VICTORY UDPATE (19/12/20) : Galmington Playing Fields SAVED (for now) from Lib Dems at Somerset West and Taunton Council

 

Somerset Lib Dems
Wasting YOUR Money

FURTHER VICTORY UPDATE (19/12/20):

Now that we have actually been able to view the meeting (see below), we are happy to report that 44 councillors did indeed vote against the LEASE of the land at the Playing Fields. This included Independent, Conservative, Green, Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors. 

Although there was a free vote (no whip) in the Liberal Democrat Group, this was a massive slap in the face for the Leader and cabinet, who brought this report.

Only 5 councillors voted for the lease of the land on the Playing Fields: 

1. Benet Allen (Liberal Democrat member of the Cabinet who described opponents as "NIMBYs"), 
2. Hazel Prior-Sankey (Liberal Democrat and Chair of the Council who abused her position to criticise opponents of the plan), 
3. Vivienne Stock-Williams (Conservative), 
4. Anthony Trollope-Bellew (Conservative Group Leader) and 
5. Keith Wheatley (Liberal Democrat).
   

But it is only a temporary victory, because the Lib Dem councillors employed dodgy tactics to move the goalposts on the vote DURING THE MEETING.

The report that was sent out to the public and councillors prior to the meeting related to the disposal and sale of the land - not a lease.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Leader of the Council, Lib Dem Councillor Federica Smith-Roberts moved the goalposts for it to be a lease, not a sale. The Council's legal advisers backed them up on this.

And when councillors repeatedly questioned what they were were voting on, they were prevented on voting on the sale, which they and the public had been led to believe was the substantive proposal - because it was there in black and white prior to the meeting.

Councillor Smith-Roberts said that they could not say whether any further plans might come forward. Again, she was backed up by the legal advisers.

Smith-Roberts has now made a series of allegations against campaigners, which we understand are now the subject of a formal complaint with the Council's Monitoring Officer.

Smith-Roberts voted against her own proposal for the lease. 

This is not only peculiar, but it shows a spectacular failure in leadership and authority amongst her own Liberal Democrat Group, which is also shown by allowing a free vote on an issue that she brought up in the report to councillors.

Following the meeting, we learned from Daniel Mumby of SomersetLive that Councillor Sue Buller left the Liberal Democrats and now sits as an Independent councillor. This was confirmed at the next Full Council, which members of Somerset Independents observed. 

At the Full Council meeting, Councillor Buller made a series of telling contributions to hold her former party's councillors to account.

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UPDATE (10/12/20) VICTORY at Galmington Playing Fields!

As reported by the Somerset County Gazette, and by us on our live-tweet (subject to serious problems caused to reporters and members of the public by the Council's live feed - see below), the campaign to save Galmington Playing Fields from more development has been won!

Leader of Somerset Independents, Andrew Pope says:

Campaigner Andrew Pope

"We are delighted with the result, as we have supported the Friends for some time after they contacted us earlier this year. We have congratulated them on their victory, and how they conducted their campaign.

The Liberal Democrat Leadership of Somerset West and Taunton Council have a lot of questions to answer - about how this happened and about their failing Council as we have laid out on this website.

They should never have brought this up and even their own councillors voted against this terrible proposal. In total, 44 councillors voted against!

But the way the meeting was conducted was shocking. I and other members of the public could not observe or hear what was happening. This cannot be allowed to happen again.

Not only must justice be done. It must be seen to be done."

The Chair of the Friends Campaign Andrew Sharman - who spoke at the meeting but then like us, other members of the public and Local Democracy Reporter Daniel Mumby from SomersetLive could not hear the debate - told us this morning:

"The debacle of the tech and the bizarre behaviour of the leadership was incredible, I’ve never seen anything like it! They have to step down, they’re completely out of their depth!

Thank you for your advice and support on this, keep on keeping on!"

 

UPDATE (8/12/20): Fib Dems Fibbing AGAIN!

Prior to tonight's crunch Council meeting, Somerset West and Taunton Liberal Democrat councillors have refused to give Somerset Independents any commitment to meet their manifesto and leaflet pledges to protect Galmington Playing Fields in the 2019 District Council elections. 

Here is a shocking example of their failure to meet their election promises, and how they are feeling the heat, from Lib Dem Councillor Sarah Wakefield, councillor for Trull, Pitminster and Corfe. When we asked her how she would vote, the leaflet promises seem to be irrelevant:

"Why don’t you just listen to the debate and stop trying to intimidate full and reasoned consideration of the matter by all Councillors this evening on an issue on where we have all been given a free vote."

And Somerset West and Taunton Tories, who were in control of both predecessor councils, have criticised the Lib Dem Administration but given no indication of how they will vote either!

Andrew Pope says:

"It's the notorious fibbers, the Fib Dems, fibbing again and being non-committal! Like the Tories and Labour, they make whatever promises they want to get elected, and then go back on them!

Like we have said many times before - in Somerset, whether it is a Lib Dem, Labour or a Tory, it is the same old story. And it's local residents who are let down by these Westminster parties.

Somerset Independents members are also investigating how officers at this Council have gone about this process. Councillors are uneasy about how this process has been handled.

We have asked all councillors to support local residents and protect the Playing Fields from even more development. It's been carved up enough!

We will be watching them very closely at tonight's meeting, and noting how they vote and reporting it back to residents."

More to follow...

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The disastrous Council merger of West Somerset District Council and Taunton Deane Borough Council went ahead without a Referendum of local residents. But it is us residents that they are supposed to listen to, and to serve!

Eighteen months later, and with the Lib Dems with the number of councillors elected to be "in control" of the resulting Somerset West and Taunton Council, the Council is still failing and has already lost millions of taxpayers' money - YOUR money. It appears that they are no better than the previous Tories.

As reported by The Leveller:

"The savings that were supposed to come from the merger now look increasingly unlikely... with an extra cost of £2.7m... There would be no choice but to employ additional staff and use agency staff that would then offset the anticipated on-going revenue savings"

Leader of Somerset Independents, Andrew Pope, says:

 

Andrew Pope

"So millions that could have been spent on the RIGHT things, such as public services for the benefit of local residents, have instead been spent on the WRONG things - the redundancy of public servants.

 

Not only has public money been lost, services to the public have also been lost and jobs have been lost.

And it was all done under the pretence and lies by the Somerset Tories who led the abolished councils of the "savings" of the merger. Yet the Lib Dems are no better.

 

As stated in The Leveller article, the Lib Dem Council Leader of Somerset West and Taunton Council, Councillor Federica Smith-Roberts, is "sanguine" about it. She has made the usual statement about lessons being learned - does she really mean it? 

Let's hope so, but the continuing failures of her Council - on Tonedale Mill, on building on Galmington Playing Fields and on opposing DBS checks for councillors - suggest that she is carrying on making the same mistakes as the Tories.

Does the story of false claims by Lib Dems or Tories sound familiar? Yes, it's another case of Lib Dems or Tory, same old story. And it's Somerset's residents that pay!

Somerset Independents has been campaigning loudly for a Referendum before any further changes are made to the councils in Somerset, and how we as Somerset residents are governed.

But neither the Somerset Tories at the County Council nor the Somerset Lib Dems on the District Councils have backed our call for a public vote.

In fact, they have stood in the way of having a public vote.

 

This is because they don't want to ask us residents - because they can't defend what they want to do to us!

The Lib Dems, when in control of the County in 2007, wanted a unitary authority - but didn't want to ask residents. But the other Lib Dems in the districts back then - used taxpayers money to ask taxpayers what they think - and 82% of residents voted AGAINST a unitary authority in the postal poll in 2007.

The Tories, who are now in control of the County, want a unitary authority. They recently voted to extend their election terms and keep you paying their councillors allowances - all without any public vote and to also cancel the 2021 County Council elections. The Tories are running scared because they know they are going to take a beating like they did in 2019.

And the Lib Dems on the districts also want a unitary authority - or rather two. But the Tories on Sedgemoor District Council also say they want two unitary authorities.

BUT NONE OF THEM WANT TO ASK YOU WHAT YOU THINK IN A PUBLIC VOTE. THEY ARE LYING TO YOU AND SAYING THAT ANY POLL IS NOT ALLOWED BY GOVERNMENT.

They need to exercise some leadership and do a poll - whether by post or online.

Or they need to delay any changes until a public poll can be held.

There are local elections in May 2021. That is the time when the public can be asked.

The public MUST be asked in a public vote.

If the public aren't asked then, and a repeat of the disastrous council merger is made, with more public services lost, local democracy lost and more taxpayers' millions lost, then all those councillors need to be removed by the public who they are supposed to serve.

 

And it really will be another case of Lib Dems or Tory, same old story."

Standing Up For Residents