Devoncast

Devoncast

By Radio ExePolitics
Download on the App Store

Devoncast episodes

  • Devoncast - Lib Dems gain a member, tax hikes, "saved" pub, hospitals and Sir Ed Davey
    Cllr Frank Biederman has joined the Liberal Democrats after being an Independent for more than 12 years.
    The Devon County Council and North Devon Council member tells us why on this week's Devoncast, plus he shares his views on local government reorganisation, homes, road schemes and buses.
    A country pub in Torquay has been allowed to keep its licence after a second review over noise concerns and Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey drops into Paignton to talk to businesses as he campaigns against rises to employers' national insurance contributions.
    And finally The Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital opens its new children's emergency department and its a real hit with patients, parents and staff.
    It's all in the latest edition of Devoncast, from Radio Exe and the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
    56 min
  • Devoncast - Elections, parking charges and police funding
    An attempt to delay Devon’s local elections in May has failed, and that could have big ramifications for the county, the latest episode of Devoncast discovers.
    Councillor Julian Brazil, the Liberal Democrat member for Kingsbridge on Devon County Council and the leader of South Hams District Council, gives us his reaction to the government’s refusal to let Devon postone its elections.
    And Cllr Brazil explains why the South Hams has agreed a two-tier structure for car parking fees in his district, with locals able to pay less than visitors if they apply for a permit.
    We also hear from Devon County Council leader James McInnes about his views on the elections and what Devon has to do now if it is to create a credible plan for how local government in the county needs to be reorganised.
    There’s also an update on police funding from police and crime commissioner Alison Hernandez, and we hear from Devon MP David Reed who is pushing for more stringent rules upon property management companies.
    Finally, we hear about an important building on Tiverton’s Grand Western Canal that has been saved from the chop.
    It’s all in the latest edition of Devoncast, from Radio Exe and the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
    The programme is available for LDRS partners to use in full or in part.
    1 hr 1 min
  • Devoncast - Policing plans and a boost for business

    Devoncast returns with another deep dive into the stories making the headlines across the county this week.

    Your podcasters have been out in the pouring rain in Torquay with the police commissioner to hear about her plans to get tough on domestic violence, rural crime and shoplifting as part of an ambitious forward plan, and there’s the last word (for now) on the Exeter Water Lane debate.

    In Plymouth there’s a great debate on whether the city needs an elected mayor, and Devoncast’s special guest this week is Janna Sanders, the manager of the Business Improvement District in Tavistock. Janna explains what’s in store for the West Devon market town and what has made the BID a success since it was created there 14 years ago.

    It's all in the latest edition of Devoncast, from Radio Exe and the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

     

     

    44 min
  • Devoncast - Town, gown, trees and hospitals

    Exeter’s great divide is one of the main topics for the latest Devoncast.

    Special guest is Exeter University student Finn Aston, whose own podcast Town and Gown looks at how the uni helps to shape the city, and lifts the lid of some of the issues it creates.

    There’s more on the great hospitals building programme, and how it affects some long-awaited projects across Devon, and there’s a planting programme in the South Hams that is creating something hopeful for the future.

    On top of all that, we meet the man who wants to made Exeter the latest place to have an official branch of the party that is seeking to become a new force in British politics.

    It's all in the latest edition of Devoncast, from Radio Exe and the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

     

     

    45 min
  • Devoncast-Devolution in detail and train delays
    We go on a tour around the county from Exeter to Plymouth, North Devon to Torbay and East Devon to Teignbridge to see what our councillors make of it all.
    How will it impact services for residents day to day? How many unitary councils in Devon could be in charge of bins collections, children's services, how many homes are built and where and pothole repairs?
    Will there be more money for our urban and rural communities and a seat at the top table for a large strategic authority with an elected mayor covering the South West?
    We delve into these questions and more on the latest Devoncast.
    Plus is train travel for Devon residents going off the rails?. . . the county's trains to Paddington could see more problems in years to come with ongoing works to HS2 near the capital causing potential delays and less frequent services.
    MPs and councillors want a robust mitigation plan put in place.
    It’s all in the new Devoncast, from Radio Exe and the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
    The programme is available for LDRS partners to use in full or in part.
    1 hr
  • Devoncast - Devolution, development and trees

    Devon’s devolution is dominating the headlines as we embark on what is going to be a seismic year for local government. 

    The new edition of Devoncast hears from one local councillor about his fears for what might happen if devolution puts paid to our district councils. 

    Elsewhere, land earmarked for development in Exeter for 20 years looks set to be built on at last, with 1,000 new homes in the pipeline. One of the developers behind the project talks about how it might go. 

    The man recruited to help out Devon and Cornwall police and crime commissioner Alison Hernandez has resigned five months after taking up the post, and two Plymouth Conservative councillors give us their take on the tree felling saga, Plymouth City Council finances, the airport and the freeport. 

    And there’s a spectacular new light and sound show at Exeter Cathedral.

    It’s all in the new Devoncast, from Radio Exe and the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

    The programme is available for LDRS partners to use in full or in part.

     

    48 min
  • Devoncast - Politics, policing and a bone to pick with Bill Bryson - 2024 in review

    Devoncast has everything you need for the festive season in this special edition, looking back at some of the people who have been making the headlines around the county in 2024.

    Local Democracy Reporters Guy Henderson, Alison Stephenson and Bradley Gerrard look back through the Devoncasts of the past year to pick out the best bits for this seasonal selection box.

    You’ll hear from from MPs starting their new jobs at Westminster after an election night filled with surprises, and there’s an insight into some of the reasons why so much changed in Devon in those momentous few hours..

    Torbay’s tourism leader says the bay could be making more of the legacy of its most famous daughter, and an Exeter pioneer talks about how she got started on a nationwide campaign aimed at keeping people safe on a night out.

    Stars of Saturday morning television divulge some Christmas secrets and there’s a startling story of unrequited love at the Liberal Democrat party conference.

    It’s all in the Christmas and New Year Devoncast.

     

    43 min
  • Devoncast - Homes, policing, and the game your parents hated

    As we hurtle headlong into the festive season, Devoncast presents a programme of contrasts.

    Finding homes for young people leaving the care system is a serious issue which has sparked a lively debate in Torbay. Devoncast hears from YMCA Exeter with millions of pounds in government money in jeopardy.
    Policing the streets of Devon demands more and more resources, and rural crime also needs to be high on the agenda. Police and crime commissioner Alison Hernandez talks about some of her plans.
    And Saturday morning TV superstars Dick and Dom drop in to talk about Christmases past - and THAT game parents always wanted their children to stop playing in public places.

    26 min
  • Devoncast – A £10m finance hit for Devon, inheritance tax on farmers under the spotlight and 80s pop icons Duran Duran
    The cutting of a grant paid to rural councils could create a £10 million hole in Devon’s budget.
    James McInnes, Devon County Council’s Conservative leader, called the scrapping of the rural services delivery grant “another assault on rural communities”, and said the repurposing of the cash towards areas of deprivation might not benefit Devon in the same way.
    Fears about inheritance tax changes that could impact some Devon farmers has occupied local councils and Westminster, with a host of Devon politicians urging the government to re-think.
    Reaction comes in relation to the nationalisation of South Western Railway, whose services run from Devon to London Waterloo, while pressure builds on Plymouth Council to finish works in Central Park.
    And one of the most iconic bands of the eighties – Duran Duran – will be playing one of their only two gigs in 2025 right here in Devon.
    Devoncast is available for LDRS partners to use as they wish, in full or in part.
    47 min
  • Devoncast - What is your MP actually doing?

    Feelings are running high across rural Devon this week, and Devoncast is there to talk to the key people involved.

    Devon’s Farmy Army is on the march, taking tractors to the capital to protest against new tax proposals they say will mean the end for some family businesses.

    In West Devon a community is celebrating after winning a fight to keep a thousand-year-old tradition alive.

    And we talk to people who fear rural communities will be left out of the loop in the fight for faster internet connections.

    Plus, what exactly are your MPs up to in Westminster? We check in on the latest from the locals in among the green benches.

    56 min

About Devoncast

From the publisher's feed

We take a look at some of the key political stories from across Devon alongside local developments you need to know.