The Leader opened his statement by advising that Swale Borough Council (SBC) officers continued to engage in consultations from Government, Kent County Council (KCC) and other bodies to seek improvements and greater efficiencies in the borough. He referred to Government’s proposals to reform the planning system and the lack of detail provided.  The Leader quoted from a recent consultation on the subject and stressed how important it was that it was resolved as soon as possible.

Turning to the Council’s budget, the Leader said the consultation had now finished and the result would soon be known.

The Leader said the Government’s Levelling Up announcement had still not been made but he hoped it was imminent.

The Leader said the Neighbourhood Plan for Dunkirk and Boughton would be going to referendum on 16 February 2023, and he hoped there would be a strong response for communities to get involved.  He said a lot of time and effort had gone into compiling the plan and it needed public involvement going forward.

The Leader said that details of applying for Voter ID went live on the previous Monday. He said residents were concerned about the process and he encouraged all Members to do as much as they could to publicise and assist, regardless of their views on the system.

Finally, the Leader said most people he talked to were concerned about developing and maintaining a happy life.  He said he expected to hear more from Government this year about combined authorities and unitary councils and the promise of financial reward, albeit short term.  The Leader said a one-size-fits all approach was the antithesis of localism and accountability and it removed people away from the centre of power more than ever.  He said British people had demonstrated many times that they were not happy with remote governance, and the evolution of power and the ability to pay for it.  Going forward local authorities would be forced into finding ways of managing diminishing budgets.  He said that if local democracy was to be protected going forward, all voices needed to be heard and that SBC’s administration were making those arguments and were making sure that they were heard.

Responding to the Leader’s statement, the Leader of the main opposition group, Councillor Alan Horton, referred to the difficulties associated with planning reform, and he agreed that it was taking far too long, and more clarity was needed.  He said that residents in the Borough needed more clarity on top-down targets and he was disappointed that two of the major political parties insisted on top down targets and that one of them, the Liberal Democrats, insisted on a target much bigger than it currently was.  The Leader of the main opposition group said this worked against everything that Swale were trying to do.

The Leader of the main opposition group said he was not proud of some individuals in Government but was proud to be in a party that was doing something for the country, and he said that the current Government had given SBC nearly £80million above its budget over the previous four years which had effectively doubled the amount of money it had to spend, and it was important to recognise that. 

The Leader of the main opposition group agreed with the Leader that the devolution currently being presented was unsuitable. He questioned whether it was better for residents to be ‘local with no money or to be something with lots of money’. The Leader of the main opposition group said that SBC should get the resources it needed to enable it to serve its local community.  He was critical of the ring-fenced funding of small proportions that had to be bid and argued for using officer time, against big Councils that had whole departments set up to bid.

Finally, the Leader of the main opposition group expressed his dismay at people in the borough struggling to pay their bills.

Other Members were invited to speak and made comments including:

·         Had Planning become too politicised?;

·         housing numbers were advisory not mandatory but would not be accepted by politicians;

·         an extra 300,000 homes were needed in the UK but this was not balanced throughout the country with two-thirds allocated for London and the south-east;

·         the country needed at least 150,000 social rent homes;

·         the neighbourhood plan for Dunkirk and Boughton was a good way forward;

·         there was a lack of stability from Government; and

·         lack of health care impacted residents and a plan for this was not forthcoming.

In response, the Leader said there were three parties in favour of top-down targets.  He said Government should trust local councils because if they did not do a good job, people removed them.  The Leader said planning affected every part of life including health, education, transport, communities and sense of place which was at the heart of most people’s lives. He said planning was not too politicized.  The Leader agreed that different sources of housing was needed, in different places.  He said it was up to SBC to help the residents of Swale out of the current downward spiral from Government.