Question
In a report in the Wokingham Paper on 15-12-16 at Wokingham Town Hall Wokingham's then Conservative Council Leader Councillor Keith Baker along with Councillor Chris Bowring and ex Councillor Mark Ashwell and Senior Council Officers announced that 4 local Councils Wokingham, West Berkshire, Reading and Bracknell are going to work together to deliver 65,165 houses over 20 years. Councillor Baker, amongst other comments, reportedly said that the four councils can achieve this huge task ahead.
My question is in the light of this Council’s decision to move the New Local Plan public inquiry from this year to 2021, a year when there are no local elections, along with the interpretation of the 5 year land supply delivery policy, what are the risks in such planning?
Minutes:
In a report in the Wokingham Paper on 15 December 2016 at Wokingham
Town Hall Wokingham's then Conservative Council Leader Councillor
Keith Baker along with Councillor Chris Bowring and ex Councillor
Mark Ashwell and Senior Council Officers announced that 4 local
Councils Wokingham, West Berkshire, Reading and Bracknell are going
to work together to deliver 65,165 houses over 20
years. Councillor Baker, amongst
other comments, reportedly said that the 4 councils can achieve
this huge task ahead.
My question is in the light of this Council’s decision to move the New Local Plan public inquiry from this year to 2021, a year when there are no local elections, along with the interpretation of the 5 year land supply delivery policy, what are the risks in such planning?
Councillor Baker asked that the last sentence of the first paragraph of the question be removed as this was not the case. This was agreed by Councillor Cowan.
Answer
Since the Berkshire local authorities jointly commissioned and published the Berkshire (including South Bucks) Strategic Housing Market Assessment in 2016, the Government has introduced a new National Planning Policy Framework and a Planning Practice Guidance which changes the way the need for housing is calculated.
At the meeting of Executive in October 2018, an amended programme for the Local Plan was agreed. The programme, which was endorsed by the cross party Planning and Transport Member Steering Group, which I think you are a member of Gary, ensures an opportunity for residents to engage in the process and help us shape how we manage development.
Around 1,500 responses have been received to the recent consultation and I thank all those who took the time to attend the events and respond. Officers are in the process of analysing this important feedback.
Moving forward, the adopted programme is that we consult on a draft Local Plan in autumn 2019. A further consultation on the proposed submission Local Plan would occur in summer 2020 with submission to Government for examination in spring 2021. Whilst this is our adopted programme we hope to be able to move faster.
I am sure you will agree that the constant changes to Government policy and guidance are not helping anyone in preparing local plans. Notwithstanding the difficulties, we continue to progress our Local Plan work, following the clear process and requirements set out in legislation and Government policy.
So while we are putting together our new Local Plan, it is clear that our existing planning strategy set out in the Core Strategy is working. Looking at the number of homes built, under construction and permitted, more than sufficient homes are capable of being delivered to meet past and current Government expectations. We have in excess of a five year housing land supply and comfortably passed the Government’s new Housing Delivery Test which looks at the sufficiency of delivery over the previous three years.
Supplementary Question:
I have studied the Local Plan of our local neighbouring authorities which are all very well advanced having been subject to examinations and made public. Bracknell Forest proposes cooperation with the Royal Borough on unmet housing need and they have Greenbelt issues. Reading have formally requested that Wokingham accommodate their unmet need to 2036 with the numbers to be agreed at another time along with nomination rights and affordable housing, discussions about developer contributions and CIL, which Mark Ashwell was positive about, but which West Berkshire said no way. The most damning comments came from the Royal Borough’s Inspector who challenged the Green belt along with council use of separate, and this is a key point, separate east and western HMAs rather than a single HMA, which could better address the issue of unmet need in the county. She added that no house could go in the plan without a SANG, and on the Green belt she raised the point of whether neighbouring authorities could help the Royal Borough out. The only comment from Wokingham to any of these public inquiries was ‘no action needed.’
My question therefore is, is ‘no action needed’ a right and proper way to comment on a neighbour’s plans as they will have serious implications on our new Local Plan update, now delayed to 2021?
Supplementary Answer:
Reading might have asked that we take some of their houses but we certainly have not said yes as far as I am concerned and nor will we. I am happy to talk to you more about this offline because I do not think I totally understood what you were trying to ask.