Agenda 2019

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/14916954.Workers_struggling_as_rents_now_more_than_a_third_of_the_average_pay_in_Weymouth_and_west_Dorset/ Workers in Dorset face struggle with rents rising to more than a third of the average pay The scandal of high rent charges is not just restricted to Dorset, but is a problem for most regions of the country. It is a problem brought about by successive governments since the 1950's taking a policy option of curtailing house building, particular in the social housing sector. It is also an economic reality, that by restricting the supply of affordable housing, including those for rent in either the private or social housing sectors, the price level for housing general ly is forced upward and held at artificially high levels as demand for homes increases. This has been particularly the case over the last twenty years and has become even more chronic over the last few years as house building generally has fallen to record low levels. ...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/14568553.Hospital_staff_returning_to_cars_after_shifts_find_DOG_MUCK_smeared_on_door_handles/?ref=mr&lp=3 Dorset County Hospital staff returning to cars after shifts find DOG MUCK smeared on door handles in Dorchester The "parking problems" for people using Dorchester County Hospital, both staff and patients, are not the fault of those working there, nor are they the fault of residents in the area who have the inconvenience of parked vehicles outside their homes. Whilst I condemn the actions of those responsible for the abuse and other allegations reported in this article, we should not lose sight of the fact that the management and those responsible for the administration of parking facilities at the hospital, must take full responsibility for the grievously inadequate parking facilities, which have been a problem for patients, visitors, staff and even local residents for many years. As a regular user of Dorche...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/14446658._Weymouth_would_continue_to_flourish_outside_the_EU___Commons_leader_Chris_Grayling_visits_Dorset/?action=success#comment_16066943 "Weymouth would continue to flourish outside the EU":   says Chris Grayling Chris Grayling The choice of "continue to flourish"  seems a strange choice of words for Chris Grayling to use in describing Weymouth. Even a short stroll around the town reveals a rather different reality. The number of empty shops with "To let" signs continues to increase, as does the amount of derelict or run-down buildings. Many of the back streets of the town have become increasingly seedy over the past years and the Park and Ride facility at Mount Pleasant remains closed since before Christmas last and now the site seems destined to be sold (provided of course that a buyer can be found). Hardly the signs of a "flourishing" seaside economic community. Closed and ...

  http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/13504514.REVEALED__Dorset_in_firing_line_for_badger_cull/ Dorset in firing line for badger cull   The unproven, untested and barbaric practice of killing badgers for no other reason than some "expert" thinks that it may be a good idea, comes to Dorset. The vast majority of scientific evidence and research, tell us that culling has very little or no effect on the spread of bovine TB. In fact the evidence says that inoculation would be an effective method of control if such a link could be establish and would in any case not require Badgers to be killed.  The only reason that inoculation is dismissed in because it is more expensive than a bullet and the "authorities" responsible for the culling process have to monitor costs and save money. Bloody outrageous.

Reproduced from the Dorset Echo  First published Saturday 30 May 2015 updated 31 May 2015 Article by  Liz Jackson     Quacking effort as ducklings rescued from drain by using a recording of their mum.         TWO ducklings had a daring adventure in Burton Bradstock after they lost their mother and fell down a manhole. Thanks to helpful members of the community, however, the story had a happy ending as they were eventually rescued. Mark Hyde, from Lancashire, said they raised the alarm after a duck came to the door of their holiday home last week on May 18 quacking for help. He said: “My wife and I were staying in Burton Bradstock for a week’s holiday and we were made aware of the impending tragedy by the mother duck quacking loudly at our cottage door. “We went out to investigate and saw the mother with eight ducklings which were o...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/millions-of-britons-struggling-to-feed-themselves-and-facing-malnourishment-9946627.html     Millions of Britons struggling to feed themselves and facing malnourishment   Foodbanks relying on donations of food.   On December 20th, I blogged on the bigoted generalisations, unfortunately, all too common in today's greedy, selfish and prejudiced society, in respect of attitudes towards the poor, foodbanks, child poverty and the general demonisation of large sections of our society, by those all too ready to accept and believe the propaganda trotted out from the pages of the Daily Mail, Telegraph and other such rags, and the completely biased reporting of Wilcox and others on the BBC with Brazier and Boulton on the British version of Fox News. The “success” of divisive social policies maintained by successive governments, have now become the “flagship” of this current ConDem coalition and have been...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11683374.People_turn_to_foodbanks_to_feed_their_families_over_Christmas/ People turn to foodbanks to feed their families over Christmas Foodbank volunteers "Hundreds of people (in Dorset,) will be turning to foodbanks to feed their families this Christmas. Instead of turkey with all the trimmings, hard-pressed families will be serving up tinned and dried foods this festive season."  Dorset Echo: 23rd December 2014.   Just one small part of scandal which has grown vastly over the past 5 years. In this country today, there are over 1 million people who are reliant on Food banks or other food charities, to feed their families this Christmas. The figure has grown significantly since last Christmas and shows no sign of reducing anytime soon. It is a scandal and a disgrace, which should shame us all for allowing such a situation to come about. The Foodbank charities and the volunteers working in them are doing a magnificent ...

  http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11668325.Waste_partnership_is_standing_firm_on_rubbish_bags_despite_vermin_fears/ Waste partnership is standing firm on rubbish bags despite vermin fears East Street, Weymouth   I drove past this stack of rubbish yesterday 15th December 2014,(and it was not the only one which I passed while in Weymouth). It seems that the waste has been put into the "wrong sacks". The thought occurred to me that rather than buy "black plastic" sacks to cram the rubbish into, why do the people putting the bags out, not put it into "blue plastic" sacks? That is of course, provided that the DWP have actually delivered a supply of blue plastic sacks to be used for the purpose. However, so far the performance of DWP in the catalouge of errors, screw ups and general poor management and administration of the "new system" is less than adequate. Moreover, they seem to be demanding more money from the Council to cover ...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11597808.Residents_revolt_over_rubbish_service/   Residents revolt over rubbish service It is not only Portland that has a problem with the new waste disposal scheme operated by the Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP). I posted this in the letters section of Dorset Echo, this morning. The following is the transcript of an "online chat" which I had with DWP last week. The food waste was eventually collected and the bin was left lying on its side with lid open, in the middle of a public drive way. There will probably be another "online chat" this week as the food waste bin was again not emptied. A new "Report a missed bin collection" reference number has been issued and a complaint has been sent to DWP. They will respond "within 10 days". If DWP or anyone else thinks that we should have rotting food waste lying around the house, or stored in our garage until they are prepared to coll...

  http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11420375.Condor_Ferries_to_leave_Weymouth_next_spring/?ref=var_0 Condor purchase new high speed Austal 102 trimaran      The "new" Condor Ferry:: Austal’s 102-metre trimaran   Why should anyone be shocked and surprised by this story? On the 19th April I blogged this entry. http://new-agenda2012.blogspot.co.uk/201 4/04/the-writing-has -been-on-wall-for-al most.html Today, channelonline.tv carries the following: "Condor Ferries has bought a new £50 million high speed vessel. The latest addition to the fleet will come into service in spring 2015. The purchase follows the news Condor secured a ten-year licence to provide Jersey and Guernsey with ferry services. The Austal 102 trimaran can carry 1,165 passengers, 254 cars and has a 630 nautical mile range. The new licence allows for a rival operator to set up providing it can match Condor's services. CEO James Fulford said: "I am delighted to announce th...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-jersey-28806481 Condor Ferries signs 10-year operating licence.   Condor Express Condor Ferries have signed a 10 year non-exclusive agreement with Jersey Ports, allowing the company to operate passenger, vehicle and freight services until 2024. It is also announced that Guernsey's government have agreed to extend a "memorandum of understanding" with Condor until 2018. These new arrangements made public yesterday, may come as a bit of a blow to Weymouth and Portland Borough Council as the way is now clear for Condor to proceed with their plan to bring into service their new 102 meter trimaran for the UK to Channel Islands routes. The "new" Condor Ferry: Austal’s 102-metre trimaran The reason for the concern in Weymouth, is the continuing controversy and discussions regarding the required improvements to Pier 1 at the Weymouth ferry terminal. The improvements to Pier 1 will require a £10million ...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11298070.ECHO_INVESTIGATES__Food_bank_users_soar/#commentsList  The numbers of people reliant on foodbanks, continues to grow. More than i million people now rely on foodbanks.   The "forgotten" scandal of  the effect of the cuts and other austerity measures of this wretched ConDem coalition government. As other news has filled our headlines for some months, the plight of those who now rely on the distribution of food to feed themselves and their families has been pushed to the back pages or even ignored by the press and media. It is now reported that the number pf people reliant on foodbanks in Weymouth has increased fourfold in the last 12 months. In the South west generally, there has been a 78% increase in the number of foodbank users and nationally, the figure is even higher with now more than 1 million people regularly receiving food assistance from the Trussel Trust and the other foodbank providers. In this the 21st...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11176155.Warning_over_phone_scam/ Warning over phone scam calls claiming to be from Microsoft Tony Misun  warning people about computer scam phone calls These call seem to have returned. There were a number of calls, usually coming from what seemed to be a "call centre" somewhere in India, over a period of months last year. The telephone company advised that even though we are on "Telephone Preference" blocking, BT were unable to do anything about calls originating from overseas. bogus ‘Microsoft Tech Support’ technician,  My own method of dealing with these morons is to drag the call out for a while with numerous questions to them about what operating system do they think I have?, what seems to be the nature of my problem,? and anything else that I can dream up at the time. Eventually, I clearly indicate that I am aware that their call is a scam, cast some doubt on their parentage and invite the to ...

  http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11158216.Weymouth_stunned_by_Condor_Ferries__bombshell_plan_to_leave_port/ Weymouth stunned by Condor Ferries' plan to leave port Condor Vitesse departs from Weymouth Why should the latest chapter in the Condor Ferries/Weymouth story cause so much surprise and agitation? I have been predicting a scenario such as this since before the Condor Ferry operation was forced to relocate to Poole, prior to the 2012 Olympics, and the repairs to ferry terminal three at Weymouth during the same year. Since 2012, numerous blog entries have commented on the fact that Weymouth and Portland Borough Council’s handling of the relationship with Condor Ferries, the Weymouth Harbour repairs and ferry arrangements during the work programme have been a catalogue of ineptitude and incompetence, not to mention the disastrous handling of the Olympics themselves. No matter how far this incompetent council drive their head into the sand, the evid...

http://jerseyeveningpost.com/news/2014/02/07/50m-ship-may-be-on-line-by-october/ A new £50 million ship could be in operation by October Austal’s 102-metre trimaran  Condor ferries are in discussions with the Jersey States in respect of a long term operating licence with the company for the UK Channel Islands ferry routes. Senator Alan Maclean, Economic Development Minister announced last week. In the meantime, the company has been given an interim five-year licence after its previous one expired at the end of 2013. As part of the new arrangements, it is also reported, that provided all goes well. Condor will replace two of its existing fast ferries with a new £50 million Next Generation 102m Trimaran. The new ferry, built by Austal in Australia, with defence subsidiaries in the United States and a commercial shipyard in the Philippines, has a capacity for 1165 passengers and 245 cars. It is proposed that the ferry will be in service by October of this year (201...

  http://www.channelonline.tv/channelonline_guernseynews/displayarticle.asp?id=508819 Both High speed ferries to Weymouth cancelled following news of high winds and wave heights Condor Ferries    For sometime, I have been critical of the fast ferries operated by Condor on the Channel Island routes. Engine problems, delays and "high winds and wave heights exceeding limits", have frequently caused disruption to the service and frustration to the passengers. In addition, when they do sail, the condition of the facilities on board are less than satisfactory,and as I wrote in "The terminal decline of tourism to Jersey ?"  (and in other blogs on related subjects) "....  the ships are generally grubby, the reclining seats  are mostly broken and remain un repaired, and Club Class travel now only provides complimentary coffee and a muffin, which has usually seen better days". (http://new-agenda2012.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/the-terminal-decline-of-tou...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/10820077.Olympic_legacy_for_Weymouth_and_Portland_is_going_begging_says_House_of_Lord_report/ Olympic legacy for Weymouth and Portland is going begging says House of Lord report What legacy?   There never was and never will be an "Olympic legacy", for Weymouth or for any other town or city in the United Kingdom. The whole idea of some tangible benefits for the British people extending for years to come, was a myth generated by government propaganda to justify £millions of expenditure of tax payers money to convince everybody that it was "a good idea and good for Britain". The fact is that a few big companies and the Corporate hospitality industry made a great deal of money and a few short term employment opportunities were created, but many of these were in fact,  filled by foreign workers. The "Weymouth Tower" is a classic example. The United kingdom is learning what other host nations in cities like Vancouv...

  http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/10787036.Public_outcry_over_council_decisions_on_chalets_and_angling_clubhouse/ Public outcry over council decisions on chalets and angling clubhouse Chalets at Greenhill Gardens Weymouth Angling Society chairman Billy Short, with other members outside the clubhouse   What a way to run a council. What do we elect councillors for? As I have argued before, and will continue to argue, it seems that in Weymouth (and sadly many other councils around the country), council officers (un elected and un accountable) make the policy and take the decisions, while elected members pass the "officers recommendations" on the nod, then wander off to the members lounge or the restaurant to fill in their expenses claims. It is little wonder that people become disillusioned with politics, with the result that fewer and fewer actually bother to vote at local elections.

  http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/10773873.Angling_society_reaches_for_lifeline/ Weymouth Angling Society reaches for lifeline as Council Officers reject Management Board decision. Supporters and members of Weymouth Angling Society welcome the vote on 22 October   COUNCILLORS have voted against plans to demolish the harbourside clubhouse used by Weymouth Angling Society. They recommended the club be offered a new 10-year lease for its Weymouth inner harbour site. Anglers celebrated the outcome of the vote after the meeting but said the future of the club was not secure until a final decision was made at Weymouth and Portland Borough Council’s management committee next month.(Dorset Echo 22nd October 2013) Who actually runs Weymouth and Portland Borough Council? Elected members or the "officers"? The council’s harbour management board (elected members) voted to renew the lease for 10 years, but the "officers" (un elected and un accounta...

http://www.channelonline.tv/channelonline_jerseynews/DisplayArticle.asp?ID=507500 Condor Ferries is working with Channel Island governments to secure two new vessels     I was having a conversation with some Condor people on the ferry back to the mainland a couple of days ago after another stay in St Aubin. It seems that the proposed "new" ships will be larger than Express, Vittesse and Rapide. However, the rebuilt Ferry berth 3 at the Weymouth Ferry terminal, is apparently not big enough to take larger ships. It seems that the planners did not see that problem coming. It this is in fact the case, then Poole may be the only port (other than Portsmouth for the traditional ferry) for arrival or departure from the Channel Islands. This would fulfill a long standing prediction that Condor's long term objective to relocate its operation to Poole and end its long standing relationship with Weymouth.