Agenda item

The receive the report of the Executive Director of Place on Draft Regulation 18 Enfield Local Plan: 2019-3039.

 

Appendix H to this item will be circualted as a to follow paper.

 

Council is recommended to;

1.         Approve the Reg 18 Draft Enfield Local Plan 2019 – 2039 (at Appendix A) with accompanying supporting documents, including the Sustainability Appraisal, for statutory consultation for a period of six weeks commencing as soon as is practicable in June 2021.

2.         Delegate to the Executive Director of Place, in consultation with the Portfolio holder for Strategic Planning, authority to make minor revisions as are necessary to the plan (including preparing a high-quality graphic layout) in advance of the consultation.

 

Councillor Nesil Caliskan moved the report with two minor amendments, and Councillor Gina Needs seconded the item. The two minor amendments to the report were the have a twelve week consultation period on the Local Plan, and following the consultation, the final version of the Local Plan to be brought back to a Full Council meeting.

 

NOTED

 

1.    The report and amended recommendations.

2.    The following key points were highlighted by the Leader of the Council, Councillor Caliskan, when moving the report:

a.    That the consultation period had been amended from six to twelve weeks following requests raised by members of the public and stakeholders.

b.    That a report be brought back to a future meeting of the Council in advance of any documentation being submitted to the Planning Inspectorate

c.    The draft local plan presented at the meeting was built on engagement dating back to 2018/2019 when there was a 12-week consultation followed by ongoing engagement

d.    The Greater London Authority (GLA), Environment Forum, councillors and Youth Parliament had been consulted on the document. Two Scrutiny Committee sessions were held on the draft Local Plan.

e.    All political groups were offered a briefing by council officers although this was not taken up by all groups

f.     There is a housing crisis with a growing population leading to difficulty finding decent and affordable homes. Overcrowding and residents living in temporary accommodation is an issue for Enfield. The draft Local Plan will allow for new homes near stations, and suitable for families, to be built.

g.    By 2039 Enfield populations will grow by 50,000 with older people living longer and many people having children – we must ensure they are not priced out of the borough.

h.    All suitable brownfield sites will be used and built on before any building on the Green Belt takes place.

i.      The Local Plan provides protection to Enfield’s rich network of biodiversity and ancient woodlands.

j.      As well as the 25,000 new homes Enfield has to deliver to meet the Government’s housing target, Enfield are also obliged to designate Strategic Industrial Land (SIL) to support the local economy. Every piece of SIL that is given up mist be replaced elsewhere in the borough.

k.    Central Government planning changes proposals would allow for building to take place all over the Green Belt, not just the potential areas set out in the draft Local Plan. The Local Plan will protect Enfield’s wider Green Belt.

l.      If the Council does not allocate adequate land for housing in our borough, our Local Plan would be found “not sounds” by the National Planning Inspector appointed by the Government. The Council would then have no Local Plan which means that landowners and developers could apply for planning permission to build houses anywhere, including all over our Green Belt, and the Council would have no legal basis to refuse those applications.

 

3.    The comments of the Majority Group included:

·         That the draft Local Plan addresses the needs of residents whilst aiming to reduce poverty and inequality across the borough. Housing has an effect on residents mental health and will be vital to reducing health inequalities.

·         Building on brownfield sites will create transport links to these areas.

·         Future planning applications would still be required to go through the vigorous planning application process. Land owners will still be required to submit individual applications.

·         The plan aims to build 25,000 homes in 15 years in Enfield.

·         4,000 residents of the borough are on the Housing Needs Register the Plan will be able to provide some of those with homes. Support is also needed for those above the Housing Needs Register threshold.

·         Residents access to basic infrastructure will be improved including a GP surgery being created in Chase ward.

·         50% of the new homes to be built under the Plan will be affordable housing.

·         Residents’ concerns on high-rise buildings, climate change and inequality have all been taken into consideration.

·         Parts of the Green Belt which are currently not considered “nice” will be improved which in turn will remove illegal activities and companies that operate in these areas.

·         The majority group encouraged residents and the other political groups to propose alternatives to building on the boroughs green belt.

·         Members raised concerns on how currently there is a ten year difference for life expectancy across the borough.

 

4.    The comments of the Majority Opposition included:

·         Raised concerns that resident’s voices had not been heard despite the consultations which took place.

·         The draft Plan would open up the Crews Hill area to residential homes which would affect residents and businesses.

·         The Green Belt is an area of character in the borough and building on it would reduce this.

·         The sites highlighted in the Plan for building on would not be complete for a large number of years.

·         Investment in bus routes and roadworks would be needed in the areas which would be built on.

·         The increase in the consultation period from six to twelve weeks is a positive.

·         The opposition would have liked for the document to be created and agreed cross party.

 

5.    The comments of the Minority Opposition included:

·         The Group would have liked longer than two weeks to read the draft Plan.

·         Would like to lobby the Government for better funding to build homes

·         Felt the report and Plan would benefit from additional details on the infrastructure work which accompany building homes.

·         Sought assurances that the homes being delivered as part of the Local Plan would be affordable to residents.

 

At this point in the discussion eleven councillors stood indicating the need for a roll call vote.

 

For:

Councillor Huseyin Akpinar

Councillor Mahmut Aksanoglu

Councillor Chinelo Anyanwu

Councillor Kate Anolue

Councillor Tolga Aramaz

Councillor Ian Barnes

Councillor Mahym Bedekova

Councillor Sinan Boztas

Councillor Nesil Caliskan

Councillor Alev Cazimoglu

Councillor Mustafa Cetinkaya

Councillor Katherine Chibah

Councillor Birsen Demirel

Councillor Guney Dogan

Councillor Elif Erbil

Councillor Susan Erbil

Councillor Ergun Eren

Councillor Achilleas Georgiou

Councillor Margaret Greer

Councillor Ayten Guzel

Councillor Christine Hamilton

Councillor Rick Jewell

Councillor Nneka Keazor

Councillor Saray Karakus

Councillor Tim Leaver

Councillor Mary Maguire

Councillor Gina Needs

Councillor Sabri Ozaydin

Councillor George Savva

Councillor Claire Stewart

Councillor Doug Taylor

Councillor Mahtab Uddin

Councillor Hass Yusuf

 

Against: 24

Councillor Maria Alexandrou

Councillor Daniel Anderson

Councillor Dinah Barry

Councillor Anne Brown

Councillor Lee David-Sanders

Councillor Clare Da Silva

Councillor Chris Dey

Councillor Alessandro Georgiou

Councillor Charith Gunawardena

Councillor James Hockney

Councillor Stephanos Ioannou

Councillor Joanne Laban

Councillor Elaine Hayward

Councillor Dino Lemonides

Councillor Derek Levy

Councillor Andy Milne

Councillor Terry Neville

Councillor Ayfer Orhan

Councillor Lindsay Rawlings

Councillor Mike Rye

Councillor Edward Smith

Councillor Jim Steven

Councillor Andrew Thorpe

Councillor Glynis Vince

 

 

AGREED:

1.    To approve the Reg 18 Draft Enfield Local Plan 2019 – 2039 with accompanying supporting documents, including the Sustainability Appraisal, for statutory consultation for a period of twelve weeks commencing as soon as is practicable in June 2021.

2.    To delegate to the Executive Director of Place, in consultation with the Portfolio holder for Strategic Planning, authority to make minor revisions as are necessary to the plan (including preparing a high-quality graphic layout) in advance of the consultation.