Andrew Brown, the leading partner in Wycombe.Info and Wycombeonthenet news websites was killed in a plane crash in Peru on Saturday 2 October at the age of 30. He had been working on a significant redesign of the sites for a relaunch in December.
The sites will now be closed down in his memory, and work on this blog is also being suspended.
We would like to thank the many people who have expressed their shock and sympathy at Andrew's untimely death.
Saturday, 9 October 2010
Friday, 1 October 2010
That was the week...
Hitting the buffers - The Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, made his second visit in a week to Buckinghamshire to try and calm local Tory fears about his plans to route the high speed London to Birmingham trains across the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, but he only succeeded in making them more annoyed. His expected statement about the route has now been put back until later in year while Mr Hammond and his officials try to find agreement on mitigation measures that will be acceptable. He’s not doing well. Top local Tory Val Letheran said:”He effectively said it was tough luck we were between London and Birmingham.”
Business boost – Further indications that the local economy is doing OK. Heathrow one of the area’s biggest employers, reported that it had its busiest August ever, entirely due to a rise in business passengers, the vast majority of whom came from the Thames Valley, Buckinghamshire and west London. It handled 6.5m passengers in August and in addition had its busiest day ever on 18 July when 232,000 passengers passed through the airport. Figures for September were also well up on previous years. Meanwhile, commercial estate agents Savills said that the take up on office accommodation on the western corridor of the M25 was expected to double this year.
Ronnie remembered – A statue to comic legend Ronnie Barker was unveiled outside Aylesbury’s soon to be opened Waterside Theatre by his widow Joy. He’s depicted as Fletch from one of his series, Porridge, in the statue sculptured by Martin Jennings, who designed the Sir John Betjeman statue in St Pancras Station. The actor, who died five years ago, began his acting career in Aylesbury and kept close links with the town. The ceremony was attended by a host of friends, including Ronnie Corbett and Sir David Jason.
Struck off – A doctor who falsely claimed he could cure multiple sclerosis patients with miracle injections was struck off the medical register. Robert Trossel, aged 56, from Stoke Poges charged patients £12,000 at his private clinic for injections containing cow stem cells, knowing there was no evidence the injections would do any good.
Police reductions – Sara Thornton, the chief constable of Thames Valley Police, said the force had put a freeze on recruiting new officers and was cutting back on backroom staff in anticipation of major reductions in their budget.
World shooting champs – Stoke Mandeville began its countdown to hosting many paralympics events when it hosted the World Paralympic Shooting Championship. Seventy shooters from 15 nations were able to sample the facilities that await hundreds of disabled athletes will enjoy in 2012.
Business boost – Further indications that the local economy is doing OK. Heathrow one of the area’s biggest employers, reported that it had its busiest August ever, entirely due to a rise in business passengers, the vast majority of whom came from the Thames Valley, Buckinghamshire and west London. It handled 6.5m passengers in August and in addition had its busiest day ever on 18 July when 232,000 passengers passed through the airport. Figures for September were also well up on previous years. Meanwhile, commercial estate agents Savills said that the take up on office accommodation on the western corridor of the M25 was expected to double this year.
Ronnie remembered – A statue to comic legend Ronnie Barker was unveiled outside Aylesbury’s soon to be opened Waterside Theatre by his widow Joy. He’s depicted as Fletch from one of his series, Porridge, in the statue sculptured by Martin Jennings, who designed the Sir John Betjeman statue in St Pancras Station. The actor, who died five years ago, began his acting career in Aylesbury and kept close links with the town. The ceremony was attended by a host of friends, including Ronnie Corbett and Sir David Jason.
Struck off – A doctor who falsely claimed he could cure multiple sclerosis patients with miracle injections was struck off the medical register. Robert Trossel, aged 56, from Stoke Poges charged patients £12,000 at his private clinic for injections containing cow stem cells, knowing there was no evidence the injections would do any good.
Police reductions – Sara Thornton, the chief constable of Thames Valley Police, said the force had put a freeze on recruiting new officers and was cutting back on backroom staff in anticipation of major reductions in their budget.
World shooting champs – Stoke Mandeville began its countdown to hosting many paralympics events when it hosted the World Paralympic Shooting Championship. Seventy shooters from 15 nations were able to sample the facilities that await hundreds of disabled athletes will enjoy in 2012.
What's the point of consultation?
There was some surprise that less than one person in a thousand in Buckinghamshire bothered to attend public meetings called throughout the county to discuss spending cuts.
Councillors felt people would flock through the doors to take part in their consultation... the public’s chance, they said, to decide where the forthcoming public spending axe would fall.
There are many reasons perhaps why people couldn’t be bothered. Mostly, of course, the very thought of spending an evening discussing local government finance is about as appetising as a squashed frog.
Then there’s the reasonable line of argument...”we elected you to make decisions, well make them. And we’ll let you know if we agree at the next election.”
But the whole business of “consultation” is treated cynically these days. And not without cause.
Can anyone recall any national or local government recommendation that has been changed or dropped after public consultation?
All that consultation has come to mean is “We’ll ask you. Listen to you. And then ignore everything you say (or find a good argument to knock it down).”
What’s the point of holding a consultation over the route of the proposed high speed rail line when Transport Secretary Philip Hammond meets protesters and begins the meeting by saying, in effect, “this is going to happen now let’s discuss how we can best accommodate it.”
In High Wycombe the council splutter that the up-coming consultation over the site for a new sports stadium is still relevant even though the man calling the shots, Wycombe Wanderers and London Wasps owner Steve Hayes, has said he wants it next to Booker Airfield. Anyone taking any bets on that it won’t be next to Booker Airfield.
So why bother telling councillors where to make cuts, when they have already decided what they are going to do anyway?
Just do it. And let the rest of us get back to moaning about it.
Councillors felt people would flock through the doors to take part in their consultation... the public’s chance, they said, to decide where the forthcoming public spending axe would fall.
There are many reasons perhaps why people couldn’t be bothered. Mostly, of course, the very thought of spending an evening discussing local government finance is about as appetising as a squashed frog.
Then there’s the reasonable line of argument...”we elected you to make decisions, well make them. And we’ll let you know if we agree at the next election.”
But the whole business of “consultation” is treated cynically these days. And not without cause.
Can anyone recall any national or local government recommendation that has been changed or dropped after public consultation?
All that consultation has come to mean is “We’ll ask you. Listen to you. And then ignore everything you say (or find a good argument to knock it down).”
What’s the point of holding a consultation over the route of the proposed high speed rail line when Transport Secretary Philip Hammond meets protesters and begins the meeting by saying, in effect, “this is going to happen now let’s discuss how we can best accommodate it.”
In High Wycombe the council splutter that the up-coming consultation over the site for a new sports stadium is still relevant even though the man calling the shots, Wycombe Wanderers and London Wasps owner Steve Hayes, has said he wants it next to Booker Airfield. Anyone taking any bets on that it won’t be next to Booker Airfield.
So why bother telling councillors where to make cuts, when they have already decided what they are going to do anyway?
Just do it. And let the rest of us get back to moaning about it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)