Plymouth chainsaw massacre: row deepens

Former leader critical of tree-felling recommended it

Claims the former Plymouth City Council leader Nick Kelly did not know the extent of city centre tree-felling when he was in charge have been described as “inconceivable” after official documents reveal he recommended the project last year. 

The former Conservative leader, who now heads the Independent Alliance, claims he was unaware of the scale of plans to destroy trees on Armada Way. 

But council details show Cllr Kelly, who represents Compton, attended a meeting about the proposed regeneration of the city centre just weeks before he was ousted following a vote of no confidence in March 2022. 

Official notes from Cllr Kelly’s briefing on Wednesday 16 February last year state: “His recommendation to be bold, innovative, remove trees and bring in a water feature akin to Diana Memorial to run north-south along Armada Way.” 

On Tuesday 29 March Cllr Richard Bingley, who had by then taken over as council leader, was briefed on the recommendations made by Cllr Kelly. Council notes from the meeting state he was “happy to continue with plan so not to delay programme.”

Cllr Richard Bingley is under pressure after late night massacre 

But in a move echoing Cllr Kelly’s removal from the leader’s job last year, current Tory leader, Cllr Bingley (Southway), now faces votes of no confidence at next week’s full council meeting after some councillors, including Cllr Kelly, condemned how the tree felling was handled. 

One motion, proposed by a former Tory, Cllr Pat Nicholson, and seconded by Cllr Kelly, criticises the cabinet for “failing to stand up for the city centre’s natural environment.”

But former Conservative councillor Ian Bowyer, who stepped down before the local elections last year, insisted Cllr Kelly must have known about plans for widespread tree felling.  

“It’s inconceivable that he didn’t know and he would be quite disingenuous if he were trying to argue otherwise. I think the evidence is absolutely robust in that case,” said Mr Bowyer. 

Mr Bowyer suggested the councillor for Plympton St. Mary, Pat Nicholson, who recently left the Tory group to join the Independent Alliance, would also have known all the details of the proposed city centre regeneration. 

Mr Bowyer, who was also previously a Conservative leader of the council, said Cllr Nicholson was fully briefed on the project too. 

“As my deputy and as the cabinet member with responsibility for strategic infrastructure, he played a leading and very prominent role in formulating the proposal in the first place,” he explained.

“Therefore in my view it’s again inconceivable that he wasn’t and hasn’t been aware of the extent of these proposals which have been evolving over time.”

Contractors cut down 110 trees in the city centre last week in a heavily criticised night-time operation as part of a £12.7 million regeneration project, but work was halted by a court injunction with only 16 trees still standing.

Former leader Nick Kelly recommended tree removal and the installation of a water feature

Cllr Kelly insisted the meeting in February last year was mainly in response to a petition launched by campaigner Una Sears, who wanted a 1980s’ water feature to be reinstated. 

He added the original plans had looked good but “nobody asked about the trees” and said the problem had been a “lack of consultation with all key players” in recent months.  

Two motions of no confidence in the council leadership are set to be debated at the full council meeting next Monday. The first motion, proposed by Cllr Nicholson and seconded by Cllr Kelly, condemns the council leader and his cabinet for “pursuing an urgent decision to implement the unnecessary felling of trees in Armada Way, against the wishes of thousands of Plymouth residents and visitors.”

A second confidence motion, being brought by the Greens, calls for the removal of Cllr Bingley as leader and the election of a replacement. 

How did that car get in there? (image courtesy: Studio Agora Architects/Plymouth City Council).