Month: November 2017

Cllr Michael Sullivan starts public meeting by calling me “discourteous”

Cllr Michael Sullivan starts public meeting by calling me “discourteous”

                                               

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Cllr Mike Sullivan (Chair) Business Overview and Scrutiny Committee 29th November 2017
Cllr Mike Sullivan (Chair) Business Overview and Scrutiny Committee 29th November 2017

Cllr Mike Sullivan (Chair of Wirral Council’s Business Overview and Scrutiny Committee) tonight decided near the start the public meeting to use meeting time to refer to me as “discourteous” and stated that I “interrupted him when someone from the CCJ” was speaking.
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Wirral Council awards new £750,000 contract for Wirral View newspaper

Wirral Council awards new £750,000 contract for Wirral View newspaper

Wirral Council awards new £750,000 contract for Wirral View newspaper

                                           

Cllr Matthew Patrick (right) Cabinet Member for Localism and Engagement (11th February 2016)
Cllr Matthew Patrick (right) Cabinet Member for Localism and Engagement (11th February 2016)

Wirral Council have awarded a 3 year £750,000 contract for its controversial Wirral View newspaper. The contract also has an extension option that can be exercised to extend it for a further two years.

Printing of the Wirral View newspaper has been awarded to Trinity Mirror Printing (which is a trading name of Trinity Mirror Digital Media Limited). Trinity Mirror Digital Media Limited’s “ultimate parent company, immediate parent undertaking and controlling entity” is Trinity Mirror PLC. Trinity Mirror PLC own one of the local newspapers called the Liverpool Echo.
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Should EU laws on the environment be disregarded by the British judiciary before the UK has left the EU?

Should EU laws on the environment be disregarded by the British judiciary before the UK has left the EU?

Should EU laws on the environment be disregarded by the British judiciary before the UK has left the EU?

                                                 

Planning Committee (Wirral Council) site visit Saughall Massie fire station 18th July 2017
Planning Committee (Wirral Council) site visit Saughall Massie fire station 18th July 2017 (this is the site for the proposed fire station)

In a follow-up to yesterday’s story Wirral Council’s Cabinet agree 150 year lease for fire station in Saughall Massie I am going to write an editorial on a related matter. I’ll start by pointing out that I was the Appellant in the First-tier Tribunal matter referred to and Applicant in the related Upper Tribunal case.

Below is an opinion piece, I am not a legal professional and one of the costs decision referred to is sub judice. However as Editor I have decided there is a public interest in these matters being written about for various reasons.

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Wirral Council’s Cabinet agree 150 year lease for fire station in Saughall Massie

Wirral Council’s Cabinet agree 150 year lease for fire station in Saughall Massie

Wirral Council’s Cabinet agree 150 year lease for fire station in Saughall Massie

                                    

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Cabinet (Wirral Council) 27th November 2017 Agenda Item 5 –
Disposal of Land at Saughall Massie Road to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service starts at 7:42

Planning Committee (Wirral Council) site visit Saughall Massie fire station 18th July 2017
Planning Committee (Wirral Council) site visit Saughall Massie fire station 18th July 2017 (this is the site for the proposed fire station)

Wirral Council’ Cabinet this morning agreed to a 150 year lease to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority of land it owns in Saughall Massie for a new fire station.

During the meeting, Cllr Phil Davies referred to a petition opposing the lease started by Cllr Chris Blakeley (who is a councillor for the area concerned).
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Why are Bombardier suing Merseytravel over the contract for new trains?

Why are Bombardier suing Merseytravel over the contract for new trains?

Why are Bombardier suing Merseytravel over the contract for new trains?

                                           

Councillor Steve Foulkes (Lead Member for Finance and Organisational Development) (left) at a Merseytravel Committee meeting
Councillor Steve Foulkes (Lead Member for Finance and Organisational Development) (left) at a Merseytravel Committee meeting

Edited 26.11.17 to include link to Hansard report of parliamentary debate and also text of first two pages of Particulars of Claim.

I’ve written previously about the large sum that Merseytravel is spending to defend a legal challenge brought by Bombardier over the procurement of new trains on the Merseyrail network.

You can read a decision by The Hon Mr Justice Coulson as to whether the Particulars of Claim are confidential here. That decision decides that the Particulars of Claim are not confidential.
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