Agenda and minutes

The Chairman welcomed all Members to the meeting and invited them to introduce themselves.

The constitution allowed for the Chairman to appoint the Vice-Chairman for the upcoming year.

RESOLVED: That Cllr C Poll be appointed as Vice-Chairman of the Growth, Housing & Infrastructure Select Committee for the ensuing year.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs N Brown, Q Chaudhry, C Etholen and T Hogg.

Cllr S Rouse declared a personal interest as a Managing Director of PeoplePlus Group Ltd.

Cllr D Carroll declared a personal interest as a member of the Red Kite Board.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meetings held on 25^th March and 26^th May 2021.

The minutes of the meetings held on 25 March and 26 May were agreed as a correct record.

The Committee will receive reports from the Leader, the Cabinet Member for Planning & Regeneration and the Cabinet Member for Housing, Homelessness & Regulatory Services outlining their respective priorities for the year ahead.

Contributors:

Cllr Martin Tett, Leader, Buckinghamshire Council

Cllr Gareth Williams, Deputy Leader & Cabinet Member for Planning & Regeneration

Cllr Nick Naylor, Cabinet Member for Housing, Homelessness & Regulatory Services

Mr Ian Thompson, Corporate Director, Planning, Growth and Sustainability

Mr Steve Bambrick, Service Director, Planning and Environment

Cllr M Tett, Leader, introduced his portfolio and highlighted the following priorities:-

·         Two key partners for economic development were the Buckinghamshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Buckinghamshire Business First, which would continue to support the business community grow and thrive.

·         The Buckinghamshire Growth Board was in ongoing discussions with the Government around economic recovery post-Covid 19 and was exploring opportunities to work with the Department of Work and Pensions in reducing unemployment.

·         During the pandemic, businesses had been supported with Government business grants which had been administered very efficiently by the Council.

·         The Welcome Back Bucks programme had been established to support high street business by making town centres attractive and vibrant.

·         The development of strategic infrastructure would be key with priorities including the South East Aylesbury Link Road and the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) projects at Princes Risborough Southern Road Links and Abbey Barn Lane Improvement Scheme.

·         Lobbying was ongoing for the Aylesbury Spur of the East West Rail Link.

·         Bids had been submitted recently for the Government’s Levelling Up Fund and Major Road Network Fund.

·         Improvement of broadband coverage and speed in Buckinghamshire would also be a priority although progress in improvements would be dependent on the Government’s Project Gigabit.

In response to questions, the following points were noted:-

·         The Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund replaced the European Regional Development Fund. The Government scheme was currently being trialed with the funds more likely to be allocated to more deprived areas in the UK.

·         The Council had requested major projects, such as HS2, to use suppliers in Buckinghamshire where possible in order to boost the local economy.

·         Lobbying was ongoing for East West Rail to repair highways that had been damaged due to construction work.

·         Larger businesses were supported through the three Enterprise Zones in Buckinghamshire: Silverstone, Woodlands and Westcott.

·         In response to concerns raised by residents about traffic implications in Buckinghamshire if Luton Airport continued to expand, it was noted that the historic planned expansion of Luton Airport had included a new rail link and transit system which would assist with the extra capacity. The current status of these plans would be investigated further.

·         Buckinghamshire had 96% broadband premises coverage however the speeds were outdated for modern usage. The Council was working on a number of projects to improve coverage as well as lobbying for Government funding.  

·         The shortage of local affordable housing and the lack of key infrastructure would challenge the Leader’s priorities.

·         In response to a request from the Chairman,  it was agreed that the Leader would consider issues that the Select Committee could focus on that would assist in the delivery of the portfolio’s priorities.  

Cllr G Williams, Deputy Leader & Cabinet Member for Planning & Regeneration, introduced his portfolio. Due to the wide-ranging nature of the portfolio, the Cabinet Member had two Deputy Cabinet Members that would assist: Cllr G Hall, Enforcement, and Cllr J Towns, Town Centre Regeneration. The Cabinet Member highlighted the following priorities:-

·         The development of the new Buckinghamshire Local Plan for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

An opportunity for Members to discuss possible topics for the future work programme.

Contributors:

All Members

Mrs Kelly Sutherland, Scrutiny Manager

The Chairman requested that Members emailed work programme ideas so that they could be considered at the next meeting. The Leader and the Cabinet Member for Planning & Regeneration would also provide suggestions for topics that could assist the work within their portfolios.

Topics that had been raised at the meeting included:-

·         Planning and planning enforcement including communication with stakeholders

·         Town centre regeneration

·         Identifying public sector land for housing

·         Rough sleepers

Thursday 14^th October 2021 at 10am

The next meeting would be on Thursday 14 October at 10am.