Issue - meetings

Graham Rusling, Public Rights of Way and Service Access Manager, was in attendance for this item)

(1)     The Committee received a report from the Cabinet Member and Corporate Director seeking endorsement of, or comments on, the proposed decision of the Cabinet Member to agree the fees to be charged in respect of applications made under The Commons (Registration of Town or Village Greens) and Dedicated Highways (Landowner Statements and Declarations) (England) Regulations 2013.

(2)     The Cabinet Member introduced the report stating that a change in regulations meant that the County Council could now charge landowners a fee for processing applications designed to protect landowners’ interests.  In establishing a fee for the administration of applications the County Council could recover its reasonable costs and the Committee’s approval was sought to the scale of fees to be charged

(3)     In response to a question about whether fees were typical Mr Rusling explained that Kent was the first Council to bring forward a decision of this kind.  He would be attending a meeting with colleagues form the south of England later in the week where he would be able to find out more about how other authorities planned to move forward. 

(4)     Members agreed that the fees seemed reasonable and, further to a suggestion on providing an estimate for landowners with a large amount of land, endorsed the proposed decision.  Mr Rusling stated that this was something that could be investigated.

It was RESOLVED that: the proposed decision of the Cabinet Member to introduce fees to be charged in respect to applications made under the Commons (Registration of Town or Village Greens) and Dedicated Highways (Landowner Statements and Declarations) (England) Regulations 2013, as set out in the report, be endorsed.