News courtesy of Kevin Foster
(MP for Torbay)
Junior Doctors Dispute Settled
Over recent months the Junior Doctors dispute has been high profile in the media.
This week Junior Doctor’s Leaders and the Government meet at ACAS again and agreed a settlement that will now be put to a ballot of BMA members. This followed indications that the BMA were willing to compromise on weekend pay rates, the key sticking point in the dispute.
The Secretary of State for Health gave a statement to Parliament yesterday outlining the agreement and you can read his remarks, along with other contributions to the debate on it, by clicking here.
All Aboard the 60\61
Local bus operator Stagecoach has announced some of its services will be changing from Sunday 29th May 2016. You can find full details on their website by clicking here.
Dog Beach Ban
The views expressed by residents on the current dog ban have been mixed from those strongly wanting the bans not to be altered at all, to those suggesting some alterations to them. That said in all the responses received there was no argument about the fact that during the peak season dogs should be banned from beaches likely to be busy with tourists.
The two men who got the debate going set up an online survey to get a range of views on this issue, rather than a petition which would only reflect one side of the argument. You can easily find it online by clicking here and do take time to fill it in whatever your feelings on the issue.
Any changes to the Dog Beach Ban would be a decision for Torbay’s Councillors.
Torbay Beaches Get The Blue Flag
Whilst on the subject of Beaches there was good news this week as once again many of ours were recognised as amongst the best in the UK and England, following the annual Seaside Awards, run by Keep Britain Tidy.
Of 111 beaches in England to have been awarded Seaside Awards, ten are in Torbay; with three beaches (Meadfoot, Oddicombe and Breakwater) also being awarded prestigious Blue Flag Awards, out of a total of 68 across Britain and just 14 in the South West.
Broadsands Beach
The final story on beaches is an update on the incident at Broadsands Beach this week.
On Monday an alert was received alerting the council to an issue relating to the Bathing Water Quality that the Environment Agency had detected. This related to pollution being identified in a stream that flows into the sea from the beach. You can read more on the BBC website by clicking here.
Torbay Council has erected information signs at the Beach and the Agency, plus South West Water, are working to identify the source of the pollution.
Morgan Avenue
Recently a few complaints have been received about cars speeding up Morgan Avenue and if anything can be done to help reduce speeds along the road.
Currently seasonal parking restrictions are in place on the road, because of this, there are now fewer cars parked on it throughout the day. This could be allowing cars to drive up the road towards Tor Hill Road at quicker speeds. Speaking to Torbay Council’s Highway team, they have informed us that they are looking to monitor traffic flow in the road and its speed, once the new local traffic system (Torre Traffic Reversal) has had time to settle.
Geopark Festival Week
A whole calendar of events has been lined up for this year’s Geopark festival held between 28 May and 5 June.
The programme has everything from arts and crafts to walks and trails and includes events such as; Occombe Beer Festival as all Geoparks celebrate local food and drink, a Geoplay Day and the fantastic Paignton Geoplay Park , Stone age games at Kents Cavern, detective trails and geological and historical craft making at the Museums around the Bay.
As usual some events will need to be booked in advanced due to a limited amount of spaces. Many of our programme events are free or have a small fee and standard entry prices may apply.
For more details about the festival and to find out more about Torbay’s unique UNESCO Global Geopark Status you can visit the dedicated website by clicking here.
Events
Messy Church
Saturday 21st May, Paignton Baptist Church, Winner Street,9:30am till 11:30am.
Breakfast, Craft Activities, Music, Bible Stories, snack and lots of fun.
All children must be accompanied by an adult and the suggested donation is 50p per person.
Paignton Society Talks – Tony Moss: Paignton’s Past
26th May 2016, 12.00 noon – Gerston Centre, Gerston Place, Paignton, TQ3 3DX
Members £2 non-members £3. Refreshments included.
For more information, click here
Kents Cavern – Stone Age School (Artist)
21st May 2016 – Sessions: 10.00 – 12.00 or 14.00 – 16.00 – Kents Cavern, Ilsham Road, Torquay, TQ1 2JF
For children aged 6 – 12. There are only spaces for 15 children on each session. All children must be accompanied by an adult.
For more information, click here
