Well, talk about causing a ripple!  I appear to have upset Cllr Christine Smith somewhat.  At the Huddersfield Planning meeting last week, she substituted for Cllr Bryce, who was no longer able to take an active role on the application for a Information Technology park planned for Lindley Moor.

This application has caused considerable local comment and objection and the Liberal Democrats have continued to object to the apllication on planning grounds.  The Conservatives have objected on what can best be described as political grounds because they have tendered few if any planning-based objections.

Of course all councillors on the planning committee are supposed to demonstrate a totally non-political viewpoint and to treat each application on its own merits purely from a planning aspect.

Well, Cllr Smith, as is her right, spoke in favour and voted in favour of the application.  But in writing to the Examiner in objection to remarks of mine reported therein, she omitted to explain that both Cllr Bryce and the current conservative parliamentary candidate, when making their submissions, gave absolutely no planning reasons to support their objections.  It’s hardly surprising that the application was accepted!

But what galls me is that the Tory candidate is still distributing leaflets purporting to object to the application and that he states categorically that an in-coming Conservative government will cancel the Local Development Framework.  

It is this second statement that is so dangerous.  Why?  Well, as I understand matters, if the UDP is succeeded by the LDF, then the core strategy of the LDF will have to demonstrate that Kirklees has a rolling 5-year programme for development.  If Kirklees can’t do this, then any application for development, should it be refused, will be appealed and the appeal will be most likely to succeed.  This dangerous position will see indiscriminate development taking place, even industrial development, in the most sensitive of places.  Where my colleagues and I continue to work and campaign to preserve our green spaces, others will just walk roughshod over all that work, to the ultimate detriment of the local people.

 So what can we conclude from all this?  I believe that the Tories know much more than is being let on.  They were seen in discussions with the developers last autumn and the developers spokesman is ex-Tory councillor Jonathan Scott. 

I don’t really believe in coincidences!

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