03/03/2013 Sunday Politics South East

And in the South East: A year after it was given the green

light, could disruption by protestors drive the Bexhill-

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2196 seconds

Hastings link road project onto the I am Natalie Graham and this is the

Sunday Politics in the South East. Coming up later:

As the Coalition Government considers opening up fire services

to privatisation, Surrey County Council blazes the trail with a

pioneering pilot scheme. Joining me in the studio today is

Conservative MP for Rochester and Strood Mark Reckless and Labour's

Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Hastings and Rye, Sarah Owen.

First, let us talk about UKIP. The party pulled off a stunning victory

in Eastleigh last week - the Lib Dems won, but only just, and both

they and the Conservatives saw their share of the vote fall by 14%,

UKIP's share rose by 24%. You must be very worried. Having encouraged

it by Mr to cut their EU budget, we want a referendum on the EU. We got

over half the vote yet election was won by the fanatical Liberal-

Democrat. I hope we get that referendum to give people the

chance to vote for an independent country. You have been a thorn in

the Prime Minister's side on this issue. Use all UKIP pick up at huge

side of the boat, what can you do? I think that the general election

people will have a choice between David Cameron or at Ed Miliband and

Ed Balls. And they had created the mess in the first place. People

will have a clear choice between a Conservative Government with an end

out referendum for people to decide for once and for all on the EU or a

Labour party which wants to deny people a referendum. The danger of

the year is that UKIP becomes a party that people go to to express

their frustration with the Government. Not you. Eastleigh is a

snapshot in time. It's is a lot more about the Conservatives'

position in the South East than Labour's, it was not a target seat

for us, it was poor at the Conservatives. People do not know

where David Cameron stands any more. Is he left or right? But they know

where he stands in Europe which is more than they are sure on Ed

Miliband. It is difficult firm at the Conservatives. It is buying out

in the ballot boxes. It is going to split the Conservative vote.

need to improve the economy to deal with the debt that Labour will left

us. The Conservative Party does want a referendum on EU. I hope

over the next two years that we will get that message and make it

clear to people. It's been a year since the Bexhill-

Hastings link road was given the go ahead. Work on the site began in

December but it has been continually hampered by campaigners

who want to halt the project because of the damage it could do

to the environment. East Sussex County Council estimates that

dealing with the disruptions has already cost more than �750,000.

But with no sign of the protests abating could the future of the

link road be under threat? Lucinda Adam went to find out. Another road

just means more traffic. Protest has tried to stop this road between

Bexhill and tastings. The Cody council says the road will bring

new jobs and a billion pounds of economic benefit to the most

deprived area in the South East. Protesters say it is damaging the

countryside and costing too much. Their opposition comes at a price.

Four-and-a-half million pounds in legal fees, and more than three-

quarters of a million pounds spent so far removing protesters and

tightening security. Of 28 protesters cautioned by police,

fewer than half let locally. These people are an no worse than a high

we men of old. They're showing antics in the courts which have

cost as a whole year. With inflation in building costs it cost

us the equivalent of a new primary school. Work continues. Developers

say to trees will be planted here for each one that is cut down. But

protesters say they are planning their next move here. And this

month they will march on Westminster to try to move on the

scheme. Protesters have now been evicted from their camps on the

site but have moved here to a third camp on a private farm which

overlooks what the road is being built. We came here to try to talk

to them and found a well-stocked larder and as a buyer. But no sign

of the protesters. But later we did find some of them in full voice

outside a Hastings Town Hall. get enough people down it to stop

the trees being read them and get a hedge rows back. -- to stop that

concrete being late. This is that that -- this is that problem that

councillors are trying to solve. The claim that thousands of

vehicles a day could be diverted from these roads. People from

Hastings say it cannot come soon enough. Yet add on a lot of time

from your journey. It will benefit the tone a lot. And then there will

be a lot of advantages to it. To meeting can take a me it half an

hour for a three-mile journey. think it will certainly encourage

jobs and bring money to the area. There's a high level of

unemployment in East Sussex. Developers planning a regeneration

project of new homes and or Business Park say the road is its

essential to its success. We're in discussions with the number of

companies, but you do not even crossed the start line in those

discussions if you cannot offer good quality, well landscaped and

accessible sites. The game changing bet is giving a more relaxed

business environment that can deliver these 3,000 jobs that

Bexhill is capable of giving. But what the council still waiting on

confirmation of the funding of the road from the Government, could the

protesters succeeded? I hope not. Do you think they have a point? No,

they should have been here air earlier if they had a problem with

it, there it is jumping on the bandwagon now. There are the

enemies of democracy. Could their actions but the brief sit on the

future of the road and the economic success of the region?

Lucinda Adam reporting. Joining me from our Westminster studio is Sian

Berry from the Campaign for Better Transport.

You are one of the Johnny-come- latelys, an enemy of democracy. No,

absolutely not. In a very real problems. You have had your chance,

if you're a at the public in a choir EU could have exhausted the

democratic route. Not exactly. Department for Transport has not

made its final decision. We're asking them at this final hurdle to

deny that the funding so that East Sussex can spend less money on more

effective things to do with the congestion that they showed us in

that report. But the Democratic rose is has a row of it is course.

It has been rejected by the local population. Leave it now. The it is

not exactly true. The public were asked to comment on the different

bits of that report, and there were dozens of things that went in

favour to the Department for Transport, namely large businesses

who want this giant business park to move into. But there were

hundreds of and hundreds of objections from local people who

value that and ballet. But only 16% a of the people who live there

objected to this road. Most people seem to want it sooner rather than

wage riots. You are denying them what they want. -- sooner rather

than later. They are cutting other services. There are cheaper than

she can do to make this happen. When the public see the other

options then they might be more or on our side. They can see that

there are other options to reduce the congestion rather than

destroying a valley with the enormous value. They are also

destroying the town centre by doing this, the town centres crying out

for regeneration. A lot of businesses will not even crossed

the starting line and they can be offered that space. The town centre

cannot do that. You have forced the council to spent four-and-a-half

million pounds in judicial costs, haven't you? It will be any of

their will or a son were accurate figures. The road was not going to

get funding any time before last year's Budget. They cannot start

building so this winter anyway. There was no delay. You were

wasting time. We're trying to save my knee in the air and a. These are

important arguments to be had. The final decisions have not been made.

If they do stop this wrote in science like it will upset a lot of

people in Hastings. It has not been helpful. Taxpayers are being cost

money. It is a real problem for a Hastings and Bexhill. As we pointed

out Hastings is experiencing massive levels of deprivation. We

saw that there were some areas where 50% of the children are at

living below the poverty line. We need growth. How would you stop

this then? Rather than the councils abolished attitude I would have had

a conversation with people like that they do we do spoke to. That

hasn't even been tried at the moment. The stand-off that we have

at the moment isn't helping anyone. A day of a in a Government will

listen to them, Mark Reckless? It was she who got their spending come

in for an end to last year. East Sussex are pulling their money and

it has been fought for or hired. Because it has done a great job.

Even if the row at a do is a not get built, it they could live on to

another constituency. The democratic process has ended yet

the process -- the protests still go on. A protests need to be

peaceable. Where are they it runs to these sorts of costs I am

pleased to see that the police become a vigorous in trying to

allow people to go about their lawful activity of red -- of

building this road. There has been a public inquiry and there have

been other legal cases about it. Do you approve of a consolatory

approach as Sarah was talking about? The a be a has a four it

they are a heart for the a so. Lots of people wanted and I think we

should get on with it. We will move on the.

Should our fire services be open to privatisation? Surrey County

Council is currently outsourcing its Specialist Fire and Rescue

Services to an independent contractor in a pilot scheme. The

Fire Brigades Union has criticised this move, saying the money would

have been better spent on increasing the number of fire

fighters in the county. Meanwhile, Government Minister Brandon Lewis

wants to change the law to allow fire and rescue services to operate

under 'employee led mutuals' - in other words, companies functioning

independently of local authorities. Sarah Owen, used to work for the

fire service. Their priorities should be its saving lives. They

say that more people die in the water in Surrey than in house fires,

but they need specialist teams. are not going to get Government

money in this climate. Why should they not do this? Our service is a

barren rescue service. Our offers - - our officers should be able to

deal with all of these issues. You're making your huge cuts will

start a war it you think they should do mark? I worked for the

Kent police authorities. A way it you are a one to make savings you

want to protect the front line and make sure that public safety is the

priority. On the Thames, Kent police and Essex Police joined

together to go find their service there. With Surrey, in terms of the

rivers and that it of rescue, it is something that the fire service do

not feel specialist and but it is important to look at different ways

of doing it. It just has to be saved for the public. But how is it

safe for the public when we will reduce the fire service by about

5,000? What is key is that it is a rescue from the river and we are

people available and experience to carry them out. Whether it is the

public are private sector it should be at whichever is best by the

public. Where you draw the line, Marc question mark - Mark -- where

you draw the line? You do not know till you try. We will watch what

they're doing in Surrey from 10 per. If it looks like something that is

working and then we will look at doing it as well. Would you be open

to wholesale privatisation a of the by a service? I would not support

it in that this area, but it should be the most safe and cost-effective

for the public. Just look at the Olympics and the debacle that we

had there. The fire service should just be about saving lives and not

about getting the cheapest cut. a we are to a about these employee

led mutuals. The concern is how this has been done without a public

debate. Safety must be at its utmost. We would be looking at

employee led metres and it would be a very different world. How

comfortable late can you take that? We just need to make sure that it

is saved and it is operating in the best interests of the public.

not think we should be ideological about how it is done. As elected

politicians we have to make sure that we do things properly. It

would mean that firearm pleas would have a say in how the services were

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We have had a small fire station close where I am. We're having a

new fire station built in Rochester. We have to reach its that the

purpose and we have to Pete -- and we have to keep people say.

And now a round- up of the week's events with our reporter Lucinda

Adam. There is a high-cost wait for four

numbers for patients to use despite the ban. People at deterred to go

to the doctors because they cannot make an appointment through the

phone line. One MP has been accused of stirring up a xenophobic passion

after the purchase of ferries. competition commission has told us

to go back. Medway sees money put aside to campaign against the

Thames estuary airport, it should be put towards a boat.

Brighton and Hove is no longer England's drug death capital.

Parents are being asked to sign a Alcohol pledges. I know you were a

student in Brighton, Sarah. It is hard to enforce that, isn't it?

Stopping people drinking to their routine? Ultimately, we have to

look at the bigger issue here. It is about our night-time economy. In

Brighton there are some no-go areas on Friday and Saturday nights. It

is that sort of culture. Perhaps we did have a more continental

approach to a night life. I do not think we should be stigmatising

young people. All people have future alcohol problems as well, we

should look at all people. They think that the answer will be that

if you stop people until they're 18 then there will not be a problem

when they are older. There are businesses that will suffer. There

are areas that suffer from this sort of trade and business. We

should be widening out the night time economy. Mark Reckless, I am

sure you are enjoying this round. This French fix when it it comes to

ferries, let's talk about that. want to see competition on the

Channel and keeping prices down for consumers. But we should be trading

with the Europe we just should not be governed by Europe. That you for