27th July 2007

Dear Councillor Woolner

PARISH COUNCIL AND THE WIND TURBINE APPLICATION

I am writing on behalf of the FLAT Committee and many local parishioners, to express our dissatisfaction with the way our local Parish Council has handled the proposed wind turbine factory development in our village. We feel that the Parish Council has not adequately represented a large proportion of the parishioners as regards the proposed wind factory development.  To the best of our knowledge they have known about this proposal for at least 2 years and STILL refuse to discuss the matter at recent meetings and have hidden behind “procedures” to dismiss the subject.  They have also refused to meet with members of our local action group (ie FLAT) and seem to be treating us with contempt.  In other Parish’s, the Parish Council have consulted their parishioners via a number of different routes (public meetings, electronic petition, parish poll etc) as soon as they have become aware of the possibility of a wind turbine development in their area.  Why have our parish Council not done this?  The fact that two of the Parish Councillor’s were directly involved in the original wind turbine proposal has caused many parishioners to wonder what is driving the Parish Council’s agenda!

I would also like to put on public record our anger that yet again you have kept the issue of the wind turbines off the agenda. I believe that you are ignoring procedures that should be adhered to because a request for this to be put on the agenda was made by a Parish Councillor (Councillor Woolner) three meetings ago.  If an agenda item is requested by a Councillor I understand that it must be included on the agenda!  I have requested an answer to this and other concerns in a letter addressed to Councillor Woolner and await a prompt written response.

Because of the points that I have made I would like to ask our Parish Council to organise a public meeting to discuss this subject and use their best endeavourers to involve the landowners and developers in the meeting.  I understand that a public meeting can be called if requested by the Chairman of the Parish Council or two Parish Councillors or six electors present at the meeting. Perhaps the new Chairman would like to show were he stands in this matter by now requesting such a meeting. 

I would now also like to request Parish Poll to ask two questions.  I would suggest that the first of these be “Do you want wind turbines built within our Parish?”  and the second being “Are you satisfied with the performance of your current Parish Council?”.  I understand that a Parish Poll can be requested at any meeting and that all we need are ten electors at this meeting to agree to the request for the poll.  I also understand that we can agree the wording at this meeting and that it cannot then be changed.  Can I therefore ask for a show of hands to first agree to the request for the poll and secondly to agree the wording.

Yours sincerely

[signed]

Lyndon Mason
FLAT Chairman and local parishioner.