Week ending 5th February

Our Friday miscellany of the week's news and events Called to account ... We're certain that it must have been a co-incidence, but we're delighted to report that on the very day that we reported Council David Owen's frustrating two-month battle to get spending on Boston's Community Cohesion Programme on the Scrutiny Committee's agenda he received the good news that it will be discussed on March 10th. He's urging anyone with the slightest interest in this to come along to the meeting, which is open to the public. Sadly, but necessarily given the management style of the borough leadership, he adds the reassuring news "there is nothing to fear." We also hope as many people as possible go along to hear how £330,000 has been spent on community cohesion so far (where? ... on what?) with an equal amount earmarked for the year ahead. Such a huge sum must surely be expected to make a massive impact on the community, but so far, no-one seems to want to account for where the money's gone in a satisfactory and convincing manner.
One among many ... An item on Boston Borough Council's website tells us: "A warning has gone out about a telephone scam involving a conman who pretends he is working for Boston Borough Council." As we've just said, looking at the current BBI line-up, we think the warning needs to be more specific!
Sense at last ... We were pleased to read that the Consideration and Hearing Sub-Committee of the council’s Standards Committee has dismissed a complaint that Councillor Raymond Singleton-McGuire breached the council's code of conduct by linking from the council’s website to his own website where there were comments about the complainant. The code says that members must ensure that council resources are not used improperly for political purposes, and the sub-committee decided that Councillor Singleton-McGuire's link did not amount to a "resource." Commonsense decrees that there could have been no other result, and again we are appalled that yet another time-wasting complaint has been allowed to take up council time and money. We don't know who the complainant was (but we could hazard a pretty accurate guess) and we hope that if he has any other complaints in the pipeline he'll now call a halt to them.
Inequality of mercy ... The Townswomen's Guild made unexpected waves earlier this week when it declared that Britain risks losing its national identity if immigration is not
dramatically reduced. Ninety-five per cent of members who responded to a survey believed current immigration levels would "cause us to lose our national identity to some degree," and 28.5 per cent said Britain should have a ban on immigration. Home Office minister Phil Woolas responded by saying: "The government recognises the impact that immigration can have on our communities. That is why only those who benefit Britain can come here." This week's court news in the local press lists nine cases out of which five defendants - two from Lithuania, one from Portugal one from Poland and one from an unspecified country pleaded guilty to drink driving, possessing a samurai sword, theft, assault and criminal damage. Perhaps Mr Wooly-Ass would like to specify precisely what benefits this motley crew are bringing to Boston. Incidentally, most of these defendants were released on conditional bail, with one getting community service, whilst an indigenous homeless defendant who stole a sandwich because he was hungry was sent to prison for three weeks.
Tuning out ... Yesterday's radio listening figures issued by the audience monitor RAJAR showed BBC Radio Lincolnshire at its lowest ebb since it began broadcasting almost 30 years ago. The station will probably blame competition, but we Boston we know very well that it is because the town is covered so poorly. Mind you, we've heard the same complaint from other parts of the county as well. Once the station was established it persuaded all the district councils to chip in with donations and premises for its remote studios, many of which are hardly used, and in these technologically more advanced time are no longer needed. As Boston needs to save money it might be worth checking to see whether or not we are still wasting it supporting a "local" radio station that is no such thing.
Overpromoted ... Boston's Target newspaper makes the proud boast "at the heart of all things local." However, a recent feature on mayor's officer Andy Lamming told us "He has also accompanied the mayor to Le Valle in France, Boston's twin city. Time for a staff refresher course, wethinks. The last time we looked, Laval was Boston's twin, and whilst there are many who might wish it, the town was still just that, and has yet to achieve city status.
Silly moo-se ... As any fule kno, the Dandy cartoon legend Desperate Dan is famous for his love of cow pie. But if ever he wants to diet and pays a visit to Boston, then the staff at the town's Heron store have a tasty offer. A tub or two of weight watcher's "moose" will most certainly help him shed a pound or two.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

Into Town buses are making their mark ... literally!

They say a picture's worth a thousand words, and the one on the right certainly has a story to tell.
It was taken on a recent rainy day, because when it rains, what it shows is more obvious.
The buses that no-one wanted to run through Strait Bargate are slowly but surely making their presence felt and creating their own tram tracks in the bricks which pave the shopping precinct.
Given the amount of damage done since the service started in July 2008, we think it can't be long before major and expensive repairs are needed to the paved surface, which was, of course, not originally designed for buses weighing more than 15 tons to grind through dozens of times a day. That's before two of three passengers get on board -which in one of the fattest towns in Britain means another big increase.
Even if you take a walk along Strait Bargate in dry weather and just look at the paving, the damage is obvious - and it's getting worse.
It clearly wasn't taken into account when the brilliant idea to run buses through the pedestrian precinct was drawn up on the back of a fag packet.
But the questions now are:
Who pays for the damage?
What sort of paving will eventually have to replace the current patio-style slabs?
Will it look as attractive? Probably not if it's got to carry such a heavy load.
Add another cock up to the Boston Borough Council hall of incompetent fame.
Incidentally, we took this photo in the wet to underline our point. But another thing we noticed was how many deep pools - not puddles - of water form around the town, often due to partially blocked drains - the Botolph Street car park entrance off Main Ridge West was a classic example last week and took several days to drain away.
At the moment, we'd say that Boston has less to fear from tidal flooding and more to fear from a few days of heavy rain.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

So WHY is this such good news?

There's a lot of excitement about the fact that Boston has just got its 70th CCTV camera.
Hurrah, now there's a greater chance than ever that we'll be stared at and suspected whilst we go about our normal daily business.
The news is peddled by Boston Borough Council as "the streets of Boston have become even safer," although we're not quite sure how that works.
If you have the misfortune to get beaten up as you walk the streets around closing time, the fact that your attacker is eventually identified as you recover in hospital is surely little compensation.
We wonder whether fewer people would receive the news in the Pilgrim if - instead of having the equivalent  "70 extra policemen on the street," as the man in charge of the CCTV project boasts - the real police spent more time on the streets .
Trouble hotspots in Boston aren't that difficult to identify, so the police can't claim that it would be a difficult job.
Apparently in the 12 months to November last year, the cameras were instrumental in 709 arrests. That's a puny ten, each, per year .... a record which should not be beyond the wit of a patrolling policeman or woman.
Boston's population is a movable feast, ranging from around 58,000 to 70,000 when the immigrant population is taken into account.
Either way, the number of cameras seems excessive, representing as it does, one camera for every thousand residents - or possibly even fewer.
The irony of this apparently escapes the policeman in charge of Boston who naively claims "to many would-be offenders the CCTV cameras are a deterrent."
We entering the realm of cardboard cut-out policemen here, which is probably what's next on the agenda.
The news of the CCTV cameras comes as Lincolnshire County Council announces that it is cutting its funding of  PCSOs by a quarter of a million pounds.
PCSOs, you may recall, were meant to be extra eyes and ears on the streets in the war on crime and anti-social behaviour, but regular readers of Boston Eye may recall that Lincolnshire's entire force of 150 PCSOs issued just 15 fines between 2006 and 2008. This cost almost £10 million, which meant each fixed penalty notice worked out at more than £650,000 in public money.
Now, the promised retrenchment of PCSOs is set to take place with them setting up shop in libraries and the like to have a chat with locals about things that worry them. They will also be taking on a slew of other duties currently being done by other public servants such as trading standards and the fire service.
We are regularly accused of being anti police because of our criticism of the way Lincolnshire Police use their staff and their resources. But that is far from the truth. All we want to see is the police doing the job that they are paid for, which is getting out on the streets, providing a reassuring presence, deterring crime, enforcing public order, and - fate forefend - arresting people.
One thing that did amuse us was the location of the cameras: - four at Pilgrim Hospital and Redstone Industrial Estate, three each at Boston College's DeMontfort and Rochford campuses, two in Kirton, eleven in Fenside with the rest in the "Boston built-up area, including Daisy Dale and Wellington Road."
Did we say eleven in Fenside? Surely, it's time for a little boundary reform here. Can't we redraw the maps and slice off a bit of Swineshead and Holland Fen, stitch Fenside on to it, and cede the whole lot to East Lindsey? Sounds like it would halve the borough crime statistics at a stroke.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

"What's happening to community cohesion cash?"

Towards the end of last week we had strong words about the ideas that people come up with when there's money on the table from an outside source.
Our comments were in the  relatively minor context of bids for a share of a £10,000 community pot to improve life for people living in High Street South. We highlighted a number of projects which we thought, quite frankly, were nothing but a waste of money, and which had been dreamed up just because the cash was there, and others which involved spending on projects which in the normal way of things would be the responsibility of others.
But our concerns pale into insignificance when compared those surrounding another scheme in which well over half a million pounds is being spent.
The scheme concerned is the Community Cohesion Project, which has attracted £660,000 in government grants to be spent by Boston Borough Council over a three year period at the rate of £116,471 in 2008/09 £213,529 in the past financial year and £330,000 in the year ahead - 2010/11.
We have learned that Boston Borough Councillor David Owens has asked for the community cohesion project to be put on the agenda of the borough's Scrutiny Committee, so that it can be determined exactly what is being done with the money.
He first raised the issue with the committee chairman Alison Austin in the first week of December, rightly making the point that councillors must ensure that money is spent wisely and appropriately.
He went on to say that past and current reporting methods of how the money is spent left a great deal to be desired, and it would benefit everyone involved to open this area to view by all.
The money is not being spent solely by Boston Borough Council.
Citizen's Advice, the Community and Voluntary Service, and Boston Mayflower are among the partners in the project, and Councillor Owens is keen that they should attend any meetings that are called.
Councillor Owens feels that we need to know exactly what each recipient of funding is actually doing with the money it gets, and where new staff have been taken on to fill new roles -apparently there are at least four - what have they delivered to date and what happens when the money runs out at the end of 2010/11.
Another interesting point raised by Councillor Owens is the question of what percentage of CAB and CVS total funding comes from this cohesion fund, as he feels that it may be prudent to ensure that this fund stream meets with the criteria of the Community Cohesion Strategy set out in a report to cabinet dated in July 2008.
This said: "Performance Management is a crucial element in both ensuring that we deliver the actions set out within the strategy but also in making sure we make a real difference to our communities. We need to show that our actions are having an impact and this requires clear and consistent application of the criteria set out below and a combination of both qualitative and quantitative measures." Councillor Owens says we need clear evidence that all recipients meet these strict criteria.
His own efforts have obtained a breakdown for the past, present and future spending under this funding stream, and Councillor Owens says he is "slightly concerned" that they appear to be lacking in any real detail.
Almost two months after his first request for matters to be looked at, Councillor Owens has again asked that the subject comes before the Scrutiny Committee - particularly given the timing in relation to budget setting.
This time he has taken a tougher line, saying "I feel it is imperative that we gain a thorough understanding of how the £660,000 of taxpayers' money has and is being spent. I expect to see representation of all those parties i.e. CAB and CVS in this scrutiny and wish to see them and others account for all expenditure that has been charged under the heading of Community Cohesion."
So far the only response has been from Acting Chief Executive Richard Harbord, who says he has the matter "in mind" and will find a "convenient" date as soon as he can.
We find it strange that such an obviously important issue - involving as it does many hundreds of thousands of pounds - should apparently be so difficult to pin down, and hope that the delays and excuses for inaction are soon swept aside to that things can be properly debated and accounted for.
Another interesting occurs to us.
So far, almost £330,000 has been spent on "community cohesion." This is an incredible sum to ordinary folks like us, but we cannot for the life of us think of a single example of how and where it has been spent and how the community is now a better place as a result. Would someone care to tell us? We doubt it.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

"Change of heart - or shrouded apology?"

Our piece on Friday about former Bypass Independent Deputy Leader Peter Jordan's insistence that the party's embrace of the Queen Street and Sleaford Road "improvement" scheme came after a long series of meetings and "robust" discussions with Lincolnshire County Council to achieve a high proportion of the many changes they wanted, came not only as a surprise to us, but more significantly to Better Boston Group Councillor Brian Rush. "Can we really believe this, a change of mind by the former Deputy Leader Jordan?" he asks in an e-mail to Boston Eye..
"Or is it a somewhat shrouded, but timely, pre-apology to the people of Boston, regarding the road widening that is about to begin?
"An 18 month project, possibly causing total chaos and disruption to the towns traffic, but more importantly of little or no benefit to road users, and almost certainly damaging business prospects at this, the worst possible time.
"Councillor Jordan's attempt to placate is far too late in the day, and for him to try to claim uninformed innocence pre Election '07, as an 'error of judgment' made by the Boston Bypass Group, cuts no ice now.
"Would that the BBI ever admitted responsibility for anything would be truly unbelievable.
"This communication is typically Jordanian, in that it is he, not 'the Portfolio for Transport Issues, Richard Austin,' who controls and sets out the blurred dictum of this council; it is he that considers his reputation to be far above all others.
"Sadly so many remain to sit in awe, some feel mentally ill-equipped, and others unwilling to challenge. This is food and drink to such ego as Peter Jordan OBE.
"It is arrogance such as this that has caused untold damage and loss of credibility for the ruling group.
"Unfortunately this so called humble revelation is not as he would have us believe.
"The truth is that opposition elected members have never been privy to any new or previously unknown information that has been uncovered, nor have we been given any written or oral evidence of those numerous robust meetings and discussions that apparently took place.
"This further lack of 'risk assessment' opens yet another troublesome can of worms, and suggests the presence of secret agendas that has been prolific within the BBI. They will never learn.
"We all know that within months of the Election, the BBI. abandoned their manifesto call to reject the road widening, and Councillor Jordan remains less than genuine again with his revelations. He is no stranger to secret meetings.
"Interestingly we have heard many times his speeches regarding his past illustrious career, and how he came to achieved such greatness.
"It was, he will tell listeners, always based on planning, teamwork, respect for staff, clear attention to detail, and evaluation of risk, blah blah.
"I know, I know, 'illustrious' is not the word everyone would choose ...
"But what I cannot understand is, how he seems to have failed to employ those same skills, that he says were instrumental in rewarding him with such high office in commerce and industry?
"I think its called due diligence, that is Latin to you and I, but it's things like background research, examination of facts, inspecting minutes of meetings regarding traffic congestion problems in Boston etc. etc.
"This must be simply second nature, to one who had previously reached such dizzy heights.
"Wouldn't this type of publicly available information be considered vital, especially if one was considering planning to stand for election, evaluating information to assess the detail of using Boston's road and traffic congestion as the core element of your political platform. Or maybe he just didn't have a good team around him, that were able to do his bidding.
"Or of course I may have got it all wrong.
"This could be a genuine new approach by the BBI.
"Maybe this is the first of many admissions, and dare we say apologies, for a long list of errors.
"Could we even fantasise that they might for once refuse to be dictated to by Lincolnshire County Council!
"Would that they come up with one idea of their own that benefits the people of the town.
"Convince themselves that the unfair criticism they recieve is real and justified.
"That, instead of taking offence at 'sheep' comparisons, they take some individual actions from time to time.
"Oh! and by the way what is the point in having a ''portfolio' shepherd if the crook is used by someone else?"
Councillor Brian Rush

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.