Cllr Roy Gerstner – Community Activist

AO Whittlesey.

(Click on picture to enlarge)


Thanks to RB & AO

Further information has been passed to me regarding the WTC Planning Meeting being cancelled.
It would appear due to the Christmas/New Year Holidays that e-mails were not picked prior to the meeting.
It is now my understanding that Cllrs Saeed Arman and Gurninder Singh Gill had submitted their apologies – but no one was aware until my article hit earlier this week.
The other two councillors mentioned did not send any apologies.

I’ve stated before that ‘Trolling’ and ‘Abuse’ of Councillors is not to be tollerated in any form.
Have a problem deal with it in an adult way please.

I am informed that there were between 30 to 40 attending, some big guns Dr Nick Johnson, along with a number of the WisWIN (Wisbech Without Incineration) group was which was set up to try to halt the plans.
Officers from Cambs CC were seen -Feedback I’m getting is that the meeting could have been better.

The next meeting is due to be held on 05th February.

A newsletter is promised, with updates their website.

Early days….

As your Police and Crime Commissioner, it is my job to set the budget for policing. I need to make sure the Chief Constable has the resources he needs to effectively police Cambridgeshire and Peterborough over the coming year.  

I have therefore launched an online survey asking people for to tell me their views when it comes to police funding. The survey was launched yesterday (7 January).

Police funding is based on a woefully inadequate funding formula which results in our county remaining one of the lowest funded forces in the country. Since the funding formula was set, our population has grown by 11% and is forecast to grow much faster than the national average. 

Roughly half of the funding for Cambridgeshire Constabulary comes from government with the remainder from the policing part of council tax (known as the precept). What this means is that taxpayers in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough must contribute almost half of our total police budget.

I recently wrote to the Home Secretary (as I have done with previous Home Secretaries since first being elected in 2021) to express my concerns about this issue and will continue to lobby for fairer funding.

For the financial year, 2025-2026, Police and Crime Commissioners are expected to increase the precept element of council tax by £14 (based on a Band D property).

While I welcome the recent government settlement increase of 5.5%, it is important to note that some of this increase has to pay for already-committed cost increases such as employer national insurance contributions. The force has already worked hard to identify £5.5m of further cost savings for 2025-26 – without the proposed £14 increase in the policing part of council tax, further cost savings will need to be made.

Every community deserves a properly funded and well-equipped police force. In Cambridgeshire, we have made huge strides to adapt and expand our capabilities to improve the way we prevent, solve and investigate crime and this effort needs to be sustained. I am therefore reluctantly proposing an increase of 4.89% for taxpayers in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough which equates to an increase of 27p per week for Band D properties and 18p per week for Band A properties.

Please do take a moment to tell me your views. 

The survey is available online and will be open until midnight on Monday 20th January 2025.

If you need help to share your views or would prefer to give your views by telephone, please call 0300 333 3456 or email cambs-pcc@cambs.police.uk.

Many thanks

Flood Warning no longer in force: North Bank Road alongside the River Nene, east of Peterborough and west of Dog-in-a-Doublet Sluice.

The situation is improving and no further flooding is expected in this area.

Flood Warnings and Alerts may still be in force for surrounding areas.

The River Nene has being falling steadily today, Wednesday 8 January. North Bank Road will be reopened once the Highways Authority have been able to inspect the road surface and carry out any necessary works to ensure the road is passable. There may be standing water in low lying areas and fields for several days.