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News and Comment April 2023

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22 April - They have plans

I listened to last Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting on the live webcast and didn’t note a single thing that I thought worthy of a report here. The Agenda was 458 pages long but the meeting was over in just under an hour which might seem to be peculiar but it is not when you consider that Cabinet meetings are nothing but theatre. Everything has been sorted out in advance and agreed among friends.

No access for large vehiclesThe matter in hand was the Local Plan and Leader O’Neill said that it was a “key document including years of work and determines the future shape of our borough”. The Cabinet Member for Growth said the plan would “protect the borough’s most valued characteristics” and then drifted into climate change, sustainability and bio-diversity. He had spent £500,000 on it in “specialist advice” alone.

Cabinet Member David Leaf (Resources) was similarly brief but managed to fit in something about climate change too without explaining how concreting over land achieves that.

Cabinet Member Peter Craske (Places) proved his worth by saying he wished “to echo” what had been said before and repeat the thanks for the staff who were paid to work on the plan.

Cabinet Member Richard Diment (Education) said he was pleased to see that the Sidcup traveller site had been recognised.

Councillor Peter Reader (West Heath) also went down the route of offering thanks for the report but Councillor June Slaughter broke with precedent by asking a question. It was about “SPDs” and the answer was a simple ‘Yes’ but no one explained the acronym so a fat lot of good it was for the listening public.

Labour Leader Stefano Borella’s main concern was affordable housing and was pleased that the Local Plan was sympathetic to it. And with that the discussion was over. One whole minute for every year of the Plan’s preparation. (12.)

There were other subjects on the Agenda; Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion, and there was yet another Plan up for debate. It had been consulted upon and 92 people had responded. It will lead to “a fairer Bexley”. Cabinet Member went through his thank you staff routine again. He wants us to be “respectful of other people’s points of view” which will cramp his style somewhat when he next attacks Councillor Borella. The Labour Leader thought the Equalities Plan was a good one and welcomed it, theorising that it was the product of the reforms made by the last Labour Government.

Councillor Taylor (Labour, Erith) said that Bexley Council disadvantaged the deaf. Meetings are not signed, and not available by transcript and there are no subtitles on webcasts. (But maybe things are better than they used to be when the deaf were told to “sit down and be quiet".)

Councillor Cheryl Bacon (Conservative, Sidcup) began her brief welcome for the Equalities Plan and the need for respect etc. by criticising Councillor Borella’s brief speech. Albeit only mildly.

Daniel Francis (Labour, Belvedere) made a wide ranging speech, including race relations, old people and various faith groups for which the Council does not make sufficient allowance. Not even for its own Muslim Members.

And that was pretty much it for April Cabinet.

The Local Plan is included within the meeting Agenda. (39 MB PDF.)

 

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