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MINUTES OF MEETING CALLED BY ANTHONY STEEN M.P. ON FEB. 2ND, AT SLAPTON VILLAGE HALL. The Chairman of the Coleridge Association of Parish Councils, Joan Mason, read a document entitled "We didn't realise how important it was, until we lost it". This was written by the Slapton Line Working Party, drawn from the Coleridge group and detailed the collective opinions and conclusions arrived at from the meeting of Jan 31st. Anthony Steen then outlined his position. He had wanted to wait to "see what the fallout was" before making a statement beyond his personal opinionwhich was, that because of the tortuous routes of any of the alternatives, the road along the line should be restored quickly. He asked rhetorically of the County and District Councils, that if the problem was moneythen they should say so, if it was technology, then say so and if it was manpower, then say so! In which case he was all in favour of bringing in the Army, though he admitted that this was perhaps a favourite hobby-horse of his. He wanted to know whether it would be useful for him to move an emergency debate in the house and when. He had asked the Minister for Tourism, with tongue in cheek, if there would be any way of coping with the additional tourists attracted by the disaster. He noted that emergency sea defence work had been started, but warned that the magnitude of this task was a different matter from re-opening the road and should not be used as an excuse not to do anything; they are two separate issues. He pointed out that there was not much interest in the house; it was a local issue. Owen Masters reminded the meeting that the County Council don't own the land. They had to get permission from the Whitley Trust before they could do anything and this they had done. They had to make sure that the 'passing bays' were safe. Whether the road could eventually be restored to two carriageways would depend in the first instanceon negotiations with English Nature and the Whitley Trust. He assured the meeting that there was not a labour problem but that things had to be properly assessed to avoid wrong decisions and consequent wasting of money. He suggested that in the short term the priority was to get one lane open, with passing bays and/or traffic lights. In the medium term, two lanes should be opened and the long-term solution would have to be very carefully assessed and would depend on input from a variety of experts. He would be asking a question to the leader of the County Council at a meeting on 22nd Feb. He said that there was a meeting in Totnes going on at the moment between County Council and District Council engineers* Anthony Steen agreed to ask questions in the House after the 22nd Feb in the light of what Owen Masters had learnt and he assured the meeting he would communicate with the relevant parish councils and Coleridge Association through the clerks. *Friday meeting Feb 2nd at Follaton House, Totnes, SHDC, all departments: - short, medium and long-term prospects. Road undermined too badly, so no lay-bys possible; Owen Masters will keep us informed. There will be a public meeting within 3 weeks for three parishes to clarify their joint position. |