Saturday, 15 September 2007

Busy working in the late summer sun

I was up early this morning and out delivering more surveys by 9.30am. There has been a phenomenal response and I am really enjoying reading people’s comments about issues in their area. I can’t wait to get started on rectifying the problem. One of the issues raised with me was about a planning issue on the Upper Luton Road. The residents were meeting the planning committee, who were on a site visit, and were allowed to ask questions with the officers. It was extremely interesting and at times heated but hopefully it gave the Committee, the officers and the applicant some things to think about. After a quick orange juice and lemonade it was back out delivering more surveys. And for once I was glad to have missed the Tottenham game…

2 comments:

Joan Pepperill (Mrs) said…

I live in Wayfield and was very pleased receive your survey. My area has had Labour councillors and a Labour MP for as long as I can remember and you only have to look around to see what good they have done us.

Cllr John Ward said…

I am pleased you went to a planning site visit.

These have become more common in recent years as more and more planning applications have become contentious — ever since John Prescott imposed ever higher housing quotas on us, along with higher densities and reduced parking stipulations.

The proposed development on the Mid-Kent College site at Horsted (currently in Chatham and Aylesford, but “moving” whenever the next General Election is called) is to be a monstrosity of small terraced houses and mid-rise blocks of flats.

This has already been approved in principle (thanks to all non-Conservative councillors voting it through — only Conservatives voted against this!) and will create real problems in my home area.

That is the sort of result that Prescott wanted — and his legacy lives on, helped by Jonathon Shaw who has vowed to push forward the government’s vast housebuilding programme here — but that residents do not want. They and I know what will happen if these plans go ahead, so no wonder they protest heatedly at site visits.

If only the people of (in the case you mention) Luton wouldn’t keep voting Labour, whether at local or especially at general elections, something could be done about it.

In the meantime, they’re stuck with the imposed self-serving agenda of the Labour Party, whose aim is to squeeze in their types of people, who will vote Labour and help bolster their crumbling support here.