Gordon Hook

Earlier today I presented a petition to Cllr. John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council, at the Cabinet meeting held at County Hall. The petition from residents of the roads mentioned, was the product in large measure of Cllr Kelvyn Shantrys work, with which I assisted. It drew attention to the problems caused by the extension of the Residents Parking Scheme in Newton, whereby vehicles were now being parked in Lonsdale Road in much greater numbers than previously, and in so doing were presenting an obstacle to free entry/exiting to / from residents drive ways.
I invited officers to meet with residents to explain the Counties position, and the accommpanying letter suggested various actions that would help residents. Probably the single biggest action would be to reduce the daily parking fee in Forde Park from the current £3 a day to either a £1 or £!.50 charge. If a local worker or commuter was to use Forde Park for 5 days a week it would cost them £780 per annum…just not an attractive proposition, when currently they can park literally around the corner for nothing. Which of us would not do the same?

Devon County Council failed to spend £2.4 of last years highway repair budget and have carried it forward to this year as so called “under spend”.
This amazing fact came to light this morning at the County Cabinet meeting, which I attended. I questioned why, when our roads appear to be falling apart in front of our eyes, this money was not spent on Devon’s crumbling road network. I can certainly find no end of local roads that need repair and maintenance right now here in my ward!
The response was that roads couldn’t be repaired when 5 or 6 feet under water and then I was told that our roads weren’t too bad, and other counties were much worse.
None of the roads I want repairing were under water during the last year, let alone 5 or 6 feet under and to say other roads around the country are worse than Devon’s may or may not be true, but the implication is that we shouldn’t be concerned and we need to wait til they deteriorate still further. What utter nonsense!!
I shall keep campaigning for repairs to local roads, have no fear, and also continue to expose the error of this Conservative administrations policies.

A coffee morning in aid of Homeless in Teignbridge Support is being help on Thursday 27th June at St Lukes Church Hall from 10am til noon.
Coffee, tea and biscuits plus home made cake stall and prize draw…..all very welcome…see you there?

I’m pleased to report that the significant water leak at the rail bridge on Torquay Road is being repaired by May Gurney even as I write this.
It has been probably 4 or 5 weeks since first reporting the problem, but apparently they have had problems with Network Rail re access.
In the short term the pipe is being sealed off, but “in 3 or 4 months” a new pipe will be inserted within the existing to provide a more secure system along the whole length of that particular section. Meanwhile we should be grateful that the 1,000′s of gallons of water a day that were being lost will hopefully, very soon now, be stopped. I can only ponder on the quantity of water lost in the period between reporting and any action happening….not good!

Sadly I report that under Conservative administration recycling rates in both Devon and Teignbridge are falling. I take no pleasure in saying that, as neglect of our environment makes me angry, and Conservatives really don’t know what environmentalism means. They appear to have no real commitment to the environment or to recycling…both very important to me personally, and to my party.
Figures soon to be released show that Teignbridge recycled about 1% less last year than the previous year. That is not a huge decline, but it is a decline. Next year it may …it may not…go up about the same amount. Only Torbay and Plymouth (both Unitary Authorities) show any improvement over the previous year, and as they are both near the bottom of the performance table, it could be argued that they have a long way to go any way!
Teignbridge’s figure is down to 56.38%. and a large % of that is green compostable waste. Useful though that might be, it is dry recyclables that we should prioritise. Teignbridge will not improve beyond the figure Lib Dems achieved when in power until or unless they (Conservatives) invest in more kerb side collection…all plastics for instance; large cardboard and perhaps oil? If memory serves they invested in a “Lets Hit The 60′s” campaign with the laudable intent of breaking the 60% barrier. . . it seems to have failed badly! Back in ’08/’09 when Lib Dems were running the show the Teignbridge recycling rate was 57.39. Now 4 years later and with Conservatives in charge it is 56.38%.
What we need in Devon is not investment in incinerators(a move which in my opinion will only cause more potentially recyclable products to go to be burned rather than recycled)but in infrastructure to help recycle products locally. In the interests of the environment we don’t need to take our recyclables across Britain to be dealt with…lets build recycling plant here in Devon, rather than incinerators to deal with our waste. How much more environmentally sensitive would that be!!!
Other local authority figures which may be of interest include South Hams, which has declined about the same as Teignbridge; Mid Devon down 2.2%; East Devon down 2.6% and West Devon down 2.9%. All these, and more, details can be found on line at Devon County Council. …and lest any one should dare to suggest this is just an attack on Conservative administrations, Labour Exeter is appalling…down a further 1.2% to a mere 34.9% in total.

I have just watched President Obama deliver a speech of real significance to a predominantly youthful audience in Belfast.
It was an inspirational message of hope, challenging the young to build on the peace that has been achieved in the province since the Good Friday Agreement 15 years ago. He implied that it was their peace to build…or to lose…as the case may be; and of course he urged them as the leaders of their communities in the years to come to dismantle the walls that still divide.
His message was one that said it is within us all to build, albeit in small packages and perhaps with tiny local acts a better world, where individuals are mutually respected. I remember well Martin Luther Kings oration where he urged judgement to be based on the content of a persons character not the colour of their skin, and while Obama didn’t actually say as much, it was certainly his belief.
We all have a responsibility to respect and protect each other; to wage, as the President put it, peace. We can only speculate on the long term impact of this mornings speech, but it was certainly a memorable and exceptionally well crafted visionary appeal to the future generations of Ireland to pull down the barriers that still divide (he specifically mentioned segregated schools) and in so doing brought a broader message to the world. I hope we listen.

Galliford Try has sent the letter below to Addison Rd residents.
Dear Addison Road Resident,
For several months we have been working in close proximity to your homes which at times must have presented you with difficult conditions. Our entire workforce, led by Cathal Kelly, has been impressed by the patience and good humour you have shown during a period of noise and inconvenience. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you.
Phase One involved carrying out utility works and the partial resurfacing of Addison Road. The area at the north end near Penn Inn will be completed by the end of this week, and the bus stop on the roundabout will reopen shortly.
Phase Two of the works along Addison Road is scheduled to begin late winter this year or in early 2014. When this begins you will see the reshaping of the current earthwork slopes, which will then be followed with new kerblines, parallel parking bays and new bow-top fencing along the top of the embankment. It is expected these works will take 3-4 months to complete.
We expect to have similar traffic management layouts in Phase Two. There will be a one-way system in place to allow utility companies access to carry out their work and this will speed up our construction programme. This way we will be able to return the road to you as quickly as possible, with minimum disruption.
We will as previously give you advance notice of when these works are intended to be carried out, and will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Police Notice
Devon and Cornwall Police have informed us that a series of incidents have taken place in the area where people posing as workmen have been asking to gain entry to people’s homes. Please be aware that at no
time will employees of Galliford Try need to gain access to your property unless this has been agreed in advance with yourself though our public liaison team.
If anybody posing as an employee of Galliford Try asks to come onto your property unannounced, even if they are wearing high visibility clothing they will not be one of our employees, and you should contact the police immediately.
Community Liaison Group
The majority of the Community Liaison Group comprises people of South Devon who live in the immediate vicinity of the new link road. Representatives from Torbay Council, Devon County Council and the contractor Galliford Try also attend.
Contact details for the representatives in your area who will ask a question on your behalf about aspects of the construction of the road are listed below

Keith Fairman (Aller Park) 01626 335908
Rob Speare (Aller) sdlr.aller@gmail.com
Jane Pettifer (Aller Park) janepettiferSDLR@hotmail.co.uk 07905 623393
Phil Drummond (Aller Brake) phildrummond74@gmail.com 01626 365748
Contacts
For more information about the works taking place in Addison Road, or any other aspect relating to the South Devon Link Road project, the Galliford Try public liaison team Tracey Waygood and Patrick Beasley can be contacted on 01626 357729 or 01626 233019, or email A380.SDLR@gallifordtry.co.uk
For the most up to date information such as planned roadworks please look at our new updated website www.southdevonlinkroad.co.uk
The website contains more detailed information about the full SDLR programme, a comprehensive map, a FAQ section, aerial photographs and predicted views of the finished project.
Monthly Bulletins
If you would like to receive direct by email our monthly bulletins which contain information of forthcoming works, please register at www.southdevonlinkroad.co.uk/signup

Newton CAB, which provids such magnificent help to so many, is unavoidably closing it’s drop in sessions for the week beginning June 24th. It will continue to answer calls on 0844 111 444 and re open the following week.

I know it is not the main topic of Newton Abbot residents lives (well, not many of them) but “my” football team . . . Aston Villa. . . are not noted for their lavish spending in the transfer market, and indeed have now adopted a policy it would seem of only buying young and virtually unknown players, either from the lower leagues or from abroad. Today, however, they took the unprecedented step of buying two players in a single 24 hour period…OK, they were both “unknowns” from abroad, but still…..so was Christain Benteke this time last year….

I have been asking for some considerable time for a yellow box at the St Marychurch/Pinewood junction and am really pleased to see it has now been provided. It has been a while coming, and I don’t say it is the greatest achievment but it will I hope make life just that little bit easier for motorists coming on/off Aller, particularly as the situation for residents and particularly motorists is not going to get better any day soon. Thank you to those who helped make this request a reality.