Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Leader

Forward Plan Ref: 2014/108

Contact: Richard Byard, Service Manager – Economy and Skills Tel: 07584 909508

Report by Director for Environment & Economy (CA8).

The purpose of the report is to provide Cabinet with an update on Oxfordshire's recently announced Local Growth Fund (LGF) allocation to 2021 and the process for future LGF funding rounds.  The report also seeks approval to further develop the approved schemes and to support match-funding being identified in the Council's capital programme for 2015/16.

The Cabinet is Recommended to agree that County Council lead schemes noted in paragraphs 10 and 11 of this report are brought forward as part of the 2015/16 capital programme to ensure proper revenue and resource planning can be undertaken.

Recommendation agreed.

Cabinet had before them a report that provided the Cabinet with an update on Oxfordshire's recently announced Local Growth Fund (LGF) allocation to 2021 and the process for future LGF funding rounds.  The report also sought approval to further develop the approved schemes and to support match-funding being identified in the Council's capital programme for 2015/16.

Councillor Brighouse, Opposition Leader, spoke in support of the proposals but stressed the need to ensure that growth was sustainable and inclusive and did not leave people, living in poorer areas, behind. When developing sites she asked that the communities around them were not forgotton. She added that these were enormous projects at a time when the Council’s workforce was depleted so there were risks and the Council needed to be clear about those.

The Leader in introducing the report took on board the points being made and commented that it was also about upskilling people and providing a range of jobs as well as a range of housing tenures. In acknowledging the risks he stressed the Government support and highlighted several of the major infrastructure schemes.

RESOLVED:    to agree that County Council lead schemes noted in paragraphs 10 and 11 of the report are brought forward as part of the 2015/16 capital programme to ensure proper revenue and resource planning can be undertaken.