12/05/2013 Sunday Politics South East


12/05/2013

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In the South East: We have one of the country's worst problems with

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ash dieback, but we're not considered a priority. Is Kent's

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Apology for the loss of subtitles for 1903 seconds

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I'm Julia George. This is the Sunday Politics in the South East.

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Coming up: Should police commissioners be able to do

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whatever they like, even if their advisory panel doesn't approve?

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Who answers to whom when it comes to running Sussex Police. Joining

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me in the studio today to discuss this and other topics is Sussex-

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based Labour Political Commentator Paul Richards and Conservative MEP

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for the South East, Richard Ashworth. Welcome. Following UKIP's

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strong showing in the county council elections, speculation is

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rife about possible political alliances among the main parties to

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strengthen their current standings. In Kent, where UKIP is currently

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the official opposition with 17 councillors, a Labour/Lib Dem pact

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would freeze out Nigel Farage's party. And what about East Sussex

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where the Conservatives lost their overall majority, will they join

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forces with anyone or carry on with a minority leadership? I don't like

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doing deals with smaller parties but they have to listen to the

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electorate and reflect more views other than their own to get the

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budget through County Hall. Would you try a minority leadership?

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would. You have to remember they Iraq two or three independents who

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might support whatever to get through. There were two things they

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need to do. Get a budget past and get an annual programme agreed.

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When you have that, essentially the Cabinet will be largely made up of

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Conservatives and the leader has the opportunity to get on with

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business. In Kent, the cans -- Conservatives have an overall

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majority. UKIP won 17 seats. The Lib Dem spokeswoman seems

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disinclined to join up with another party to become the opposition.

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That is right, isn't it? Respecting democracy? I can't see why she

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would want to. In fairness to UKIP, they gained those seats and now

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they have to do the business. We shall see whether if policies stand

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the test of time and whether they're members stand the test of

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time. The public will be able to decide on that but I hope they do a

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better job than they do in Europe where they don't turn up on their

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policies don't stand the test. were talking about this before the

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elections, the role of council tax. The Kent League day is talking

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about keeping a frozen council tax. They, the Conservatives lost seats.

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What do we learn about the relationship between council tax

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and voting? We learned that if you freeze it, you have to make big

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cuts and so people see those cuts to services they value and they

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know there is a link between frozen council tax and fewer services.

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People recognise that link between the money they pay and the services

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they get. We will find out what they do this year with the council

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tax in Kent. Cases of ash dieback disease have more than tripled in

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Kent since November and, as ash trees come into leaf this month,

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we'll discover how many more have been infected by the fungus since

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then. The South East, along with East Anglia, has been worst hit by

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the disease since it appeared in the UK last year. The government

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has now announced a plan to limit the damage to the nation's ash

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trees, but it's labelled the South East a "low priority area". Does

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this mean our woodland will be abandoned? Lucinda Adam has this

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The south-east has the largest population of ash trees in the

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country, but ash dieback disease threatens to wipe out 97% of them.

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We first noticed the ash dieback last summer. At this estate near

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Maidstone, spores of the deadly Chalara or funders have been

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carried on the wind from Europe. can see this bronze or brown

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coloured tree here and this bit has died but below the buds are

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breaking. How well the infection happen? The spores of the fungus

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comes in up through the leaves and down to the main stem. Will this

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treat be likely to die from this? Hopefully, one or two might survive

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but the answer probably is yes. Nearly 500 cases of doubt aqua

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found in the UK last year and most in Kent and East Anglia. Now, as

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spring breeze -- brings trees into leaf, experts are waiting to see

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how it has spread. The government says the south-east is at the

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highest risk of the disease but it has been made a low priority area

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for action. It says that because the disease is widespread here, it

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is not cost-effective to tackle it. So while other areas can apply for

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government grants to remove affected trees, the South East

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cannot. The Labour Party accuses the government of abandoning the

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region to the disease. The plan says that certain parts of the

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country are beyond the point of saving so they will have a minimal

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amount of money spent on them. Clearly, people in those areas will

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want ministers to explain why. the canteen known as the Garden of

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England, the The Kent Men of the Trees raises funds to plant and

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conserve cheese -- trees. It's chairman says Kent needs better

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protection. I have been studying diseases around the world all my

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professional life and I always have thought that if you have a focus -

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and if a disease is being spread rapidly - that is where you put in

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your effort. If Kent is an area such as that and there... I would

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have thought it would make sense to put effort and money into this area

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also. One thing the government is doing in the south-east is a

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research trial planting thousands of young ash trees. But it is a

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long shot. Scientists hope just 1% of these trees may survive and

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develop resistance. But with a budget of just �30 million for

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plant health research, compared to �450 million for animal research,

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there are calls for more investment. Would more money have helped save

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more ash trees in the south-east? It would have helped us plan for

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the future. Setting up these research plots a few years back so

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they would have already been set up. We need more staff and more

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research into looking at the disease is coming in from abroad,

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not just Europe but elsewhere. this commercial tree nursery in

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Ashford, �10,000 worth of ash trees that were grown here have ended up

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on the bonfire. A movement ban means they cannot be sold. Some

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growers say they are considering legal action for compensation.

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country, for its unique biodiversity, needs a strong and

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viable UK horticultural industry. I don't think the Government's

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response has been good enough. Too little, too late. All the nurseries

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and these small businesses are carrying the can at the moment.

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ash trees are lost from the south- east, its landscape and ecology

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will be lost for ever. With more being done elsewhere, is the

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government abandoning the south- east's ash trees? They are

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unimportant part of our ecosystem and represent a major tree crop in

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Britain, particularly the south- east. To lose there would be very

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Joining me from our Westminster studio is the UK's Chief Plant

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Health Officer Martin Ward. So, the south-east is considered

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high a risk but low priority. Does that make sense? We have to be

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careful how we understand the terms. It is high risk because it seems

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likely the disease has spread by aerial movement from the Continent

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by spores on the wind. The modelling we have commissioned at

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Cambridge University suggests the cost of intervention, like removing

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recently planted infected plants, the benefits of that will be higher

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in areas where there are very few environment cases all few -- or no

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wider environment cases. Potentially there removing recent

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plantings can reduce the rate of spread. Labour is right, you are

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abandoning the south-east because it would be too costly to do

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otherwise? It is about prioritising the intervention we can make and

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some of the research done, you mentioned the screening of trees

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for resistance. We are also looking at possible funders sidle

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treatments and those are of potential benefits to the area

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where the disease is most prevalent now. The experiment to look for

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disease resistant strains will not help the trees now. Before a bath -

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a vast swathes of Archie will be dead, what use is that and there is

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no guarantee that any of those trees will develop a resistance?

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Disease in mature trees develops slowly. There have been scare

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stories about 90% of ash trees in Denmark being dead but that is not

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true. A large proportion of trees are affected but it takes mature

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trees along time for the effect of other diseases, sometimes, to kill

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them off. It is a long-term problem and we are looking at long-term

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solutions, such as the at identification of a resistant

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strain. But it seems fatalistic to say, we cannot cure it so we will

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not spend money on looking for a cure. We are investigating possible

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cures but the disease has been spreading across the Continent for

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many years. There has been no indication from there that any

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magic cure will be available. though, the difference is that, in

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some countries, the ash tree is not so prevalent. We have more of a

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need here, don't we? Ash trees are significant in Denmark. There is a

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wide belt in northern Europe in which there is a significant part

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of the landscape with these trees. Finding cures for these diseases is

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difficult. A blind fund decides to trees, other than small numbers of

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particularly valuable trees -- a fungicide. To Richard as worth, we

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had the spread it on the Continent has been rapid. -- Richard Ashworth.

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Has enough being done? The this is symptomatic of climate change. It

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isn't just with plants and trees that we are getting new diseases.

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In livestock as well. Again, talking about ash trees, but there

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are many other insect pests, viruses and fund I'd beginning to

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appear in the south-east that have DEFRA at his right in that it is a

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variety of species in our would land that we want to protect. What

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would be bad news for some varieties is good news for others.

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It sounds like be... They have been abandoned. Ministers ignored advice

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from their own scientists and they waited for months through a false

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consultation process. As you have heard, they will abandon huge

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swathes of our woodland. This is what makes the South a beautiful

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part on the country and the government is turning its back on

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it. The ash it is an essential part of our would land. There are things

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you can do about it but if you cut the budget of the Forestry Kisha

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Nick -- Forestry Commission and the number that Deborah -- DEFRA, you

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haven't got the tools to do Further details emerged this week

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on why the Police and Crime Panel in Sussex initially opposed the

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hiring of a Deputy for Police Commissioner Katy Bourne earlier

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this year. Members had expressed concerns about the candidate, but

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the Commissioner went ahead anyway and hired West Sussex County

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Councillor Steve Waight at a salary of �45,000 a year. Police panels

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were set up to scrutinise PCCs and hold them to account, but if they

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have no real power, how effective can they be? Green Joining me from

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our Brighton studio is Conservative West Sussex County Councillor Brad

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Watson, Chair of the Sussex Police and Crime Panel.

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What do you think the panel is for and what do you think it can

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achieve? Hello. You have described what the panel is for. We act as a

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scrutiny for the actions of the Police and Crime Commissioner. A

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sort of critical friend. That is our role and we have been doing it

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effectively. I hear that term bandied around a lot in government.

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I'll have never understood what a critical friend is. You say the

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Royal is to act as a critical friend and continue to work closely

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with the Commission and respect any decision she makes. What exactly is

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a critical friend? Don't friends listen to each other when they make

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suggestions? Yes, they do and that is the whole point. If there is

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something you are concerned about, you voice it. It is a critical

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comment but not necessarily a criticism. But not much of a friend

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if she complete the ignores you, Ishi? The role of the panel was to

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look at the appointment. That is what the panel discussed. We

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interviewed and the panel was concerned that there was a time

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commitment he already had as a county councillor and borough

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councillor and a Cabinet member as to whether he could fulfil the role

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as deputy commissioner as a full- time job. I wonder whether that

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criticism would stand end employment law if you say to

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somebody, you cannot do this job because you are too busy doing

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civic things. Is it anyone's business what we do in our spare

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time when we applied for a job? this instance, we are looking at

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�45,000 of public money spent for the purposes of the deputy. Our

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role was to look at that and say is the money being right and fairly

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spent. Can the candidate fulfil the number of hours? Your

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recommendation to her was a complete and utter waste of time.

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The local government advice or Association's advice, and as I

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understand it, the legislation states you are allowed to consult

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and veto the appointment of a new police chief constable but you

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cannot allow - might you cannot veto their appointment of a deputy

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police commissioner so what was the point of all of this? The whole

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point of the panel is to raise issues and highlight points to the

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commissioner. It is up to the commissioner, of course, to accept

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what we say. In this instance, it is a personal appointment to have a

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deputy and that was our comments to her. She went ahead and appointed,

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but I feel that because we have highlighted our concerns, it is a

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notice to the commissioner that we are keeping an eye. I understand

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subsequently, he has subsequently stood down from the borough and

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that, in a way, probably at answers I wanted turned to our best. What

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you think? He is acting like an elected dictator. Power must be

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accountable to somebody and it should be accountable to the panel.

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Shouldn't it be accountable to the people who elected her? Just

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because she is doing what she wants to do, she has a prerogative. The

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point is, and no disrespect, there is an electric he who can decide at

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the end of her term whether they wanted to carry on. But with that

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much power, in between elections you need checks and balances. The

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panels are supposed to be that and within weeks they have been well

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Dover and are now useless. Part of the panel should be directly

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elected and then you would have some democratic accountability at

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the bottom. Do we need more elections? It is probably a bit

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unfair to the system. Police and crime commissioners are independent

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people who need to be scrutinised because they spend public money and

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that is what the panel is doing. It is fair to say the panel has

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limited powers. They have one strong power which is they can go

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public and that is what they have done. They are drawing the public's

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attention to something they are not happy about. It has happened in

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Kent and in Sussex. These are early-day his but I don't think we

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should condemn it too early. It is a new system and commissioners are

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finding their way. It has only been there six months so give it a

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chance. Lots of people are critical about policing being criticised.

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The Commission and her deputy and so are you Conservatives. So are

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many others. Nobody could at argue that policing in Sussex isn't

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politicised, could they? If you asked a question about a councillor

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when you collect, you would get that. It is the way you stand for

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election. When they, you get on and do the job. I don't agree it is a

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politicised system. The big difference now between a Commission

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and the old police authority is very much a public role. Her

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responsibility is to reach out, talk to people and discuss in a

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public way much of what she plans to do and that hasn't happened

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before. Thank you for joining us. Now a round-up of the week's events

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:52:51.:52:54.

It has been holes of verses goes this week in a battle over played

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and -- playing fields. The education wants to use as a school.

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We are against this. It will take up greenfield space and they should

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be other sides. Beatings in Margate and Hastings could be closed --

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beaches. Could be close to two swimmers as Tidewater regulation

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comes in in 2015. Plans for the Thames St airports

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should be abandoned according to a select -- track -- Treasury Select

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Committee. In Brighton, There are plans to

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accommodate a transgender community. It is a good thing because there

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are alternative people around, particularly in this area. That is

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why Brighton council wants to change its online application forms

:53:46.:53:56.
:53:56.:53:58.

and transgender people could choose Paul Richards, free schools. Where

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do you put them? I'm not against the idea. Andrew Adonis dreamt it

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up but they are supposed to have local and parental support. If they

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do not, as in this case, what are they doing? What about airports? We

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heard there about the recommendations of the select

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committee. We have been trying to get Boris Johnson on local radio

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for three years and this week he came on and said this is a colossal

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opportunity for Kent. We had always thought he was only interested in

:54:34.:54:40.

London. Is anyone coming onside with Boris Johnson? A I don't think

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the findings of the panel... The cost of the island is prohibitively

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expensive and date agree. Live with what we have. People want to go to

:54:53.:55:02.

Heathrow. You can develop it was still using it. In Brighton. Are

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they being a bit Brighton? Or is it a good thing? People identify

:55:08.:55:12.

themselves and their gender and there are a lot of people in the

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