VIDEO: Eric Pickles says he won't overturn incinerator decision as he visits Plymouth
ACTIVISTS who hope the Government will step in to block the building of a Plymouth incinerator have had their hopes dashed.
A small group of campaigners gathered outside the gates of the Green Ark Children's Centre in Devonport during a visit by Eric Pickles, the Communities and Local Government Secretary.
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HOPES DASHED: Herald political reporter Keith Rossiter talks to Pat Bushell of Transition Plymouth and Alan Facer
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John Robb, a city care worker, said: "Mr Pickles is always keen to talk about giving local people a voice.
"Well people in Plymouth have said loud and clear that they don't want an incinerator."
Members of Plymouth City Council planning committee gave the green light to an incinerator at Devonport Dockyard's North Yard at a special meeting last month.
Mr Pickles told The Herald yesterday: "As a matter of principle we rarely call things in unless they have national or regional significance. Local people should decide on local issues.
"I have received a letter from a local MP, but unless she brings in new evidence I won't be calling it in."
Mr Pickles denied that new policies on waste collection would be a setback to recycling in the city.
"Incentives will be announced soon to increase recycling rates.
"We are stopping fines for people putting things in the wrong bins. If a pensioner puts their yoghurt pot in the recycling bin we wouldn't want to see them marched in front of the court."
PICKLES PRAISE FOR FAMILY PROJECT
A PLYMOUTH project set up to deal with hundreds of so-called 'troubled families' has won the backing of the Government.
Eric Pickles, the Communities and Local Government Secretary, yesterday praised the pioneering Family Intervention Programme during a visit to the city.
Plymouth City Council has been chosen to showcase its "Troubled Families" work to the government team in charge of delivering a radical new national programme.
During a visit to the Green Ark Children's Centre in Devonport Mr Pickles met families, workers from agencies across the city and council leaders.
There are about 745 troubled families in Plymouth and 120,000 around the country.
Between them they cost the taxpayer about £9billion a year, or £75,000 for each family.
The Government has set aside £450million to tackle them problem.
"Plymouth has done the virtually impossible by getting different arms of government working together," Mr Pickles said.
"In the past you could have up to 20 different agencies all asking the same questions.
"Unless we deal with it, it will pass on to another generation."
He said he had spoken to people whose lives had been transformed when their neighbours were helped by intervention.
"We want to give people a better chance. And we want to give their neighbours a better chance."
Many of the troubled families had been unemployed for years, regardless of the state of the economy.
"We have ignored these families and kept them on benefits and out of sight."
He said the previous Labour Government had made a "noble" effort to tackle the problem".
Plymouth volunteered as a pilot project about a year ago.
"I wanted to see some really good practice, and this is the place they thought I should look at. I have been impressed," Mr Pickles said.
Louise Casey, head of the Government's troubled families team, said Plymouth should be proud of the results it had achieved.
She said: "I am tired of throwing good money after bad. Foster care costs about £36,000 a year – and that's the cost of a family intervention officer who will help five families."
Council leader Vivien Pengelly said: "We have been working with 40 seriously troubled families, in partnership with agencies like police and health.
"Hopefully with the minister's visit we will be able to tap into funding and employ more workers."
Dr Mary Embleton, representing the shadow Plymouth clinical commissioning group, said GPs were on the front line.
She said children who started life in a troubled family had a high chance of ending up as homeless adults.
"We have the potential to break the cycle."
John Miller, head of the council's integrated youth service, said that under the new programme they had been able to intervene earlier to stop young people entering the care system, at great cost to the council.
In 2010 about 60 16 and 17-year-olds had been taken into care in Plymouth.
Since the Family Intervention Programme started that number had been cut by 60 per cent to about 20.
"For many people going into care, their life story will be pretty grim."
23 Comments
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by Buccy
Sunday, January 22 2012, 4:36PM
“"Fatty" pickles couidn't overturn a pancake.”
by Mark2Plym
Friday, January 20 2012, 11:55PM
“Remember next election any one who voted for the incinerator vote them out! They are there to serve you not themselves!”
by LHPlymouth
Friday, January 20 2012, 11:42PM
“Did Pickles by any chance live near Stondon Massey.....just a thought from my experience of the 7 deadly planning committee votes in favour....now remind me if any of them live or represent those in the immediate vicinity of the proposed site....
nah course not..just like those on the Joint scrutiny panel...
or MVV...or SWDWP..or... well any who think its a brill idea
Put it near them then cos they don't see any problem with it - funny that”
by 02_Lover
Friday, January 20 2012, 11:25PM
“In August 2010, George Osborne was the first of 25,000 people to sign a petition against an energy-from-waste plant in his Cheshire constituency, despite having described the company Brunner Mond as an "important local employer". He is also honorary president of a campaign against a second local incinerator. Pickles, the secretary of state for communities and local government, also campaigned against a waste facility, a composting site at Stondon Massey in his Essex constituency, saying approval would "open the doors for our county to become the waste dump for the south-east".
Source
http://tinyurl.com/76kug9s”
by LHPlymouth
Friday, January 20 2012, 11:00PM
“Mr Pickles - you have no principles. This DOES have a regional significance - its called SWDWP
"but unless she brings in new evidence I won't be calling it in." - have you actually read any of the other evidence Mr Pickles? Have you taken any notice of this? No!
Aren't you an MP for the 'community'? Is that ALL communities or selective communities - we all count you know (although not if you live in Plymouth obviously)
"We are stopping fines for people putting things in the wrong bins."
Be great to have the fines stopped that we don't pay in the first place so you can't dangle that empty crisp packet under our noses.
What will happen when PCC mix the green and brown waste - who will fine them?
If a pensioner puts their yoghurt pot in the recycling bin we wouldn't want to see them marched in front of the court."
No but they can be manhandled by PC Plod and be extremely distressed.
Can't you put yoghurt pots in the green bins then? How about a better system for recycling information (on recyclable paper of course)?”
by LHPlymouth
Friday, January 20 2012, 10:47PM
“Yes we need to deal with waste but this is not the right way and not the right location.
Recycling centres etc are supposed to be functioning and working BEFORE an incinerator should be considered - PCC get that sorted first and then see what is left and see what can be reused and so on..then see we don't need an incinerator and we don't need everyone else's waste either to top it up. Torbay Council arwe rubbing their hands with glee and boasting at how much money they have saved...yes, at our expense!
We have green and brown bins and split rubbish accordingly, take bottles/glass to skips but its up to PCC to do a better job and not take a quick fix that will backfire on the people of Plymouth.
Would have created more jobs and been more cost effective to create a proper recycling centre rather than go down this route.
Its a white elephant to use the Naval Base as the reason for siting it here - there are alternative methods of dealing with waste and other areas that could benefit from energy generated as there is no chance that those who will bear the brunt of it will benefit.
However, NOTHING can mitigate the effects of this - NOTHING NOTHING NOTHING - don't believe that some trees, a sculpture, football shirts blah blah blah makes it all ok.
STOP THE INCINERATOR - SORT OUT THE RECYCLING - THEN DEAL WITH WHATS LEFT IN A MORE APPROPRIATE WAY!”
by pooshooter7
Friday, January 20 2012, 10:40PM
“Get this useless waste a space of CONservative party out of plymouth,with their pocket lining schemes and money wasting plans,its time pengelly and her cronies got out of town.”
by LHPlymouth
Friday, January 20 2012, 10:33PM
“Those who make their mocking comments on here and who have no idea exactly what this incinerator means not only to those who will be within METRES of it but to the whole of this city and surrounding area and don't forget the poor people of Buckfastleigh who will not only have the ash but also a 'materials recycling centre' as well if approval is passed please watch the video from about 17minutes or so in...
You will see a lady who has got more guts and passion that you will ever have and we should all be proud of her.
There it is in writing from NHS Plymouth as to the effects to the health and well being of your fellow citizens. Already it is having an impact and I speak on behalf of myself and neighbours who have found the decision by 7 Tory councillors to approve this incinerator totally devastating.
The evidence is there in many ways, shapes and forms as to reasons NOT to site this in the location proposed - for health, for securitty, for safety (no consideration whatsoever for local residents, school children, elderly, impact on the already congested road system)
But no - 12 councillors had the vote - a chance to stop this and not let a German company make a massive profit at our expense...and 7 voted for it - 7 who do not live anywhere near this, 7 who couldn't even be bothered to take any notice of information available and ignored the people of Plymouth chance to LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE OF PLYMOUTH AND REPRESENT THEM!
Too many lies, errors, miscalculations and arrogance - how dare they say its ok to have to keep our windows shut in the summer due to the noise etc from the incinerator and during the construction. Are we never to enjoy our gardens again? These are our homes that we work hard to pay for and maintain. Where are our human rights? Prisoners, Travellers and Immigrants are afforded them-where are ours?
Hypocrisy and contempt from the likes of Pickles and Pengelly-sloping shoulders at its worst. Take responsibility for once.
And back to the video..what was wrong with allowing a letter to be handed in? How dare she be treated in that way. Be ashamed!”
by 9ab3jdr622l
Friday, January 20 2012, 5:45PM
“Due to the Localism Bill a lot of the power from Government has been transferred to local councils for them to decide on local issues but when you have a council such as ours who do not listen or even care what all the people of Plymouth want then it becomes a huge problem. With some councillors having been in power for such a long time they think they are invincible and until the system changes they will continue with the destruction of this city. They would not have risked placing an incinerator in Plymstock because they would have been booted out when next up for re-election but the loss of the airport link will make some people question their ability to make the right decisions about what Plymouth and it's inhabitants want and need.”
by AnniDarko
Friday, January 20 2012, 5:38PM
“@Trainman2010
The incinerator will create a mere 30 jobs once it is built - and those will mostly go to German engineers (according to MVV Managing Director Paul Carey).
You might be lucky with a job in the construction but that, like many jobs in Plymouth, will only be for a temporary period.
Not exactly a reason to celebrate. A new supermarket would create many more jobs.”