Cambridge City Council

Is that a crucial element to it? If it's the vice chancellor of a university or someone in government spotting that opportunity, would you define it as crucial in building an innovation ecosystem? Or could it also come from the ground up by smaller maybe initiatives?

I think the book looks at it from the top down and the role of MIT, for example, in moving the Kendall Square ecosystem forward, combined with the Cambridge City Council and the Cambridge Development Authority.

In Mars, there was a respected scientist, John Roberts Evans, who provided funding, but also was, I suppose, an integrator in terms of not only building the leadership, but but also building the cooperation and collaboration with the Toronto government and the Ontario government.

So that ensured that the purpose was made clear and that there were outcomes that could be delivered.

In other news, a High Court judge has granted Somerset Council a final injunction against an illegal traveller site, concluding that the public interest in the enforcement of planning control outweighed the substantial hardship that the injunction would impose on the defendants in the case.

Next up, the Joint Planning Committee of Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council has approved Cambridge University's outline plans for up to 3,800 new homes with 50% affordable housing on a greenfield site as part of a 5,650-home urban extension to Cambridge.

And finally, the planning consultancy Lighthouse Development Consulting has been bought by Origin Enterprises, an international group offering agricultural and environmental services.

Thank you, Natasha.

So our team has been out and about during the conference talking to a number of Labour politicians about what they make of the move.

It's great to be here, joined at Labour Conference by Councillor Katie Thornburgh, leader of Cambridge City Council.

Katie, welcome to Political Business.

Thank you

He is Labour Member of Parliament for Northwest Cambridgeshire and member of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee.

He was also previously a district councillor and served in Cambridge City Council's cabinet.

Chris Murray MP is a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and Labour Member of Parliament for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh.

Before entering Parliament, he worked at the Foreign Office.

Um, it actually gives us more time to prepare.

So my hope is that, uh, the minister's decision is that we merge with Cambridge City Council, um, that, that makes every sense.

Mm.

We are a functional economic area in our own right.