In the news: "£140 Million unused infrastructure scandal" - Basildon Leader accuses Essex County Council of Hoarding Cash Meant for Roads, Schools, and Health
Basildon Council's Leader has hit out at Essex County Council for "sitting on a fortune" of over £140 million in unspent infrastructure funding that could be used for vital services.
The figures, originally published by the Home Builders Federation, came to light in a Basildon Borough Council debate on the borough's Local Plan last night.
Councillor Gavin Callaghan called Essex County Council's failure to spend the money "a betrayal of our borough." The money, contributed by developers, is meant to support infrastructure in places like Basildon as new homes are built.
But the County Council's record on spending the money is not good. Essex County Council holds the 5th most unspent infrastructure funding in the country, with £140million of unspent contributions, including £35m for roads and £101m for schools.
If developer contributions are held for too long money can in some circumstances be returned to the developer as projects are deemed unlikely to be delivered. ECC has been forced to return more than £5.4million to developers in the last five years.
In the debate on the Local Plan, Councillor Callaghan set out the "moral, economic and social" case in favour of housing growth in the borough.
Cllr Callaghan said: "Who truly wants to live in a place where those who make our borough vibrant—our teachers, nurses, care workers, hairdressers, police officers and young families—are priced out or left to scrape by?
"We need to have more housing that's affordable, diverse, and available, alongside schools, roads, and public spaces that serve their residents. That is the only way we're going to deliver a bigger, fairer local economy, with businesses thriving because they can attract employees who actually live nearby.
"Basildon faces an urgent need for more affordable homes and those holding up our housing plans and infrastructure are pricing our children out of the borough, pushing essential workers to commute from miles away, and ignoring the reality that families are struggling right now.
"Those who oppose housing growth on the grounds of 'preserving character' are choosing stagnation over compassion, exclusivity over opportunity, and fear over vision."
Ends
Published 15 November 2024
Notes to editors:
Data on unspent developer contributions is published at https://www.hbf.co.uk/policy/unspent-developer-contributions/