Last Monday’s blog post on the story of the controversially timed Bank Holiday planning committee meeting containing three controversial planning applications has rumbled on. The Dunmow and Stansted Observer published this story last Thursday on page 3 with the addition of “Their (SSV) concerns are shared by the village’s Lib Dem district councillors, Iris Evans and Alan Dean, who say two other crunch judgements will be made on the same day – for 14 new homes in Cambridge Road and a tyre repair works close by – despite their pleas to council officers as they will be away, along with their Conservative colleague Cllr Joe Rich”. This morning BBC East phoned me. They have picked up the story and may run with it on television this week.

Last Tuesday the council’s chief executive, John Mitchell, replied to Iris’s and my letter. Our counter response sent today to Mr Mitchell may be read here. We think that officers are being inconsistent on several points and that democratic representation will be undermined if the meeting proceeds as planned on August 28th.