Consultation process is undemocratic

ON July 27, 2012, the Cabinet Office reduced the default period for any public consultation from 12 weeks to 30 days.

Such a short period virtually eliminates any response from the voluntary sector; as to make a democratic response committees have to be involved and this takes time.

One of the first consultations under the new rules is a set of major reforms to the Listed Buildings consultation process.

This is a process which potentially affects almost every community in England. The Richmond & District Civic Society (North Yorkshire) learnt of this “consultation” from Civic Voice on August 15 and a response is required by August 23, so we have just one week to read the papers and make a response which we trust reflects our members’ views.

To commence a major consultation in August, when many folk, even MPs, are on holiday, is in itself unacceptable but to reduce the time allowed by two thirds falls into the category of “time to bury bad news”.

The British constitution is based on the premise of “no taxation without representation”.

If the Government wish to keep the voluntary sector, and indeed the general public on board then they must revert to a realistic period for consultation.

Towns full of empty rooms

From: David M Adams, Huddersfield Road, Barnsley.

A CASUAL stroll along any high street in the United Kingdom will reveal an enormous number of empty or little used rooms above shop premises which are just ripe for providing much needed living accommodation.

These empty spaces were, some years ago, occupied by the families of shopkeepers until crippling regulations drove them out into the suburbs. What an absolute waste of potential valuable living space that already has the essential infrastructure and utilities to hand.

Instead, this useless coalition Government are hell bent on breaching the green belt that has had a controlling influence on urban sprawl over the last 50 years or so. If these politicians would start applying their minds to this matter, instead of responding to every headline created by unelected pressure groups, our country would be in a far better position to deal with the enormous problems that we are all confronted with.

Ignore Assange to get him out

From: Nigel Boddy, Fife Road, Darlington.

ARE we going to be seen as bullying Ecuador over the Julian Assange affair? Surely if the Ecuadorian authorities want to put up with the massive inconvenience of having him live in their embassy under diplomatic immunity we should respect that, shouldn’t we?

I remember how horrified we all were in November 1979 when the American Embassy in Tehran was invaded. Some American diplomats were saved I believe by taking refuge in the Canadian Embassy. I suspect they were only really safe because they were mistaken for Canadians. Either there is diplomatic immunity or there isn’t.

Can we insist upon our embassies being treated as little patches of British territory abroad when we do not respect the diplomatic immunity of other countries? Isn’t Assange effectively serving a prison sentence? Leave him where he is for goodness sake. Let him calm down. He will come out of his own accord eventually. The whole business will end in time as Julian Assange and the Ecuadorians come to see it is in their interest for it to end. For goodness sake just post a couple of police officers at the front door and back door. Train some CCTV cameras on the streets. There really isn’t any need for the large police presence being shown on television is there?

The whole business is taking on the appearance of an Ealing comedy and reminds me of A Passport to Pimlico. Let them alone.

He will come out of the Ecuadorian Embassy as soon as we stop paying him so much attention. No doubt we will all be treated to the second episode of the Julian Assange show then.

He will be quite unable to resist the temptation to come out of the embassy if only we ignore him.

Sour taste of EU farm policy

From: Jack Kinsman, Stainton Drive, Grimsby.

I WONDERED if someone in the Yorkshire area could please enlighten me as to the problem concerning the Yorkshire farmers and the price of milk.

The way I see it, the farmer, you and I, pay £53m every single day into a fund called the Common Agricultural Policy.

This money is then “lost”, or at least nobody in authority can explain where it goes.

The EU then give various amounts of our money to Spanish farmers as a “subsidy” to provide cheap milk to be “imported” (by force) into Great Britain.

Just to re-cap: We pay into an organisation that then uses our own money to put our farmers out of business. Or have I got it wrong?

Brass neck 
of Mr Blair

From: Raymond W Geldard, Skipton Road, Steeton.

SO once again slippery snake oil salesman Tony Blair is let off the hook as the Chilcot inquiry is kicked into the long grass.

I remember the news of the attack of 9/11 being announced in Parliament, when Blair stood at the despatch box and stated without further reflection: “We will stand shoulder to shoulder with America.”

Such was, and still is, this man’s overweening arrogance he could never allow himself to backtrack from that stupid statement. Now he is trying to re-invent himself, saying he would “like to re-engage with politics” and that he “has things to say” and even that he would “like another shot at Downing Street”.

The sheer brass neck of this man is breathtaking. Well, he could be invited to re-engage with politics at his own impeachment which is long overdue, and as for having things to say, the truth would fit the bill just fine.