THE Standard published a full page interview with Lord Bathurst in the edition of September 18.

In fairness to him, in outlining his views about the 300-acre housing development he has shown a willingness to air his views which is in strong contrast to the elected members and officers of Cotswold District Council.

The council is hiding behind an impenetrable online portal which it thinks provides information and facilitates community engagement but which does nothing of the sort.

The few people who have had the perseverance to penetrate this fortress have been fobbed off with answers which spout standard stock phrases.

Look at them, if you can find them hidden on the councils web site, and see how the “cut and paste” button has replaced considered response.

The benefit of this system is to make life easy for officers to rebuff public comments. It is to be earnestly hoped that come the six-week period of engagement when the Local Plan is debated the council does not obstruct participation (as their portal system seems to) and instead uses every practical medium and opportunity to encourage people to participate rather than discourage them.

If they don’t they may find themselves culpable of having a flawed consultation process and an “unsound” plan with all the difficult consequences for them and the community.

Turning to Lord Bathurst’s remarks he has bravely put his head above the parapet and in doing so allowed us to examine his position.

In the way his remarks were reported, his explanations seem confused. For example, what does, “this proposed development at Chesterton was always five years away – now 20 years later, a start may well begin in the next five years.”

What does that mean and what happened 20 years ago that we don’t know about ?

But the most perplexing remark seemingly out of context with the rest of the interview is: “ All estates are a business and have to operate in the commercial world. In many cases they have to set long term strategic policies in order to continue as viable organisations.”

Is he saying that his land at Chesterton had to be sold in order to finance the Bathurst estate and its beneficiaries? If that is his view many Cirencester people will say that getting 2,500 houses bolted onto Cirencester is a price not worth paying for the benefit of a rich landowning family.

He goes on to say: “In this instance, with many other considerations borne in mind, it was clear that for Cirencester to continue as a successful market town, further development would be required.”

To whom was it clear? Certainly not to the vast majority of people in the town who are outraged at a plan to build 2,500 houses in a unique and historic market town.

When the latest version of the Local Plan is published it remains to be seen how this outrage manifests itself.

Will Cotswold District Council’s secretive tendencies be able to withstand the opposition to this poorly-designed solution to housing problems? Will it be scaled down to the hundreds of houses that people’s logic tells them is right ?

PATRICK MOYLAN

Gloucester Street

Cirencester