New Blackmore Vale, December 10, 2021 51
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Politics
We must care enough to protect our planet from harm The word ‘culture’ gets bandied about and we can lose sight of its importance. It can be seen as a soggy concept about which few care. Like it or not, organisations do have prevailing cultures, often set from the top, which embody their values and principles: ‘how things get done around here’. The culture of an organisation can be the core of its strength or, sometimes, its downfall. A strong, principled culture is what makes scientists get things right in the face of commercial pressures. It is what enables businesses to balance the interests of shareholders, customers, employees and local communities. It is what inspires the best politicians in properly safeguarding the nation’s future rather than playing to the gallery. Much of COP26 revolved around ‘culture’ as the interwoven social, political and economic driver of decisionmaking. It has certainly shown
Mike Chapman, on behalf of Vale-based Lib Dems a need for a significant change in the habits, behaviours and outlooks of billions of people. Climate change challenges us. Do we care enough to pay the upfront costs of switching from fossil fuels to clean energy? Do we care enough about faraway countries to contribute to their necessary transformations? Does our culture lead us to collaborate globally or find reasons to prioritise national self-interest?
Change starts at home. Our environment, here, is a treasure: the Jurassic Coast, the carved, curved hills of Hardy Country, the Wiltshire Downs, the Blackmore Vale itself to say nothing of the young otter I saw last week playing in a pristine upper stream. These things come together to remind us of cause and effect, of how connected things are, of how valuable are simple things: new birth, clean water, fine views and the happiness and friendships they can bring. ‘Less is More’ as a three-word tag line. Feet firmly back on the ground, there are practical things to do. Our water: whether there is legislation or not, each community across the Vale should be alert to every sewage spill and call it out, loudly. We, individually, should not even put a kitchen towel down the loo, let alone plasticised wipes. Housing: it is unforgiveable now to build houses with a substantial carbon footprint that will require retrofitting with
low-carbon technology or in climate-vulnerable places that require massive engineering inputs to make them safe. It is as unforgiveable to contemplate new developments without the integration of employment, public transport, services and amenities that create properly sustainable communities. ‘Market forces will provide’ is the mantra of the planners. The nation has destroyed much of its industrial heritage and capability through this doctrine. Driven by market forces alone we would still have lead in paint and worse. Market forces deliver lowest cost solutions unless a government intervenes to insist on quality. Governments must regulate for the future good. So, as our Local Plan processes go through their further consulting motions across the Vale, there is a need to pressure decision-makers to future-proof our communities. Another three-worder, then: ‘Must Do Better’.
Goodwill doesn’t stretch to government Tis the season of goodwill, but as we take stock at the end of the year, goodwill to the government is in short supply. Indeed, we’ve all endured a short supply of stock in the supermarkets and on the forecourts. Meanwhile inflation – some global, yes, but much self-inflicted – and tax rises look set to gnaw away at the money in our pockets. I’m sure goodwill to the government is lacking in our local MPs too – even if they can’t admit it. They promoted an ‘oven ready’ solution to the social care crisis, only for us to discover it will still force hundreds of those on the lowest incomes to sell their homes. Hardly the spirit
Greg Williams, of Dorset Labour of the season… We can only hope that, like Ebenezer Scrooge, they will awaken with a change of heart once the bill returns from the Lords. We shall see. My hopes aren’t high though. You just get the sense it’s one
rule for them, one rule for the rest of us. People where I live in Shaftesbury were aghast at the Tories’ brazen attempt to let Owen Paterson off the hook when he was caught taking corporate cash to influence government procurement processes. Even though the member for North Dorset voted against the government, it’s a pity for him that the stench of sleaze lingers on. Speaking of bungs, perhaps as a Christmas present, our MPs could get Blackmore Vale some of that ‘levelling up’ cash their newer colleagues in the north have got? One thing’s clear folks – you have to vote Labour for decades and then vote Tory for the first time to get your
pork-barrel money. We’ve been doing it wrong here! On behalf of the local Labour party, I’d like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. I know many of our members are paying special attention to those in their villages who are facing Christmas alone for the first time because of covid. Just a friendly face at the window and the offer of something like a warm Christmas pudding in a tupperware can make a huge difference. So while goodwill may be hard to come by in Westminster this Christmas, let’s all take a moment to think of those near to us – who we may not be close to – but could do with a little help.
