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East Devon set to reject Greater Exeter Strategic Plan – reports

  • by JW

“This defies common sense, this does nothing for East Devon, and we should not be a member of GESP going forward. This document is all about volume house building, is dangerously flawed and contradictory.”

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Yesterday’s meeting of East Devon’s strategic planning committee voted to leave the GESP:

East Devon set to reject Greater Exeter Strategic Plan – Vision Group for Sidmouth

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This is really quite an extraordinary step – as reported today on Devon Live:

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Greater Exeter Plan in doubt with East Devon set to pull out of the ‘monstrosity’

Councillors branded the major blueprint “a dead camel”

As the initial decision to take part in GESP was a full council decision, the recommendation stands referred to full council to make the final decision.

Putting forward her call to pull out of GESP, Cllr Eleanor Rylance said that the plan was not fit to be consulted on now or at any point.

She said: “They say a camel is a horse designed by committee and this is what this is. We are being asked to send a camel out to consultation, and instead of putting forward this monstrosity of a dead camel, we should withdraw from GESP. This plan is not a fit plan and there is nothing about we should pass to consultation at this point or any point.

“This has self-contradictory polices clearly written by different people and it is unreasonable to put this before anyone. We are living in a different world from when this was drawn up and our world has changed and I am bemused that we are sticking doggedly to a timetable drawn up last year.

“This defies common sense, this does nothing for East Devon, and we should not be a member of GESP going forward. This document is all about volume house building, is dangerously flawed and contradictory.”

Cllr Paul Arnott, leader of the council, seconded her recommendation, and said that the promises in the plan were an illusion, the analysis of economic growth a dangerous fiction and doubling what was realistic, and that if the council voted for this, it would legitimise all that was come before.

He added that it was a ‘complete myth’ that East Devon would get the infrastructure it required from this, like the Whimple passing loop, and that East Devon should head in a different direction and ‘take back control’.

Greater Exeter Plan in doubt with East Devon set to pull out of the ‘monstrosity’ – Devon Live

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Here’s the full meeting as recorded:

Strategic Planning Committee – YouTube

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With further reports here:

Owl’s view on EDDC Strategic Planning Committee recommendation to withdraw from GESP | East Devon Watch

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And an interesting comment reminding us about the setting up of the Exeter and East Devon Growth Point:

COMMENT: Owl’s view on EDDC Strategic Planning Committee recommendation to withdraw from GESP | East Devon Watch