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Archive for September, 2012

King, Queen and Knight check badger cull (Update)

Posted in National news, Nature, Politics on September 25, 2012| 1 Comment »

The badger – an icon of the English countryside set to disappear?

Sir David Attenborough, Simon King OBE and Brian May CBE of rock group Queen are resisting the move by government mandarins to cull 70% of badgers from the English countryside. Attenborough’s and King’s outcry combined with May’s petition is a welcome boost to the Badger Trust’s efforts to save this iconic creature from mass slaughter.

Many leading scientists have stated that a cull this autumn will not work and may even increase the spread of bTB (bovine tuberculosis). The majority of scientists agree that the vaccination of badgers and cattle is a far better and more cost-effective option.

It’s science not sentiment that’s driving our opposition to the Government’s policy to cull badgers in Gloucestershire and Somerset this autumn.

Sir David Attenborough and Simon King OBE

Licenses were granted last week for pilot culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset. According to one of the government’s advisers, there is no real way of knowing how many badgers there are in any given area and therefore no way of measuring whether the 70% target has been achieved or not. They may end up killing them all!

The question is this: who would you rather believe? Attenborough – a man whose proven track record is to preserve nature (including cattle) or the mandarins of power that for reasons of public opinion “need to be seen to be doing something”.

Brian May defiant against government plans to cull the badger

Plans to cull badgers in Wales were recently abandoned in favour of vaccination and there are no plans to cull in Scotland. So why does it make so much sense in England?

If you are against this cull, sign Brian May’s petition posted on HM Government’s e-petition site.

UPDATE: According to the BBC, Natural England has issued a second licence allowing farmers to shoot badgers.

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‘Blackbelts’ needed to save Greenbelt

Posted in Local news, Politics on September 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Anlaby (Unlouebi) Domesday entry 1086 A.D.

Registered in the Domesday Book as a “habitation of the Manor of North Ferriby” and serving as a Royalist base during the first major action of the English Civil War during the 1642 siege of Kingston-upon-Hull, Anlaby (Unlouebi) and the other settlements of Haltemprice have enjoyed their Greenbelt for over a thousand years and are not about to let it go without a battle.

Because that seems to be the direction in which Hull City Council and East Riding Council are headed if recent declarations by the former are not rescinded. Is a Greater Kingston-upon-Hull under construction?

For those old enough to remember, the successful “HANDS OFF HALTEMPRICE” campaign of the sixties and seventies may be on the point of re-emerging.

The first signs of Hull City Council’s retreat from a previous agreement with East Riding Council protecting the Greenbelt, appeared in the Hull Mail’s September 8th edition:

Hull City Council are not objecting to the principle of building on previously protected open areas between the city boundary and Haltemprice settlements.

Cllr. Stephen Parnaby O.B.E.

East Riding Council leader Stephen Parnaby intends to resist:

I am extremely disappointed that at the 11th hour, Hull has deleted references to the strategic gaps between Hull and the Haltemprice villages in the joint

statement. Gaps in these areas have been identified in successive local plans for more than 40 years. Hull City Council should not think we will stand by and let this happen. I will fight tooth and nail against inappropriate development which would also increase flood risk. I urge residents to let their views be known to the City Council.

For those that care about Anlaby, Councillor Parnaby’s call to action should not go unheeded. As the battle lines are drawn, it is time to group, reflect, consider our strategy and start learning the song Keep Your Hands Off Haltemprice!

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Parking charges – a false economy

Posted in Local news, Politics on September 2, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Springfield Way retail park welcomes shoppers with ample free parking

Anlaby is a busy and thriving community; there is an excellent variety of shops: the new delicatessen, the butcher, the baker, the green grocer, the convenience store, the optician and so on.  Business in the village is brisk – dare I say booming, particularly on Saturdays. The church site cleanup is over, the clouds have dispersed and the horizon looks bright.

Not so fast. Rumours of car park charges are stirring a storm that is blowing optimism from the high street into rocky waters.

The charges probably won’t be much to begin with, but you know how it is. They’ll start low – so that no one feels their effect to begin with – and stealthily creep upwards to create a hansom income for the local council. At least that’s the theory.

In practice, shoppers have an alternative and wallets do the voting. The Springfield Way Retail Park will surely greet such news with open arms and beckon shoppers to their abundant free parking.

Charging for parking in Anlaby is a false economy to the high street and we should resist such a measure.

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