Action taken by Eric Pickles

Dear Department for Communities and Local Government,

Some weeks ago I sent Eric Pickles a large amount of documentary
evidence regarding financial irregularities, failure to comply with
contamination regulations for a school to be built on a toxic waste
site and failure to comply with compulsory purchase regulations as
laid down by law - all by Stockport Council.

Please may I see any emails, minutes, letters, memos, handwritten
notes of telephone conversations or meetings or any other written
information regarding any action that has been taken by Mr Pickles
or his staff regarding the information I sent him? We have been
promised tough action on misuse of public funds, so I assume some
action will have been taken already.

Yours faithfully,

Sheila Oliver

Dear Department for Communities and Local Government,

I should have received a reply by now. The Audit Commission has
been abolished by Eric Pickles and an army of armchair auditors are
supposed to take their place. I am just such an armchair auditor; I
sent the details to the Secretary of State and it must have been
one of the first cases brought to his attention,so I would assume
he will do something in this case involving millions of pounds
wastage of council taxpayers' money on something that wasn't even
wanted in the first place. I must receive a sustantial answer from
you or the Condem's much heralded Brave New World will be seen as
meaningless rhetoric.

I look forward to a detailed response to the points I have raised.

Yours faithfully,

Sheila Oliver

Dear Department for Communities and Local Government,

I have yet to receive a response. I look forward to hearing from
you. We are told we can hold public authorities to account. We
can't. We are told to be armchair auditors exposing waste and
incompetence or worse. This is just the sort of thing I have been
trying to do for five years with Stockport Council and have been
banned for most of that time under the FOI and refused even council
meeting questions, despite instructions to the contrary by the
Information Commission.

I look forward to hearing back from you on this issue regarding, so
far, the waste of £5 million.

Yours faithfully,

Sheila Oliver

Dear Department for Communities and Local Government,

I have yet to receive a response from you.

Please see this news story:-

http://menmedia.co.uk/stockportexpress/n...

Je Re, Corporate Director responsible, Eamonn Boylan, Chief
Executive and Executive Councillor Mark Weldon were still refusing
to answer all questions after this story was printed, despite the
Information Commission saying they should.

We will have the politically embarrassing situation of a ConDem
council building a Ueberschool (possibly the only one finished in
the entire country) which absolutely no parent will send their
children to.

Why are you taking so long to deal with this issue?

Yours faithfully,

Sheila Oliver

Dear CLG-FOIAdvice,

Much appreciated. The Council is now changing the nursery school to
a nursery class. The "consultation" with parents is still ongoing
and the final decision lies with the Schools Adjudicator and not
them. They are refusing to reply to any questions regarding this
planning application, which is completely illegal in planning
terms. Planning matters have to be completely open - otherwise
there is corruption.

In addition, the ConDem government has announced nursery care for 2
year olds in deprived areas. This is an extremely deprived area.
How on earth will this extra nursery provision be provided when
they are changing the proposed nursery school to a nursery class? I
have brought all this to the attention of Andrew Stunell,
Parliamentary Under Secretary at the Department of Communities and
Local Government and my local MP, and he has failed to do anything
at all.

There has been a massive, massive waste of public money with
regards to this issue, building a school which never was big
enough, no-one in their right mind will send their children to
because it will eventually kill them from mesothelioma and it broke
every planning law imaginable to get passed. What on earth is going
on in ConDem Stockport?

The first Big Society event was held here with local people who
were so furious with the politiicans that all subseqent Big Society
events across the country were cancelled. We also had a riot at the
town hall recently.

Just because this is a ConDem Council, things cannot be swept under
the carpet.

I very much look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Sheila Oliver

Dear Department for Communities and Local Government,

Mr Stunell is the minister responsible for what has been called the
social and economic cleansing policy, which would mean that
possibly hundreds of thousands of people will no longer be able to
afford to live in certain cities and will have to move. As the
Guardian says, the politicians responsible for all these ConDem
policies, which will have such a detrimental effect on so many
people's lives, need themselves to be above reproach.

I am very interested in your reply and await it eagerly. I don't
think a whitewash would suffice in this instance.

Kind regards

Sheila

Dear CLG-FOIAdvice,

I am happy to wait for a proper reply.

Kind regards

Sheila Oliver

Dear Department for Communities and Local Government,

I think I have given you a decent interval in which to reply.
Please may I have one?

Yours faithfully,

Sheila Oliver

Dear CLG-FOIAdvice,

I accept Mr. Pickles might not have received the information. Many
thanks for your kind help.

Yours sincerely,

Sheila Oliver