At its meeting on 18 July, 2016, the Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee referred the Scrutiny Review on the Coastal Strategy to the Cabinet. A covering report, Overview and Scrutiny Committee minute and Scrutiny Review are attached.

Councillor Mike Sullivan, who had chaired the Task & Finish Group, introduced the report which set out the findings of a review which had been conducted, following the Wirral Coastal Strategy Scrutiny which had been presented to the former Regeneration and Environment Policy and Performance Committee.  The purpose of this Review had been to examine how the Council would deliver the Coastal Strategy with a focus on how coastal defence would be delivered in areas that required intervention in the short term.

The Review linked to the Wirral Plan for 2020 and in particular the pledge under the Environment theme to ensure that ‘Wirral’s neighbourhoods are safe.’

The report identified that funding was a key issue for the delivery of coastal defence schemes and recommended that all viable funding opportunities should be explored to support scheme delivery, prior to consideration of internal capital bids.  The report also recognised the value of Local Levy as an alternative funding source for scheme delivery and recommended support for approval of annual increases in contributions.

The theme of maximising opportunities in relation to funding was also detailed in the report to ensuring coastal defence schemes tied in, where possible, to regeneration opportunities. Awareness of flood and coastal erosion risk was also highlighted and it was acknowledged that Members had an important role to play in engaging with Wirral’s residents and businesses in raising awareness of the risk.

Councillor Sullivan reminded the Cabinet that Wirral was a peninsula with 42 kilometres of river and coastal defences.  He informed that in 2010 the policies for how the Council managed these defences had been set out in the Shoreline Management Plan which had been approved by the Cabinet.  However, it was noted that policies could only be applied if there was a strategy for their implementation.

The Wirral Coastal Strategy looked at how policies for coastal defence could be delivered over the lifetime of the Plan (which was 100 years). The Strategy considered implementation in the short term (up to 2010), the medium term (2030 to 2060) and the longer term (to 2110). Climate change was taken into account along with the recommended management of coastal defences changes over the course of the next 100 years.

The Coastal Strategy looked carefully at all the issues around coastal defence, including social, environmental and economic factors and identified a preferred sustainable management action to deliver policy.  This might be, for example, to continue with the existing maintenance or construct defences to an improved standard at  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18

The Committee considered the report of the Members of the Coastal Strategy Scrutiny Review Panel which provided the findings and recommendations emanating from the Coastal Strategy Scrutiny Review.

A copy of the final report was attached as appendix 1.

Introduced by the Chair of the former Regeneration and Environment Policy and Performance Committee, the report detailed the work undertaken by the Task and Finish Group and their recommendations and conclusions.

The Chair of the Task and Finish Group thanked all Members and officers for all their hard work in putting together the final report, and highlighted one of the Panel’s recommendations which focused on improved communications with elected Members.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  Members of the Panel be thanked for all their work in undertaking the Coastal Strategy Scrutiny Review;

(2)  The final scrutiny report Coastal Strategy be supported and be referred to the next appropriate Cabinet meeting.