Agenda and minutes

To record apologies for absence. 

None.

To adopt and sign as correct records the minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 12 July and 2 August 2019. 

RESOLVED: to adopt as a correct record the minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 12 July and 2 August 2019 and agree that the chair signs them as such.

To receive any declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests in respect of items on the agenda for this meeting.  

None.

None.

To receive any questions or statements from members of the public that have registered to speak. 

Michael Tyce, representing the Campaign to Protect Rural England, addressed Cabinet on agenda item 6, Local Plan Part 2. He requested that the Plan be withdrawn as he believed that it committed the council to provide an excessive amount of housing which included a figure for Oxford City’s unmet housing need which was no longer valid.

To consider the head of planning’s report on the adoption of the Local Plan Part 2 (to follow). 

Cabinet considered the head of planning’s report which set out the latest position regarding the Local Plan 2031 Part 2 (LPP2).  The report identified three options:

Option One: Withdraw LPP2

Option Two: Do not adopt LPP2

Option Three: Adopt LPP2

The report sought to identify the key advantages and risks to the Council as well as the timescales for progression of the next local plan. The report concluded that a decision to adopt would enable LPP2 to become part of the Council’s development plan and carry full weight in the determination of planning applications. It would also provide a framework for development in the district to ensure that growth was sustainable and met the needs of the existing and future populations.

Some Cabinet members expressed sympathy with the views expressed by Michael Tyce but concluded that the alternatives to adopting LPP2 were unacceptable.

RECOMMENDED to Council to:

(a)  note the conclusions, including the Main Modifications, of the independent Inspector who was appointed to examine the Local Plan 2031 Part 2

(b)  note the process followed to develop the options in relation to the Local Plan 2031 Part 2, and

(c)   accept the Inspector’s report and recommendation and adopt the Local Plan 2031 Part 2.

(d)  delegate to the Head of Planning in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning any minor amendments, typographical and grammar corrections to the documents prior to publication.

To consider the head of housing and environment’s report.

Cabinet considered the report of the head of housing and environment which provided an appraisal of options for participation in the Government’s Global Resettlement Scheme and Asylum Dispersal Scheme.

The Global Resettlement Scheme replaced previous refugee schemes, including the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme. Participation in the scheme was voluntary and the council could decide how many families it would pledge to resettle in the district.

Under the Asylum Dispersal Scheme, the Home Office was seeking an “agreement in principle” that would permit an accommodation provider to source accommodation for asylum seekers in the Vale of White Horse.  Although the scheme applied to individuals and families and the Home Office would be looking to accommodate up to 25 people in four to five properties, Cabinet agreed that up to five individuals should be accommodated in one property in the first instance.

RESOLVED to: 

(a)   participate in both schemes, details of which are set out in the report of the head of housing and environment to Cabinet on 4 October 2019.

(b)   accept three families within the current service design for the Global Resettlement Scheme.

(c)   accommodate up to five individuals in one property under the Asylum Dispersal Scheme.

(d)   review both schemes after one year.

To consider the head of housing and environment’s report.

Cabinet considered the head of housing and environment’s report which sought approval for the creation of a new capital programme for the procurement of CCTV equipment.

Cabinet noted that, whilst Thames Valley Police (TVP) contributed towards the cost of CCTV, funding for future years had yet to be confirmed.  It requested officers to seek to reach agreement with TVP as to future funding, as soon as possible.

It also noted that public space town centre CCTV schemes operated in Abingdon and Wantage and requested officers to enter into discussions with the town councils to explore the possibility of obtaining financial contributions from them.

RECOMMENDED to Council to:

(a)   approve the transfer of £22,000 from the capital contingency programme and to create a new capital programme for the procurement of new CCTV recording and monitoring equipment for the CCTV control room.

RESOLVED: to

(b)   authorise the head of housing and environment to award the contract, in consultation with the Cabinet member for housing and environment, on completion of the procurement exercise subject to it being within budget.

To consider the head of finance’s report.

Cabinet considered the head of finance’s budget monitoring report for the period April – May 2019.

Whilst the council’s financial procedure rules required all variances of over £50,000 to be identified, heads of service would discuss all significant variances with their Cabinet members.

RESOLVED: to note the contents of the report.

To consider the head of partnership and insight’s report (to follow).

Cabinet considered the report of the head of partnership and insight which provided an update on the Wantage Eastern Link Road and the associated funding agreement. 

Cabinet supported the proposals as the most appropriate and cost-effective way to deliver the infrastructure. 

RESOLVED: to

(a)  note the offer of Marginal Viability Housing Infrastructure Funding from Homes England for the Wantage Eastern Link Road and the implications for Vale of White Horse District Council.

(b)  nominate Oxfordshire County Council as the receiving and accounting body for the Marginal Viability Housing Infrastructure Funding of £1.951 million.