Phil Bullivant
Town, District and County Councillor for Bradley Ward and Newton Abbot North
Monthly Update
January 2024
Newton Abbot Town Council
The process for setting the town precept is underway to establish the level of precept needed to deliver the services provided by the town. There is no cap on a town precept so I have been advocating a minimal increase supported by a detailed appraisal of the costs of each service the council provides. This approach has been rejected by other councillors who are happy to accept year on year increases.
One area where I do agree with the town taking on additional costs is to invest in a cleaner town and address the curse of overgrown pavements and kerbs.
A trial of a new machine was organised to demonstrate how kerbs could be de-weeded was carried out in Ogwell Mill Road which produced excellent results. This is something I will be supporting.
Because of the financial constraints facing both the County and District councils and the restrictions placed on any increases in their portion of Council tax it is important that services that are non-statutory which could be cut by them are identified and if deemed important for the town that the town sees what it could take over. I am not aware of anything affecting this years precept but it will be important for 24/25.
Teignbridge District Council
The ongoing financial issues and decision by the council executive to not proceed with the major investment in a new cinema and associated restaurants is a major blow. After 5 years of debate, changing priorities, and repeated investigations the original intention to create a new vibrant entertainment centre with multi use cultural facility including a revamped market hall, new 4 screen cinema and two new restaurants has reached the point where because of the delays the project can no longer be delivered within the required timescales which throws this part of the project out. The project has already been the subject of two requests to change (one to take out the Alex, one to allow more time to deliver a solution) but even after the granted extension the latest proposals from the executive cancel the major part of the original plans.
The original plans were intended to address the identified need for increased footfall into the town centre, provide employment and additional support for two of the most deprived areas of Devon. How we do this in future will be more difficult if we cannot demonstrate that a grant from government provided with specific intent can be thrown away in such a manner.
The decision by the Executive to cancel the cinema project was the subject of a review under the decision call in process which confirmed that the executive were acting outside of their powers and that they should have referred the decision to full council which they did not do.
We now must see what can be achieved and deliver as much as possible and I will be seeking to do this.
Devon County Council
The primary focus in January is towards the budget and the areas of expenditure to provide the services and resources the county needs.
The current expenditure to support Children with special education needs and improved social care are the two areas within the council’s budgets that are increasing at a considerable rate. Expenditure in these areas is well over £400 million per year increasing historically at approximately 20% per year. Plans to address the reasons for this unsustainable rate of growth are at the heart of the budget plans and will form the basis for budget decisions.
Supporting these vital services and meeting their demands places great pressure on the other areas of the councils activities which is why thing like pothole repairs, whilst improving, are not showing the rate of improvements we are seeking. The council cannot increase its precept by over 5% (3% + 2% for social care) hence the issue.
Projects being delivered by the County that will affect our area have also moved forwards,
The A382 completion works will start in mid 2024, (this being a two year project with major road closures for extended periods) the first stage being to lift over 2000 trees that will be replanted when the roads are completed. As this is the first zero carbon project for such a development in the country any tree that has to be cut down will be used to provide wood used in the project or converted to lumber that local charities will be able to use.
The works at Stover Country Park have also started and the new visitor centre, dredging of the lake, extension of the dried up section of the lake and tree harvesting are ongoing.
As part of the requirements to make crossings safer and improve bus routes the works to improve the junction by ASDA and Highweek Street to install new crossings and cycle paths, new traffic signals etc will start in the summer.
The works being carried out by DCC to deliver the changes to Queen Street and the enhances footpaths and cycle routes between the town centre and Marsh Road are also finalised with contracts for work being placed.
Because we have these major projects within the town I have requested that an area of the Market Hall is set aside to create an information centre so that each project can be shown and regularly updated by contractors to keep residents informed.
If you have any questions or would like more details please contact me,
Cllr Phil Bullivant
07768355544