Gresley Society trustees admit breaking law in defence of duck removal

You may have seen from various articles and letters in the press recently that our campaign to get the mallard reinstated to the statue of Sir Nigel Gresley is still attracting a great deal of interest and attention. Whatever else happens, that duck has certainly done much to raise Gresley's profile already! The Gresley Society trustees have resisted all pressure to ask their members what they think about the mallard, and neither have they contacted donors to the statue appeal about its removal. They are still insisting that the installation will go ahead without the mallard, and that the statue will be unveiled on 5th April. However, the trustees have now admitted to breaking the law at the Gresley Society AGM in December last year, and now face a Charity Commission investigation into their conduct. That may well force a review of their position. Why they would go to such lengths (in this case denying members their rights to vote by proxy on the election of trustees) to defend their stance is a mystery; support for the mallard is overwhelming. Last week a poll in the Telegraph online found 96% in favour of reinstating the mallard. In October an i100 poll (the Independent) received over 4,200 votes, of which 94% were pro-mallard. Our campaign is now looking again at the issue of planning consent for the statue. The with-mallard design was granted permission by Camden Council in November 2014 after public consultation. Camden have since said they will not take enforcement action if installation goes ahead without the mallard. Given the significance of the mallard, we believe its removal constitutes a major variation to the agreed design, and should therefore be subject to another planning application. We suspect Camden Council simply don't realise that the mallard is a vital part of the statue, nor that its removal significantly diminishes the impact, appeal and purpose of the work. I would like to ask you please to consider emailing the chair of Camden's Development Control Committee, Cllr Heather Johnson to explain why you think the mallard should be retained, and why its removal would be a major variation to the scheme. Perhaps let her know that there is overwhelming public support for the mallard's inclusion, and you cannot understand how it can be omitted without proper consultation. heather.johnson@camden.gov.uk The Sir Nigel bit of the sculpture has now been cast in bronze. Since the mallard is a separate piece and both were to be floor-mounted rather than fixed to a plinth, we can still save the duck. We have well over 3,000 signatures to the petition now; thank you so much for your support. If you'd like more frequent updates, please visit the website www.gresleyduck.org or our Facebook page www.facebook.com/gresleyduck You can also follow us on Twitter @gresleyduck