In his regular blog for Caerphilly Observer South Wales East AM Lindsay Whittle gives his take on recent news.
Green Fields
I’ve been recording my thoughts recently on the threat to Caerphilly from the Labour council’s Local Development Plan (LDP).
Many thousands of people have viewed my video postings on Facebook. It is coming over loud and clear that people don’t want our precious green fields concreted over. Enough of that has happened already.
I met up with Darryl Jones, son of the legendary South Wales Echo cartoonist, Gren Jones on the top of Caerphilly Mountain last week to talk about the threat caused by over-development. He brought one of Gren’s famous sheep, Nev and talked about his fears for the future of our town. Darryl lives in Caerphilly as did his dad and his views are typical of people I meet.
Everyone who travels in and around Caerphilly knows what traffic congestion is like, particularly during the rush hour.
Can you imagine what the road network will be with thousands of more new homes in the Caerphilly Basin? Putting additional traffic out onto the Caerphilly Mountain road is a recipe for chaos, particularly in bad weather. It will also spoil the feel of the area.
The council is currently consulting on its LDP but, I believe, it is considering developers over local people. It is not the job of Caerphilly to facilitate the building of homes in Caerphilly for people in Cardiff, Bristol or other city.
And it’s not just the roads that will be impacted – How will our GP surgeries cope? What about our schools?
I strongly believe that the council should be encouraging developers to look further north in the county borough, where there are brown fields available. It would take the pressure off Caerphilly.
Residents will soon have a fantastic opportunity to send a message to the Labour council and them that enough is enough. I will continue fighting with residents to halt these unwanted developments.
The consultation period on the LDP has been extended until Friday, April 22, and I urge anyone concerned about the threat to our green fields to write to the council to object to the plans.
National Assembly
The Assembly is now in recess ahead of the election on May 5. I have been honoured and immensely proud to represent people across the county borough in the Senedd over the last five years and have met some wonderful people along the way.
I’ve always sought to do my best and I hope to have the opportunity to continue my work for people. Thank you.
Thankyou for all your efforts Mr Whittle.
The loss of green space is unexceptable and a great loss for future generations which can’t be reversed.
The Labour group is indeed choosing the golden £ from the developers over the needs of the people of Caerphilly county.
The main roads around Caerphilly are over busy at rush hour and can’t take much more. These councillors should try and get to Cardiff at 7am and back around 4 -5 pm. Try it fo? a month Mr Councillor.
The new bye pass will only encourage more traffic onto a very busy A470.
God help us if Labour get back in ….
It appears that Caerphilly is very attractive to house builders, a satellite town of Cardiff houses are easy to sell, it’s pointless developers building too far from Cardiff and Newport as increasing Labour government red tape is squeezing profit margins. I lived in one of England’s largest cities and traffic congestion during rush hour was horrendous but fortunately they had something that Caerphilly and Cardiff lacks – a decent affordable public transport system. Yes you’re right the Labour group are putting money before the interests of it’s residents, but sadly the majority of those residents will still vote them back in again.
I have not seen any evidence of any other politician or political group suggest any alternstives at all.
At least Labour Assembly Candidate Hefin David, has placed an alternative in the public domain for discussion, other less able politicians are refusing to listen, yet they rabble rouse.
Appears my last comment was removed, so much for freedom of speech, folk can slate the Tories, UKIP and Plaid but we can’t say anything critical or derogatory about Labour anymore.
I read it, and I cannot remeber anything personally insulting?.
Perhaps I was a little too discourteous to my fellow citizens, sorry people.
Not correct Paul, read “Lisa” s comments.it demonstrates the editors balance in printing anti labour rhetoric.
look out the resident stupid guy has arrived ..
It`s up to the Caerphilly County Labour Group to get it right and look after both the people and area of Caerphilly County. They got it WRONG on both and should be ashamed of themselves.
Caerphilly Labour group destroying large areas of Caerphilly County via the Local Development Plan and letting parents down via the sandwich tax.
Hang your head in shame Labour and your so called members.
Still not many doors knocked in Caerphilly town by Labour, I wonder why…
LOL
Such incoherent rubbish.
Your Nationalist Party got it so wrong under Lindsays stewardship in it`s proposals of the last CAERPHILLY COUNTY LDP that they practicaly had to rewrite it. They allowed developments all over the Caerphilly Basin that even thier own Councillors now complain about the proliferation of new housing sites which they allowed to be created.
Whoever you are you must be new to the area, or you dont keep up with local politics, you know little or nothing about the history of Caerphilly Council`s record on LDP`s, and you know even less of how not to be rude, crude and a perfect ambassador for The Welsh Nationalist, why on earth would anyone want to join with you and be cited as being ignorant and crass rude and crude, and a Welsh Nationalist?
Correct, ‘Reformed Welsh Nationalist’ and keep it up Lisa. You really are the voice of Plaid Cymru and I enjoy your witticisms – even when they are copied and pasted. You are the authentic voice of Plaid.
says the Ukrapper
Again, showing your Nationalist, true colours, again being exreemly disrespectful to a public representative, voted into office by the people of Caerphilly. you really are the face of local Welsh Nationalists. at least you are doing them no favours with your infantile disrespect, rude, and childish comments.
Proud to be a Welsh Nationalist and look after the people of Caerphilly & Wales – Unlike Labour
Your Comment should also include `Proud to be a Welsh Nationalist, (who has just ditched an Independent Wales policy) and Proud to be, Rude, Crude, disrespectful, and sometime incoherent. Disrespectful and negative about respectable Candidates standing for public office. Proud of all this.
Henceforth you acually need to keep it polite, friend, it appears your party and the Labour party have a plan to work together in the Assembly After the Election in May.
Remeber, that courtesy cost you nothing, but the rude, obnoxious and crude comments youare posting do your party no favours, but there again, most of your local colleagues are the same as you, rude, crude and disrespectful to the community, that is why they were booted out of office of course, you need to take regard of your past mistakes
Such short sightedness from our lords and masters …
I presume Lindsay, as a perfectly honest and reasonable man, and as a Caerphilly Councillor, must agree that a proper plan for the protection and preservation of green fields, the security of the existing infrusructure and the need to retain a clean and fair envirionment in and around the Borough, will need much consultation and deliberation?. He will also agree that Officers of the Council have developed proposals for public consultation, a statutory responsibility placed upon them by higher `Government`?.
No Council gets this proccess right the at the first attempt, as is evidenced by the Welsh Nationalist Council in 2010, when, under Lindsays stewardship, proposed many unacceptable proposalswere placed into the LDP at that time, , many of which were altered after consultation, the very same consultation process evelvong at the moment.
As Lindsay is yelling and screaming so loudly, and rabble rousing, over what he appears to suggest is a failed `process`, a process over which he steered the last Nationalist led Council, why has he not come up with a `Better` way to comply with the ` statutory processes` imposed on the local authority (“by Law”)?
As Lindsay knows, but is so converniently ignoring, County Councillor Hefin David, Labours Assembly Candidate in the currect election, proposed a radical departure to the present imposition on each local authority to come up with a LDP, He proposes a diffent approach, he suggests that such development plans should be done on a regional basis, this would do away with expensive duplication of infrustrucure costs, it would force the health authorities to consider thier services on a regional basis, it would force the council to consider it`s education requirments to be better and more accurately planned for, and it would create a much more effective and stronger `group` of local authoirities to bid for Assembly Money for the provisions of the Region, such a plan may even contribute to the increaed wealth of the area whilst preserving all that is best for residents.
What alternative to the currently failed LDP system of forward planning does Lindsay and his party, The Welsh Nationalists, suggest? None at the moment which I have observed.
look out the resident stupid guy has arrived ..
It`s up to the
Caerphilly County Labour Group to get it right and look after both the
people and area of Caerphilly County. They got it WRONG on both and
should be ashamed of themselves.
Caerphilly Labour group
destroying large areas of Caerphilly County via the Local Development
Plan and letting parents down via the sandwich tax.
Hang your head in shame Labour and your so called members.Still not many doors knocked in Caerphilly town by Labour, I wonder why…
LOL
Such incoherent rubbish.
Your Nationalist Party got it so wrong under Lindsays stewardship in it`s proposals of the last CAERPHILLY COUNTY LDP that they practicaly had to rewrite it. They allowed developments all over the Caerphilly Basin that even thier own
Councillors now complain about the proliferation of new housing sites which they allowed to be created.
Whoever you are you must be new to the area, or you dont keep up with local politics, you know little or nothing about the history of Caerphilly Council`s record on LDP`s, and you know even less of how not to be rude, crude and a perfect ambassadorfor The Welsh Nationalist, why on earth would you expect people to welcome your rude comments, join you, and be cited as being ignorant and crass rude and crude, and a Nationalist? Every time you post comment is another potential Nationalist voter lost to the `cause`. You do your party a dis-service, it would be interesting to see Lindsay reaction to your comments, silence really is a golden indication of his view.