to continue to adapt and change to meet their customers needs. Those that don't will die.

And sadly if to prove a point, I was today in an independent shop in Oxted today which I think has clearly not got it right. I was the only customer and I found it hard to find what I wanted. If it doesn't change I don't expect it will be there in 12 months time.

I'm Back

Apologies for the lack of activity over the past couple of weeks. I was on holiday and then trying desperately to catch-up at work for having been on holiday. Sometimes makes you wonder what the point of going away actually is.

Anything not much to report locally - all seems to have been quite quiet - though I stand ready to be corrected.

Nationally David Milliband started what appears to have been an attempt to rest the poisoned chalice that is being leader of the Labour Party from Gordon Brown and then promptly went off on holiday. So looks like more leadership speculation will take place throughout the rest of 2008.

Nowhere left to hide for Labour

Losing Glasgow East is on a par with any byelection loss by the Tories in the 1990s. This seat was so safe they didn't even bother canvassing in the past, but no longer. Brown is a looser and Labour now know it - the question is whether they will do anything about it?

Grass Update

Fo those who haven't noticed, the roadside verges around the district have now all been cut by Surrey County Council. Together with the open space which is the responsibility of TDC also being cut properly, Oxted South looks respectable again.

Why Labour fail

Today's speech by Alan Johnson the Heath Secrtary illustrates what is wrong with this Government.

In response to recent speech by David Cameron, Mr Johnson states that it is the government not the individual that is responsible for solving what is wrong in their lives.

Government and voluntary organisations have roles to play but it seems clear to me that primarily the individual has personal responsibility for their own actions. Johnson makes his comments in relation to obesity, but they would apply equally to knife crime, unemployment, anti social behaviour etc etc. Without restoring the idea that we have some responsibility over our own actions then we will not be able to solve society's ills.

EU Treaty Ratified

So despite the Irish 'No' Vote, the Government has today ratified the European Constitution by despositing the papers in Rome. Our only hope is that the Irish are not bullied into revering their decision.

However give it its due, (and whisper it quietly) the EU sometimes can do the right thing. Today EU countries have agreed to widen sanctions on Zimbabwe, including travel bans and asset freezes on a larger circle of officials and supporters of Mugabe, and a further review in September will examine if more measures are needed.

Taxpayers save from the Web

Tandridge has again acted to deliver its services at the lowest burden on the taxpayer. From next week the Council website will be accepting web advertising. Unobtrusive adverts from big name firms will sit alongside the current high quality content and earn money for the Council to pay in part for its costs.

I fully support this initiative and look to work with Conservative colleagues to deliver further revenue streams that do not reduce the current high quality of Council services.

Another By-election, Another Bribe

So the Government today decided to postpone the 2p increase in fuel duty. David Cameron asked the obvious question at Prime Ministers' questions today - was the increase anything to do with the Glasgow East by-election next week. The Government denies that it is, but have look at Brown's record and make your own judgement:

Autumn 'Phoney Election' - cut in inheritaince tax
Crewe and Nantwich By-election - 10p tax U-turn
Glasgow East - Delay in fuel tax rise.

Apologies

For the lack of posts over the past couple of weeks loyal readers (all 6 of you!). The combination of pressures of work, Council and family commitments have left no time for anything else. I hope to resume a more normal service for at least the next 10 days.

Changes to Parking in Oxted

Following requests by residents, trial changes have been made to parking restrictions in Ellice Road car park, Oxted. From 7 July for a trial period, all restrictions will be lifted at 5pm. This means motorists parking after 1pm can leave their car for the rest of the day and evening, as long as it has been moved by 7am the next day. This will benefit residents who want to use the car park, for example when they occasionally travel to London by train for doctors’ and other appointments or to visit the theatre.

This is good news and will hopefully strike a balance between spaces being available for shoppers and for local residents who need to travel up to town.

Tandridge - A Paradox

No Theatre/Arts Complex, McDonalds or Marks and Spencer and just a single screen cinema, but 9 railway stations (servicing 3 lines) two motorways and two airports (and a third - Gatwick just beyond our borders).

This is the paradox of Tandridge District - we have superb transport links to London, South East and for that matter the rest of the world, but have few bid attractions other than our beautiful countryside and charming towns and villages. But local residents do not miss having easy access to the West End of London for Culture, Crawley and Croydon for shopping and other leisure.

That's why the government's one size fits all approach often fails Tandridge residents. We have our own challenges, mainly preserving the character of the area for future generations, but these are palpably not the same as those larger more urban centres face. We need proper local decision making not the current central govermnment dictat to protect and enhance our district.

The Greenway

Last night TDC's development control committee voted to allow the building of Social Housing on the Greenway. The site is an under used car park and often the site of minor anti social behaviour and therefore in my mind the devlopment will actually improve things for existing residents.

However not all local residents agreed - they were particulalrly concerned about the impact of the loss of off-street parking and green spaces, a real concern in that part of Hurst Green as many are forced currently to park on roadsides and their verges, and there was a petiton got up opposing the application and an eloquent speech from an objector.

I therefore asked committee members to consider carefully whether the loss of amenity was too much for residents to bear. I am pleased to report that members of the committee gave the matter serious consideration but concluded that the application had merit. I think that this is the right decision - the need for more affordable housing in Tandridge is proved - despite the negative impact on some, but it does unfortunately prove the maxim that you can't please all of the people all of the time.

People are so very good.

On Wednesday my wife and daughters were involved in a car crash. None of them were seriously hurt though my wife got a burn on her arm from the airbag. I am awaiting confirmation from the insurance company but I expect the car to be written off.

The crash happened at about 2.30pm. By 2.40 a passer by had called me on my mobile to let me know what had happend. Co-incidently I was on a train pulling into Oxted at the time and was therefore able to jump in a cab and hotfoot it to the scene of the crash.

When I got there the police and paramedics were on site as were 15 or so passers by. All without exception were so very kind and helpful to us all - my wife and girls were got out of the car by an off duty nurse and her daughter who sat with them until we were taken to East Surrey to be checked out; a number of people offered to drive me where ever we needed to go; one local resident invited me in if I needed to wait. The police and ambulance staff treated us very kindly and professionally as did the staff at East Surrey.

The incident while distressing has really renewed my faith in people. When the chips are down people are there for you. Thank you all

What's the worst that can happen to me as a Councillor?

A bit of verbal abuse from a frustrated resident, a few negative comments on my blog or in an extreme case - and as happened to former Councillor Longhurst - hit over the head with some papers.

In Zimbabwe if I were an MDC councillor I would risk suffering a severe beating, mutilation, torture and death and so would my family. The situation out there is desperate and we need to do something. It is not good enough to sit on the sidelines as the country becomes a fully fledged military dictatorship. The world needs to act and soon.

Policing Update

Last night’s Police Panel was very much focused on the establishment of Neighbourhood watches. Both the Police and local residents who are currently members of one set out how useful these are - you can even save money on your household insurance premium.

There were few specific criminal incidents raised, though people remain concerned about the speed of vehicles going down Mill Lane, especially during the school day and the inappropriate use of that road as a cut through for HGV drivers.

Some incidents of anti-social behaviour were mentioned with Greenway residents the most affected, but there seemed less to report than in previous times.

The Police made clear that if you need to contact them the numbers to use are 0845 125 2222 or in an emergency 999.

A final observation from me is just to note how luck we are in Oxted South with our Police Offices and PCSOs. Their enthusiasm and commitment to their jobs is superb. While resources are never enough – the quality here couldn't be higher.

Home Choice

Council Tenants now have more say in where they can live following the launch of the Council's Home Choice Service. All vacant Council and Housing Association properties are now advertised on a website www.tandridge-homechoice.org.uk.

Only those on the housing register can “bid” for up to three properties, which are advertised each week and this will be the only way to be considered for a tenancy. By bidding they are expressing their interest in a property and want to be considered for the tenancy. Bids are only accepted through the website, or the 24 hour automated bidding line on 0845 270 1908. If more than one person bids for a property, priority will still be given to the applicant with the greatest need and who has been waiting the longest.

While the number of Council and Housing Association properties available are always going to be limited - this new service gives prospective tenants a much better idea of where homes are becoming available in the district and therefore allow them to make an informed decision on whether to consider bidding for other types of properties or areas. Power is being transferred (albeit in a limited way) to those who are actually being impacted which is a positive development for local democracy.

Planning and Environment

Last night saw the first meeting of Planning and Environment Committee in this civic year. There was broad agreement on the issues discussed in what turned out to be a relatively short session covering the proposed changes to the Core Strategy, a review of the performance of the food and health and safety teams and their remits for the forthcoming year. The Committee agreed procedures for street naming and also to set up a working group to propose how we could implement a better system of getting funds from property developers to strengthen Tandridge's infrastructure.

Luck of the Irish

Though it is us who are lucky and it is all down to the Irish. They have ignored the pressure brought down on them to back the EU Constitution and have said no on behalf of all those in Europe who were denied a proper say. It looks like the EU will try to find yet another way around this democratic set-back (and Brown has already pledged to continue with the Parliamentary process for British ratification), but for today we can all celebrate.

David Davis

Shrewd move or Political Balls Up?

I am not sure. I certainly agree with Davis on his position over 42 days detention I think his decision probably undermines the cause, by taking the heat off of Brown. However there is a long tradition of MPs resigning and fighting By-elections -although not one honoured much in recent years.

Zimbabwe

A report in today's Times (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article4116638.ece?&EMC-Bltn=INZA49) makes sickening reading. It is clear that any remaining protection of the 'Rule of Law' is crumbling. The military Junta that back Mugabe's presidency have organized their mobs to ensure that the opposition are all but destroyed ahead of the run-off and the international community just watches and waits. The argument for the West not doing anything is partly based on the need not to look like imperialists flexing their arms over Africa again. This is a valid argument but the need to stop the sheer brutality of the violence of that regime should now outweigh this consideration. Africa has failed to do anything. We need to intervene and to do so soon.

Browns Maastricht Moment?

A majority of 9 bought with the votes of the DUP - 316 to 309. The comparisons with the Major government's victory over rebels 16 years ago are clearly there; Brown is now struggling to exert authority over his party and the Labour rebellion was bigger than that Major faced. However there are differences too - it didn't get as far as a vote of confidence 42 days is unlikely to divide the Labour parties as fundamentally as Europe did to the Conservatives, but most importantly the public broadly support the government on this measure.

Personally I was against, the state is already powerful enough.

Mowing Update

As of last night 'Hurst Green' itself has been mowed, along with at least some of the playing fields off Mill Lane.

Clearly the speed and quality of service on this occasion is unnacceptable. TDC is is working on it.

Leisure and Recreation in Tandridge

I would be very grateful for the views of any Tandridge residents reading this on the Leisure and Recreation Services provided in the district (whether by Tandridge Leisure, Tandridge District Council or who ever else). I am looking for both what is good and bad and any suggestions for improvement.

Please leave a comment under this post or email me via my profile.

Grass is Growing

and not being cut....

Not quite true, but there have been a few problems recently with the cutting of the Playing Fields off Mill Lane and the common ground on and around Hurst Green itself (and elsewhere in the area). These have been compounded by the recent warm/wet weather.

I am assured that the problem is being worked on and the green areas will be looking their best in the near future.

Labour's Gerrymandering

See this report on Conservative Home which demonstrates how this government has channelled funds to Labour's heartlands.

Enough said

Tory questions unveil infestation danger of fortnightly bin collections

According to the Daily Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2059129/Government-cover-up-over-axed-bin-collections.html)Parlaimentary questions tabled by the Conservatives have forced the Government to reveal the findings of a £27,000 study that warned of increased health risks from rats, flies and seagulls if rubbish collections were reduced in frequency. The report found that vermin and insects could be "encouraged into the home environment" as a result of fortnightly collections. (Hat tip to Conservative Home for highlighting this.)

This is yet another reason why Tandridge continues to provide the much valued back-door weekly collection for local residents, despite this being more expensive than a fortnightly curbside scheme. In terms of service delivery this is the biggest gap between us and the Lib Dem Group - who would like to scrap the current arrangments, but going from last months local election results its clear where voters' support lies.

Why I left London

There was never any doubt in my mind that when I had a family I wanted my children to grow up outside of London. I didn't grow up in the Capital, I moved there after university and while an exciting place to live in my twenties I knew I wanted something safer, greener and cleaner in the next stage of my life. And in a big way I have not left the city behind as I commute there every day but when I get back to Hurst Green station I can walk home across the green.

Today's Evening Standard headline reminds me why I left. It is not particularly unusual but that is the point. Tragedies clearly happen everywhere but when I read that a 14 year old boy was stabbed to death for a dirty look it is clear to me that moving out of London was the right thing to do. Its not that any of us can guarantee that this will never happen in Oxted, but that it would be so unlikely as to be shocking. In London it is just another knife crime - tomorrow it will be forgotten - except of course by the friends and relatives of the victim. My prayers this evening are for his parents.

Another U Turn?

First in a desperate attempt it was the 10p tax, will it now be tax on fuel and cars?

I don't see how Gordon Brown can afford either politically or financially to give in this time - but at what cost? Politically if Brown can't stand up to the protesters then what chance will he have in getting the 42 day detention law through and if that also goes, then what credibility this government has left must surely follow. Financially after the £2.7bn attempt to buy votes in Crewe the Treasury cannot afford to lose even a penny more. However not giving in will surely hurt Brown's popularity even more. Whatever will the PM do?

All Quiet

While the national political scene is still coming to terms with the reality of Thursday night's by-election result in Crewe and what that means for a future general election result - merely a mid-term blip for Labour or the first win in a Tory landslide (in my opinion somewhere between the two) - life in Oxted and Hurst Green appears fairly quiet. Certainly my email inbox and postbag appear rather empty at the moment.

With the retirement of Dick Allen, our deputy leader, at the election the Tory Group now has a new deputy (current Council chairman Tony Elias). We also have some new chairmen of Committees, which are now all slightly smaller in size. Hopefully these changes will herald new ideas and more innovation as we all seek to make Tandridge an even more desirable place to live.

Annual Council

Annual Council last night went smoothly.

Cllr Tony Elias was elected as Chairman for the year and Cllr Glynis Whittle as Vice-Chair.

Although the number of Committees remain unchanged, their size was reduced in order to see whether smaller committees make for better decision making. I remain on the Planning and Environment Committee but have left Housing and and instead will be sitting on the Resources Committee.

Gordon Keymer, in his annual policy statement, suggested that after 8 yeears of Conservative control we were now shifting our focus. We have achived a well run and efficient council that has managed to keep frontline services intact despite the Government's poor funding settlement. It is now necessary to build on that and deliver even better front line services. Given the renewed resident interest in these areas, Planning and Waste Management will be particularly important in the comming year.

Ban the Bendy Bus

I saw with my own eyes yesterday evening, why Boris's policy to replace Bendy Buses with a new Routemaster is so necessary. While walking over London Bridge to get the train back to Oxted I saw that a Route 521 buss had managed to get a motor cycle wedged underneath its back wheels. There was no sign of the rider, but I hope he or she were OK.

These giant vehicles are just too large for London's narrow and congested streets. The sooner they are gone the better.

Crewe

We won and we won big.



The BBC this morning report that the 'Tories snatch Crewe'. I muct say I think that underplays the magnitude of the win. Turning a Labour Majority of 7000 into a Conserative one of nearly 8000 signals a clear change in the political tide. This is not just mid-term blues for Labour.

Holiday & Annual Council

Sorry for the lack of posts over the past 11 days- I have been away. A much needed post election break.

Still catching up with whats gone on locally, but Oxted and Hurst Green seems very much unchanged!

We have Annual Council on Thursday, which is mostly a formality involving the election of the Chairman and Vice Chairman for the year. However it also involves the adoption of a committee structure and the election of committee members for the forthcoming year and the appointment of Councillors to outside bodies on which the Council is represented - I for instance currently sit on the Executive Committee of the Hurst Green Community Association in addition to TDC's Housing and Planning and Environment Committees.

Most importantly, it includes the Annual Policy Statement - a sort of State of the Union Address by the Leader - and the Liberal Democrat leader's response. These speeches can set the tone for the forthcoming year.

Loss of Footpath between Hurst Green Station and Railway Footbridge

Hurst Green residents should be aware that Raven Housing trust have applied for permission to build 8 homes on what is now the Council owned garage and recycling area behind the parade of shops on Pollards Oak Road. It will also involve the loss of the green play area beside the Community Association Centre.

TDC does not have much spare land, so it makes sense to maximise the space available and balance the needs of residents. Therefore the loss of this facility, while inconveniencing some residents would, given the benefits, be acceptable but for one detail. Unfortunately the plan involves the blocking off an 'informal' footpath that runs between the the Station and the footbridge over to Nunappleton way. This access, I believe has existed for many years and a number of longstanding residents have told me it has been there ever since station was moved to its current location and is very well used.

Its loss will impact many many residents who will have to take a significant diversion to join the formal footpath. And blocking it off

I support fully the principle of building of social housing to meet the shortage in the district. I also support it on this site (and after voicing concerns over the detail voted as such in Housing Committee), but I do not support it as currently proposed.

I would like the Raven Housing Trust to reconsider blocking access to the footpath. If they do not I hope that either the Planning Officers or my colleagues on the Council's Development Control do not allow it in its current form.

Concerned residents should make their views known to TDC as soon as possible and by the 29th of May at the latest. I would also appreciate any feedback from local residents.

Surrey's Waste

Earlier this week Surrey County Council adoped a new Waste Plan to deal with all aspects of the 600,00 tonnes of municipal waste produced each year in Surrey.

Currently around 400,00 tonnes of this waste currently goes to landfill. The County hopes that by adopting the Waste Plan this figure will be much reduced and that by 2025 60% of all waste will be recycled. While in the long term it would be good to get the figure of waste recycled higher (or find some alternative to landfill) this looks to be an excellent start by the County.

To read the plan in full follow this link

What a 48 Hours

Boris as Mayor, Nationally a 44% share of the vote, 20% higher than Labour's disasterous showing and in Tandridge and another Conservative landslide.

A lot of commentators are now comparing Brown's position now to that of John Major in 1995 and I am inclined to agree. It is not clear how he could turn public opinion around to win in 2010 - 11 years of New Labour is enough, the country is ready for a change. Equally unless Labour implode in the next few weeks, Brown is unlikely to go (or be pushed) before 2010, so I think we are in for 2 years of a slowly dying government, without a mandate and without a vision for the country. It is a depressing prospect.

But for residents in Tandridge, London, North Tyneside, Bury and Vale of Glamorgan can draw some comfort that they have local Conservative administrations working hard to make the best of the situation and make up for a lack of national vision

Oxted South Election Result

Marjory Broughton - Labour - 237
Michaela O'Brien - Green - 94
LIZ PARKER - Conservative - 1196 ELECTED
Tony Stone - UKIP - 203
Robert Wingate - Lib Dem - 420

Majority 776 (up from my 249 last year)

Overall Labour have been smashed in Tandridge, coming third (with around a 1/3rd of last years vote) in Oxted South, and 4th place in Valley.

4 Seats changed hands in Tandridge with 2 net gains for the Conservative Party

Valley - where Peter Longhurst (Ind, formerly Lab) lost to a Conservative
Queens Park - a Lib Dem seat went Tory
Warlingham East - Jeremy Pursehouse (lib Dem) Lost to a Tory
Westway - Tory seat went Lib Dem

Council is now 33 Conservative, 8 Lib Dem & 1 Independent.

And now off to bed...

Vote Conservative, Vote Parker, Vote Boris!

The campaigning is nearly over as decision time is upon us.

I would vote all voters wherever they are in the UK to vote Conservative for a Greener, Cleaner and Safer local authorities.

I will report the results from Oxted South later tonight/tomorrow morning, but I beleive we will have to wait until Friday evening to hear whether Boris has done it.

Planning Application for Social Housing on the Greenway

Raven Housing Trust have applied for permission to build 4 houses and 6 flats in and around the large carpark on the Greenway. This development will provide much needed housing capcity in Hurst Green. Although there will be some loss of parking provision, the car park is, in my experience, currently under used and hopefully the provision of homes in that space will help reduce the likelihood of anti-social behaviour.

However, local residents with concerns, objections or comments should contact the Council within the next 3 weeks by one of the following mechanisms.

* On the website using planning online and searching for the application you are interested in. (The application number is 2008/563)
* By e-mail separately to comaps@tandridge.gov.uk.
* By fax to 01883 732888.
* By letter to the Council Offices, Station Road East, Oxted, Surrey RH8 OBT.

I would also be interested in your comments, so please let me know your thoughts. My email address is accessible via the 'View my complete profile' link on the right hand side of this page.

East Surrey Hospital to Get out of Debt

Some news which on the face of it seems very good - East Surrey hopsital is to repay the £56mn it owes government within 3 years, instead of the 25 years originally planned. This appear to demonstrate that the trust has finally managed to get its finances under control, which bears well for the future.

However the big unanswered questions is how much have patient services had to be cut to achieve this?

Final Furlong

Just 4 days left of campaigning until 1 May. In Oxted South although there are five candidates standing past history suggests it will be a battle between Labour and Conservatives. I am not sure how many local residents have been hit by Brown's 10p tax blunder, but I hope it gives us all yet another reason to vote for a Conservative candidate on Thursday.

* In years to come I hope that the best reason to vote in a local election will be because it will make a difference locally, but until real power is given back from Whitehall, one of the best reasons will be to hasten the end of this centralising, bureaucratic and incompetent government.

Last Council of the Year

It was the last Full Council before the elections last night. We said goodbye to the Chairman of the Council, Steve Altria, the Deputy Leader, Richard Allen and also to John Orrick. 11 of the rest hope to be back after the elections on 1 May joining at least 3 new members and the 28 of us who do not face election this year.

The subject that got the most discussion was the recent assult on Councillor Longhurst in the Council Chamber following a Development Control Committee meeting followed by a more serious attack on member of the public outside. Members agreed that it weas important to ensure that people do not feel threatened by participating in the democratic process, and as a starting point those members of the public who attend Committees will be asked to sign in.

Vote Conservative on May 1st

With the Conservative Party 18 points ahead in opinion polls, Labour rebels forcing government U Turns left right and centre and a summer of discontent on the cards, are we finally seeing the end of this Labour Government? I would truly hope so, but I have a feeling that Gordon, knowing that he faces defeat whenever he goes to the polls, will hold out to the last possible moment in 2010.

However, those of us in areas with elections on May 1 can all help to pile on the pressure, by voting Conservative. Not only will electing a Conservative Councillor (or in London, Boris as Mayor) show discontent with Brown it will also help to deliver Greener, Cleaner and Safer Districts, Boroughs and Cities and lower Council Taxes for residents to boot.

So when considering how to vote, or whether to vote at all next week, think about which party offers hope for the future and which has its lost drive, direction and competence.

Canvassing - Week 5 Round-up

Due to an attack of gout in my left foot, I have not been able to go out over the past couple of weeks with the team so I am not able to give a first hand update, but they continue to report that the response on the doorstep to Liz's candidacy remains very positive.

With the election a week today we are now entering the end game - with all parties having identified supporters we will all be working to ensure that these are translated to people turning out on the day. And of course some may have already made their decision as those voters who have postal votes may well (like me) have voted already.

Core Strategy Update

On Monday evening the Local Development Framework Steering Group met to consider how to respond to the Planning Inspector's letter which said he was happy to continue with the process, but warned that he still had some serious concerns.

Members considered that the alternative to proceeding, essentially going back to square one, was unacceptable. It was therefore agreed that the Council would continue to fight to get the current draft Core Strategy which protects the local environment from over development and reflects the views of local residents adopted.

However, in order to comply with the regulations that govern this process the Council is now obliged to consult on the sites that objectors to the Core Strategy have suggested. The Inspector has made it clear that the Core Strategy is not about specific sites; however he has a duty to consider any sites suggested to him. He has said that he cannot envisage any situation where he would be able to recommend the inclusion of such sites but nevertheless he must consider them.

A Notice will be appearing in the Surrey Mirror, letters will be sent to individuals and bodies (including Parish Councils) on the Council’s mailing list. In addition letters will be sent to addresses of properties adjoining those sites where there is a clear site boundary already identified by the respondent.

TDC's press release with more details can be found here

Annual Parish Assembly

Thursday night saw the meeting of the Annual Parish Assembly to review life in Oxted (North and South) over the previous 12 months.

In attendance, at the new Oxted Community Hall, were the leaders of Tandridge and Surrey County Councils, the Vice Chairman of TDC, all 6 ward Councillors, 11 of the 12 Parish Councillors and even a couple of members of the public!

The keynote speeches were given by Bob Evans, Director of Planning at TDC and Lesley Robinson, Manager of the Oxted CAB.

The conclusion was that apart from a lack of long-term parking in Oxted residents were broadly happy with life. The contribution from Mrs Robinson was the most concerning. She stated that debt is the biggest issue the CAB faces with an increasing number of cases, including very worryingly amongst Pensioners, going to bankruptcy. A lot of their other issues (divorce, unemplyment, illness) relate in some way to debt. Apparently the situation is now as bad as the early 1990s. More evidence that tough times could be on their way.

Hurst Green Police Panel

Not a lot to report from Wednesday night's meeting.

The Police updated on the jewellers raid in Oxted last week (where all the suspects had been apprehended) and mentioned their forthcoming move to Caterham.

Residents reported that further sightings of people riding mini motor bikes on roads had been seen and a request for a speeding on Mill Lane to be tackled. There were also mentions of poor behaviour near the Wednesday night youth bus and near the Infants school. However, other than a small spate of car thefts, for whom there is a suspect, there were no recent incidents of note in Hurst Green.

The Police promised to continue to crack down on cars and builders blocking the pavement on Pollards Wood Road/Red Lane.

Goodbye Police Station

In eight weeks time Police will move out of the Police Station on East Hill Road in preparation for its partial demolition and replacement with 22 flats.

The building is crumbling and too big for the needs of the small neighbourhood policing team based there, but this move, which follows the Police Authority winning planning permission on appeal, is both a shame for the character of the area and concerning as to the impact this will have on local policing.

The intention is that one of the units constructed on the site will act as a temporary police station at which our 2 PCs and 2 PCSOs will be based, but while construction work takes place they are decamping to Caterham which is nowhere near as convenient as Oxted an must therefore have some impact on the time they will be able to spend on the beat. This is acceptable as a short term arrangement, but what we must be on our guard for is another 'X-Ray' fiasco whereby having 'temporarily' left Oxted they never manage to return.

Canvassing - Week 4 Round-up

There has continued to be a very positive reaction from residents in Oxted South, where the issue of the week has been the Council's defence of the green belt. This has been brought to the fore by the widespread local press coverage of a developer's attempt to convince the Government Planning Inspector that the Council's Core Strategy which plans to restrict such development is unsound. Residents I have spoken to are all very supportive of the Council's position to resist such plans.

Our canvassing has also confirmed the level of widespread disaffection with Labour on the doorstep. This largely reflects the national picture, but the lack of a high local profile for their candidate also appears to be impacting their support.

Oxygen of Publicity

There was some discussion earlier in the week about whether it would have been better for the London Mayoral candidates to not meet together to condemn the BNP, the argument being that to ignore them would have been better. I think there is some truth in this - Margaret Hodge's warning in an earlier election about the risk of large number of BNP candidates being elected in Dagenham certainly elevated the discussion onto Front Pages and main news bulletins and possibly resulted in more votes for them.

Up until today I think I would have said ignore them (and I certainly don't intend to say much more), but flicking through this week's County Border News which dropped onto the doormat earlier today I found an advert entitled 'People Like You Voting BNP' illustrated by a family picture. My immediate feeling was one of absolute revulsion and to start with I began to question the editorial judgement in allowing it to be included.

However, in my opinion, it is far too dangerous in a liberal democracy to start saying which political parties should or should not be allowed to campaign (for there are others like the ironically named Respect, other far left parties and some militant 'Islamic' organisations who are just as bad). But given this I do think it is right to go on record to condemn their policies.

I am not standing for re-election this year, and in any event the advert was misdirected, aimed at voters in London for the Assembly elections not at Tandridge, but if I were I would plea with voters to vote for any other party on the ballot, or none at all rather than BNP.

Cardboard Recycling

One of the limitations with the generally excellent weekly curbside recycling collections we have in Oxted South is that due to the capacity of the lorries they cannot take large amounts of cardboard, otherwise they would get full far too quickly. One solution open to residents is to call Biffa on 01883 712333 to arrange a separate collection.

However for Hurst Green residents there is also another, as today I noticed that the Recycling Bank in the car park by the Holland Sports and Social club at Mill Lane now includes a skip for cardboard and mixed paper. This was a particularly useful development for me as I have just acquired a box that needed getting rid of!

Robbery Update

Courtesy of the BBC:

Four men have been charged in connection with a foiled robbery at a jeweller's shop in Surrey. The group, from London, was arrested on Wednesday morning at Decorus jewellers in Station Road, Oxted. They are Stephen Noel, 47, and Darren Welch, 35, both of Lewisham, Rohan Smith, 42, of Bromley, and Lloyd Brook, 35, of Greenwich. They have been charged with conspiracy to rob and will appear at South East Surrey Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Oxted Robbery Prevented

The BBC are reporting (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/surrey/7340026.stm) that Surrey Police thwarted a robbery from taking place at the Decorus jewellers shop on Wednesday morning. Sounds like a job well done by the Force.

Wards to watch

Having posted about Oxted South yesterday, I thought I would pick out the most interesting battlegrounds elsewhere in Tandridge for election night. Out of the 14 I think three are most at risk of an upset.

In Queens Park, Councillor Orrick (Lib Dem) is standing down. This is a split ward with the other seat held by the Conservative Matt Groves. So without the advantage of a sitting candidate this is a potential Conservative gain.

In Valley Ward Peter Longhurst is defending his seat as an Independent. Peter resigned from the Labour Party during the past year and is having to defend it against 4 challengers including a Labour Party candidate. The situation is complicated by the fact that the other seat in the ward is held by a Lib dem (Jill Caudle) and the last time it was up the Conservatives came second. Given the strength of Councillor Longhurst's personal vote it will be tough to call as to who will win this one.

Finally, in Warlingham East the Lib Dem's majority in 2007 was only 17 over the Conservatives, so everything is up for grabs.

Station Road East Post Office

The Post Office has annouced that despite a high level of local opposition to their plans that they are to go ahead and close the Post Office inside Paydens on Station road East. The Station Road West and Holland Post Offices will remain open. This is clearly a blow to all local residents who will have to travel further and queue for much longer when they get there.

The full text of the Post Office decision is below:

'Respondents’ main concerns related to the ability of alternative branches to cope with the expected additional customer levels resulting from the closure of this branch. Respondents were also concerned that parking was insufficient at the alternative branches and that the journey to each alternative branch was difficult.

The two closest alternative branches are located within one mile of Station Road East Oxted, the closest alternative being Oxted Post Office which is located approximately half a mile away. Oxtedbranch has more serving positions, offers a wider range of products, including motor vehicle licensing,and has ramp access to help customers in wheelchairs or with buggies. There is a regular bus service toboth Oxted and Limpsfield Post Office branches from Station Road East Oxted branch and both bus services offer free off-peak travel for senior citizens and disabled passengers. Low-level floors are
provided on some buses to assist passengers. Approximately 86% of local households own a car or van and parking is available near both suggested alternative branches for customers who have accessto private transport.

Post Office Limited has carefully considered all the feedback received during the local public consultation relating to this branch, including two petitions as well as correspondence from the local MP, Peter Ainsworth, Oxted Parish Council and the Oxted Chamber of Commerce.

Having regard to these and all other relevant factors, Post Office Limited has decided to proceed with the closure of this branch.'

Statement as to Persons Nominated

As promised the list of candidates nominated for Oxted South is as follows:

Marjory Broughton - Labour
Michaela O'Brien - Green
Liz Parker - Conservative
Tony Stone - UKIP
Robert Wingate - Lib Dem.

On reading this list two things immediately jumped out at me.

1. Democracy is alive and well in Oxted South with 5 candidates including all three major parties. Very few other wards in the country, let alone Tandridge will be this hotly contested.

2. However, neither Labour nor the Lib Dems could field a candidate who lives in the ward. For the Lib Dems, this is excusable - their candidate lives in a neighbouring ward and they do not hold out any hope of winning the seat. But the Labour candidate doesn't even live in Surrey (according to the Offical Statement on the TDC website)! For a party that had a councillor representing the ward up until last year, not to field a candidate who live in nearby area seems to indicate an acceptance that they have no serious hope of winning here again.

Canvassing - Week 3 Round Up

A somewhat short and passive report from me, as a nasty attack of gout has prevented me from getting out onto the doorsteps this week. But speaking to our candidate this morning she reported getting a lot of positive feedback during the week.

We will get formal confirmation later this week who is standing against Liz Parker in Oxted South. We already know the identities of the Green and Liberal Democrat candidates, but the name of the Labour candidate is a bit of a mystery . However it does appear that neither Robin nor Barbara Harling will be standing this year, which for Labour in Oxted South will be an end of an era. I will post the full list of 'runners' when it comes out on Tuesday.

Tandridge Residents have until 16 April to get their name onto the electoral register or apply for a postal vote.

Snow

I thought Hurst Green looked picturesque this morning. There is nothing like untrodden snow to bring out the best in a place and it seemed a good six inches deep in part. Although it is mostly melted now, I see the weather forecast is for more on Tuesday.

No new houses for Oxted (yet)

As promised here is my report of Thursday's meeting in Oxted.

In summary the meeting reinforced my view that the threat to Tandridge as a desirable place to lives comes not primarily from developers, but from unelected officials who working within a highly bureaucratic framework imposed by Civil Servants in Westminster. The Inspector ruled out any housing developments in Oxted on the back of any decision he will take, but the risk that he either rejects the Core Strategy or changes it substantially remains and in that case developers may be better able to make the case for inappropriate housing development in the Oxted area.

The meeting was very well attended by local residents, so well attended that not all could make it into the Council Chamber and the Inspector had to spend the first two hours outlining what the purpose of the meeting was all about.

The Inspector made clear that he would NOT during the meeting allocate any individual sites, hear from any developers about sites they wished to develop, decide on any planning applications, remove land from the Green Belt, or hear public views about development in Tandridge. These words were an attempt to reassure residents that there was no immediate threat from developers in Oxted. He said that instead the purpose was to decide on whether the process to consider the Core Strategy would go forward.

The best news at the meeting was that the proposals from Village Developments for 650 homes in Oxted which they appended to their comments on the Strategy would not at any point be considered by this Inspector and were submitted completely inappropriately.

There then followed a series of very insightful questions from local residents about the process which made clear that there was still a longer term threat to the area should Core Strategy not be accepted as proposed. In response the Inspector conceded that he did have the power to change the Core Strategy (as agreed by elected councillors and reflecting the views of local people) and if he did so the the Council would have no real option to accept his changes as the alternative would be to go through an expensive and risky High Court challenge (with little chance of success) or to re-start the four year process (at great expense) needed to get to this point and (by implication - though the Inspector did not say so explicitly) that during the next four years Council's current development control policies would lose their effectiveness and risk more inappropriate developments being approved.

The changes he could make might include forcing the council to look for specific sites for housing quicker than in the plan requiring further consideration as to whether Green Belt boundaries may have to be changed.

The other slightly perverse area of discussion was about the level of consultation the Council had undertaken, with local residents (most of whom actually agreed with the Core Strategy's plans to resist inappropriate Housing Developments) saying they had not been appropriately consulted (and thus threatening the soundness of the process) while the developers present (who opposed the Core Strategy) supporting the Council in that consultation had been adequate.

The meeting then moved onto the formal agenda, where the objectors to the Core Strategy were asked to amplify on their written comments. The main objector was the Government Office for the South East (GOSE) whose objections mostly seemed to be on how the document was drafted rather than on the substance. However even GOSE conceded that that Government guidance did not really provide any solution for a district like Tandridge (which is 94% Green Belt) and despite objecting, did not offer a way out. The Inspector suggested to GOSE that they should be more helpful in their criticisms and suggest solutions rather than just the problems.

Following the meeting the Inspector issued his opinion which rather than summarise I have set out in full below:

'I still have deep concerns and reservations about certain aspects of the Core Strategy, to which I will return below. Nevertheless, I consider that I should continue with the Examination for two reasons. Firstly, because there seems to me to be a reasonable likelihood that further evidence, or the use of existing evidence that I have not yet considered, might resolve some of those concerns. And, secondly, because I detect a positive approach by your Council to the possibility of minor changes to the Core Strategy which might clear up some of my reservations.

Even so, your Council should be aware that continuing with the Examination is not a guarantee that I will ultimately find the Core Strategy to be sound. Your Council should still seriously consider the risk of the Core Strategy being found unsound if the Examination proceeds, with the consequent waste of resources both in time and money.

I agree with GOSE’s analysis at the end of the Meeting that the most credible threat to the Core Strategy is that too many changes might have to be made to make it sound. The danger is that cumulatively these changes would create a Plan so different from that submitted that its provisions would not have had the benefit of the public consultation and sustainability assessment that is required. I referred more colloquially to this possibility at the Meeting as “death by a thousand cuts”.

The main concerns and reservations that I still have are:

Housing windfalls – the lack of a Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment means that the Core Strategy is perceived as being too reliant upon windfalls to meet the last five year part of its ten year housing land supply, contrary to the advice at paragraph 59 of Planning Policy Statement 3. Clearly, I must bear in mind and consider the constraints (e.g. Green Belt), the low housing requirement, and the validity of your Council’s argument in relation to windfall rates. In addition, there may also be evidence in the Housing Capacity Study on the prevalence of Large Sites which could be drawn out and brought to my attention.

Development management policies – their style and their placing with the Core Strategy mixed up with more important strategic policies. I welcome your Council’s positive approach to rethinking this aspect, perhaps in co-operation with GOSE.

Monitoring – I understand the realistic aims of your Council on this point, but I would welcome further consideration as to whether account has been fully taken of the advice in the Government’s LDF Monitoring: Good Practice Guide.'

In conclusion a goodish result, but one that carries a high degree of risk for Tandridge.

Today's meeting on Core Strategy

I mentioned this last week. See this link for my post.

Looks like it will be well attended as the BBC are now coverning this as well. I will report back on what was said.

Canvassing - Week 2 Round Up

Nothing much to report. Most canvassing in Oxted South has been suspended for the Easter Break, but will resume on Monday.

The official start of the campaign was signalled on Tuesday with the publication of the Notice of Election. In Tandridge there will be 14 seats (out of a total of 42) up for grabs from across the district. Candidates have until 4 April to get their nomination forms properly signed and witnessed.

Distraction Burglary in Oxted

Two relatively rare incidents of serious crime in the area seem to have occured in the past couple of weeks.

Surrey Police have warned residents to be on their guard after a distraction burglary in Oxted on 18 March. Follow this link for details.

Also I have heard a report that the One-Stop on the Holland Road in Hurst Green was robbed last night. I will post any more details if I get any. Residents with any information on crimes taking place in Surrey should contact the police on 0845 125 2222 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Core Strategy / 650 houses planned for Oxted

On 3rd April the Government Inspector appointed to examine Tandridge's draft Core Strategy and rule on its 'soundness' will hold an exploratory meeting at the Council Offices.


The purpose of this meeting will be to discuss the Inspectors initial concerns with the plan an to agree a way forward. That meeting will not decide on the 'soundness' of the document (my understanding is ) but one of four outcomes will be reached

1. His initial concerns will be resolved and the process will proceed
2. His concerns will not be resolved at this stage but the process will still proceed
3. The examination will be suspended while further work on the Core Strategy takes place
4. The Inspector will indicate that the Government may want to withdraw the Core Strategy for a formal resubmission in due course.

Ahead of this meeting two issues have arisen in relation to the plan.

1) The Government Office for the South East have written to the Council indicating that they have some concerns with the plan. This is very unfortunate given the lengths the Council has gone to to ensure that they were consulted on the drafting at an earlier stage.

2) Two local developers have made a series of objections to the plan including proposing specific Green Belt sites, one of which in Oxted for 650 homes be included within the draft Strategy. This is opposed by the Council.

This latter issue has prompted considerable objection from residents in the North of Oxted and they have formed the Oxted and Limpsfield Residents Group to fight this proposal. I very much applaud the action in local residents in opposing this and I hope the Inspector will conclude over the course of the examination process that that the motives of the developers in proposing specific sites have everything to do with narrow commercial self interest and little to do with the housing needs of the district over the next 15 years. The key will be to keep the pressure on this up over the next couple of years.

However, in my view it is the former issue that has the capacity to derail the whole process and again shows the degree of unhelpful meddling by central government officials in the decisions of locally elected councillors and their officers who are better able to understand the needs of the area. If this can be resolved the calls of the developers are much more likely to fall on deaf ears.

Surrey Police Authority - Council Tax CAPPED

The Government have announced their intention to cap Surrey Police's 9.7% council tax increase in 2008. Should Surrey Police be capped, the force may have to conduct a £600,000 re-billing exercise to change the coming financial year’s council tax bills. Alternatively, reductions could be made for 2009/10. The costs of any re-billing would be met by the Police, although it would be Tandridge which would have to carry it out. Surrey Police's increase compares to Tandridge's below inflation increase of 3.9% and Surrey County Council's increase of 4.8%.

To see Surrey Police's response to the Government's threat click here.

I think it is disgraceful that Surrey Police's central government funding is so paltry that they have had to resort to this.

Water Water everywhere, if you are prepared to pay

Sutton and East Surrey Water have written saying that over the next couple of years they plan to approach all residents who have a swimming pool or who use a garden sprinkler in the Oxted area to get them to install a water meter.

I think it is broadly right that we should pay for our water by use, given we do for all other types of utility and metering should cause wastage of water to fall as people will be more inclined to get that leaky tap fixed. But there has to be a return.

We know that if we need electricity, petrol or gas we can have some as long as we are prepared to pay. The same must be true for water. Water companies must invest to ensure that they have enough supplies to meet long hot summers even if the winters are also dry.

£10 MILLION to be spent on affordable housing in Tandridge.

Yes that's £10 whole million for 240 new homes across the district over the next four years. Superb news, and I know I am a little late on commenting on this one, (see the BBC's coverage) but it is a superb achievement for Conservative Tandridge.

Just so we are not to be accused of New Labour type spinning of constantly re-annoucing existing spending , that amount is is made up of a grant of £7.4million from the Housing Corporation announced last week for 195 homes oer the next three years together with £2.5million in the current financial year for 40 new homes.

And Oxted South is set to be one of the locations in Tandridge which will benefit from affordable homes, with two schemes already in an advanced stage of planning, which if approved will provide more than 20 new homes for local people.