Letters

ONE of the most annoying aspects of our local authorities' "vaingloriousness" in pursuing new offices (West Dorset District Council) and a new library in Dorchester (Dorset County Council) is the way in which they have completely disregarded the council taxpayers' keen sense of what is right about any decision made on their behalf, and what is wrong with any such decision.

It is becoming increasingly clear that, as local authority jobs are cut and reductions in levels of service begin to bite, more and more local people are questioning the recent planning approval (that the district council effectively granted to themselves) to go ahead with the spending of some �13 million on new offices at a time of national belt-tightening.

Without proper public consultation and with serious errors in their financial calculations (eg the dowry, of many thousands of pounds, which will be sought by the National Trust should they decide to take over the running of the Old Crown Court does not feature in the published figures) our local authorities are pursuing a massive and most mischievous makeover at a time when such an act, questionable at any time, flies directly in the face of that much coveted trait, common sense.

The people of Dorchester, given their chance to vote on the issue of new offices in the first-ever Town Poll (properly conducted, transparent and open to all who were able to reach a polling station), showed, by 2,044 votes to 156, that they did not want their money spent in this way. A clearer or more recent example of localism would be hard to find. I have no doubt whatsoever that, given the same opportunity, the remainder of West Dorset's council taxpayers would have expressed the same grave misgivings.

Robert Gould, wearing his hat as leader of the district council, says that the new offices will "save �200,000 per year". Meanwhile, wearing his hat as a county council cabinet member, he supports the move to a new library in Charles Street for which the county council will pay the district council a rent of �200,000 per year! How can a local politician, whose work as a representative entitles him to allowances of �43,000 per year, explain to his constituents how these simultaneous actions will save any public money? The story of the Emperor's new clothes springs to mind.

This story is not going to go away and, for those who think I'm only expressing the views of a few Luddites because the county town will surely benefit from the rest of the Charles Street development, may I remind you that there is absolutely no guarantee that phase two of the scheme (a larger Waitrose, more shops and a hotel) will follow as soon as phase one (the offices and library) is completed. There is a very real prospect that this prominent site in the heart of the county town will gain a massive, unimaginative, flat-pack four-storey office block parallel to South Walks and nothing else for several years.

A fighting fund with the name SCON (Stop Council Offices Now) has been established at Lloyds bank in Dorchester to challenge, through recourse to the law, the decisions that our local authorities have taken. The growing number of local council taxpayers vigorously opposed to what is happening may rest assured that every avenue is being explored and that we shall continue to express our profound opposition to this scheme at every opportunity.

HARRY Randall's point about county councillor pay in Dorset (Western Gazette, January 20) is an uncomfortable home truth that needs a clear answer. Indeed he seems not to have appreciated that Dorset County Council leader Angus Campbell receives even more than he believes.

Were he to add in the extra �5,000 (with expenses) a year Mr Campbell also gets as a serving North Dorset district councillor, he'd have a total of around �50,000 plus a year, or about �140 a day.

Compare that with the 99p a day I get as a serving Shaftesbury town councillor – that doesn't even cover the phone calls and stationery – or the zero some parish councillors get and the contrast is stark.

My impression, after 12 years serving on local councils in north Dorset, is that workloads are in inverse proportion to the allowances paid; the greater the pay, the less the work. Dorset county councillors get paid around �10,000 per annum for next to no work, district councillors around �5,000 per year for doing twice as much as county councillors, and town and parish councillors do ten times more than both of them put together and get virtually nothing at all.

It's a crazy old world all right.

But what we should be asking our county and district councillors – of all parties – is the question: would you do the job if you did it as most town and parish councillors currently do, for love (though I confess I use that phrase loosely)?

It would certainly save a lot of services and jobs – probably close to �1 million-worth countywide – if they did.

CONTRARY to the Liberal Democrats' official line, that the �354-million debt they accumulated in the 15 years they ran the council was acceptable, a prominent Lib Dem has described the financial situation at Somerset County Council as dire.

South Somerset District Council leader and Yeovil West County Councillor Tim Carroll admitted the county council's finances were dire in an e-mail to Wincanton Business Together (the chamber of commerce).

WBT was questioning South Somerset District Council's intention of bringing in car parking charges in Wincanton and Castle Cary, and pointing out the damage South Somerset District Council's policy would do to its members.

As part of his response, Mr Carroll said: "Carrington Way car park is actually owned by Somerset County Council but is leased to the district council in a carry-over arrangement from the original lease. Our concern is that if we terminate the lease, given the dire financial situation at the county council, it may dispose of it to the highest bidder."

This is the first admission by a prominent member of the Liberal Democrat party that the debts they left the county council with are "dire". At odds with his colleague, David Heath, MP for Somerton and Frome, who was council leader when much of the debt accumulated, called on the county council to bin proposed budget cuts, despite the high levels of debt.

However, county council leader Ken Maddock said: "We have inherited from the Liberal Democrats a debt level at this county council of more than �350 million with projections that will reach �400 million before it can come down.

"Servicing debt is our second biggest bill. Not fixing roads, not looking after vulnerable people, not improving schools – but debt."

It seems Mr Carroll might agree with him.

HOW would Lib Dems deal with the dire situation Somerset County Council finds itself in?

They have so far made no constructive suggestions, although one would have thought that since the cuts are caused by the Conservative/Lib Dem coalition's decision to reduce the Government grant, they would have some suggestions to make.

But there are Lib Dem councils where they are responding to the situation. And it is a very irresponsible response.

Take, for example, Sutton, where they are actually borrowing a further �25 million. Of this sum �14 million will go to improve the borough's civic offices and the rest to refurbish the leisure centre. The loan will take 50 years to repay.

The policy of the Lib Dems can be summed up in three words: tax, borrow, spend. That is why after 16 years of Lib Dem control, Somerset's finances are in such a parlous state.

I AM disgusted that a gentleman who hit a 13-year-old child for throwing snowballs was given a 12-month community order and has to do 40 hours' unpaid work.

My disgust is not at Mr Hix hitting the child or for the sentence but at him being taken to court.

Damien Lee Hix should have been given a medal. The children in question are well-known in the Westfield area of Yeovil and during the recent snow, I had my windows bombarded with snowballs to the point were I thought the windows were going to smash.

This was not a one-off, it happened continuously for 11 days. My wife went out to chase the kids away and she too was pelted with snowballs at close range and received a mouthful of abuse from the children.

I watched them go up the street throwing snowballs at windows randomly. I also believe it's a load of codswallop that the child was going to apologise. I believe they got a reaction from Mr Hix and they wanted to pelt him again, as it has happened to us.

The police were called but they said there was nothing they could do as no damage was done and told Mr Hix not to chase them or react to them.

I believe there are a lot of OAPs in the Westfield area and it cannot be nice for them when their windows are being pelted with snowballs at 10pm.

What would happen if one of them had a heart attack due to the shock of snowballs been thrown at their windows, or at them if they answer the door when these kids knock then run away?

The parents are not interested, the police are not interested, so what are you supposed to do?

THE overall infilling of Cumnock Road in Castle Cary/Ansford with additional housing – 160-plus units – from four development sites in Cumnock Crescent, The Market Garden, BMI Factory and The Red House will:

Create a village within a village. The building material hard surfaces at a higher level will increase the flooding problem in the town centre through run-off.

Create a considerable traffic bottleneck along the A371. An already heavy traffic flow exists on top of Wincanton Races, Glastonbury Festival and Royal Bath and West Showground events.

Create and impose a further financial burden on taxpayers to cover the conversion of the traffic lights from two-way to four-way – actually three to six. Queuing traffic will ultimately raise pollution levels.

Create further road safety issues at a known local black spot – The Waggon and Horses crossroads – evident in two recent fatalities and numerous road traffic accidents in the past 40 years. Pedestrians will need to cross the road.

Create an urban and overpowering environment, particularly the houses to be built alongside the A371 pavement. In essence Coronation Street comes to Castle Cary and Ansford with the traffic flow snarl- up of Bristol.

Create and impose a tremendous burden on NHS and education provision as well as the continual digging up of the roads for gas, electricity, telephone and water.

To date, both the county councillor and district councillor have remained silent.

DORSET County Council has sunk to fighting dirty in its determination to close 60 per cent of its libraries.

The council's libraries manager has just ruled that those campaigning against this planned carnage may not put petitions in any of "her" libraries – and we council taxpayers quaintly thought they were "our" libraries.

What an exquisite irony it is that, in her argument for these closures, Dorset's director of Adult and Community Services tells us that her vision for "our" libraries is that they should foster "a love of knowledge to enhance lives and build communities".

As long, it seems, as any knowledge we acquire in libraries has been approved by council bosses.

They can display their own propaganda, telling us how vital it is that our libraries be closed. But we can't be allowed to point out that their policies will wreck communities, not build them

Vision is OK, it seems, as long as it's their vision – not ours.

I READ James Mitchell's Reader's Write column (Western Gazette, January 20) where he suggested that perhaps Yeovil could one day have its own arts festival to rival Bridport's.

As Mr Mitchell states, perhaps it is a bit ambitious for Yeovil at this present time, but if Bridport can do it then surely Yeovil can do it and I would support this idea.

I would also welcome a literary festival, this could be incorporated with the arts festival as I know there is a lot of local talent in this area, and surely those who have an interest in arts subjects would support it.

As Mr Mitchell points out there will always be the doubters and I know that such things cannot be organised in five minutes but would it not generate extra revenue for the area? I for one would definitely welcome the idea of an arts festival in this area and I hope that Mr Mitchell keeps plugging the idea of a festival in Yeovil through his column.

YOUR front page story (Western Gazette, January 20, Sherborne edition) headlined "269 new homes planned for town", quotes entirely predictable responses from the CPRE.

Yet again, it fails to make the case for the practically derelict Barton Farm having any inherent beauty that should be preserved, nor can it provide an alternative solution to meet the desperate need for affordable housing for many born and raised in Sherborne.

Thankfully, Susan Greene at the town council seems be on the right track. This time around, the (elected) council surely has to show these unelected Nimbys at the CPRE just who is in charge.

WE are researching our family tree and have found a link with the family of Joan (nee Watt) and Henry Biddiscombe.

We believe that descendants of Joan may be living in the Yeovil area. She was born in 1918 in London to Charles and Cathleen (nee Buckley) Watt.

If you think you may have a connection with us and would like to share our information, or add to it, we would love to hear from you.

Source: http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/glastonburyfestival/Letters/article-3174556-detail/article.html

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