Questions, if any, from Members who have given notice.
Minutes:
Question from Councillor Peter Slack to Councillor Garry Purdy, Leader of the Council:
“Over the last number of years we have seen an increase in the Derbyshire Dales of small dwelling being acquired by people or companies that use as holiday lets and holiday Homes, which I believe fall into the category of second homes.
Also at the same time many local young people looking to acquire homes for the first time in their local area near to their families are being priced out of the market by people that are purchasing the dwellings as investment and also making a great deal of money out of continually letting property weekly at inflated rates well above normal rents.
Yes we do need tourists to visit to Derbyshire Dales and we have many good Hotels, B&B and Self Catering flats in the Derbyshire Dales.
But the great problems are that many young people have to move from the Derbyshire Dales to get onto the property ladder, in turn this leads to families being split and villages with less children to sustain schools and community spirt diminishing.
Recently in Whitby North Yorkshire, the council had a local referendum on this very issue of holiday homes and holiday lets, and the vote was overwhelming for controls to restrict holiday homes and lets.
Also I know that this is a problem in Wales, Cornwall and Devon and recently a national survey found in the last four years that holiday lets and second homes had increased by 40%.
Also, recently in the Queens speech at the opening of parliament there was references made about second homes and there use as holiday homes and lets, in regards to Council Tax to help control this issue.
Earlier in the year we did vote to use Council Tax to bring back Empty homes back into use again.
So would you agree with me on the need for controls on the second homes problem.”
Councillor Purdy provided the following response:
The simple answer is that yes it would be good to see more controls to reduce the numbers of 2nd homes within the Dales and give local people more opportunity to buy such properties as their main home.
There are just under 1000 2nd homes in the Derbyshire Dales out of a total housing stock of approximately 34,000. The Derbyshire Dales has the 61st highest number of 2nd homes of all English local authorities.
There are very few controls available to councils to control the numbers of 2nd homes. The Government is currently taking the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill through Parliament and this includes provisions that both impact empty homes and 2nd homes. In relation to 2nd homes the Bill, it is likely any increase might only be in place by 2024-25. Any change in Council Tax policy would be subject to approval by Members, most likely in the next Council.
Question from Councillor Peter Slack to Councillor Garry Purdy, Leader of the Council:
“Wirksworth looks to be the market town that is being left behind in regards to having only one EV charging points installed on the old market place car park provided by local authority. There is one other EV charging point which is provided by local co-op which is very well used.
A Number of residents have contacted me about the lack of EV charging points in Wirksworth and many residents around the centre of the town have no facility for installing EV charging.
So in Wirksworth we have DDDC free car park off Wood Street Canterbury Road carpark, it would be ideal car park for EV charging points to be installed on the car park and would allow residents to pay for charging, but being free car park it would be a big incentive for many residents to move over to electric vehicles.
The EV charging points could be installed at the lower end near the recycling bin, or at the top end near wood street, and in the next few years with the increasing move over to electric vehicles they could be develop along the car park.
Recent reviews have identified the shortage of fast charging EV points all-round the Country except in London. So this needs to be addressed quickly if we are going to encourage residents to invest in electric cars.
Please consider my proposal for Wirksworth.”
Councillor Purdy provided the following response:
Nationally there is a huge challenge if, as a country, we are to meet the target of 300,000 public charge points by 2030. Locally we (DDDC and DDC) are working on developing the EV charging offer across the county.
DDDC are looking at submitting an application for funding to ORCS (on-Street Charge point Scheme) this year, which specifically looks at increasing the infrastructure for residents (7KW chargers). Looking at the criteria and geographical locations, we have shortlisted the following car parks to be assessed by the EV Charge point Operator once they have been appointed:
1. Cattle Market, Ashbourne
2. Artist Corner, Matlock
3. Granby Road, Bakewell
4. Oddfellows, Hathersage
5. Nether End, Baslow
6. Canterbury Road, Wirksworth
7. Market Place, Cromford
8. Town Hall Front, Matlock
(If the bid for ORCS funding is successful, those car parks which meet the criteria will be installed in 2023)
Further work has been carried out by DCC who are specifically looking at the provision of rapid chargers (22Kw) across the county and the following car parks have been shortlisted with a view to submitting a LEVI (Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure) funding Bid. All locations will still need to be assessed and meet the relevant criteria before they can be progressed. They have shortlisted the following car parks within Derbyshire Dales:
1. Granby Road, Bakewell
2. Artist Corner, Matlock
3. Cattle Market, Ashbourne
4. Oddfellows Road, Hathersage
5. Nether End, Baslow
Question from Councillor Peter Slack to Councillor Garry Purdy, Leader of the Council:
“Would the Leader and Council consider joining the (Councils for fair tax declaration) which many Councils of different political persuasion have joined.
In research conducted by Datalab for Fair Tax Federation found that from 2014 to 2019 a huge £37.5 Billion of public procurement contracts has been won by companies that add links to Tax Haven overseas.
Recent research shows a loss of £17 Billion in corporation tax revenues the result of shifting profits to Tax Havens.
Significant recent polling showed that 66% of the public believe that the government and local government council’s should at least consider ethics alongside value for money and quality of service provide in awarding of contracts won to companies.
It is more important than ever in this time of financial hardship to our communities, that we consider joining with other Councils from all parts of the country in (Councils for Fair Tax Declaration).
It will show that the council are adhering to good ethics and procurement of contracts.”
Councillor Purdy provided the following response:
Thank you for your question Councillor Slack.
This is ultimately a question of policy for the Council. I note that there is a template motion on the Fair Tax Mark website which has been used by other councils that have made the Fair Tax Declaration. You might want to bring this forward to a future Council meeting for debate if this is something that you support yourself, Councillor Slack.
In the meantime, I will commit to working with officers to understand the implications for the organisation of signing up to such a declaration. Given our limited resources we need to be careful about increasing the administrative burden on officers unless it is of value. I will be happy to write to you outside of the meeting once I have had the opportunity to full discuss the impact of this upon the Council.
Question from Councillor Peter O’Brien to Councillor Garry Purdy, Leader of the Council:
“In an excellent interview that you gave last week to Radio 4’s Today programme about housing issues in the Derbyshire Dales, you said that ‘if you grow up in a village, it’s your life blood. If you want to stay in the village when you grow up, you should be enabled to stay there’.
Families and young people in the villages of Eyam and Hathersage (and many other Peak District villages) are in that position, and have been pleading for more affordable housing for many years. I’m sure you will agree that it is heartbreaking to listen to their stories, and to hear how they are being forced to move away.
Can I count on your support, and that of the Majority Group, for our officers to enable them to bring forward schemes in Eyam and Hathersage at the earliest possible opportunity. And to join with me in urging the Peak District National Park Authority, through its Chair and Members, to be part of the solution rather than the problem.”
Councillor Purdy gave the following response:
As you know the provision of affordable housing has been a priority for both the Council and myself as Leader for many years. The Council has a good track record in the delivery of new affordable homes averaging 76 new affordable homes each year. The Council has also become a direct provider of Council housing again to further intervene in the housing market.
The Housing Team have the full support of the Council to enable and hopefully deliver new homes in Eyam and Hathersage as well as other villages across the Peak Park and our own Plan area. The development process can take time and the Peak District National Park have been working with the Housing Team to assess potential sites, a process that I understand you have also been part of as Ward Member.