Feniton's Black Day march fights plans for large-scale development
Sir Max Hastings was one of the first national figures to express support for the Black Day for the Countryside mass march, held at Feniton on Saturday (23 March). In an e-mail to the organisers, he said, "I wish you the very very best of luck in a fight which is the fight of everybody who cares both about the English countryside and the democratic rights of local communities". Best wishes, Max Hastings.
Ben Bradshaw, MP, though unable to attend, sent a message saying, "I would have loved to come on the march" and "Congratulations on all your recent campaigning".
The Campaign for Rural England's Director of Policy and Campaigns, Neil Sinden, also fully backed the event.
The march, organised by the East Devon Alliance called for a delay to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), until EDDC's Local Plan is adopted to safeguard our countryside. The NPPF will come into effect on Wednesday 27 March – ‘Black Wednesday'.
Despite the bitterly cold weather, hundreds of people of all ages, from all over East Devon, dressed in black, and carried banners and black balloons to mourn the loss of the countryside. They came to show solidarity with Fight for Feniton's Future. A typical village-under-threat from large-scale development, Feniton faces a rapid 40% increase in size, if current planning applications for up to 300 houses are approved.
Feniton’s former councillor, Graham Brown, favoured massive local housing development before his resignation on 13 March following his exposure in the Daily Telegraph as “a councillor for hire". He is now the subject of a police enquiry.
To loud cheering, Fight for Feniton’s Future campaigner, Susie Bond, announced she would be standing for the Feniton and Buckerell seat in the forthcoming EDDC by-election, on 2 May.
Speeches were then made, first by Councillor Claire Wright, who welcomed the protesters, saying that Planning Minister Nick Boles had “declared war on the countryside”. Then a long column of chanting marchers processed through the village to land near Camp Field, the proposed site for up to 160 houses on prime agricultural land.
Here, loundly applauded EDDC councillor Roger Giles, who asked for the crowd's response to 10 questions based on EDDC's repeated refusal to listen to residents' and to councillors' concerns. He would, he said, report the answers to the Leader, Paul Diviani.
Ian McKintosh, chair of the East Devon Alliance, then rounded off the speeches. He stressed that the EDA are concerned not with preservation, but conservation. He quoted the Oxford Dictionary definition of 'conserve': 'to protect (something, esp. an environmentally or culturally important place or thing) from harm or destruction'.
He says: "People have forgotten that Democracy, as Abraham Lincoln famously said, is government 'of the people, by the people, for the people'. Councillors are elected to serve not themselves, but us. A Chief Exeutive , as a public servant, should never act beyond his responsibility."
Finally, Mr McKintosh pointed out that EDA is NOT a NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) organisation, nor "anti-everything" (as Councillor Phil Twiss wrote to his fellow Tory Councillors).
"The EDA believes any development should be of a suitable scale, and sensitive to its environmental impact. It should take account of existing infrastructure, such as schools and medical facilities.
"The type of homes and employment on proposed development sites, should be matched to local need and skills. Luxury houses, built solely for maximum profit, do not serve the needs of the local community, and exacerbate the present demographic imbalance.
"The non-party-political East Devon Alliance pressure group, has united the seven towns and many villages to push for a flourishing future for the whole District."
For enquiries about East Devon Alliance, contact sidmouthindependentnews@gmail.com (EDA website to be available shortly)
