Thanet's Regeneration Game

Today the news hit that Manston Airport has been bought by the developers of The Discovery Park in Sandwich headed up by Chris Musgrave and Trevor Cartner.

Yesterday, Thanet District Council put out a press release that might have passed many by. The Thanet Regeneration Board has changed its name to Invest Thanet. Many may not have noticed who or what is the Thanet Regeneration Board.

I've been asking since its formation how board members are appointed and haven't managed to get a reply:

In June this year, a new Chairman of the Thanet Regeneration Board was appointed, a Mr Paul Barber. Mr Barber is the Managing Director of the Discovery Park in Sandwich. It did seem odd to me that a competitive regeneration site boss from the neighbouring Sandwich area would head up Thanet's Regeneration Board.
Edited to add link to March 2013 post:
Fwd: Why has the This is Margate website has been removed?

The previous TRB chairman was Pam Alexander (ex-SEEDA). I don't recall anyone from Thanet being asked to join the board or apply for the position of chairman.

Here are the current members of the Thanet Regeneration Board:

Paul Barber

Cllr Iris Johnston - Leader of Thanet District Council

Sue McGonigal - Chief Executive Thanet District Council

Laura Sandys - MP Thanet South

Victoria Pomery CBE - Turner Contemporary

Daivid Ashdown - Job Centre Plus

David Foley - Thanet & East Kent Chamber of Commerce

Andrew Ironside -Strategic Director (Resources) for Canterbury Christ Church University

 Malcolm Frier - FujiFilm Speciality Ink Systems Ltd

Graham Razey - Principal & Chief Executive East Kent College

Andrew Scott-Clarke - NHS

Sean Kearns - Connexions Kent & Meday

Andrew Brown - English Heritage

Cllr Mark Dance - Kent County Council

Cllr David Green - Thanet District Council

Frank Martin

Janet Haddock Fraser - Dean of Faculty of Social and Applied Sciences

Mr Barber stated back in April the need for a fast train time to the 'edge of Ramsgate'. That would be to Manston Airport site that we now know has been sold to the Discovery Park. I've long been concerned that the Parkway Station plans risk the loss of train services to the towns of Margate, Broadstairs and Ramsgate with shuttle buses bringing passengers from Parkway to the towns.

On BBC Radio Kent today I caught a snippet of an interview with either Mr Musgrove or Mr Cartner stating they were 'property people' and Manston would be developed for housing, retail and schools.

Does that sound like a business park?

The funding for the Parkway Station and the big new roads that run there were all funded for employment and job creation. Not to enable a massive housing estate.

Is it feasible that no one at Thanet Council, Kent County Council or MPs knew this was coming?

There seems no representation on this TRB from small businesses or tourism. Which for a coastal region is highly significant.

Thanet Council to allow BBC and ITV to film tonight's Council Meeting but not the public

Thanet District Councillor, John Worrow (Labour), announced via his Facebook page that tonight's Council meeting will be filmed by the BBC and ITV. Tonight's big debate will be a motion from the Labour Group regarding Manston Airport. 


Thanet Council, however, are still not extending the right to film to the public only to corporate media.

I previously covered this issue in March 2013:

The right to report, film and tweet from council meetings in England

This runs contrary to the guidance issued in June 2013 by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles MP. This guidance from Central Government explicitly states that individuals should have the right to film and report on local council meetings that are open to the public. Yet Thanet Council are relying on the 2012 Statutory Regulations to prohibit the public from filming and reporting on their meetings.

Let's look at Thanet Council's position in detail:

2012 Statutory Regulations:

The 2012 Statutory Regulations are the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) England Regulations 2012. Thanet Council would appear to be citing s.20(4) of the Regulations in particular:

“Nothing in these Regulations requires a decision-making body to permit the taking of any photographs of any proceedings or the use of any means to enable persons not present to see or hear any proceedings (whether at the time or later), or the making of any oral report on any proceedings as they take place.”

Central Government Guidance:

This guidance, issued by Eric Pickles (the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government) on 14^th June 2013, effectively, the guidance takes a different interpretation to that of Thanet Council, with regard to the 2012 Statutory Regulations (referred to above). The guidance, then, states that:

“The rules (the 2012 Statutory Regulations) require councils to provide reasonable facilities for any member of the public to report on meetings. Councils should thus allow the filming of councillors and officers at meetings that are open to the public.”

With regard to reporting via social media and blogs, the guidance also states that:

“Similarly under the new rules there can be social media reporting of meetings. Thus bloggers, tweeters, facebook and YouTube users, and individuals with their own website, should be able to report meetings. You should ask your council for details of the facilities they are providing for citizen journalists.”

Thanet Council’s Position:

Thanet Council has rejected the central government guidance, outlining their position on their website:

“Confusion over the council’s position has arisen following the publication of The Guidance Document, which substantially misrepresents what the statutory regulations say in relation to the recording and filming of council meetings – which is that the council has complete legal discretion in this regard.”

Thanet Council and Central Government appear to be at odds about the 2012 Statutory Regulations.

The Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014:

The guidance issued by Eric Pickles, regarding the right to "report, blog, tweet and film" council meetings, has been effectively enshrined in law by the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014, which was passed into law on 30^th January 2014. Eric Pickles has asserted that:

“this new right will be the key to helping bloggers and tweeters as well as journalists to unlocking the mysteries of local government and making it more transparent for all.”

In particular, s.40 of the Act now provides the Secretary of State with power to make regulations that may allow local people, including citizen journalists, to attend public meetings of local council meetings and report the proceedings by using various communication methods such as filming, tweeting and blogging. Therefore, once new regulations have been introduced, councils and other local bodies will be compelled to allow the public to "report, blog, tweet and film” at their public meeting. This applies to a number of bodies, listed under s.40(6), which include:

• a district council, and
• a county council in England

The Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014:

There are new Regulations, albeit still in draft form, which have been drafted using the Secretary of State’s powers under s.40 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014. These Regulations will amend, among others, the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) England Regulations 2012 (referred to above). If introduced, the Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014 will:

• Omit s.20(4) – the provision currently being relied upon by Thanet Council.
• Require a decision-making body to permit any person attending a meeting of such a body to report on the proceedings - “reporting” is defined as:

“(a) filming, photographing or audio recording the proceedings of a meeting,

(b) using any other means for enabling persons not present to see or hear proceedings of a meeting as it takes place or later, and

(c) reporting or providing commentary on proceedings of a meeting, orally or in writing, so that the report or commentary is available to persons not present, as the meeting takes place or later.”

If these regulations are introduced, they will therefore confer a statutory right upon members of the public to film and report on council meetings that are open to the public.

Should it really be this hard if the right for the public to film Council meetings is going to be an inevitable right?

KLM to operate flights to Amsterdam out of Manston

It's been announced that KLM will be operating flights to Amsterdam out of Manston. What seems to be promoted in most of the media is the opportunity for outward bound passengers to then travel on to 130 destinations world wide. More focus on outbound opportunity than inbound to Thanet's own tourism offering. 

Nice to hear Charles Buchanan speaking up for Thanet! Erm...

Charles Buchanan, chief executive at Manston Airport, said: “The new services will be a real benefit to Kent and its residents. Passengers will be able to arrive at Manston, park adjacent to the terminal building, check in and be on the flight to Amsterdam within minutes, a hassle-free experience that makes travelling a pleasure. Passengers from Manston can leave home without the worries of road congestion or excessive flight delays affecting their journey.”

Nothing in this statement outlines any boost to our economy. It underlines convenience to residents of Kent to leave the area.

The flights will start from 6.30am, which many involved in the No Night Flights Campaign have rightly pointed out is against Thanet Council's pledge not to allow flights between the hours of 11pm and 7am.

It will be interesting to see the predicted ratio of inward versus outward bound and the possible effect this will have on Thanet's visitor economy. Fancy going away for a quiet break in Thanet and sleeping under a flight path at 6.30am?

I'm sure the folks at Visit Kent and Visit Thanet have our visitor economy covered and wouldn't back something that could damage Thanet's recovering tourism industry. 

Manston Night Flights Consultation

Hot out of TDC's press office is the invitation to participate in the consultation on proposals to bring in night flights at Manston Airport. Deadline is March 2nd.


For more info on the arguments against go to: http://www.nonightflights.tk/
For more arguments for you could read what Charles Buchanan musters up.   http://www.manstonairport.com/news-and-events/comment-responding-to-report.html


Here's the TDC press release: 
"You are invited to comment on proposals for regular night-time flying
at Manston Airport.

The proposals were submitted by Infratil, owners of the airport, on 27
October 2011 and included an aircraft noise assessment report and
economic assessment, which are technical reports explaining the
implications of the proposal.

After receiving the documents from Infratil, the council then
commissioned specialists Parsons Brinckerhoff Ltd, to carry out an
independent assessment of the proposals and technical details. Their
report reviews the environmental and economic impacts.

To view the proposals and independent assessment, please go to
www.thanet.gov.uk or visit Thanet’s Gateway Plus in Margate or the
council’s Ramsgate District Office in York Street.

The council is now carrying out a 28 day public consultation to provide
members of the public with an opportunity to comment on these
proposals.

All comments must be submitted in writing either by e-mail to
consultation@thanet.gov.uk or by post to Consultation, Thanet
District Council, PO Box 9, Margate CT9 1XZ. The consultation closes on
Friday 2 March 2012, any responses received after this date will not be
accepted.

Please note that legal advice has confirmed that, at this stage, the
council is only being asked to provide a response to the proposals. The
council is not in a position to make a decision on the night time flying
policy at this stage. The feedback from this consultation will therefore
be used, along with the findings of the independent assessment, to help
draft the council’s response to Infratil.

For more information on this consultation please go to
www.thanet.gov.uk "

Thanet Local Board Meeting Fiasco

I had the pleasure of sitting through Monday's Thanet Local Board meeting in Ramsgate. There's enough turning up on Twitter, Facebook and the blogs that show that there were many people in the hall who were not too pleased at how the meeting was chaired and how the panel members responded. I have to agree. It really is a pretty poor practice to cut people up 2 seconds into framing a question to tell them to hurry up and ask a question. And further to bemoan that only questions were being asked about the airport. Er, the meeting was in Ramsgate. The airport is a really important issue for many people. And as usual being handled dreadfully! I'll leave more detailed discussion of Manston to the lovely folks who are doing a sterling job of keeping on top of the debate.

Blogs:

http://thanetonline.blogspot.com/2010/09/sunday-ramble_26.html

http://thanetonline.blogspot.com/2010/09/kent-international-airport-night.html