Local residents rely on local newspapers for information about public bodies – but it's not gone unnoticed by some that there is very little news these days of what our councillors and councils are doing or saying while press release from bodies such as the SWRDA and quangoes are presented in our newspapers as if they are official announcements of what's going to happen, rarely have any indication of who actually is making the statement and have no quotes linked to it from anyone that has a different view or who opposes the intended actions.
Yes i agree with Porthia, its pretty difficult to get an idea of whether its the newspaper or tv making a point or the quango! Its all pretty one-sided with no alternative views getting through apart from a few letter writers. Not much chance of a debate is there?
The SWRDA makes a complete mockery of Democracy. Why do we elect local councillors and local MP's, only for them to be overruled (ON LOCAL ISSUES!) by an unelected body appointed by the Secretary of State? It's a sham!
I can't remember when I last saw an article in one of our local newspapers about any debate that the Cornwall Council (CCC) has had on any of the issues that are important to Cornwall. Is it the papers that are keeping this news out, because they think it won't sell their papers, or have they cut back on staff so much that they haven't got anyone to send to council meetings or are the councils rubber stamping edicts from central government via SWRDA etc and are not bothering to try and inform us of what's going on? Whatever, it's not good for democracy in Cornwall!
Mind you things will change when the LIb Dems get into power in Truro!
However as newspapers (mainly Cornwall and Devon Media who have laidoff a lot of reporters recently) cover less 'real' news, then the antics of various bodies will go unchecked.
I think it will lead to a situation where a committed few will spread the word by handing out leaflets and holding meetings, etc.
I think you are all missing the point. Cornwall keeps voting Lib Dem.....who are never going to be the party of Government...so OUR MPs who represent US will continue to have very little influence on what the Government says and does.
...Its OUR fault!
The TV programme today was about the 'South West Regional Assembly' which 'reviews and develops wide ranging strategies at the regional level to provide an over-arching vision for the South West'.
A street survey at the start of the programme showed the level of knowledge about this body - namely everyone had heard of M15 and no-one had heard of the SWRA. However, they hold some very big cards over a population of 5 million and their chief areas are:
Regional Planning Guidance
The Integrated Regional Strategy
The Regional Transport Strategy
The Regional Environment Strategy
The Regional Waste Strategy
and the drawing up and implementation of the Regional Spatial Strategy the draft of which has been bitterly attacked in Cornwall. This is a 'strategic planning document that covers the whole of the South West. It is the key document for planning, monitoring and managing future development in the South West and will, in 2008, replace RPG10 and the county structure plans for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire and the former Avon area. The Draft RSS will be used to guide the production of local planning strategies produced by local councils.'
Perhaps the most clear thing to come out of the Politics Show programme was that the priority for the SWRA is to provide for people from other areas rather than to look after the local population.
The South West of England Regional Development Agency is a different behemoth . They say they have 'been involved with 978 live projects over the past year' and that 'our goal is to improve the economy of South West England'. However, as Bernard Deacon says in his W Briton letter 'What is the evidence that building lots of houses and accommodating in-migration will benefit the economy? In reality the tired old policy of population-led growth has been in place since the 1960's. It failed abysmally in the 1970's and 1980's. So what's different now?....Why are decisions taken by unelected bodies such as the RDA, its even more shadowy brother, the self-styled 'South West Assembly' and locally based quangos such as the Urban Regeneration Company?.. Reason should prevail rather than emotion. That means that communities in Cornwall must begin to challenge the juggernaut of massive house building, endless population growth and environmental degradation that is being foisted on us. We must reclaim our future from an unaccountable and secretive elite.'
Coady said:
Due to the present government's lack of popularity and the Tory's lack of policies it may well be that the Lib-Dems hold the balance of power soon, so I wouldn't be too sure about that.
Do you for one minute think that Labour or Conservative will ever think of Cornwall?
Both of those parties would see Cornwall as party seat providers for their overall parliamentry result.
Cornwall has never fared well under Labour or the Tories. Many, if not all, Labour or Tory candidates (like the totally disagreeable Seb Coe and Candy 'I'm not a lesbian or a homophobe' Atherton) were sent to Cornwall to secure party seats.
One secured their contribution to Cornwall was lamentable.
Cornwall has always been independently minded and having MPs from the party in power will have no effect; did Candy ever help Cornwall in power when she was in power?
Camborne got LOADS of regeneration money Joe, so did Redruth. OK you'll tell me its just coincidence....It was, and is a marginal seat.. next election, the boundaries have changed, its 'lost' rich Falmouth, and 'gained' working class Hayle....
Look, I'm not trying to 'sell you' the Socialists or Tories, I'm just saying,,, be ruthless, forget party loyalties, stop voting for opposition parties, lets be dead cynical and always vote for the party in Government. Send 'our' MPs to Westminster with the single goal of getting everything they can for Cornwall and their constituencies.
We've been traditional Lib/Sdp/Lib Dem voters for years and...what have we got....look around you!
OK, I'll grant you, we've had some really lovely, genuine, caring MPS... but they've almost always been in opposition.
It was worse when the Tories held the sway in Cornwall - 1950s, 1960s, 1970s - they treated us like shit. I remember, things did get better for a while when Wilson arrived (1964), more books and stuff arrived at school. The most seats labour has ever had in Cornwall was 1 out of 5. As local MPs, the Lib-Dems have probably done best of the 3.
Er, I don't see the solutions to Cornwall's ills is voting for a party that might get in and might think of Cornwall.
Camborne and Redruth got loads of regeneration money but who governed that money?
The RDA/SWRDA.
Has Camborne or Redruth benefitted apart from the 'cosmetic' changes?
The way forward, I feel, is to elect MK or independent MPs who will get media attention and say 'look this crap is really going on in Cornwall' rather than a bunch of home county ex-councillors who will sit on the back benches saying 'yes, I agree please make me an undersecretary asap'.
You're really not getting the point, are you chaps.... in the old days, we doffed our caps and voted for the gent..and put up with what he did/said.....
I'm saying, 'put em in' and then hold them to account. Get political, get involved...and for that to work, you need them to be in Government.
Oh, and the money for the regeneration of Camborne was run by a subcommittee at Kerrier....I was there for some of the meetings..it was local reps, not the SWRDA .
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A giant Christmas tree made from recycled plastic bags and bottles goes on display at the Eden Project in Cornwall.
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Important Information regarding Air Southwest flights to/from Newquay Airport.
We have been advised that Newquay Airport will be closed from 1 December to 19 December 2008 inclusive. This is due to issues with the handover of air traffic control from the RAF to the airport authority.
English Heritage get one thing right at least
English heritage have joined with a variety of other organisations in opposing the planned incinerator in St. Dennis on grounds that they have failed to recognise or address the impact that the proposals will have on the wider landscape of St. Dennis.
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