Bognor Regis Herald — Observer: Independent paper or Arun Stooge?
by Jan Cosgrove
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Some days ago the Observer contacted me to ask for some information about One Bognor, my campaign to ask people how they want to see their local government in the Bognor Regis area develop.
I obliged by sending them the following:
The future of local government is up for debate. It’s clear change is on the stocks, it’s happening across the country. The danger is that it will be decided only by those with a vested interest in the status quo, from above. That has already started in West Sussex, and it has stalled, because it is top-down.
One Bognor is not so much a campaign as a means of finding out what people in this area want. But dissatisfaction with Arun, for example, does not answer the key question, what local government do we want?
The Bognor Regis urban area, from Pagham to Elmer, has over 62,500 residents. Local government consists of EIGHT Councils, at ‘top level’ undertaking the big areas is West Sussex County Council, spending much of the funding and covering Education, Children’s and Adult Services, Highways and Transport. Within West Sussex are 7 Districts including Arun and undertaking Planning, Licencing, Housing. And at the most local level are the parishes, 6 in the Bognor urban area — Aldwick, Bersted, Bognor Town, Felpham, Middleton and Pagham. Whilst all the above functions of County and Arun are statutory services (they HAVE to provide them by law), parish council services are all discretionary.
All County, District and Parish Councils have elected Councillors but because at the 2015 local elections there were not enough candidates to fill the places in 5 of the 6 parishes, only Bognor Town Council has councillors who have been voted for.
Over the years, Arun Council has not proven itself popular in the Bognor urban area, and repeated testing of opinion since major parish polls in the early 1990’s has shown a wish for Bognor to have its own voice.
The current online poll being conducted over an extended period of time seeks the views of local people as to the future. The questions offer choice — whether people want Arun to continue or do they want County to take over their services? Do they want parishes and County to work together to deliver services or is the status quo preferable? And what do people identify with, Arun, County, Bognor Regis or parish areas?
Progress on gaining views is slow, the situation in which many today find themselves does not lend itself to what may seem a remote question — remote that is, until one considers the issues local government covers here — a Regeneration which many are now questioning, housing demand and provision, planning issues generally, economic development, education, care of vulnerable adults and so much else.
Alas, local parish councils seem not to want to find out people’s views, maybe the turkeys-not-voting-for-Xmas factor, so One Bognor is there to do that job. Take up is slow, but the trend reflects previous soundings right back to the original Out-of-Arun Polling in the early 1990’s, and it’s very clear people want Arun abolished not just that we leave.
The problem is that people don’t believe it will or can happen, BUT it has happened elsewhere, and one expects those who want no change to tell us Government won’t listen. Yet when this was said at Bognor Town Council, it was challenged and a letter sent to the Government which replied that it DOES want to hear what we want!
So that is the Challenge
Can we arrive at local government which costs less, is simpler, does the job, and is more ‘joined-up’ than it is now? One Bognor does not answer that, it asks the questions, let the 62,500 people of the Bognor Regis urban area say what they want.
The Observer published the following story:
Notice, not a word of what they asked me to provide, instead trotting out an Arun splurge from months ago. So I have written to them as follows:
Sir
I was specifically approached by your paper re the One Bognor Campaign to outline its purpose. I provided what was asked.
In your article this week “Arun answers ‘BR-EXIT’ poll warning against a Bognor split” you published a statement by Arun’s well-paid Chief Executive about the case for BR-Exit from Arun … BUT you did not print a SINGLE WORD of what you asked me to provide.
How can you possibly claim to be ‘independent’ and not a STOOGE for Arun Council. Great Leader Nige Il Lyn quoted a poll from April 2016 but failed to mention that One Bognor is not proposing a new Poll, as is implied, and ignores the fact that Arun remains phenomenally unpopular based on the ongoing online poll OB is running. 95% want Arun abolished based on this poll, they think its job could be done better by the work going to West Sussex aidied by the parish council system locally.
A further 95% believe in decreasing the number of councils (8) that spend our money re this urban area of 62500 people — Aldwick Bersted Bognor Town Felpham Middleton and Pagham. Not one person in the Poll identified Arun as the place where they live, 55% identify Bognor even those living in the other parishes, and smaller proportions identified their local parish or even West Sussex.
The Great Leader tells us what Arun is doing for BR — not a lot of detail, precious little to show for ten plus years of ‘Regeneration’ activity, and they haven’t even the decency to repair the Hothamton Play Area whose disgraceful state poses immediate danger to children using it.
They now say they will print something if I send it ….. having done that in the first place.
We can expect from The Observer, always, casual acceptance at face-value of what Arun spins to it. It would be good to see it grow a pair.
Here is a link to that Poll.
The Future will not be ours unless we speak up when we have the chance. If they change the system and you didn’t take the opportunity to say what you want, then you will get someone else’s solution.
