We now have an RSS News Feed. If you install the Google Destop (requires Windows Vista/XP/2000 SP3+ or Mac) and a news reader gadget such as OneFeed, you can have the very latest Lewes Matters news in real-time on your desktop!
And the following feed is for the latest forum posts...
Cash for Queries? - 2006/05/19 19:06I have just read the Council report "One stop shop for Development Consents" and am astonished that the Council should have chosen to provide this helpful service which might as well be sub-titled "How just £550 will can see you well on the way to building a profitable future". What kind of open system of bribery have we descended into? There is some sanctimonious justification about providing useful advice for small businesses and then goes on to reveal that the “shop” is for anyone who might be considering “large or complex proposals” involving 10 or more dwellings and possibly on contaminated land, maybe even with a “considerable impact on the surrounding area”. Just the sort of thing small businesses owners want to do on a daily basis. Why not just come clean and call it “How we plan to help Mr Styles & Rees Elliot destroy Lewes for profit”
The other justification for the "Shop" is the advice of the latest planning policy guideline from central government. This is what the PPG actually advises:
" Good planning contributes to urban and rural regeneration, and helps to ensure that people have decent affordable homes in well-designed accessible environments whilst safeguarding our countryside. It is essential that we have an effective planning system to achieve our aim of creating sustainable communities. We are leading the way in reforming the planning system to make it simpler, faster and more accessible. The policy statement Sustainable Communities: delivering through planning sets out the Government’s aims. The reforms seek to change the culture of planning, making it a positive tool to steer development actively to the benefit of everyone. "
“Everyone”. Not just property developers. So just what is our Council up to?
| | You must login if you wish to contribute to this forum.
Dear site visitor at IP address 38.103.63.61. We were forced to make it necessary for you to register and login before making forum postings because of the constant flood of unwanted and often abusive material that was being uploaded by anonymous spammers from all over the world. I'm sure you know the sort of stuff - viagra ads and the like - what a bore! But you can of course read the postings without logging in, and in any case it only takes a couple of minutes to register - you're not losing your privacy, but you're keeping out the spammers. So do please register and continue using the forum - we need your input! Thanks, Lewes Matters Admin.
