RCT Council antics make Yes Minister look like a documentary

Just what size catheter I wonder is being used by RCT Director of Strategy and Public Relations to extract the urine these days?

At least I am assuming it is this gentleman who is giving political advice and direction to the Cabinet.  The position is after all a political appointment – albeit you would never get the Labour party to admit to it.  He is a former Labour Council candidate and son of a Cabinet Member. He was with the Labour contingent at the election count, and is ever present at meetings keeping a close eye on things.

He also somewhere in his department has a responsibility for tourism, although quite why I have never been able to fathom, suppose it says a lot about RCT Council’s attitude to the potential of that for economic development.  The Lido renovation is going to bring tourists to Ponty in droves apparently, so it is only natural he should take an interest.

But I digress. What you may ask has brought about this cloud of wonderment at the ways RCT Council find to extract the proverbial?   Well not surprisingly it is the latest in the farce surrounding the decision to renovate the Lido in Ynysangharad Park and remove the paddling pool.

I am not repeating the whole story as enough has been written about that both here and at www.pontylibdems.org.uk  but in summary the Labour Cabinet made a decision, Welsh Lib Dem Cllr Mike Powell instigated a call in to ask Scrutiny Committee to ask them to look at it again, Labour who have a huge majority on that and every other committee voted no.

There have been doubts expressed all along about the level of public consultation – even the Labour MP for Pontypridd said it was poor.  But it was ok because the Trustees of the Park were fully in favour.  The Director of Regeneration said so – they had been consulted and had no objection at all to the plans.

Why then has a special meeting been called of the Trustees on the 15^th August to look at the same report yet again with a view endorsing the decision?  Or not?  Don’t think Paddy Power will be taking bets on that one.  Who are the Trustees in question?  Why it's a subcommittee of the Labour Cabinet.

You really couldn’t make it up could you?  Yet this is what passes as democracy in the totalitarian state of RCT.

Don’t know what size catheter they are using but I sure know where I’d like to pour what they are extracting.

Keeping the politics out of it

It makes me so angry when people complain about Council decisions or lack of action and then get all uptight that it shouldn’t be made ‘political.’

It happens a lot, and is perhaps a measure of how disengaged the public generally are with the democratic process.

The decision to renovate the Lido in Ynysangharad Park has been much to the forefront of the minds of RCT Welsh Lib Dems recently  - well certainly in the case of Cllr Mike Powell and myself.  The plans involve the removal of the current paddling pool and a lot of people have got hot under the collar about it.

We have put out no end of press comments and written letters and set up a petition and survey.  We have been trying to alert people to this for years and have opposed the plans all along.  Not to make a political point – our support came before the public outcry – but because we think the decision is wrong.

A number of Facebook groups have now sprung up in protest at the decision, which is good.  But the thing that amazes and annoys me is the number of people who claim it should be ‘non-political.’   How can it be non political?  This decision like almost every other decision which affects the area is made by politicians.

So people will instead gripe on Facebook, or down the pub, or maybe with the occasional letter to the press. They’ll stay away from ‘politics’ because that’s a dirty word isn’t it?  Then they will lie down and let the crap keep on coming.

What will it take for people to really get involved, take control, and really make this a democratic country?

Labour lied - simple as

Spent a couple of hours this morning handing out leaflets in Ponty town centre about Labour's plans for the Lido.   Nobody I spoke to seemed to realise that the plans mean the loss of the existing paddling pool.  But then why would they, it hasn't been mentioned in any of the Council's press releases.

And of course they had Russell's word on it before the election didn't they?  People thought it was 'all sorted.'  So did Owen Smith MP, according to his remarks in his June Pontypridd Observer column.  He is going to be left with a bit of egg dribbling down his chin.  Any chance of his next column condemning his Council colleagues for lying?

And what of Slick Antoniw?  Where does he stand in this?  Well nobody is quite sure, he hasn't mentioned it, but then living in Newport he probably doesn't realise just how much locals value the paddling pool.

Nobody I met this morning said the paddling pool should go, people were appalled at the idea.  Now many of them will have been the same people who voted Labour in with an increased majority in May.  They were taken in by Labour's lies then, and will unfortunately have to live with the results.

Big Weekend Big Letdown for many

According to the Council’s website

As thousands of people prepare to descend on Pontypridd for the biggest event of the year, the town’s  owners with the aim of promoting the town, a whole host of meal deals are being introduced on the Big Weekend.

Now whilst it is good to see events which promote Pontypridd the Council are a long way from getting it right in terms of the balance between publicity and genuinely bringing trade into the town, or between putting on popular events and allowing local residents to enjoy the Park.

Local traders should benefit from events such as the Big Weekend – but the Council should be taking the lead and doing all they can to support them and enable them to cash in on the influx of visitors.

Last year amongst the complaints the fact that people were not allowed to take food into the Park was amongst the most common. Only bottled water was allowed in, people were instead expected to buy from the franchises inside – who were not local traders and charges in some cases extortionate prices.

This year the Council and its partners are allowing ticket holders to enter the Park along the designated route with their food as long as it is consumed prior to reaching the actual concert area itself.

Wow!  How great is that?  You can buy a bag of chips in town and the Council will graciously allow you to eat them as you walk along the ‘designated route’ – as long as you finish them before you enter the hallowed ground where the concert is to be held.

The same hallowed ground that includes the cricket pitch.  The users of that facility are furious that some un-named person in the Council has decided that the concert should encroach upon the pitch yet again, a move which threatens to rule it out of use for months to come.

The Labour Council have no interest in Pontypridd or in local residents.  Headlines are all well and good but it is what happens behind the headlines that matters.

Good news at last for Ponty?

In his monthly column in the Pontypridd Observer Owen Smith MP gives a brief update on two issues that the Welsh Lib Dems locally have been concerned about for a long time

"First, the baths. The business case for redevelopment is progressing positively and I was delighted to see Labour council colleagues ruling out any closure of the small pool.

"Secondly, the precinct. I am in regular contact with developers and am told plans are on track. Over £6m funding has been secured for the next phase and construction should begin before the end of August,"

I hope this turns out to be the case.  We have been campaigning on the paddling pool issue for some time, and the change of heart by Russell Roberts came very late - just before the May election in fact.  Still we have been waiting far too long for redevelopment of the Lido.  Let's hope we don't have to wait too much longer.

Rumours have been rife regarding the precinct development - mainly that they have failed to attract enough businesses to the project.  This seems to dispel those rumours and again if it the case is good news at last.

What happens to Ponty paddling pool now?

Russell Roberts announced shortly before the election that he was stepping in to save Pontypridd paddling pool.  This after we started a petition against it, and the groundswell of public opinion became obvious.

However, it seems that this announcement was made out of the blue and there is no record of such a discussion being had or a decision being taken within the Council.

What happens now then that Russell is no longer leader or even a Councillor?  Will this promise still stand or will the new leader from the Cynon valley take a different view?

Pontypridd is left behind again - £1.9m for Merthyr Park regeneration

Congratulations are due to Merthyr for obtaining £1.9m for the upgrading of Cyfartha Park via the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Now Local Government Minister Carl Sergeant is very keen on Councils working together - perhaps Merthyr would care to share a few ideas with RCT.  They have been talking about the restoration of the lido in Ynysangharad War Memorial Park for years, but that is about all they have done is talk about it.

Not that RCT Council underestimate the importance of the Park of course. Indeed the Council has an Ynysangharad Park Cabinet sub group.  It rarely meets.  It last met in July of this year when it discussed the new war memorial.

Before that it met in March 2010 – when the only item on the agenda was again the new war memorial.

The restoration of the Lido, the cornerstne of plans for the Park, was last discussed in December 2009, Two years ago.  And still we wait.

“The restoration of Ynysangharad Park would generate substantial benefits for Rhondda Cynon Taf; including creating a prestigious facility that would be considered a regional attraction, and a key contributor and potential catalyst for regeneration in Pontypridd Town Centre.”

Not my words – this is taken from a report to RCT Cabinet in June 2007.  The report asked for approval of the Heritage Lottery Fund bid.

The report was written by, amongst others, the then Director of Strategic Policy & Continuous Improvement, a man by the name of Chris Bradshaw.  The very same Chris Bradshaw who was this year appointed Director of education.

Let’s hope when we look back in four years time Mr Bradshaw’s delivery record on education is a lot better than it was in this instance.  A bit of continuous improvement would be very welcome there.

Big Weekend gets big thumbs down from residents

Ponty’s Big Weekend took place on July 24rd and 24^th with The Wanted headlining on the Saturday and a ‘free’ concert on Sunday festering acts including Rhondda girl Sophie Evans.

The complaints have been rolling in thick and fast – not about the quality of the concerts, but about the rip off that many people see them to be.

People entering the Park were told they were not allowed to take food in – this had not been mentioned on the RCT website or the Big Ponty website nor indeed was it stated on the tickets. Bottled water was allowed through the gate, but bottles of pop were confiscated.  This to ensure attendees were forced to buy from the vendors inside.

So who benefitted - local traders?  Did this event contribute to the economy of Pontypridd?  NO.

The vendors inside were all from out of the area and indeed outside of Wales it seems and the prices have been described as little short of extortionate.

And this was not the only complaint – or the first time this event has attracted criticism.

As reported in the Pontypridd Observer last year local residents were furious that the entire Park was cut off for this concert to take place, and the fact that the town does not benefit economically at all from this or other such events.

When will the Labour administration in RCT learn?