Agenda item

Subject to the required notice being given, Members of the Council can ask questions of the Chairman of the Council, the Leader of the Council, Portfolio Holders or Chairmen of Committees or Sub-Committees.

The time allocated for receiving and disposing of questions shall be a maximum of 45 minutes. Any question not disposed of at the end of this time shall be the subject of a written response, copied to all Members unless withdrawn by the questioner.

Subject to the required notice being given, Members of the Council can ask questions of the Chairman of the Council, the Leader of the Council, Portfolio Holders or Chairmen of Committees or Sub-Committees.

There was one question on this occasion as set out below:

Question

From Councillor Richard Everett to Councillor Neil Stock, Chairman of the Local Plan Committee:

“At the meeting of the Local Plan Committee held on Thursday, 19th January, 2017, a methodology for calculating the Five-Year Housing Land Supply was discussed. The Local Plan Committee:

• agreed a flawed methodology for calculating the five-year housing land supply; 
• noted an underestimation of the real position of a five-year housing land supply; and

Given that these decisions were taken on incomplete and incorrect data, and excluding an essential element of supply permitted by the High Court ruling last year (the Modwen Judgement), does the Chair of the Local Plan Committee feel that it was wise voting for a flawed methodology that gives speculative developers a green light for their development?

Further does he feel that the underestimation of the real position on housing land supply is fair to the people of Tendring who wish to be able to defend against greedy developers dumping their housing in inappropriate places, such as Ardleigh, Great Bentley, Great Oakley, Kirby, Little Clacton and Weeley to name just a few.”

Councillor Stock replied as follows:

“Chairman, let me start by saying that I expect difficult and demanding questions from opposition Members who dislike or disagree with decisions that have been made by the Council under my leadership; they are a right and proper part of the democratic process and an essential and vital element of the scrutiny and challenge that is necessary for good government.

But I have to say that this question appears to represent none of those values and quite frankly Chairman it is difficult to know where to start to answer a question from a Member who within his question and by statements he has made previously in this chamber and elsewhere challenges the integrity of everyone who sits on the Local Plan Committee; has gone to the Police claiming that Officers and / or Members are corrupt and is attempting to seek a judicial review against a decision taken by a committee upon which he was sitting when the decision was made.

Members will be aware that the position in Tendring, in respect of a 5-year supply of housing land is a quickly improving one; supply was calculated to be 3 years at 31 March 2016 it is estimated that it will be 4.4 years by the end of this month.

Councilolr Everett refers to decisions made by the Local Plan Committee on 19 January this year – a meeting of the committee that was not only attended by Councillor Everett as a member of it but where I am informed that Councillor Turner as acting Chairman allowed him more than generous opportunity to put his case and argue his point. Although obviously the Committee disagreed with him and voted the other way – I know it’s not nice to lose a vote but that is how democracy works.

Councillor Everett firstly suggests that the methodology agreed by the committee was flawed.  Far from being flawed, the methodology is robust and it is consistent with Government policy and guidance.  Members may be aware that the Government does not prescribe exactly how to calculate housing land supply and so Councils look to policy, guidance, best-practice, the courts and legal precedents (including the one that Councillor Everett mentions) to assist. This thorough approach was taken by Officers in reaching the methodology recommended to and adopted by the Local Plan Committee in January.

The methodology is both robust and appropriately cautious in its approach.  Some, like Councillor Everett, would argue that supply in the District is higher than shown by this methodology but equally many others would argue that it is overly optimistic.  As supply in the District approaches 5 years, developers are becoming more interested in challenging the Council’s position.

The Committee noted that a formal statement of housing land supply for 2016/17 would be reported to the Local Plan Committee as soon as possible after March 2017, not in March.  The period of measurement ends at the end of March and so could not be reported in the timeframe suggested by Councillor Everett. 

The Council takes seriously its responsibility to present accurate information and was recently congratulated by the Chief Executive of the Housing and Finance Institute, for our understanding of the District’s housing position, including supply. 

It would be grossly unfair to the people of Tendring to rely on an over-optimistic and unrealistic calculation that could easily lead to challenge and a worsening of the housing land supply position.  As Chair of the Local Plan Committee and as Leader of this Council I want to ensure the Council’s position is responsible and in the long-term interests of the District.

But obfuscation tactics, threats of legal action from UKIP councillors, wishful thinking and pretending to be an expert is not in interests of this District and will only delay the new Local Plan so that those large planning applications that we are struggling to prevent will become much more likely.

Chairman, getting the local plan agreed, swiftly and without delay, is the only way to ensure that this district is in charge of its own destiny when it comes to planning decisions.”

Councillor Everett then responded to Councillor Stock’s reply and, in turn, Councillor Stock then responded.