Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Travel & Development Strategy

Forward Plan Ref: 2021/134

Contact: Timothy Mann, Senior Project Manager, Tel 07922 848408

Report by Director of Growth & Economy (CA17).

The information in this case is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed categories:

2. Information which is likely to reveal the identity of an individual.

and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

The CPO Schedules in Annex A, Appendix 8b and in Annex B, containing exempt information under the above paragraph are attached.

*** The Annexes are published as Supplementary Documents due to their number and length. ***

To seek approval of the Statement of Reasons and Orders Plans and approval to make the Compulsory Purchase and Side Road Orders.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

a)              Confirm that the acquisition of the land and new rights identified on the map attached to this report (Annex B) (“the Order Map”) being the map accompanying The Oxfordshire County Council (Didcot Garden Town Highways Infrastructure – A4130 Improvement (Milton Gate to Collett Roundabout), A4197 Didcot to Culham Link Road and A415 Clifton Hampden Bypass) Compulsory Purchase Order 2022 (“the CPO”) is necessary for highway purposes;

b)              Approve the CPO, the Order Map, the SRO, the plans accompanying the SRO (“SRO Plans”) and the Bridge Scheme all substantially in the form annexed to this report but to delegate to the Director of Transport and Infrastructure following consultation with the Director of Law & Governance, authority to modify them as necessary;

c)              Authorise the  Director of Law & Governance to make The Oxfordshire County Council (Didcot Garden Town Highways Infrastructure – A4130 Improvement (Milton Gate to Collett Roundabout), A4197 Didcot to Culham Link Road and A415 Clifton Hampden Bypass) Compulsory Purchase Order 2022 pursuant to Sections 239, 240, 246, 250 and 260 of the Highways Act 1980 (as amended) and Parts II and III of Schedule 2, and Schedule 3 to the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 for the purpose of acquiring the land and interests shown on the Order Map and described in the Schedules to the CPO (or such lesser area of land should this in his opinion be appropriate) to facilitate the construction of new highway and other necessary and related works and mitigation on such land and to affix the Common Seal of the Council to the CPO and to the Order Map;

d)              Authorise the Director of Law & Governance to make The Oxfordshire County Council (Didcot to Culham Thames Bridge) Scheme 2022 (“the Bridge Scheme”) pursuant to Section 106(3) of the Highways Act 1980 (as amended) for the purpose of allowing construction of a bridge over a navigable waterway, being the Thames River and to affix the Common Seal of the Council to the Bridge Scheme and its accompanying plan(s);

e)              Authorise the  Director of Law & Governance to make The Oxfordshire County Council (Didcot Garden Town Highways Infrastructure – A4130 Improvement  ...  view the full agenda text for item 105

Recommendations agreed

Cabinet in July 2020 agreed the preferred options to proceed with the preliminary design and planning application for this Scheme. A subsequent report in June 2021 approved the “in principle” use of statutory powers.  Cabinet was now asked to approve the Compulsory Purchase and Side Road Orders deemed necessary as outlined in the report.

Before considering the report, the Chair had agreed to the following speaker:

Councillor Charlie Hicks noted that inflation forecasts had increased since the figures were calculated for this report and in particular construction costs were rising more quickly than general inflation.  He asked Cabinet to delay the decision until after the capital budget review.  There were ways to build homes that did not require more roads.  These ideas were gaining ground in government departments.

Councillor Tim Bearder left the meeting.

Councillor Liz Brighouse asked for confirmation that Cabinet had agreed that it would put no more of the Council’s money into this project.

Councillor Duncan Enright, Cabinet Member for Travel & Development Strategy, responded that he was comfortable with the funding arrangements.  These issues had already been given an airing when discussing the Grant Determination Agreement.  The argument against further delay was that the scheme was time-limited on the basis of the GDA.

Councillor Calum Miller, Cabinet Member for Finance, noted that paragraphs 79 and 80 of the report outlined how the risks associated with scheme delivery and inflation were accounted for within the overall forecast budget.  Since then, the inflation outlook had worsened but Cabinet had made it clear to Homes England that the current total for this scheme was the maximum that the Council can fund from its resources.  The team was already working on value engineering for this scheme.

Councillor Miller added that Homes England had agreed that their capital would be drawn down first and there was a “no clawback” clause.  There were various gateways at which it would be possible to review the funding situation.  Any discussion at those stages would be on the premise that the Council was not putting any more money in.

Councillor Pete Sudbury, referring to paragraphs 86 and 87, stated that there will only be positive impacts on air quality and carbon emissions for local villages if the old bridges are closed to motor traffic.

Recommendations a) to p) were proposed by Councillor Enright, seconded by Councillor Lygo and agreed.

RESOLVED to:

a)              Confirm that the acquisition of the land and new rights identified on the map attached to this report (Annex B) (“the Order Map”) being the map accompanying The Oxfordshire County Council (Didcot Garden Town Highways Infrastructure – A4130 Improvement (Milton Gate to Collett Roundabout), A4197 Didcot to Culham Link Road and A415 Clifton Hampden Bypass) Compulsory Purchase Order 2022 (“the CPO”) is necessary for highway purposes;

b)              Approve the CPO, the Order Map, the SRO, the plans accompanying the SRO (“SRO Plans”) and the Bridge Scheme all substantially in the form annexed to this report but to delegate to the Director of Transport  ...  view the full minutes text for item 105