Links to some current local issues:

Election week at last, a rare opportunity to have a say

As we approach the final week of campaigning many people are now suffering election fatigue. The three head to head debates on the television have been at times illuminating, and at times a bit dull. At this point it seems to me that all is still to play for. For the first time in my memory the Liberal Democrats are serious contenders, presumably because they are offering the kind of changes people feel might be good for them, and good for the country. Who knows if that will translate into real votes come the day however, tradition and self-interest are powerful forces when it comes to marking that box with an X.

More importantly for Welwyn Hatfield are the local elections. Eighteen councillor seats are up for grabs across the borough, and prospective councillors are making an effort to get themselves noticed. Some more than others it has to be said. It seems that some incumbent councillors are happy to rely on their advantage of having done the role already,rather than get out and tell people exactly what they've been doing for the last few years. In my ward I could certainly say what they haven't been doing, I'd actually be hard pressed to find anything positive to say at all.

Are we voting for a party or a person? Welwyn Hatfield council is ruled by the Conservatives with a huge majority (about 80% of all councillors). The problem is that when one party get such an overwhelming majority, whichever party it happens to be, they can take it is a mandate to do what the party leaders want and not what the public want. Serving the public interest goes out the window, it becomes their way or the highway. As we've seen on may local issues over the last few years, what is in the best interests of local people and our environment comes second place to ruling party interest and agenda. Votes are always won by the rulers, and they almost always vote together whatever the issue. Recently for example a Conservative councillor spoke out for local people to a council committee, and then voted against what local people wanted in that same meeting. How can that be a working democratic system?

We have many decisions still to be made on several important issues locally. Councillors, as our representatives to local government have a duty to do just that. But with an overwhelming majority the ruling party know they cannot be opposed when it comes to local issues. This throws up some strange juxtapositions; our MP, Grant Shapps says he opposes the planned incinerator in Hatfield. While his party's local councillors, and county council counterparts (in some cases one and the same) have consistently voted for the incinerator to be built at Hatfield. At the county level Conservatives again have an overwhelming majority, so other views from other parties can be, and are, safely ignored. Something is amiss when our member of Parliament speaks out against something, while his own party continues to support it at every turn. Why would they?

The point of all the above is that we need balance restored in Welwyn Hatfield.

Right now we have what was referred to as a "dictatorship" in the Welwyn & Hatfield Times recently. Their can be no effective opposition, this Thursday we can change that. We can make sure that council decisions are not able to go unchallenged in the future. We can make sure that things are done in our interest, and not in the interest of some unseen outside force. With the incinerator, the demise of the QE2, and Tesco's plans for WGC, to name just a few things, now more than ever we need a balanced council that does not ignore what people want. Even the Audit Commission picked up on this, in their report a few months ago they said "Residents also feel they cannot influence council decisions". 

Many of us will have two votes this Thurdsay, they need not be for the same party. Voting the same way for both will be voting for change in Westminster, but another 5 years of the same in Welwyn Hatfield. Welwyn Hatfield desperately needs change and balance, if it is to improve and preserve itself. Hatfield needs the town centre development, Welwyn Garden needs to reign in Tesco's intention if the town centre is to prosper. The current make-up of the local council will not do progress either with the wishes of the people forefront in it's mind (in my view of course).

To end, with my favourite quote from Ghandi "Be the change that you want to see in the world" - This Thursday is your chance!

Here is the list of candidates standing for election in Welwyn Hatfield.

I feel this article should be brought to people's attention. In the run up to the local elections glossy newsletters from the Grant Shapps print empire have begun appearing on doormats across the town. The below picture is from the Panshanger edition and was being delivered from the 18th March, if not before.

What's wrong with it you may ask?

Have a read and then see the comment below from somebody who has been very close to this issue for quite a while.

In summary:

1) The report that the piece talks about was compiled to inform a council committee on the 25th March, to help make the committee make a balanced and informed recommendation about combating anti-social behaviour in the park.

The report was only released by the council on the 18th March after pushing from local residents.

How come the local Conservatives got hold of it far sooner, soon enough to be able to write this piece, organise the print run, and get it out to voters as a piece of electioneering? 

 2)  The report was only to advise the council of the feasibility of potential solutions, so a way forward could be agreed on at the meeting on the 25th of March.

But the article treats the matter as done and dusted by promoting a solution in opposition to the 160 name local petition, which was for a barrier. A full week before the meeting is due to take place, it says "Recommendations were made". They shouldn't be made until the committee meeting on the 25th of March. Do the Conservatives have access to a crystal ball?

What is very concerning is the apparent ease with which this council document, authored by civil servants, ends up in the hands of a political party, before it's released into the public domain.

3) The report in question contains numerous errors, omissions and misleading statements. It claims, for example, that it might cost £3000 to £8000 to get an electricity supply to the site. In fact there is an existing electricity supply only 6 feet away - how can that possibly cost thousands of pounds? (no evidence in the form of a quote is given either).

The report can be downloaded here (as an extract from the full council meeting agenda pack) it has many holes!

The Friends of Moneyhole Group pointed out many of them to council officers in a response document, but it was effectively ignored. Instead decisions were made based on an inaccurate and misleading report.

Sounds familiar? Stanborough Poplars I hear you shout! You can download the response document here.

In the scheme of things this is a small matter, but it has a human dimension. People living close to the park have suffered this late night noise and nuisance for many years, they deserve a voice, and to have that voice heard. If you are a Panshanger resident and have received the above campaign leaflet "Don't believe the hype" as they say. In this writer's view none of the three Panshanger councillors have acted in a way that promotes the interests of the residents they are supposed to represent.

As the election has drawn closer they have suddenly taken an interest in this long outstanding issue.  

*

 Of course the scene above is not a run down Moscow suburb, or a dilapidated corner of Detroit, it's right here in the world's second Garden City. It's the view that welcomes anyone one who gets off the train at the station, and stops to take in the ambience. Not a great welcome is it! Would it inspire you to discover the delights of the town? Probably not. A derelict factory site hinting at some former economic glory, nestles behind a decrepit rusting bridge that in most towns would have been deemed unfit for use many years ago.

Even the bridge at Hatfield station is better than this, although that station of course still has no lift, not sure how the less able are supposed to manage. For a University town Hatfield station does seem vastly underwhelming. But WGC station, as above, does also offer an awful post industrial vista. A replacement bridge has been under discussion for years, but of course nobody wants to pay for it. I would speculate that Tesco might, but only on condition there was a large Tesco glued onto the Eastern end, not sure we want that either.

Considering that this railway bridge is a main thoroughfare into the shopping centre you might think those concerned with the centre, and the Train Operating Company would see the benefit of an  aesthetically pleasing replacement bridge and strike up a deal, alas not.

If you showed this picture to old Ebenezer Howard, I'm sure he'd be very disappointed that his vision for the Garden City now looks like the polluted poorer parts of London he was trying hard to elevate people out of, 90 years ago this year. There is much to celebrate in Welwyn Garden City 90 years on from foundation, but as this picture shows, neglect also now takes it's place as a feature of the town.

Taken on the 7th January 2010,  a wintery panorama we don't see very often!

Fear of crime, real or imagined?

Like anywhere Welwyn Hatfield suffers its share of crime. We all live to a greater or lesser extent in fear of crime. Whether it’s remembering to shut the windows when we go out, or being too frightened to go out at night. The media has for years run scare stories about how at risk we all are, and how it was better in the old days. Out of curiosity I found some recent crime data for Welwyn Hatfield, see below.

Comparing 6 months in 2008 to the same 6 months in 2009.

The data from Herts Constabulary, publicly available, can be seen below:

Have you had one of these through your door?

You might want to bin it. There are a lot of clothing collection operations, some are genuine charities and some are not. This one is leafleting in the area this week and has been pursued by the Advertising Standards Agency .

The Daily Mirror said of Rutex last month:

Warning: this Rutex clothes collection is not for charity

Here's another example of that favourite Lithuanian scam, the bogus charity clothing collection. Fliers stuffed through letter-boxes pleaded: "Not everyone and especially young families can afford to buy new often expensive clothes, shoes and household things."

It went on to ask you to "kindly donate" clothes, towels,handbags, soft toys and shoes.The Advertising Standards Authority ruled this week that this broke the rules on truthfulness because it implied the collection was for charity.

In fact the clothes are collected by Rutex Ltd, run by a 41-year-old Lithuanian called Gintaras Ragauskas, who ignored the watchdog's questions.

_________________

You can read  the ASA case  HERE

Also the term "Third World" is no longer applicable. Since the second world disappeared (The Eastern Bloc) in the 90's the term has fallen by the wayside. No charity worth it's salt would use that term anymore, the correct term is now "Developing Countries".

If you live in Welwyn Hatfield and want to donate clothing to a very good cause Oxfam has a large clothing warehouse in Mundells, WGC (opposite Predator) You can drop clothes and other items off six days a week.

Or if you have a lot they can come to you (01707 330776).

Worth remembering the next time you clear out that wardrobe!

Local nature watch September 09

A Sparrowhawk does exactly what it says on the tin!

Having our say about the future of Welwyn Hatfield

The East of England regional assembly (not a quango, as it is at pains to point out) has launched a consultation to glean the public's view on how the region should be developed between now and 2031. This of course is closely linked to the proposals for 15,000 new homes which was challenged by Herts County Council successfully in the High Court. More on that outcome HERE. It appears that the plan will now be "repaired" presumably excluding the proposed housing numbers for our borough, but let's see. Of course housing is needed in our borough, but it was the lack of supporting infrastructure, scale, and choice of locations that was at issue.

Interestingly EERA will cease to exist next year, to be replaced by the EEDA, the East of England Development agency. Whether that will be any less or any more locally representative of our borough remains to be seen.

Stanborough car parks consultation

Details of the results can be found in the Stanborough poplars section above.

Download the information leaflet HERE.

 Saturday was Kaleidoscope Festival day a Stanborough Lakes, despite the uncertain weather the event had a large turnout, and it looked as though a good time was had by all. The event seems to go from strength to strength, and draw quite a cross section of people and stall holders from Welwyn Hatfield and beyond. A wide range of local good causes and interest groups came along to engage with people, and the new Mayor was spotted floating around the stalls for a while.

Here are just a few pictures from the day, to get a flavour of the event:

Here's a small clip from the performance of the Zimbabwe Youth Dance Troupe, very good they were too:

It may not be everybody’s cup of tea but what famous connections it has. The phrase Ad Astra is Latin meaning “To the stars” hence the heavenly gaze I suppose. What is more fascinating about this piece is the creator. Kathleen Scott was the wife of the polar explorer “Scott of the Antarctic”, and was married to him when he perished on his way back from the south pole in 1912, after having been beaten to the pole by Roald Amundsen. She was classically trained in Paris and was a friend of the famous sculptor Rodin, she also has works exhibited in the National Portrait Gallery.

Well done them! More about the players HERE..