And get more cruise ships to call in the Bay.
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A leaflet dropped through the letter box today, one of
dozens that I drop forlornly in to the recycle bin a few minutes later, unread
but given a quick glance if I can be bothered. This one did catch my eye due to
it’s head line, and I quote,
“Tories Pursue Third Harbour Madness!”
The leaflet is actually a brief newsletter that turns up
from time to time and is edited by the local LibDem councillor Jenny Faulkener
together with Amanda Darling and Swithin Long. The whole of the front page, A4
in size, is dedicated to the news that our Tory councillors have, under the
watchful eye of our elected Tory mayor, Gordon Oliver, voted to go ahead with
the Third Harbour project. This will provide a safe place for cruise ships to
dock here in Torquay. At present, cruise ships have to anchor out in the Bay.
Those passengers who want to visit, climb aboard small boats for the 10 minute
trip to the safety of the Marina and then, most of them anyway, board coaches
so they can go and have a look at Dartmouth, Dartmoor, Teignmouth, Totnes,
Exeter and other local, for local please read South Devon, attractions. When,
last week, the cruise ship Artania came for a visit I did notice two German
couples in Torquay. One couple walked past me carrying Primark bags, now I can
only guess they were from the ship but my reasons for this guess are, they were
speaking German, they weren’t foreign language students, too old, and the cruise
ship had been reported to be full of German tourists. The other couple were
emerging from The Green Ginger speaking German and carrying, yes, you’ve
guessed it. Poundland bags, big Poundland bags. But not big enough to cover the
sixty thousand pounds that our mayor said the Torquay economy would benefit
from the visit of the cruise ship. The mayor even had the Land Train abandon
it’s usual route, and therefore it’s other waiting, expectant, passengers, to
take our visitors to one of our very own local attractions, Cockington Village.
I know someone who works in one of the coffee houses in Cockington and asked
that person had they been especially busy. A flat no was the answer. This lack
of spending power could have had something to do with the fact that the cruise
ship operators decided not to bother changing their passengers’ Euros into
Pounds. If this idea continues with the next 6 cruise ships due into the Bay
then they may as well not bother coming.
I digress, back to the LibDem’s leaflet. The tone of the
article suggest that the writer thinks the whole scheme is insane. Not true. I
think the mayor is extremely farsighted. He is only thinking of our great,
great grandchildren. He wants to make sure they have something that will
attract people and therefore money into the Bay and actually make a profit.
Sadly he is ignoring the fact that we, our children, our grandchildren and our
great grandchildren will be the ones actually paying for this Third Harbour and
seeing no benefit from it, just a massive debt repayment that could last 100
years.
£175 million is the cost of this Third Harbour. It will
never happen, who’s going to be mug enough to lend Torbay that kind of money?
Better to lend it to Greece. The thing that angers me the most is the £600 000
the mayor plans to spend on a feasibility study to see if the project is
viable. Please Gordon give me a ring and I will do a sensible study, with an
open mind, either way, for or against, for just £10 000 saving you a massive
590 000 quid.
PS If you do think the Third Harbour is a good idea, please let me know your reasons for think that.
PPS I don't expect Gordon Oliver will read this but if you do, I would be interested in your reaction.
