This bulletin summarises the proceedings of the Executive Committee meeting on 11 April 2003.

THAMES VALLEY MULTI-MODAL STUDY

Normally responses to multi-modal studies are agreed by the whole Assembly. However, the response deadline for the Thames Valley MMS obliged the Executive Committee to determine the Assembly's views on its behalf on 11 April. All members were invited to contribute to the debate before the Committee made its decision.

The Committee agreed that the Study takes account of the policy framework set out in the draft Regional Transport Strategy, and therefore largely welcomed the Study's recommendations. The focus of the debate at the Committee was the long-standing issue of a further crossing of the River Thames, on which the Study suggests further work. The Executive Committee agreed that this further assessment needs to be taken forward as a matter of urgency, involving in particular Reading Wokingham, and Oxfordshire councils.

Other recommendations agreed on the Assembly's behalf include:

• A new sub-regional transport partnership between public and private sectors should be established to co-ordinate the strategy's implementation;
• The Government should commission further work in order to understand the feasibility and the environmental, economic and social implications of road-user charging;
• The Government should make available additional funding to the SRA to develop and deliver a package of rail enhancements including improvements to Reading Station and the Airtrack scheme to Heathrow.

The Assembly will now send its formal advice to the Secretary of State. His response is expected before the summer recess.

Because of similar timing problems, the Assembly's response to the London to South Midlands MMS will be dealt with in the same way at the next Executive Committee on 20 June.

SEEDA ACCOUNTABILITY

Select Committee on Culture and Regeneration
The Executive Committee received the report from the Assembly Select Committee on SEEDA's impact on Culture and Regeneration. The Committee was chaired by Cllr Don Turner and its focus was on examining to what extent SEEDA's policies and activities have harnessed, and can in future harness, arts and sports projects for regeneration.

Although culture is not part of SEEDA's core business, regeneration and economic development are, and culture has an important role in delivering both of these in the South East. The Committee agreed a set of recommendations to help SEEDA improve the way it integrates culture into its work programme. Actions for SEEDA include:

• Making funding arrangements and policies more transparent so that projects in the region know whether they can, and how to, get expertise and funding from SEEDA;
• Ensuring that cultural initiatives are not marginalised because their outputs are difficult to demonstrate;
• Ensuring that the cultural dimension is reflected in Area Investment Frameworks and that cultural interests are represented within all Local Strategic Partnerships.

SEEDA's response on SERAS
Concerns had been raised at the December Executive Committee about the divergent views of the Assembly and SEEDA on the airports consultation, SERAS, e.g. with regard to expansion at Heathrow. Having considered the issues in detail, the Planning Committee recognised that the different remits of the Assembly and SEEDA might well lead to different stances being taken. Nevertheless they recommended closer liaison between SEEDA and the Assembly in future on major strategic matters.

The Planning Committee Chair, Cllr Keith Mitchell, is to meet with SEEDA Chairman, Jim Brathwaite, to discuss how divergent regional views can be managed in future. The Committee agreed to wait on that discussion before sending its views to Ministers.

ASSEMBLY CONSTITUTION

Following an extended process of discussion and negotiation, the Executive Committee on 11 April agreed to recommend to the July Assembly nine changes to the constitution. Among them are:

• Expanding the Regional Planning Committee from 20 to 25 members, including a town/parish council representative;
• Creating a new post of Deputy Chair of the Assembly, to be elected by the whole membership from among the five Vice-chairs;
• Empowering the Executive Committee to act on the Assembly's behalf on all matters save the annual budget setting and key regional policies;
• Formally establishing the Chair and Vice-chairs Group as the Assembly's business management group.

The Committee also agreed changes to the Rules of Procedure, which do not need to be referred to the whole Assembly. These include:

• Replacing two of the three cultural consortium places on the Assembly with representatives directly nominated from the regional sports and arts boards;
• Encouraging nominating bodies to identify alternate members from under-represented groups where their full member is not.

GOSE REPORT

Paul Martin explained to the Committee that Government had accepted an amendment to the Regional Assemblies Bill requiring the Boundary Committee to provide more than one option for unitary local government structures in two-tier areas when an assembly referendum is held. The Assembly has been invited to reconsider its response to Government on the referendum issue in the light of this change. As the deadline is 16 May, this is being dealt with by the Chair and Vice-chairs on the Assembly's behalf.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Assembly Business Plan
The Executive Committee of 11 April agreed the Assembly business plan for 2003-04. The plan is structured around the three core areas of the Assembly's business - advocacy, accountability and regional planning.

The business plan incorporates the proposed application of the Planning Development Grant of £581,000 which Government allocated to the Assembly so that it can play its part in implementing the Communities Plan and the new regional planning arrangements. The Grant will be largely spent on additional regional planning capacity and planning studies, including sub-regional work with local authorities.

Regional Housing Board
Following the Communities Plan announcement that the Government will be devolving aspects of housing investment policy to the regions, work has begun in establishing Regional Housing Boards which will prepare regional housing strategies and advise Ministers on the allocation of public housing investment.

The Assembly has been asked by GOSE to nominate five members to the Regional Housing Board. So far, these are:

Conservative: Cllr Keith Mitchell
Liberal Democrat: Cllr Jan Morgan (TBC)
Labour: Cllr Don Turner
Economic partners: Douglas Horner (TBC)
Social/Environ. partners: Sharon Hedges

Future Select Committees
It was agreed that the 2003-04 programme of select committees on SEEDA's work should begin with a focus on workforce skills (summer 2003), to be chaired by economic partner Dr Michael Thrower. Subsequent committees could look at inward investment (autumn 2003) and regeneration priority areas (spring 2004). In the meantime a review of our approach to scrutinising SEEDA has been initiated.

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Last updated: 21 August 2007