Agenda item

To confirm to members the revised Terms of Reference for the Committee as agreed by Full Council in February 2024

Members considered the flooding issues affecting the district.

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

·       Councillor Taylor stated that drainage is highlighted in many planning applications, and he has been looking at these plans alongside Middle Level and the Drainage Boards to review drainage strategies to try to prevent flooding and to assist where possible as farmers know the land and know how drainage works. Middle Level has stressed that their drainage is at full capacity, and it is a concern.

·       Councillor Booth agreed flooding is an issue, but the legislation is fragmented and disparate and there are many different organisations involved because the County Council is the Lead Flood Authority plus there is Middle Level who are the lead for the drainage boards, with the question being what the role of Fenland District Council is. He added that the Environment Agency will step in if there is a so-called emergency, which this area is on the cusp of because of the amount of water on the fields and the soil and moisture deficit being at 0%. Councillor Booth questioned that Fenland District Council’s Planning sets policy which is considered in applications but what other role can the Council play? Councillor Mrs French made the point that the Planning Committee take flooding into consideration as local councillors know their areas and all have great concerns especially with the amount of water that has fallen in recent months.

·       Councillor Count stated in terms of reference for this Committee it states it is the voice of the farming community and nobody knows the land better than local farmers which is particularly relevant for the Fenland area because of the nature of the land, the drainage, and the ditch structures, also the pumping stations in the area which makes this area a different to other areas. He made the point that it is important that when the Lead Flood Authority and all the other agencies listen to people who are experts in flooding, that they listen to a local committee that can represent the voice of the farming community who have hands-on experience of how the fields and water tables are affected and the urban community.

·       Councillor Booth stated he agreed this committee is the voice of the farmers, but it also needs to be the voice of the rural communities. One of the problems needing to be acknowledged is within the drainage board the public do not realise the work that is undertaken behind the scenes to keep the water systems flowing and the amount of maintenance that takes place, and he feels there needs to be more knowledge shared in the wider community. Councillor Booth added the question remains is this panel a voice for the farming and rural communities as there is no actual legislative powers that this Council has apart from the planning process which is common knowledge.

·       Councillor Taylor stated Councillor Mrs Laws could not join this meeting but she is the councillor who is up to date with Middle Level and the Flood Watch Scheme, however Middle Level are not statutory consultees, they can be overridden on varied planning decisions but Councillor Mrs Laws is trying to get a Council body or someone from Middle Level as a statutory consultee to offer assistance with the drainage and flooding industry within the Fenland area.

·       Anna Goodall added this is an Executive Advisory Committee so if there are recommendations this panel wishes to make to the Executive then that will be possible through this committee.

·       Councillor Booth understands what has been said around Internal Drainage Board (IDB) not being statutory consultees for planning and it is a point he has raised within the Local Plan that the IDBs knowledge should be considered which would be better than the Environmental Agency sitting in their office far away from where the issues are happening. He added the other issue is there is a special interest group at the LGA regarding how IDBs are funded and are the Council going to be feeding in to this because this is a low water area and the area receives water from the uplands where it flows through local systems but the cost for this has to come out of Fenland taxpayers money or from the Government through the General Grant so the question is will the Council be playing more of an active role and will there be any guidance on this.

·       Councillor Mrs French added Fenland does pay a large amount of money to the Drainage Boards, but the Government will be giving additional money to local authorities to assist with the drainage costs this year.

·       Peter Catchpole stated he represents Fenland District Council on the officers’ group for the Special Interest Group (SIG) alongside Councillor Miscandlon who is a representative on the SIG board as a member of the Council and work is being undertaken with the IDBs, ADA and all sorts of other organisations looking at the way IDBs are funded, and the Council is working with them as it recognises the great work that IDBs do. He continued this is about how they are funded and the impact they have on a smallest number of Councils which does not affect a large number, so the Council is working on a new funding mechanism so it does not bear the brunt of that special levy which will be around £2m.

·       Councillor Count acknowledged that the Council is already taking an active role and those hardest hit by the funding arrangements, adding this year was successful.

·       Councillor Marks stated there needs to be more education as it has been discussed that the Fens is one of the wettest parts of the country which a lot of people do not understand. He added he was concerned looking at some of the farming ditches that they are not being kept clean and wondered if this was something that the committee could work with the National Farmers Union (NFU) to try and promote, plus other parties too because there is Cambridgeshire County Council land that he knows have dykes that are blocked and he feels everyone needs to work together, including Anglian Water, as when there are flooding issues it is never quite clear who these areas belong too, and when there is an emergency there needs to be a clear picture at the time of who to contact quickly. He added he feels this would be something the committee could work on with the farmers and everyone involved.

·       Councillor Booth reiterated his earlier question as to how this advisory committee feeds into that process as Councillor Miscandlon is the representative for the Councillors, will this committee be inviting him to discuss what has been said to get an insight on issues shared and give some input?

·       Councillor Taylor stated that he has no issue with that idea. Councillor Mrs French also recommended to invite the Lead Flood Authority at County Council plus Brian Heffernan who is the enforcement for flooding across the County Council.

·       Councillor Clark stated he felt that if various members of the public are going to be invited to the meeting, the panel needs to speak as one voice like the Overview and Scrutiny Panel meetings do.

·       Councillor Mrs French referred to Councillor Marks’ comments and advised that at the County Council they are mapping out every dyke across the area and are spending time and finance on looking at all the dykes to clean and dig them out and the issue is being taken seriously.

·       Pete Catchpole clarified the role of the SIG, which is focused on the funding and not the role of IDBs etc. He would be happy to bring an update on the work that SIG is undertaking in relation to funding to a meeting, but it is a very narrow piece of work, and it is the funding of the IDBs and not anything beyond that.

·       Councillor Booth accepted Peter Catchpole comments and stated the funding is the core of the development and infrastructure that needs to be put in place properly with the right mechanisms and would like further updates.

Members on the Rural & Farming Executive Advisory Committee updated Terms of Reference.

(Councillor Mrs French declared that she is a member of the Planning Committee and Cambridgeshire County Council’s Flood Group)