East Cambs Councillor Lucius Vellacott New Year column

Road charging in Cambridgeshire was recently described by one Combined Authority Board Member as ‘inevitable’, to which residents in East Cambs are overwhelmingly opposed.

My reassurance continues that I will push all relevant parties for investment in our rural buses and an alternative plan for Cambridge light rail. Too much public money has been wasted on road charging plans.

I was pleased to attend a debate in the House of Commons on Local Government Finance. Whilst local authorities continue to face funding challenges, East Cambs remains in a strong financial position and will consider its annual budget at full council on February 20.

I look forward to hearing about the results of Soham’s Neighbourhood Plan consultation and thank all residents who responded.

Wicken Fen (Image: Supplied)

Future development in Soham must be community led, high quality and come alongside generous infrastructure investments in our town.

Progress on the Soham to Wicken cycleway is ongoing. I am optimistic that this facility will help foster the close relationship between the town and the village, as well as access to schools, the train station and other facilities in the town.

Youth provision in Soham continues to be a focus, with the excellent news that the Youth Connections bus is to visit Soham regularly.

This will help to assess the appetite for further youth work and collaboration between youth groups in the town. I will continue to support the efficient use of our facilities for this purpose.

The East Cambs community hub in Soham, every Wednesday 10am-12pm at the Library, will return from the week beginning January 8.

Members of the team will be available to advise on housing, welfare benefits, energy concerns, finances and more.

I hope 2024 has begun well for all residents and, as always, I am available for a chat via lucius.vellacott@eastcambs.gov.uk.