Agenda item - Chair's Communications

63.1    The Chair stated the following: We’ve got a fairly long agenda today, so I’ll keep my communications brief. However, there are a couple of things I’d like to mention.

Firstly, I’m delighted to see that another two developments which passed through this Committee have won awards. Both Circus Street, for about the fifth time, and Valley Gardens, have gained prestigious acknowledgement from professional bodies. Although we can claim very little credit for this, we can enjoy the fact that in both cases our decisions have been shown to be justified. It may also be the case that our scrutiny means that developers go the extra mile to provide our city with high class development. Long may it continue.

Secondly, Local Planning Authorities have recently received a letter from the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities giving advance warning of some potential planning and housing reforms. Obviously, we don’t know what the eventual outcome will be, but then interim statement appears to give with one hand but potentially take away with the other. Housing numbers may become advisory rather than mandatory, allowing Authorities to apply to protect sensitive sites, but on the other hand, cites will be required to build more, to protect neighbouring rural districts. So, we will have to wait and see.