Councillors and officials fall out over rubbish
DEEP divisions have arisen between councillors in Cowal and council officials over the threat to suspend refuse collection services from unadopted roads from the end of this month.
This follows the issuing last Wednesday of letters to the residents of a number of streets and lanes in Cowal informing them that, from the end of February the kerbside collection would cease unless the road surfaces were reinstated.
Councillors are also worried that this may be the thin end of the wedge, and that other areas with access problems may find themselves on a hit list for service removal.
The difficulty is com-pounded by the fact that in some instances the roads are not owned by the residents, but by third parties.
White’s Brae, for example, is owned by the Benmore Trust, and Crochan Road is owned by the Dunoon Estate.
However, the potential removal of the service has angered councillors, who are taking steps to distance themselves from the decision, and condemning officers for acting prematurely and not giving due consideration to the options open to them
Councillor Brian Chennell, chairman of the Bute and Cowal Area Committee, said: “Whilst accepting there may be health and safety concerns, it is disappointing that despite repeated requests to investigate other possible methods of pick-up, the only solution provided by the department was to have pick up points at the end of these roads.”
He said: “As a result, councillors have forwarded the matter for consideration at Strategic Policy Committee level, as the problem must exist in other areas of Argyll and Bute.
“I and my fellow councillors are seeking a resolution that will not result in any diminution of service.”
His view was echoed by Councillor Gordon McKinven, who said he was very angry about what had been done; “Only three weeks ago the residents of Royal Crescent Lane had a meeting with the roads’ manager to explore the possibility of doing something about the road surface. They got a letter in the morning from him telling them about the possibilities of doing something about it - and in the afternoon another letter telling them their doorstep collection was being discontinued.
“We have to get round a table and talk about what’s going on. Councillors have to lead with this regardless of what officers say.”
Councillor Dick Walsh explained: “The issue centres around the split of responsibility whereby officers are responsible for the operational side of council services and the elected members are responsible for policy.
The advice from the area manager for Amenity Services is that, following representations from staff, and the carrying out of risk assessments under the requirements of health and safety, he has no alternative but to suspend the current refuse collections from areas deemed to be ‘high-risk’ due primarily to the state of the roads.
As previously reported in the Observer the areas are:- Ardtully Brae, Royal Crescent Lane, Crochan Road in Dunoon, Blairmore High Road, Crawford Lane, Old Sawmill Road, Strachur, and Horseshoe, Tighnabruaich, but additionally - and not on the list - is Chalet Brae, also in Tighnabruaich.
Cllr Walsh went on: “It’s been suggested that to continue to service the above areas would present a health and safety risk to operatives or breakdowns or damage to vehicles.”
But this argument has failed to persuade councillors that the cessation of the service is justifed, and there are also concerns that the timescale - which effectively gives residents a mere three weeks to resolve the situation - is totally inadequate.
Cllr Walsh maintains that, whilst there is a need to protect council staff, the councillors were critical of what they regarded as a one-sided approach to the issue.
“We despair at this,” he said, “as this will impact significantly on the elderly and disabled who live in those areas.”
There was a further issue over the safety aspects of placing of large numbers of bins at road ends, and also the matter of who owned the land on which they were to be sited.
Cllr Walsh went on: “We spend a significant amount of money providing the very best in refuse vehicles. Some of them cost in excess of £100,000 and all are clearly designed to operate in roads that are uneven - for instance, the dumping area in the tip.”
He argued that driving responsibly, carefully and slowly should remove or reduce any risk to workers. There are also smaller vehicles for the narrower and more restricted rural collections.
“We don’t support the action and we have requested that the whole issue be referred to the Council’s Strategic Policy Committee to enable further discussions, and I have personally raised issues with our health and safety officers and with the council leader.”
Cllr Walsh pointed out the complication of road ownership: “Many of the these roads are not in the ownership of the residents, nor do they currently have any responsibility or liability for their upkeep.
“The Occupiers’ Liability Scotland Act 1960 places a duty of care on the owners of land and property to ensure that they are kept in a safe condition.
“I doubt very much if residents who currently have only a right of access would want to take action that would precipitate the transfer of any liability from the owner to them.”
Cllr Walsh has worked as a milkman for some time, and delivers throughout the area, so he can claim to have considerable knowledge of local road conditions.
He said: “For a number of years I have been delivering to households that are served by unsurfaced, private and unadopted roads and if you take into account the geography, conditions and layout, there should be no problem with safety of personnel or damage to vehicles.
“We take pride in the fact that we deliver the milk to the doorstep in all weather conditions and before breakfast time - a record so far that hasn’t been beaten.
“All it takes is the will to do it.”


Ferry meeting – it’s back to Europe
THERE were no rabbits pulled from the Transport Minister’s hat at last week’s meeting to discuss the future - or lack of it - of the passenger/vehicular service between Gourock and Dunoon.
The meeting was attended by MSPs, councillors and ferry campaigner Neil Kay, and while most of those present made positive noises, it is difficult to see anything happening before the elections, now only a matter of weeks away.
However, there was agreement that the way ahead lay in a fresh approach to the EU Commissioners to get them to adopt a more flexible attitude to the rules - an approach promoted by MEP Alyn Smith at the public meeting in December when he pointed out that, since the European Union stretches from Cyprus to Lapland, the rules must necessarily be elastic.
In a statement following the meeting, Tavish Scott said: “We had a constructive meeting where we explored all the options to take forward a lifeline ferry service for the Gourock and Dunoon communities.
“I was keen to ask the invited parties for an explanation of their views and what they thought we should explore. A number of sensible constructive suggestions were made which we will immediately follow up.
“The discussions will be helpful in our ongoing discussions with the European Commission, and I am grateful to the people who took the time to come to Edinburgh today. Again I will confirm my priority in all our ferry tendering is that we maintain and improve the services for local people and Islanders. That there will be no disruption, irrespective of the process, to the services - ferry users will get the ferry service they rightly need and deserve.
“And that we will protect the workforce throughout the process.”
The last sentence does seem to indicate a less than optimistic viewpoint - it is hard to envisage a scenario which would require the workforce to be protected except where the service would be withdrawn or reduced.
MP Alan Reid said: “At the public meeting in Dunoon’s Queen’s Hall, we undertook to relay the wishes of the meeting for an unrestricted vehicle service on the Dunoon-Gourock route to the Scottish Transport Minister and the European Commission.
“We left the Minister in no doubt of the strength of feeling in Dunoon that the Dunoon-Gourock service should be allowed to carry vehicles on an unrestricted basis. There was all-party agreement to approach the European Commission and ask them to agree more flexibility in the interpretation of the rules which would allow the removal of the frequency restriction that has been imposed on CalMac for the last 25 years.”
If this is indeed the case it does seem odd; the restrictions on the service have nothing to do with Europe. They were imposed in 1982 by the then Secretary of State for Scotland and the power to remove them lies not with Europe, but the Scottish Executive.
Mr Reid added: “It was agreed that paying a ferry operator to carry foot passengers on the Dunoon-Gourock route whilst allowing that operator to carry vehicles on an unrestricted basis would allow fair competition on cross-Clyde services.
“The Minister indicated at the meeting that discussions with Europe had already begun to try and secure the local community’s wishes for an unrestricted service. The Minister indicated that officials would begin further discussions with the European Commission in the next few weeks.”
George Lyon said: “It was agreed that MEPs have an important role to play and we must work closely with them in trying to secure agreement from the Commission.”
“Once these initial discussions have taken place there will be a need for a face-to-face meeting with the European Transport Commissioner and local representatives, and I hope that will take place shortly.”
The SNP’s Jim Mather commented: “It was good to see local people like Councillor Dick Walsh and Professor Neil Kay turn up in Edinburgh to remind the minister of the strength of local feeling at the meeting in the Queen’s Hall, and the specific requirement for an unrestricted vehicle service that links the two town centres.
“Some progress was made in that the meeting also resolved to pack in behind Alyn Smith’s overture to involve the European Commission and confront them with the reality of the local situation.”
He added: “However, I did find it a bit disappointing that there was not greater focus on the local economy, for this exercise is not about minimising subsidies or limply delivering a de facto monopoly to Western Ferries. it is about designing a ferry service that retains local options and boosts competition and helps to attract more residents, more visitors and more investment to Dunoon and Cowal.”
Cllr Brian Chennell said that the Executive appeared to take on board the concerns and possible solutions that were proposed, adding: “It is hoped these are followed through quickly, and that representatives of the European Commission will visit this area to see for themselves our unique situation.
“I personally hope that productive discussions can take place as soon as possible and not be delayed by the forthcoming elections.”
Professor Neil Kay commented: “It is fair to say that the councillors and members of the three parliaments represented at the meeting spoke eloquently in favour of a robust vehicle-carrying ferry service between Gourock and Dunoon town centres. There was genuine and broad cross-party consensus on the matter and I believe the Minister recognised that.
“I do not see that as the problem. The problem is that instead of seizing the opportunity to get fresh sets of eyes to look at the issues, it now seems that the matter is being referred back to the same officials who have managed to mishandle every single ferry tender they have been responsible for over the past few years, from Orkney and Shetland, through Campbeltown-Ballycastle, not forgetting the main CalMac network tender, and of course Gourock-Dunoon.
“Even worse, for these same civil servants to now come up with details of a suitable proposal for an unrestricted vehicle-carrying service would mean their admitting their advice to ministers has been wrong all these years.
“And that is simply not going to happen.”


Mather claims 289 percent increase in water bills
Jim Mather MSP, Shadow spokesman for Enterprise, claims that Scottish Water charges have risen massively since 1995.
He said that recent press releases made much of the fact that water charges will rise by less than inflation in the current year, but close examination of their figures suggests that very substantial increases took place between 1995.
In fact, he says across the West of Scotland water charges rose by 289 percent, based on the increase in water rate for a band D property in this area between 1995 and 2006.
Mr Mather said: “I note the very upbeat presentation being put upon this year’s figures and the suggestion by Scottish Water Chairman, Ronnie Mercer that the company is now on a secure financial footing.
“Given the price rises in earlier years it is difficult to see how this could be otherwise.
“It is salutary to reflect that had there not been considerable whistle-blowing by me and my good friends Jim and Margaret Cuthbert, who were respectively the former chief statistician and senior economist at the Scottish Office, then the current level of charges would have been considerably higher.”
“For there is a total correlation between the timing of our focus on this new stealth tax and the decision by the Government and the Water Commission to take the heat out of planned increases.”
Mr Mather said that one reason why Scottish Water’s charges were so high is the insistence on the part of the Scottish Executive that the water utility must fund its extensive capital investment programme out of current charges rather than spreading the costs by borrowing prudently.
He claimed that a company of the standing and importance of Scottish Water could borrow money at favourable terms with repayments phased over a considerable period of time.
That, he said, would help to remove a great deal of the present pressure from hard pressed water charge payers, who are now paying for infrastructure renewals for past and future generations.


STEERING GROUP MEETS
A steering group has been set up to help promote Dunoon as the Gateway to the National Park.
Representatives from Argyll and Bute Council, The National Park, and HIE Argyll and the Islands, met with 13 local businesses from Cowal on February 6 to discuss the best way of achieving this.
Chairman of the Bute and Cowal Area Committee, Councillor Brian Chennell, said: “The meeting was held following a very successful dinner event on January 18.
“While we realise that a lot of work will be needed to change perceptions of Dunoon and Cowal, everyone involved has a strong commitment to the project and we believe we will be able to promote the area as a unique place to visit and live.”
After an extensive question and answer session, and input from the majority of those attending, it was suggested that the way forward was to set up a core steering group, with sub groups leading on specific actions and priorities.
The general feeling was that not only had the meeting been most productive by securing a common aim to working in partnership to bring added benefits and improvements to the Cowal area, there was also evidence of a strong need to show the area in a positive manner.
The next meeting will take place on Tuesday March 6.