Local  Government  Failure
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Exeter’s  Unitary  Status  Bid

 

This item would not belong on the official Club website, as it is a personal submission made without knowledge of the views of others in the Club.  It was hurriedly composed to meet a deadline, and its structure leaves somewhat to be desired.  Jim would have preferred to have left something as controversial as Exeter’s bid for unitary status to others who are better informed, but was stimulated into expressing an opinion by further ECC bureaucracy (details below).

It seemed to Jim that giving more power and responsibilities to a Council which is already failing to implement the spirit of democracy by adequately consulting the people is extremely unwise.  The submission was by email on 18th June 2007 and it has been duly acknowledged that the expressed views will be considered.  This page is included for completeness.

 

Dear Unitary Structures Consultation Team,

Exeter CC's Unitary Status Bid - Facts for Rigorous Examination

I apologise for not making this submission earlier, but I had intended not to make it at all.  Something has occurred to change my mind.  Everything should become clear as you read this email and examine the website on which the details are posted.  Some specific links to  www.summerway.org  are provided in this email, but a full investigation of the site is recommended.

I write personally as a citizen of Exeter, but my views about Local Government and the Club are widely shared.  Any comment or opinion about the bid for unitary status is strictly my own.

I love Exeter.  I love Devon.  I bear no one any malice, and if there is any animosity in this case, it comes entirely from Local Government and appears to be directed principally towards me.  I am happy to give credit where it is due, and acknowledge the good work done in many areas by Devon CC and Exeter CC.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/whyprov8uysgup.html 

I wish to raise important issues with regard to democracy, bureaucracy and ignorance arising from lack of consultation.  I will make my points under three headings: Facts, Comment and Opinion, with a final apology and explanation.

FACTS

l  The scene is set by the website’s Home Page.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/home6n6eqg3.html 

l  Some of the history appears in the Sequence of Events, but this needs considerable amplification.  At present, it does not adequately reflect the huge success enjoyed by the Club and its star quality.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/history6nrtexz.html 

l  Exeter CC discriminates in favour of the more affluent.  I am perfectly happy with the University tennis development subsidy, but not with the Council’s parsimonious attitude towards tennis for the wider community served by the Club.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/whydiscrim9yhqsxx.html 

l  Vandalism is frequently caused by deprivation.  Children need to be occupied, and preferably supervised by good adult role models.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/comsense15ymv59.html 

l  Exeter CC’s communications with the Club seem to lack rigour.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/norigour275prne.html 

l  Exeter CC seem to go their own way irrespective of Exeter citizens. Consultation and negotiation need to be real, and not just given lip service.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/nochnrvc9xo1hq6.html  and then click on the ‘this query’ link towards the bottom of the page.

l  The email/letter I sent to Exeter’s MP, Ben Bradshaw, for specific responses to each of the points I make from Exeter CC’s Director of Community and Environment, may be long, but is highly relevant.  Please examine this carefully to see what the Club and I are facing.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/pts4hazel8u9k2p8.html 

l  Exeter CC have tried to cause a rift between the Councillors and myself, and to isolate me from other members of the Summerway Committee.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/nodealing5jdt6xf.html 

It seems the Council believes me to be unrepresentative of the Club, and that is completely false.  Please examine carefully the resolutions passed by the Club at its Special General Meeting in January this year, and note the voting figures in the accompanying minutes.

http://www.jh.eclipse.co.uk/sgmresmins268y27.html 

COMMENT

l  It is difficult to discern quite why Exeter CC is so unwilling to re-examine its stance towards Summerway JLTC, and begin again by consulting the Club, which it should have done in the first place.  It may be on account of their own agenda for the site, or it may be that any change in their intentions might be viewed as a loss of face. We all make mistakes, and losing face is infinitely preferable to bungling such an important matter for the Community.

l  A Council that behaves as Exeter CC has towards the Summerway Club shows that it has scant respect for democracy, and is prepared to bully. Totalitarianism isn’t a very nice word in a supposedly democratic country, but I have seen quite a lot of it from Councillors and Officers.  Is it right to give more power to a body which fails to exercise in a democratic manner the power it currently holds?

OPINION

I have no overall opinion on Exeter’s bid for Unitary Status.  The matter is far too complex for me to offer a judgement.  All I have, as a citizen of Exeter with such intimate knowledge of the Summerway situation, is a fear that further power in the hands of Exeter CC will result in even greater arrogance regarding their own schemes. In my view, I think our civic leaders are unprepared for Unitary Status until they are able to adequately support such a valuable resource as volunteers, are more even-handed towards the wider community, and learn to consult and negotiate meaningfully.

Finally, two points.

I would like to offer an apology to Ben Bradshaw, Exeter’s MP, for making this submission, as I believe it is contrary to his view on Exeter’s bid.  Ben has given the Club great support by acting as go-between after Exeter CC severed communications with me.  In this respect, democracy has worked perfectly.  All I would say is that Ben will have a much broader picture than I of the whole City and its bid for Unitary Status, so it is better to listen to him.  I am merely making a limited submission regarding a very important aspect, of which I hope you will take full account.

In deference to Ben, I was not intending to make a submission.  The email from Exeter CC copied below the line has caused me to change my mind.  Since the Council has ‘constructively evicted’ the children from the courts allocated to them for decades, I have been taking a group from the estate down to the free public courts at the Heavitree Pleasure Ground recently.  I have been doing this fairly regularly at the time we used to hold our Summer Sessions.  Having let this be known to Club families, a small number of parents have taken their children to the free public courts at the same time.  The Club is currently quiescent, no subscriptions have been paid for membership which is now free because we no longer have the use of the courts at Summerway or a place to meet, and there is no charge whatsoever to the youngsters I am trying to help.  The email below was sent to a Summerway Committee member, who has forwarded it to me.  I am unlikely to develop a persecution complex, as I think this is either petty malice on someone’s part, or barking bureaucracy.  Weep for Exeter’s children.

Yours sincerely,

Jim Harle.

(Summerway JLTC Membership Secretary)

 

 

The email which prompted this submission was sent by Bob Fletcher, Facilities and Support Officer, ECC Parks and Open Spaces, to a member of the Summerway Committee.  As the matter raised concerns the Club rather than any individual, it must be assumed that the email was intended for the Club.  It was therefore forwarded to Jim for distribution to the Committee, which is one of his duties.

Traditionally, secretarial work for the Club has been shared between three secretaries, of which Jim is the only one currently in post.  As ECC are behaving irregularly towards the Club by refusing to deal with Jim, it is probably safest to simply note the substance of the email rather than post it on this website.  No one knows what ECC will try next.

Basically, the Committee Member is being asked to furnish details regarding the Club’s use of the public courts at the Heavitree Pleasure Ground.  If this is classified as organised regular usage, a formal licence will be needed.  A subsequent email indicates that organised use does apply in this case, so the Club is required to pay £5.00 inc. VAT per court per hour, with the option to negotiate the cost of a licence.

Jim has been taking some children from the estate, the majority of whom are not members of Summerway, to the courts as members of the public.  A few parents have done the same with their children.  Does the fact that Jim has indicated when he will be there constitute organisation?  ECC will try anything to deprive the youngsters, it seems.