Retrospective planning applications invited... Or else

SARK'S planning committee chairman Tony Dunks has written to all householders warning that breaches of the island's Development Control Law will be investigated.

Conseiller Dunks (pictured) advised householders that if they have any development on their property which does not comply with the legislation, then his committee invites them to make a retrospective application, although he warns that Development Control will consider these 'according to the terms of the development laws'.

However, he goes on to say: 'If the committee has specific information that suggests that there is such a development on your property, and no retrospective application has been received within six months of the date of this letter (3 June), the committee will contact you again to obtain further details of the potentially infringing development and to take the necessary action.'

I have to say that I am a little uncomfortable with that section of the letter and indeed I wonder what a court might make of it. It seems to me that the committee is already aware of some potential breaches and is waiting – a bit sneakily, if you ask me – to see if the householders 'own up'.

Surely it would be better to write to those concerned now and tell them of the committee's suspicions, rather than wait six months and then render them liable to prosecution or, perhaps worse, order that the offending structure be removed.

Plans have now been finalised for Sark's Street Market and Fair. It's going to be held on Saturday 27 June – a fortnight tomorrow. The Avenue will be closed to all traffic (tractors, horses and bikes) and there will be a chance to sample the best the island has to offer.

There will be lots of locally made, grown and caught produce and alfresco dining as well as street entertainers for children and adults, a town crier, wine tasting and – it wouldn't be Sark without them – the usual crop of charity stalls.

Sark Shipping rattled a few cages at the end of last year when it introduced charges for payment by credit and debit cards and a ban on local people buying tickets and charging them to their freight account.

The charge for debit card use was soon dropped and I found out last week almost by accident that the one for credit cards has now also been shelved. While that's good news for everyone who uses the company's services, it's a shame they didn't tell anyone.

Sark Shipping has made great strides in turning itself around from an organisation that only a short while ago was losing £100,000 a year, but it still has a communication problem and as soon as someone there has got time it's something that should be addressed.

The word on the street here is that Richard Dewe has resigned from the General Purposes and Advisory Committee – arguably Chief Pleas' most important committee – which he has chaired since the Assembly was reformed six months ago.

I am not aware of the reason but have to say that members with Conseiller Dewe's experience and contacts are few and far between, as are those with his enormous capacity for work. He and I have not always agreed – me with what he sometimes said and him with some of what I've written – but he has been a loyal and hardworking servant of Sark for very many years.

The children of Chernobyl will be in Sark next week, thanks to the generosity of many businesses and individuals. I hope the weather is better for them than it is as I write this column.