Agenda item

Attached for information is a provisional list of items scheduled for future Cabinet meetings.

NOTED

1.               The provisional list of items scheduled for future Cabinet meetings.

2.               Ian Davis, Director of Regeneration and Environment, took this opportunity to update Members on the Local Plan Review as follows:

The Core Strategy adopted in 2010 had served the Council well over the last five years but government policy and external factors, many of which were beyond our control, meant that the Council would be in a weakened position if we did not review it now. 

·       Government policy required local plans to be kept up to date.  This was reinforced in the Government’s Productivity Plan published earlier this year which expected local authorities to have plans in place by early 2017, stating it would intervene if they failed.

·       The Mayor’s new London Plan had been adopted in March and included significantly higher minimum homes and jobs targets for the borough, based on new population forecasts and economic indicators.  Boroughs must now update their own plans to ensure they met the legal obligation to be in general conformity with the London Plan.

·       The borough’s population was expected to exceed 400,000 by the early 2030s based on government projections.  To ensure we could build sustainably and protect the quality of life in the borough, we needed to have a clear plan for where and how much growth in homes, jobs, and enabling infrastructure could be accommodated.  

·       Enfield was an attractive place to live and had lower than London average house prices and rental levels. This together with the Government’s benefits reforms had meant that Enfield had experienced disproportionate in-migration placing particular pressure on the private rented housing sector. Enfield had also experienced a significant increase in the number of households in temporary accommodation (over 2,700 households).  The new Plan needed to help tackle these growing problems.

·       The Council needed to maximise the opportunities arising from its location such as the London-Stansted-Cambridge growth corridor, and major infrastructure projects including Crossrail 2.  An adopted and up to date local plan would help support the Council’s case in lobbying for and bringing forward investment. 

·       National policy and legislation had reduced local authority control over matters such as changes of use (e.g. on the high street and in industrial areas), domestic extensions and schools.  We needed to be able to respond to this.

The Local Plan Cabinet Sub Committee would be considering the key issues and challenges facing the borough over the coming months.  This work would be constrained by requirements of national planning policy and the London Plan.  At this early stage, Cabinet was advised that the Council was required to consider all issues facing the borough and a wide range of potential options for dealing with them, and consult on them.

It was expected that a new draft Plan would be published next year and adopted in 2017. By taking a proactive approach it meant that the Council would be in a stronger position to manage the scale of change ahead. Full consultation would take place and a report brought before Cabinet at the appropriate time. 

Councillor Cazimoglu asked that all options be presented to Members’ for consideration.