Agenda item

Councillor S J Conboy, Executive Leader to present on the activities of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority

Councillors M A Hassall and J Neish to provide an update on the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Councillor S J Corney to provide an update on the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority Audit and Governance Committee.

Electronic links to the decision summaries are attached to the Agenda for information. These include the Transport and Infrastructure, Skills and Employment and Sustainable Communities Committees.

This item provides an opportunity for District Council Members to ask questions and comment on Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority issues.

If Members wish to raise questions or issues requiring a detailed response, it would be helpful if they can provide advance notice.

In conjunction with the decision summaries of the recent meetings of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority and a PowerPoint Presentation (copies of which are appended in the Minute Book), the Executive Leader Councillor S J Conboy presented an update on the activities of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA).

As part of the presentation, Council were reminded that the Bus precept had been agreed at the last Combined Authority meeting and that Members have been working with Officers at the Combined Authority to feed back the views and comments of District Council Members regarding bus services. These had included issues around the need for joined up services and reconfiguring the connectivity between some of these services.

The Council’s attention was then drawn to some of the specific improvements that were being investigated and were in development by the Combined Authority. Members were informed that representatives were also continuing to push for improvements across the rural areas of the District and to talk about whether a better hub and spoke model could be achieved.

Arising from the presentation, Councillor Gardener outlined the concerns being expressed by his residents at the recent increase in the Mayoral precept given the lack of public transport within the rural areas. He also raised a number of specific questions regarding the Ting service including the potential expansion of the areas served and its use for post 16 transport. In response to which, the Executive Leader reiterated that the Authority was trying to secure more public transport services within the rural areas. Whilst she agreed with his comments regarding post 16 transport, she was also mindful that some under 16s needed to use public services and that a Mayoral commitment had been made to offer a cheaper rate for younger people. Councillor Gardener was encouraged to discuss issues further with Combined Authority representatives outside of the meeting.

Having welcomed the inclusion of Fenstanton within the Huntingdonshire Strategy, Councillor C H Tevlin proposed that working groups should be established between authorities and wards to ensure that there is a joined up and linked approach to the provision of bus services. In response to which the Executive Leader reiterated that the need for a joined-up approach was important, and Councillor Tevlin was invited to provide any local intelligence to Councillor Davenport-Ray.

Councillor T D Alban took the opportunity to draw attention to the discrepancies with the bus services within his ward of Stilton, Folksworth and Washingley where some villages such as Stilton and Conington received a regular service, yet others like Holme received only one per week. The Executive Leader agreed to feed this information back. Information on nuances such as this was always of value.

Councillor J Neish commented on the absence of any information relating to the cost of buses at the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on the Mayoral precept and questioned whether this had been forthcoming to the Board. He also commented on the timing of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee which met merely two days before the Board meeting itself. In response to which, the Executive Leader confirmed that she had raised the issue of the timing of meetings with the Combined Authority, who had agreed to give the matter further consideration.

Councillor J A Gray outlined his concerns that the activity of the Combined Authority was being preoccupied by bus services and was losing focus on what could be achieved in other areas such as infrastructure, education, jobs, making connections etc. In response to which, the Executive Leader explained that the Corporate Plan does illustrate the contribution that buses make to the wider objections and that the District’s requirements in other areas would be considered further as part of the devolution process.

With the assistance of a PowerPoint presentation (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) Councillors M A Hassall and J Neish provided an update on the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

In so doing, Members were acquainted with the key points arising from discussions at recent meetings of the Committee. These included the extension of the Best Value Notice, the Mayor’s Precept and Governance Challenges. As part of the presentation, the Council’s attention was also drawn to the comments made by the Chair of the Independent Improvement Board regarding the actions required by the Board and its constituent members, together with the Governance and Best Value Challenges being considered and discussed by the Committee.

An update on the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Audit and Governance Committee was not able to be provided.