Preston Council Leaders Get A Sandbagging In Ribble Flood Furore

Riversway Councillor Jack Davenport made his point about the blindness of the leadership of Preston City Council to issues of flood risk around drainage and flood defences near the Ribble very vividly at the last City Council meeting, he produced two sandbags which he proceeded to place at in front of Council leader Ken Hudson and his ally Danny Gallagher, leader of the Liberal Democrats in Preston.

According to the Lancashire Evening Post Jack Davenport's "attention grabbing stunt" was a protest over the "plans to build homes on flood plains near the River Ribble... sand was spilled all over council papers and prompted a furore in the chamber over how the bags got past Town Hall security"

The protest came a month after the Council flatly refused to debate a motion about the risk of flooding to Preston residents - the council leaders preferring to put the interests of the developers interested in the Riverworks Project ahead of the interests of Preston People.

Council Leader Ken Hudson told this latest Council meeting that:
"The Conservative group is happy to talk to anyone else prepared to look at funding a study for the Riverworks project"

- they are happy to talk to anyone willing to progress the Riverworks barrage but NOT talk to anyone concerned about the environmental impacts or flooding risks!

Bizarrely, Ken Hudson then went on to accuse those councillors concerned about these issues and who DO wish to discuss them of sticking their "heads in the silt of the river... waiting to be drowned" when it is clearly the pro-barrage lobby who are refusing to listen to the evidence and discuss the issues!

Jack Davenport is calling for urgent action in the wake of severe flooding across the country, that shows how vulnerable many areas are to flash flooding, particularly where drainage and flood defences are inadequate. (As they certainly are near Broadgate and Middleforth).

The risk of flooding to residents in these areas would be greatly increased if the council were to build huge new housing estates on the greenbelt and floodplain land that lines the River Ribble, or if they were to build a barrage across the Ribble in order to raise it to permanent high tide level. Preston City Council says they may be 'going back to the drawing board' with some of these plans from Riverworks, due to questions of whether they are acceptable to South Ribble Council. (Though the fact that they are totally unacceptable to ordinary people in both Preston and South Ribble, or to any environmental organisation does not seem to concern our Council Officials)

One Save The Ribble member was so impressed with Jack Davenport's action that he sent him the following email:

Dear Councillor Davenport,

I'm writing to salute your recent protest on behalf of Broadgate residents about the Riverworks plans.

I feel you are doing an excellent job bringing the flood risk posed by the Riverworks Barrage and Housing ideas to public attention, you are doing exactly what a democratic representative of the public should be doing.

You may be criticised for it by a few political hacks, but I definitely think the idea of using sandbags in this way showed imagination, panache and not a little courage, that will be appreciated by ordinary Prestonians.

Thankyou for representing me so well as one of your constituents, and keep up the good work!

Thatcher used to give her ministers a handbagging - Now Jack Davenport gives Preston Council Leaders a sandbagging!

Jack Davenport said to Save The Ribble:

"the issue I was trying to raise was the issue of flooding from drainage. The issue of Riverworks, though related, was not the exact topic of discussion (that is to come), but the general issue however is that the current administration appears blind to the whole thing and won't discuss it. I've heard of putting ones head in the sand, but never putting it in a sandbag!"

Let us know your own response to Councillor Davenport's sandbag protest by replying to this article below!

Preston Councillors Denounce City's 'Three Wise Monkeys' Approach To Flood Risk

Click here to enlarge

Riversway's Labour Councillors, Jack Davenport, Linda Crompton and Bhikhu Patel have been distributing a hard-hitting leaflet around the ward recently, denouncing the failure of the City Council to debate the flood risk posed by Broadgate's old and dilapidated flood defences and by the inadequate and poorly maintained storm drainage in the area.

Jack Bavenport is quoted as saying " This really shows the contempt that the Tories and Lib Dems have for the people of this City. Serious concerns were raised about the drainage system in Hull, and we have had flooding in Riversway this year for similar reasons. It seems that the interests of the people of this City take second place to the interests of private business and faceless bodies like the Preston Vision Board"

The leaflet uses a picture of recent flooding in Middleforth, taken from original material published on the 'Save The Ribble' Blog - Hey Labour Party - we don't mind people using quotes and photographs from this blog, providing they are being used to further the interests of our river and the people who live nearby - but next time please be polite enough to credit the source of your photo - The Save The Ribble Campaign!

You can read 'Save The Ribble's' coverage of the Council's decision not to debate flood risk here

You can read 'Save The Ribble's' investigation of the state of Preston's flood defences here.

Local Councillor's Concerns About Democratic Accountability of Vision Board Continue...

Preston Riversway Councillor, Jack Davenport, has raised further concerns about the recent proposals to restructure Preston Vision Board, claiming the reorganisation 'will do little to encourage the idea that there will be more democratic involvement'.


You can click on the letter to enlarge it...

In his letter, sent to the Lancashire Evening Post this week, Jack Davenport sets out his concerns that:

'The proposals outlined seem to make a move towards greater private sector control, with the council being reduced to a mere consultative role. They will weaken the already poor "partnership" and undermine the public's faith in democratic representation'.

Further, Councillor Davenport is concerned that 'developments in Preston' should be 'guided by public, not private sector need', arguing that 'Only the council, as a democratically representative body, has the authority to make that judgment', and pointing out that this authority is granted 'not by private business or interest, but by the people of this city'.

Councillor Davenport concludes his letter by arguing that 'Reorganisation of the Vision Board should involve major reform, accountability and control so that if the council says "jump", the Vision Board asks "how high?".'


We wholeheartedly share Jack Davenport's concerns on this issue, particularly in view of the Chairman of the Vision Board Malcolm McVicar's comments made last week in response to the proposed reorganisation of the Vision Board to include the Leaders of Preston and South Ribble councils that:

"Having council leaders on board is a good thing" but "It's my responsibility as chairman to make sure it doesn't slow the process" !!!


Whilst we agree with the moves to make Preston Vision Board more democratically accountable, which were kick-started by Councillor Bhikhu Patel earlier this summer, the concerns raised by Jack Davenport are only half the story:

Local residents are equally concerned about the Vision currently being pursued by Preston City Council itself, as there appears to be equal enthusiasm for the Ribble barrage and the Penwortham green belt/floodplain development proposals amongst the ruling majority on Preston City Council as there is on the Vision Board.

As part of this, local residents and a number of Councillors are deeply concerned about Preston Council's recent vote to remove decisions regarding large funding bids - such as for Riverworks - from the full scrutiny and democratic accountability of full council chamber and into a select City Centre Committee.

As such, questions of democratic accountability extend far beyond the Vision Board and into the Council itself.

So far we have seen no serious consultation of local people undertaken by this council regarding the Riverworks Barrage and floodplain development proposals.

When representatives from Save The Ribble Campaign finally managed to meet with Chief Executive Jim Carr and the officer with responsibility for the Riverworks scheme, Mike Brogan, this summer:

- We were assured that we would be consulted about the brief for the consultancy of the feasibility study funding bid the council are planning to submit to the North West Development Agency this financial year - BUT WE WERE NOT ASSURED THAT LOCAL PEOPLE WOULD BE CONSULTED ABOUT WHETHER THE BID WOULD GO AHEAD IN THE FIRST PLACE - DESPITE THE OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE THAT LOCAL PEOPLE DON'T WANT THE BARRAGE!

- We had an interesting discussion about the many alternative ideas which local people have had to make the most of our river and green spaces without damaging these vital local assets, but THE COUNCIL DIRECTLY REFUSED TO CONSIDER PURSUING THESE ALTERNATIVE PROPOSALS INSTEAD - although they are quite happy to use these ideas 'as a contributor to help shape future development options' - in other words, use them to "green-up" the barrage and housing development proposals;

- No opportunity was given at the meeting to discuss the real concerns of local people and numerous environmental organisations about the environmental impacts of the barrage and floodplain development schemes, but we were assured that "THE COUNCIL WOULD NOT WISH TO PROCEED BEYOND THE STUDY IF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT WAS AS IRRETRIEVABLY ADVERSE AS SOME ARE PREDICTING"!!!

If the council are prepared to accept environmental impact up to the point of irretrievable damage, then they are clearly more than happy to accept a huge amount of damage, pushing the Ribble's entire ecosystem almost to the point of irretrievable collapse!


On a related note, we see with interest the Lancashire Evening Post's report that a number of prominent Preston Council officers are leaving for pastures new, and the Chief Executive of the council, Jim Carr, has claimed that some may not be replaced...

One of the leaving party is Nicola Turner, who fronts the Preston City Vision and represents both Preston City Council and the Vision Board on the Riverworks project, so we wonder whether her vacant post will be filled...?

Whilst we wave goodbye to Nicola as she heads off to Stockport to become project director for the town centre "masterplan" - which has '£500 million redevelopment of the city centre' planned 'in a deal with Australian development firm Lend Lease' (LEP 18.9.07), we are left with our own experience of Nicola Turner that she was at least prepared to come to Broadgate and give a presentation to local people about the Ribble Barrage and floodplain Housing ideas contained in the Riverworks Proposals, while those men who were responsible for coming up with these ideas in the first place were content to stay hidden away at the Town Hall, leaving her to face the public's anger on her own...

Mind you, she was also unable to answer the many important questions local people asked her, so the glossy and wholly one-sided presentation was rather limited in terms of real information.

We watch and wait...

You can contact us at savetheribble@tiscali.co.uk

Council Votes To Ignore Flood Risk to Preston Residents

Preston City Council has voted today by 28 votes to 25 AGAINST a motion from Riversway Councillor Jack Davenport to "suspend further work on Riverworks until the flood risk assessment can be completed" - this assessment, due out next month, looks at the flood risk posed to existing houses by the river, such as those in Walton Le Dale, Frenchwood, Broadgate and Penwortham.

Jack Davenport argued that "Flooding concerns are more important than Riverworks and suspending work shows that we are taking the flood concerns seriously, there will be no cost to us if we delay the work in favour of making sure our residents are safe and protected"

Mayor Christine Abram, said the matter could be dealt with at the next full council meeting on October 18. Coun Davenport, said: "Better hope it doesn't flood before that, Christine."

Lancashire Evening Post Coverage Here

74% of local people voted AGAINST the idea of the Riverworks Ribble barrage and housing plans in a recent LEP poll,

By voting to oppose this motion, the council has shown that it puts the wishes of those greedy developers behind the Riverworks Barrage and Housing proposals ahead of the interests of local people, and ahead even of the need to protect local people from the flood risks in the area, exacerbated by our increasingly wet weather and our old and shoddy flood defences, a flood risk that would be greatly increased by building a barrage across the Ribble, and thousands of houses in it's flood plain, as is suggested in the Riverworks proposals.

It seems that since developers stand to make £millions from this irresponsible scheme, the council is not going to let things like the flood risk to local people stand in their way.

What is encouraging is that 25 councillors ARE now concerned about the threat of floods, and we hope that this number will increase as local people continue to show their opposition to this deeply irresponsible assault on our environment, and on the safety and quality of life of local residents.

Invest In Flood Defences Not A Barrage!

Jack Davenport, Preston City Councillor for Riversway ward, called in a letter in the Lancashire Evening Post today for money that the Council and Vision Board are planning to waste on feasibility studies into the unwanted Ribble Barrage, to be used instead on investigating the improvement of Preston's flood defences.

His call is underlined by disastrous flooding in Hull, Doncaster, Tewkesbury, Gloucester and many other parts of the UK.

Even a cursory visual inspection of the 'panel and post' flood defences along Broadgate shows that they are old and showing worrying signs of deterioration.


This is just one of a number of pillars with large vertical cracks.

Here are a few more:








It seems likely that in winter when water turns into ice inside these cracks, it will cause them to worsen.


This is where a small vertical crack meets a horizontal crack in one of the panels, that extends for several feet.


Tree roots are also making their way beneath the flood barrier and breaking the pavement on the other side.




The faces of some of the panels are worn, showing rusty steel underneath.


Despite recent flash flooding, the council has done nothing to clear blocked drainage in the area.

The flood defences protect a large amount of local housing.

We at Save The Ribble are not experts on Flood Defences, but we share residents' concerns about these cracks, and about the post and panel flood defences that should now be upgraded given the clear threat of flooding when the river is in spate, a risk that any kind of obstruction in the river, like a barrage, can only exacerbate.

A Barrage of Democracy?

In a week when Gordon Brown, the new PM, declares his determination to re-democratise politics and restore the trust of the people in our elected political representatives...
in a week when 74% of residents vote NO to a Ribble Barrage...
PRESTON CITY COUNCIL HAVE VOTED TO REMOVE THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS REGARDING THE RIBBLE BARRAGE OUT OF THE DEMOCRATIC FRAMEWORK OF THE COUNCIL CHAMBER.

Councillor Jack Davenport, Riversway Ward, sent in a comment to our previous article on the overwhelmingly anti-barrage LEP vote to say that in the Council meeting last Thursday (28th June):

"both the Tories and Lib Dems backed and passed proposals to move the power and decision making over large grants from the Council to the City Centre Committee. This effectively means that in the future most Councillors will not be able to get a say in large scale projects (for example, the feasibility study for the Barrage). This removes the bulk of democratic opposition (or support) to any project and renders voter representation virtually mute on the subject. The report presented to Council mentioned the Vision Board frequently and it looks increasingly likely that the Committee will become a rubber stamping body for whatever the Vision Board wants to do or recommends."

Save The Ribble Campaign are not politically partisan as we are local residents who come from all walks of life and are of all - and no - political persuasion, and we receive support from Councillors in Preston and South Ribble from all political parties. Only today, the Lancashire Evening Post reports that whilst Ribchester suffers serious flooding, Tory shadow environment secretary Peter Ainsworth is raising concerns in Parliament about proposals to built thousands of new homes near rivers vulnerable to flooding.

Nonetheless, Preston Council chambers appears to be politically-divided, with the ruling Tory and Lib Dem group determined to remove the decisions regarding the Riverworks Barrage from the Democratic process.
This is an infringement of their democratic mandate, which is to represent the interests of the people who voted for them - 74% of whom have made it clear they do NOT want the Ribble Barrage.

This is an infringement of democracy and accountability. The pro-barrage lobby will use this to push the barrage proposal through behind closed doors and effectively ignore the wishes of local people as well as the environmental and economic consequences to the River Ribble and our local communities. Ignoring what local people and environmental organisations - such as the Environment Agency - say seems to be becoming something of a habit... As Peter Ainsworth says, "At present, a quarter of all planning applications opposed by the Environment Agency still go ahead"...

What is YOUR Councillor saying about this issue?

Does YOUR Councillor support this undemocratic decision?

Does YOUR Councillor represent YOUR interests?

Email us at savetheribble@tiscali.co.uk

Read more about the PRESTON CITY VISION BOARD'S FUNDING here

Barrage Consultation for Residents - of Preston

Councillor Jack Davenport, the Labour Councillor for Riversway Ward in Preston, is again spearheading an independent consultation with local residents - this time about the Ribble barrage proposal.

This is as a direct result of local people's anger that these irresponsible and dangerous proposals are being pursued by Preston City Council and the unelected Vision Board - without even asking us if this is what WE want.



Councillor Davenport told the Lancashire Evening Post today that 'The key concern' Preston Labour group members have 'is people are being asked after, instead of before, about things like the barrage'.

The aim is to send out consultation leaflets to 7,000 homes in key Riverside Wards of Preston - Riversway, Fishwick, Frenchwood, Larches, and the Town Centre - at the beginning of next month, to ask local residents in Preston for their opinion of the Ribble barrage scheme. Jack Davenport said 'We've had to increase the scale of the consultation because the barrage is far more controversial than the docklands ever was', and has also said that 'We're going to be as balanced as we can be, giving people both sides and letting them make up their own minds, then at least we have got something to take back to Council'.

Save The Ribble Campaign very much welcome these moves as it is one of the important arguments we have been making: that local residents should be consulted about the barrage sooner rather than later -
BUT it is clearly nowhere near enough to only consult what is effectively only ONE OF MANY Ribbleside communities that will be affected by these proposals.

At the very least, this forthcoming consultation should include similar areas of Penwortham, who will be affected in exactly the same way as the Preston communities on the North bank of the River.

All Ribbleside communities who will be affected by the barrage proposals should be consulted - NOW. Save The Ribble Campaign can assure local residents all along the Ribble that we will keep the pressure on in our campaign which aims to ensure that ALL residents are consulted, and that Environmental organisations who have also raised serious concerns about the barrage proposal are also consulted sooner rather than later.


Important though the consultation of ALL Ribbleside communities is, however, it is still not the whole issue:

Whilst the recent LEP Poll showed an overwhelming
81% of respondents AGAINST the barrage proposal - a figure echoed by the huge number of residents who have contacted us - nonetheless, we have also consistently argued that even had this vote shown the opposite, the River CAN’T VOTE, and as such, relies on us to make decisions which safeguard rather than threaten its environmental integrity.

The River Ribble is not "ours" to mess with - contrary to Preston City Council's view, the Ribble is not an 'underutilised resource' to be exploited for economic gain, but an Internationally important Wetland ecosystem which supports nearly 1 million birds and who knows how many hundreds of thousands of fish who don't have the luxury of a vote.

Yet this is not a "Birds vs People" argument as the Environment is something which benefits humans as well.
- The Ribble is one of the longest rivers in Britain, and acts as a drain for a massive area from North Yorkshire to the Irish Sea - in one of the highest rainfall-areas of the country;
- The Ribble's intertidal mudflats and saltmarshes protect Ribbleside communities from flooding;
- The Ribble, as a natural and unimpeded river, provides us with peace and tranquillity and an incredibly beautiful and irreplaceable open space - proven to be a measure of the quality of our lives;
- and The Ribble also offers us a fantastic opportunity to create and maintain a genuinely sustainable future.

As Michael Jack, MP for the Fylde, said very succinctly: “Mankind has an enormous responsibility to look after the estuary and its wildlife and I don’t think we should be monkeying around with that for the sake of making money. You play around with nature at your peril. I remain deeply sceptical about this proposal.”(The Lytham St Annes Express, on April 19th 2007).

Even if the entire population of Preston, South Ribble, Fylde, and Sefton WANTED a barrage on the Ribble, it still wouldn’t be anything other than disastrous for the environment. As custodians and guardians of this precious habitat and its environs of associated habitats such as riverside green spaces and wildlife corridors, we have a responsibility to ensure that our actions are not detrimental to it.

If you don't live in one of the areas of Preston that Jack Davenport is consulting, contact your local Councillor and ask when YOUR community will be consulted.

Where do YOU live? What is YOUR opinion of the barrage proposal?

Contact us with your views at savetheribble@tiscali.co.uk or the comments link below...

Another Councillor Concerned about Environmental Impact of Riverworks

Save the Ribble welcome Councillor Jack Davenport's letter in the LEP on 8th February in which he expresses his concerns about the potential environmental impact of aspects of the Riverworks project on 'the wildlife and natural splendour of one of Preston's most glorious jewels': The River Ribble.

Jack Davenport's concerns echo fellow Preston Councillor John Swindells' concerns about the potential impact on our precious environment, as, whilst Jack Davenport does not explicitly express opposition to the Barrage proposal, he welcomes some of the 'benefits that [Riverworks] could bring, especially... regeneration, leisure and community facilities' (as we all do - in the right place!!) and he warns that 'development of the River Ribble itself needs much more thought than has currently been given. The environmental consequences if it goes wrong are too awful to contemplate’.

We heartily agree with Jack Davenport’s important points that:
‘Flood defences must be updated, especially in the face of climate change, especially as the Ribble is a tidal river. This does not mean though, that we should endanger the environment in doing so. It is no good sacrificing one area’s environment to save another. A solution must be found that protects residents from the risk of flooding, but maintains as much as possible of the wildlife and natural splendour of one of Preston’s most glorious jewels’.

It is timely indeed that Jack Davenport’s letter should coincide with the announcement today that work is to begin on Hesketh Out Marsh within the next month, a project to return this drained marsh to the tides and the wildlife of the Ribble at the same time as the resultant Nature Reserve of saltmarsh and mudflats will effectively and directly increase the area’s protection against flooding! The newly-created 168 hectares of mudflats and saltmarsh area will increase the flood defences for Preston and South Ribble, West Lancashire and even the Fylde coast!

The Ribble Shoreline Management Plan, Defra and the Environment Agency have all identified the further creation of saltmarsh and mudflat wetland habitats as the most environmentally and economically sustainable – and most effective – means of protecting our Ribble communities from flooding in the long term.
The Ribble Shoreline Management Plan DOES NOT ADVOCATE THE NECESSITY FOR A BARRAGE ON THE RIBBLE TO PROTECT ANY COMMUNITIES FROM FLOODING.
It does, however, advocate the further creation of new saltmarsh and mudflat wetlands on the Ribble as the most effective, sustainable, and cost-effective means of DEFENDING ALL RIBBLE COMMUNITIES FROM RISING SEA LEVELS.

David Borrow, MP for South Ribble, raised the issue of Hesketh Out Marsh at Prime Minister's Questions this week, and Tony Blair commended the scheme.

Jack Davenport concludes his letter by saying that Riverworks ‘must happen in a way that strives to increase protection of the city, encourages development and investment, but does not sacrifice the environment and natural beauty of an important part of Preston’s heritage’.
- Sentiments with which we agree – for the sake of all the communities who live alongside the Ribble, and for the sake of this glorious jewel!

While we warmly welcome our councillors concern for the potential environmental impact of some of the Riverworks proposals, we remind them however that local people will ultimately judge them on the position they take on the barrage proposals and the proposals to build over 4000 houses in the floodplain - issues that apart from Councillor Swindells, few others have yet taken a clear position on.

Jack Davenport is keen that local people should be consulted about the different aspects of the Riverworks proposals, however, and you can contact him about the current local Preston Riverside Labour group's consultations about the Docks proposals at ribbleconsultation@tiscali.co.uk

You can read more about the long-term proposals for the ongoing creation of saltmarsh flood defences for the Ribble
and more about why saltmarsh and mudflats are so important!

You can contact us at savetheribble@tiscali.co.uk

Riversway Riverworks Consultation - Ignoring the Questions That Most Concern Residents

The Labour Party in Riversway, a Preston ward that borders the River Ribble has launched a long awaited 'consultation' into one aspect of the Riverworks proposals.

This is clearly a response to the issues raised by the 'Save The Ribble' Campaign and local residents around the dangers of a Ribble Barrage, and of a huge housing development in the Ribble's floodplain.

The councillors admit that

"The development will have a major impact on Preston, in particular on local residents living close to, or even on the River Ribble itself".

They say that

"Your local Labour Councillors will support and only support the views of our constituents. We will do this by presenting you with the facts and letting your views guide us. Contrary to scaremongering from some quarters, no decision has been made yet"

1. The Save The Ribble Campaign has not been 'scaremongering' - all the facts we have presented about Riverworks come from Preston City Council's and the City Vision Boards own publications. We challenge the councillors to find a single post on this blog that asserts that any decision has yet been made. What we are objecting to is that the council is even THINKING about such patently stupid, irresponsible and dangerous ideas as a barrage or a floodplain housing development.

2. The consultation they have released misses the point - it concentrates solely on development proposals for the docks - which were (we are told) the subject matter of the recent pre-feasiblity study undertaken for the Vision Board, and ignores the concerns that are uppermost in local residents minds, about the barrage and the greenbelt housing ideas - instead of addressing these issues, our councillors have skirted round them, promising more consultation at some undetermined point in the future, even though the barrage and the housing proposals are the issues that will obviously have the most "impact on Preston, in particular on local residents living close to, or even on the River Ribble itself".

3. We have NOT been 'presented with the facts' - Save The Ribble asked to see this pre-feasibility study when it was first published weeks and weeks ago - but we were not allowed to see it, even when we used the Freedom of Information Act. The report is still being kept secret from local people (although we have been assured by those that belong to the exclusive group of those the council trusts enough to see it that there is 'nothing contraversial' in it)
We therefore have the farcical situation where local councillors are trying to consult local residents on an issue where we are not even being allowed by the council to read their report concerning the very proposals we are being consulted about!

Nor does the consultation document tell us anything about what is actually being proposed for the docks - we residents are being asked to make our comments entirely in the dark - I am sure if our councillors were asked for their opinion, they would demand the fullest information possible, and find it unacceptable to have such important information withheld from them.

If a more comprehensive consultation on the Riverworks proposals had been published, the council would quickly learn that local people do not want a barrage or a huge housing development in our green belt. They could then save themselves the expense of commissioning any further studies into these aspects of their proposals and put residents minds at rest, by dropping them from the 'Riverworks' package. We wonder whether this is why we have not been asked these questions.

It is nice to be 'consulted' - but next time, give us the information we need, and ask us the right questions, otherwise people will suspect that the consultation exercise is just a PR gimmick.


And if you are one of the tens of thousands of people outside Riversway who would also be subject to the environmental and flood risk consequences of the Riverworks barrage, both up and down the river and find yourself still not included in any consultation, perhaps you should be asking Preston City Council why your views are not being sought.

Update: The Riverworks Consultation in Full (Added 20/12/2006)

Here is page 1 of the Labour Leaflet (click on the picture to see it in full size).

You will notice that it contains glaring inaccuracies about the bid for Unitary Authority Status - it states that the bid is being made jointly with South Ribble Borough Council, even though South Ribble pulled out of this bid over two weeks ago under pressure from local residents. This embarrassing mistake has not prevented our councillors from distributing this misleading leaflet (mine came through my letterbox on the 17th December):




Page 2:
The page that contains the false implication that 'Save the Ribble' has been 'scaremongering' - in fact it is the council's own documents and press releases that have caused concern and consternation to local people. It also contains the promise to give residents full information on the Riverworks proposals (though the leaflet seems remarkably free of any such information, and the most recent document published on these proposals is being kept secret from local people)



Page 3:

Here are the actual questions - which completely ignore the burning questions about the Riverworks Barrage or the idea of building over 4000 houses in the floodplain, they ask us for our comments on the development ideas for the docks, while keeping us completely in the dark about what these ideas actually are (apart from a hint about 'floating platforms' - where are the documents that contain these ideas? When can we see them?).

Our Message To Local Councillors

If our councillors truly want to represent the interests of Riversway residents, then their place is alongside the Save The Ribble Campaign, campaigning against the Floodplain Housing and Ribble Barrage ideas contained in the Riverworks proposals.

The place of anyone who wants to defend the interests of people living alongside the Ribble, or of anyone who loves the birdlife of the Ribble estuary or the ecology of our river is with our campaign.

We will work with ANYONE, even people who in the past have accused us of 'scaremongering' to make sure that the Ribble barrage and floodplain housing ideas never happen.

Riversway Councillors Make Vague Promises of Riverworks Consultation

Preston Riversway's three Labour Councillors, Linda Crompton, Jack Davenport and Bhikhu Patel have issued a statement about a consultation they are planning on the Riverworks proposals.

The statement comes in the Summer 2006 edition of the 'Riversway Labour Rose', and is titled "Riverworks: Residents To Get Their Say".

In their statement they say "Not all the ideas may be appropriate to this area" and that "many of the ideas look promising, while others seem barely feasible".

These councillors are right to be beginning to ask questions about the contents of Riverworks, and they have stepped well away from the council's official 'line' that the Riverworks proposals are the best thing since sliced bread, perhaps because so many local people have told them that the ideas stink. But does their statement go far enough?

The full statement is below, with additional comments in italics from 'Riversider' of the 'Save The Ribble' Campaign.

"Riverworks: Residents To Get Their Say".



The issue of the Riverworks proposals has begun to gather interest from residents (concern, incredulity and outrage might be better words to describe how we feel!)

The scheme provides an opportunity for massive improvements along the River Ribble and the Docks area (who says that building over beautiful green belt areas and sports pitches is an improvement?). However not all the ideas may be appropriate to this area. (Which ones - why not be specific about what you are for and what you are against?)

Your Labour Councillors are committed to ensuring that your voice is heard. With this in mind we will begin a consultation programme of our own (good - but when?), independent of anything Preston City Council will do of its own accord (why hasn't Preston City Council even bothered to ask our opinions yet, when they have been promoting the Riverworks proposals for several years now?)

The purpose is to ensure that the development and plans are influenced by residents wishes, to avoid the difficulties that often come with major developments when they are proposed.(This is what Save The Ribble wants too - but we need to start sooner rather than later - leave things too late and there will too much money and power behind the proposals for local voices to make a difference)

Many of the ideas suggested look promising while others look barely feasible (which ones?). We are awaiting a deliverability survey (which will cost how much of council tax payers money?) and only then will we be able to consider any form of consultation. (why can you not find out and represent our views now?). This consultation will come as soon as possible, so we ask that you be patient.

This statement is far too vague from people who are responsible for representing the interests of the people of this area.

The ideas in the Riverworks proposals have been published and in the public domain for long enough for intelligent public representatives to start scrutinising the details, forming their opinions and explaining them to their electors.

Ideas such as; a barrage that would raise the river level to permanently high tide levels, turning the Ribble into a water sports park, building 4000 houses on the greenbelt land that lines the Ribble's banks, developing housing estates over our local sports pitches like Penwortham Holme, Vernons and Frenchwood Rec, and over our local allotments would all have a direct impact on people who live in the Broadgate and Riversway area (and on people of many other areas up and down the Ribble - who will be consulting them?).

It is not much to ask that our councillors should be able to express a clear opinion on these matters, one way or the other - that is what democratic accountability and leadership is all about - local councillors have had the courage to begin to think independently from the council leadership and to admit that some of the major proposals are 'not appropriate for our area' - now they must draw some conclusions from this thinking, rather than asking us to wait till later to tell them how much these proposals stink.

'Save The Ribble' says that spending our money on 'deliverability' surveys for development ideas that we do not want is wasting our money - we are glad that councillors are beginning to start listening to their constituents, but feel they should be prepared to tie their colours to the mast, rather than fobbing us off and telling us to 'be patient', while developers' money, power and momentum gathers all the time behind the Riverworks ideas.

Why should we be patient, when the leadership of the council is promoting policies that would be so disastrous for our area, and for the ecology of our river, and is already spending our money on pursuing these policies?

The leadership of the council seems intent on pushing through policies that are driven by profit opportunities for developers rather than the interests of local people or our environment - where do our local councillors stand on this?

While consultation is vital, Vague statements promising consultation at some undetermined time in the future are nowhere near enough...


We invite the Riversway Councillors, and any other councillors or residents of areas affected by Riverworks to get in touch with the Save The Ribble Campaign, we will be happy to provide you with information on the Riverworks barrage and housing proposals and their potential consequences for local people and the environment, and to work with you in opposing them.


See also:

Will Ribbleside Residents Voices Be Heard?

Riverworks: Pub Debate Primer

Threat To Frenchwood Recreation Ground

Allotments: 10 Reasons Why Preston City Council Should Not Build Over Them

City Councillor Promises That Residents Will Be Consulted

Residents Concerns for The Environment and Loss of Quality of Life

and

The Dangers of the Riverworks Barrage and Flood Plain Housing Proposals