Cox on the Box

I was interviewed about the Youth Inclusion Programme (YIP) for the BBC's Politics Programme. So I may get five seconds of fame on Sunday. Pleased to say Liberal Youth have taken up the cause, and will be campaigning for the YIP.

Town Council signs up to 10:10

Teignmouth Town Council has signed up to 10:10, the vote was unanimous. Teignbridge District Council and Teignmouth Community College are already signed up. If you are wondering what 10:10 is, you can find out more at www.1010uk.org/. It is very simple, we all cut our carbon by 10% this year. You, me, the council, local businesses, schools...

Residents in Teignbridge have seen the lowest rise in Council Tax over the past seven years compared to other district councils in Devon, new figures reveal.

The highest increase has been in West Devon where residents have seen a near 40% rise in their council tax.

West Devon’s council tax is £192.15 for an average Band D home.

Over the seven years since 2003, council tax for Teignbridge District Council (excluding all other authorities like police, county council) has gone up by 19.1% — the lowest for any of the eight district councils in the county and well below the average rate of increase, reports local councillor Alan Connett.


The seven year increases for each council are:

•Teignbridge 19.1%.
•Mid Devon 25.9%.
•East Devon 26.3%.
•North Devon 26.8%.
•Exeter 27.5%.
•South Hams 28.2%.
•Torridge 31%.
•West Devon 39.6%.
The average increase over the seven years is 28.2% and the average amount payable for a band D property is £151-64. The Council Tax for Teignbridge Council’s services is £150-17 – equivalent to £2-88 a week, added Cllr Connett.
He explained:” Since our first budget in 2004, we have set ourselves the target of low or no increases in council tax in Teignbridge and the fruit of that work is now being seen.


“Council Tax in Teignbridge has fallen below the Devon district average compared to being above average seven years ago. In addition while every other district council in Devon has seen a seven-year increase above 25%, we are well below at 19%”.

Last week (22 Feb) Teignbridge set a lower than predicted council tax of 1.97% — equivalent to a rise of six pence a week.

Youth Inclusion Programmes

I am appalled that Conservative led Devon County Council will be cutting the Youth Inclusion Programmes (YIP) in West Teignmouth on 31 March.

I understand the great pressure upon the council’s finances at this time; however this cut is really stupid and a false economy. Projects like the YIP that improve the life-chances for young people, more than payback their cost in the long run. What is the cost to society of having someone on benefits for most of their life, what is the cost to society of someone in and out of prison? The YIP programme lived up to the promises made at the launch, with a significant drop in crime and anti social behaviour, and young people supported into gainful employment or training.

West Teignmouth is one of the most deprived wards in Devon according to the Index of Multiple Deprivation. The YIP built on, and gave depth to the outstanding work of PC Colley and his Neighbourhood Police Team, TCA, Teign Housing, and many others, in dealing with West Teignmouth’s problems. It is very sad that the hard work of these people should be undermined in this way.

More Parking Spaces

Up to fifteen, desperately needed, new parking spaces have recently been created in Teignmouth Town Centre, simply by re-jigging some of the town’s existing parking bays.

Chris Bray and I noticed last year that some of the existing parking bays around the town did not make the best use of the road space available. So armed with a tape measure and 'Manual for Streets' , we set out to drawn up plans to create more parking and put our ideas to the Highways Authority. We're delighted to see that our proposals have now resulted in approximately seven extra spaces being created in Carlton Place and with a similar amount of additional spaces being formed in other parts of the town.

It all started when whilst walking through Carlton Place I noticed that even with cars parked on either side of the street there was still enough room for lorries to pass with ease, and I remembered from my childhood, that the road was originally a two-way street. It struck me that the parking spaces parallel to the Riviera building were a throw back from that time and hadn’t been up-dated when the road became a one-way street a several decade ago. Chris and I then looked for other areas to create more parking and found

Of course we realise that this isn’t going to resolve all of Teignmouth’s parking issues, however the new parking bays will give Teignmouth over a dozen extra spaces from virtually thin air, and at the negligible cost of painting few lines; that's got to be a positive result.

Council Tax

Teignbridge District Council's annual budget consultation is underway, with a brand new online tool enabling local people to show how they'd prioritise and spend money across Council services.

The public consultation runs until Tuesday 16 February, with local people able to go online to show the Council what they'd spend money on using a notional £10 budget to proportionally represent Teignbridge's whole budget. For those without internet access there will also be a public meeting on Friday 22nd January at Teignbridge's Forde House offices from 6pm - 7.30pm where a similar exercise will take place.

The online consultation can be accessed at www.teignbridge.gov.uk/budget, and is a first for the Council, with the results going on to help inform the Council's debate on the budget for 2010/11. Further information including initial discussions by Members regarding potential Council Tax levels and changed can also be viewed on the same web page as the consultation, and may help participants make an informed choice. Teignbridge’s possible budget proposals are not limited to the options already discussed by Members.

Using the online tool people can see how Teignbridge spent its 2009/10 budget as a proportion of £10. They can then split £10 between 11 areas of Council service by adding to, reducing or keeping the current amount. Alternatively they can even opt to 'Stop the service' entirely. When setting their budget they'll be able to use the whole £10, less or more. However, if they go over budget they'll have to explain how they'll find the extra money. The Services are:

· Street Cleaning

· Waste Collection & Recycling

· Public Toilets

· Housing - including affordable housing, homelessness etc.

· Parks, open spaces & play

· Leisure and sports

· Concessionary Bus Fares (non-negotiable as it is set by the Government)

· Economic Development & Tourism

· Planning and Building Control

· Community & Culture - including crime reduction, diversity, engagement, partnerships and more.

· Environment, Food and Safety

The responses to the survey will then be considered by Councillors as they debate and set the budget for the coming year.

Treat roads for ice whilst the sun is shining

The chaos on Telegraph Hill highlighted the old problem of grit lorries not being able to get to areas blocked off by accidents caused by the ice they have come to clear. Devon's greenest councillor Gordon Hook thinks he may have an answer. Gordon wants to the County Council to recycle summer sunshine collected by Devon's roads and use it to keep them ice-free in winter. Gordon has been looking at an experimental scheme that uses pipes installed underneath a section of road to gather solar energy in summer and recirculate it in winter.

The technology is known as interseasonal heat transfer, or IHT. Scientists believe the IHT could be a way to treat the roads which are the first to freeze, and to heat and cool buildings, cutting energy bills and lower greenhouse gas emissions. In summer, when road temperatures can reach 40C, the water is warmed and pumped to pipes insulated with polystyrene. In winter, when sensors detect the temperature at 2C, warm water is pumped back under the road to heat the ground and prevent ice forming. IHT technology has been the subject of a two-year trial on a little-used access road on the M1 by scientists at the Transport Research Laboratory.

More information about Interseasonal Heat Transfer can be found here:http: www.icax.co.uk/