Wednesday 3 November 2010

Manston: contamination

I completely forgot the RTC meet tonight on Manston etc – just as well if the councillors and civil servant farce of whether there is or isn’t a consultation last year, this year or next year - but happened to wander past and chatted to Richard Styles the Town Clerk.

I mentioned him that the report and accounts and latest budgets are still overdue some 4 weeks after requesting them – and some 3 months after them being signed off by RTC.

I suspect a bit of shuffling of feet over actual costs, Custom House contracts and civil servant salaries and pensions. Better to delay and hide them from the public.

How bizarre a council delaying publishing its own report and accounts for public funds.

I mentioned a strange letter form RTC requesting business donations to the Xmas lights “or Ramsgate may go dark”.

He looked at me as though I’d suggested killing his first-born that the public and business provide £60M in tax in Thanet – plus national tax – so why would we provide a voluntary tax given so little has been done?

The Xmas lights are over 10 years old – during the time of the Charter Trustees who were also doublehatter TDC councillors.

Again he looked horrified when I said why not cut civil servant salaries or sack a few to free up funds or provide grants.

Manston: chatting to a Fire Brigade friend the assumption is that Manston fire cover is only available 9-5. Probably not into the evening and 11pm - and certainly not 3am flights like Egyptair.

A bit of political bullpoo over the 106 and hairsplitting on planning permission etc.

There’s nothing wrong with the 106 as such. It just hasn’t been enforced.

Worse, Infratil and TDC actually removed the noise monitors in Autumn 2006 and never replaced them. And refused to deploy monitors.

All specified in the 106.

That’s a criminal offence for an airport slated for expansion: endangering a lot of the public needlessly.

Especially when part-funded by KCCC and SEEDA.

No explanation from our councillors and MP’s. Nor Brian White and Richard Samuel.

Will Laura Sandys or Roger Gale raise it in Parliament? Or keep schtum?

And today the criminal case into Britain’s worst mass poisoning at Camelford reveals that the water company “told staff to keep quiet over the contaminated water supply”.

Silence on Thor mercury from Messrs Samuel and White.

Silence on Pegwell Bay: Manston fuel draining into the Bay.

Silence on the MOD Fire base: fire training chemicals used on the aquifer.

Silence from TDC Contaminated Land officer.

Silence from KCC Cabinet.

Silence from Environment Agency: Andrew Ogden, Andrew Pearce, Harvey Bradshaw.

And statements from Roger Gale that Thor and Manston were well-run and posed no danger to the public – when the factory exploded in 2007

Silence or nonsense doesn’t help.

No votes in poisoning your own citizens.

Why were the monitors removed from Manston?

When did councillors and civil servants know?

When and how have they raised these problems?

Why were they not replaced?

What are the Thor toxin levels? And Richboro?

How’s the East Kent aquifer?

What is the Manston Fire cover?

Why are planes not following the “no overflights” rule?

It's a lot of cancer by simply ignoring the 106 and likely contamination of the public.

Tuesday 2 November 2010

Manston farce - except for the cancer

A farcical public meeting on Manston and now a farcical consultation-but-not-a-consultation.

As usual all the public opposed to whatever nonsense the TDC councillors are suggesting.

And now councillors and civil servants scrabbling around to get out of the mess.

Just embarrassing.

No explanation for over a year’s delay since the first request by Infratil.

Stale old men relying on secrecy, pass the buck and petty committee procedure while Infratil do what they like.

No explanation for the repeated breaches of the 106.

No explanation on how many deaths from the lack of monitoring.

Nor the delay on a night flights consultation since last July.

Nor why it would be 12 weeks of consultation – you may remember the EUJet farce of a consultation that began when TDC was closed continued after the planes began flying - rather than the specified 26 weeks.

Empty burble and flannel now they’ve been found out.

A bust airport. Bust as Wiggins. Bust as EUJet. Bust as KCC USA. Bust as BAWC.

How many more times?

It’s a lot of deaths to explain with the mortality rate at 63 rather than 81 years old.

Time to change these useless Darby and Joaners.

Time for criminal charges for Samuel and White and Infratil Directors for removing the noise and air monitors form an airport slated for expansion and 0% fraud.

Time for a public enquiry requested by Tracy Emin into our substandard councils.

Our council has failed.

A bottom 10% UK council and bottom 10% area.

Hopes pinned on ludicrous white elephant projects: Manston, Turner, Westwood 4th town centre, New Roads to Nowhere and Vattenfall.

And all almost total failure.

Silence on Thor mercury toxin levels.

Silence on TDC and KCC’s pension costs and benefits.

Silence on the EKO invoices and 0% salary fraud.

And RTC can’t even publish the report and accounts – presumably it’s the same £300k as of the Charter Trustees – but more costs for pensions.

Where is Ramsgate’s £20M share of council tax?

Manston’s failed.

And a lot of people have cancer unnecessarily.

And we have councillors and civil servants deliberately working against the public to protect themselves.

The only question now is how long will we wait before the airport is closed to safeguard the water – and the public from our shoddy civil servants and councillors.

Delays in closing the airport simply mean more air and water pollution and cancer before the plug is pulled.

The aquifer needs cleaning and protecting.

Time to stop the cancer.

Time for Change.