Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, Nick Clarke in Wisbech

THE Cabinet of Cambridgeshire County Council is to hold its March meeting in Wisbech following a major break with tradition.

Council Leader Nick Clarke revealed he decided on the move as he wanted to “raise the profile and promote the positives of Wisbech. I also want as many councillors as possible to have an understanding of the issues facing the town.”

The March 6 meeting will begin, as normal, at 10am but take place at The Boathouse Business Centre, Wisbech, instead of Shire Hall, Cambridge.

Cllr Clarke said the decision to move out of Cambridge for the day came following a suggestion by the Editor of the Wisbech Standard, John Elworthy.

“John and I had a chat about all the positive investments that have been made in Wisbech recently,” he said. “We also discussed how destructive consistently knocking an area can be. Somewhere in the conversation John suggested could we hold a Cabinet in Wisbech?

“This struck a cord with me as long as it wasn’t just tokenism. The plan, so far, is to hold the Cabinet in the morning, meet with civic leaders around lunch time and then to get my Cabinet members to visit relevant organisations / people in the afternoon.”

Cllr Clarke added: “I hope this will enhance our understanding of the issues in Wisbech and give the people of Wisbech the opportunity to see Cabinet in action.

“If this is a success I am sure we will repeat it in other areas of the county.”

Cllr Clarke said that “since becoming Leader I have pledged my support for our deprived areas. We have a number of them spread all over the county and it really isn’t acceptable.

“Wisbech has some particularly challenging issues and often feels a long way from Shire Hall.”

Archant, the parent company of the Wisbech Standard (and Cambs Times) will be hosting a breakfast at the Boathouse for Cllr Clarke and his Cabinet colleagues and other local dignitaries and civic leaders.

We’d like some of our readers to join us for that breakfast: if you are interested please send brief details to john.elworthy@archant.co.uk