From our District Councillor
East Cambs is one of the fastest growing districts in the country, and this
puts huge strain on the infrastructure including affordable housing, schools,
GP surgeries, roads and public transport. To help address these problems, we
have joined with other Local Authorities, the East of England Development
Agency and the Greater Cambridge Partnership to set up an independent company
called The Infrastructure Partnership. This will oversee delivery of new
housing and support infrastructure, such as transport and affordable housing,
across the Cambridge Sub-region.
The Partnership will have members from local councils, including one board member from East Cambs District Council, regional organisations, community and business sectors. It will bring in specialist skills and resources and give a strong voice to the area in attracting Government and private sector funding. But Planning and Development Control powers will remain with local authorities.
Another aspect of the pressure of growth is that we are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit and retain good staff. They cannot afford the cost of living in the area, and our neighbouring councils are paying more for the equivalent posts. So we are phasing in a pay rise over the next three years, which will bring our staff's salaries up to the average for councils in this region. This will cost £225,000 over three years.
This is one of the main additions to our budget next year at £90,000. The Local Development Document will add £120,000 and rolling out Green Waste collections across the district will add £162,000. The biggest addition to our budget is £210,000 for inflation. Then there are a variety of other additions which total £834,000. Against this we have found savings of £422,000, deferred £20,000 to next year and got additional grants of £272,000. We will also raise an extra £5,000 in Council Tax by reducing the discount previously allowed on second homes. All this leaves a shortfall in the budget of £110,000. This could be covered by an increase in the Council tax of about 4% which would take the Band D rate to £111.43. But it is likely that the Council will instead make cuts to services to keep the tax at its present rate of £107.29. The final decision will also depend on how much grant the Government give us for next year and we won't know that until after the copy deadline for this article.
Another year has rushed by, and already it is nearly Christmas. Once again, I look forward to it with that mixture of horror at everything I need to do before December 25th and anticipation of celebrating with friends and family. I hope you and your families have a Happy Christmas.