17:00 FRIDAY 15th February 2013
News BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
KERRY DEVINE: Leaders of the second richest local authority in the country reportedly want to buy land in Peterborough to build homes for people on its housing waiting list. The average price of a house in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is more than one and a half million pounds, while in Peterborough that figure is just over £160,000. Ben Stevenson has more.
BENOIT STEVENSON: It’s one of the most affluent places in the UK, but the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is in talks to buy land in Peterborough so it can build new homes. In return it’s hoped the Borough would use its influence to encourage businesses to move to Peterborough and create new jobs. The City Council. has stressed that talks are at an early stage, and that while no firm plans have been agreed upon, any new housing could benefit local residents struggling to get on the housing ladder.
NICK FAIRBAIRN:Could families on housing waiting lists in Peterborough lose out to families who are currently living up to 80 miles away? Talks between Peterborough City Council and the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea could lead to it buying land for house building in Peterborough. Most of those new buildings would then be used to house people from the capital.
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07:00 MONDAY 18th February 2013
News BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
ALEX HARRIS: There have been reports that leaders of the second richest local authority in the UK want to buy up land in Peterborough. It’s because they want to build homes for people on its housing waiting list. The average price of a house in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is more than one and a half million pounds, while in Peterborough that figure is just over £160,000. Labour councillor Ed Murphy says the Council need to be doing more.
ED MURPHY: He’s been doing these talks for months apparently. Nothing concrete has come out of them. I think we need to get back to the basics and we need to do a lot more in Peterborough. We need the local Conservatives, because they’re in control, to stop being divided and start batting for Peterborough. We need a regeneration and renewal strategy for Peterborough, but like I said before, that needs to be based upon creating well paid jobs, not creating profits for developers and those people that are already rich.
07:50 MONDAY 18th February 2013
Breakfast Show BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
STEWART JACKSON: A completely mad vanity grandiose project by Councillor Cereste, who should be concentrating on core issues,. reducing the council tax, improving services, looking after vulnerable people. And I’ve got to say I totally agree with Ed Murphy, and I don’t often say that. We should be focusing on Peterborough. The important thing in this issue is there’s no accountability. This is a project of Councillor Cereste, without any mandate, without any accountability. He’s not taken the matter through either the Council or the Conservative group. There’s no financial figures about what people get out of it. And it’s a fairness issue, because what Councillor Cereste is doing is saying, we’ve just had a policy brought forward to have a local link for housing allocations, but actually we’re going to turf our working people in Peterborough off that council waiting list and bring in workless welfare dependent people who are hit by the benefit cap in Kensington and Chelsea to Peterborough. .. There’s been no consultation on this.
PAUL STAINTON: Oh well, these are only talks aren’t they? They’re at an early stage. As I understand it Marco’s just floating ..
STEWART JACKSON: This is typical of Marco Cereste. I’ve known four council leaders over the last 13 years. He’s by some stretch the most bombastic arrogant authoritarian unaccountable council leader we’ve ever had.
08:00 MONDAY 18th February 2013
News BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
ALEX HARRIS: A wave of newcomers could be on its way to Peterborough from one of the most affluent areas of the UK. Leaders from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea want to buy up land in Peterborough because they want to build homes for people on its housing waiting list. Peterborough MP Stewart Jackson says the proposals will not encourage skilled workers into the area.
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18:40 TUESDAY 19th February 2013
BBC Look East
JANINE MACHIN: Now to the plans to allow a London borough to build houses in Peterborough. The City Council is in talks with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea which wants to help young Londoners to get onto the housing ladder. If you look at the figures, you’ll see why. In Kensington and Chelsea the average price of a house is almost one and a half million pounds. In Peterborough it’s just over a tenth of that price at around £150,000. But with a housing waiting list in Peterborough of more than 9,500, some in the city are saying the Council should be concentrating on providing for people closer to home. Mike Cartwright reports.
MIKE CARTWRIGHT: Building homes in Peterborough, cheap compared to Kensington and Chelsea, why the London borough sees the city as a possible solution to their housing shortage. Buy land here, build here, and then move people here. (VOXPOP)
ONE: Yes I think it’s a good idea. It would definitely .. you’ve got a diverse city. People would be welcome here.
TWO: Let the Londoners stop in London.
THREE: I suppose some people might be resentful because they think that Peterborough’s a bit of a dumping ground for a lot of different communities. But to me, it doesn’t bother me.
MIKE CARTWRIGHT: More than 9,500 people in Peterborough are on a housing waiting list. Council say this could provide more homes for them, and generate wealth for the city.
MARCO CERESTE: If we can do somthing that a, improves the cultural offering, the sporting offering, brings new jobs into the city, and builds a few houses for our people, for our people as well, then what’s wrong with that?
MIKE CARTWRIGHT: It’s not clear how many homes would be built, or how many would be for Peterborough residents, but critics say those who move to the city will be people that the London borough doesn’t want.
STEWART JACKSON MP: This is about social cleansing from Kensington and Chelsea. It’s about getting rid of the people that they don’t want in their borough, who are on benefits, who they have a responsibility for to house, who are statutorily homeless.
MIKE CARTWRIGHT: Upwardly mobile Londoners would be invited to move say the councils. Others say people already waiting for a home here should come first.
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