Decision details

Council considered a report seeking approval to a protocol whereby the payment of any New Homes Bonus (NHB) would be delayed for any ward(s) affected by a community governance review, until the review was complete.  The Chief Executive explained that, in order to ensure fairness in the allocation of NHB, where any area was undergoing a community governance review, the Council would hold in abeyance any NHB payments until the outcome of the community governance review was known and any payments would be backdated. 

In response to questions, the Chief Executive advised that two community governance reviews were outstanding and that the outcome of these reviews would be implemented for the 2019 elections. 

Councillor J Wyllie commented that, whatever the outcome of the community governance review in Bishop’s Stortford, only one Town Council would be involved and so the NHB payment need not be delayed.  The Chief Executive acknowledged this and suggested that in the absence of a form of words to agree now, the protocol could be amended to allow for the scenario detailed by Councillor J Wyllie.

Council approved the recommendation with this proviso.

RESOLVED – that any New Homes Bonus payments be held in abeyance for an area which is the subject of a Community Governance review until the outcome of the Community Governance review is complete, at which point, payments will be backdated and paid in line with the outcome of the review, subject to the proviso that the protocol could be amended to allow for the scenario detailed by Councillor J Wyllie.