Page 8 - Town & Around - September 2024

8 Town & Around September 2024 Tel: 01485 540620 email: editor@townandaround.net
Campaign for West Winch Bypass, before development on the A10
Cllr Alexandra Kemp
s the worst planning decision, since the
South Lynn Incinerator, about to happen
Iright here in West Norfolk? Can you help
stop it?
The Borough has scheduled Hopkins's
1100- home Application for decision by the
Planning Committee, on Wed 28 August
10.30 am in Lynn Town Hall.
But with no Govt funding yet on the table
for the £64 million Govt share of the £84
million West Winch Bypass ("Housing Access
Road"), to take through traffic and HGV's off
the already chronically congested A10.
The Bypass Outline Business Case for the
road, is still stuck with the Department for whole of West Norfolk. Modifications 115 environment, through West Winch on this
Transport and Govt has paused major road and 116 permit 300 houses in the A10 with high-accident, highly congested, worst-
projects. no highway intervention, 800 more if Hopkins performing stretch of the A10, with its
Highways Safety is a Material Planning build a narrow access from the Winch Public dangerous bends, poor sightlines and sub-
Reason to defer the Application. House to the A47 ( not the bypass) so standard width.
County's Outline Business Case for the potentially all 1100, before the proper Something must be done. Please attend the
bypass says development will increase strategic highway infrastructure, the bypass, Borough Planning Committee.
accidents at junctions along the A10 in West is built. Have your say today on the Local Plan by
Winch, increase dangerous detours through So I have written to the Secretaries of State filling in the consultation form at
North Runcton, Setchey and Saddlebow, as for Transport and Business, and told them the https://www.west-
cars seek to avoid the congested A10. Borough's Local Plan is not legally sound, norfolk.gov.uk/info/20079/planning_policy_a
It is unwise and undemocratic for the effective, justified or positively prepared and
Borough to decide Hopkins Application, is unfit for purpose, because the major nd_local_plan/951/local_plan_review_2016-
before the Planning Inspectorate has the development for West Norfolk has no funding 2036_examination
chance to review the public's comments on for essential highway infrastructure. Without and email it to lpr@west-norfolk.gov.uk or
the West Winch Local Plan Modifications ( the bypass in place first, the development will post them to:
the consultation started on 7 August for 8 be heavily car-dependent, environmentally Local Plan 2021-2040 Main Modifications
weeks) and make necessary changes. unsustainable and against national policy. Part 1 Consultation, Planning Policy Team
This Local Plan is clearly damaging to the 1100 homes in a rat-run. BCKLWN
safe and efficient circulation of the highway The Sustainable Transport Plan couldn't Kings Court, Chapel Street, King’s Lynn
network, not only for West Winch but for the implement an Active Travel friendly PE30 1EX

An update from Jo Rust

uch a lot has happened since I last wrote an article for Town at the overall New Hospital
and Around, not least a general election and a change in Programme Wes Streeting, the
Sgovernment with a Labour MP in South West Norfolk. A big Secretary of State for Health, has
welcome to Terry Jermy, the replacement for Liz Truss. publicly stated that he is prioritizing
With any new government, there comes new or different ways of the RAAC hospitals. I believe that
doing things and I think many of us will welcome those differences. we can trust that the party which
One of the main causes of concern around here is over the fate of our founded the NHS and which has
hospital. Back in 2019 Boris Johnson made an uncosted promise to consistently valued it and the
fund 40 new hospitals. Our Queen Elizabeth Hospital wasn’t on that workers who run it, will commit to
list, despite being made of RAAC concrete, being propped up with rebuilding our hospital as we so
wooden and metal props and being over 10 years past its replacement desperately need.
date. It should have been included on that list rather than some of It’s a perfect time to fully reevaluate the current option too. The
the hospitals which were, but weren’t in the same poor condition as plans we currently have could be re-examined with a view to a full
ours. It wasn’t until May last year that we made it onto that list. It and comprehensive options appraisal of an off-site option. If this
had taken over 2 years of campaigning every week outside the really isn’t possible then at least the public will know in an open and
hospital, numerous trips to parliament to lobby MPs, thousands of transparent way. The timeline has already been pushed so far back,
letters to a variety of different ministers for health and a lots of stunts purely because they last government failed to release funding in the
and rallies by the campaign group, as well as support from the time that it was needed.
Borough and County Council and constituency MP before the As a campaign group we have already been contacted by the new
announcement was made. Unfortunately, despite all our hopes, that local Labour MP who has arranged to meet us. This really is a
announcement didn’t come with any money. No funds had been welcome approach as the previous SWN MP only spoke up for the
released to pay for the relocating of the helipad, the building of the QEH once she had lost her role as PM.
new multi storey car park and certainly not the hospital itself. We have already committed to recommencing our campaign in
So, now we have a new government and quite sensibly it’s looking October if we haven’t had a decision by then. We will hold
at the figures, and what a dire state they are despite the Conservative whichever government is in power to account for any failure to
Party claiming to be the party of low taxes and fiscal responsibility! deliver the vital infrastructure that our county wide health system
However, a review of the New Hospital Programme is absolutely the needs. Without the QEH, the whole of Norfolk’s health will be
sensible thing to do and, I have been told, is being supported by the adversely affected We’ve always said “watch this space” and that is
hospital itself. Despite the fact that the new government is looking what we’ll be doing.