Minutes:
31.1 The Deputy Leader advised that the Executive was considering its response to the Planning Inspector’s decision in the Waverley Lane appeal, and Cllr Townsend as the relevant Portfolio Holder would have more to say on this.
31.2 Cllr Clark went on to report that 60% of councillors were now using the new Samsung tablets, which was good progress on the journey to reducing the use of paper within the council. However, Cllr Clark stressed that no councillor would be forced to give up paper copies of agendas if they had valid reasons.
31.3 Cllr Victoria Kiehl advised that work had begun on reviewing the arrangements for executive decision-making which was currently very centralised. This could lead to the need for additional meetings to meet decision deadlines which was not a good use of council time. Cllr Kiehl and officers would be engaging with the Chairs of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees and the Standards and General Purposes Committee as proposals developed.
31.4 Cllr Merryweather, as Ward Member for Farnham Moor Park, noted that the Waverley Lane appeal decision had caused a huge amount of confusion and distress to residents and he thanked the Portfolio Holder for Planning, Cllr Townsend, other Executive members, and officers who were working very hard to identify how this might be remedied.
31.5 Cllr Kika Mirylees reported that talks were continuing between the council, Woolmer Hill School and Surrey County Council regarding the future of The Edge. However, the outdoor sports pitches continued to be used by the community. The council was in discussion with the disability sports group about their requirements to see how they might be temporarily re-located, and the other groups and clubs that used the Edge were encouraged to contact the council to discuss their requirements.
31.6 The gym upgrades at the Farnham, Godalming and Haslemere Leisure Centres would be taking place in the current financial year, including replacement of all gym equipment and décor. The new contractor, Everyone Active, had started well and officers were discussing with them the refurbishment of the Farnham Leisure Centre.
31.7 The first project meeting for the Museum of Farnham project would take place later in the week, following which there would be a clear timeline for delivery of the scheme.
31.8 Cllr Nick Palmer reported that the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) bidding round for this year had now opened and he encouraged Members to engage with local community groups to alert them to the opportunity to bid for funds.
31.9 Cllr Liz Townsend echoed Cllr Mirylees’ frustration with the slow progress on finding a resolution to the issues at The Edge. Cllr Townsend also confirmed that the council was working alongside Farnham Town Council to look for grounds on which to challenge the Inspector’s decision in the Waverley Lane appeal and she would provide a further update in due course.
31.10 Cllr Townsend reminded Members that a High Court judge had decided that a legal challenge to the adoption of the Waverly Borough Local Plan Part 2 (LPP2) should be heard as a court hearing. The Planning Policy team were preparing papers to submit to the court. At this stage the claimants had only had to convince the judge that there was an arguable case and the hearing would take place over a couple of days in the Autumn. The grounds of the challenge related to the way that the Planning Inspector who examined LPP2 considered its relationship with Local Plan Part 1, and to his conclusions regarding the developability of a site in Milford. The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities had appointed an Inspector and was a defendant in the case alongside the council. The adoption of LPP2 had been a really positive step for the borough and a considerable achievement for this council and the planning arguments were fully scrutinized at the public examination. Although it was not unusual for a plan to be challenged it was nonetheless very frustrating and would undoubtedly divert resources away from other important planning matters. The council would be robustly defending the adoption of LPP2 and would continue to give the adopted LPP2 full weight in planning decisions until such time as the High Court ruled otherwise.
31.11 Further to the Public Space Protection Orders recently approved by Council, Cllr Tony Fairclough advised that under the Prime Minister’s Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan the government would be consulting on increasing the maximum fixed penalty fine to up to £500 for a number of offences including littering, graffiti, fly posting and fly-tipping, but there was no mention of breaches of dog controls. There was also no timetable for the proposed consultation.
31.12 Cllr Steve Williams reported on the deep disappointment on hearing the High Court ruling in favour of the Secretary of State and against the objections of Waverly Borough Council to the proposal of UK Oil and Gas (UKOG) to drill for fossil fuels in Dunsfold. He further advised that the council was seriously considering the legal options available and was working closely with Protect Dunsfold, who were co-defendants in the case.