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Give us a fair shout
IN recent months St Helens Council 'bulldozed' three very important planning issues into one meeting of three hours.
These were - 1: A proposed open-cast mining site (which would have been the third in Haydock in recent years). 2: Drastic alterations to the Queens Recreation Park. 3: Drastic changes to Victoria Park.
These three decisions without doubt affected the lives of thousands of our residents and yet, infuriatingly, only ten minutes was allowed for the speakers on either side, which was strictly enforced. (I was stopped after two minutes as our 10 minutes had then expired). So if three people applied to speak they were allowed only some three minutes each.
Following this meeting I wrote to St Helens Council. Two months later I received a reply, but only after threatening to report the council to the Ombudsman. This reply, in view of the number of complaints registered was brief and the Assistant Chief Executive would not accept that the acoustics were inadequate for such important meetings.
He also stated, in the context of many councils' not allowing the public to speak ten minutes allowance was relatively generous. I note that he failed to provide names of such councils who would dare not to allow public participation in such serious matters of public interest and concern and he should now publicly provide such examples to us.
What is of great concern to local people is that these shabby circumstances should never be repeated in the future when we have the facilities to grant the public more participation in matters of great public interest and in fact, severe concern. We should not just walk away.
Council taxpayers should be able to rely on both our councillors and our highly-paid executive officers to properly grant the public the chance to make their views known on issues they feel strongly about.
Many months ago, our Director of Environmental Health Mr Paul Sanderson, stated that the public toilets in the town were 'adequate.' It was sometime later, after protests, that toilets in the Hardshaw Centre were opened and just how well patronised they have been since, as the public can judge for themselves.
ERIC Guest, Haydock
10:49am Thursday 8th May 2008
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