Dodgy going on in the cheshire gas plant plan

HEADLESS CHICKEN SHOOTS ITSELF IN FOOT

Scottish Power and its partner Ineos Chlor - "The Gas Plant Twins" - are so frightened by the massive flood of letters from the public, sent to Cheshire County Council opposing the planned Byley gas plant, that Ineos Chlor has shot itself in the foot by attempting to lever its employees into sending letters supporting the gas plant, and sending them from their home addresses as if they were impartial, rather than employees whose company would profit vastly from the gas plant.

An e-mail from Ineos Chlor to all North West employees, gives a standard letter, plus the technical refinement of a button to be "clicked" by employees enabling Ineos Chlor to know precisely who's been good and sent the letter - and who's been bad and not sent it! Said RAP member Dr Jamie Atherton, a retired local GP: "This is typical of the murky spin we've come to expect from the Gas Plant Twins. They're frightened now and they should be! RAP is regularly delivering 'no gas plant' letters to County Hall to save the cost of postage, and on one day alone: Tuesday 25th September, we took nearly 1,200 letters, with more arriving every day, and that's on top of the 5,000 already sent, and every one of them genuinely from worried members of the public." RAP Chairman, John Halstead added: "It's pretty dim to ask employees to send a standard letter. It was bound to get found out, and it has been found out, and it's further evidence of the ineptitude of Scottish Power and Ineos Chlor. And these are the people asking us to trust their competence to run a dangerous technology that's never before been placed among centres of population!" Dr John Edwards, Press and Media Officer

NO GAS PLANT! THERE IS NO SHORTAGE OF GAS!

NO GAS PLANT! THERE IS NO SHORTAGE OF GAS!

Cranage Conference Centre 7.30 pm Friday 14th September

Before opening RAP's biggest-ever meeting, in the state-of-the-art Cranage Conference Centre, RAP Chairman John Halstead, called for a minute's silence in respect of the dead in New York and Washington, following September 11th's terrorist outrages. John asked a packed meeting to remember too, that Byley Airfield - proposed site of Scottish Power's gas plant - was once an air base manned by young American servicemen, some of whom died defending our country.

John then reminded the audience of two key dates: September 16th when the Development Planning Committee of Cheshire County Council will receive a presentation against the gas plant, from RAP, and September 23rd when the Council will decide on Scottish Power's planning application. John stressed the unique and far-sighted nature of the Council's decision to hear RAP's case, as an example of local democracy in action.

Later John Oakley, a highly-qualified engineer, and one of RAP's team of technical experts, presented an outline of the case against the gas plant, in a high-tech, brilliantly-illustrated lecture based on computer graphics. The biggest surprise of the evening was that the gas plant is not even needed, as there is no national shortage of gas. Next - and to considerable laughter - Dr John Edwards, RAP's Press and Media Spokesman, joked about the clumsy inefficiency of Scottish Power's PR campaign, promising that RAP will do to Scottish Power, what David did to Goliath. He urged the audience to continue the vital work of writing to County Councillors, and still more important, to turn out in massive numbers for a responsible, dignified protest outside County Hall Chester on September 23rd.

After a lively question and answer session, the meeting closed to loud applause and a fixed determination to stop the gas plant. Dr John Edwards, Press and Media Officer

Biggest Meeting Yet Against the Cheshire Gas Plant:

Cranage Conference Centre 7.30 pm Friday 14th September

RAP is inviting MPs, local councillors, other VIPs, and representatives of the Emergency services to attend a major protest meeting against Scottish Power's gas plant. Thousands of leaflets will be delivered to homes in Knutsford, Congleton, Goostrey, Holmes Chapel, Northwich, Middlewich, Winsford and Byley and elsewhere, to ensure the biggest turnout yet of people dedicated to stopping a project which has roused a unique level of anger and opposition. John Halstead, Chairman of RAP commented: "Cranage Conference Centre have made available their biggest hall and we confidently expect to fill it, as we have previously filled every hall where a gas plant protest has been held. Indeed, our only fear is that we might not get everybody in. But we're pulling out all the stops on this one, and we expect a lively meeting!"

The aim of the meeting is to brief the public on latest events, including Scottish Power's clumsy attempt to win support from local businesses by dangling the possibility of lucrative contracts - a transparently obvious piece of spin since gas plant contracts would go mainly to specialist suppliers outside Cheshire or the UK. This contrasts with Cheshire County Council's excellent decision to allow RAP to present its case direct to them (a meeting currently scheduled for October 16th). Finally, the meeting aims to prepare for an even bigger turnout of protestors outside County Hall on October 23rd, when the Council make their decision on Scottish Power's planning application. Dr John Edwards, Press and Media Officer