A village fair which dates back to 1873 has fallen foul of environmental health chiefs for being too noisy.Because we should all sit quietly in our homes until night falls, never ever enjoying ourselves least someone is upset…
The Gooseberry Pie Fair in Galmpton, Devon, sees villagers parade a giant pie through the streets to traditional music from noon to 5pm.How many? We aren’t allowed to find out.
But the organisers have received an official warning after members of the public complained about the noise levels at this year's event, on July 5.
It could be two, or two thousand. No matter. One complaint is all complaints.
Torbay Council's letter to the Gooseberry Pie Fair committee said the department had received complaints from a number of residents about the music causing a disturbance.Oh, dear. That’s going to be a tough circle to square for the Notting Hill Carnival then, isn’t it?
It said: 'The music was live and amplified. This type of entertainment will require a Temporary Event Notice to be submitted in the future. Noise should not be at a level that causes a nuisance to neighbours or residents.'
Or will it get an exemption?
As someone who has suffered the genuine problem of noise nuisance from a neighbouring premises and been exasperated at the non response of what was called the council Environmental Health Department (it has some new fangled title these days of course, and they're not EH Officers they're consultants) I am not surprised that they used the full force of the new legislation on a one day a year village traditional summer celebration. Why? Because they are easy targets, often run by volunteers, nice people who don't want to get into any trouble and who are simply threatened in a completely over the top manner. Try and enforce their useless regulations against a hard nosed, savvy businessman who tells them to 'Fuck Off and do your worst' and 'I'll see you in court you clipboard touting nonentity' and guess what hapens? Yep, Fuck All!
ReplyDeleteAs for the Notting Hill Carnival, who is going to ban it and attempt to enforce such regulations? No one, becuase whatever 'they' do IT will go ahead and the polcie and council will have to deal with it.
I heard that this year the local councils (Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea) gave the organisers a deadline to submit and event plan incorporating stewarding and other legally required saftey plans. It was faxed to the relevant office at seconds to midnight on the closing day. It was shite - as usual - but at least there was one, so your taxpayers money has also been spent sorting that out as all private event planning companies wouldn't touch Notting Hill CArnival with a bargepole - principally because they don't get paid.
Where have all these miserable complainers come from? If it's one or two people moaning down the phone, they should be ignored.
ReplyDeleteEither, the righteous are on a breeding programme or they make these complaints up!
Perhaps we should all complain about the noise the Notting Hill Carnival made last year (not to mention the mess that was left).
Let's see if they cancel that or would that be construed as "racist"?
Re the pie dance, or whatever, and Notting Hill.
ReplyDeleteThe trouble is, you can complain about Notting Hill until you are blue in the face, because you are NOT talking to a "Single entity".
Local councils, are just that, "local", and all any council other than Devon will just point that out.
This is not a "Parliamentary decision" wherby you could fall back on case law, but a shower of wannabee "doogooders" who found they can fill their wallets nicely on the local council, with I.Qs approaching their shoe size.
Von Brandenburg-Preußen.
The villagers should sub-title their day as "celebrating diversity". The council wouldn't dare touch them then.
ReplyDeleteI like Rob's idea. Get the 'the only gay in the village' involved, call it Gooseberry pride, and you can make as much noise as you like. The council may even pay you to do it.
ReplyDelete"Why? Because they are easy targets, often run by volunteers, nice people who don't want to get into any trouble and who are simply threatened in a completely over the top manner."
ReplyDeleteOh, I don't doubt it. Even worse, try enforcing them against any council-run operation and see how far you get!
"Where have all these miserable complainers come from? If it's one or two people moaning down the phone, they should be ignored."
A de minimus should be the case before attention is triggered, for nothing else other than to weed out the troublemakers and frivolous complaints.
"...a shower of wannabee "doogooders" who found they can fill their wallets nicely on the local council, with I.Qs approaching their shoe size."
And there are more and more of them every day, it seems.
"The council may even pay you to do it."
ReplyDeleteYou'll probably get a grant or two from a fakecharity too!
The Wickham Horse Fair is not that popular either, at least not with the residents of Wickham.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.portsmouth.co.uk/newshome/Bareknuckle-duo-attract-a-crowd.5289301.jp
My take is that the "fair" is exempt from requiring a "TEN" - I should know, I'm a licensing officer for a local authority. Notting Hill carnival is exempt, too. Wouldn't catch me doing the PC thing - and I support live music as well. Rules is rules, but come to me and I'm practical - none of this "you can't do that" bo**ox". I'm usually on the side of " how can we help this to happen?".
ReplyDeleteWe're not all jobsworths, you know!!