Month: November 2015

WAVERLEY BOROUGH COUNCIL FRAUD SCANDAL LATEST!

Who knew, what, when, and how, but definitely not why, a £200,000 fraud wasn’t revealed before the May election.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, former WBC Councillor for Haslemere Robini – you are of course, quite right. As a well-respected Surrey Police Officer, if anyone should how serious fraud is… you should. 

But hang on… Don’t we have a former Police Officer leading Waverley Borough Council? But then he and his team didn’t want any more of your lot, (Councillor Robini was a former Lib Dem, Waverley councillor) there to   question every move, after all, that smacks of democracy!  So they covered up the fraud… waited… hoping no-one would blow the whistle …Ah, but they did…  and it was a member of staff no less… brave man/woman that you are. Please contact us at contact@waverleyweb.org

This is the response to a formal question from Hugo Alexander of UKIP to   the Overview  & Scrutiny  (hereinafter referred to as the “Never view and bury it committee” last Monday.  He wanted to know who actually hid the fraud:

Here are the people who knew all about it – did you vote them back in..? But you didn’t know then did you!

Brian Adams; Carole King; Robert Knowles; Tom Martin; Julia Potts; Comrade Stefan Reynolds; Simon Thornton; Jenny Else; Mike Band; Tony Gordon-Smith, Simon Isherwood; Wyatt Ramsdale; Stewart Stennett.

Past councillors,Donal O’Neill; Jennifer (never to be seen O’Grady;) Richard Gates; Adam-Taylor Smith;

What a merry little bunch. But don’t forget they argue the information was in the Audit Papers!

If you have ever wondered how planning applications ever get through the system, watch the WBC webcast of the Eastern Area Planning Committee meeting on the 12th August 2015  youtu.be/Wbjy-u8MKUQ and see how it should not be done. Unless someone has trashed it! The best bits start at about 1.14.38  if you can’t face watching the whole thing! Just watch from 1.18.35 – 1.22.I

If you just can’t face it, take our word for it – it’s bad, really bad.

So knotted, were the knickers of Councillor Jenny Else chairing   – or  attempting  to chair the Eastern Area Planning Committee, that it was difficult to determine what the eventual decision was. Even the applicant was totally baffled, bothered and bewildered. Particularly when someone suggested asking him in the public gallery what he though they should do and would he like to withdraw the application.

Such a proverbial mess did she get into, over the Tortoise & Hare Bicycle shop’s application to extend its premises in Bramley High Street, that several members had to wade in and extricate her from the mess she was in.

Former Chairman, Cllr Brian Ellis visibly winced when after listening to suggestions, counter suggestions, and  more suggestions  how the scheme could be deferred, he tried to find a route out whilst they were still peddling furiously uphill getting nowhere. Thank God for Cranleigh Cllr Stewart Stenett, who, after  describing himself as “The Common Cranleigh digger driver”, said: “For goodness sake, let’s just defer it.”

Watch it for yourselves, if you can bear it, and pray your planning application has better luck. After all, it is possible Elsie may soon be on her bike. However, it is probably early days – she has only been a councillor for eight years, and it is a steep learning curve for some.

Thank God for the Cranleigh Digger Driver!

OH! what would we do without them. Those well meaning, over paid, highly pensioned Whalleys at Surrey County Council who have decided to give us all a better experience at the famous Surrey beauty spot at Newlands Corner at a cost of  £400,000.

Introducing the dumb idea, Councillor Mark Goodman, cabinet member for Environment and Planning, said the aim was to provide a better experience for everyone.

WHAT!

By introducing parking charges!

£1 up to 60 mins, £2 for for an hour to two hours, £3 for two to three hours and for more than three hours a flat charge just £4. Watch out!  here come the traffic wardens…

Says WW: By the way – if you also want to breathe the fresh clean air, and take in the views, throw SCC  another fiver why don’t you the new pension guru Alan Young is now in charge so no worries there then! 

Remember,  Councillor Goodman, said the aim was to ensure everyone can continue enjoying the Surrey countryside we all value. Ye, thanks for reminding us, to value the Surrey countryside, obviously a great deal more than you do, Waverley residents  have been walking there for years, and many are elderly.  Still never mind they can pop up and enjoy the Royal Surrey County Hospital car park for only slightly more!

OMG! Waverley Borough Council will be reading this blog and charging us for parking at all its beauty sports Devil’s Punchbowl/HankleyCommon/Frensham Ponds….Oops The National Trust is already doing that, but I am sure if it tries hard enough it will find one.

Newlands Corner attracts 550,000 visitors a year and Councillor Goodman and Co want to ensure the facilities there are improved to make The Surrey Wildlife Trust self-sufficient to enable Surrey County Council to gradually remove its funding.  How – we wonder? Perhaps a theme park might be a good idea, what about A Costa Coffee Shop or a Pound Shop.

The first will be a family play trail – what the hell is that all about? The second phase is a new building including a Cafe and Education experience – well that would be great – all Surrey County Councillors should pop along and be educated about what the public in Surrey want from their wide open spaces.

He says: If you can bear to hear it.

“Our ultimate aim is to make countryside sites become self-financing and this is the first stage.” 

YE gods – what’s the second stage? It wouldn’t be making a profit out of the treasured site, would it? Why leave the Surrey Hills untouched, surely you can make a few bob there too.

At least he makes one honest statement: “It is worth also noting there is heavy strain on budgeting from rising demand for adult social care and school places.” 

Ah! so that is what it is all about and there we were thinking that the county council would raise  the council tax.

 

Is it a cunning plan to ensure the public don’t get the full picture of what is going on in the engine room at good ship Waverley?

On the council’s website it advertised the start of Monday’s  Overview& Scrutiny Committee as 7.p.m. It actually started at 6.30 pm! But then going by the drivel that was being churned out, and a chairman that couldn’t move on quickly enough from one of the most important matters to be debated this century to the “averse weather watch,” what did it matter.

Then if you look above to the latest web casts of planning meetings,  the video is faulty but the sound is ok! Actually not ok really because if you can’t see the video you don’t know which of our illustrious borough councillors are saying it – but then why would we want to know …