Following my article on Welsh Outpouring Concerns: http://eliora.hubpages.com/hub/THE-WELSH-OUTPOURING-VICTORY-CHURCH-CWMBRAN-RICHARD-TAYLOR-RIDING-ROUGHSHOD-OVER-LOCAL-RESIDENTS
Councillor Haynes has made the following statement on Facebook: Torfaen Matters on I believe the 26th of August 2013:
"Where to start...
There has recently been a very vitriolic blog posted on the www that told substantial lies about me and my family and some innocent constituents. I made contact with the blog writer. I told them about the lies they printed and gave them time to rectify, before pursuing through the courts. That blog has since been removed.
This issue revolves around a Church known as Victory Church within my ward. As you know, there seems to be an issue with some people and that church. People are entitled to their opinions on what happens there but I have no opinion on it. I do not attend, am not a member and am not interested in what goes on there other than the impact it has and any complaints raised from residents. That is as far as my interest goes.
So let’s get down to the allegations fired at me by the blog and others on TT.
1. Allegation that I am related to the Paul Haynes who is the gentleman who is no longer in a wheelchair. TRUTH - I know Paul well through him being a constituent. We are not related.
2. Allegation that I am related to Anita Barnard. TRUTH – I know Anita Barnard through being a constituent. She was also an active member of the Oppose the Prison action group that went on to form CGT.
3. Allegation that I breached the code of conduct by failing to declare an interest in so far that my sister & mother attend Victory Church, whilst dealing with resident complaints about Victory Church. TRUTH – Monitoring Officer confirms that no interest is declarable on an enforcement /regulatory issue that I will not make a decision on. I have done nothing wrong.
4. The Allegation that I removed the church from my FB profile. TRUTH-as you can imagine, the blog & lies told about me knocked me for six. I expect that in the political arena but for complete strangers and others to tell complete lies about me & my family is just not on. I removed myself from ALL FB groups except my own ward group. I even left my own families groups. Also, I did not have Victory Church on my FB to begin with. I had Unite@Victory which is a Friday group within the church. Yes I removed it but I removed myself from every group I belonged too, even the sell it/swap it sites and TM!
5. The Allegation that I attend Victory Church. TRUTH-I do not/have not attend Victory Church. I do not attend any church. I was brought up in the Methodist Church and have strong morals and try to follow a Christian life but I do not attend any church and have not since I was a teenager (and that’s a long time ago!)
6. The veiled allegation that I have not done my job properly in relation to complaints raised. You will now see that since 2010 I have logged and had enforced a number of complaints made against Victory Church......
Change of Use to a church - Change of use planning permission was sought retrospectively in 2010 (ref. 10/P/00424) after I reported that breach to Planning Enforcement. The application was submitted on 17 August 2010 and approved using officer delegated powers on 3 February 2011. The permission granted is for “offices & storage and charity headquarters/weekly assembly meetings and use for restoration of furniture”. There are no restrictions on the hours of operation. These decisions were made by planning Officers. I had no input or say in this.
Café - The café was retrospectively registered with the environmental health team in May 2012 after I reported it after receiving a complaint. The Café currently has no planning consent and is subject to enforcement (that I also reported several months ago after receiving a complaint).
Car Wash - The car wash planning permission was sought retrospectively in 2011(ref.11/P/00617) after I reported it after receiving a complaint. The application was submitted on 22 November 2011 and approved using officer delegated powers on 7 March 2013.
TREES – Complainant reported that the church was cutting down their own trees around the fence. I reported this in 2012. Officers investigated and none had Tree Preservation Orders on them so no action was taken. Officer stated that “Private landowners have responsibility for their own trees”.
Signage - Signage does not currently have any approval and is also subject of current planning enforcement investigation (ref.13/ENF/193) that I reported. There was previously more signage than currently exists but Neighbourhood Services have already acted on this issue insofar as it relates to highway land, after a previous complaint I logged with them in 2012.
DRINKING/DRUGS – complaints of drinking & drugs were reported to me & the Police who have investigated on each occasion. The police have confirmed to me that to date the complaints received have not brought forward any evidence to back up the complaints."
This is my response to the above statement by Cllr Haynes:
My article was temporarily suspended due to pixelated images which I have removed. There is no other reason why it was taken down despite much speculation and premature glee from certain parties.
The reason I wrote the article Welsh Outpouring Concerns was not because I have a particular axe to grind against Cllr Haynes; in fact I had never even heard of Cllr Haynes before writing the article. My concerns are about the Welsh Outpouring as it has become known, and its detrimental effect on many people in various different ways, both locally in Cwmbran and further afield. Previously I have written that the theology of Richard Taylor and his team is unbiblical and that none of the so called healings which have taken place can be verified medically.
http://www.itv.com/news/wales/update/2013-08-15/cwmbran-church-under-scrutiny-over-miracle-healings/
http://s4c.co.uk/clic/e_level2.shtml?series_id=510265514
There are also concerns that the ex-prisoners under the care of Victory Outreach UK are under the influence of the cultish behaviour of the leaders of Victory Church. These ex-prisoners are obligated to attend the nightly meetings and are subjected to hours and hours of mind control techniques and false teaching. In Welsh Outpouring Concerns, I outlined the effect that the Welsh Outpouring at Victory Church was having on the local residents of Greenforge Way in Cwmbran and their struggle against repeated retrospective planning permissions, as well as traffic problems, noise issues, unsocial behaviour etc. It seems to me that no one’s rights are respected by the leadership of Victory Church in their quest to bring the Trojan horse of false Christianity to Wales and beyond.
In Welsh Outpouring Concerns, I wrote that I believed that Clllr Haynes had breached the Councillors code of conduct due to her close connections with Victory Church and her involvement representing local residents over planning permissions. Cllr Haynes objected to this and said she would take legal action unless I withdrew it. I have now withdrawn that accusation. However I do think that it is very odd that Cllr Haynes should represent local residents over planning permissions and also promote Unite@Victory on her Facebook page. Also it is indisputable that she has close relatives and Facebook friends attending Victory Church. Anyway the Cllr has liaised with her legal team at Torfaen Council and she assures me that this does not constitute a breach. This has surprised me as it does seem inconsistent that Cllr Haynes should represent one party and also promote regular meetings being held at the premises of the other! It certainly does not seem right to me.
One comment from a local resident is that Victory Church seem to be "above the law" in that they repeatedly apply for and are granted planning permission retrospectively. The Telegraph have recently published an article and short video entitled: “Planning Approval Tricks of the Trade” which makes interesting reading/watching (note the comment at the end made by Mrs Trellis): http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/9923195/CPREs-Neil-Sinden-Councillors-buying-and-sellling-planning-permissions-seriously-undermines-public-confidence-in-the-system.html
I have never stated that Cllr Haynes attends Victory Church personally, only that her mother, her sister and her Facebook friends Anita Barnard and Paul Haynes attend and that she promoted Unite@Victory on her Facebook page.
I was wrongly informed that Paul Haynes, the man who was supposedly “healed” was a relative of Cllr Haynes. Paul Haynes is no relation - this was a genuine mistake on my part and I have removed this. Incidentally, there is no medical evidence to support the “healing” of Paul Haynes.
Cllr Haynes insists that she is not personal friends with Paul Haynes or Anita Barnard; the reason they are on her Facebook page she says is that they are constituents living in her ward.
The above changes were made after the Cllr contacted me threatening me with the might of Torfaen Council's legal expertise which I am sure I am no match for. Otherwise the article remains much the same as it originally was. I am at a loss to understand how this constitutes "substantial lies".
Further Note
Cllr Haynes writes above concerning Change of Use To A Church :"The permission granted is for offices & storage and charity headquarters/weekly assembly meetings and use for restoration of furniture”. Here we have yet another anomaly. I have counted nine meetings a week in total being held at Victory Church. If Taylor has not been granted permission to hold "assembly meetings" more than weekly (i.e. once a week), then why are Torfaen Council allowing him to continue, especially in light of the residents complaints and the other concerns mentioned?
The outpouring is taking place Monday-Thursday & Saturdays at 7pm. http://www.victorychurch.co.uk/questions-answered
Sunday: Morning Service 11:00am Bible teaching & communion (Children’s Church)
Tuesday: 7:30pm Victory Young Adults for 17-30 yrs
Wednesday: 7pm Encounter Meeting – Prayer, worship, fellowship and teaching
Friday: 7:30pm Victory Youth for 11-16 yrs
http://www.victorychurch.co.uk/locations/cwmbran
Assembly: A group of persons gathered together, usually for a particular purposewhether religious, political, educational, or social.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/assembly?s=t
Love does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. (1 Corinthians 13/6)
http://watchman4wales.blogspot.co.uk/
FURTHER UPDATE 10/09/2013
"Pastor Richard" as he likes to call himself, has announced that the "outpouring meetings" will shortly be reduced to two nights a week - Wednesday and Saturday evenings from next week. Victory Church will also be launching a Sunday evening service at the end of this month. Taylor previously stated: "We were told by God that if we showed up, then He would show up." Taylor's previous enthusiasm seems to have fizzled out and he does not want to "flog a dead horse"!
Taylor does not have planning permission to meet more than once a week so he is still operating outside of the law. Perhaps Cllr Haynes could point this out to him! I doubt that we know the real reasons for this change to two nights a week, but it can only be good news for the local residents and the rest of the world in general.
http://www.victorychurch.co.uk/important-outpouring-announcement-from-pastor-richard
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