CREWE ALLOTMENTS DISPOSAL PROCESS CRITICISED

 

The process by which all the Council allotments in Crewe are to be disposed of has been criticised. Willaston and Rope Ward Councillor Brian Silvester said, " I was approached by a constituent who rents an allotment in Crewe and he was very concerned. I have now managed to ascertain that the plan is to transfer the allotments to the new Crewe Town Council,on a 150 year lease, when it is elected later in the year but this is not mentioned in the public notices that have been published.( See notes below) The Borough Council have no way of knowing if the Town Council will  want to lease the allotments so the action is premature and could lead to an unnecessary loss of Council funds. Even if the Town Council are interested other parties could outbid them for the allotments. The Borough Council are trying to move forward in a mad rush and are in danger of becoming seriously unstuck. It is as if they have learned nothing from the Lyme Green fiasco. Cheshire East are moving forward without proper consultation with the allotment holders and local residents. This is just the latest example of where  a decision has taken place before any consultation has begun. The Borough Council need to get their act together."

SPENDING £210,000 ON GREAT CRESTED NEWTS IS A DISGRACEFUL WASTE OF PUBLIC MONEY

Willaston and Rope Ward Councillor Brian Silvester says he is appalled that  £210k of public money is to be spent building a pond for 18 newts made homeless by A500 Crewe Green link road. That is a cost of,  an unbelievable, £11,600 per newt, Six years ago I revealed that protecting just 56 great crested newts during the building of the A500 Shavington by-pass cost a staggering £414,479 ( 1.5% of the total cost of the scheme) or £7,400 for each newt protected.

He said," This is a total waste of public money. The huge amount of resources devoted to creating new habitats for great crested newts by private developers and public bodies is an incredible and unnecessary waste. The requirement to find new habitats for newts, when development takes place, is an European Union (EU) Directive requirement because these newts are rare in some EU countries but they certainly are not rare in this country. They are found on virtually every major development site across the country. I have written  to the Crewe and Nantwich MP calling on him to ask the Government to take urgent action to have the UK exempted form this ridiculous EU Directive.This directive is costing the taxpayer millions every year and is adding unnecessarily to the cost of new housing and other developments like much needed new roads and employment sites."

Cllr Brian Silvester BA (Hons)
Willaston and Rope Ward Councillor

Tel/fax 01270 567757