Read the Leader of North East Lincolnshire Council Coun Philip Jackson’s update to full council at the recent meeting held in Grimsby Town Hall:
Much has been happening in and around North East Lincolnshire since my last Leader’s statement back in March. I can only cover a cross section this evening.
It was bad news earlier this week when the Government confirmed that no acceptable offer had been submitted to the official receivers dealing with Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery (LOR) and that it is expected to close in the autumn. Though the plant is geographically in North Lincolnshire, 65% of the workforce live in North East Lincolnshire. It is clearly a very worrying time for those affected, and we are already actively working with North Lincolnshire’s Council’s Economic Growth Team, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, and the Department for Work and Pensions to develop an action plan, as well as with our local MPs. Clearly, there will also be a major effect on supply chains in the region. The Government has pledged to continue paying staff until October and, apparently, there are buyers potentially interested in parts of the site. However, the Government must recognise that LOR is arguably critical national infrastructure; consider the effect on fuel resilience if it closes permanently. The Government must redouble efforts to find a buyer for the whole site by October.
On a more positive note for the local economy, early June saw Animal Equality UK’s legal challenge to overturn the Planning Committee’s approval for an onshore salmon farm at New Clee Sidings dismissed. After an 18-month delay, AquaCultured are now free to proceed with the £120 million development, creating about 100 new, well-paid jobs and providing local sustainably sourced salmon for our thriving seafood processing sector. The court verdict was a vindication of our planning processes, including the decision that an Environmental Impact Assessment was not necessary. The delay could easily have resulted in the loss of the project, and it is very disappointing that one of the Independent members of the Planning Committee was an interested party in the judicial review. So much for acting in the best interests of North East Lincolnshire!
Earlier this month, RWE officially opened its Grimsby Hub on the Port of Grimsby. This is its operations and maintenance base for the Triton Knoll and Sofia wind farms in the North Sea. The former has 90 operational wind turbines and the latter will have 100 when completed next year. This is a great vote of confidence for Grimsby and further evidence of the importance of the growing offshore wind sector to the local economy.
Anyone who has recently ventured into Grimsby town centre will have seen the biggest change in the skyline in a generation with the demolition of the former Bullring and Flottergate retail units, to make way for the new leisure scheme at the western end of Freshney Place. The occupier market has responded enthusiastically to the news that the scheme is happening and principal terms for two further lets, over and above Parkway Cinema and Starbucks, were agreed at July’s Freshney Place Cabinet Sub-committee. At the same meeting, terms were also agreed for a national retail chain to take most the ground floor of the former House of Fraser store. This is all great news for the renaissance of Grimsby town centre.
Of course, all the grant funding that is contributing to this town centre regeneration came from the previous Conservative government, supporting the bold decisions taken by this Conservative administration to purchase both Freshney Place and the former House of Fraser store. I would also remind members that at last December’s Full Council meeting, both Labour and the Independents opposed the Freshney Place regeneration project without offering an alternative. This Conservative administration is transforming Grimsby town centre, attracting private sector investment and jobs, while the other two main parties offer nothing.
Moving now to Children’s Services, we are in the closing stages of our ILACS – Inspection of Local Authority Children’s Services – by Ofsted. Over the past couple of years, our Children’s Services have improved at pace and I thank officers and the Portfolio Holder for their dedicated hard work, as well as the extensive preparation for this Ofsted inspection. Members will be informed of the outcome as soon as it can be announced.
Inspections seem to be rather like buses at the moment, with our Adult Social Care CQC assessment current underway too. This will finish on August 6, by which time CQC inspectors will have spoken to more than 100 people, including those with lived experience of adult social care in North East Lincolnshire, elected members, professionals, providers, and voluntary and community sector organisations. We know our structures and arrangements in the adult social care space in North East Lincolnshire are unusual and complex, and we await the outcome of the assessment. Once again, many thanks to officers and the Portfolio Holder for all their preparatory work.
At the start of July, we welcomed about 270 Equans staff back into the NELC fold as the 15-year outsourcing contract ended, and we brought the various services back in-house. Hopefully, this will make service delivery more seamless for the public but also for us, as elected members. Clearly, there will be a period of consolidation, and then we can assess what is needed to maximise the quality and efficiency of service delivery. Returning these services to council control has been a mammoth project handled very efficiently and I sincerely thank all those involved in the process.
June 28 saw Cleethorpes host the premiere East Coast event of the year – National Armed Forces Day. It was an honour to welcome the Secretary of State for Defence, the Rt Hon John Healey MP, to the resort. As usual, crowds descended on Cleethorpes – and the weather was perfect. We were on parade on the national stage and, as well as proudly honouring our Armed Forces, the event was a huge boost to the local economy. Well done, and thanks to everyone involved in the organisation and running of the weekend, particularly the Armed Forces Major Events Team. Members will have seen the letter of thanks from the Secretary of State.
Congratulations to Dame Andrea Jenkyns on being elected the first Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire on May 1. I think it is fair to say that both Dame Andrea and the Combined County Authority (CCA) are still finding their feet. Coin Shreeve and I are the two North East Lincolnshire representatives on the CCA, where I also chair the Business and Infrastructure Board. We will ensure that North East Lincolnshire is well-represented within the context of the wider county. As I have said on the record many times, it is also essential that the Humber economic landscape works. The governance arrangements for effective pan-Humber collaboration, incorporating the two mayors, local authority leaders and business representatives, are currently on the drawing board.
About the author