The Reform Bexley team not only spend their time
digging onto Golf
Pod irregularities, they are also very interested in
what is going on at the VCD
sports ground in Crayford and into its developer more widely.
In that connection they asked how many planning contraventions Bexley’s well
known building developer and his company had been chased for and how many had ended up in Court. They got
a list going back
eight years. The oldest and the newest both related to Ye Olde Leather Bottle on Heron Hill, Belvedere.
The detail of Court appearances were withheld even though Court details should be on the public record.
As you can see, Bexley Council is being its usual secretive self. Reform UK and you and I are left to guess
even the nature of the offence.
My guess is that it is related to the closure of Footpath 11 and the rubbish dump often to be seen on Heron Hill and
the service of a Community Protection Notice, the compliance deadline
of which expired more than a year ago.
Maybe Reform, UK’s approach is too sophisticated and simply asking a local
Labour Councillor what they know is a more productive line of enquiry. One resident did
that and the response was clear that the Court appearance in May was indeed about fly tipping and the
blocked Right of Way. Why were the facts excluded from the FOI response? I thought
replying dishonestly to FOI requests was a criminal offence, but with Bexley
Council’s long record of dishonesty, why should I be surprised?
Additionally we learned that the Court case was deferred to “the end of September”.
I imagine another enquiry to the Councillor is now in order.
It remains very mysterious as to why a building developer being pursued through
the Courts is also pursued as a good friend and political ally of certain Bexley Councillors.