Medway Conservatives called in a proposed £2.68 million cabinet decision to make the Wigmore Coach Park site a permanent Gypsy and Traveller accommodation site. The call-in has been submitted based on significant concerns regarding the cost, procedural fairness and appropriateness of the decision.
Decisions of this financial scale while the budget numbers run amok must be subject to appropriate scrutiny.
At the meeting on Tuesday, 4 August, the cabinet considered plans to borrow £2.684 million to convert the site into a permanent 14-pitch facility.
The group argues the proposal represents the culmination of three years of policy failures and broken promises. The site was first occupied in July 2023 under an unconsulted 'temporary three-month' licence, with assurances given to residents and ward councillors that it was not suitable for permanent use. After the licence expired, a lack of strategy from the administration led to a defeat at Canterbury County Court, followed by a planning appeal win for the occupants.
Three years later, cabinet is now being asked to approve significant borrowing to make the arrangement permanent.
The group has determined that the current administration’s failure to address specialist accommodation in the draft Local Plan 2041, has left a severe planning deficit. This decision is a haphazard attempt to plug this self-inflicted gap.
The call-in highlights four reasons:
- Lack of public consultation: The cabinet report states that consultation is not required because the site is not near a residential area, a claim the group maintains that ignores residents living in Hempstead, Wigmore and Bredhurst.
- Cost and capital requirement: The council quite frankly cannot afford to borrow £2.68. The burden does not fall on the cabinet; it falls on the taxpayer. This is not to mention the interests that will cost £2M over 25 years. There are no estimates of the income that will be generated from letting the pitches.
- Appropriateness of the land for allocation as a gypsy and traveller site: This land is adjacent to the M2 and we question whether the health and wellbeing of the occupants would be protected on this site.
- Political expediency around the proposals and consideration of other options: The decision is being rushed through the traditional consultation process, as the council knows it’s a poor attempt at filling the gaps in their local plan.
Speaking after the meeting, Shadow Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Community and Housing, Cllr Andrew Lawrence said:
“Democracy cannot be bypassed to cover up executive blunders. Residents deserve transparency, proper consultation, and a sound planning strategy—not a £2.68m borrowing debt forced through without scrutiny.
Cabinet voted on Tuesday to push Option 3 forward while stripping local people of their right to be consulted.
We will haul this proposal before the relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committee to demand full accountability, financial transparency, and a proper consultation process for our community.”
ENDS
