UPDATE (22/7/22): In Chard, The "Oranges" Run a "Banana Republic" - A Local Campaigner Tells Of A Fruity Tale of Fighting Flooding

Louise Allen
of Chard Area Resilience Group
(Photo used with permission)

 

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UPDATE (22/7/22)

Independent Councillor Dave Bulmer was offered a chance to comment, as was Green Councillor Tim Eggins. We have not received any response from either of them. They were contacted via the Chard Town Council website because their names were mentioned in the interview with campaigner Louise Allen.

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Somerset Independents puts residents first. Our work has helped local residents across the County of Somerset to stand up for themselves.

This includes residents in Chard, who became aware of our investigations into councillors in South Somerset and the District Council (SSDC) itself. Somerset Independents has been providing advice to the campaigners.

Local campaigner Louise Allen told Andrew Pope, in an interview:

"The Oranges run Chard Town Council like a Banana Republic. Recently, the Lib Dem Mayor Martin Carnell stopped residents recording meetings, sent us all out of the meeting and when we were there, the Oranges made it difficult for us to ask questions, and we have received quite toxic opposition from the Lib Dem councillors there. But they were not there when we had the great floods. Other councillors, especially the Independents and Greens from the area, were there."

Ms Allen told us:

"After the floods, myself and a number of residents set up an organisation called CARG, which is Chard Area Resilience Group. I am the Vice Chair Strategy, Communications & Funding. We're a residents association.

Residents are waking up to the fact that they pay their council tax. 

We pay our council tax to the Government for our local authorities to keep us safe. We are doing everything else. They are not keeping us safe. So we’re all beginning to ask where has the money gone?"

Why did you get involved?

"Because I was flooded and our house had been flooded a number of times since we’ve lived in it for 9 years. We weren’t made fully aware by the last residents or the estate agents who were an established estate agent for Chard that the house had been flooded. And at the last flood, we definitely realised that we were on our own. Anyhow, it was pitiful, it felt dystopic the day after, that’s when myself and my neighbour were out in the road sweeping up, wondered if there were other people being flooded in Chard."

Who are your allies?

"The organisations that CARG is working in partnership with, including Somerset Rivers Authority, FWAG (Farming & Wildlife Advisory Group) South West, Civil Contingencies, Highways and Flooding (Lead Local Flood Authority) at Somerset County Council, Wessex Water and local businesses such as Numatic. We are hoping to work with more."

Who are your enemies?

"Our opponents have made themselves very clear, the Orange councillors, the Lib Dems. We have assets, evidence and research. It's just the Oranges on our Town Council that are horrible. They run Chard Town Council like a Banana Republic."

Is there anything that you would like to add?

"Chard has been flooded. And it has been flooded with negativity. 

It's going now though, and we totally need to be listened to, because we are the residents. We are kind of shifting cultural thinking in terms of our community and also we’ve been in a town that I would say personally has been run down and with that comes low self-esteem, lack of confidence, lack of awareness, so we’re dealing with all these social things as well.

By keeping up our momentum, by keeping going in a straight line, and doing things bit by bit with strategy and cohesion, we’re getting there and people are joining and they’re realising that they will feel safer. 

And people work better as a human collective and it’s all good."

Somerset Independents contacted Martin Carnell, the Liberal Democrat Mayor of Chard, to offer a right of reply. He responded to say:

"The statement made by Mrs Allen is not accurate at all.  At Monday nights full Town Council meeting I simply raised the matter of what appeared to be ‘covert’ filming of a short part of the meeting and reminded members of the public that if they wish to film then out of courtesy they should let either myself or the Clerk know at the beginning of the meeting of their intention.  As to being asked to leave and/or removed from the meeting then again this simply isn’t true.  I suspect what Mrs Allen may be referring to was the ‘Confidential’ agenda item at the end of the meeting where all press and public are asked to leave, which you’ll be familiar is standard practice."

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