Make MSPs take the decison! Or give us binding referenda.

The most destructive planning phenomena we now face in Scotland is the resort to appeals when an elected council rejects a wind farm application.

Some Reporters may uphold the refusals decided democratically but that is not always the case. Communities face division and destruction of amenity as a result.

MSPs who have signed up the Scottish Parliament's pro wind policies and diktats, and whose parties all back subsidies and DECC line to the hilt, sit smugly away from the realities. I have yet to see or hear of my local MSP, for example, going to a community council meeting discussing wind issues, to see the effect of these policies on the community's constituents.

Whilst UKIP policy is that planning appeals would not be taken "out of county" by unelected officers but be decided by binding local referenda amongst the concerned communities/planning area, such trust of the electorate is an anathema to the other parties. It won't happen until UKIP has sufficient elected power in Westminster and Holyrood - on a par with our now being the second largest British party in the European Parliament.

Meantime, why do we have MSPs? Is it their role to sit smugly and aloof in Holyrood, and not carry the buck for what the laws they passed?

I say make them all, sitting in committee of the whole house, decide all wind farm appeals, with their votes recorded, so that we may know them for what they earn.

Mike Scott-Hayward
Chairman UKIP Scotland

Dumb Wind Politics

The views just expressed by Cllr Alex Rowley, Leader of Fife Council, that Fife is not to be closed to wind farms, shows the value to his party of the deft use of a call for a moratorium. It was never a policy to stop wind farms. But it gained him power, with the support of the Conservatives.

Only UKIP stands four square against wind turbines and the easiest political weapon to stop vast numbers of applications coming forward is to abolish the subsidies. That lies in the hands of the weak Coalition Government - weak because their few sensible Conservative MPs haven't the courage to kick the Lib Dems out, or to join UKIP en masse, and weak because the Coalition won't cross the EU diktat which sets the targets to be followed.

Within the restraints of current Government policy, UKIP Scotland fully endorses the the calls made by CATS: each point they make would be a huge bonus for Scotland - certainly a mandatory 2000 metre buffer zone between turbines and homes should be implemented now. Even if applied only to turbines over, say, 20 metres high, the current adverse impact would be reduced to a reasonable level. UKIP however, still contends that there should be no subsidy at all - there'd be precious few turbines even under 20 metres then - they are not self sustaining in any real sense. Farmers and ladowners now grab at turbines because, with the subsidy, they are the best available legal yield per acre!

It's a case of never mind the landscape or the economic realities - increase utility costs for all, bribe communities and subsidize useless machines for the sake of a daft political aim.

Beats me - even the dumbest politician must realise that there won't be many places left for a decent photo opportunity in an 'unspoilt' Scotland soon.

Saving St Andrews and others from the Planners, the UKIP way.

I fervently hope that residents of North East Fife, especially those concerned about the autocratic and often crippling Fife Structure Plan, have read the UKIP policy on Housing and Planning.

St Andrews and Cupar, facing massive developer led over-development, could both be saved from those dire consequences, were UKIP policy to prevail.

Here are some highlights from the Executive Summary:

UKIP will abolish the Planning Inspectorate (Scottish Reporter) and end appeals to
Government Ministers. Planning decisions will be taken by local authorities and local
Referenda with a final right of appeal to the High Court.

There will be direct binding Referenda on all major housing schemes and economic
developments such as supermarkets, housing developments of more than 50 homes and
other major building projects.

UKIP will abolish centrally and regionally directed housing requirements.

UKIP will scrap centrally and regionally directed targets. UKIP will also abolish
Regional Development Agencies and Regional Assemblies.

UKIP will return to county, local and district plans that will be under the control of the local authorities. UKIP will also introduce a UK National Plan that will provide an overview and guidance for local authorities. This won’t be a rigid framework as is currently the case.

UKIP is opposed to mass housing estates.

UKIP will encourage the building of more ‘community’ housing such as the Dorchester
suburb of Poundbury as well as smaller developments of fewer than 50 homes.

UKIP will demand higher quality and standards of material, craft, soundproofing and
spacing for new homes to ensure that any new houses last as long as Edwardian and
Victorian homes.

From the saved UK contributions to the EU, UKIP will spend 1.5 billion a year on
building new quality social housing and demolishing poor quality houses.

UKIP will encourage the building of new local council homes by local councils instead of forcing developers to provide social housing on new developments which amounts to a ‘homeowners development tax’. That puts house prices up.

UKIP will remove VAT and its replacement Local Sales Tax from the costs of
conversion of listed buildings, buildings in conservation areas and on empty buildings.

UKIP will encourage the return to productive use of the nearly one million homes that are currently empty.