Council – 15 September 2025 –
Questions Under Standing Order 22
From Cllr Alan O’Sullivan to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
Could the portfolio holder please update Council on the preparations being made for phases 2 and 3 of the ongoing rollout of the new Waste Service, and lessons being learned from phase 1?
Question 2
From Cllr Alvin Reid to the Portfolio Holder for Housing and Homelessness, Cllr Steve Davies
I have recently seen an announcement of new Shared Ownership homes. This has appealed to a number of people, not least those looking to get "on the ladder", but opportunities are hard to find. Can the portfolio holder please give some indication of when and where such opportunities might be expected next?
Question 3
From Cllr Ian Murray to the Portfolio Holder for Community, Safety and Wellbeing, Cllr Dan Poole
With the imminent launch of the New Forest Community Lottery Scheme, can the portfolio holder please provide a progress update?
Question 4
From Cllr Steve Rippon-Swaine to the Leader, Cllr Jill Cleary
With LGR impacting on our Corporate Plan priorities, and subsequent amendments made earlier in the year, can the Leader please update us on how this is going, and whether we need to make any adjustments?
Question 5
From Cllr Allan Glass to the Portfolio Holder for Planning and Economy, Cllr Derek Tipp
Can the portfolio holder give an update on progress since the publication of the Skills Action Plan at July Cabinet?
Question 6
From Cllr Richard Young to the Portfolio Holder for Finance and Corporate, Cllr Jeremy Heron
Could the portfolio holder please advise how the recent increase in workload for customer services is being managed?
Question 7
From Cllr Christine Ward to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
Can the portfolio holder please update on coastal management measures in place in preparation for winter storms?
Question 8
Cllr Malcolm Wade to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
How many properties has the original survey this authority has undertaken, been confirmed as not being suitable to take wheelie bins across the district? and how many more are we now discovering cannot take wheelie bins as we roll them out?
Question 9
Cllr Jack Davies to the Cllr Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
I was speaking to a woman in Lymington the other day who hasn’t had her food waste collected on five separate occasions in the last couple of months. She is just one person but there are hundreds more in the Marsh Lane and Lower Buckland Road areas of Lymington, who are losing faith in the Council’s ability to collect the bins. When will Residents get the Service they pay for?
Question 10
Cllr Colm McCarthy to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
What specific risk assessments, monitoring, and mitigations measures has NFDC put in place to prevent farm animals (donkeys, ponies, pigs, cattle) from accessing food waste, and what legal advice has been sought on potential liability should an outbreak of notifiable disease be traced to the current collection system? And, how does NFDC’s current instruction for bins and food waste caddies to be left at property boundaries adjacent to grazing land reconcile with legal biosecurity obligations, given that this creates direct opportunities for livestock access?
Question 11
Cllr Patrick Mballa to the Leader of the Council, Cllr Jill Cleary
Under the LGR proposed option 1 what reassurance can be given to the people of Marchwood and the Waterside regarding the tangible benefits of the Freeport to the Community and improvements to local infrastructure?
Question 12
Cllr Phil Woods to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
Could the portfolio holder please confirm what the income from car parks in Fordingbridge was I the last financial year?
And further, has the portfolio holder noticed any increase in Saturday income from these car parks since the 19th of July, following the launch of the weekly Parkrun event?
Question 13
Cllr Caroline Rackham to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
This September sees another residents survey of our rivers for Waterwatch and I will be out taking samples and testing on the Bartley Water. Has the Portfolio Holder signed up to do the same?
Question 14
Cllr Mark Clark to the Leader of the Council, Cllr Jill Cleary
In light of the Minister’s letter of 24 July warning they will intervene if councils cannot agree on local government reorganisation—and given the dismal consultation response rate of under 2%, with fewer than half supporting your preferred Option 1—will you now return to your Conservative colleagues at County and seek a joint proposal that reflects cooperation and credibility, or will you persist with this lemming-like dash towards the cliff edge?’
Question 15
Cllr Philip Dowd to the Leader of the Council, Cllr Jill Cleary
Why is there no clear financial risk equalisation model outlined in the proposals, especially when business rates and income deprivation levels differ so significantly between areas? And How will transitional funding be secured and governed to ensure one-off reorganisation costs don’t lead to service reductions or council tax increases in the medium term?
Question 16
Cllr David Harrison the Leader of the Council, Cllr Jill Cleary
In his letter of 24 July, the Minister makes clear that councils must not take decisions that compromise the future financial sustainability of any new unitary authority, and he urges the inclusion of robust data and shared assumptions in all proposals.
Given this, why did NFDC proceed with a public consultation that contained no meaningful financial modelling, no costings of transition, no analysis of projected savings, and no comparative data on council tax or service delivery?
Do you accept that, without this information, residents have effectively been led up the garden path?
Second questions
Question 17
Cllr Jack Davies to the Portfolio Holder for Planning and Economy, Cllr Derek Tipp
Across the New Forest, more and more family homes are being lost to second homes and short lets, making it harder for local people to find somewhere affordable to live. Does the Portfolio Holder agree with me that we need a new planning category of use for second homes, so this council has the power to manage numbers and protect housing for local families? And if he does agree, will he write to the Government to request this change on behalf of the Council?
Question 18
Cllr Caroline Rackham to the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Geoffrey Blunden
Could the Portfolio Holder please tell me how much income the Totton car parks made last financial year?