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THE SKY’S THE LIMIT
BUILD HIGHER! CITY PLAN FOR CLIMATE CHANGE EXPOSED

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Think the weather’s been ‘a bit funny’ lately? Blasted by the heat wave? Terrified by the rising tide? Think that climate change is something we need real solutions to in the here-and-now? Don’t panic ‘cos the Councils’ Climate Change Plan of Action is now up for consultation. Brighton’s still smarting after its eco-friendly organic hippy image (vital for estate agents) was recently exposed as a sham in a nationwide survey of ‘green cities’ and desperately needs to claw back some eco-credentials – so here’s the attempt to explain how it’ll cope with global warming.

How are our elected officials planning to deal with the most the challenging crisis the human race has ever faced? You can read the ‘summarised’ plan - which is still 42 yawn-inducing pages of bureaucratic doublespeak at - www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/sustainability Among the far-seeing innovations are to work on an “identifiable walking network” (ie pavements) and a review of A-boards outside shops. We’re also promised more recycling, a couple of wind turbines and some solar panels to boot. So is this a serious attempt to come to terms with the far-reaching consequences of global warming? Don’t make us laugh - this is Brighton after all.

Cutting to the chase, profit-conscious council bureaucrats have spotted a number of potential business opportunities. They reckon that global warming will make Brighton, as a seaside town, more desirable to visit, although with ‘adverse weather conditions’ becoming more frequent, visitors may become more reliant on ‘indoor activities’ to prevent their holidays from being disrupted. They call for entrepreneurial city dwellers to find exciting new investment opportunities in the collapse of civilisation, with ‘new products and lifestyles’ like ‘garden furniture, insulation materials, outdoor living items, water butts’. And presumably the way things are going canned food and shotguns. RM reckons that when climate change has finished with us Crawley will be an unpleasant seaside town and all that’ll be visible of Brighton will be the top two floors of Marina Towers.

The inevitability of rising sea levels would at least partially explain the city’s pre-occupation with becoming Manhattan-on-sea. Not only is the Legoland i360 being seriously put forward but Brighton & Hove councillors have just given the go ahead to the Marina development... which plans to build yet another monstrous tower overflowing with luxury apartments and with a viewing gallery to bring another 200,000 much needed tourists into the city. Local residents campaigning against the development insist that the 1968 Brighton Marina Act prohibits building above the height of the cliff. The council has refused to publish the legal advice it received and unlike every other aspect of the planning procedure it is not available on their website. So what’s it say? In order to distract punters from such trifling concerns as the law, Brunswick Developments have been busy inserting words like ‘eco’ and ‘bio’ in their plans to make quarter of a million quid bedsits.

In fact greenwash to justify further environmentally damaging development is very much the flavour of the month. The idea that the most environmentally sensitive solutions involve retro-fitting existing buildings has fallen on stony ground at Brighton Council. Instead we’re deluged with half-baked ‘rip it down and start again and get rich quick’ schemes. Anything genuinely green (i.e Magpie Recycling or the Wood Recycling Project) is rapidly shunted out of the way for more luxury flats. The Wood Recycling Project’s loss of their premises on the Old Fruit market is a classic example of the Council’s attitude to actual ‘eco’ initiatives. A real grassroots community resource which recycled used building material into timber (www.woodrecycling.org.uk) is being shown the door in favour of an £100m ‘eco-friendly’ ‘zero-carbon’ mixed use scheme ‘integrating residential and retail with a new events square, studios for South East Dance and a creative industries section’. Don’t worry folks ‘cos 40% of the residential accommodation will be ‘affordable’. When are we gonna get a 100% affordable development?

ONE PLANET NOT ENOUGH

Anyone remember Brighton Urban Design and Development (BUDD), and their visionary plans for the Brighton station site? The wildlife corridor and community resource-led development? You know, the plans that had massive local support that just got shoved in a council filing cabinet in favour of supermarkets and bland concrete flats?

Well, surprise, surprise, Brighton council is belatedly making a half-arsed stab at goin’ green there as well; we’re now triumphantly promised a revolutionary ‘Eco Village’ on a corner of the site, offering the lucky few with a quarter of a million to spare a slice of ‘One Planet Living’ in an ‘eco’ profit-friendly flat building programme complete with sky gardens (posh roof-top allotments). The ‘One Planet’ plans have now been submitted to the council by Bio-regional and its partner Quintain Estates (one of Britain’s biggest developers) for blocks E and F of the current development - which will include a much needed luxury hotel and apartment blocks and a massive Sainsbury’s smack bang opposite St Bartholomew’s Primary School in Ann Street. All the pollution from the daily lorry runs can be the perfect accompaniment for the kids to eat their Sainsbury’s-bought Dairylea lunchables to in the playground – yum yum.

And let’s be honest about this latest bit of ‘green’ window dressing - it isn’t going to change the fact that overall the New England Consortium development has been nothing but a total money-making scheme from start to finish: a horrendous piece of over-development in the centre of town – steel and glass canyons that’ll bring a city of London shine to Brighton. One Planet Living triumphantly claim to be a development organisation at the forefront of an ecologically sustainable future. They’re behind various developments under way as far afield as China, Australia and the USA, aiming to bring zero-carbon-emission eco-communities of happy people in harmony with nature to the heart of the city. Great, you might think - but, of course, you can only join in if you’ve got the readies. Only 30% of this development is set to be ‘affordable’. This is a more middle class type of affair, you see. Quintain aren’t a bloody charity you know, handing out low impact flats to the homeless it’s not - so we at RM can confidently look forward to a future pitching our ragged tents on the rubble of a dying civilisation while the rich of New England Quarter polish their solar panels and pat each others’ carbon-neutral backs. Can’t wait!

* The Council is, of course, really keen on hearing and then filing away your views - just like they did with the station development and Gehry Towers etc. If you fancy wasting five minutes they’re asking for your opinion on this lunacy.

SOARAWAY SALE

SHOREHAM AIRPORT RUNWAY RIP-OFF

So Brighton council has finally flogged Shoreham airport for £8.6m when it`s actually worth £21m. Hmm...

RM can exclusively reveal that those cheeky chappies down at the council also cocked up on a £1m deal after failing to recoup money from Penfolds who owned a waste tip on the site.

But don’t let that worry you cos as new council fuhrer, just-out-of-short-trousers Simon ‘Napoleon’ Burgess, says: “The proceeds from the sale will enable the city council to significantly step up our investment in improving customer services.”

Great, so no need to worry about yet more air and car pollution from the extra flights to Edinburgh, Paris, Amsterdam and Dublin planned by new owners Erinaceous (which curiously means ‘hedgehog-like’, perhaps spiky on the outside and full of semi-digested slugs on the inside?), we can just become an even bigger media-luvvie-simon-fanshawe-arse-licker-frappolatte-scum-laden hub with our very own bijoux airport bolted on.

Neil ‘bell-end’ Bellis, chief exec of the Erinaceous Group, said: “We are very proud to be the new owners of such an exciting aviation centre.” We’re proud with you, Neil.

We can also look forward to the planned extension of the current runway or failing that another one, plus business park, leisure services and mixed commercial activities, visitor centre and aviation academy, of course.

And just so as we know the planned development is in good hands Erinaceous has recently been investigated by the Serious Fraud Office over an alleged £10m scam.

One of their valuers was nicked in connection to a property which had been valued at around £12m, only to be re-valued later closer to £2m. No wonder they shafted Brighton council so effectively.

Eric Williams, of Communities Against Runway Expansion (CARE) said: “We have been totally against the airport sale from the start, and it seems we have been proved right. There are three schools which will be affected not only by the noise pollution but also swamped by nitrous oxide if there are more flights.”

His group have set up monitoring stations which have shown a rise in pollution levels after just eight months. The full year results will be in RM in November.

A report in March showed Shoreham airport to be on the borders of safe European Union limits for noxious gas already, with the high levels of nitrogen dioxide a danger to asthma sufferers and kids.

Air pollution is the fastest growing contributor to global frying, with the richest 10% making the vast majority of flights, either business trips or weekend breaks to holiday homes.

** For more info from CARE www.adurcare.wanadoo.co.uk **

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MISSILE LOCK

SMASH EDO UPS THE ANTE

It looks as if the Rough Music finger of doom has lost none of its potency in our month off. Once bomb builders EDO MBM bestrode the Brighton military-industrial complex scene like a beweaponed colossus. Now after two years of campaigning by our staunch comrades and obviously the odd feature in RM (we broke the story nationally back in issue 3) they’ve lost their M.D. Dave Jones, been publicly reviled in the local press, had the local council nearly pass a motion against their presence in the city and splattered the best part of a million quid up the wall in a failed attempt to stifle protest outside their factory. Worse news comes from across the pond as Forbes names their parent company, US arms giant EDO Corp, this year’s worst performing corporation. With US shareholders demanding the break up of the company, how long is it before we see their industrial unit on Home Farm Rd converted into something socially useful. RM suggests they get into the prosthetic limb game – should be plenty of customers around the world thanks to their sterling efforts.

Meanwhile campaigners are turning up the heat following the renewed outburst of bombing in the Middle East, this time by Israel - EDO supply weapons components to the Israeli military. In the early hours of Monday, July 17th, bomb busting Brighton protesters erected two roadblocks, with activists locked to concrete barrels outside the factory gates. Deliveries were obstructed for the entire day.

Andrew Beckett, press spokesman and flagrant self-publicist said “The current Israeli onslaught on Gaza and Lebanon is being conducted with the help of weaponry made in Brighton. In the last weeks Israel has engaged in an illegal assault on the civilian population of Gaza and has now invaded Lebanon killing hundreds of Lebanese civilians. These are war crimes. Israel could not carry out these acts without the support of foreign corporations. EDO MBM is involved in the manufacture, and supply of lethal weapons for use by the Israeli military. They are ancillary to Israel’s war crimes.”

On Wednesday the campaign was back again; in conjunction with local artists confronting workers and management with the consequences of their work. As a sound-system blasted out the wailing sirens and ear shattering sounds of air raids, models of dismembered bodies were thrown in front of the gates. One of the artists, who has been a peace activist in the Occupied Territories said, “We cannot show the true horror of the consequences of EDO MBM’s lethal weaponry but we hope to galvanise those who work in the factory to consider what happens with the weapons they produce.”

“EDO’s poor performance as a company gives us an opportunity to force this company to shut down or convert to civilian production. The campaign has received a huge boost from the funds awarded out of court by EDO themselves. We will not rest until EDO’s business in Brighton is totally unprofitable,” a grim-faced Andrew Beckett told RM effortlessly crushing a can of super-strength cider with his bare hand.

** For more see www.smashedo.org.uk **

DANCING THE QUANGO

ROUGH MUSIC’S REGULAR QUANGO WATCH

In true Neo Labour style this month’s quango corner features yet another unelected ‘partnership’ of business people with little time or interest for the average Brightonian. Together with their cronies in the ‘Business Forum’, the ‘Economic Partnership’ is a nice little earner for local business elites funded with public money through the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA). It’s up to this unelected cabal to develop the City’s economic strategy, something that has seen a focus on importing as many ‘high net worth’ people into the city’s bistros to talk capitalism al fresco and maybe pick up a luxury flat or two, along the way.

In their latest piece of corporate propaganda the partnership sets out its vision of the city as a “dazzling and more original invitation to visitors which we ourselves will enjoy.” In other words there’s a group of people who want to be able to live and play like tourists all year round and it’s RM’s old Wankers Corner fave, Simon Fanshawe who heads this bunch of greedy blood-suckers. Fat-walleted Fanshawe thinks that we’re living the best times since the Regency era, and this can be seen most by the new library (with less books) and the Gehry towers (another much needed luxury flat building program). Of course in those days of the Poor Laws you could just set your hounds on the homeless and didn’t have to bother with any of this egalitarian sustainability bullshit. No suprise Fanshawe’s harking back to the 19th century then: As the partnership modestly reminds us, its plans are the “product of visionary thinking and commitment by highly skilled civic and national leaders, developers and professionals.”

But this is only part of the wider quangocracy which acts as a welfare state for business. Together with SEEDAs ‘Regional Business Support Strategy’ the cash keeps flowing as eager businesses are given a leg up to access a range of government handouts. At the same time as Neo-Labour cuts benefits for the sick and disabled it’s pumping millions more into the hands of already wealthy people. In our city’s eight point economic strategy, finding homes for people comes 7th. Number one of course is ‘Supporting local business’. Priority number two is “to renew the urban and physical environment” - transforming run down ‘Brownfield’ areas into soulless, but heavily subsidised, business units.

Brighton & Hove’s economy is worth more than £3.7bn a year and has grown 16.5% in just two years, compared to a national average of around 5%. So just who amongst our local citizenry has felt such an increase in their wellbeing? The top 10% of workers in Brighton are bringing home an average weekly wage of £782, compared to £236 for the bottom 10%. And that’s not including income from investments! With three and a half grand in yer pocket at the end of each month, loft apartment living soon becomes a reality, whilst that pokey bedsit in Seven Dials takes away half your income if you’re amongst the unlucky 16,000 living on a grand or less a month.

Fuckwit Fanshawe sees Brighton as a “centre of innovation, a cluster of the imagination and as a damn fine place to live and work” and his cronies at SEEDA are helping a more general move towards a ‘knowledge based’ economy (cos we don’t make anything any more). Local Tories are, of course, in on the game. Reflecting on the debate over the Marina development, Conservative top brass recently promised that if they get into power awkward democratic interventions like planning committees will become a thing of the past. And a word of warning for all activists out there. “Lobby groups”, says the partnership, “should be asked how they would meet the challenges rather than just put their hands up and say ‘no’”. Well here at RM we’ll start this debate with a suggestion – shove Simon Fanshawe in a dingy bedsit and charge him half his wages for the privilege and see how he visionary he thinks rip-off Brighton really is.

* Why not drop Si a line - simon@duckcorp.co.uk

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Rough Music Gig List

• BRIGHTON PRIDE - The biggest gay festival in the UK, watch out for Queeruption’s subvertising of the increasing corporatisation of Pride. Parade from Madeira Drive at 11am to festival in Preston Park until 8pm, August 5th. www.brightonpride.org
  
• HANDS OFF IRAQ - Women’s lives in occupied Iraq. What changes have war and occupation brought to the lives of Iraqi women? What are their particular difficulties and concerns? Thurs, August 17th, 7.30-9pm Brighthelm Centre, North Road, Brighton BN1 1YD
  
• HOLLINGDEAN WASTE DUMP - For details on the struggle against the development of the Hollingdean waste dump check out www.dumpthedump.org.uk
  
• CLIMATE CAMP MEETING - 7.30pm, July 26th, Cowley Club, Brighton - to discuss the forthcoming camp Aug 26 - Sept 4th. For more see www.climatecamp.org.uk

REGULAR EVENTS

• SMASH EDO NOISE DEMOS - 4pm til 6pm every Wednesday outside the factory on Home farm Rd. www.smashedo.org.uk
  
• CRITICAL MASS - Last Friday of every month 6pm, starting at the Level. reclaim the roads for sustainable transport, celebrate cycling and keep fit. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/criticalmassbrighton
  
• BENEFITS AND WELFARE ADVICE - every Friday 4pm-6pm at the Cowley Club, 12 London Rd.
  
• MIGRANT ENGLISH PROJECT - every Monday 1-4pm, Cowley Club. www.migrantenglishproject.org

ROCK OF AGES

CITY COUNCIL IN BLACK MAGIC SHOCKER?

In an uncanny chain of events that defies rational explanation, Brighton Council removed an ancient boundary stone from Wild Park at the end of May and placed it next to St Peter’s church. The cover story put out by councillors was that the midnight transportation had been carried out to prevent kids from playing football near the church (obviously they should all be ASBO’d up indoors on the Playstation or jumping off the pier). Even though this seems like typically mean-minded crackdown on innocent fun, something doesn’t ring true. The stone is marked on the Ordnance Survey map and has been there since the dawn of time itself – or possibly earlier. And yet curiously the council claimed that it had no knowledge of the stone’s unique status, perhaps confusing it with one of the thousands of other mysterious megaliths cluttering up the City by the Sea.

But with one editorial foot in the world of the occult, RM suspects more diabolical plans are afoot than preventing sacrilegious five-a-side games. After a mere two nights the stone was returned but according to Stuart “Free” Mason of the Brighton Antiquarian Society, chillingly, “It has been put back the wrong way round...”. Could it be that the city council has moved beyond corruption and begun to dabble with the occult? In search of a backhander from Be’elzebub, perhaps. Hanover dowser and leyline consultant Dr Strangetrousers told RM “It’s typical of this council to harness dark energies that man should not meddle with – just look at the Onyx deal”. On that fateful night, glowing lights were spotted in the sky above the Level but not by reliable witnesses.

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SADDLE SORE

On June 10th a couple of hundred brave souls let it all hang out in Brighton’s first Naked Bike Ride. Well, let most of it hang out anyway. Cos cool, liberated, sexually-progressive Brighton decided it couldn’t bear the sight of ‘rude parts’ (Sussex Police description) which might lure punters’ eyes away from the shop windows. Although up in York tea-sipping denizens could bear the shock of (gasp!) bare willies and fannies, Brighton top cop Jeremy Paine suddenly withdrew permission for the pubic to go public, and cyclists gathering on The Level were amused to have heavily-uniformed coppers probing amongst them ensuring nuts were adequately shelled and muffs stuffed away. Nevertheless, winding through the streets on a 7 mile route ending at the nudist beach, the cyclists – drawing attention to their vulnerability and celebrating the human body - gained loud support from Saturday shoppers, and an enthusiastic following of amateur photographers.

* Critical Mass bike ride meets on the last Friday of every month at the level at 6pm.

WANKERS CORNER

Our regular column featuring our favourite Brightonians

It’s high time the Wanker’s crown descended on the balding bonce of Mark Lynch of Guardian Guards security, who has finally found a career path unhindered by his limited vocabulary and deeply unpleasant personality. This sour jumped-up store detective is trying to set himself up as the big man in Private Finance Initiative protest-busting. Regular protesters against Brighton bomb factory EDO MBM will recognise his trademark shaved dome and tinpot dictator moustache. Some months after the famous ‘Lynch Mob’ demo where demonstrators turned up dressed as Mr Lynch, a few EDO protesters relished seeing him finally humiliated when they “served” him a copy of a High Court decision that the injunction no longer restricts protests at the factory – and the beautiful moment is now preserved for posterity on DVD and will be shown at the Big Green Gathering by our (bitter) rival publication, SchNEWS.

Lynch-ey takes his responsibilities seriously, handcuffing protesters at EDO and getting himself involved in an illegal eviction of a Peace Camp in August 2005. But sadly he’s none too bright, managing to catch himself on video claiming to have stolen pepper spray from the police station and telling SMASH EDO about another EDO MBM factory in Fishersgate.

Despite these and other gaffs, Mighty ‘well off the’ Mark is now touting himself round the country as some kind of protest specialist, rearing his ugly mug at Shepton Mallett to help Tescopoly evict a protest camp. And with the Titnore Woods camp virtually in his back yard he’s coming back for more. Does Lord Somerset know who he’s employing? Titnore campaigners hope not. Lynch’s Neanderthal facial features are becoming an environmental eyesore at the protest camp - as he turned up once with local cops and also sent some hired goons to sniff around. When demonstrators announced an open day, supporters from the local community had to then put up with this out-of-shape Mitchell brother wannabe shoving a video camera in their faces. When one visitor pointed out that his behaviour was intimidating, Lynch replied, “Yeah, great innit?”. After Mark took a swing at one young protester (and missed!) local police told him to put his camera away and he ran home with his tail between his legs.

Not to worry though Mark. If the security work doesn’t pan out then maybe something else will. Sources in Worthing tell us that he’s trying to branch out into the limo-hire business (or at least he’s got one parked in his front garden). As soon as RM finds out the details on how to hire Lynch’s passion wagon we’ll be sure to take him for a ride! But we doubt you’d let this man drive you anywhere. Lynch is trying to set himself up as the man for the job, and we’d like to let potential future employers know that he’s incompetent, sadistic and unprofessional and more than deserving of this edition’s Wanker of the Month.

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BREAKPOINT

Protesters travelling from Brighton to Eastbourne for the Davis Cup tennis nearly found them selves in the wrong sort of court after coming up against the heavy hitting police on Saturday 22nd July. Activists were there to demand a boycott of the Israeli team due to the war crimes being committed in Lebanon and Gaza. The Lawn Tennis Association had asked advice from the Israeli embassy on how to deal with the potential pro-Palestinian embarrassment (but presumably then ignored their recommendation to carry out pre-emptive bombing raids on the south of England). Using the usual anti-terrorist top spin, police corralled the 50 plus demonstrators behind barriers opposite the entrance to Devonshire Park.

Sussex plod seem to have picked up on the Metropolitan Police’s backhanded technique of building up profiles of dissidents that they’re interested in and then compiling images of these people into so-called ‘capture cards’ or ‘crib sheets’. Specific individuals are then singled out for harassment. On this occasion the capture card held about 30 images – How long before everyone in Sussex features in this law’n’order version of top trumps? One protester, who was arrested for crimes involving a megaphone, told RM that, “the policing was deliberately over the top and intimidatory. About four van loads of police were there. They were searching people’s bags. Funnily enough all the police seemed to be from Brighton.” As soon as he began to broadcast his opinions he was leapt on and handcuffed by six officers. He wasn’t released until midnight (and upon asking for some reading material to pass the time was only given an out of date British Legion magazine – a punishment nearly as bad as an ASBO).

STOP PRESS: Cops forcibly invaded the site of an anti-development camp in Worthing on Monday 24th July, allegedly for another health and safety visit (let’s hope they have a less cavalier attitude to health and safety than the Met). Ten of Sussex’s finest spent the morning wasting tax payers’ money by videoing everybody on site. They refused to say under what legislation they were carrying out the inspection and insisted in videoing inside protester’s tents and dwellings threatening arrest if they were ‘obstructed’. Cops said they’d be back on a frequent basis and have refused to arrange an appointment.

By co-incidence Monday also saw the camp being served with court papers by Clem and Fitzroy Somerset, the landowners, as part of a civil process regarding land ownership which should have nothing to do with the police.These papers were in fact issued on July 12, with a mysterious 12 days elapsing before they found their way into the campers’ hands.The delay means the protesters now have only three days to go through the 100-plus pages of legal paperwork and prepare for a court case - which is not to be held locally but at the HighCourt at the Royal Courts of Justice in The Strand, London, at 11.30am on Thursday July 27th. Anyone who can offer them some legal help is urged to contact the camp on 07804 245324

On 18th July, Worthing Borough Council voted unanimously to approve the ‘Masterplan’ for a housing development scheme which will destroy beautiful ancient woodland at Titnore Woods in West Durrington, near Worthing. Developers Taylor Woodrow, owned by ex-con Gerald Ronson, plan to buy the site from evil-tempered huntin ‘n’ fishin landowner Clem Somerset for £70 million and proceed with the scheme which includes 850 houses and the widening and straightening of Titnore Lane. Durrington and Worthing residents have expressed concerns over the shortage of water and closure of the local hospital, and the fact that while 1000 properties stand empty in Worthing, only 300 of the new houses will be ‘affordable’. Opposition to the scheme has been expressed over the past five years through petitioning and demonstrations. Residents who attended the council meeting were disgusted at this typical example of mechanical faceless bureaucracy, which ignored all the important issues while burbling on about the colour of the bricks. One councillor was particularly proud of himself when he decided that ‘encouraging’ developers to include a token proportion of renewable energy was not strongly worded enough, and asked for it to be changed to ‘expecting’. Steady on, old chap!

The scheme is part of the government’s Masterplan for the South-East. As more and more people flee the declining regions to find work around London, their short-sighted solution is to build more and more houses in the south-east, presumably until London reaches the coast. Here’s an idea - how about some funding to develop a new, ecological economy in the regions since Thatcher smashed their manufacturing industries? No chance – not enough money in it for dodgy property developers and their politician drinking buddies.

Meanwhile, since seizing the site in a dawn raid, protesters have occupied the site for nearly two months, living in the woods and building tree-houses and aerial walkways. There’s been loads of support from locals and an open day was a great success. Clem ‘Orf moi Land’ Somerset has attempted to annoy protesters by spraying slurry across access routes and surrounding fields with rolls of barbed wire, much to the annoyance of local dog walkers.

Local police played the ‘nice cop’ routine until the day after the council planning meeting, when they turned up in force and illegally invaded the protest camp to snoop around. The protest camp still needs support. Come and visit or join the camp, or show your support by bringing necessaries including long wooden joists, polypropylene rope, climbing equipment, basic vegan cooking ingredients, nails, tools and stress toys.

* For updates see www.eco-action.org/porkbolter/Camp-Titnore.html or www.freewebs.com/titnore

THE ART OF SQUATTING

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STANMER SHARK

More muck in Stanmer Park. Part of the tenancy agreement for Stanmer House is that parts of the house are to be open to the public. Supposedly the spirit of this is to allow the public to be able to visit this publicly-owned (although on a 125 or 225 year lease) Grade 2 listed building which is actually part of our local heritage. Not now that Mike ‘Slippery Mick’ Holland is in charge. Recently seen in his very own fan-mag the Insight Shitty News singing alongside Terry Garoghan at the black tie launch of the refurbished building, Slippery has come up with a classic of his own. The tenants i.e. Cherrywood Investments (one of Holland’s companies) are required to allow public access for 100 hours a year only. 100 hrs could mean visitors every weekend, but to avoid clashing with lucrative engagements Mikey has conveniently set the weekly 2 hour visiting slot for Tuesdays between 10am and midday. August will witness the first ‘open day’, so it might be good to get a crowd along and let ‘em know what we think about ‘public access’.

Cops and bailiffs evicted squatters from Home Farm in Stanmer Park on the morning of 8th June, which had been occupied for a month by Brighton Community Resource, operating it as a community ‘open house’ for all. Home Farm had been empty for over a year, leased by the council to ‘Brighton and Hove Estates Conservation Trust’. The Trust is formed of two councillors and four ‘ordinary members of the local community’- including the relative of a councillor, the council’s Kent based lawyers and the agricultural estate agents for the council (peddlers of £1/2m country houses). This trust was created under the council remit to open up the South Downs for public access, and its stated aim is ‘to promote the conservation and enhancement of the South Downs which are within the area of Brighton and Hove and, more particularly, that of Stanmer Park.’ In reality, however, the trust exists to allow an asset protection loophole, whereby the council can receive a massive rental income without having to fulfill any of the obligations of council housing (ie. giving priority to undesirables such as the poor or homeless, or offering a ‘right to buy’).

The squatters had fixed windows, sorted out the overgrown garden and hosted an ‘open house’ art exhibition during the Festival. An early attempt at eviction was repulsed by 50 community members and a tailor’s dummy. Conversion into two profitable ‘cottages’ is now due to begin.

SEAL OF DOOM

SEA LIFE CENTRE BACKS DOWN ON SEAL PRISON

Brainless tourists will not be getting the chance to gawp at miserable sea mammals imprisoned in small pools next to a main road. Brighton’s notorious captive animal peepshow, the Sea Life Centre, has backed down from plans to build seal and sea otter enclosures on its forecourt, next to one of Brighton’s busiest roundabouts in an area frequented of an evening by bellowing drunken fools. Since the plan was announced in January it has been the subject of a determined campaign of demonstrations and petitioning by animal rights activists, which intensified after the otterly porpoiseless scheme was given the council’s seal of approval in May (the head planning wonk stating in true faceless bureaucratic style that “animal welfare is not a planning consideration”).

Centre boss Toby Forer, feebly floundering to save face, claimed to the Argus this week that the protests did not influence the decision to scrap the plan. What a load of carping codswallop! In another out of plaice remark, he insultingly called peaceful protesters ‘extremist’. A coalition of groups led by Brighton Animal Action organised the energetic and popular campaign against the seal pools. So, for once the penguin turns out to be mightier than the swordfish, congrats to the campaigners, and we await the day the exploitative Centre closes down for good.

* To get involved in local animal rights campaigning come to Brighton Animal Action meetings, 7pm, 1st and 3rd Weds of every month at the Cowley Club, 12 London Rd.

* For more see www.brightonanimalaction.com