Agenda item

MOTION 2 - PROTECTING WIRRAL'S PRECIOUS GREEN BELT

Minutes:

Councillor Jeff Green moved, and Councillor Lesley Rennie seconded the motion submitted in accordance with Standing Order 13.

 

Councillor Steve Foulkes moved and Councillor Paul Jobson seconded the following amendment, submitted in accordance with Standing Order 13.3:

 

Delete final bullet point in final paragraph,

 

  • Request that all Group Leaders write to Wirral’s four MPs to invite support for retention of Wirral’s Green Belt, regardless of any previous positions they may have taken, and to share their responses with all councillors.

 

And insert as follows:

 

  • Council congratulates the Leader of the Council for prioritising the protection of Wirral’s greenbelt and writing with urgency on 13th July to all of the Wirral MPs notifying them that Wirral’s housing need will be met by the brownfield only plan and obtaining their assurances of support for this approach.

 

  • Council further thanks the Chief Executive for raising this issue at the earliest possible opportunity on 19th July with Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, raising the profile of Wirral’s Brownfield only plan and the need to support this approach at the highest levels of Government.

 

Councillor Jo Bird moved and Councillor Gail Jenkinson seconded the following amendment, submitted in accordance with Standing Order 13.3:

 

Insert additional paragraphs after paragraph 5,

 

Council also recognises that successful place making and regeneration is fundamental to the protection of our precious green belt. Council acknowledges the achievements by officers in securing large sums of public finance for regeneration and the work to date on delivery. Council reaffirms its commitment to the Birkenhead 2040 Framework and its vision for the transformation of Birkenhead and the wider left bank of the Mersey and restates its desire to deliver on the promise and potential contained in the 2040 Framework.

 

However, Council has a number of concerns including the progress of the regeneration programme, in particular the transformation of Birkenhead and the absence of regular and clear, RAG-rated progress reports on regeneration projects to the Economy Regeneration and Housing Committee.

 

Insert additional resolution in paragraph 6,

 

  • Request that the Chief Executive, brings a RAG-rated progress report to the next Economy, Regeneration and Housing Committee to update Members in relation to the regeneration programme, in particular relating to the regeneration of Birkenhead and how that supports the Local Plan process.

 

Councillor Green confirmed he was happy to accept the amendment proposed by the Liberal Democrat Group, as follows:

 

Add words to paragraph 2,

 

Council recognises that with 5,691 on the waiting list for housing, it must be a priority for the Council to increase housing supply and affordability, but this must not be at the expense of the Borough’s precious natural environment and agricultural land.

 

Add words to paragraph 4,

 

Following Labour’s landslide victory on July 4th, the newly appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State of Housing, Communities and Local Government, will be writing to local planning authorities instructing them to ‘review where necessary’ Green Belt boundaries with a view to releasing land for development.

 

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Having undertaken the work required to reach this stage of the Local Plan process and to comply with the 2004 Act, Council does not believe that any land designated as Green Belt or Local Green Space in Wirral is appropriate required for development.

 

Add additional paragraph after paragraph 5,

 

Council notes that Wirral’s planners have used the standard method to calculate housing need in line with previous mandatory housing targets; that the local plan properly identified sufficient brown field land to meet mandatory housing targets as part of regeneration within Wirral; and believes recent government announcements will not affect the progress of the regeneration led local plan. 

 

Add wording to first bullet point in final paragraph,

 

Council therefore resolves to:

  • Instruct the Chief Executive to respond accordingly to any correspondence received including the consultation on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which was used to prepare our local plan in consultation with group leaders.

 

Council debated the motion and amendments, and the Labour Group amendment was then put to the vote and was carried (26:21)(1 abstention).

 

The Green Group amendment was therefore then put to the vote and was lost (13:33)(2 Abstentions).

The substantive motion was then put to the vote. It was therefore

 

Resolved (47:0) (1 abstention) – that, 

 

Council thanks all those involved in the preparation, submission and appraisal of our long-delayed draft Local Plan, including:

 

  • Council Officers, in planning, regeneration and housing
  • Councillors, including former Councillor Anita Leech
  • Campaigners, including Wirral Green Space Alliance
  • The local media
  • Inspectors Mike Worden BA (Hons) Dip TP MRTPI and Tom Bristow BA MSc MRTPI AssocRICS

 

Council recognises that with 5,691 on the waiting list for housing, it must be a priority for the Council to increase housing supply and affordability, but this must not be at the expense of the Borough’s precious natural environment and agricultural land.

 

In his conference speech 2023, Sir Keir Starmer promised to ‘bulldoze through’ the restrictive planning system and to build ‘the next generation of Labour new towns’.

 

Following Labour’s landslide victory on July 4th, the newly appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State of Housing, Communities and Local Government, will be writing to local planning authorities instructing them to ‘review where necessary’’ Green Belt boundaries with a view to releasing land for development.

 

Having undertaken the work required to reach this stage of the Local Plan process and to comply with the 2004 Act, Council does not believe that any land designated as Green Belt or Local Green Space in Wirral is required for development.

 

Council notes that Wirral’s planners have used the standard method to calculate housing need in line with previous mandatory housing targets; that the local plan properly identified sufficient brown field land to meet mandatory housing targets as part of regeneration within Wirral; and believes recent government announcements will not affect the progress of the regeneration led local plan. 

 

Council therefore resolves to:

  • Instruct the Chief Executive to respond accordingly to any correspondence received including the consultation on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which was used to prepare our local plan in consultation with group leaders.
  • Reassure residents of the Council’s commitment to the Green Belt
  • Seek assurance from the Secretary of State that funds previously allocated for brownfield development remain unaffected by the change of Government.
  • Council congratulates the Leader of the Council for prioritising the protection of Wirral’s greenbelt and writing with urgency on 13th July to all of the Wirral MPs notifying them that Wirral’s housing need will be met by the brownfield only plan and obtaining their assurances of support for this approach.
  • Council further thanks the Chief Executive for raising this issue at the earliest possible opportunity on 19th July with the Deputy Prime Minister Angela Raynor raising the profile of Wirral’s Brownfield only plan and the need to support this approach at the highest levels of Government.