People's Republic of South Devon

New report says the South West must speak up or face being hit the hardest by the expected Coalition cuts

PRSD — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 14:27:56 +0000

A new report assessing the state of the South West ahead of the October Emergency Budget, concludes that the region is in danger of being marginalised and becoming ‘the forgotten part of England’.

The South West was the region that gave a higher proportion of its vote to the parties forming the coalition; all but four of the region’s MPs are either Conservative or Liberal-Democrat.

But in the rush to dismantle the regional public sector, the South West risks being marginalised and taken for granted if it does not act now to make its voice heard, says the report Let’s Hear It For The South West.

The report by South West Stakeholders, an alliance of social and economic organisations in the region from the Confederation of British Industry to Citizens’ Advice, points out that the South West already receives 9 per cent less government spending than the UK average.

With the most stringent cuts for decades expected in the October Emergency Budget, the fear is that the region will lose out even further unless urgent action is needed to protect the region’s economy and safeguard the vulnerable.

“The Government’s commitment to reversing decades of centralisation creates new challenges for the South West,” says South West Stakeholders chair Nigel Costley, who is also South West TUC regional secretary.

“Other parts of Britain – not just the devolved administrations but the North West and the West Midlands in particular – have shown already the effectiveness of collective lobbying in making their cases to ministers.

“Local authorities, communities and people throughout the South West must find ways of expressing their collective voice to ensure they receive a fair share of limited resources and help put substance to the idea of a ‘Big Society’. We must make our needs known and our voice heard.”

The report says some parts of the South West are more vulnerable to the reductions in public spending because they rely more on public services or are heavily dependent upon defence.

It says: “Just a 6.5 per cent cut in defence spending could mean 4,000 jobs will be lost in the region but this figure could be a lot higher. For every public sector job lost there will be another one gone from the private sector, especially in sectors such as construction, health and social care; 38% of small firms rely on public contracts.

“The Government believes that the private sector will recover enough to grow employment and take up the jobs lost from public services.

“This is a big risk and to get anywhere near the numbers required we must seize every opportunity to promote the region abroad and boost local employment in the big civil engineering projects due to come to the South West.”

The report expresses concern at the speed with which regional bodies are being abolished, pointing out that spatial planning and economic development for a sustainable future are complex matters, requiring long-term thinking and co-ordination of action over a wide area.

It says: “The new Government is clearly unconvinced about the value of regional structures and bodies, but in its drive for reform, it appears to have lost sight of the fact that within such structures and bodies are many skilled and highly committed people who have been doing some great work.”

The report says action is needed to ensure that the skills, expertise and good practice from organisations such as the Regional Development Agency (RDA), Government Office for the South West, Strategic Health Authority and other bodies are not lost in transition.

Let’s Hear It For The South West says serious challenges facing the region include:

·         the most elderly population in England;
·         the highest level of inward migration;
·         the most people living outside urban areas (which can make it difficult for people to get
·         to training, jobs and services);
·         low levels of income (as well as the biggest spread in income disparities between different parts of the region);
·         the highest proportion of people doing part-time jobs and of those with second jobs;
·         the most unaffordable housing outside London and
·         the least energy-efficient housing stock.

As well as the prospects for jobs, Let’s Hear It For The South West looks at housing, transport, support for people, public services, rural development, energy supply, the environment and sustainability. The report is a collection of submissions from members who represent particular aspects of civil society and who have special knowledge of their subject.

(from a press release)

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Totnes Festival starts today! (Friday, September 3)

PRSD — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 13:03:30 +0000

The Totnes Festival kicks off today (Friday, September 3) and runs until Sunday, September 12 will dance, music, art, theatre, adventure and comedy – plus more!

Venues throughout the town will take part with the selection of home-grown talents and some of the best performers from around the country.

The Totnes Festival begins with a whole host of varied events: the Curiouser Gathering; the Second Story art show at the Bay Horse; Latin Dance music bang Siga la Salsa; an opening night concert from The Pressenda Ensemble; the Rain or Shine Theatre Company’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest; and a concert by songstress Ana Silvera.

For a full run down of the listings check out the brochure and see the Totnes Festival site

Open publication – Free publishing – More 2010

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Hands up if you want to be UKIP leader!

PRSD — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 08:47:00 +0000

The UK Independence Party (which mentions its non-racism right up front, like so many uncomfortable situations) is in Torquay for its annual conference and is on the look out for the next new face for its specail brand of cantankerous politics.

Maybe it’s an opportunity for some of those disaffected Tories who feel weakened by the dilution of their message to jump ship and make a name for themselves. The leader who is stepping down, Lord Pearson of Rannoch, is a former Conservative, after all.

And the reason he’s stepping down? Why he’s ‘not much good at party politics’ and doesn’t enjoy the cut and thrust of party politics. Makes you wonder how he got the job in the first place.

For the interim the party has appointed Jeffrey Titford as caretaker manager.

Former leader and MEP Nigel Farage is taking more time for himself and his family after his light aircraft crash on the day of the 2010 general election (May 5), but may be tempted back into the fray.

Front runner is MEP David Campbell Bannerman (another former Tory).

The South West is a political haven for UKIP, with two MEPs representing the region and the headquarters of the party is based in Newton Abbot.

But for you political careerist out there here’s a scenario you could consider: hold your nose and join a minor party so you can get ahead quickly. Then hope the balance of power shifts your way so you can grasp office and pull your party’s ideology with you. It’s pretty cynical, but just might work…

• Read more on the BBC

(image: from a UKIP 2010 general election mail out by Some rights reserved by srboisvert)

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Not Bad For A Girl: How do you know when you’re good enough?

Katie Marie — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 14:13:49 +0000

Helloo there lovely peeps! It’s nice to be back writing again, hope you’ve had a really great summer and managed to enjoy at least a few rays of sun.

Life for me has been very manic, lots of music (yay) and lots and lots of travelling around (not so yay lol). I’ve been to Germany, Bristol, back to Germany again (lol), then it’s been Woking, Oxford, Bristol, Plymouth, Witney, Cheltenham, Bath, Bournemouth, Brixham, Bath (outside in the pouring rain!!), Newton Abbot, Bristol and Honiton… phew!

As many peeps who know me know I love being so busy, especially with oodles of lovely musical type stuff. I’m one of these odd creatures that get a real buzz out of playing one venue, having about two hours sleep and then whizzing off to the next musical adventure. Having not much sleep would usually make me pretty cranky, but for musical purposes it’s perfectly fine with me.

Doing so much travelling has also allowed me to do lots of thinking, which with me is not necessarily a good thing! I’m one of these peeps who’s a real worrier. I worry about the craziest of things. If I’ve nothing to worry about then I’m worried. And yes, it is as annoying as it sounds.

So during my travels I was pondering about all sorts of things. But there was one major thing that was playing on my mind more than usual – and that was the question, am I really good enough? It’s something that I’ve never properly thought about before, because I’ve always been so driven by my love and passion for music that I’ve not stopped too long to think about it.

I’m really proud of everything I’ve managed to achieve over the years and I’m also so grateful for all the amazing peeps I’ve met along the way. But how do you know when you’re good enough? I learnt long ago that music is a never-ending journey and a very steep learning curve that you will never, ever reach the end of. Sounds slightly depressing, but I actually find it a real positive thing as there will *always* be new lessons to learn and new musical stuff to play!

‘But are you good enough?’ My mind kept asking. ‘How do you know you’re good enough? Hmm??’ Actually, I’m not too sure now I think about. What if I’d become so driven by my passion and love for the process of doing and playing music that I’d not actually stopped to think about whether what I was doing was any good or not? It appeared my mind had opened up a whole fresh can of stupid scary thoughts and was having lots of fun emptying the entire contents out me. Bugger.

About a week or so went by and I still couldn’t come up with a suitable answer to my question. ‘Just because I am’ didn’t seem like a good enough response to put my mind at rest. So I carried on my day-to-day stuff, hoping that I’d either find the answer or that the question would just fade away and I’d find something far more constructive to think about… sadly neither happened.

Just at the point where I thought my poor little head would explode off my shoulders, I had a gig with Nicky Swann in Plymouth. The venue where we played was really lovely and we had lots of fun. Even though I was talking and playing and drinking the question was still lurking in the back of my mind and it really did seem like nothing at all was going to make it go away.

At the end of the night we packed up all our things and loaded up ready to depart. Nicky and I were walking up the hill towards the car, chatting about various episodes of TV programs when from out of the blue this very very (very!) drunk woman grabbed my arm and said, ‘I heard what you were saying, about not being good enough!’ After I’d got over the shock of being grabbed by some crazy drunk lady in the dark I just laughed as I could see she was a bit worse for wear (to say the very least).

She released her grip around my arm and began to point like her life depended on it. ‘You don’t think you’re good enough do you?’ She then wobbled about a bit and continued, ‘Stop thinking you’re not good enough because you’re amazing at what you do.’ Then the reality of what she was saying suddenly hit home. ‘Holy crap,’ I thought, how on earth could this apparently bonkers and hammered woman know so much?

I just starred in amazement that she seemed to know what was playing in my mind. ‘You need to let go of the fear and stop worrying about whether you’re good enough or not,’ she carried on, still struggling to keep upright. ‘You’re a star and if you let go of you’re fear and just focus on your passion for what you do you’ll really go far.’

I thought it only fair to help her get back to her flat, which luckily was only a few steps away (but for her I think it seemed like a few miles!). I thanked her for all she had said, but she was so pissed I don’t think she’ll remember any of it, hey ho.

When I got home I just sat on the sofa trying, with my mug of tea, trying to understand what had just happened. Most of the people I told this story to just said ‘oh she’s just some crazy old pissed bird, don’t take any notice of her!’ But to be so accurate was very bizarre.

So thanks to the crazy drunken lady from Plymouth I was able to finally answer this question that had been bugging me for days on end. For me the answer is not to wonder about whether you’re good enough, but to just focus on being the very best you can and to always know you can do anything you put your mind to. But I think the most important thing is to let everyone else make their own minds up as to whether you’re good enough or not, don’t try and guess for them – otherwise you’ll end up like me and have a stupid question whizzing round you’re brain for days on end.

And let’s face it, there’s far more important thing to do… like sitting out in this lovely sunshine. Which is exactly what I’m going to do now See ya next week!

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Exeter Green Party manifesto offers ways to fight ‘savage’ Conservative-Lib Dem spending cuts

PRSD — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:38:36 +0000

Selling council generated renewable electricity to the grid, implementing a workplace parking levy and higher rates of Council Tax for top band properties will help protect essential services from cuts says Exeter Green Party.

The Green Party in Exeter, which is fielding a candidate in all 13 wards up for election on Thursday, September 9, says that the priority for any elected Green councilors will be to fight to protect essential services from the cuts being demanded by the Conservative-Lib Dem Government.

The Green Party says that environmental and social justice cannot be realised by making such savage cuts to council expenditure.

Andrew Bell, Exeter Green Party policy officer and candidate for Alphington told the PRSD: “The city council is currently looking at how to shave £1 million pounds off its annual budget. We believe that the council needs to resist making cuts to essential services, cuts that will inevitably affect the poorest and most vulnerable in our community.

“What we need instead is bold, innovative and positive ways of increasing revenue to protect essential services while at the same time addressing environmental concerns. This is why we propose selling council generated renewable electricity to the grid and implementing a workplace parking levy. Raising revenue to protect essential services while addressing climate change and pollution and improving the health of the community – that’s social and environmental justice.”

Exeter Green Party’s manifesto also calls for the council to adopt a raft of other positive initiatives such as city-wide referendum style polls on important decisions affecting all residents in Exeter, like the recent failed Unitary status bid; lower council tax for the lowest band properties; subsidised bus fares for children and families and a Living Wage for City Council employees to narrow the pay gap between the highest and lowest-paid workers.

Audaye Elesedy, the chair of Exeter Green Party and candidate for Topsham said: “This manifesto is a beginning of an ongoing commitment from the Exeter Green Party to present positive and transformational ideas on how we can ensure social and environmental justice in Exeter.

“As a democratic party we are engaging the people of Exeter in what’s needed for creating a fairer and healthier city with a sustainable environment and local economy. In this election the people of Exeter get to see a party with strong conviction about the politics that matter. If the electorate choose to elect their first Green councillors on September 9 they’ll see us bringing this about.”

(from a press release)

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Transition Newton Abbot gives guidance on ‘future shape of Teignbridge’ consultation

PRSD — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 07:25:49 +0000

Your local council has decided to consult on the Local Development Framework and you’d like to respond, but what the heck does it all mean? In the face of Teignbridge Council’s ‘future shape of Teignbridge’ consultation, Transition Newton Abbot has put together their responses to talk through some of the issues.

The deadline to respond to the Teignbridge Local Development Framework Core Strategy (that’s LDF CS) is Friday, September 10, and is all about how the council copes with the predicted 30 per cent growth in population and housing and the associated infrastructure delivered by the district council in the next 20 years.

The Transition Newton Abbot gang has discussed and prepared a response to the LDF CS along with an over-all statement.

A Transition Newton Abbot spokesperson said: “We encourage everyone to respond to this on the Teignbridge web site.

“There is a lot of associated material, we have therefore tried to explain (where necessary) our chosen option and the background to this.

“You should make up your own mind on how to respond, but we hope that the collective views expressed here will help you do this.”

Here are Transition Newton Abbot’s LDF CS statement and response.

To respond to Teignbridge’s Local Development Framework Core Strategy and access to all supporting documents go to the Teignbridge Consultation Portal.

You will have to register on-line to respond and apparently the form filling is a little tedious, so you may find the option to e-mail your personal response easier.

(image: Teignbridge District Council’s Forde House Some rights reserved by Simples Comparicus)

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Posters to make the case for fairer votes

Stuart Bonar — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:00:19 +0000

Take Back Parliament, the group campaigning for a YES vote in next May’s fairer votes referendum, is a real grassroots effort. When they needed to come up with ideas for campaign posters, they didn’t go to some swish London advertising company, but instead ran a competition to crowdsource ideas from amongst their own supporters.

I entered, submitting a whole raft of different poster designs: take a look here, here and here.

I didn’t get first prize, but the campaign is still going to use my poster ideas, which is great news. The group campaigning for fair votes in Canada has even been in touch asking if they can adapt some of the designs for use there too.

The case for change is overwhelming. Take, for example, the fact that no MP was elected in either of Devon’s two cities with much more than about one in three votes. Oliver Colvile, the Conservative who unseated Labour’s Linda Gilroy in the Plymouth Sutton and Devonport seat, for example, secured just 34 per cent of the vote – meaning that two-thirds of voters wanted someone else to represent them.

Of the MPs representing South Devon constituencies, only Gary Streeter in South West Devon secured more than one in every two votes.

Looking across the entire country, the lowest vote share of any MP was just 29 per cent, meaning more than seven in every 10 voters backed another candidate. And while I am a Lib Dem, this isn’t a party-political point as the MP in question is a Lib Dem!

In May next year you’ll get a chance in a referendum to back a switch from the system we use right now to elect MPs – first-past-the-post – to a system called the Alternative Vote (AV). Under AV, every voter gets the chance to rank candidates in order of preference – 1, 2, 3 – meaning no more need to vote tactically. You can vote with your heart as well as your head.

Best of all, the winner must ultimately win at least half of the votes. That means parliamentary candidates will have to work harder to win over many more voters than they need to right now. That is good news for democracy.

If you support a switch to AV then visit the Take Back Parliament website and sign up – there are groups forming in Devon right now.

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Tell Sid, shares to be offered in Totnes Renewable Energy Society!

PRSD — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:44:42 +0000

This a ‘tell Sid’ situation – the meeting to launch the public offer of shares in the Totnes Renewable Energy Society (TRESOC), will take place on Friday, September 10 at 7pm in the Civic Hall, Town Square, Totnes.

One of the largest community projects attempted in Totnes will be seeking significant investment for it’s initial projects, which will allow it to deliver its remit – the profitable, commercial developing and running of renewable energy resources in Totnes and district.

TRESOC is offering everyone in Totnes and the 15 parishes surrounding Totnes (and only those people) a share in their energy future.

Along with very attractive returns on the money invested, apparently.

Naresh Giangrande of the Transition Town Totnes Energy group and trustee told the PRSD: “It will come as no surprise to TTT supporters that we see energy as key to our future.

“And it might also come as no surprise that renewable energy resources are being bought up and developed – and fast! We have already had one potential resource bought from under our feet. But we are determined that the safe, clean, renewable energy of Totnes and district is owned and controlled by the people it belongs to- us.

“TRESOC is there to ensure that we own our resources, not large energy companies or private investors.

“The evening of September 10 is your chance to hear the full details of the initial projects that TRESOC will be unveiling and hear the full financial details. The directors will be there to answer all questions.”

(image: TRESOC logo)

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Exeter council elections after unitary fiasco

PRSD — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:08:01 +0000

Remember the fiasco about unitary councils in Devon, with councillors Exeter, Devon County and East Devon presiding over millions being spent on internecine jostling? It all turned out to be futile and now the good citizens of Exeter will go to polls to elect their city council representatives (something that was put off with the hurly burly of unitary status).

The elections will take place on Thursday, September 9, with residents across the city (some 11,000) going to the polls to elect (unlucky for some) 13 new councillors.

Deputy returning officer, John Street told the PRSD: “Next Thursday is an important day for the city in that the 13 councillors who are elected will help determine the future direction of the city council.

“It’s important that those who can vote do so, so that their views are taken into account when councillors make decisions particularly on the budget. Postal votes have already been sent out to those who have asked for them, with polling cards being sent to everyone else.

“The polling cards include details of the polling stations which are all open between 7am and 10pm.

“It only takes five minutes to vote and I hope as many people as possible do so.”

(Image: Some rights reserved by Mykl Roventine)

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Promoting respect on Devon roads (sponsored post)

PRSD — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:08:37 +0000

The combination of the back to school run and the end of the summer (ha!) holiday season can see Devon roads snarled up at all the hours of the day, and if the temperature outside the vehicle is less than seasonal, blood can certainly be boiling on the inside. None of this is conductive to the South Devon way of life, and the Axa Respect on the Road campaign is looking to bring courtesy and respect back to British roads.

It can take a cool head to stay calm as the queue of traffic in the famous Devon lanes grow behind a tractor – or worse – a caravan. Then there’s all the manoeuvring to accommodate oncoming traffic. And that’s even before you get to the queues around the towns, cities and attractions. It’s a situation suffered by local and tourist alike.

Respect on the road and good old courtesy and manners are what you’d expect, but they can sometimes go out of the window with the clunk of the car door as soon as people get behind the wheel. And it’s no use venting your rage in a car full of family, the Respect on the Road campaign has a video where five year old ‘Road Rage kids’ act out what could be learnt behaviour.

All too often, says the campaign, ‘inexperienced drivers give themselves away behind the wheel of a car; they lose their manners and sometimes their marbles too’.

As part of the I Respect the Road campaign, the AXA Car Insurance people put a web cam in a Black Cab to pry out the wisdom of the cabbie’s conversations, and, to be fair, better cycle ways and promoting walking don’t seem half bad. (In this clip, never mind Mayor Kevin, maybe Torbay mayor Nick Bye could take note too for his mayoral vision for The Bay.)

Check out more of the Cab Cam Respect the Road films to see if you share any of the opinions or experiences. Find out more and support the Respect on the Road campaign and ‘like’ the I Respect the Road Facebook page

I respect the road

AXA Respect On The Road

AXA Car Insurance

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Torquay’s other History: Torquay circa 1989 ‘one of Europe’s most sophisticated holiday venues’

Kevin Dixon — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:51:31 +0000

Apparently, in 1989 Torbay was, “one of Europe’s most sophisticated holiday venues… with an unrivalled cosmopolitan atmosphere” featuring “…a dazzling kaleidoscope of nightlife”. If you want proof, here’s the promotional video…

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Torquay’s other History: ever woken up as a historical figure?

Kevin Dixon — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 17:11:22 +0000

Ever woken up after a night out in Torquay and found you’re dressed as a historical figure?

From the Herald of May 19, 1978:

Torquay Magistrates Court found a 21-year-old Scotsman guilty of stealing a hat, a leather belt and a sword and scabbard. A student at South Devon College told the court that he had been dressed as Admiral Nelson.

He said:   “I had the costume to go to a fancy dress party at the 400 Club…

“At about 1am, I went to a fish shop near the club, bought a snack then went off.  ”

“As I was going up Abbey Road, there was group of about seven or more Scottish people on the other side of the road.

“They were quite friendly… when we reached the health centre one of them asked whether he could try on my hat and sword. I let him do that… then he disappeared up an alleyway and I never saw any more of him.”

Blaming alcohol, the defendant stated: “When I woke up the next morning, I still had the gear on.”

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