HOLA news September 09
Volunteers Wanted for Saturday 12 September
At our meeting last night we decided to have a presence outside the Jubilee Hall on Saturday when the proposals to develop the land owned by Bristol University will be presented. We will be handing out HOLA leaflets and getting email addresses to increase our supporter base.
We divided the time into one hour periods and those present volunteered to fill some of them. The unfilled slots are 1:00 to 2:00 and 4:00 to 5:00. If you are able to help, would you please let me know? Please come down and give you support anyway, any time from 12:00 to 5:00.
Other things we plan to do are: to increase visibility of HOLA with some posters and contacting district councillors to persuade them not to vote in favour of the stadium. I will email you again with details of these actions. The minutes of the meeting will be on the web site shortly.
Ashton Park
The planning application for Ashton Park has been resubmitted and has been allocated the number 09/P/1455/OT2, if you want to look at it. Clearly, we all need to register our objections, although I am confident that North Somerset will reject the application. I am equally sure that there will be an appeal. All the objections to the original application are given to the planning inspector, so we need to make these as numerous as possible.
Bristol City Council Motion Against the RSS
There is a Bristol City Council meeting next Tuesday, 15th September at 6pm. Pip Sheard will to be doing a three minute submission opposing both the proposed Tesco development on the current BCFC site and the new Stadium.
Councillor Richard Eddy (Conservative Leader) has tabled the motion below for discussion at the same meeting. Pip has asked us to email him at richard.eddy@bristol.gov.uk thanking him for this. She has done this on behalf of TfGB. Can any of you turn up to listen?
This is the full text of the motion:
A COUNCILLOR R EDDY TO MOVE: “Further to the Full Council resolution of 14th October 2008, this Council reaffirms its opposition to the unrealistic, unworkable and unsustainable house building figures contained in the proposed changes to the Draft Revised Regional Spatial Strategy for the South West (RSS).
Council welcomes the delay in adoption of the RSS as a result of a legal challenge against the East of England Plan, and hopes this time will be used by the Labour Government to reconsider their housing targets – particularly in the light of the remaining uncertainties surrounding the housing market.
In addition, Council continues to oppose the contemplated unparalleled destruction of open spaces and the Green Belt, which would result from such intensive development.
Council is specifically concerned about the additional numbers proposed for Bristol, the size of the south west extension at Ashton Vale and the over-development intended in the south east and northern parts of the city (particularly when there are no plans to improve or provide the necessary infrastructure alongside such new development).
Council believes that the Local Authorities concerned are best placed to determine the level and location of new housing developments within their boundaries.
In the event of any failure by the Secretary of State to significantly reduce Labour’s housing numbers, Council calls on the Leader of Council to explore with our neighbouring authorities the possibility of mounting a joint challenge in the Courts to the South West Regional Spatial Strategy.”
This is potentially an important development, which needs our active encouragement. We know that North Somerset is contemplating something similar, but has been less explicit.
Other Events
Some of the local running clubs are starting from the Bird in Hand on Thursday at 7:00 and will be running over the proposed stadium site. This is to highlight the threat to the green belt. I am sure they would welcome your support.
Berate, the Bedminster group formed to protest against the proposed Tesco development on the BCFC stadium site are holding a rally on Saturday 12 September starting at 11:00 at North Street Green and walking the length of North Street.
Rod Sterland
Letter from Caroline Spelman MP
CAROLINE SPELMAN MP
SHADOW SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES & LOCAL GOVERNMENT
HOUSE OF COMMONS
LONDON SW1A 0AA
Dear Colleague,
August 2009
Abolition of Regional Planning
Following the publication of our two recent policy papers on localism and housing (Control Shift and Strong Foundations), I have received a number of practical questions about the process for abolishing regional planning. As the issues are complex – a consequence of Labour’s convoluted legislation – I thought these would be best addressed in a letter.
Abolition of Regional Spatial Strategies
- A Conservative Government will abolish the bureaucratic and undemocratic tier of regional planning. This will include the abolition of the Regional Spatial Strategies (RSS) and the Regional Planning Bodies, the abolition of national and regional building targets, as well as the cancellation of the Labour Government’s plans to move the regional housing and planning powers to Regional Development Agencies and Regional Leaders’ Boards.
- We anticipate primary legislation in the first year of a Conservative Government, as part of a broader Local Government and Housing Bill. Prior to primary legislation, we will consider whether to use the executive powers of the Secretary of State to revoke the Regional Spatial Strategies in whole or in part. We will also publish our draft policy changes and legislation – as part of a necessary process of consultation required in law. This in itself will have the status of ‘emerging policy’. Hence, even before primary legislation is passed, local authorities will have the ability to put the brakes on elements of Regional Spatial Strategies which they find undesirable (for example, Green Belt reviews imposed on them by the RSS).
- Local authorities will be able to review their Local Development Frameworks to undo unwanted planning policies which the Regional Spatial Strategies had imposed upon them. In practice, such a review would be a partial revision by councils – changing elements which are particularly unpopular or undesirable. The Local Development Framework regime, imposed by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, has been so time-consuming and bureaucratic that I sense that there is little desire in local government to go back to square one, and start the whole torturous process from scratch.
Saying ‘No’ to the Labour Government
- The Government’s whole Regional Spatial Strategy process is currently in disarray. High Court challenges have successful questioned the deletion of the Green Belt in the East of England, a series of High Court proceedings are challenging the South East RSS, and Ministers have delayed the publication of the final South West RSS to pre-empt similar legal challenges.
- I recognise that many local authorities are currently in a difficult position, with Government Offices pressuring councils into moving ahead with their Core Strategies and associated Development Plan Documents, imposing the controversial elements demanded by the Regional Spatial Strategies. There is also an implied threat of cuts to central funding if councils do not fall into line, and the veiled suggestion of developers submitting planning applications based on the RSS, prior to any local plan adoption.
- Such hectoring has a weak basis in fact. It is worth noting that the only financial penalty that the Government has is through the Housing and Planning Delivery Grant (HPDG), which is only partly based on targets on delivering elements in the Local Development Scheme. The sums of money are relatively small and there is only one final allocation round before the general election (likely to be in November 2009, based on data collected in summer/autumn 2009).
- After that allocation, Labour Ministers have no other tool to bully councils. Under a Conservative Government, there will not be a third round of HPDG funding, as we have pledged to replace the grant with a simpler, clearer incentive scheme to allow councils to benefit from council tax and business rate revenue growth.
- We will not pay a penny of compensation to speculative developers as a consequence to changes in planning policy. This principle is well established: government planning policy changes frequently. Notwithstanding, we cannot reverse any individual planning application that has been granted in full following all due process and a fair hearing.
The General Election
- There is, of course, absolutely no guarantee of the election of a Conservative Government: we still have a lot more to do to win the public’s trust and secure a firm democratic mandate. But there is an immovable date of a general election in under a year. As part of councils’ contingency planning, like any responsible business, council officers should be asked to prepare both for the continuation of current government policy (in the event of a Labour win), and for the radical change of government policy (in the event of a Conservative win).
- The general election brings with it regulatory uncertainty. In this context, especially given the current legal challenges, we would advise councils not to rush ahead with implementing the controversial elements of Regional Spatial Strategies, expending time and taxpayers’ money that may be wasted. Ultimately, councillors should seek to serve the best interests of their residents while operating within the law, rather than jump to the latest arbitrary demands from Whitehall or the Regional Government Offices.
- I would encourage councils to say ‘no’ when the Government attempts to force the council to act at a speed which is not a binding legal necessity. Given the likelihood of a general election by May 2009 and the prospect of ‘emerging policy’ after that, the planning process will not be sufficiently delayed in a way that would allow developers to submit speculative bids based on the current RSS.
- Freed from the confines of the local government planning process, MPs and PPCs can be even bolder – explaining to electors how a Conservative vote will help deliver the change our country needs, scrapping Labour’s unpopular and disliked regional planning process. In this context, a slightly delayed Local Development Framework process will make the democratic choice at the general election more stark and clear for the electorate: a vote for democratic accountability and sustainable development from Conservatives on one hand, or unelected, unwanted, unsustainable urban sprawl from a discredited and bullying Labour regime on the other.
London planning
- In contrast to the unelected regional tiers of government across England, London has a different, clearer constitutional settlement. However, there is still scope for further devolution down to the Mayor and Assembly and down to London boroughs. We are talking to colleagues in the GLA and the Boroughs on the scope for more decentralisation in London and working through the practical implications of our pledge to abolish the Government Office for London.
Promoting sustainable housing
- Such an approach should be taken in the context of the broader reforms outlined in our recent green papers to encourage more sustainable housing. These include allowing councils to keep the proceeds of council tax and business rate receipt growth from new development, the creation of new Local Housing Trusts to promote the construction of local housing for members of the local community, and freeing up more public sector brownfield land for redevelopment.
We intend to publish additional detail on planning reform in due course. But I hope this letter is helpful to your local campaigning and democratic duties. The forthcoming general election will be an exciting opportunity to offer real change and ensure that elected local representatives have the real power they need to serve their communities.
Roof and Cavity Wall Insulation
Dear Transitionists,
‘Warm Streets’ is a Government/Local Authority sponsored scheme to make householders (owners and private tenants) aware of the generous discounts now available on roof and cavity wall insulation. The scheme does not cover Council or Housing Society managed dwellings.
One of the most effective things we can all do and now at greatly reduced or even no cost, to reduce our Carbon Footprint is to ‘get insulated’. Every one covered by the scheme is now entitled to a discount of at least 50% and if there is anyone in the house over 70 or if the householder is on benefit it will be free.
Transition Long Ashton in association with Greening Pill have been selected as community partners by the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) in Bristol which is managing the scheme on be half of North Somerset council and we have agreed to give it as much coverage as possible in the village.
Ideally therefore we would like to know that every owner or private tenant in the village is aware of these discounts. Your Energy Group is advertising the scheme in village magazines and placing leaflets and posters in public places.
In addition to this we would ask that you all consider speaking to your neighbours and those in your locality and giving those interested the referral forms to send in to the CSE.
Copies of the referral forms with freepost envelopes can be obtained from me, Ian Webb Tel. 392187 or on margerian@btinternet .com. They will also be available at the ‘Energy Open Doors’ event on 12th September.
Anyone sending in a form should get a free survey within 2 weeks followed by a quotation. On acceptance of the quote the work should be done by the CSE nominated contractor within 6 weeks.
If you have any questions about the scheme please ask me.
Transition Long Ashton and Greening Pill will be rewarded with Consultancy Time by CSE in proportion to the number of referrals so it is to our advantage to get as many as possible. Access to their expertise will be very useful to us in reducing our community Carbon Footprint.
PS. If you phone 0800 012 512 saying that you heard about the scheme from ‘Pill and Long Ashton Community Warm Streets’ and want to take advantage of it you may get a further reduction of £99 while their Summer Offer lasts. Best wishes, Ian Webb
350 day
This is an international day of action ahead of the Copenhagen Climate Summit in December, calling for agreements that will reduce carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere back to 350 parts per million, which is the maximum for continuing life as we know it (current level is 384).
In Long Ashton we will be collecting pledges of actions already done or in the future to reduce carbon footprints. We aim to collect 350 pledges!
In the evening we plan to show the film Age Of Stupid.
More information closer to the time.
Apple Evening
Jubilee Pavilion.
Bring along your surplus apples to share, and any unusual apples to be identified, and share recipes.
Grow It Group
In the Jubilee Pavilion. For anyone interested in growing and food, to share ideas and problems. The autumn/winter programme will be planned at this meeting. Phone Deryll on 392587 for more information.
Food Group open meeting
To discuss possibilities of Community Supported Agriculture in the village.
Jubilee Pavilion.
Run
Town and Country Harriers are running from the Bird in Hand next Thurs at 7pm, and we will be running on the land proposed for housing development as well as the new football stadium. We have forwarded details to all the running clubs in bristol, so you never know a crowd may turn up.
Running
Thought you may be interested to know that my running club, Town and Country Harriers are running from the Bird in Hand next Thurs at 7pm, and we will be running on the land proposed for housing development as well as the new football stadium. We have forwarded details to all the running clubs in Bristol, so you never know a crowd may turn up. The run will be led by Chris Smar.
Transition news 3/9/09
Lots of new things at the moment, so I’m including some here, and sending the Warm Streets and Transition Training information in separate posts.
Food group open meeting about possibilities of Community Supported Agriculture in the village – Tuesday 15th, 7.30 at the Jubilee Pavilion
Grow It Group:
- next meeting Tuesday 8 September, 7.30 in the Jubilee Pavilion. For anyone interested in growing and food, to share ideas and problems. The autumn/winter programme will be planned at this meeting. Phone Deryll on 392587 for more information.
- Apple Evening, Tuesday 13th October, 7.30 in the Jubilee Pavilion. Bring along your surplus apples to share, and any unusual apples to be identified, and share recipes.
350 day – Saturday October 24th. This is an international day of action ahead of the Copenhagen Climate Summit in December, calling for agreements that will reduce carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere back to 350 parts per million, which is the maximum for continuing life as we know it (current level is 384).
In Long Ashton we will be collecting pledges of actions already done or in the future to reduce carbon footprints. We aim to collect 350 pledges!
In the evening we plan to show the film Age Of Stupid.
More information closer to the time.
Eco feature-length documentary: ‘Home’
Has anyone come across ‘Home’? Have a look at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqxENMKaeCU&feature=related (You can watch it in high definition, full-screen). It’s a 90 minute beautifully shot documentary narrated by Glenn Close, with the message ‘it’s too late to be pessimistic’ about the ecological crisis, after lots of explanation of the problems consumer capitalism is heading us towards.
10:10 campaign
The brainchild of Franny Armstrong, director of Age Of Stupid, this is the campaign of the film if you like, and aims to enrol as many people, companies, councils, etc as possible, to pledge to reduce our carbon emissions by 10% in the year 2010. Publicised by the Guardian and the Sun, it was launched on Tuesday at Tate Modern (fittingly, a former coal-fired power station), and there’s loads of information and tips on the website at www.1010uk.org. There’s also information at www.guardian.co.uk/10-10. And everyone who signs up gets a free aluminium tag in the shape of the logo, made from a retired jumbo jet!
Franny came up with the idea after reading something to the effect that we need to make a 10% reduction by 2010, and the campaign also aims to be a very large voice asking for meaningful agreements at the Copenhagen summit. In contrast to something I read the other day about how nations like the Maldives are fed up of delegates at these conferences being moved to tears by hearing about the plight of nations like them, but failing to make any real changes.
The Story of 10:10 – a message from Franny Armstrong that I feel moved to pass on verbatim:
If you put yeast into a jar with some sugar, they will gobble up the energy as quickly as possible, reproduce wildly out of control and then wipe themselves out in their own waste products.
So far, our response to climate change has been of the yeast variety. All the talking, all the documentaries, all the international negotiations have resulted in a net achievement of less than nothing: global emissions just keep going up and up.
As Pete Postlethwaite’s character says in our, er, documentary, The Age of Stupid, “We wouldn’t be the first life form to wipe itself out. But what would be unique about us is that we did it knowingly.” And there’s the crux of it. We are the most intelligent creature ever to evolve. The first to understand how the overstretching resources->extinction pathway works and the first with the potential to use our big brains to jump off that pathway before it’s too late.
So… to maximise our chances of preventing runaway climate change, we must quickly and massively cut global emissions. To quickly and massively cut global emissions we need a binding international treaty and the last chance we have to get that treaty within the timescale of the physics of the planet, is the UN Climate Summit in Copenhagen in December this year. Hence the “Most important meeting in human history” moniker.
Clearly the treaty isn’t just made up on the spot, they’ve been working on it for years. The best deal currently on the table is that from the EU, which calls for a 30% reduction by 2020 (compared to 1990 levels). If this deal were to be accepted (which is a very big if, given that Japan argues for 8%, Australia for 5% and America for between 0%-6%) and if the emission cuts were then carried out (which is an even bigger if, given that no country has ever deliberately cut its emissions), this would give us about a 50/50 chance of not hitting the dreaded two degrees. Two degrees is where we trigger runaway climate change: two leads to three, three to four, four to five, five to six… by which time it’s about over for life on Earth.
In other words, our elected leaders are giving us – at best – a coinflip chance of avoiding catastrophe. It is hard to imagine a more total failing of our political system. Imagine if they were standing at a plane door… “Come on citizens, everybody on board, 50/50 chance of a safe landing….”
All of which means that we non-politician human beings who depend on the climate remaining habitable had best jump into action.
By signing up to 10:10, you will commit yourself, your school, your hospital, your church, your business, your whatever to cut 10% of your emissions next year. Which is easy. It’s at the level of changing lightbulbs, turning down heating, driving a bit less and maybe sticking in some (free) insulation. Four of the big six energy companies have already signed up to help their customers cut their energy usage over the course of the year. In fact, one of the first inklings we had of the 10:10 magic was when everyone from Eon to the Women’s Institute to Spurs to the Science Museum started rushing to sign up before we’d barely formulated the plan.
As well as being achieveable for the vast majority of the population, 10% in one year is the kind of cut the science tells us we need. Forget those long-term put-it-off targets of 80% by 2050 - we need to start cutting right now.
Once we have a sizeable chunk of the UK signed up, the next step is to challenge the Government to follow suit: to commit to reduce the whole country’s emissions by 10% in 2010. Which would be difficult. But the other option – runaway climate change and a humanitarian catastrophe – has got to be worse.
And if one of the biggest historical climate culprits – that’s us – stepped forward and made the first move, it just might change the outcome at Copenhagen. The international talks have long been hamstrung by “It’s all China’s fault” or “We’re not playing if America’s not playing” and so the UK going 10:10 has a small chance of breaking the deadlock.
One week after the talks finish – whatever the outcome – on January 1st 2010 the people of Britain will start getting on with solving the problem, supported by the Energy Saving Trust, the Carbon Trust and tonnes of online resources. Everyone who successfully completes their 10% cut should find themselves richer (for saving money on their energy bills), fitter (for the walking & cycling which replaced some car trips) and with more friends (the colleagues they car-pooled with or the neighbours who helped walk all the kids to school). More importantly, everyone who takes part will know that their efforts are part of the nationwide effort to prevent catastrophe. Hell, if 10:10 takes off as we are dreaming, their efforts will be part of the international effort to prevent catastrophe.
I was born in the early 70s and am part of the MTV generation who were told by a million adverts that the point of our existence was to shop more. Daunting though the task ahead may be, I personally feel enormously inspired and quite relieved that it turns out that we have something important to do. The people who came before us didn’t know about climate change and the ones who come after will be powerless to stop it. So it’s down to us. Other generations came together to overturn slavery or end apartheid or win the vote for women. There is nothing intrinsincally more useless about our generation and there is no doubt about what we have to do. The only question which remains is whether or not we give it a go.
Franny Armstrong
1st September 2009
Lanch of 10:10
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