Tag: Martin Curtis

Martin Curtis Signals Job Losses In A Tough Budget For Cambridgeshire

17:40 Wednesday 25th September 2013
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[C]HRIS MANN: Cambridgeshire County Council is to face its toughest financial year yet, according to its Leader Martin Curtis. He’s been giving a briefing to journalists this afternoon, ahead of next year’s budget negotiations. Well our reporter Henrietta McMicking was there to meet him and hear what he had to say, and she joins me now. Hello there.
HENRIETTA MCMICKING: Hi Chris. So the purpose of today’s briefing was to explain that the Council believes that very tough decisions are going to have to be made in the coming year, if they’re going to make their proposed cuts. They have said that they want the current net operating budget of £490 million to be cut by £33 million in the current financial year. Now as well as the Council Leader Martin Curtis, I was also speaking to the Chief Executive Mark Lloyd, and he outlined to me the extent of the budget cuts that they’re facing, not just this year, but the wider picture going back the last three years, and going forward for the next five.
(TAPE)
MARK LLOYD: Over the last three years the County Council has worked incredibly hard to make savings totalling £124 million. That includes the year that we’re in right now. And looking across the next five years, we think we need to make another £159 million worth of savings. That’s an awfully big hill to climb.
(LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: Cambridgeshire County Council Chief Executive Mark Lloyd. Now they had some very big announcements to make about jobs and services as well Henrietta. Continue reading “Martin Curtis Signals Job Losses In A Tough Budget For Cambridgeshire”

UKIP Call For A14 Referendum

17:42 Tuesday 16th July 2013
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[C]HRIS MANN: The question of funding for an A14 upgrade reared its rather ugly head again today at a full Cambridgeshire County Council meeting. Beforehand, Paul Bullen the Deputy Leader of UKIP on the County Council said  a referendum needed to be held before the Council agreed to any contribution of funding. But Council Leader Martis Curtis said it was vital that work on the road is not delayed. He joins me in the studio now. Hello Martin.
MARTIN CURTIS: Good afternoon Chris.
CHRIS MANN: And also the UKIP Leader Peter Reeve. Hello Peter.
PETER REEVE: Good afternoon .
CHRIS MANN: The end result Martin was the vote was …?
MARTIN CURTIS: It was overwhelmingly rejected.
CHRIS MANN: Ok. Peter Reeve. Why do you think it was a good idea? Continue reading “UKIP Call For A14 Referendum”

Cambridge Enters Negotiation On City Deal

17:20 Thursday 4th July 2013
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[C]HRIS MANN: Five local representatives have been meeting the Deputy Prime Minister this afternoon for the latest round of negotiations of the Greater Cambridge City Deal. If their bid is successful, it will unlock a billion pounds worth of investment in local infrastructure. Our reporter Henrietta McMickey is here to try to explain a bit more about it. A billion pounds That’s a big deal.
HENRIETTA MCMICKEY: It is a big deal. This is part of the idea from central government that gives local areas more say over planning and infrastructure. The Government acknowledges that while London is always crucial, it will be the heartbeat of the UK economy, certain powers need to be devolved to other cities in a bid to increase growth elsewhere.  Cambridge was chosen to be one of the twenty cities that would go forward to the next stage in the negotiations. This is what’s been happening today. The idea is that councils plus local enterprise partnerships (and) representatives of the business community all work together. And to be successful each area must demonstrate a strong local plan that’s going to increase jobs and push industry. Here in Cambridge the Greater Cambridge group is made up of three councils, Cambridge City, Cambridge(shire) county and South Cambridgeshire, the University, and the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise partnership.
CHRIS MANN: Well we’re going to be talking to two of those representatives in just a moment. But what happened today?
HENRIETTA MCMICKEY: Well earlier this afternoon five representatives from that group had to go and pitch to Nick Clegg at the Cabinet Office, together with a cross-departmental ministerial group, armed with their plan. What was this bid? Well, as I mentioned, it has to increase jobs and boost growth. So they said let’s have a new and enlarged rail station at Waterbeach, improvements to the A10 down to Cambridge, more buses and bus-lanes in and out of the city, better transport links along the A428 between Bourn and Cambourne, more dedicated cycle paths, and a new park and ride. And the goal, as you said, more than one billion pounds to unlock funding to local government from the centre. So there’s a lot riding on it. And one official described the whole process as kind of Dragons Den.
CHRIS MANN: A bit of a Dragons Den eh? Well let’s find out two of those that had to go into the Dragons Den today. We’re joined live from our Westminster studio by Martin Curtis, Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council. Hello Martin.
MARTIN CURTIS: Hi Chris.
CHRIS MANN: And Jeremy Sanders, who’s the Vice Chancellor of Cambridge University Hello Jeremy.
JEREMY SANDERS: Hello Chris. Pro Vice Chancellor.
CHRIS MANN: Pro Vice Chancellor. I do apologise. So, how were the pitches gentlemen? Martin first of all. How do you feel it went? Continue reading “Cambridge Enters Negotiation On City Deal”

New Leader For Cambs County Council 2013

07:07 Wednesday 22 May 2013
Bigger Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

PAUL STAINTON: What a difference a day makes, doesn’t it? Yesterday morning Cambridgeshire County Council was leaderless and in no overall control. Now the Council has a Leader, and the system of governance has been turned upside down. The frontrunner for the Leader’s job, Tory Martin Curtis, was elected Leader with 32 votes, 16 more than rival candidate John Hipkin. But both the LibDems and Labour groups abstained from the vote. They did however vote on a new decision making framework. From May 2014 decisions will be made by all-party committees, rather than a Cabinet. Well Cllr Hipkin (Independent) said the public shouldn’t worry that the committee system will slow down decision making. (TAPE)
JOHN HIPKIN: If this is the way the County’s going to work over the next four years, then I think the people of Cambridgeshire can be reassured. We’ve made a number of sensible decisions. We’ve shown real cooperation between the groups. I think we’ve got on to friendly terms. There’s a good atmosphere in Shire Hall. I’m not sure how long it will last, but believe me it’s strong today.
SAMANTHA DALTON: And why did Labour and the LibDems abstain from voting for you as the Leader? Instead they chose to effectively allow the Tory Leader to come in and be voted for.
JOHN HIPKIN: Well I guess as you know in interviews of this sort one always says this, you’ll have to ask them why they did as they did. But my guess is neither of them was comfortable about forming an alliance. Particularly I think Labour members had a problem about making an administration with UKIP. And I think, if I may say so, I think some of them are more comfortable in opposition than they are for taking responsibility for government. Something which may interest your listeners, which is that UKIP voluntarily upon my request gave us two very important places on two very important committees, simply because they understood that we had a closer relationship with the communities in question that did they. Now say what you like about UKIP, but that’s what they have done. (LIVE)
PAUL STAINTON: Well here to discuss it are Maurice Leeke, new Leader of the LibDems, and Phil Rodgers, a Cambridge based political blogger. Good morning gentlemen.
BOTH: Good morning.
PAUL STAINTON: First of all, Maurice, it all appears to be working wonderfully well so far. Everybody getting on, everybody sharing things, it’s like a beautiful vision in rainbow colours. Continue reading “New Leader For Cambs County Council 2013”

Upheaval At Cambs County Council

07:41 Tuesday 21st May 2013
Bigger Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

PAUL STAINTON: A crunch meeting is being held at Shire Hall in Cambridge today to decide who if anyone will be the big cheese, the big honcho, the head man, the head woman at Cambridgeshire County Council, although there are not too many women councillors it has to be said. Since the local elections at the start of the month, no party has had a majority of seats, so will the Tory group decide to run the Council as a minority, or will the Council be run by a series of all-party committees? .. Antony Carpen is a Cambridgeshire based political commentator .. Were you surprised Antony when Nick Clarke lost his seat and the Council went into no overall control? Were you surprised in Cambridgeshire? Continue reading “Upheaval At Cambs County Council”

Martin Curtis Conservative Leader Cambs County Council

17:07 Friday 10th May 2013
Drive BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[C]HRIS MANN: So the man most likely to be Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, we now know, is Cllr Martin Curtis of North Whittlesea. This afternoon he was elected to lead the Conservatives, the largest group on the Council, in place of Nick Clarke who lost his seat at last week’s elections. Martin Curtis joins me in the studio. Hello.
MARTIN CURTIS: Good afternoon Chris.
CHRIS MANN: Congratulations.
MARTIN CURTIS: Thank you very much.
CHRIS MANN: Of course you lost out to Nick Clarke before, so finally you’ve reached the top in the County.
MARTIN CURTIS: Absolutely. But I reached the top having learned a huge amount over the last two years from Nick as well.
CHRIS MANN: What’s going to change?
MARTIN CURTIS: Well I think a lot has got to change. We know that even though we’re by far and away the largest group on the County Council, we know we’re in a minority. We can only form a minority administration. And so we know that things have got to change. And it is a different style of leadership that we need, and a more collaborative one. We know that.
CHRIS MANN: Well we’ll talk some more about that in just a moment or two, but reaction to your election has come first from the most senior politician in the County, that’s the South Cambridgeshire MP and Leader of the House of Commons, Andrew Lansley. This is what he told me. Continue reading “Martin Curtis Conservative Leader Cambs County Council”

Old Hands Welcome New Faces To Cambridgeshire County Council

17:20 Tuesday 7th May 2013
Drive BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

CHRIS MANN: The political fallout following the County Council elections continued today. The results left no party with an overall majority. The Conservatives are the biggest party with 32 of the 69 seats. The Liberal Democrats are second on 14. UKIP third on 12. Labour have 7, and there are 4 Independents. A number of questions remain, the foremost of which is, after the loss of Nick Clarke’s seat, who is going to lead the Conservatives, and therefore most likely lead the County Council. It’s looking like it will be the Acting Leader, Mac McGuire versus Whittlesea’s Martin Curtis in that contest, which is at two o’clock on Friday. And then the question remains of whether an official alliance of parties will be formed, or is needed, to run the Council. That’s certainly been on the mind of Peter Reeve, the UKIP councillor for Ramsey, who explained earlier on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire that he would like to see a coalition of the minority parties. (TAPE)
PETER REEVE: It would be very difficult in terms of the numbers, but technically if I could get, and I am being very proactive on this, if I could get Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Independents to all agree that we should have a coalition group, there is no need to have the Conservatives in power. .. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: .. The idea that UKIP could form a coalition with Labour was given short shrift by Paul Sales, Leader of the Labour Group. (TAPE)
PAUL SALES: You cannot be serious. The Labour Party in coalition with UKIP and the Liberals? Peter is a very enthusiastic guy. He fails completely to understand the way the Council works. The most likely outcome is going to be that the Tories will form a minority administration. I’ve been a member of a minority administration, and that would be sufficient for most things. But any sort of a formal coalition is completely impossible. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: And Conservative Mac McGuire, the Interim Leader of of the County Council, was equally dismissive. (TAPE)
MAC MCGUIRE: I mean gosh, that’s the best laugh since the last time I watched You’ve Been Framed on television. Paul’s absolutely right. What an unholy alliance that would make. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: An unholy alliance. Well, we’ll hear more from Peter Reeve in just a moment or two, the Leader of UKIP, but Kilian Bourke is Leader of the second largest party, the Liberal Democrats, and he joins me live now. Kilian, hello.
KILIAN BOURKE: Hello.
CHRIS MANN: Would you form an alliance with UKIP? Continue reading “Old Hands Welcome New Faces To Cambridgeshire County Council”

The Whittlesey Shopping Experience

07:46 Wednesday 29th August 2012
Peterborough Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

ANDY GALL: Residents of Whittlesey could be one step closer to getting a big supermarket. It’s to be decided at a planning meeting at Fenland District Council whether Sainsburys or Tesco will be given the go-ahead to build on Eastrea Road. The rival bids between the retail giants have been going on for months. Cllr Martin Curtis is from Whittlesey and joins us now. So what do you think about both the bids then, put in by these two behemoths of supermarkets? Continue reading “The Whittlesey Shopping Experience”