Issue - meetings

Report of the Interim Strategic Director of Place

Presented by the Regeneration and Planning Portfolio Holder

The Leader presented the report to Members. He informed Members that he had received a question from a Councillor in relation to the item. He stated that as the purpose of the report was to agree the consultation and that there would be opportunity for the authority to discuss and agree its own comments during the process, it was anticipated that reports would be taken to Policy Development Group, Cabinet and then Council and felt it would be the appropriate place to discuss the issues raised in relation to the rail infrastructure.

He advised Members that the draft Joint Strategic Growth Plan had been prepared by the Leicester and Leicestershire authorities and it took into account the known strategic infrastructure aspirations including the Midlands connect. He highlighted that the plan projected the known housing needs from the HEDNA to cover the period of 2031 and 2050 and that the strategy sought to re-balance growth away from the current trend of adding hundreds of houses onto existing settlements and instead focussed homes in new strategic locations. The locations were one south of the county near Hinckley, one close to the city and one in the north of the county to complement the thousands of new jobs that were being created around East Midlands Airport and the Roxhill scheme.

He reminded Members that growth would happen so the strategy sought to manage the growth and to secure strategic infrastructure as a result, and stated that the draft strategy had been endorsed for consultation by the Leicester and Leicestershire Members’ Advisory Group and that the consultation would run for twelve weeks from the 8 January 2018.

It was moved by Councillor R Blunt, seconded by Councillor A V Smith and

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    The process which had been undertaken in the preparation of a Draft Strategic Growth Plan for Leicester and Leicestershire be noted and endorsed;

2.    Cabinet noted that he consultation draft plan had been endorsed by the Members’ Advisory Group (MAG) which oversees the preparation of the plan;

3.    The consultation process and timetable be approved; and

4.    A further report be brought back to Cabinet to consider the consultation responses with a view to Cabinet recommending approval of the final version of the plan to Council.

Reason for decision:To demonstrate support for the collaborative working that has taken place across the seven Districts/Borough Councils, Leicestershire County Council, Leicester City Council and the Leicester & Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership, To note that MAG has been engaged in and supports the proposed document, To ensure that all partners are in support of the process and that it is consistent across the County, and that all residents and stakeholders have an opportunity to make comments on the proposals; and To ensure that there is an opportunity to scrutinise the final version of the plan before it is agreed.