Agenda item

To seek approval for submission of a formal response to Greater Cambridge Partnership’s Making Connections Consultation.

Executive Councillor: S Wakeford.

The Cabinet has

a)  commented on the draft response letter as set out in Appendix B of the report submitted and agreed to amend the response to pick up comments made by the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Performance and Growth) in respect of the development and infrastructure of park and ride sites within the District and connecting rural areas, specifically mentioning the northern and western parts of the District;

b)  delegated authority to the Chief Planning Officer in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy and Housing to make amendments to the Huntingdonshire District Council response prior to submission to the Greater Cambridge Partnership; and

c)  encouraged Huntingdonshire residents and businesses, who it is recognised will have a range of opinions on the proposed scheme, to submit their own feedback to the consultation to ensure the Greater Cambridge Partnership has the fullest evidence base from within the District to inform its decision-making.

See Minute No. 22/52 – Members Interests.

Councillors S W Ferguson, T D Sanderson and S L Taylor vacated the room during discussion and voting on this item.

A report by the Chief Planning Officer was submitted (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) seeking approval for submission of a draft response to Greater Cambridge Partnership’s “Making Connections” consultation which was out for public consultation between 17 October and 23 December 2022.

The Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy & Housing provided a detailed explanation on the background to the consultation and reported that the benefits of the proposals included positive steps towards climate change and an improved bus network infrastructure and sustainability. He then drew the Cabinet’s attention to comments which had been made by the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Performance & Growth) in respect of the development and infrastructure of park and ride sites within the District, the need for better connections in rural areas, specifically in the northern and western parts of the District and the concerns which had been raised regarding the Addenbrookes hospital site.

A proposal was made by the Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy & Housing to amend the draft response outlined in Appendix B to strengthen the wording around park and ride sites and the need for better rural connections in the northern and western parts of the District. This was welcomed by the Cabinet. 

Cabinet Members commented on the balanced nature of the draft response and looked forward to seeing the proposals develop in the future. The Cabinet were reminded that the District Council was not a member of the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP) and that the Council’s role primarily was an influential one. The Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy & Housing also reported that the GCP had engaged with Officers ahead of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Performance & Growth) meeting on 7th December 2022 and that Officers were in the process of reviewing their response to some of the concerns which had been raised by the Council.

In noting the synergies which had emerged through the Council’s engagement on the Place Strategy, the Cabinet

RESOLVED

a)  to comment on the draft response letter as set out in Appendix B of the report submitted, subject to amending the response to pick up comments made by the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Performance & Growth) in respect of the development and infrastructure of park and ride sites within the District and the need for better rural connections in the northern and western parts of the District;

b)  to delegate authority to the Chief Planning Officer in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy and Housing to make amendments to the Huntingdonshire District Council response prior to submission to the Greater Cambridge Partnership; and

c)  to encourage Huntingdonshire residents and businesses, who it is recognised will have a range of opinions on the proposed scheme, to submit their own feedback to the consultation to ensure the Greater Cambridge Partnership has the fullest evidence base from within the District to inform its decision-making.

Following the conclusion of the Cabinet’s discussions on this item, Councillors S W Ferguson, T D Sanderson and S L Taylor re-entered the room and took their seats at the meeting.