I support objections by residents over any plans to earmark Fisherman’s Green for housing.
You might have heard the Liberal Democrat council say they will fight against development. But fight who? The council is now in control of how many houses are built and there’s also more community say involved now too. I know this, because I fought for these changes.
The council has been asked but, so far, it’s remaining tight lipped on how many homes it wants to build. The ball is firmly in their court and I would like them to be transparent and come up with a figure so local people can be part of the discussion. It’s important because the Local Plan the council is formulating is the blueprint for our town in the years to come. It needs to deliver. It’s not just about the right homes in the right places either, it’s about protecting and enhancing our beautiful natural environment and shaping our economic prospects with new, skilled and well paid job opportunities.
The government launched its Environment Improvement Plan 2023 for England this week and there are significant and far-reaching ambitions therein. Not that you would know that from the social media discharge on the subject of water quality again.
We have a largely Victorian sewage system but monitoring of storm overflows is very new. In 2016, it was 5%, now that has been upgraded to 90% because we are serious about tackling water quality. If we ended the use of storm overflows with immediate effect, then sewage would end up in homes, schools, hospitals, gardens and roads. So, instead the government is taking effective steps immediately and also using a long-term plan to get this right for our seas and waterways without polluting our towns and cities.
Opposition parties voted against all the new tough regulations in parliament last week but bizarrely criticised the government for taking action to improve the situation. They cannot have it both ways.
As a visitor destination and a town which runs on tourism, the truth is the sea is our greatest asset. It’s also what I most love about where we live. There is good work happening on this and I’ll share more later.
