East Cambridgeshire Must Not be Absorbed by Greater Cambridge in Local Government Reorganisation
There is a real risk that East Cambridgeshire is about to be rehomed into a future where our identity, our voice and our priorities become irrelevant in the Government growth machine that is Greater Cambridge.
The Government’s consultation on local government reorganisation closes on 26th March and I am urging residents, businesses and community groups across East Cambs to respond in support of Option B.
Option A would place East Cambridgeshire inside a Greater Cambridge unitary authority where Cambridge will dominate. Resources, energy and airtime will be focused on Cambridge; the voice of East Cambs will be lost.
Option B aligns us with other rural authorities including Huntingdonshire and Fenland as well as Peterborough, much of which is also rural. These areas share similar economies, strengths and challenges – it is a much more natural alignment.
Cambridge is already struggling to accommodate its housing need; land is constrained and expensive. East Cambridgeshire has more available land and lower land values. Under Option A East Cambs will be absorbed into the Greater Cambridge Local Plan footprint and will become the Cambridge release valve. Indeed, this is explicit in the Option A business case being promoted by Cambridgeshire County Council.
Shockingly, these decisions about housing growth will not be made locally. If the Government gets its way, the emerging Greater Cambridge Development Corporation will make strategic development decisions on sites of 250 homes or more. That will mean less local control over where development happens, how it is designed, and whether infrastructure keeps pace.
We are not anti-growth in East Cambridgeshire. We have delivered homes, supported businesses and invested in infrastructure – in fact, we are one of the fastest growing districts in the country at 2%. But we have done this in a carefully managed way, balancing growth with quality of life, protecting our market towns and villages, and ensuring development benefits our existing communities. Option A risks losing that balance entirely.
East Cambridgeshire residents currently benefit from one of the lowest Council Tax levels in the county and a debt-free Council. Moving into a Greater Cambridge authority would mean aligning with Councils that have taken very different financial decisions.
Option B creates two strong councils that reflect how this region actually works. Greater Cambridge can focus on its global, high-growth economy, while a North Cambridgeshire and Peterborough authority brings together places with shared characteristics – rural economies, market towns, and the space to plan growth appropriately.
For East Cambridgeshire, that means being part of a council where we are not an afterthought but will be at the centre of decision-making on an equal footing and where services can continue to focus on local need.
It means growth that is planned around infrastructure and investment in sectors that matter to us, such as agri-tech, logistics and small businesses. We can benefit from Cambridge’s success without being dominated by it.
It also means preserving our identity, something that matters to East Cambs residents – more than 80% of respondents to the survey last summer said they were worried about being overlooked in reorganisation. They want to retain a sense of belonging, they want strong locally based services and pride in their communities. These values are the very building blocks of Option B which keeps decision-making closer to communities and recognises that rural areas are not just an extension of a city economy.
Option B ensures East Cambridgeshire has a meaningful voice in shaping its future and I urge residents and businesses to speak up and support it before Government makes the decision about all our futures in the summer this year.
Anna Bailey
East Cambs District Council, Member for the Downham Ward
Leader of the Council
Deputy Mayor of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough
Chairman of East Cambs Community Land Trust
Deputy Chair Political of Ely & East Cambridgeshire Conservative Association
Phone: 01353 663 253
Mobile: 07850 521 590
Council email: anna.bailey@eastcambs.gov.uk
Personal email: annabailey@hotmail.co.uk
