This week’s timetabling conundrum is about whether I will be called on Thursday during the debate on planning reforms. I am painfully aware as I write this on Wednesday that the call list is not yet published and the debate is very heavily oversubscribed. It seems to be the new normal, as I was 23rd on a call list in a debate last week that had 50 or so speakers selected and only a dozen were actually called.
If I have the opportunity to contribute I will focus on the importance of local involvement in planning, the value of Neighbourhood Plans which so many communities in this constituency have worked on diligently, the mutant algorithm that appears to have been developed to impose yet more unrealistic top down targets and the failure to include sanctions in the new proposals for developers who do not bring forward sites which already have planning permission. I expect I will, yet again, vent my frustrations with the Romsey Brewery site.
Earlier this week I did raise the Post Office Horizon scandal which has impacted so many sub postmasters and mistresses across the country. The Minister in his responses on Monday resorted to using the phrase “in due course” when talking about redress, I would contend the Post Office needs to show much greater urgency than that phrase will ever manage to convey. I know that Post Offices in this constituency were impacted and too many wholly falsely accused of wrong doing, the Post Office says it wants to reset its relationship with branches, I hope they do so with commitment because a massive amount of trust was lost and as a result several branches.
This weekend is the Romsey and District Society autumn stream clean and litter pick, socially distanced this year. I find litter picking strangely therapeutic, there is a real sense of job satisfaction and I am pleased that it is able to go ahead. I hope the weather is better this weekend and last, it would have been pretty grim last week.