PR 57) OUR NEW MP IS THE FIRST TO SIGN OUR PETITION URGING A DECISION ON UK COAL’S MINORCA APPLICATION

The latest phase in the battle over the Minorca Opencast Application in Leicestershire has been quickly endorsed by the newly elected Conservative MP for North West Leicestershire, Andrew Bridgen MP. He has shown no hesitation, eight days after being elected in a seat which has been without an MP since the unfortunate death of David Taylor MP on Boxing Day, in being the first person to sign a Petition on the Minorca Opencast Protest Group’s (MOPG) behalf. This Petition is urging Leicestershire County Council (LCC) not to postpone making a decision on the Minorca Application for the seventh time on July 15th, but to make a decision on the application on the available information on that date.

Steve Leary on behalf of MOPG said

“We have greatly missed not having access to Ministers since David Taylor’s unfortunate death. David was in the process of getting important answers to factors that could affect the final outcome of this application and only questions to Ministers in the House of Commons could provide answers. We are very grateful to Mr Bridgen, our new MP, that he has found the time to meet our representatives so soon after the Election to enable us to brief him on these outstanding issues and to bring him up to date with developments on the application.

The issues to do with this application which concerned David Taylor are also shared by our new Member of Parliament, especially the new Government’s policy on coal production and the need to revise planning guidance in England in order to introduce a 500 meter buffer zone around opencast mine sites in order to bring English Planning Policy into line with that operating in Scotland and Wales.
He also agreed that local people have waited long enough for a decision on the Minorca Application and was very happy to accept our invitation to be the first person to sign our petition.

All those who agree that we have waited long enough, whatever the outcome, are asked to sign ”

Copies of the Petition are already available to sign in the News Shop / Post Officer, Measham High Street.

From Monday the following locations, also in the High Street, should have copies to sign:

Books and Bibles

W Taylors (The Butchers)

Drinks Express

From Tuesday the Measham Parish Council Office may also be a place to sign the Petition.

MOPG will keep collecting names until June 7th. Then the petition will be collected in to take to County Hall in time for the Petition to be heard at the June meeting of the Regulatory Control and Development Board of LCC on June 17th.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS PRESS RELEASE CONTACT:
STEVE LEARY, SPOKESPERSON, MOPG
4 GREENFIELD ROAD, MEASHAM, SWADLINCOTE, DERBYSHIRE DE12 7LB, tel 05601 767981, email  steve46leary@googlemail.com
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MOPG PLEASE GO TO:
 http://www.mopg.co.uk or
 http://www.leicestershirevillages.com/measham/minorca-protest.html