Pass the Word
or How to Object Effectively
20 Feb 04 update:
The objectors won the day. The full story
is here, so this page is now mainly an historical document.
I'll add a few words here as a guide to effective objecting.
- First, petitions are a luxury: don't waste much time on
them.
- Write a formal letter of objection as instructed in the
Public Notice. Keep a copy.
- Persuade all your friends to write a letter of
objection. They need from you:
- a brief note about the issue,
- the address to write to or email,
- the closing date for objections.
- Nag them daily until you are sure they have written.
- Persuade your friends to pass the word and persuade others
to do likewise.
- Lobby your councillor(s).
- Find out who sits on the committee that decides whatever
you are objecting to and lobby them.
- Be at the meeting where the issue is decided.
Here are the things that really count, in order of importance:
- Individually written letters or email messages in your
own words.
- Individually written letters, copied from a template of
ideas.
- Individually written letters, copied from a standard
text.
- A lot of identical letters, obviously mass-produced,
though signed individually.
- A petition.
It really can work, as we have proved (so far) by today's
result.
The rest of this page is now merely an historical document,
which I'll leave here for posterity. Thanks to all who
participated.
RWM
20 Feb 04
14 Feb 04 update:
Although it is too late now to send in formal objections to the
County Solicitor, you can still lobby councillors and you can
attend the meeting of the HATOC (Highways & Traffic Orders
Committee) at 2:15 pm on Friday 20 February at the West Devon
Borough Council offices in Oaklands Drive, Okehampton.
I shall be there.
Members of the Committee are:
- Devon County Council:
- Cllr Mrs Gretta Madigan - Yelverton (Chairman)
- Cllr Roy Connelly - Tavistock
- Cllr Mrs Christine Marsh - Okehampton
- Cllr Bill Cann - Chagford
- West Devon Borough Council:
- Cllr Roger Mathew - Tavistock South (me)
- Cllr Dennis Bater - Hatherleigh
County Councillors' contact details are available from
http://www.devon.gov.uk/
You don't need to lobby Dennis or me, though you will be most
welcome to copy me in on any email.
It's too late now to help as follows on this page, but I'll
leave the text here as a historical comment for posterity and a
guide to how to object in case it is useful to anyone else in
similar circumstances.
If you stumble on this story and want to help, please do two
things:
- Send your objections to the County Solicitor;
- Pass the word by emailing everyone in your address book.
Please use your own words to express your objections. "Form"
letters are not taken seriously.
Here's a suggested text that you can cut and paste from here
into your email editor to pass to your
contacts. Feel free to
edit it. The important thing is to include the URL for these pages.
Devon County Council intends to close the short cut from the
bridge at Gunnislake that cuts off half a mile of winding road,
where you get stuck behind slow-moving traffic in the
summer.
There is now less than a week to get objections in - by Friday 13
February 2004.
This web page
(http://www.willowby.co.uk/gulw2.htm)
has all the details and a mailto for objections to the Devon County
Solicitor.
If you don't want to lose this short cut, make sure you get
your objections in and forward this message to everyone in your email
address book.
Do it today!
31 Jan 04 - 20 Feb 04