Tag: Waverley Borough Council

Surrey Police has confirmed that, so far, no arrests have been made at ‘Your Waverley.’

 

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Waverley Borough Council referred itself to the police over erroneous air quality data two weeks ago so this will be the second criminal investigation to be undertaken in the country into the publication of erroneous air quality data by a local council.

WAVERLEY BOROUGH COUNCIL INVESTIGATED BY POLICE!

Waverley Borough Council referred itself to Surrey Police over its annual status report for 2016, which was withdrawn in October.
The news comes five months after Cheshire Police launched an investigation to probe Cheshire East Council’s flawed nitrogen dioxide (NO2) data.

Last August, Cheshire East Council reviewed hundreds of planning decisions to ensure that none had been impacted by the incorrect data and it likely that Waverley Council will have to do the same. More taxpayer’s money down the drain?

The issue prompted a legal challenge, subsequently dismissed at the High Court, from a developer to the Cheshire Council’s local plan, which was adopted in July.

Waverley’s referral became public on 19 February. Surrey Police has confirmed that it has made no arrests so far and is establishing if any criminal offences have taken place.
Waverley Council says it will make no further comment while the inquiry progresses.

The Leader of the council has announced that it has now signed contracts with developer Crest Nicholson to begin the controversial East Street development in Farnham – the town that is the subject of the police investigation. Trees have now been cut down along the A31 in readiness for a construction bridge, to access the site and traffic queues have stretched as far as the eye can see – causing yes, you guessed – more air pollution!

What a difference a plan makes?

Butter our butts and call us a scone – as they say in the West Country – but ‘Your Waverley’ is changing the habit of a lifetime and has begun turning down housing development in the countryside!

Ewhurst is the first village to benefit from having a ‘sound and approved Local Plan’ and so thick were the praises being heaped on planning officers for achieving this miracle that you could double up on a huge dollop of  West Country clotted cream! 

The borough of Waverley has not had the protection of a Local Development Plan since 2002! And, until recently has consistently objected to two of the largest brownfield sites in the borough being developed! Dunsfold Aerodrome and Hewitts Industrial Estate in Cranleigh!

‘Such a wonderful report,’ ‘the officers are marvellous,’ ‘they have worked soooooo hard.’  Pass the sick bowl – Alice! All because planning officers have done a complete volte-face just months after recommending approval of a development at Firethorn Farm, Ewhurst of 58 dwellings on a field under WA/2017/0369,  behind Larkfields in Horsham Lane, Ewhurst, and on the same day it recommended approval again, in a 79 PAGE REPORT FOR A REDUCED NUMBER OF 49 DWELLINGS BECAUSE – its benefits would outweigh the harm. Then on the night it then recommending refusal, in a one-page report, because its harm would outweigh the benefits!

CONFUSED?

NOW YOU SEE IT ON THE AGENDA FEBRUARY 2018

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But Ewhurst residents may not be able to hold their breath for too long. The applicant landowner Mr Peter Nutting has also registered a planning appeal.

Councillor Stephen Mulliner, a member of the JPC, suggested the applicant should be talking to the Parish Council which is in the process of producing its own Neighbourhood Plan. “I don’t rule this site out forever, the applicant should be seeking discussions with the parish council for its inclusion in the Neighbourhood Plan.

Former Portfolio Holder for Planning Councillor Brian Adams said: ‘This site has never been compared with other sites in the area. He now believed, ‘as the site was, now on the radar, it could come before us again in the Local Plan Part 11 in 12 months time!’ 

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The Waverley Web puts up the WANTED sign and guess what? Up pops a Povey on the BBC!

There we were thinking that  Cranleigh & Ewhurst’s Surrey County Councillor Andrew Povey had gone missing so we put out the WANTED poster on the link below.

Have you seen this man?

No sooner said than done. What do they say about … hell having no fury like a BLOKE… scorned! 

Now, with his feet now firmly gazunder County Hall’s tables, than..Screen Shot 2018-02-19 at 22.15.42.png !

as Councillor Andrew Povey – attempts to scratch the eyeballs out of the bloke who snatched the Leader’s mantle from him after the 2011 coup when the Deputy Dog. Bodge and his fellow Tory Tossers took a Vote of No Confidence in him and forced him to resign!

Following his resignation, his immortal words still ring in our ears! He said:

“I came to a crossroads in my life.”

It wasn’t a crossroads you arrived at Councillor ~Povey – it was the end of the road, for one of the most ambitious, unscrupulous, double-dealing, opportunist politicians, it has been our misfortune to come across! And, because Guildford Conservative Association scraped the bottom of the barrel and persuaded the voting fodder of Cranleigh & Ewhurst to put you right back where they believed you belonged, claiming  you were a better bet than your running mate Alan Young, you can now continue your long-held ambition to…

bbc-surrey-logoDislodge the Bodge!

Watch out Hodge there’s a Weasel breathing down your neck aiming to dislodge you!  Povey has been biding his time for almost 10 years to poke you one in the eye for booting him out of his hot seat.

Who says .. what goes around…! Who needs an opposition when you have a Povey in your midst?
Listen to the interview here – starting 2hours 7 mins in.

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Councillor Andrew Povey:

The former leader of Surrey County Council (SCC) criticised the current leader David Hodge, over financial difficulties SCC now face as a result of a  £100 million funding crisis, council tax set to increase by 6%, cuts of £66 million and the council forced to dip into its reserves. Dr  Povey, who led SCC until 2011 said: “They [SCC] had a report from CIPFA, a professional institute for accountants, … in September 2016, and at that time the leader was very much pushing the idea of a 15% [council tax rise] referendum in Surrey, which was really a complete non-starter and this report told him that in history no one has ever won a referendum like this… and that there was an absence of any credible cost reduction plan.
“So in September 2016 that’s when he [Hodge] should have started to make savings because those savings would then have been made in 2016, they would have continued through into ’17 and ’18 so we would now be in a much better position than we are…”

Cllr David Hodge – v- Povey.
Povey and Hodge fell out in 2011. Povey resigned following the resignation of Hodge, his deputy at the time, and Hodge took over as the leader.
At the time Povey said: “It is my intention to stand down as leader of Surrey County Council… so I can develop my business interests.” He also said “It got to the point where we were seeing things differently… we have a different style, are very different people – that can be a strength, but I think it got to the point where it was going the other way.”
Andrew Povey also stood down as a councillor but, after a four-year break, made a surprising comeback in last year’s county council election when, with the approval of Anne Milton MP, he stood as the Conservative candidate for the Cranleigh & Ewhurst division, following the controversial deselection of the incumbent, Alan Young. Since then the local Cranleigh/Ewhurst branch has been in complete disarray with Anne Milton’s new lady-in-waiting Screen Shot 2018-02-21 at 14.54.10.pngalso working tirelessly behind the scenes to unseat the present Chairman of  Cranleigh Parish Council – Mary Foryszewski, and to take her seat at Waverley in 2019!
Now, some observers are questioning whether Povey’s public criticism of his leader too, is the first sign of a new leadership bid.

What do they say about – “rats altogether in a sack.”

Cllr Hazel Watson
Cllr Hazel Watson, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, said yesterday: “I am pleased that Cllr Povey agrees with what the Liberal Democrats and I have been saying about Surrey County Council’s finances over the last 18 months.
“He is right to draw attention to the criticisms of the county council contained within CIPFA’s report Financial Resilience Review – Surrey County Council. This report was commissioned by the current leader of the council and was kept hidden from county councillors for months.
“He is correct in his judgment of the folly of the leader in pursuing a doomed policy of a 15% council tax rise which was subsequently abandoned. The CIPFA report clearly stated that such a referendum was unwinnable but the leader of the council refused to act on their advice.
“Instead of blaming the government for lack of funding and backing an unwinnable referendum, the Conservative administration should have been working on identifying sensible efficiencies and a realistic level of deliverable savings without cutting services. It should also have acted much earlier on the many empty buildings it owns across the county, which have cost the taxpayer hundreds of thousands of pounds each year to maintain.
“Surrey County Council is in a poor financial position with no clear plan to improve the situation. Unless a solution is found, then we only have to look to Northamptonshire County Council to see the consequences of when the money eventually runs out.”

THE PLOT THICKENS…!

WAVERLEY BOROUGH COUNCIL INVESTIGATED BY POLICE!

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After ranting on for years about Farnham’s Air Quality issues has someone, somewhere, finally listened to Jerry Hyman? 

After following the powerful Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee chaired by Farnham Resident councillor Jerry Hyman for some time it was only a question of time before he would force his, and the serious concerns of many others, including the Farnham Society, to be heard. 

AND… NOW THEY HAVE!

Funny really when the webcasts of his meetings are either – not webcast at all  – or they don’t seem to work most/all/some of the time!!

Cover up or what…?  Accountability –  what accountability?

• Air Quality Officer Ann Marie Wade – GONE!
• Executive Director Paul – Wen-am-I-leaving – GONE!
• Deputy Director – Damien, The Omen,  Roberts – GONE!
• Council Leader during most of the period in question Robert Knowless … Has he gone… or is he just missing, most of the time?
• As for Julia – has she just put on her mask and gone to Potts?

WHO PAYS? We Do!

Roger Steel, a former borough councillor and member of Waverley’s executive, has criticised Waverley’s handling of Farnham’s air quality problem on behalf of the town planning watchdog the Farnham Society.

He told the Farnham Herald: “At the moment, Waverley judges that NO2 levels contravene safe limits set by European Union Regulations at three places in Farnham – two in The Borough and one in Wrecclesham Road. But with the correction of the local bias factor, I fully expect at least six to seven places to be exceeding that limit.

“We are concerned that there may now be further delay in the issuing of the 2016 Air Quality Report and subsequent air quality data which is needed so that appropriate measures can be taken to reduce the health risks to residents and retailers, and also so that well-informed planning decisions can be taken.

“Large developments such as East Street – which will increase traffic in the town centre by around 15 percent – should be well and truly put on the back burner until we know the full extent of the problem.”

Mr Steel added, although the content of the audit report and scope of the police investigation is unknown, he believes Waverley faces a substantial “six-figure” fine should it be found guilty of any wrong-doing, adding “if it is the case that Waverley knew its figures were wrong when submitting them to Defra, it could be very, very serious indeed”.

He continued: “The Environment Act 1995 makes clear that local authorities are obliged to monitor local air quality and submit their findings to Defra – and can be penalised if they break this law.

I’ve been writing to Waverley for years saying they are breaking this law, and the council’s leadership has got to take overall responsibility.”

WILL THEY WON’T THEY… NO! Because there is no accountability at Waverley Borough Council.

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But the council is yet to release the audit report in the public domain or reissue its withdrawn 2016 air quality report – leaving a huge question mark as to whether Farnham has a pollution problem or not, at a time when planning appeals for more than 500 homes in the town area are to be determined in coming weeks.

Confirming the news, a police spokesman said: “Surrey Police is investigating following concerns reported to police over an official council environmental report. No arrests have been made and an investigation is ongoing to establish whether any criminal offences have taken place.”

A Waverley spokesman added: “The final version of the audit report has been received. The report has been passed onto the police, who are now investigating. We can’t say anymore until their investigation is completed.”

It comes after Waverley commissioned an independent review of its 2016 Air Quality Annual Status Report last August following complaints by the Farnham Society and Farnham-based air quality expert David Harvey that council officers had got their figures wrong.

This error was confirmed by red-faced council chiefs a month later – calling into question the validity of previous annual air quality reports that have used the same basis of calculation, and prompting a comprehensive audit of Waverley’s air quality monitoring and reporting arrangements.

Waverley is duty-bound to submit an annual air quality status report to DEFRA after an Air Quality Management Area was declared in Farnham in 2004, following the discovery of excessive levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) which has been linked to as many as 40,000 premature deaths every year in the UK.

The council’s latest Air Quality Annual Status Report, published last May, claimed air pollution – and specifically levels of NO2 only “slightly exceeds” the national objective at three monitoring stations in Farnham; two in The Borough and one in Wrecclesham Road.

However, this was challenged by Mr Harvey, the director of West Street firm ADM Ltd, who believes Waverley has dramatically under-estimated the problem after miscalculating two ‘bias adjustment factors’ used to counter discrepancies between the council’s monitoring equipment.

Waverley’s situation bears painful similarities with that faced by another unitary authority, Cheshire East Council, which admitted ‘falsifying’ its own air quality figures last year, requiring hundreds of planning applications to be reviewed and prompting an ongoing police investigation.

Responding to the criminal investigation into Waverley’s own botched report this week, Mr Harvey told the Herald: “I am baffled as to why what seemed to be a case of discourteous incompetence has been referred to the police to investigate.

“There does seem to be similarities with the between what is going on at Waverley and East Cheshire where the police were called in to investigate what appears to have been ‘deliberate and systematic manipulation of data’ and perhaps is pointing to a wider problem with how local authorities are undertaking their statutory duties to review and assess air quality.

“I have no idea what the police have actually been asked to investigate and cannot understand how it could have come to this.

“I have been in contact with Waverley since first drawing attention to the problem in May last year and have been impressed by how pro-active they have been since understanding that there was a problem with the data.

“I hope that they will now release the corrected and update 2016 monitoring report so that we can understand whether this is actually an air quality problem in Farnham.”

An Inspector​ calls, time … for Part 1 of the Local Plan.

We thought we would provide our followers with a few little tidbits from the Inspector Report on the Examination of Part 1 of Waverley’s Local Plan. A plan, long in the making, prepared with blood, sweat, and a few resignations,  that will guide development in the borough through to the year 2032.

Government Inspector Mr. Jonathan Bore, found that: Waverley’s initial Plan that provided for a meager 9,861 additional homes from 2013 to 2032,  did not take account of the latest housing projections so this would now be raised to ‘a minimum of 11,210. This would meet the unmet need, of other borough’s including 50% of Woking’s  and those of the Wandsworth & Wimbledon Wanderers!

 Waverley had previously made no allowance for accommodating part of London or Woking’s unmet housing requirement. 

Why should it?

 Because  The Inspector says,  Guildford & Woking are surrounded by Green Belt, and Waverley is – “significantly less constrained,’ particularly in the East of the borough including Cranleigh. Waverley is also the third most expensive local authority region in England outside London.

elephantWell,  they are now!

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The Inspector states that: “Whilst the Dunsfold Aerodrome site did not match all the criteria,’ …

‘Do we hear a huge sigh of relief from the anti’s? Including The Protect Our Waverley, or perhaps just our little corner,  sod Farnham and the rest of the borough!

Is there a glimmer of hope e hear them cry? A Judicial Review perhaps? A National Heritage order, what about newts, gnats, perhaps the odd Dunsfold Dodo or Alfold Albatross? Or the greater spotted Ames Bat? Anything, just anything? Or, of course, we could always resort to asking our Annie to get her whip out again?

We digress! This is serious stuff folks!

The Inspector says in his report… that if Dunsfold was not developed additional housing would be required in Farnham and Haslemere, and on greenfield sites elsewhere in the borough, in and around all the major towns, including Cranleigh, because of course he now recognises that with over 2,000 permission in the concrete mixer it is now Waverley’s fifth town! He also, says he doesn’t want to see too much Green Belt sacrificed. 

Phew! that’s s relief – WW thought for a moment developers would start building in the Flying Scotsmsn’s nest around Winterfold!

This section is taken from the Inspector’s report – just in case you thought we were producing fake news!

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What’s more…  ‘as regards Dunsfold Aerodrome, the aim of re-using land that has previously been developed is one of the National Planning Policy Framework’s core planning principles.’

What have we been winding on about on this site since weaving this spider’s web?