Issue - meetings

Report by Dr Carlton Brand, Corporate Director

Councillor Fleur de Rhé-Philipe presented the report which: informed Members of the timescales associated with the Development Consent Order (DCO) process for this road scheme; confirmed the project governance arrangements; and identified the resource requirements of the Council to support the DCO process and fulfil its statutory responsibilities.

Issues highlighted in the course of the presentation and discussion included: the comprehensive nature of governance structure; that lessons would be learnt from other Councils, such as Cambridgeshire, that had recently undertaken the DCO process; how Area Boards would be kept informed.

Councillors Bridget Wayman, Ian West, Mike Hewitt and Graham Wright each raised specific concerns as the help that can be offered to their communities affected by increased traffic. It was agreed to keep the relevant Area Boards informed.

Councillors Fleur de Rhé-Philipe and Philip Whitehead stated that these issues would be considered.

Resolved

1.    To note the contents of this report;

2.    To agree that the Council’s interests will be properly represented through the proposed governance structure; and

3.    To note the inclusion of an indicative figure of £300,000 in the MTFS for refinement and approval at budget setting to enable the Council to fulfil its statutory responsibilities.

Reason for decision:

Government and Highways England are planning and funding improvements to the A303 to address the congestion, economic and heritage aspects. This is a major investment in Wiltshire and will bring significant changes to the area. The current funding allocation requires a DCO application to be submitted in mid-2018 in order to start on site early 2020.

In order to meet these challenging timeframes, significant resource and input from the Council will be required as both a key stakeholder and statutory consultee. Strong governance arrangements are also required to manage the process and ensure that all stakeholders are engaged.