NOTES OF A MEETING OF THE LINCOLN FRINGE
AREA FORUM HELD ON THURSDAY, 16 JUNE 2005 AT INGHAM VILLAGE HALL, INGHAM AT
7.15 PM
PRESENT: John White (Chairman)
Bob Wise
(Vice Chairman)
Chief
Inspector Roger Bannister – Lincolnshire Police
Phil Hinch – Senior Licensing Officer,
WLDC
Steven
Taylor - Agast
Lynne Spink
– Community Planning Co-ordinator, WLDC
Nicola
Turnbull – Committee Administrator, WLDC
ALSO
PRESENT: 35 Members of the public including Parish, District
and County Councillors, representatives from various voluntary organisations
and officers of West Lindsey District Council.
APOLOGIES: Reena Fehnert – Lincolnshire County Council
1 WELCOME
John White welcomed
all that were present, and introduced the speakers for the evening.
2 ELECTION OF NEW CHAIRMAN
AND VICE CHAIRMAN
It was AGREED
that John White be re-elected as Chairman of the Lincoln Fringe Area Forum, and
Bob Wise be re-elected as Vice-Chairman.
3 NOTES
The notes of the Meeting of the Lincoln Fringe Area
Forum held on 21 March 2005 were AGREED
as a correct record.
4 GENERAL OVERVIEW OF AREA FORUMS
Lynne Spink gave a brief overview of the role of Area Forums
explaining that issues addressed at meetings were put forward by the
public. Any requests for future items
for discussion should be forwarded to Ms Spink at West Lindsey District
Council. 9 Area Forums were held each
year, 3 in each area of West Lindsey.
Minutes of Area Forums were available on the West Lindsey District
Council website and it was noted that all those present were given an
opportunity to provide contact details to receive the minutes by post.
The Chairman welcomed and introduced Phil Hinch,
Senior Licensing Officer (WLDC) who addressed the meeting on the new licensing
laws.
Mr Hinch explained that the new Licensing Act 2003 had
not yet been fully implemented but would bring in many changes to current
licenses. It would hand responsibility
for liquor licensing from the Magistrates Court to West Lindsey District
Council as the Licensing Authority. It
was noted that there were four main licensing objectives which each license
application would be measured against:
·
Prevention of
Crime and Disorder
·
Promotion of
Public Safety
·
Protection of
Children from Harm
·
Prevention of
Public Nuisance.
All of the objectives were equally important and
provided the only reasons for imposing conditions or refusing licenses.
He outlined the benefits and drawbacks of the new
legislation and explained that each personal license was fully portable and
lasted 10 years and a premises license would last indefinitely unless revoked.
With regard to 24 Hour drinking licenses, it was noted
that no applications had been received by the District Council. Any one could object to a license as long as
it covered one or more of the four objectives and they lived or worked in the
vicinity. The term ‘vicinity’ was yet to
be defined.
Concern was expressed that only 30 conversion
applications had been received out of a predicted 300 and 70 out of 450
predicted personal licenses. It was
confirmed that if the deadline was missed, a new application would have to take
place which would involve a lengthy paperwork exercise.
Those premises that had not renewed their licenses by
6 August would loose grandfather rights and have to re-apply for a new
license. If a new license is not applied
for before 24 November 2005, the premises would no longer be authorised to sell
liquor after that date.
In response to a question, it was confirmed that
extended opening hours would have to be posted on a blue A4 notice 10 days
subsequent to license confirmation and a notice be place in the local paper or
parish magazine stating new opening times.
It was confirmed that a temporary licence for premises
could be applied for up to 12 times a year, and a temporary personal license
applied for up to 50 times a year, although it was explained that even though a
personal license may be held authorising the temporary sales of liquor for up
to 50 times a year, one venue could only be used 12 times. It was noted that the same rules applied when
requesting extended licensing.
It was confirmed that a temporary entertainment
licence would have to be purchased to licence occasional events in village
halls at a cost of £21 per event. A
personal licence would not have to be purchased unless alcohol would be sold at
the event. If alcohol was to be served
at an event, the personal licensee would not need to be present, but it was
recommended by the authority that they should be as they would take
responsibility should anything go wrong.
An entertainments license would not be required for
religious entertainment, private parties, weddings and all non-profit making
events. Licensing for charitable events
would be at the discretion of the District Council.
6 COMMUNITY SAFETY – NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH, PSCO’S AND COMMUNITY GROUPS
Chairman welcomed and introduced Chief Inspector Roger
Bannister (Lincolnshire Police) who addressed the meeting on the integration of
Community Groups, the role of Neighbourhood Watch and PSCO’s.
It was explained that the Home Secretary had outlined
views on how Local Policing Teams should deal with Anti-Social Behaviour and
had requested that a corporate stance be made to rollout community
policing. Chief Inspector Bannister
defined Community Policing to the meeting as any action to increase community
safety and the feeling of safety reflected in public confidence, building a
positive Lincolnshire and working with individual partners and communities
encouraged through the local policing plan.
A Government White Paper had been produced which gave power to communities
for consideration on how their area should be policed.
Local
Community Panels would be composed of 6 -12 people representing the views of
those in their local community and would be diverse through age, sexual
orientation, occupation, demography and represent hard to reach / hear
groups. They would meet monthly to discuss issues which could be put forward to a
Local Community Safety Team (LCST) as objectives for improvement. The LCST would consist of PSCOs, CBOs ,
Specials, Cadets and Volunteers who would ensure that the identified problems
would be solved or improved within an agreed timescale. A Joint Action Group (JAG) would also meet,
which would consist of practitioners of different agencies such as Environmental
Health and WLDC. The JAG would have a more strategic role and aim to drive
projects forward through the LCST.
A pilot had taken place in urban areas of Lincoln and
Grantham and a rural area of Wainfleet which had proved that the scheme would
be easier to implement in towns/cities rather than rural villages. West Lindsey had been split in to 3 areas for
policing: Lincoln Fringe, Wolds and Gainsborough and Surrounding Area with 9
policing teams:
·
4 in Gainsborough
(Rural / North / South / East)
·
Caistor and
Keelby
·
Market Rasen and
Brookenby
·
Welton, Dunholme
and Hemswell
·
Saxilby
·
Nettleham
This proposal would have to be signed off by
Lincolnshire Police Authority by 2 July 2005 and it was aimed that by 1
December 2005 that every square mile of Lincolnshire would be covered by a Community
Group.
Concern was expressed by the Chairman that Parish
Councils were not being used for the Community groups and therefore created
duplication of work and meetings. It was
explained that Community Groups represented more than just a parish and
therefore needed to be impartial to a certain area.
Chief Inspector Bannister continued to explain that
Neighbourhood Watch were the largest voluntary organisation in the country with
10 million members. There were 5
administrative staff in the county (2 in West Lindsey area) and 2,000 street
co-ordinators (70 in West Lindsey area).
Lincolnshire police considered Neighbourhood Watch to be an extension of
the police force and a conduit for receiving feedback from the public on
community safety, and also ties in with ‘Farm Watch’ and ‘Petroleum Watch’.
He outlined the new ringmaster scheme for the more
efficient spreading of more relevant information between co-ordinators to
improve communication through software which would be on-line at the end of
2005. He recommended that all members of
the public should join the neighbourhood watch scheme and could make contact
Dave Townsend at the close of the meeting.
Chief Inspector Bannister explained that there had
been a Government pledge to hire 24,000 Police Community Safety Officers (PCSO)
and gave an overview of their role. They were drawn from the communities that
they would serve and were of great assistance to the police force. The officers
were involved in such activities as:
·
Community
engagement
·
Professional
Witness
·
Working with
schools
·
Working with
residential associations
·
Community beat
areas
·
Working with
outside agencies
·
Working on
community transport
·
Removing
abandoned vehicles
·
Vehicle tax
evasion tickets
·
Dealing with
anti-social behaviour
·
Traffic duties
·
Unlawful
emissions and
·
Power of entry.
The PSCOs had authority to drive police cars, but not
the extra rights that a member of the police force would. They were also available to be purchased by
District Councils for £23,000 for the first year and £17,000 for every year
after that.
It was confirmed that PCSOs worked throughout the day
up until 10pm. It was felt that there
was little need to provide a night shift service to the community as PCSOs could
do most good during daylight hours and in to the evening and provided a comfort
to those living in the community.
It was noted that PCSOs would be asked to be involved
with issues such as riding bikes on pavements, litter and graffiti. Problems regarding these issues could be
forwarded to the Community Groups for consideration. Their role was a patrol
function and supplemented but did not replace police officers.
In response to a query it was confirmed that convert
cameras could be set up as long as they would only record the owner’s
property. Any further footage could only
be recorded by authorisation of the Chief Executive of the District Council and
the Chief Superintendent of Lincolnshire Police.
The Chairman introduced and welcomed
Steven Taylor of Agast who spoke to the meeting on Gas Storage.
He informed the group that a company
called Star Energy were proposing to store up to 15 billion cubic feet of
natural gas in the depleted Welton oil field.
The oil field extended from the northern part of Lincoln to Scampton in
the west and the River Witham to the east.
It went as far north as Welton Hill / Langworth, nearly 100 square miles
and over 65 villages/hamlets. The
purpose for storing the gas during the summer was in order to supply it in the
winter when it would be of a higher monetary value.
It was noted that Star Energy were
invited to attend the meeting, but declined on the policy that they did not
attend public debates.
Mr Taylor explained that Agast had concerns
regarding Star Energy’s proposal which were mainly surrounding public
safety. In statements taken from Star
Energy it was noted that the storage would ‘involve a high degree of risk’ and
that there were chances of:
·
Environmental
hazards
·
Industrial
accidents
·
Occupational and
health hazards
·
Technical
failures
·
Flooding and
extended interruptions
·
Explosions and
many more hazards not listed.
Migration of the gas was a possibility meaning
that it would seep underground to other areas of the oil field not designated
for gas storage. It posed a further risk
as there were up to 50 bore holes in the area, a potential risk for gas to
leak. These holes were positioned near
to homes, schools and public places and would also leak substances such as
hydrogen sulphide described as a ‘silent killer’. There was also a possibility for oil to be
spurted out through these holes due to the high pressure of the gas.
It was noted that Star Energy had
quoted that their insurance may not be adequate to cover the consequences of
the risks involved or where they may be liable for pollution. Concern was expressed that the proposal given
was not the full story, as the application to Lincolnshire County Council (LCC)
proposes the storage of 2 billion cubic feet of gas, when the number had been
confirmed to be 15 billion cubic feet.
Agast had provided LCC with
documentation in excess of 150 pages outlining the reasons for objection to the
application. Also LCC had received more
than 100 written objections by members of the public. Mr Taylor encouraged further members of the
public to voice their objections to the authority. It was noted that LCC, as the planning
authority would need to give planning permission to Star Energy for this
project to go ahead, which would be considered at Planning Committee in
September.
Consent would also have to be gained
from Offgen through gaining a gas transporter license. Any application for a license would need to
undertake a consultation period which would only be available for viewing on
the internet by those who look on the off-chance as there was no prior notice
given. This consultation had passed in
Lincolnshire. It was noted that if
Offgen did not issue Star Energy with a license then the department of Trade
and Industry would undertake to amend the Gas Act passed by parliament for the
application to be exempt, which may be considered a breach of European
Legislation.
Concerns were expressed to the Health
and Safety Executive who claimed that policy does not apply to cases of
pipeline or underground storage (European Legislation says it does apply).
In answer to a question it was
confirmed that correspondence had been sent to Edward Leigh MP explaining the
situation in the aim to gain his support.
It was hoped that if the legislation of the gas act went to parliament
for amendment that local MPs would rally support to vote against it.
It was noted that a presentation had
not been made to LCC as all information regarding planning cases could only be
considered at Planning Committee. He
reiterated that documentation had been circulated to Planning Committee members
for their information. The County
Council had no financial interest in this project.
It was noted that other companies such
as AMEC were partners with Star Energy.
West Lindsey District Councillor Mrs M
W Davidson addressed the meeting with regard to the work undertaken by local
ward councillors in the Lincoln Fringe area.
It was noted that the UK had no experience in gas storage and that no
advice or information had been sought from the USA on the risks and problems
involved. A public meeting had been held
in which WLDC took on board the comments and concerns of those present and had
presented that information in a formal response to LCC. She expressed concern to the process of
evacuating the fringe villages in the case of disaster and it was noted that
LCC would have to pay damages and organise emergency planning should a crisis
occur.
It was noted that the planning
authority could not take in to account that the company may not be able to
provide adequate insurance cover when considering the application and if they
could not furnish recompense then LCC could be culpable.
Mr Taylor was not positive as to
whether house insurance would increase or house prices could decrease in price
due to gas storage in the area. Agast
were in the process of collecting evidence from civil servants in order to
politically expose the issue and eventually present the case to the European
Parliament.
It was moved that the Lincoln Fringe
Area Forum provide their objection to Lincolnshire County Council to gas
storage under south West Lindsey and recommend that it should take place out at
sea where it would not endanger lives.
At this point County and District Councillor Peter Heath left the
meeting while a vote was taken. It was AGREED that this objection should take
place.
It was proposed that an appeal be
launched for donations to support Agast in their campaign, but it was AGREED that any members of the public
wishing to make donations could contact Agast at the address on the handout.
It was suggested that the issue of speeding
through villages should be considered at the next meeting of the Forum, with a
presentation by Lincolnshire County Council Highways and Planning Department.
It was also suggested that Council
cut-backs be discussed and the financial consequences.
9 RENAMING THE LINCOLN
FRINGE AREA FORUM
It was proposed that the name of the
Lincoln Fringe Villages Area Forum be changed to better represent the location
of the area. The name was suggested to
infer that the area ‘hung-on’ to Lincoln and did not show that it was part of
West Lindsey.
Suggestions
were made such as:
·
Southern Lindsey
Villages Forum
·
South West
Lindsey Area Forum
·
Lincoln Fringe
Forum
·
Fringe Villages
Area Forum
It was AGREED that all suggestions were to be submitted to Lynne Spink
for consideration at the next meeting of the Forum.
No other business was discussed.
Meeting closed at