Along with a Peterborough City Council meeting that evening, these will be the first of seven council meetings to decide on devolution and a new mayor.
If the plans are supported by the councils, there would be a consultation with residents and employers across the city from 4 July for seven weeks, before any final decision is made on the deal.
The proposed deal covers the potential transfer of a wide range of resources and powers for infrastructure, housing, economic development, employment and skills from the government to a combined authority of the seven councils, across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and the Local Enterprise Partnership.
It also proposes the creation of an elected mayor to chair the combined authority who would have specific powers, particularly over transport.
The devolution deal proposes two new funding sources to boost the delivery of affordable housing in Greater Cambridge:
- A £70million fund for a ‘Cambridge Housing Plan’ over five years, ring-fenced to the city council, which the council will spend on its plans for over 500 new council homes to help tackle the city’s housing affordability crisis. Some £10million of this fund would be available to the city council to replace any of those 500 homes subsequently sold through the Right to Buy scheme.
- A parallel second £100million affordable housing fund over five years to deliver affordable homes across the proposed combined authority area, with a mix of tenures to include affordable rented and low cost home ownership. A substantial proportion of this funding would be directed at the Greater Cambridge area, in recognition of its high levels of growth and difficult housing market conditions. It is likely that delivery would be primarily through housing associations.
Cllr Lewis Herbert, Leader of Cambridge City Council, said: “It was vital for us that the discussion on a devolution deal was on this more local geography to give Cambridge a say and its challenges priority, and we welcome the fact that the strength of our case has been recognised in the revised proposals.
“Alongside proposing genuine devolution opportunities based on the Greater Cambridge/ Greater Peterborough area, the focus of our work, and at the centre of the council’s decision on 27 June, will be the city’s housing affordability crisis and the need for new council housing in Cambridge.
“This is recognised in a ‘Cambridge Housing Plan’, and in the second, wider affordable housing investment plan for housing association projects in Greater Cambridge and across the county.”
Commenting on the ‘Cambridge Housing Plan’ in the proposed deal, Cllr Kevin Price, Deputy Leader of the Council, said: “In our discussions with government we have always been clear that the city council’s priority is to have the freedoms and funding to tackle the housing affordability crisis that threatens to limit Cambridge’s future growth and success, and secure the future viability of council housing for our tenants
“Our detailed analysis of the housing market in Cambridge has enabled us to provide the government with convincing evidence of the important role social rented housing can play in addressing the housing needs of the city, to enable and sustain its growth, which is also vital to the national economy.
“This fund, if agreed by the full council as part of the devolution deal, would enable the city council to start on the largest council house building programme in Cambridge in the last 40 years. It would provide hundreds of badly needed high quality new homes at truly affordable rent levels for those who live and work in Cambridge.
“Over time, the rent from these new homes will also enable us to invest in further house building. The debate with all councillors a week Monday will rightly cover all aspects of the devolution deal offer but I am pleased that our strong defence of council housing has resulted in a very favourable housing offer.”
Reports presented to council committees are available on the council’s website: http://democracy.cambridge.gov.uk/ieDocHome.aspx
See also: Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Devolution Deal announced
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