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Yup. > A solar farm that could have powered “all the households in Witney” has been refused permission by West Oxfordshire District Council. The application, b

by yrro 1y ago

Yup. > A solar farm that could have powered “all the households in Witney” has been refused permission by West Oxfordshire District Council. The application, by Ampyr Solar Europe, was for a site at Curbridge, south of Witney. The planning committee focused on the risk of a fire from the proposed battery storage, which they said could contaminate the water supply at a nearby wedding venue. > Cllr Nick Leverton (Con, Carterton South) said: “Most of you will have seen on the motorway the sight of an electric car burning away… there are too many incidents where it was just a small chance and it becomes a big chance. I’ll remind you of Aberfan in 1966; 144 people died, 116 of them children.” The chair of the meeting, Cllr Michael Brooker (Lab, Witney South), is himself a firefighter and replied “I’ve never been to an EV fire. I’ve been to plenty of ICE vehicle fires.” > Cllr Andrew Lyon (Lab, Witney Central) said “Water is the stuff of life… what do they do if they wake up in the morning and can’t turn the tap on?” Meanwhile, Cllr Adrian Walsh (Con, Ducklington) said “Month after month as a committee we get bombarded with these solar farm applications, and we don’t appear to have any strategy as to where they should be located.” > The council’s officers had recommended that the application be approved, but 9 councillors voted against, 1 for, and 3 abstained. These people are absolute buffoons. https://oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-weekly-12-september-2025/ https://oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-weekly-12-september-2025/

gambiting 1y ago
>>West Oxfordshire District Council Are these the same people who refused to let Clarkson open a pub because - and I quote - "it would be too popular"?
- yrro 1y ago
  No, that was allegedly Cotswold District Council, who refute Clarkeson's portrayal of events: > A spokesperson for Cotswold District Council said: "We absolutely refute that any of the officers or councillors involved in working with Jeremy to realise his vision for the Coach and Horses had 'absolutely nothing positive to say' or were awkward." > They added: "There were in fact several positive meetings between Jeremy and his team, and willing officers and councillors at Cotswold District Council. > "These discussions explored how challenges to renovating this pub could be overcome, as part of the pre-application stage of this project. A planning application was never submitted. > "Upon deciding not to pursue purchase of the pub, Jeremy sent an email via his planning agent thanking the council for being 'so open and supportive', and for trying to find solutions to some of the hurdles needed to overcome renovation of the pub. He stated that 'the march of time and the feasibility of getting this done within a window that works for television' had been the project's undoing." https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3ql38yk11o https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3ql38yk11o Clarkeson is an entertainer whose goal is to tell a compelling story; often one that bears little resemblance to the truth.

by yrro 1y ago

gambiting 1y ago

>>West Oxfordshire District Council Are these the same people who refused to let Clarkson open a pub because - and I quote - "it would be too popular"?

yrro 1y ago
No, that was allegedly Cotswold District Council, who refute Clarkeson's portrayal of events: > A spokesperson for Cotswold District Council said: "We absolutely refute that any of the officers or councillors involved in working with Jeremy to realise his vision for the Coach and Horses had 'absolutely nothing positive to say' or were awkward." > They added: "There were in fact several positive meetings between Jeremy and his team, and willing officers and councillors at Cotswold District Council. > "These discussions explored how challenges to renovating this pub could be overcome, as part of the pre-application stage of this project. A planning application was never submitted. > "Upon deciding not to pursue purchase of the pub, Jeremy sent an email via his planning agent thanking the council for being 'so open and supportive', and for trying to find solutions to some of the hurdles needed to overcome renovation of the pub. He stated that 'the march of time and the feasibility of getting this done within a window that works for television' had been the project's undoing." https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3ql38yk11o https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3ql38yk11o Clarkeson is an entertainer whose goal is to tell a compelling story; often one that bears little resemblance to the truth.