Latest news with #PhilBroadhead
Scottish Sun
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Fury as woke council ‘bans fun' by scrapping popular airshow despite it making £60 MILLION for local economy
NO FUN ZONE Fury as woke council 'bans fun' by scrapping popular airshow despite it making £60 MILLION for local economy Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A WOKE council blamed climate change as it axed a popular air show despite it making £60million for the local economy. The four-day Bournemouth Air Festival, featuring the Red Arrows, has run for 16 years and attracts 600,000 fans. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 The Bournemouth Air Festival has run for 16 years and attracts 600,000 fans Credit: Getty 2 The local authority scrapped the airshow this year saying it cannot afford £250,000 to stage it and also citing carbon emissions Credit: PA But the cash-strapped local authority said it cannot afford £250,000 to stage it and also cited the carbon emissions the planes and the extra traffic produce as a reason for stopping it. Bosses at the Lib Dem-run council, which has just hired a new chief executive on a salary of £220,000, are accused of being killjoys and lacking ambition. Conservative councillor Phil Broadhead said: 'Saying we don't like planes, therefore we should ban the air festival for the sake of three or four days that brings millions to the local economy is a step too far. 'On that note, we shouldn't be doing anything that generates any carbon whatsoever. 'What we are doing is banning fun.' Bournemouth Area Hospitality Association chairwoman Rosie Radwell said: 'It is a great shame because the air festival was a big boost for Bournemouth. 'It is a huge loss to the area. 'I don't think tourism is the top priority for this council.' Asked about its impact on the climate she said: 'I don't think it was as bad as they said. 'And I don't think it's as bad as they say.' Highlights of the RAF Red Arrows' jaw-dropping displays from 2024 Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
The Sun
10 hours ago
- Business
- The Sun
Fury as woke council ‘bans fun' by scrapping popular airshow despite it making £60 MILLION for local economy
A WOKE council blamed climate change as it axed a popular air show despite it making £60million for the local economy. The four-day Bournemouth Air Festival, featuring the Red Arrows, has run for 16 years and attracts 600,000 fans. 2 2 But the cash-strapped local authority said it cannot afford £250,000 to stage it and also cited the carbon emissions the planes and the extra traffic produce as a reason for stopping it. Bosses at the Lib Dem -run council, which has just hired a new chief executive on a salary of £220,000, are accused of being killjoys and lacking ambition. Conservative councillor Phil Broadhead said: 'Saying we don't like planes, therefore we should ban the air festival for the sake of three or four days that brings millions to the local economy is a step too far. 'On that note, we shouldn't be doing anything that generates any carbon whatsoever. 'What we are doing is banning fun.' Bournemouth Area Hospitality Association chairwoman Rosie Radwell said: 'It is a great shame because the air festival was a big boost for Bournemouth. 'It is a huge loss to the area. 'I don't think tourism is the top priority for this council.' Asked about its impact on the climate she said: 'I don't think it was as bad as they said. 'And I don't think it's as bad as they say.'
The Irish Sun
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Fury as woke council ‘bans fun' by scrapping popular airshow despite it making £60 MILLION for local economy
A WOKE council blamed climate change as it axed a popular air show despite it making £60million for the local economy. The four-day 2 The Bournemouth Air Festival has run for 16 years and attracts 600,000 fans Credit: Getty 2 The local authority scrapped the airshow this year saying it cannot afford £250,000 to stage it and also citing carbon emissions Credit: PA But the cash-strapped local authority said it cannot afford £250,000 to stage it and also cited the carbon emissions the planes and the extra traffic produce as a reason for stopping it. Bosses at the Lib Dem-run council, which has just hired a new chief executive on a salary of £220,000, are accused of being killjoys and lacking ambition. Conservative councillor Phil Broadhead said: 'Saying we don't like planes, therefore we should ban the air festival for the sake of three or four days that brings millions to the local economy is a step too far. 'On that note, we shouldn't be doing anything that generates any carbon whatsoever. read more on red arrows 'What we are doing is banning fun.' Bournemouth Area Hospitality Association chairwoman Rosie Radwell said: 'It is a great shame because the air festival was a big boost for Bournemouth. 'It is a huge loss to the area. 'I don't think tourism is the top priority for this council.' Most read in The Sun Asked about its impact on the climate she said: 'I don't think it was as bad as they said. 'And I don't think it's as bad as they say.' Highlights of the RAF Red Arrows' jaw-dropping displays from 2024 Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ex-council leader wrongly claimed tax discount
A former Conservative council leader has admitted claiming the single person discount for council tax despite not being eligible. Phil Broadhead, who spent three months leading Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council in 2023, said it happened when he moved house in 2022 and blamed the local authority's online forms for not being in "plain English". Broadhead, who voted on the authority's budgets at a time when he was in council tax arrears, said he repaid the underpayment as soon as it was noticed and that the council agreed it was an honest mistake. BCP Council said it had "worked hard to make our online systems clear and easy to use". Under the Local Government Act, an offence is committed if a councillor votes on any financial or budgetary matters when they are themselves in council tax arrears for two months or more. Broadhead - leader of the Conservative group at the council - has not confirmed to the BBC how long he was in arrears. In a letter, published in the Bournemouth Daily Echo, he admitted to the error but said he wondered "how many other examples there are of people getting caught out by the complications of online intricacies". "Surely we need a team whose focus is on making sure that the council's processes pass the plain English and ease test," he added. In January this year, BCP Council said it had recovered £654,000 by re-checking who was claiming single person's council tax discount and checking against other records such as the electoral roll. Details of that investigation are due to be published shortly. The deadline for a council response to a Freedom of Information request from a resident about the matter passed earlier this week. The council has yet to publish its response. In a statement to the BBC, Broadhead said: "When I was informed by the council that I'd been claiming this discount, I was shocked. "At no point had I had any correspondence by post that this was applied. When I asked to see the form to show I'd selected to receive the discount, I was told it had been lost. "I've since discovered that in the council's previous (and now scrapped) change of address form, if you didn't list those moving with you - which I must have inadvertently skipped - it automatically applied this discount without even telling you. "This is perhaps why so many others have fallen into this same trap, with the council reporting £700k collected for those mistakenly doing the same thing. "Once noticed, I rectified immediately and have repaid the full underpayment. The council agreed that it was an honest mistake and agreed no further action was needed. "I sincerely hope they've closed this quirk in the system so others don't fall into the same trap." A BCP Council spokesperson said the online form used to register for council tax at a new address included a confirmation screen showing any discounts being requested. "They are then sent an email every year, asking them to check that the details are still correct and that their circumstances have not changed, which also confirms any discounts being applied," the spokesperson said. "We have worked hard to make our online systems clear and easy to use and residents are also able to contact us if they have any questions. "As part of routine checks undertaken by BCP Council, working alongside the national fraud initiative, discrepancies between council tax payments and individual circumstances are flagged to us. "We then contact those individuals to make them aware and discuss repayment options, including applying a penalty where appropriate." You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Dorset and BCP residents owe £45m in council tax BCP Council
BBC News
12-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Former BCP Council leader wrongly claimed tax discount
A former Conservative council leader has admitted claiming the single person discount for council tax despite not being eligible. Phil Broadhead, who spent three months leading Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council in 2023, said it happened when he moved house in 2022 and blamed the local authority's online forms for not being in "plain English".Broadhead, who voted on the authority's budgets at a time when he was in council tax arrears, said he repaid the underpayment as soon as it was noticed and that the council agreed it was an honest mistake. BCP Council said it had "worked hard to make our online systems clear and easy to use". Under the Local Government Act, an offence is committed if a councillor votes on any financial or budgetary matters when they are themselves in council tax arrears for two months or more. Broadhead - leader of the Conservative group at the council - has not confirmed to the BBC how long he was in arrears. In a letter, published in the Bournemouth Daily Echo, he admitted to the error but said he wondered "how many other examples there are of people getting caught out by the complications of online intricacies". "Surely we need a team whose focus is on making sure that the council's processes pass the plain English and ease test," he added. In January this year, BCP Council said it had recovered £654,000 by re-checking who was claiming single person's council tax discount and checking against other records such as the electoral roll. Details of that investigation are due to be published deadline for a council response to a Freedom of Information request from a resident about the matter passed earlier this week. The council has yet to publish its response. In a statement to the BBC, Broadhead said: "When I was informed by the council that I'd been claiming this discount, I was shocked. "At no point had I had any correspondence by post that this was applied. When I asked to see the form to show I'd selected to receive the discount, I was told it had been lost."I've since discovered that in the council's previous (and now scrapped) change of address form, if you didn't list those moving with you - which I must have inadvertently skipped - it automatically applied this discount without even telling you. "This is perhaps why so many others have fallen into this same trap, with the council reporting £700k collected for those mistakenly doing the same thing."Once noticed, I rectified immediately and have repaid the full underpayment. The council agreed that it was an honest mistake and agreed no further action was needed."I sincerely hope they've closed this quirk in the system so others don't fall into the same trap." 'Routine checks' A BCP Council spokesperson said the online form used to register for council tax at a new address included a confirmation screen showing any discounts being requested. "They are then sent an email every year, asking them to check that the details are still correct and that their circumstances have not changed, which also confirms any discounts being applied," the spokesperson said. "We have worked hard to make our online systems clear and easy to use and residents are also able to contact us if they have any questions."As part of routine checks undertaken by BCP Council, working alongside the national fraud initiative, discrepancies between council tax payments and individual circumstances are flagged to us."We then contact those individuals to make them aware and discuss repayment options, including applying a penalty where appropriate." You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
