Latest! Falmer Parish Coucil Read All About It!

[seagull inde away stand]

LASTEST NEWS UPDATE-FALMER PARISH COUNCIL-CIRCULATED TODAY IN FALMER!!

Press reports which state that John Prescott's decision to grant planning permission for the stadium has been squashed and the matter sent back to him for re-determination are inaccurate.

The decision to grant planning permission has not been squashed only the high court can squash his decision to grant planning permission.

The position as follows:-

Lewes District Council together with Falmer Parish and the South Downs Society have challenged John Prescotts decision to grant planning permission. There are 16 different grounds of challenge. Some of these raise important points of principle and have serious implications for the future development in an area of outstanding beauty locally, and nationally.

We only need to win on one of our 16 grounds of challenge in order for the high court to squash Mr Prescotts decision to grant planning permission. Once a decision is squashed by the court, the matter is remitted to Mr Prescott for re-determination. On a re-determination the matter is to be heard “de novo”. This means that all parts of Mr Prescotts previous decision letter are to be disregarded and he is obliged to re-determine the matter from scratch, taking into account any new representations made by the parties.

On the 6 April 2006 the treasury solicitor, as legal adviser to the deputy prime ministers office notified LDC that the deputy prime minister had decided not to defend the challenge made by LDC, FPC and the SDS.

The treasury solicitor has made clear that Mr Prescott is conceding the case on just one of the grounds set out in our grounds of challenge.

We are mindful that although admission of that 1 ground is sufficient for us to win the high court case, this leaves 15 other grounds of challenge which remain untested.

If his decision is squashed, Mr Prescott should reconsider all points. However, we have not dismissed the possibility that he will try to put right the 1 mistake he has admitted and then simply reach the same conclusion as previously on all other points. If its clear that he has not genuinely re-considered all the issues, that in itself is unlawful and would provide grounds for a further challenge.
We want to ensure that Mr Prescott does not do this.

Before making any decision as to how to respond to the treasury solicitors recent letter, representatives from LDC, FPC and the SDS will discuss our options with the barristers who are handling our case in court.

DON'T SHOOT THE MESSENGER!!!!!!! JUST THEIR LATEST FLYER WHICH FLEW MY WAY

 

[Rangdo]

Interesting. Can't see how they can use the grounds for further challenge if they still don't agree. They had enough trouble scraping the funds to get this far. Thats if they did actually stump up their share in the end and LDC aren't secretely blowing more taxpayers cash on FPC's behalf.

 

[The Large One]

If his decision is squashed, Mr Prescott should reconsider all points. However, we have not dismissed the possibility that he will try to put right the 1 mistake he has admitted and then simply reach the same conclusion as previously on all other points. If its clear that he has not genuinely re-considered all the issues, that in itself is unlawful and would provide grounds for a further challenge.
We want to ensure that Mr Prescott does not do this.

If. If. If. It is TOTALLY clear he has considered Lewes' challenge. How can they say him not re-considering things is 'unlawful'? The fact he is not going to change his mind is not 'unlawful'. Jesus, they are trying to say John Prescott's mind is illegal.

Was this shit written by Simon 'My Pants Are On Fire' Barnes?

 

[Lord Bracknell]

I'll respond to that piece of NIMBY propaganda with the piece I wrote for the matchday programme on Monday:-



How much longer can this go on? That’s the question that every Albion supporter must be asking, as we hear of yet another delay in the long, long journey to our new stadium at Falmer.

The latest frustration is the announcement on 7 April that the Club’s planning application is to be referred back to John Prescott, because of an error his officials made when they described the stadium site as being “within the built-up area of Brighton and Hove”. If they’d said that part of the site was in the built-up area, there wouldn’t have been a problem, but Lewes District Council had picked up on this as part of their case to get the planning permission overturned in the High Court.

The good news in the announcement was that the government’s top legal experts have looked at the Lewes case and have come to the conclusion that everything else that Lewes were claiming amounted to no reason at all for the stadium not to be built. Most importantly, the Treasury Solicitor has found that the argument claiming that a stadium can’t be built in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty has no legal basis. And neither does the assertion by Lewes District Council that other sites are available.

How big a set-back is this? The football club’s advisors are telling us that it’s a minor technical hitch and that John Prescott can correct it by issuing a revised decision letter. In theory, that can be done quite quickly.

But rapid progress could still be frustrated by our opponents in Lewes. The Treasury Solicitor has drafted what is called a “Consent Order” – a procedural document to be agreed by the club, the City Council and Lewes District Council that will pave the way for the Deputy Prime Minister to reconsider his decision, in the light of the points that Lewes have raised.

There will be an opportunity for all parties to make representations to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, in the certain knowledge that, this time, all of the outstanding legal issues will be fully taken into account.

If Lewes District Council agree to that process, they will have won what they say they went to Court to achieve – re-consideration of their case. More importantly, they will have fulfilled their pledge, made publicly by Councillor Neil Commin at their Council meeting on 7 December, to get this issue resolved as quickly as possible, with the minimum of expenditure.

But what if they don’t agree? Lewes District Council have already hinted that they might want their day in Court, regardless of the cost and the time that this would waste. The outcome can be no different. All the Court can do is refer the matter back to John Prescott. But the timescale will be strung out even longer. Lewes now know that the best legal opinion that is available is that they will lose on every point that they have raised, apart from the technical matter of a line on a map of the built up area. They also know that an unnecessary Court hearing will ratchet up the costs of all of the parties and make the Council particularly vulnerable to claims that they should meet the costs of the other parties.

In one week in December, Albion fans succeeded in getting more than 5,000 Lewes residents to sign a petition, calling on their Council to drop their opposition to the stadium. The Council must know that their electorate would be outraged at further high-cost delaying tactics. We can only hope that they will consider this carefully and agree to sign the Consent Order. Even Norman Baker has said that “Whatever happens now we need a decision in the shortest possible time. This can’t go on indefinitely”.

If the Council do decide to string this out as long as possible, particularly in the face of the latest legal opinions, we will know that what they really want is to murder our football club. And that won’t be forgotten or forgiven. Anyone interested in forming a Seagulls Party to fight the Council elections next year?

 

[Easy 10]

And its "QUASHED" not "SQUASHED".
f***ing illiterate bumpkins.

 

[Jim in the West]

Good use of the word "murder", I thought, Lord B.....

 

[fozzie's headband]

Lord B,

If LDC agree to the Consent Order then will they have any comeback when JP gives the yes decision again?
Would they still be able to appeal for a Judicial review?

 

[mona]

Time for direct action ?

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Lord B,

If LDC agree to the Consent Order then will they have any comeback when JP gives the yes decision again?
Would they still be able to appeal for a Judicial review?

Only if Prescott's decision letter fails to address the concerns that they have raised.

For example, one of the issues they have included in their original submission to the High Court was this:-

Impact of the development on the historic Stanmer Park. The formation of the new link road and the scale of its use would have an unacceptable impact on this historic park. This was the conclusion of the first Inspector. Again, Mr Prescott has failed to mention it.

I would be fairly certain that a re-issued decision letter will mention Stanmer Park - and all the other issues raised by LDC. The decision won't change, though.

 

[The Great Cornholio]

And its "QUASHED" not "SQUASHED".
f***ing illiterate bumpkins.

Beat me to it!

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Good use of the word "murder", I thought, Lord B.....

I noticed this on Monday and I liked it too....

 

[Brovion]

It does seem to suggest though that when this 'mistake' is rectified they still want to press on with their oppositon rather than bowing out having won a point.

I bet LDC think the same.

 

[Easy 10]

Beat me to it!

Only by 9 hours or so, but who's counting

Honestly though, what kind of people are we dealing with that think a decision can be "squashed" for christs sake. I think the author of that report has a mental image of a Monty Python type giant foot hanging over the Falmer stadium, with the foot then brought down to "squash" the stadium, along with a comedy whoopee cushion fart sound.

f***ing mongs.

 

[Easy 10]

Falmer Parish Council prepare to "SQUASH" the Falmer decision.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Before making any decision as to how to respond to the treasury solicitors recent letter, representatives from LDC, FPC and the SDS will discuss our options with the barristers who are handling our case in court.

More of their constituents Council Tax money up in

 

[Rangdo]

Falmer Parish Council prepare to "SQUASH" the Falmer decision.