Graham Stuart attends Keyingham meeting on controversial Gypsy site
GRAHAM STUART MP has stepped into the middle of a row over a retrospective planning application to continue to use land North of Mill Road, Keyingham as a residential Gypsy/Traveller site for four caravans.
The MP has been invited to a meeting tonight organised by the Keyingham Parish Council to listen to residents' views about the planning application. The planning application would retrospectively give permission for the siting of the caravans including hardstanding, erection of amenity block and installation of sewage treatment plant. The Gypsy/Traveller applicants have already bought the plot of land under discussion.
The planning application has prompted an angry reaction from local residents with over 300 letters of objection being submitted and an active campaign being fought by action group: Holderness RAID (Residents Against Inappropriate Development).
Graham Stuart said: “Residents don’t like the fact that people appear able to move on to land without planning permission, build hard standings and flout the laws that apply to everyone else. Having spoken to the East Riding Council I am reassured that this application is being treated like any other application. It is up to the Council to determine but, while I have no formal role in the planning process, I am happy to support residents and make sure that they know the most effective way to have their voices heard. This application is for retrospective planning permission which, rightly or wrongly, is a long established part of the planning system and covers anyone, anywhere who builds something without permission."
The MP says that the coalition government is planning a raft of measures to restore the trust and confidence of residents, like those in Keyingham, and ensure that local communities have more say over what happens in their areas, whilst also introducing measures to support travellers to address discrimination (see Graham Stuart, MP website).
The Keyingham Parish Council meeting will take place tonight in Keyingham Village Hall at 7.30pm (Friday, March 4).
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THE HOLDERNESS GAZETTE has contained a lively debate in its letters page over the last few weeks between the Chair of Holderness RAID, Neil Whitelam and Community Development Worker, Lindsey Jones of the Hidden Voices project which works with Gypsy / Travellers in the East Riding of Yorkshire.
Lindsey Jones has warned of the possible "racially motivated undertone" of the RAID campaign and pointed to the fact that its Chair, Neil Whitelam, is a previous British National Party candidate. Neil Whitelam was the BNP candidate for the Beverley & Holderness constituency in the 2010 general election although he says in the current edition of the Gazette (March 3rd) that he is not affiliated to any political party at this present time.
Because of the alleged BNP connection it may be that 'traditional' politicians have been reluctant to get involved in the issue? The Parish Council meeting tonight, attended by Graham Stuart, should therefore be seen as a positive development.
Whatever the involvement of the politicians, it would seem to be prudent for Keyingham campaigners to ensure that their action is not seen as some racist backlash against a particular ethnic group, but is actually what it says on the tin; a concerned campaign against inappropriate environmental development.
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| Neil Whitelam, Chair RAID |
Because of the alleged BNP connection it may be that 'traditional' politicians have been reluctant to get involved in the issue? The Parish Council meeting tonight, attended by Graham Stuart, should therefore be seen as a positive development.
Whatever the involvement of the politicians, it would seem to be prudent for Keyingham campaigners to ensure that their action is not seen as some racist backlash against a particular ethnic group, but is actually what it says on the tin; a concerned campaign against inappropriate environmental development.
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7 comments:
It's a farce isn't it. The hypocrisy and double standards in all these articles I've read is unbelievable and so startlingly obvious I can't believe people aren't annoyed by it.
Neil Whitelam went out of his way to keep it non-political, and originally invited Graham Stuart MP, along with all other party candidates for the area to the inaugural meeting. Mr Stuart couldn't be bothered attending then, but now all of a sudden because he has seen a chance to score some political points, he has jumped on an already well established bandwagon.
He, by his actions has chosen to make it political, where Mr Whitelam specifically avoided any political involvement.
Furthermore, is it the case that an ex-BNP member cannot do any good for the community, for the sake of doing good, and it would have to have an ulterior motive?
Mr Whitelam is from the village and wants to see a gypsy site here as little as everyone else, and he has stepped up to the mark by helping form RAID, yet somehow that wasn't the actions of a decent man, it was the actions of a racist because he was at one time affiliated with the BNP?
If the is the case, then surely it is the opposite, and in fact it demonstrates that people involved with the BNP do care about our communities, enough so to put their necks on the line by standing up to be counted when it matters, whilst the likes of Graham Stuart choose to not get involved until he knows the result is almost a given, purely to score political points. Graham Stuart being a man who is paid BY US to stand up for us.
It reeks of hypocrisy and I hope the good people of Keyingham are wise to it.
People have seen Mr Whitelam is doing a good thing, non-political, unaffiliated to any party, and are pleased about it - hundreds attend the meetings, etc, so I hope that by reading a few articles telling them the contrary they do not now believe the articles and think Mr Whitelam is doing it because he's 'racist' against gypsies or something to that effect.
That would be a terrible shame.
It's a farce isn't it. The hypocrisy and double standards in all these articles I've read is unbelievable and so startlingly obvious I can't believe people aren't annoyed by it.
Neil Whitelam went out of his way to keep it non-political, and originally invited Graham Stuart MP, along with all other party candidates for the area to the inaugural meeting. Mr Stuart couldn't be bothered attending then, but now all of a sudden because he has seen a chance to score some political points, he has jumped on an already well established bandwagon.
He, by his actions has chosen to make it political, where Mr Whitelam specifically avoided any political involvement.
Furthermore, is it the case that an ex-BNP member cannot do any good for the community, for the sake of doing good, and it would have to have an ulterior motive?
Mr Whitelam is from the village and wants to see a gypsy site here as little as everyone else, and he has stepped up to the mark by helping form RAID, yet somehow that wasn't the actions of a decent man, it was the actions of a racist because he was at one time affiliated with the BNP?
If the is the case, then surely it is the opposite, and in fact it demonstrates that people involved with the BNP do care about our communities, enough so to put their necks on the line by standing up to be counted when it matters, whilst the likes of Graham Stuart choose to not get involved until he knows the result is almost a given, purely to score political points. Graham Stuart being a man who is paid BY US to stand up for us.
It reeks of hypocrisy and I hope the good people of Keyingham are wise to it.
People have seen Mr Whitelam is doing a good thing, non-political, unaffiliated to any party, and are pleased about it - hundreds attend the meetings, etc, so I hope that by reading a few articles telling them the contrary they do not now believe the articles and think Mr Whitelam is doing it because he's 'racist' against gypsies or something to that effect.
That would be a terrible shame.
l understand that Mr Whitelam is very passionate about his village and wants to do something about the Traveller's 'inappropriate development', there is nothing wrong with that and l'm not knocking his loyalties to Keyingham, however, l only raised the issue of his affiliation to a political party after seeing racist abuse on a Holderness RAID facebook link to a local BNP website on 7th February (this has since been closed down) and photographs of Keyingham residents attending Holderness RAID meetings on a BNP website 9th February.
If Holderness RAID is non political, why did l find any reference to what's going on in Keyingham via a Holderness RAID facebook link to a BNP website?, and why all the racist abuse? and what has any of the racist comments to do with 'innapropriate developments'?
As a Community Development Worker l think 200 residents attending a public meeting is an excellent outcome, Holderness RAID and the Parish Council have done extremely well in organising these. But the meetings should focus on the planning issues only.
I haven't accused Mr Whitelam of writing the racist abuse found on the various websites, however, the author has done Holderness RAID's campaign no favours at all and continues to hide behind his/her anonomity! l merely highlighted why l saw a racist and political undertone to the campaign. How other people view it is up to them.
Lindsey Jones
Community Development Worker
How about using some of that funding you receive to help and develop our community Ms Jones, not just for this special few but for the majority. I read the RAID forum and did not see much in the way of political motivated abuse you talk of, I did notice there where lots of false names trying to justify the travellers point of view on their 'inappropriate development' and slurring the work done by Raid and inferring because Mr Whitelam was involved it must be about a race issue, unfortunately they have failed to sway the general population of Keyingham in to believing such rubbish that they wrote. As a member of the village I stand firmly behind RAID's campaign and will not be swayed on the issue, the travellers have bought some land and built on it without the appropriate permission, something I have seen in other parts of the country, this only helps to alienate themselves from the rest of the law abiding people who do things in a proper fashion.
Mike
Keyingham Resident
I'd just keep repeating the word racism if I where you. It usually works to upset people and get them to believe what you're saying. Well done... Carry on!.....
Usual BNP rubbish Tom Fisher and friends! Get back to your 'Tom Comments Beverley & Holderness BNP website'! I'm really glad my job gets under your skin, l must be doing something right....l'd be more concerned if the BNP actually approved of my role working with an Ethnic Minority Group!
Because you job gets under someone's skin why do you think you are doing something right, surely the exact opposite is the case is it not. By the same analogy does Tom fisher writing comments and getting under your skin mean he is also getting it right?
You keep writing that the BNP are somehow connected with this objection group RAID, I too can use the internet and find that the chairman is no longer affiliated with the BNP, also Mr Graham Stuart is a sitting MP so does that now make this a political issue as he has been to speak to the masses.(probably not in my view).
I have attended some of the RAID meetings and it seems there were a pretty even mix of the population which infers to me a good cross section of political backgrounds, so as most of us are not about to become converts to one party or another because of attending a meeting or two can we stick to the topic in question
(inappropriate development of green belt land) as far as I am aware the meetings did stick to the issue in hand which is the planning issue did I miss something and you heard something different.
Finally, stop trying to belittle people because of their political view, we live in a democracy so people can think freely, this is worse than the racism card you so like to play, you should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself.
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