HOW BIG A 'NO' DO YOU WANT?

The Sainsbury’s Local supermarket in the village of Caerleon at the site of the Angel Hotel on Goldcroft Common will open before Christmas, and according to the developer will create up to 25 jobs. The demolition of the Angel Hotel is proceeding and construction work is due to begin shortly on the new supermarket, which will have  a footfall of some 385 square metres (with ten parking spaces to the rear).

A work in progress - the site of the Angel

Just after the City Council elections in May last year, the new Labour dominated quietly approved a request from council planning officials to recommend that Sainsbury’s plan to convert the Angel Hotel in Caerleon into a convenience store be approved. The proposals which had been put forward by Hillvale Properties who operated on behalf of Sainsbury’s prompted over 1,700 people to sign petitions against it, and 127 neighbours to write letters of objection.  

Local people told the council that the plan to turn the pub, located on Goldcroft Common, Caerleon, into a 385 square metre retailer with two flats on the first floor would “exacerbate an already dangerous and difficult traffic situation”. Concerns were raised that local shops – several independent retailers including a sandwich shop and a Spar are nearby – would close, while the petition said the historical character and sense of community in Caerleon would be tarnished.

There are also concerns about anti-social behaviour, noise to residents, and parking which is claimed is already at saturation point in the area. As someone who periodically travels on the bus to and from work past the Angel, parking can at times be grim in and around the area of the Angel and traffic congestion is a real  issue.

For reasons beholden unto themselves City planners noted that a new store opening would “enhance” the Caerleon district centre, add to its “retail floorspace” and suggested that the store was unlikely to harm the village centre’s viability. The planners duly noted that the Spar and Pipers News shops may lose trade, but “it is not the role of the planning system to restrict competition”.  This may well be a fair point but what about any real investigation into the economic impact of the development on the village?

The planner had also noted that traffic concerns were “understandable”, but had added “there is no robust evidence” that the proposal would result in “a significant and harmful increase in traffic.” Spaces for seven customer cars during deliveries would meet parking requirements, and Gwent Police had raised no objection to the proposal. The planners had also called for conditions imposing restricted delivery hours.

The recommendation was to proceed with the application, despite any local objections. One question that should be loudly asked is just who is the planning system serving, clearly not the expressed wishes of the residents of Caerleon. I have no doubt that if the City Councillors vote down the proposed development that they will be told that the developer will appeal and keep appealing until they get the result they want and that this will cost a small fortune.

Now, none of this is new, the larger food retailers are systematically targeting the small shopping areas across Wales and the rest of the UK as they aggressively seek every greater profits and a larger market share. If this development goes a head the medium to long term impact on Caerleon will be a loss of trade, jobs and customer choice.  This is not the first time that this has happened in Newport, and it will not be the last.

Back in June 2011  Tesco won their appeal against an initial decision to turn down planning permission for a new store.  Over 500 people had objected to Tesco plans to open an Express store in a dis-used pub, the Black Horse Inn on Somerton Road. The Council planning officers had on that occasion recommended that the application be refused over concerns about congestion and road safety issues and a lack of parking provision.

Local residents also objected on grounds of the impact of the development on existing shops. The Council's planning committee considered the application on 1st April 2009 and rejected the plans. The then planning committee recommended refusal on three grounds - that it would be detrimental to the vitality and viability of nearby retail centres; insufficient parking; substandard access.

The Planning Inspectorate however allowed Tesco to appeal to convert the former Black Horse Inn pub on Somerton Road into an Express store. The Tesco PR machine no doubt rolled out the usual claptrap about creating jobs and boosting the local economy , here should have been little doubt that the planned new Tesco Express store in Somerton, is part of an aggressive business strategy expressly targeting local shops and small businesses in local shopping areas, with a view to taking their trade. This is part of a recognised problem which is taking place across Wales and which does not just relate to Tesco but most of the other larger UK wide retail chains.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has long noted that the UK loses approximately 2,000 local shops every year and should this continue then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business, something that effects consumers and communities as they effectively lose any real choice in the marketplace. Over recent years across all of Wales, that particularly useful mix of local shops, small businesses and local suppliers have come under increasing pressure as the usual suspects in the shape of “identikit” chain stores have replicated themselves across our towns.

Our planning process has been fundamentally weakened and effectively undermined, as local authorities fear the cost implications of supermarket applications being taken to appeal after appeal if the original outline planning permission is refused. We are proceeding down a slippery slope, when Councillors end up being advised by their officers to grant planning permission less the potential costs of refusing a development proposal from a large company prove to damaging - so much for local democracy!

ABERGAVENNY LIVESTOCK MARKET

KALM’s legal battle to prevent the closure of Abergavenny Livestock market and its removal from the town has drawn a blank as a High Court judge has rejected claims that Monmouthshire County Council (MCC) has acted unlawfully. MCC aim to replace the one hundred and fifty year old livestock market with a new market near Raglan they have already agreed to sell the old site with planning permission for a supermarket and library. The judicial review heard KALM had many complaints about Monmouthshire council's decision to grant planning permission in June last year to Optimisation Developments Ltd.

The market which covers a 1.9-hectare site is surrounded by the Abergavenny Conservation Area on three sides. KALM arguments included the claims that demolition would seriously affect the local economy and threaten to contaminate the River Usk. All the  complaints were rejected by Mrs Justice Nicola Davies, who said the council had take all conservation, environmental and socio-economic issues properly into account when reaching its decision.

MCC deputy leader Bob Greenland made much of the suggestion that the supermarket scheme could potentially bring in over of 200 jobs for local people. Interestingly enough a study by the National Retail Planning Forum (in 1998) of 93 new superstores found that each one resulted in a net loss of 270 local jobs per development. The opening a large supermarket can lead to a loss of jobs as local businesses close. Supermarket domination of the retail trade puts the local food infrastructure at risk threatening the viability of local abattoirs, wholesalers and small farms and the associated jobs.

This effect was spotted by the Campaign for the Preservation of Rural England who noted that following the opening of a large supermarket there was a loss of choice as it becomes harder to buy local foods. 64% of the local shops in Fakenham, Norfolk, and 75% of those in Warminster, Wiltshire, closed when new superstores were built in those towns. Most supermarkets sell very little locally sourced produce, with only 1-2% of their turnover coming from local foods, so, when local shops close, the outlet for local produce disappears with them.

As has already been noted by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) our local retail traders are in trouble, The UK is losing approximately 2,000 local shops every year and that of this continues then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business, something that effects consumers and communities as they effectively lose any real choice in the marketplace.

I think that Government and elected representatives at almost every level (and from almost every political party) have failed the good people of Abergavenny and for small farmers from the surrounding area. MCC has been allowed to act as judge, jury (not to mention jury sector), executioner and main financial beneficiary, from the closure of Abergavenny Livestock market, which if nothing else should focus minds on the farcical planning process.

SUPERMARKET SWEEP?

News that Labour run Newport City Council approved plans to convert a pub into a small Sainsbury’s in Caerleon will sadly shock very few interested observers. Opponents of the development were disappointed by the decision by Newport planning committee to allow the conversion of the Angel Hotel on Goldcroft Common, Caerleon. One of the reason as to why the application was approved may well have been the concern that the developer would appeal if the planning committee threw out the application.

Council Officers and a sub-committee of planning councillors had visited the Caerleon site but recommended Hillvale Properties Ltd’s plans for a Sainsbury’s be approved. Over 1,700 signatures were collected for a petition against the move, along with 128 letters of objection were sent to the council. Some 66 postcards, distributed by Sainsbury’s to local residents, were received in support.

Newport City Council has recently lost appeals against a decision not to give planning permission for a site in Rogerstone to be redeveloped for a Tesco Express store following a planning inquiry in 2008 and plans to convert the former Black Horse Inn pub on Somerton Road into a Tesco Express store over in Somerton. Despite the Council’s and local people’s concerns and objections, the Planning Inspectorate allowed Tesco to appeal.

It is worth noting that the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has previously noted that the UK loses around 2,000 local shops each year and if this continue then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business. Over recent years across all of Wales, that particularly useful mix of local shops, small businesses and local suppliers have come under increasing pressure as the usual suspects in the shape of “identikit” chain stores have replicated themselves across our towns.

The bottom line is that our planning process has been weakened and undermined, as local authorities fear the cost implications of supermarket applications being taken to appeal after appeal if the original outline planning permission is refused. We are not far away from the point where Councillors will be advised by their officers to grant planning permission less the potential costs of refusing a development proposal from a large company prove to damaging – at which point an part of our local democratic system will have quietly died.

WHEN A COMMUNITY SAYS ‘NO’ ?

Newport council planning officials have recommend that Sainsbury’s plan to convert the Angel Hotel in Caerleon into a convenience store be approved with conditions by the city’s planning committee when it meets on Wednesday (25th April). The proposals (put forward by Hillvale Properties who are operating on behalf of Sainsbury’s) have prompted over 1,700 people to sign petitions against it, and 127 neighbours have written letters of objection.

Local people have told the council that the plan to turn the pub, located on Goldcroft Common, Caerleon, into a 385 square metre retailer with two flats on the first floor would “exacerbate an already dangerous and difficult traffic situation”. Concerns were raised that local shops – several independent retailers including a sandwich shop and a Spar are nearby – would close, while the petition said the historical character and sense of community in Caerleon would be tarnished.

There are also concerns about anti-social behaviour, noise to residents, and parking which is claimed is already at saturation point in the area. As someone who travels on the bus to and from work past the Angel and parking is grim in and around the area of the Angel and traffic congestion a real issues, at least from where I am sat on bus.

City planners however, noted that a new store opening would “enhance” the Caerleon district centre, adding to its “retail floorspace”, and the store is unlikely to harm the centre’s viability. The planners noted that the Spar and Pipers News shops may lose trade, but “it is not the role of the planning system to restrict competition”. A fair point but what about the investigation into the economic impact of the development on the village?

Planners noted that traffic concerns were “understandable”, but adds “there is no robust evidence” that the proposal will result in “a significant and harmful increase in traffic.” Spaces for seven customer cars during deliveries would meet parking requirements, and Gwent Police had raised no objection to the proposal. Planners have called for conditions imposing restricted delivery hours.

The recommendation is to proceed with the application, despite local objections. One question that should be loudly asked is just who is the planning system serving, clearly not the expressed wishes of the residents of Caerleon. I have no doubt that if the City Councillors vote down the proposed development that they will be told that the developer will appeal and keep appealing until they get the result they want and that this will cost a small fortune.

Now, none of this is new, the larger food retailers are systematically targeting the small shopping areas across the UK as they seek every greater profits and a larger market share. If this development goes a head the medium to long term impact on Caerleon will be a loss of trade, jobs and customer choice. This is not the first time that this has happened in Newport, and it will not be the last.

Back in June 2011 Tesco won their appeal against an initial decision to turn down planning permission for a new store. Over 500 people had objected to Tesco plans to open an Express store in a dis-used pub, the Black Horse Inn on Somerton Road. The Council planning officers had on that occasion recommended that the application be refused over concerns about congestion and road safety issues and a lack of parking provision.

Local residents also objected on grounds of the impact of the development on existing shops. The Council's planning committee considered the application on 1st April 2009 and rejected the plans. The committee recommended refusal on three grounds - that it would be detrimental to the vitality and viability of nearby retail centres; insufficient parking; substandard access.

The Planning Inspectorate however allowed Tesco to appeal to convert the former Black Horse Inn pub on Somerton Road into an Express store. The Tesco PR machine no doubt rolled out the usual claptrap about creating jobs and boosting the local economy, here should have been little doubt that the planned new Tesco Express store in Somerton, is part of an aggressive business strategy expressly targeting local shops and small businesses in local shopping areas, with a view to taking their trade. This is part of a recognised problem which is taking place across Wales and which does not just relate to Tesco but most of the other larger UK wide retail chains.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has noted that the UK loses approximately 2,000 local shops every year and should this continue then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business, something that effects consumers and communities as they effectively lose any real choice in the marketplace. Over recent years across all of Wales, that particularly useful mix of local shops, small businesses and local suppliers have come under increasing pressure as the usual suspects in the shape of “identikit” chain stores have replicated themselves across our towns.

Our planning process has been fundamentally weakened and undermined, as local authorities fear the cost implications of supermarket applications being taken to appeal after appeal if the original outline planning permission is refused. We are on a slippery slope, when Councillors may be advised by their officers to grant planning permission less the potential costs of refusing a development proposal from a large company prove to damaging - so much for local democracy!

CAN WE MAKE IT BETTER?

News that the number of people visiting high streets and shopping centres has fallen more in Wales than any other part of the UK sadly comes as no surprise. On my way to work in my home town of Newport, I walk past far too many empty or closed but partially furnished shops every day. The British Retail Consortium has revealed that footfall in Welsh towns and cities has dropped by 9.2% between April and July, the UK average footfall was down 1%.

Part of this is down to the recession, part of it down to the over reliance of local economies by chain retail stores and supermarkets, not to mention the cumulative damage that has been done since the 1980's with the growth of out of town or edge of town retail developments. Take my home town of Newport, where two Newport superstores set to open new stores barely a mile apart (within weeks of each other) and may create 650 new jobs. Morrisons in Lysaghts and redeveloped Tesco Extra in Spytty (both in the south of Newport) are due to open their doors in the autumn offering a combined 162,432 square feet of shopping space and employing up to 1,000 people.

Newport currently has 23 supermarkets, a significant number of which don't just sell food, for the record, we have:

• seven Tescos
• three Icelands
• two Asdas
• two Morrisons
• three Cooperative food stores 
• one Sainsbury store 
• three Lidl and 
• two Aldi supermarkets. 

Some of the larger supermarkets operating within the Newport area have been specifically targeting the smaller more local shopping centres. One of the consequences of excessive economic impact on local economies from the expansion of the supermarket sector is a loss of jobs as local businesses go under. Supermarket domination of the retail trade puts the local food infrastructure at risk threatening the viability of local wholesalers and small firms and the associated jobs in other businesses that offer support services i.e. banking, financial services, building work, packaging, etc.

The economic consequences of the generational failure to create a level playing field for local small businesses (not just in Newport) over the last twenty five years. This has been aggravated by a failure to redevelop Newport's commercial centre and the failure to restrict out of town developments; something that is now beginning to reap some pretty grim economic consequences.

A study by the National Retail Planning Forum in 1998 of 93 new superstores found that each one resulted in a net loss of 270 local jobs. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) noted that the UK is losing approximately 2,000 local shops every year and by 2015 (if this rate of loss is sustained) there there will be no independent retailers left in business.

This hits small businesses, consumers and our communities hard as they lose any real choice in the marketplace. Until fairly recently many or our smaller and larger towns, managed to retain a reasonably rich mix of local shops, small businesses and local suppliers. They have suffered in recent years as the usual suspects in the shape of “identikit” chain stores have run riot and replicated themselves across our nation's high streets.

Our Local Authorities (and here Newport is pretty typical) have been too often tempted as developers offering includes, sweeteners and inducements to ease the passage of proposed developments. They may be advised of the financial consequences of planning applications being taken to appeal if permission is refused and our elected representatives have been silenced by often dubious promises of potential jobs - so much for local democracy!

Local Authorities have failed to adequately research the implications of large scale developments on local retail needs within their development plans. If retailing needs have not been assessed then it’s pretty difficult to amend or refuse any potentially damaging planning applications from wealthy large developers, at which point local small businesses and consumers begin to pay the price.

Despite the lip service about improving the vitality and viability of our town centres, many out of town retail developments have consistently undermined this aim. Local authorities have turned a blind eye to the economic and social consequences of out of town or edge of town retail developments. The economic reality has fallen well short of the verbal aspiration, just look at the damage that has been done to Abergavenny, Chepstow, Monmouth, Newport and elsewhere.

How can local regeneration schemes ever hope to work, once the commercial heart of our high streets has already been seriously damaged. I don't have a problem with redevelopment but it's important to include an element for local retail and small businesses. Our small businesses end up being disadvantaged not just because of their inability to compete on level terms with the increasingly aggressive tactics of supermarkets and retail chains who are chasing an ever larger market share, but, because they get pushed out of the high street.

More than ever, our planners and our elected representatives at all levels need to think about the long term economic consequences of planning decisions. We need to take the longer term view, rather than get fixated on short term financial gains and questionable inducements from developers and the often hyped up promise of jobs.

Locally, in Newport, Labour ran the show from 1981 until 2004, effectively presiding over the run down of the town centre and a rapid expansion of out of town shopping centres, which to be fair even if they had opposed no doubt the Conservative run Welsh Office would have retrospectively approved. Yet even with New Labour in power in Westminster from 1997 and occasionally in Cardiff (from 1999) the local Labour run county council did little other than to sit pretty on the top of the pile.

They paid the price in 2004, being swept from office as New Labour's unpopularity grew. They lost control for the first time since 1979, but managed to run down the finances before election day. Now Labour in Newport is puring like a cat waiting for the cream, as they expect to be swept back into office, on the back of an unpopular Conservative - Lib Democrat coalition government, so they can get their noses back in the trough.

Next May, Newport goes to the polls and the election should be about more than merely throwing out the current lot out because of the record of their government in Westminster. Especially if the electorate is merely going to replace them with another lot who ran the town into the ground, when they ran the place previously. Repeating the mistakes of the past won't solve the current problems that beset our town at the moment, come May 2012 we need real change.

ANNIVERSARIES...

Yet another anniversary, this time the twentieth anniversary of the failed Soviet Coup attempt which brought about the final demise of the Soviet Union. At the time I watched most of it live on TV in my office in South London with my colleagues, the defining moment was, at least from where I was sat was the moment when Boris Yeltsin walked boldly out of the White House, and climbed up onto the tank, shook hands with the tank crew and turned to speak to the crowd and the world, declaiming to the assembled Moscow residents and representatives of the worlds media, saying:

Boris Yeltsin outside the White House

 "The clouds of terror and dictatorship are gathering over the whole country. They must not be allowed to bring eternal night." and “You can make a throne of bayonets, but you can't sit on it for long.”

Twenty years down the line, and with the benefit of hindsight it's pretty clear the botched coup merely speeded up the demise of the Soviet Union. With the people on the streets (the defiance was not just confined to Moscow for example 10,000 protesters flooded the square in provincial Sverdlovsk and there were no arrests) the forces of reaction stalled, blinked, drank and crumbled.

Soviet communism was finally exposed live on TV as the repressive force it was, it ended up discredited in the eyes of the Russian people and proved itself unequal to their hopes and aspirations. A one party tyranny based state that emerged from the chaos of the first world war, two revolutions and a bloody civil war some 74 years previously, quietly rolled over and died as Russia was reborn.



People and Tank in Moscow 

 Yeltsin and the democrats were helped by the fact that the Soviet Coup plotters might well have had Stalinist impulses, but they thankfully lacked both the competence and the cruelty of their predecessors. The fact that the generals and the soldiers on the ground lacked the will to bathe Moscow in blood, write it up in orwellian newspeak as a victory for soviet socialism. The KGB leaders on the ground (it emerged afterwards) point blank refused to storm the White House (in St Petersburg the KGB apparently supported the Russian democrats), they were unwilling to spill so much blood, and two Generals threatened to bomb the Kremlin in retaliation if the White House was stormed.

By the time Gorbachev came back to Moscow he was literally coming back to another country. Boris Yeltsin, was now running the show and the state, Russia was back. I remember the live defining theatrical moment, when Yeltsin forced the then Soviet leader to sign the all-powerful Soviet Communist Party out of existence. The reality was that after more than 70 years the Soviet Union was rapidly dissolving day by day and moment by moment, as the various republics declared their independence and their independence was recognised by Russia and the Western powers.

What followed was a high speed and shockingly chaotic transfer of the old institutions of Soviet state to the new Russian state. On the 8th December, Russia, Ukraine and Belarus renounced the (1922) treaty that had created the Russian dominated Soviet Union. On the 25th December (our Christmas Day), Gorbachev duly resigned in a tv broadcast and accepted the dissolution of the world's second superpower, the Russian flag was duly raised over the Kremlin and the party was well and truly over, but, one mother of a hangover was to follow.

Sadly the fledgling Russian democracy was in no condition to deliver on peoples hopes and aspirations, the democrats found themselves rapidly pushed out of the corridors of power and the era of the oligarchs began. The much trumpeted privatisations brought in millions for the privatisers (and some of the former state officials) but brought in a flood tide of chaos, corruption, poverty and misery to millions of ordinary Russians. All of this may go some way to explaining why there so much disillusionment and cynicism in modern Russia today.

The Russia that emerged was quite different from its new independent neighbours, and not just in scale, but in historical experience and character. The country had suffered waves of emigration (some voluntary, some not) with the departure of aristocracy, the business and educated and professional classes. Stalin's terror, the great patriotic war and the inertia of the late 1960's, the 1970's and the 1980's all left their mark in memory, attitude and expectation.

If we are being honest, some of this is our fault, certainly in the early 1990's there was a marked failure in the West, to accept that Russia, was not the old Soviet Union. The West never reached out to Russia either economically or politically. Russia by way of comparison with the largess that was handed our to the old Soviet-bloc countries waiting to join the EU, did rather badly. The Western leaders desire to create 'a new Europe' oddly enough did not stretch to include Russia.

Instead of support and help to build democratic intuitions all Russia got was an ill-thought out hurried crash course in free-market economics not to mention a degree of criticism over Russia's failure to meet Western democratic and judicial standards. It was consummate arrogance on the part of the West to think that the western European trans-atlantic model of 'free market' capitalism would work in Russia, one size does not (and did not) fit all. When the Russian democratic system belatedly began to throw up popular choices that the West did not like then help to tweak the election results in favour of Boris Yeltsin was duly forthcoming.

The combination of institutional corruption, selective intolerance of democratic opponents, extra judicial murder of journalists (and critics of the regime), suspicious deaths in custody and occasional bouts of hyper inflation (which eradicated ordinary peoples savings), border wars and terrorism have left modern Russia and different and a depressing pseudo democratic state. Throw in the activities of the pro Kremlin media moguls (who would make News International look like a bunch of cack handed woolly headed amateurs) buying up or closing down opposition news organisations and is it any wonder that democracy in Russia stalled.

Perhaps if the Soviet Union had lingered longer and gone through more of transition to representative democracy then things might have been different. Russia was half-way through its own revolution when the Soviet Union collapsed around it. Things were different in middle and eastern Europe where the Baltic peoples and the East and Central Europeans literally overthrew the old system and started things with a reasonably clean slate. Poor old Russia was left to muddle through and to attempt to sort out several things at once.

The welcome exposure of communist ideology as the empty shell it was helped to bring about the collapse of the Soviet Union. However, it's important to remember that the overthrow of communism and the dissolution of the Soviet Union were two different but intertwined processes. The events of 1990 and 1991 were as as much a clash between Russia and the Soviet Union, as visibly portrayed by the personal struggle between Yeltsin and Gorbachev, as they were any meaningful argument about any form of ideology.

In middle and eastern Europe the former Soviet client states were able to start anew, with new institutions and (in most countries) new people, Russia's revolution focused on a recovery and restoration of it's lost sovereignty. Russia has, amongst other things been over the last twenty years recovering its history, borders, statehood, and its historic mission. All this took place while Russia was also attempting to find its place in the new neighbourhood (near abroad) and the new world (far abroad).

With Russian statehood came a wave of re-branding and re-imaging as former Soviet institutions emerged as all Russian institutions. The old KGB for example was reborn and re-branded as the Federal Security Service (FSB), the same process took place in a host of other organisations. Yet old Soviet habits died hard and old Soviet mind sets lingered on, if not clawed back some of their previous prestige and power. Despite everything that has happened Russia has not turned into Upper Volta with nuclear weapons and no gunboats have appeared on the Volga as was predicted by some commentators in the 1990's.

Russia has not gone backwards, things are different both significantly and more subtly, modern Russia is not the former Soviet Union, we are all somewhere different. Any half baked partial restoration of the Soviet past will not work as every year that passes a new generation who have no memory of the CCCP comes through the school system. Putin, despite his faults and the work of the Kremlin spin doctors, is no Stalin, no Yeltsin, yet may be more of a Brezhnev. Personally he is one of the generation that crosses the great divide - the latter years of Soviet Union, the turbulent years of the economic and political transition from 1989 to 1992, and the free market chaos of the mid-1990s.



Prime Minister Putin

 Putin as president and prime minister may, when the dust settles and we look back in hindsight from another twenty years in the future, have provided Russia and the Russian people with some hard earned breathing space and settled things down, but at what cost? The last twenty years have been rough for the Russian people, who have lived through a lot since 1914, war, revolutions, Stalin's terror, the great patriotic war and the gulags, not to mention Kruschev, Brezhnev and the demise of the Soviet Union. There is also the loss of Soviet Empire to consider, a Russian acquaintance once told me that the British had sixty years to get the loss of their Empire (and some have not got over the loss), while the the Russians had a fortnight - ouch!

The West and the Europeans have clearly missed opportunities (some of which were loudly pointed out at the time) to help Russia. Russia should have been offered the hand of friendship, not to mention NATO membership and in my opinion some sort of most favoured nation trading status within the European Union. There should have been real support (financial and otherwise) for the transition of Russia's economy and institutions towards a fully fledged democracy. Had this been more forthcoming than not only might modern Russia have been different and more democratic but the European Union might well have been different as well.

As for Russia, the ball is firmly in their court, perhaps the children and grandchildren of the people who courageously stood up to the attempted coup in August 1991 will finally reap the full benefits of a fully democratic and free Russia rather than the fragile democracy that exists now. Some terribly grim things were done in the name of Soviet state Socialism, but, not everything the Soviet Union did (as least domestically) was bad. That said, a rose tinted nostalgia for the past won't butter bread or fill your petrol tank or keep a roof over your head.

And here in the West, as well as in Russia, there are those who have also not adjusted to our new common realities, the fall of the wall and the demise of the Soviet Union should have led to the loss of those tired old (and now pointless) labels of 'left' and 'right.' The new game is called globalisation, and people, communities and nations are mere commodities and as it's largely bereft of ideology - it's now about how we deal with the worst of its social and economic consequences.

MORE THAN A WATCHING BRIEF?

The decision of the national assembly's enterprise and business committee to study the impact of out of town retail parks, and ask whether enough is being done to help local communities and businesses, should be welcomed. With our local retail sectors were already struggling before the triple whammy of inflation, job insecurity and public spending cuts. The economic fate of our small towns and their regeneration should be a prime focus of the national assembly.

The Federation of Small Businesses in Wales (FSB) has already called for national assembly ministers to draw up a retail strategy to support traders. They, quite rightly, want supermarket schemes to include a study on their effect on local stores and for shopping developments to subsidise space for smaller outlets.

As I have said previously we are in dire need of a new fresh approach to supporting small town and rural businesses, which are the lifeblood of our small towns and the economy across much of rural and non rural Wales. People have now recognised that economic and social problems in our communities are increasing; and the historic Government indifference to local economies and local economic needs cannot be allowed to continue.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has previously noted that the UK loses approximately 2,000 local shops every year and that of this continues then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business.
Over recent years in the small towns, that once rich mix of local shops, small businesses and local suppliers have come under pressure as the usual suspects in the shape of “identikit” chain stores have replicated themselves across our nation's high streets” rapidly eliminating any real choice from our town centres.

A cynic might wonder if the London based parties close financial relationship with some of the developers (UK wide and more locally) might have had an impact? Over the last twenty five years retail developments have consistently undermined our small towns economic cohesion and vitality, local authorities have either effectively turned a blind eye to the consequences of out of town or edge of town retail developments on the edge of market towns in England and Wales, or even colluded with the developers.

Despite the mistakes of the recent past, it’s not too late, with the abolition of the business rate for small businesses, better thought out more long term economic redevelopment plans and a change in attitude towards our small businesses, local suppliers it is possible to support our small town centres which should be making a significant contribution to our economy. The first step towards fixing this problem is to stop repeating the ill-thought out mistakes of the past, especially when it comes to planning and economic redevelopment.

Every Government since the 1980’s has talked the talk about promoting the vitality and viability of our small market towns, when in even the Conservatives under Mrs. Thatcher recognised the problem, but, did next to nothing to prevent the damage being done to our towns. I and more than a few people expect better from the National Assembly and will follow the proceedings of the national assembly enterprise and business committee with a keen interest.

HERE WE GO!

The news that Tesco have won their appeal against an initial decision to turn down planning permission for a new store, should come as no surprise. Over 500 people objected to Tesco plans to open an Express store in a dis-used pub, the Black Horse Inn on Somerton Road. The Council planning officers recommended that the application be refused as they are concerned about congestion and road safety issues together with a lack of parking provision.

Local residents have also objected on grounds of impact on existing shops. The Council's planning committee considered the application on 1st April 2009 and rejected the plans. The committee recommended refusal on three grounds - that it would be detrimental to the vitality and viability of nearby retail centres; insufficient parking; substandard access.

The Planning Inspectorate however allowed Tesco to appeal to convert the former Black Horse Inn pub on Somerton Road into an Express store. While I have no doubt that the Tesco PR machine will role out the usual claptrap about creating jobs and boosting the local economy, but there can be little doubt that this new Tesco Express store in Somerton, is part of an aggressive business strategy in the Newport area that will expressly target local shops and small businesses in the local shopping area, with a view to taking their trade. Sadly this is part of a recognised problem which is taking place across Wales and which does not just relate to Tesco but most of the other larger UK wide retail chains.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has noted that the UK loses approximately 2,000 local shops every year and that of this continues then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business, something that effects consumers and communities as they effectively lose any real choice in the marketplace. Over recent years across all of Wales, that once particularly rich mix of local shops, small businesses and local suppliers have come under increasing pressure as the usual suspects in the shape of “identikit” chain stores have replicated themselves across our nation's high streets.

The planning process is being undermined, as when our local authorities fear the cost implications of supermarket applications being taken to appeal after appeal if the original outline planning permission is refused then we are progressing down a slippery slope. When we reach the point that where Councillors may be advised by their officers of the potential costs if a development proposal involving a larger more aggressive retail company is refused and that they could go to appeal - then so much for local democracy!

HOMEGROWN SME'S V BRANCH OFFICE DEVELOPMENTS

Small businesses play a significant role at the heart of our communities; they create wealth and sustainable employment opportunities for local people. Profits and investments made by them tend to stay within the communities where they are based. For too many years economic development in Wales has been focused on large scale development of what can be best described a single egg solutions, which promise much and deliver significantly less, the focus should be on developing small to medium size local businesses, which are significantly less likely to up sticks and leave for perceived greener pastures and fresh applications of development grants.

This focus on attracting large scale single enterprises, which promise much but deliver significantly less than anticipated. The LG development near Newport, is a good example of an expensive disaster / fiasco [please take your pick] which promised the usual total of 6,000 jobs - accrued significant public funding - which was committed by the then Welsh Secretary, William Hague, yet never delivered anything like what was promised. While anyone (even a Tory) with half a brain or even half an understanding of the state of the Korean and the Far Eastern economies at the time that and a basic understanding of where technological developments in relation to PC monitor screens were going, would have put their hands up and said hang on a moment.

A combination of what can best be described as fantasy island economic assessments, a fatally flawed business case and a forthcoming Westminster election led to one of the spectacularly duller decisions of recent years being made, something that ended up costing us millions of pounds worth of public money. The WDA has in truth not really consistently delivered anything like long term economic stability and much needed long term job opportunities to our communities that it should have done.

European funding opportunities have been seriously wasted, where are the physical assets, by which I mean the things you can literally put your hand on like improved communications (rail and road), broadband infrastructure, etc - that bring long term benefits to our communities. How much money has been scammed (and scammed may be the key word) into dubious training programmes and questionable educations programmes that fail to deliver the necessary skills that workers and potential workers need to make a decent living in the modern economy?

The Plaid driven One Wales Government has made significant efforts and attempts to think and act differently when it comes to economic development and support for small to medium sized enterprises, which are the only real thing that will put wealth into our communities, and develop and sustain longer term employment possibilities. Attracting branch factory operations of a relative short term duration does not help develop our economy - we really do need to think differently and focus economic development priorities on smaller local businesses who will be rooted in our communities and offer more flexible employment opportunities.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has noted that the UK is losing 2,000 local shops every year and that of this rate of loss continues then by 2015, less than 5 years hence, there will be no independent retailers left in business, something that will badly hit both consumers and our communities hard as they lose any real choice in the marketplace and lose potential job opportunities. Over the last twenty years the commercial hearts of many of our communities have been seriously damaged as a result of a combination of aggressive policies pursued by the larger retail chains and exceptionally poor decision making on the part of local government and central government indifference.

When combined with the rapid growth of unsustainable, ill-thought out and more than questionable out of town and edge of town retail developments which leave next to no place for the smaller local businesses and retailers and deprive consumers of real choice. When you factor in parking charges, business rates and the effect of the closure of high street banks and post offices in many of our communities and you begin to see why many of our smaller businesses and local shopping centres are up against it. Local small businesses as well as trading with us the consumers, also trade with each other - so the community gets twice the benefit. Money spent by and in local businesses spends on average three times longer in the local economy than that spent with chain stores which is instantly lost to the local economy which in times of recession our communities can ill afford.

The Welsh Assembly Government's Green jobs Strategy is a welcome step in the right direction but clearly more needs to be done. The National Assembly needs to have the power to vary business taxes in order to help boost our businesses, as well as encourage investment in skills and the tools of their businesses and their workers. If we are going to make Wales a nation of aspiring entrepreneurs and to encourage and enable them, our communities and our economy to flourish we need to encourage the development of community owned social enterprises.

The Rowlands review into the provision of growth capital was most welcome; it recognised that an economical vibrant SME sector is vital for economic growth. There has been a lack of provision for companies in Wales who are looking for between £2 and £10 million pounds in capital, this has to change if we are to encourage sustainable economic growth and development.

It’s pretty clear that the present financial market and its institutions have failed over recent years to supply sufficient venture capital for the SME sector in Wales. We need a venture capital fund for Wales, which should be established by, but independent of the Welsh Assembly Government. Such an independent venture capital fund could raise capital and deliver investment through a co-investment model, with approved private sector partners to our SME sector, where such investment would make a real difference.

More of the same old twaddle from Whitehall and Cathays won't do at all, vastly expensive one egg, one basket schemes to generate the seemingly standard 6,000 jobs, just won't do. And speaking of twaddle, which was all that we were offered by the London based political parties, what we need is fresh thinking and action from the new government - more than just talk, we need some concrete steps to encourage growth, boost manufacturing industry, support our small to medium sized enterprises and an end to the business rates and that's just to start with... otherwise it will just be a case of same old, same old with ill thought out out public sector cuts which will do nothing to boost our communities and our economy.

GOOD FOR BUSINESS, GOOD FOR US

Small businesses are a vital part of our communities; they create wealth and sustainable employment opportunities for local people within our communities. For far too long economic development in Wales has been focused on large scale development of what can be best described a single egg solutions, which promise much and deliver significantly less, the focus should be on developing small to medium size local businesses, which are significantly less likely to up sticks and leave for perceived greener pastures and fresh applications of development grants.

There has been far too much focus on attracting large scale single enterprises, which promise much but deliver significantly less, the expensive disaster / fiasco [take your pick] promised a spectacular total of 6,000 jobs - significant public funding was committed by the then Welsh Secretary, William Hague, it never delivered. Anyone with half a brain or even half an understanding of the state of the Korean and the Far Eastern economies at the time that and a basic understanding of where technological developments in relation to PC monitor screens were going, would have put their hand up.

A combination fantasy island economic assessments, a fatally flawed business case and a forthcoming Westminster election led to one of the duller decisions of recent years being made, something that ended up costing us millions of pounds worth of public money. The WDA has in truth not really delivered anything like long term economic stability and Long term job opportunities to our communities.

European funding opportunities have been wasted, where are the physical assets, by which I mean the things you can literally put your hand on like improved communications (rail and road), broadband infrastructure, etc that bring long term benefits to our communities. How much money has been scammed into dubious training programmes and questionable educations programmes that fail to deliver the skills out workers and potential workers need to make a decent living in the modern economy?

The Plaid driven One Wales Government has attempted to think and act differently when it comes to economic development and support for small to medium sized enterprises, which are the only real thing that will put wealth into our communities, and develop and sustain longer term employment possibilities. Attracting branch factory operations of a relative short term duration does not help develop our economy - we really do need to think differently and focus economic development priorities on smaller local businesses who will be rooted in our communities and offer more flexible employment opportunities.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) noted that the UK is losing 2,000 local shops every year and that of this rate of loss continues then by 2015, less than 5 years hence, there will be no independent retailers left in business, something that will badly hit both consumers and our communities hard as they lose any real choice in the marketplace and lose potential job opportunities. Over the last twenty years the commercial hearts of many of our communities have been seriously damaged as a result of a combination of aggressive policies pursued by the larger retail chains and exceptionally poor decision making on the part of local government and central government indifference.

When combined with the rapid growth of unsustainable, ill-thought out and more than questionable out of town and edge of town retail developments which leave next to no place for the smaller local businesses and retailers and deprive consumers of real choice. When you factor in parking charges, business rates and the effect of the closure of high street banks and post offices in many of our communities and you begin to see why many of our smaller businesses and local shopping centres are up against it.

Local small businesses as well as trading with us the consumers, also trade with each other - so the community gets twice the benefit. Money spent by and in local businesses spends on average three times longer in the local economy than that spent with chain stores which is instantly lost to the local economy which in times of recession our communities can ill afford.

SAVING OUR TOWN CENTRES

Our small and not so small towns (in Monmouth constituency any beyond) have suffered from ill-thought out development and short term economic thinking and as our local small to medium sized businesses have suffered, so have our consumers have paid the price with a loss of local services and real choice in the marketplace.

Most people can clearly see that the rich individual character of many of our towns is evaporating before their eyes. Our High streets once filled with a rich mix of interdependent butchers, newsagents, tobacconists, pubs, bookshops, greengrocers and family owned general stores are now rapidly filling with supermarket stores, fast food chains and global fashion outlets.

This is a result of a failure by local and central government to develop local economic plans and to create a level playing field for local businesses and suppliers. When combined with some extremely questionable planning decisions over the last thirty years; this has lead to many of our town centre's being "regenerated" to the point where many of our local small businesses are clinging on by their finger tips. The loss of that sense of community is aggravated as our high streets lose their distinctive local shops which are replaced by “micro-format” supermarket or chain store branches.

This is not about nostalgia; the loss of locally owned shops and businesses damages the local economy as profits drain out of the area to remote corporate headquarters and more flexible local employment opportunities are destroyed. An economically active local network of food producers, wholesalers and local retailers help to sustain many other jobs within the local economy – far more jobs than a hypermarket and associated retail development.

Local businesses provide work for trade’s people such as electricians, builders and plumbers – whereas national chains tend to employ people from outside of the area for renovation and repair work. There other beneficial knock on effects with local employment in banking, accountancy, legal advice, insurance, etc – all of which underpin the viability of our small towns.

The Campaign for the Preservation of Rural England report ‘Rural Roulette’, which focused on the area around the small town of Saxmundan (in Suffolk) revealed that 81 shops surveyed employed 548 people, with 317 employees working part-time. Local small businesses were more flexible and able to fit in odd hours, at odd times for their staff. The report also noted that many employees travelled significantly shorter distances to their place of work and the majority of employees were women.

Further research for the Campaign for the Preservation of Rural England reveals that money spent in local businesses stays in the local economy three times longer than when spent in shops belonging to the larger retail chains. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) notes that the UK is losing 2,000 local shops every year and they estimate that if this rate of loss continues then by 2015 there will be no independent retailers left in business.

We need to develop more sustained long term initiatives that are designed to promote new and existing businesses in our small towns and rural areas, rather than detrimental retail developments that will help run them into the ground and damage the local economy. Our often hard pressed existing small businesses, local retailers and suppliers provide much needed jobs for local people and provide a linked network of businesses that use each other’s services and feed the local economy.

Small shops and local retailers provide a significant social network for many local people and passersby and add to the long term viability and vitality of our communities. Don’t say that you have not been warned…