BNP campaign wins planning review!
July 21, 2008 by Martin Wingfield
Filed under Martin Wingfield
IN May, British National Party councillors in North West Leicestershire took on the Tories over a planning application the Conservative-run council wanted to push through without proper public consultation.
The proposed development was for a 72 acre industrial and distribution development by UK Coal at the South Leicestershire Coal Disposal Point off Beveridge Lane in Ellistown. The largest unit would stand 58ft high and cover seven acres and the site would require more than 800 vehicles a day, most of them heavy vehicles, and all using the already busy Midland and Whitehill Roads.
The matter was first due to go before the planning committee of North West Leicestershire District Council on Wednesday 7th May despite there having been no public consultation on the huge development, so BNP councillors Graham Partner and Ian Meller produced an Ellistown Patriot newsletter which in formed local residents of the Tory Council’s intention.
“Ellistown does not need this development,” said the leaflet. “Think of the pollution and think of the noise and that is 24 hours a day and seven days a week. It won’t contribute anything to the community and will hit already falling house prices even further.”
The Tories tried to claim that the development would create hundreds of job opportunities, but this was rejected by the BNP councillors who said that it wouldn’t be local people that were employed but HGV agency drivers and low paid migrant workers.
The Tories were livid that their best laid plans had been exposed by the British National Party and they launched a bitter attack on the BNP councillors at a full council meeting on Tuesday 13th May 2008 during a discussion about the new Planning Committee proposals.
BNP councillor Graham Partner was then scathing in his criticism of the Conservative Council.
“Still smarting after being publicly chastized for their role in a very dubious committee decision which they pretended was above board and proper, they obviously thought Tuesday would be a good opportunity to gain revenge on the two BNP councillors.
“In a moment of sheer stupidity, they verbally attacked the BNP in an attempt to justify their own culpability in the planning decision. The BNP members sat quietly, content to hear the abuse in the knowledge that right is on their side. Nothing the Tories said or will ever say can cover up the fact that they did not wish the people of Ellistown to know about the application in question and only the BNP had exposed that fraud by leafleting the area just one day before the Parish and two before the Planning Committee meetings.
“We have nothing to be ashamed of and nothing to hide. The public had every right to know what was going on and they can judge us themselves.
“Their words hold no fear for us and neither do their threats. We serve the people, they serve themselves. That is the difference.”
Now, two months down the line. Graham Partner’s words have come back to haunt the Tories who thought they had bulldozed through the planning application.
BNP councillors Ian Meller and Graham Partner at the site of the Conservative Council's intended development
East Midlands Elections Officer Wayne McDermott, who lives in Ellistown, takes up the story:
“We argued then that the consultation was non existent and local people had not been given a fair say. At the planning meeting local BNP Cllr Graham Partner spoke against the development as well as a local Parish Councillor and environmental group, but this was ignored by the Conservative and Labour Party dominated committee.
“After the meeting feelings were still high and everyone said the fight would continue and continue it did. The Ellistown wildlife group supported by Cllr Partner complained about the flawed consultation process in which the local council canvassed the opinion of the owners of local factories and not local residents.
“Now our complaint has been upheld. The Government office for the East Midlands has informed North West Leicestershire District Council it will have to look at the planning application again.
“Last time with just 48 hours notice we still managed to fill the room at the planning meeting. This time we will be filling the whole building and car park with objectors and although we know we have a hard fight on our hands we will be pulling out all the stops.
“The Tories have lied about this issue right from the start. Last year they even put out a local newsletter saying that they were opposed to the development, only to turn full circle and try to push it through without proper consultation.
“The next Ellistown Patriot is printed and will be delivered over the next 2 days again informing local people just what the Tories are doing to our villages.”
Thought for the Day ‘Never give up the fight, because sometimes, battles can be won when they at first seem lost.’
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