:01:21. > :01:23.In the West: From 1,000 pages down to about 50,
:01:23. > :01:33.what will the new planning rules mean for councils, campaigners and
:01:33. > :01:34.
:01:34. > :39:56.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2302 seconds
:39:56. > :39:59.conservationists? Join me later to It demonstrates they are out of
:39:59. > :40:05.touch with what people consider the priorities right now it with
:40:05. > :40:09.economics, the environment and social policy. Back to our top
:40:09. > :40:12.story. The changes in the planning rules. The system has been
:40:12. > :40:18.simplified to try to remove some of the hassle with getting anything
:40:18. > :40:28.built. Is that good for us here in the West Country where the scenery
:40:28. > :40:30.
:40:30. > :40:34.is so beautiful? Are radical streamlining of the regulations.
:40:34. > :40:39.But one controversial phrase was still there.
:40:39. > :40:44.The presumption in terms of sustainable development where hell
:40:44. > :40:48.-- holding up sustainable development dock many of the people
:40:48. > :40:54.believe their original proposals were slot.
:40:54. > :41:04.Westcountry MPs wanted to know more. Studying the new rules is the
:41:04. > :41:06.
:41:06. > :41:10.director of planning at Stroud As a top-level document is is very
:41:10. > :41:15.good. It sets out what planning should be about. It should be about
:41:15. > :41:19.the environment, people and the economy. From there on, we lose
:41:19. > :41:22.quite a bit of the detail which we have relied upon in the past.
:41:22. > :41:27.Effectively we have a game of Monopoly when nobody knows what the
:41:27. > :41:32.original rules were and we are making them up as we go along.
:41:32. > :41:38.Near by he shows me a major new development. There are 90 houses
:41:38. > :41:43.going on there. There is a doctor's surgery.
:41:43. > :41:48.The project was slowed by the economic downturn and the planning
:41:48. > :41:54.process. This site has taken seven years to come forward. His analysis
:41:54. > :41:58.is that the new rules may favour builders. In the initial stages
:41:58. > :42:04.they will be more relaxed to allow more development to occur. As all
:42:04. > :42:09.the parties come together and start to negotiate new rules to be game,
:42:09. > :42:13.it will slow up again. It's certainly will not go to a
:42:13. > :42:19.standstill. Those who fight to keep England Green have found few faults
:42:19. > :42:22.with the reforms but it is early days. It may be some time before we
:42:22. > :42:27.know the full consequences for the beautiful countryside, reducing
:42:27. > :42:32.more than 1,000 pages to about 50 means there is nothing like the
:42:32. > :42:38.detail there was before and any ambiguities could end up being are
:42:38. > :42:42.due out in the courts. Sustainable development, any idea
:42:42. > :42:46.what that means? I am not sure if anybody is too sure what it means
:42:46. > :42:51.that the moment. As it said on the peace, we will have to wait and see
:42:51. > :42:57.what happens. What concerns me is that we have a housing crisis and
:42:57. > :43:00.we need jobs and homes and we need developments for those things that.
:43:00. > :43:05.The concerning thing was that the proposition that we start out by
:43:05. > :43:09.assuming that development will happen and we then work backwards.
:43:09. > :43:14.You would prefer to start by saying development should that happen...
:43:14. > :43:19.prefer a system that ordinary people can understand and take part
:43:19. > :43:21.in. That is what is concerning me. I have tried to grapple with the
:43:21. > :43:25.regulations myself and I know many people are interested in planning
:43:25. > :43:30.and are concerned about what is going to happen in a neighbour put
:43:30. > :43:34.but they will not have timed to get involved. You have lived in Bristol
:43:34. > :43:39.for a long time, as have by, and it takes an age of things to happen.
:43:39. > :43:44.Yes, we have seen that with the football club and it is a problem.
:43:44. > :43:48.Nobody wants planning decisions to go on interminably but what happens
:43:48. > :43:53.is the reason southern was going to be built has been disappeared. The
:43:53. > :43:57.concern to me is that the default is towards development rather than
:43:57. > :44:02.preserving the countryside. People say this could lead to more Green
:44:02. > :44:12.development, which is something you would be of April. We do not want
:44:12. > :44:14.
:44:14. > :44:19.excessive development on greenfield sites. If you want Green
:44:19. > :44:24.development, why are you a posing a windmill on land in your
:44:24. > :44:29.constituency? Actually, there is one windmill that I have come --
:44:29. > :44:33.supporting and it will go ahead because it is exactly the right
:44:33. > :44:38.place. There are two schemes, one in sharpness which I think should
:44:38. > :44:41.be supported and there is another one which I think is questionable
:44:41. > :44:46.because it is too close to an area of outstanding natural beauty. It
:44:46. > :44:52.is simply getting them in the right place. The right place the you
:44:52. > :44:56.think his up in Northumberland where you were building four.
:44:56. > :45:00.think the right place for windmills is in areas where they are actually
:45:00. > :45:05.going to get the right kind of wind and they do not offend too many
:45:05. > :45:09.people. He won them build on your land in Northumberland. You are a
:45:09. > :45:13.pose in the one in your constituency. I put an application
:45:13. > :45:17.in for that but it was not successful. That is not really the
:45:17. > :45:22.point. The point is that we want to see wind farms and renewable energy
:45:22. > :45:27.being promoted. It is necessary to do that. But you're not supporting
:45:27. > :45:31.the one on your doorstep. I have just said I am supporting the one
:45:31. > :45:34.in shop mess because it is a good side and it should be supported.
:45:34. > :45:40.But locals up in the Northumberland say your farm is not the right
:45:40. > :45:45.place to have it. They might be right about that in certain terms
:45:45. > :45:49.of the current application but be that as it may. The fact is that we
:45:49. > :45:52.need to put windmills in the right kind of places. You can argue about
:45:52. > :46:01.where those places are and that is what the planning system should do
:46:01. > :46:04.but it should not say we are against wind power.. Local
:46:04. > :46:08.elections are coming up in May and hundreds of candidates will fight
:46:08. > :46:13.for the privilege of representing us ungrateful lot. There is very
:46:13. > :46:16.little pay and almost no appreciation of long hours. For
:46:16. > :46:21.years people have been encouraged to take part in the system but most
:46:21. > :46:27.councillors tend to be white men of a certain age.
:46:27. > :46:30.Take two contrasting councillors. Jackie Fletcher has been one for
:46:30. > :46:37.nearly two decades and Joe Harris is one of the youngest councillors
:46:37. > :46:42.in the West. He is the odd one out. Let us look at the make-up of our
:46:42. > :46:51.councillors. We will stop with age. The National age is quite high but
:46:51. > :46:59.in the west it is even higher. On the issue of gender, males dominate.
:46:59. > :47:04.In the West, it is even higher. With the issue of ethnicity, the
:47:04. > :47:08.majority of white. In the West Country it is even higher. She has
:47:08. > :47:13.been coming to meetings he at Cheltenham Borough Council since
:47:13. > :47:19.the 1980s. As well as being ward councillor, grand mother Jackie has
:47:19. > :47:25.been mayor and chair committees. For those who may follow in her
:47:25. > :47:30.footsteps, she warns it is not an easy kick. It is many hours. You
:47:30. > :47:34.have to come in for different things. There may be just a minute..
:47:34. > :47:39.In her time in the chamber she has seen young counsellors come and go.
:47:39. > :47:45.I remember when he said they would love to do it and did it and got
:47:45. > :47:50.involved for a while and then said, my children are growing up and I
:47:50. > :47:56.want to go out with them. It does take a lot of time so you have to
:47:56. > :48:00.think very carefully before you take that step. One who stepped
:48:00. > :48:05.into the local government Arena last year it is Joe. He is not your
:48:05. > :48:09.average teenager. He has not yet decided which career path to follow
:48:09. > :48:14.and in the meantime, while juggling council meetings, he is
:48:14. > :48:17.supplementing his income working in a local bar. I have always
:48:18. > :48:22.maintained that people who make decisions for the Community should
:48:23. > :48:27.be representative of the people that they serve. Attracting a wider
:48:27. > :48:32.range of people to stand for election seems to be a common aim.
:48:32. > :48:36.Jo believes there are a number of factors that deter people. The key
:48:37. > :48:40.issue, especially with our district council, the meetings are in the
:48:40. > :48:46.morning. That does not just affect people who want to run for council
:48:46. > :48:49.but people who want to raise a legitimate concern or if they want
:48:49. > :48:54.was a question about something like recycling, if it is on a Tuesday
:48:54. > :48:58.morning, they cannot make it. It seems ludicrous that the majority
:48:58. > :49:03.of people cannot make our meetings because they are working.
:49:03. > :49:07.Cheltenham, Gloucester, Stroud, and Swindon, or have elections coming
:49:07. > :49:10.up but there are not a lot of people who want to become
:49:10. > :49:16.councillors. I do not know enough about politics. This is not
:49:16. > :49:20.something that really appeals to me. I work about 68 hours a week so I
:49:20. > :49:24.would not do it because I do not have the time and I have a young
:49:24. > :49:32.family. Definitely not. I do not have the time. It does not interest
:49:32. > :49:37.me whatsoever. So, a typical council is a white middle-class
:49:37. > :49:41.male over 60. Is that truly representative of people like this?
:49:41. > :49:50.We should salute everyone who steps up to the plate and serves in
:49:50. > :49:55.public office. Tom runs a Bristol- based firm in H R and knows a lot
:49:55. > :50:02.about of what jobs are worth. Councillors get anything from
:50:02. > :50:10.nothing up to �30,000. Is that a fair return? Perhaps not. It is
:50:10. > :50:14.very difficult to compare it to a private sector organisation.
:50:14. > :50:19.Perhaps if that type of role and duties were out within the private
:50:19. > :50:23.sector business they could expect a bit more. What sort of figure might
:50:23. > :50:29.attract a range of candidates with the skills necessary? That is the
:50:29. > :50:32.thing. It is about the skills. You have the example on the previous
:50:32. > :50:38.take about a young gentleman, through to the average age of
:50:38. > :50:41.people being over 60. The reality is probably that if that was in a
:50:41. > :50:51.different circumstances and a private sector business, it would
:50:51. > :50:55.attract the range of up to �40,000. Is it a bad thing that most people
:50:55. > :50:59.are -- councillors are white men? It does not represent what Bristol
:50:59. > :51:04.is about. It is issued multicultural society in Bristol
:51:04. > :51:08.and it should be part of what we all embrace. We should have members
:51:08. > :51:11.of the community actively representing those interests.
:51:11. > :51:15.private business would the boss's be tried to alter that? Probably
:51:15. > :51:19.not, on the basis that at the end of the day you also have to make
:51:19. > :51:22.sure that you have the right people for the right roles. The issue
:51:22. > :51:26.around trying to get more people involved as councillors is
:51:26. > :51:33.something that has been a problem for a while and there are quality
:51:33. > :51:37.legislation that make sure everyone is treated fairly. Used it last
:51:37. > :51:45.year and were not successful and you are trying to stand again for
:51:45. > :51:49.Labour. Why? Long hours, no paid and abuse from the electorate.
:51:49. > :51:52.Absolutely. Fairly simply, somebody has got to. Tom was mentioning
:51:52. > :51:57.their whether a private firm would want to open up its doors to a wide
:51:57. > :52:02.spectrum of people, I think the smart private firms, like the smart
:52:02. > :52:07.council, once a wide diversity of people or you were not taking your
:52:07. > :52:11.talent from the old ball. The problem is that most local
:52:11. > :52:15.authority politics is not just about the money, it is about the
:52:15. > :52:19.conditions and as you saw on the film, people feel they do not have
:52:19. > :52:22.the time. Most people do not realise just how much hard work it
:52:22. > :52:27.is to be a councillor and how it interferes with your ability to
:52:27. > :52:32.hold down a job which you would need to on a comparatively low
:52:32. > :52:36.remuneration. You have to do that too. I think there is a case for
:52:36. > :52:39.paying people in local government. I think we should have a fewer
:52:39. > :52:45.councillors and that is why in Stroud we are promoting a reduction
:52:45. > :52:52.in numbers. The important thing is to focus on skills. That is where
:52:52. > :52:55.we really do have a deficit. If we are asking local people to make
:52:55. > :53:02.decisions them we want councillors who were able to challenge officers
:53:02. > :53:06.and say... In that case do you not want people who have been around
:53:06. > :53:12.for a bit and perhaps run their own companies and perhaps worked in
:53:12. > :53:16.medicine or whatever and can come and offer some expertise. Yes, you
:53:16. > :53:19.want better as well but you need a representative cross section of the
:53:19. > :53:23.public if you are to represent the needs of the people you are serving.
:53:23. > :53:29.I am proud that in the Labour Party in Bristol we will have a majority
:53:29. > :53:34.of women candidates... That is the case for Stroud as well,
:53:34. > :53:37.incidentally. The what do women bring that men can't? It is not
:53:37. > :53:40.about having a different personality it is that if you do
:53:40. > :53:46.not have women involved, you are being run by people who do not have
:53:46. > :53:50.the same understanding of things that affect women. At the moment
:53:50. > :53:56.the cuts that are being imposed by the coalition government affect
:53:56. > :54:01.women and children worst. They are losing services and tax credits.
:54:01. > :54:04.You still have to make cuts. You do still have to make cuts. One of the
:54:04. > :54:08.thing their local council has to do is cope with the things that are
:54:08. > :54:12.rising because of the strain people are under. That makes important
:54:12. > :54:15.that we have a representative selection of people serving on the
:54:15. > :54:20.council who understand those things and know what is needed to fix it,
:54:20. > :54:23.not to spend more money but Spender Spain money more wisely. We must
:54:23. > :54:27.have people at the local level who are really aware of what is going
:54:27. > :54:31.on and can make the bold and necessary decisions which a lot of
:54:31. > :54:34.people are crying out for, like in the planning system but we were
:54:34. > :54:39.talking about earlier on, the slowness of it, we need people who
:54:39. > :54:45.can do it. Thank you very much for coming in. I understand you are
:54:45. > :54:49.planning a wedding as well. Romance is all over the studio!
:54:49. > :54:58.Let us change the tempo for a quick canter through the other political
:54:58. > :55:02.news in just 60 seconds. Plans to build a new nuclear power
:55:02. > :55:05.station on the banks of the River Severn have been mothballed. The
:55:05. > :55:11.two companies who were in the running has pulled out. What is
:55:11. > :55:13.proposed is much bigger, it is for calling towers and a blot on the
:55:13. > :55:18.landscape. A year since charges were introduced at some recycling
:55:18. > :55:23.centres in Somerset there is a warning further charges could be on
:55:23. > :55:27.the way. It annoys me a bit so why do not come to offer. Home care
:55:27. > :55:30.workers fighting for their jobs have won a small victory. The
:55:30. > :55:37.council has put -- postponed making a decision on whether to privatise
:55:37. > :55:43.the service. A Liam Fox's agent is in hot water
:55:43. > :55:48.because I another councillor did not pay his council tax. He was
:55:48. > :55:52.taken to court. The Chief Constable of the police
:55:52. > :55:59.gave evidence at the Leveson Inquiry. He denied of the record
:55:59. > :56:03.briefings were given by his force during the Jo Yeates investigation.
:56:03. > :56:08.What a week! Let us pick couple one of those
:56:08. > :56:14.stories before we go. Nuclear power and the decision by the two big
:56:14. > :56:17.companies not to get involved. It means we may not get a new nuclear
:56:17. > :56:22.power station after all. Has the boat sailed for nuclear power?
:56:22. > :56:25.has not sailed away because first of all, if we are going to have
:56:26. > :56:31.enough energy for the future we have got to have a base load and
:56:31. > :56:35.that will really be provided by nuclear power. It is important that
:56:35. > :56:43.dot who will be it -- who will build it? No subsidies? We will
:56:43. > :56:47.have to look for more investors. We have to upscale our workforce.
:56:47. > :56:51.this the end of nuclear power, the beginning of the end? We need to be
:56:51. > :56:56.looking at how we will manage over the next 30 or more years and one
:56:56. > :56:59.of the things that has happened is that under Neale's government, the
:56:59. > :57:05.subsidies for Green power and alternative forms of energy have
:57:05. > :57:09.been moved and instead of being like India and China... You know
:57:09. > :57:16.perfectly well the feat in tariff of abolished and people have
:57:16. > :57:22.withdrawn from that market -- feet in its tariffs. We are now flagging
:57:22. > :57:25.behind. Thank you very much. The Sunday politics continues with