Agenda item

The Assistant Director for Strategic Planning & Regulatory Services  to submit a report to enable Members to consider the revised Leicester & Leicestershire Strategic Growth Plan.

The Leader presented the report prepared by the Assistant Director of Strategic Planning & Regulatory Services to enable members to consider and approve the revised Leicester and Leicestershire Strategic Growth Plan (SGP) which was appended.  In doing so he

(a)       advised that the SGP had been developed by a partnership of all the Leicestershire councils and the LLEP and put forward a plan for future development, including housing provision, needed to support population change, meet housing needs and support economic growth from now until 2050.  The document represented an exemplar of councils working together to address issues that would affect everyone.  Melton had played a key role in this by promoting its potential for growth and accepting additional housing to make this a reality.  The partners had joined together to formulate a long term plan for the county’s future;

(b)       reported that the plan would also help bids for more national funding, for infrastructure to help ease congestion and facilitate growth and prosperity.  The Plan contained key infrastructure that would transform Melton’s prospects, for example, the A46 expressway to bring access to the major road network within a 15 minute journey, and further support for the Melton distributor road.  Local Plans in the area, including the recently adopted Melton Local Plan, catered for development needs up to 2031; but a further estimated 90,500 dwellings and additional employment land was needed after that up to 2050.  Members were advised that the councils needed to start planning for that now because the next round of local plans and their reviews would start addressing this period.  The Melton Local Plan stretched to 2036.  Local Planning Authorities could not be done in isolation or individually because the needs extended beyond that which they could individually provide, and because there was a shared vision of growth based  on a central city and sustainability principles of sustainable development;

(c)        explained that  the SGP set out the overall strategy and Local Plans would deal with the detailed allocation of which sites.  Melton was identified as a growth point, reflecting the ambition contained in its Local Plan and extending it into the longer term.  It proposed 3800 houses from 2031 – 2050, though 1200 of these were already accommodated in the last 5 years of the Plan;

(d)       invited members to adopt the revised SGP as most of the partners had done to date, and specifically welcoming the identification of Melton as a ‘Key Centre for Growth and Regeneration’.  The Leader moved the recommendations as contained in the report.  The motion was seconded by the Deputy Leader who reserved his right to speak after the debate.

A member raised a question in relation to the potential impact of Brexit and a fall in net migration and asked if it would be possible to review the housing supply need if net migration fell.

[At this point in the debate, Councillor Holmes declared a pecuniary interest and left the meeting at 7.05pm]

The Leader stated he would be unable to provide an answer to the post Brexit issue, he could confirm that the SGP included provision for an increase in population and that all contingencies had been built into the Plan.

The Mayor invited the Assistant Director to comment.  The Assistant Director advised that the Plan recognised the need for review because of the volatility of the situation and the fact that it looked so far ahead.  The same applied to the Melton Local Plan.  A member noted that the Plan had the backing of 9 other authorities and urged this council to do the same and sign up to it.

The Deputy Leader referred to the comments made about immigration and stated that most immigration into the UK was from countries outside the EU.  Housing pressure was not only linked to immigration but also to other factors such as the average life expectancy increasing which meant the housing stock had to provide for people for longer, and the number of houses which were only occupied by one person.  He highlighted that this council had promoted Melton as a key area for growth and regeneration.  Upon being put to the vote, the motion was carried unanimously.

RESOLVED:

 (1)  to approve the Strategic Growth Plan (SGP) “Leicester and Leicestershire 2050: Our Vision for Growth” (as attached as Appendix A to the report);

(2)  the Chief Executive, following consultation with the Leader and the Joint Strategic Planning Manager, be authorised to agree, prior to publication, any final minor amendments to the SGP which do not significantly change the overall content or purpose of the document, and

(3)  the Council welcomes the identification of Melton as a “Key Centre for Growth and Regeneration” and notes the constructive approach taken by the Council in accommodating wider growth needs. In so doing,  the Council requests the Leader and officers continue to seek commitments from partner organisations for appropriate external support and funding to facilitate this ambition, as well as working to influence the most favourable possible design to Melton of any new infrastructure;  in particular the alignment of the ‘A46 Expressway’.  

[Councillors Holmes and Rhodes here returned to the meeting at 7.11pm]