Pressure rises over proposed development of Talbot Village in Poole

The protests over the weekend against the proposed development of Talbot Village is not as obvious as some of the local residents would have you know.

The official planning application for the land south of Wallisdown road is due to be heard by Bournemouth council this afternoon, and Poole council - who make the final decision on it - at the end of next month.

The issue is clearly not black and white though. Whilst local residents are entirely within their rights to protest against the loss of what Cllr Phil Eades called "the last green space between Poole and Bournemouth," the development of 450 new student units and 378 new homes - 40% of which are designated affordable housing - could most certainly be understood as a step forward for the area.

A previous application for the development failed due to a lack of planned expansion of the local sewage system, but this is part of a wider issue that the development would bring, and doubtless what underpins what most of the locals are angry about; they don't want more people there. And in particular the sort of characters that affordable housing attracts.

Whilst few could argue with affordable housing in principle, the local Chairman of Talbot Village Resident's association Victor Sears conceded that local residents with young children didn't want more students in the local area.

Of course with around 800 new people in a relatively small area, it is entirely debateable whether the existing schools and doctors surgeries in the area could cope with such a large influx.

All of these logistical issues ignore the real bone of contention to many though; namely the heathland which adjoins the private land owned by the Talbot Village Trust.

Natural England guidelines say that there must be a 400-metre protection zone for this heathland, and the development looks as if it may encroach on this - potentially damaging the habit of protected species such as warblers and nightjars.

Dorset residents, like those in many other rural counties, are eager to protect their local wildlife and the scenery that gives the county so much of its character. The heath is fantastic for walking dogs (and children) and is difficult to not enjoy.

The problem though, so far as the council is concerned at least, is that the land planned for development is owned privately, and so long as the planning application submitted by the Talbot Village Trust is in order, there seems to be little that these protestors can do.

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Outsourcing aggravation riles Councillor

A local union chief has accused Conservative Councillors of acting in their own interests this week as disputes over the planned outsourcing of departmental services at Bournemouth Borough Council continue.

David Higgins, Bournemouth branch secretary for UNISON, the trade union representing many local public sector workers, accused Deputy Leader of the Council, John Beesley, of playing politics over the issue of outsourcing, saying that the Councillor’s legacy was the impetus for the outsourcing project.

“Councillor Beesley’s the one that’s driving this. It’s his idea.

“Anyone that’s disagreed with him in the past has been chucked out of the cabinet or off committees.”

Councillor Beesley said he was extremely disappointed in Mr Higgins, adding that the union chief was being “wholly disingenuous.”

Concerns have been raised by opposition Councillors over the move, which would see council operations moved out of the remit of the local authority and into hands of private companies. Liberal Democrat Councillor Roger West called a special meeting in April to discuss the move, which he yesterday called “complete madness”.

The Council intends to offer contracts to outside companies in four different departments according to the Council’s ‘Efficiency Review 2010’ document, which says that efficiency savings could reach over £7 million.

Maria O’Reilly, Strategic ICT Manager for the council, said the local authority was “particularly keen for local jobs to stay in-house.”

However Councillor Beesley did concede that the council faced “difficult choices” in regards to the economic climate, offering assurances only that “the majority of jobs” could be kept local.

Yet according to a study undertaken by the Association for Public Service Excellence, there are at least 50 different examples of Councils bringing outsourced operations back in-house after dissatisfactory performances.

The Tory Council has come under much local scrutiny in recent weeks as a result of this, and other features of the internal politics of the council have come to light, notably the controversy embroiling council leader Stephen McLoughlin over the misuse of his council laptop.

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Porn-mouth Councillor

(I've just finished posting critiques of my work on my website, which you need to go look at when you get the chance.)

I'm currently pursuing a story on Bournemouth Council Leader Cllr Stephen McLoughlin, who was found to have used his Council laptop to access "top shelf adult material". He has had a slap on the wrist from his friends at the Council and largely seems to have gotten away with little or no punishment, which is hugely hypocritical given that 20 Council staff were severely reprimanded for emailing an 'inappropriate' joke to one another.

According to the Taxpayer's Alliance, Cllr McLoughlin awarded himself a 34% pay increase last year whilst creating a £2.4 million over spend. With Councils due to be forced to publish their executive pay by the end of the year, it will certainly be interesting to see just how much Cllr McLoughlin can afford to spend on "top shelf adult material".

Last year he was mooted as a potential candidate for Bournemouth West. People in the Borough of Bournemouth are rightly angry at this flagrant display of abuse - not just of Council property and rules through the misuse of the laptop, but more importantly through the twisted justice that sees him avoid referral to the Standards Board Committee.

He conveniently seems to have gone off on holiday - apparently booked "months ago" according to Democratic Services at Bournemouth Borough Council. Well he was most certainly at home when we went round to see him at his house, and his wife informed us that they were leaving the next day.

Leads are still being pursued, and we intend to conduct interviews this week. If you have any information on this, or are just angry, then get in touch, as we'll be making a short documentary on this. If we scrutinise these politicians more closely now, then perhaps we might avoid letting them think they can get away with things like the expenses scandal.

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