The Development Trusts Association explains that Development Trusts are supposed to be community organisations which are owned and managed by the local community, aim to achieve the sustainable regeneration of a community or address a range of economic, social, environmental and cultural issues within a community, are independent but seek to work in partnership with other private, public and third sector organisations and aim to reduce dependency on grant support by generating income through enterprise and the ownership of assets.
Crucially, it also tells us that all trading surpluses are principally reinvested in the organisation or the community.
I will be writing to OSCR, the Scottish Charities Commission, to ask what monitoring they have in place watching these Trusts.
A Wind Farm Developer is reputedly behind the setting up of what has been styled a Community Development Trust, including a handful of community activists, at least one Community Councillor, and a representative of a land owner, to dispense a mere 10%, not all of trading profits, of a proposed wind energy development in North East Fife. This group has registered with Companies House but it is not at all clear who selected these people to "own and manage" the Trust on behalf of the community and I have yet to hear of any proper community wide call for them to be established as the whole community's represenatives. I hope I am wrong, but it seems that these people are more or less self-selecting, most with vested interest, and that they may be out of step with the real community. There ought to be a proper process to determine any such mandate. How can they use the term "community" without such a process?
I believe it is up to the Charities Commission to know and to explain what is going on, and to say if it is all being done properly. The big question is this: Who has the right to claim they are a community trust, and by what criteria? Or are trusts now a free for all area, which any vested interest group or wind developer can establish?
Friday, 29 June 2012
Thursday, 28 June 2012
Sunday, 24 June 2012
Are the Media blind?
Are the media blind or simply arrogant? Do they report or manipulate and engineer?
In this age of Leveson, you would think that UKIP Scotland press releases would get better coverage - it'd be to follow processes known in some places as democracy and the right to a free press.
Business has to be wary of meeting quotas in defene of any charges of discrimination: the media should be obliged to be equally balanced.
Is anyone there?
In this age of Leveson, you would think that UKIP Scotland press releases would get better coverage - it'd be to follow processes known in some places as democracy and the right to a free press.
Business has to be wary of meeting quotas in defene of any charges of discrimination: the media should be obliged to be equally balanced.
Is anyone there?
Friday, 22 June 2012
WIND DEVELOPER'S INSULT
What atrocious behaviour by certain wind developers in Fife!
A group which claims, in the media, that it seeks to benefit the community with handouts, creamed from the Governments' (yes, plural - the axis of the Coalition at Westminster and the SNP crowd at Holyrood) green ROC based bribery fund - purports to be representative, balanced and a fair forum. Yet they avoid any reference to the downside of any deals - the most unwelcomed of turbines they intend to erect in others' backyards.
This has to stop.
Who do these people represent? Who elected them?
Salt is rubbed into the wound by the Community Develpment Trust usurping the role of elected community councils - some of whom have taken polls which have shown that the turbines are not wanted - and indeed, even gulling some naive community councillors who should be even-handed, into wearing two hats - that of community councillor and that of community trustee - I have yet to hear of any of these people declaring an interest when contributing to assessing a "balanced" community view!
Who is watching them?
Why are MSPs and MPs, not gagged by the Planning Authority, silent on these matters, with few honourable exceptions?
You know what? I think it stinks.
A group which claims, in the media, that it seeks to benefit the community with handouts, creamed from the Governments' (yes, plural - the axis of the Coalition at Westminster and the SNP crowd at Holyrood) green ROC based bribery fund - purports to be representative, balanced and a fair forum. Yet they avoid any reference to the downside of any deals - the most unwelcomed of turbines they intend to erect in others' backyards.
This has to stop.
Who do these people represent? Who elected them?
Salt is rubbed into the wound by the Community Develpment Trust usurping the role of elected community councils - some of whom have taken polls which have shown that the turbines are not wanted - and indeed, even gulling some naive community councillors who should be even-handed, into wearing two hats - that of community councillor and that of community trustee - I have yet to hear of any of these people declaring an interest when contributing to assessing a "balanced" community view!
Who is watching them?
Why are MSPs and MPs, not gagged by the Planning Authority, silent on these matters, with few honourable exceptions?
You know what? I think it stinks.
Saturday, 2 June 2012
EU insults Britain
Even as we celebrate the Jubilee, we have insults piled upon us by the EU. We must get out, and have real Independence - free of the EU
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1317286/Union-Flag-banned-on-car-number-plates.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1317286/Union-Flag-banned-on-car-number-plates.html
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