Agenda and draft minutes

To confirm and sign the minutes of 21 July 2025.

The minutes of the meeting of 21 July 2025 were confirmed and signed.

The Chairman drew members’ attention to the civic activities undertaken by herself and the Vice-Chairman in the weeks preceding Full Council.

Councillor Barber announced with sadness the passing of Barry Howlett who had been a Fenland District Councillor for March East from June 2001 until May 2007. During that time, he sat on the Planning Committee and was also a member of the Twinning Association.

The Council offered their sincere condolences to Barry’s friends and loved ones and a minute’s silence was held to commemorate his life. 

Councillor Barber reminded members of her Civic Reception taking place at Gorefield Community Hall and Sports Centre from 6.30pm on Friday 19 September 2025.

Councillor Barber stated that her coffee morning in aid of Damsons will take place in the Council Chamber from 10am on 23 October 2025.

The Chairman stated that no written questions had been received under Procedure Rule 8.6. Councillor Booth, as Leader of the Opposition, asked the following question under Procedure Rule 8.4:

·         with the recent resignation of Councillor Sennitt Clough, who was Chair of the Culture, Arts and Heritage Advisory Review Committee, and the fact that she was the main component for the Fenland flag competition, what is going to happen with regards to this? Councillor Boden responded that he does not know but consideration will be given to that and members will be advised as soon as possible. Councillor Booth suggested that the idea of a competition be removed and possibly the existing flag be adopted that is used by so many businesses and residents, which would be his preference. Councillor Boden responded that he does not make these decisions, he will consult with his group and others in order to come to a decision.

Members asked questions of Portfolio Holders in accordance with Procedure Rules 8.1 and 8.2 as follows:

·         Councillor Booth referred to the update on the Local Plan, making the point that there is not much of an update, but it does now confirm that there is a Gypsy Traveller Needs Housing Assessment in place, which has been needed for some time. He asked if this is going to be publicised more widely, particularly with the Parish and Town Councils, and also is there any idea when the Local Plan is going to be delivered, there are no timescales which he did ask for at the last meeting he was present at, several months have passed and it is getting on for a year since the Government published its revised NPPF and guidance and this Council is going forward at a snails pace, questioning whether a Local Plan will be in place by the time of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). Councillor Mrs Laws responded that unlike many councils, Fenland District Council has a 6.6 year housing and land supply, well in excess of the Government’s 5-year target and has consistently overperformed on housing delivery in recent years, which, in her view, demonstrates that Fenland has planning policies and is a very pro-growth council. She stated that the LGR process proposed by Central Government, which if implemented will see Fenland merge with a number of other local councils, has necessitated how future planning policy should be best progressed including the new Local Plan and it will be kept under review as the LGR, scheduled to be implemented in full by April 2028, progresses to ensure the best and most cost efficient outcome for Fenland residents. Councillor Mrs Laws added that there will be, one way or another, a new Local Plan covering the Fenland area, with the method and times of this depending upon whether or not LGR goes ahead and she will make an announcement at Full Council in December explaining how and when a new call for sites will be initiated. She stated that in regard to the new policy this is going to be circulated to all Parish and Town Councils so they will have an up-to-date policy for travellers.

Councillor Taylor presented a motion on solar farms and food security, seconded by Councillor Tierney. Councillor Taylor stated since 1 January to 1 June 2025 this Government has spent £649 million by having wind turbines switched off as the National Grid is at capacity and the volume of turbines switched off asks the question why is solar needed. He feels that if the turbines are turning constantly and cannot keep up then alternatives should be looked at but when turbines have been switched off and extra money is being paid to have them switched off then why is another energy supply required, which is all being undertaken in the name of Net Zero.

Councillor Taylor continued that Labour in its original manifesto stated that energy bills would be £200-£300 cheaper, however, the price cap will increase by another 2% from next month and the National Grid have stated that this is to afford to pay to have turbines switched off. He added that it has also been stated that a lot of these solar farms, wind farms, etc., are built in the wrong place to get power to where it is needed, with it being known that if you use extension leads the power is less at the end of the plug, which works the same with wind and solar.

Members made the following comments:

·       Councillor Summers thanked Councillor Taylor for agreeing to the amendments and stated that he supports the protection of BMV land.

·       Councillor Booth referred to Councillor Taylor mentioning some add-ons to media outlets and asked for these to be pointed out as part of the motion. Councillor Taylor stated that the additional outlets are Farmers to Action, The F in Farmer, Pro-Farmers United, Catherine Blaiklock and Rupert Lowe MP. Councillor Booth stated that it is important that members know exactly what they are voting on. He added that in principle he will be supporting this motion and one thing that is worth noting about food security is that this country has not been self-sufficient since the mid 18^th century and currently only about 60% of its food is produced in this country, it is obviously an aim to have food security but feels it will be a long time coming.

·       Councillor Christy expressed the opinion that it is a very important matter for Fenland but the only concern he has is that he does not feel the motion is strong enough, which relates to an all-party joint letter that was sent to the Prime Minister earlier this year and thinks this motion should be calling for the same sorts of things, an unequivocal ban on large area solar installations on best and most versatile (BMV) agricultural land, which as Councillor Taylor has described is Grades 1, 2 and 3A. He continued that they are also calling for the likely reduction of BMV land as a result of climate change, inclusion of ALC grade 3B in the BMV category and finally a policy promoting a rooftop  ...  view the full minutes text for item C30/25

To report to Full Council the commitment and effectiveness of the Audit and Risk Management Committee’s work from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 (and wider to cover audit work).

Members considered the Audit and Risk Management Committee Annual Report presented by Councillor Kim French as Chairman of the Audit and Risk Management Committee.

Proposed by Councillor Miss French, seconded by Councillor Booth and AGREED the Audit and Risk Management Committee Annual Report for 2024/25.

Based upon Cabinet recommendation, to approve the procurement of the required HGV vehicles as part of the ongoing Fleet Replacement Plan.

Members considered Cabinet’s recommendation to approve the procurement of the required HGV vehicles as part of the ongoing Fleet Replacement Plan, presented by Councillor Tierney.

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:

·         Councillor Gerstner stated it was an excellent report but asked are these vehicles being procured in the UK, are they UK sourced and built? Councillor Tierney responded that officers will be given the right to decide how the vehicles are purchased in consultation with him as Portfolio Holder so he would be pre-empting to say exactly what officers were going to do. He added that if what Councillor Gerstner is saying is that he would like a steer to try and procure in the UK he would be happy to pass this to officers but the most important thing is to ensure the vehicles are purchased in a timely fashion and at the best cost. Councillor Gerstner stated that he fully understands and appreciates this but given the fact that members have just heard that 99% of solar panels are built in China and 99% of wind turbines are built in Europe it would be a good thing for this Council to be seen to, providing the costing are competitive, look at UK suppliers. Councillor Tierney responded that he broadly agrees with this and would like to source from home, officers have heard Councillor Gerstner’s comments and will take that as a steer to do what they can to make this possible but taking into account the delivery and price to the taxpayer.

·         Councillor Woollard stated that he supports 100% the acquisition and keeping the fleet up-to-date but he does not see any mention of, which he hopes is deliberate, electric vehicles being looked at, which, in his view, is not appropriate. Councillor Tierney responded that as Portfolio Holder if he had been brought information on electric vehicles he would have looked at them with a very askance view but he doubts this will be possible because the costs are quite different, although it cannot be pre-judged and an open mind needs to be kept but feels it would be very unlikely.

·         Councillor Booth referred to the report stating that these are replacement costs but he recalls when he first joined the Council that these vehicles were leased and asked why has this approach been moved away from and has any consideration been given to setting up leasehold agreements? Councillor Tierney responded that is before his time as Portfolio Holder so the question could be addressed later on to the original Portfolio Holder who would have a lot of knowledge around this but his guess would be that it was probably more cost effective to purchase the vehicles. He stated that personally he likes the Council owning its own stock rather than hiring it, which is a positive, but if that worked out cheaper for the new vehicles then he is sure officers will investigate it and make the suggestions that are best for the  ...  view the full minutes text for item C32/25

To consider revisions to the Planning Scheme of Delegation within the Council’s Constitution to allow delegation of authority to initiate prosecutions for non-compliance with enforcement notices to officers rather than requiring a resolution of the Planning Committee.

Members considered revisions to the Planning Scheme of Delegation within the Council's Constitution to allow the delegation of authority to initiate prosecutions for non-compliance with enforcement notices to officers, rather than requiring a resolution of the Planning Committee, presented by Councillor Mrs Laws.

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:

·         Councillor Mrs French stated that she fully supports this, it was a Planning Committee request as officers spend hours writing these reports and action is delayed by several weeks, especially on the Section 215 and 216s.

·         Councillor Hoy expressed reservations about this proposal as it goes against what they have moved towards in Licensing, which is members having a say rather than officers. She stated that she understands that the Planning Committee want this change but she is unsure whether it is the committee that is the cause of the lack of 215s. Councillor Hoy made the point that there are buildings all over Wisbech that could do with being served notices and she does not think that is due to the lack of Planning Committee action. She asked how is consistency in approach going to be ensured because if there is an officer deciding the enforcement process how is it known in which way they are enforcing as some people may be being enforced against more than others and how is it going to be monitored? Councillor Mrs Laws responded that the reason that this has been put forward is because the appropriate planning actions have been looked at and it has been consistent with the officer’s recommendation. She does agree that consistency needs to be monitored, there is a Planning Enforcement team and they report into the Head of Planning so these things will be monitored by the Head of Planning and herself.

·         Councillor Booth expressed the view that the approach to enforcement in the District is not great, certain people know this and take advantage of the situation. He is frustrated as a Parish Councillor that enforcement action is not taken when it should be and he hopes that it leads to improvement in the services provided and enforcement action increases. Councillor Booth stated that he was told several years ago that only 5% of enforcement enquiries ever resulted in enforcement action, which seemed to him low at the time.

·         Councillor Tierney expressed reservations as it goes in the wrong direction in what he believes for local councillors but he has belief in the Portfolio Holder and Planning Committee and if they say this is what they want to do he will support the proposal. He hopes that it can be looked at to see if this is working and if it is not changes can be made accordingly.

·         Councillor Boden stated that the comments made by Councillors Hoy and Tierney are correct as the direction with policies is that they are more member controlled justifiably so as elected councillors responsible to the electorate and this goes against that policy but, made the point,  ...  view the full minutes text for item C33/25

To consider ceasing payment to Fenland District Council members of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Overview and Scrutiny and Audit and Governance Committees.

Members considered a proposal to cease payment to Fenland District Council members of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Overview and Scrutiny and Audit and Governance Committees, presented by Councillor Boden.

Proposed by Councillor Boden, seconded by Councillor Mrs French and AGREED to

·       act on the feedback of the Independent Remuneration Panel and remove the SRA from the Members’ Allowances Scheme for members appointed to the CPCA Overview and Scrutiny and Audit and Governance Committees; and

·       delegate to the Monitoring Officer to update the Members’ Allowances Scheme within the Constitution in line with the decision taken by Council as set out at Appendix 1.

(Councillors Christy, Mrs Davis and Hay declared that they are members of Fenland District Council appointed to these Combined Authority committees and, therefore, affected by this SRA and the decision to be made, and left the room for the duration of the discussion and voting thereon)