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RESOLVED -
 

(1)           
That Cabinet agreed the decision not to formally
progress with a full Review of the Local Plan at this
stage.
 

(2)           
That Cabinet approved the evidence base Action Plan
at Appendix 2 of the report.
 

(3)           
That Cabinet approved the ‘Position
Statement’ for publication on the Council’s
website.
 

(4)           
That Cabinet noted the notes from the first Local
Plan Working Group meeting on 1 November 2023 (Appendix
3).
 
REASONS FOR DECISION – To enable the
Council to progress with evidence based
work so that it is in the best position to adopt the new Local Plan
making processes that are expected to come into force later this
year, and to agree a statement that sets out the Council’s
position and updates members of the public on the approach being
taken.  The publication of a Position
Statement would demonstrate openness and transparency around the
matter of plan making.
 
OTHER OPTIONS CONSIDERED AND REJECTED – The option of announcing a formal Review of the Local
Plan now was considered but rejected. The option was not
recommended by officers or the Working Group due to the likely
duplication/delays that would be caused by the anticipated changes
to the plan making process. The option of doing nothing was
considered but rejected.  Officers were
of the view that the evidence base behind a
number of the strategic polices within the Local Plan needed
to be updated.
 
Please note
that this was not a Key Decision and so can be implemented with
immediate effect by officers.