30 May 2012

The cost of 'democracy'


As South Somerset District Council continues to obstruct my access to personal information (Freedom of Information and Data Protection Acts) two issues occur to me:

1 The similarity between SSDC's current position and the Keenan/Canvin administration's efforts to deny access to public documents and

2 The cost of the current investigation into various complaints against Mr Michael Fraser-Hopewell.

I can't say that I understand the Authority's position regarding my seeking access to material which it is holding and/or processing and which relates to myself. Equally, I am unaware of any section of the Freedom of Information Act which qualifies a 'Fear of Ridicule' as being grounds for denial of access.

The Data Protection Act is also pretty clear with regard to an individual being given access to information which an Authority is holding/processing and which relates to an individual. I will be interested to see what specific sections or exemptions SSDC seeks to hide behind.

Then there is the issue of why SSDC should want to keep such information secret and the 'fear of ridicule' gives something of a clue. What happens if the material in question is so 'ridiculous' that it begs ridicule? Is SSDC seeking to emulate King Canute?

Then there is the cost of the current investigation, a cost which will be borne by the taxpayer. Recent complaints against Cllr Pat Bennett and Cllr Fraser-Hopewell were described in the Western Gazette as being an 'abuse of the complaints procedure'. As the ongoing investigation was triggered by complaints originating, one assumes, from Somerton's 'Old Guard', might SSDC not have seen this as a further example of 'abuse'. I suspect that the current investigation will not be a cheap affair and I hope that someone makes an FoI to find out how much SSDC spent on investigating the claims of Somerton's 'Old Guard'.

Till next time, I'm still Niall Connolly

29 May 2012

That Eurovision thing......


I couldn't let the Eurovision Song Contest pass by without comment. When I got around to watching the recording, and in no particular order, these were worthy of comment:

Cyprus - just wonderful
Who do the grannies remind me of?
The guy with the psycho bagpipes did it for me.
Big hair from Greece.
Jedward - in a world of their own.
Gaitana should have won it.

23 May 2012

Too little monitoring.....


I've been waiting, quite patiently in my own view, for South Somerset District Council to provide me with information about complaints which have been lodged with them against the ex-Chair of Somerton Town Council, Mr Fraser-Hopewell. It came to my attention some time ago that I had been named in complaints against Mr Fraser-Hopewell and the allegations, in part, are of some sort of conspiracy between myself and Mr Fraser-Hopewell with regard to the Police investigation into possible fraud regarding the Etsome Terrace/Tin Dunny property swap.

As I understand the Freedom of Information Act, I have a right to see any documents which refer to me so its not unreasonable for me to request that South Somerset District Council provide me with the relevant documentation. But South Somerset District Council don't want to hand it over and the reason given by SSDC seems to rotate around their fears that I might ridicule those individuals who made the complaints.

In explaining their refusal to disclose the documentation, SSDC reveal that they are 'monitoring' Muck & Brass and I assume that they are doing this to locate examples of ridicule, of which this piece will certainly be one.

When you look back on events in Somerton, it is strange that SSDC seem so terribly concerned to monitor Muck & Brass for signs of ridicule yet SSDC did absolutely nothing to monitor the activities of Somerton Town Council for signs of 'abuse of public funds' or 'unlawful expenditure'. SSDC certainly knew that things in Somerton were far from normal way back in mid-2009 when Somerton's Clerk sought advice from SSDC regarding how to obstruct my access to public documents. But SSDC did nothing. No monitoring back then.

So I will just have to sit back and wait for SSDC to refuse my request for the information relating to myself and then we will go through the 'internal review' process. It would be unfair to prejudge SSDC's decision in this matter and it will be interesting to see their justification for whatever they decide. That decision will be measured against SSDC's spilling their guts to Inspector Rodney Briggs in response to his FoI about myself back in 2010.

Will sauce for the goose be sauce for the gander? Time will tell.

Till next time, I'm still Niall Connolly

18 May 2012

Another claim to fame.....


This week's edition of the Western Gazette carries a report of last week's Town Council meeting where Eirian Williams was elected Chairman of Somerton Town Council. But the interesting piece related to three complaints which had been lodged against Cllr Fraser-Hopewell and Cllr Pat Bennett and it is fair to assume that these complaints were lodged by member's of Somerton's illustrious Old Guard. The Western reports that these complaints have been dismissed by South Somerset District Council's Standards Sub-Committee and the complaints are described (by whom?) as 'an abuse of the complaints procedure'.

So now we have 'abuse of the complaints procedure' to add to 'abuse of public funds' and 'unlawful expenditure'. Somerton's Old Guard are on a roll here. What other awards will they collect in the future?

Till next time, I'm still Niall Connolly

9 May 2012

A fresh start.........


This evening saw something of the changing of the guard at Somerton Town Council with the election of a new Chair and Vice-Chair to the Council. The new Chair, Eirian Williams, is relatively new to the Council but a Somertonian of some 25 years and something of a 'new broom'. Reflecting on the troubles that the town has faced over the last three years, Eirian set out his stall as one of bridge-building and conciliation and, in this, he has something of an advantage in that he isn't associated with one side or the other with regard to the Council's recent history. He also made it clear that he wouldn't tolerate the kind of behaviour that has blighted Council meetings in recent months.

Speaking personally, I wish him well and I hope that the Council can, and will be allowed to, get on with its business without having to deal, over and over again, with the recent past.

Till next time, I'm still Niall Connolly

5 May 2012


Since the publication of the External Auditor's Report in the Public Interest, Somerton's Old Guard have kept up an almost continuous barrage of bile and venom at Town Council meetings. The thrust of their effort seems to be an attempt to deflect attention from the damning Audit Commission report by asking questions about the basis of the Police enquiry which, if you remember, kicked off with the arrest of 4 individuals, Calderwood, Canvin, Edgar and Keenan. The soundtrack behind this strategy has been made up by their strident claims that 'no-one listens to them' or 'no-one understands how things were done in Somerton'.

Well, I have given two of the major players the opportunity to clarify the situation. I have written to both Canvin and Edgar and offered both the opportunity to explain the situation from their viewpoint and have their explanations, supported by the documentary evidence that is claimed to exist, published here on Muck&Brass. On the sidebar to the right there is a new section titled 'evidence in contradiction' where the douments will be published when they are made available.

I'm looking forward to the next Town Council meeting on Tuesday coming and I hope that Somerton's Old Guard , instead of hurling abuse, start to present the evidence that they claim exists. Otherwise their protestations of 'innocence' might just start to wear a little thin.

Till next time, I'm still Niall Connolly

3 May 2012

More press coverage


The appearance of M&B's half page advert in last week's issue of the Western Gazette has had an interesting effect, apart, that is, from significantly ramping the blog's hit count. A journalism website picked up on the story and I decided to call the editor, Paul Linford, to learn about their interest.

It turned out that 'Hold the front page' wasn't really interested in the story itself, more in the fact that the protagonists were using paid for adverts to get their message across. Paul commented that this sort of dialogue would normally be presented in the editorial columns rather than in adverts and that caused me to wonder about the Western's coverage of the Somerton Saga.

Recently, the Western has contacted me for my comments, particularly in response to Katrina Raybould's self-interested suggestion that M&B was maintaining some sort of perceived rift in the community and that it should (be) shut down. I did provide a very short and pithy response to Raybould's comments and I noticed that it was not carried by the Western which did make me wonder just how balanced was the editorial judgement of the Western.

And maybe 'Hold the front page' has a point - if the Western Gazette had a more robust editorial policy then issues such as the Somerton Saga might be given a more balance presentation. At present, the Western seems to focus on the public 'knock-about' at Council meetings where Somerton's 'Old Guard' give vent to their bile and hatred in the most unpleasant manner. If the Western took a more balanced and thoughtful stance, maybe Raybould and her 'Old Guard' chums would be less likely to indulge their basest instincts.

Till next time, I'm Niall Connolly