A Liberal Democrat and a Green councillor quizzed the ruling Labour leadership on when Peterborough City Council is going to end a 9 year rate and rent free ‘honeymoon’ for the radio station run and owned by Cllr Wayne Fitzgerald.
As exclusively reported earlier this month, City council leader Dennis Jones signalled the end of a 9-year free rent and rates package provided by the “munificence splendour” of his predecessors to Peterborough Community Radio Station Ltd (PCRFM), a private limited company owned by Conservative councillor Wayne Fitzgerald.
The tenancy of the council owned units at Herlington Centre, Orton Malbourne, is informal (a tenancy at will) renewed indefinitely. PCRFM is not a registered charity or a community interest company (CIC).
The issue was raised at this week’s meeting of Peterborough City Council.
First up was Cllr Polly Geraghty, Liberal Democrat member for Fletton and Stanground, who posed a question to Cllr Dennis Jones, the council leader.
“With a recent news story published by Cambs News, regarding the arrangements around Peterborough Community Radio’s tenancy, our council leader is quoted as saying he was made aware of the fact that the organisation was not only paying the council no rent for the premises but had also been granted 100% exemption from Business Rates in October/November of 2024,” she said.
“He was further quoted as saying that he had instructed Cecilie Booth, at the time our executive director of corporate services and section 151 officer, to begin the process of ending the arrangement.
“Given that over 7 months have transpired since that conversation, can the leader please inform Council and what steps (including what he has done to follow up on the progress) have been made to end the arrangement since that call?”.
Cllr Jones replied that the council “is continuing dialogue with Peterborough Community Radio to sort out the tenancy.
“We’ve now issued or in the process of issuing formal terms that include paying a fair market rent just like any other tenant would. This is part of our wider effort to make sure all council properties are treated consistently and fairly. Our estates team is following up and legal services are ready to step in if indeed needed”.
He added; “This follows my instruction to tidy up older arrangements that no longer although may no longer offer best value the council”.
In a supplementary question, Cllr Geraghty said: “I guess it’s just a time scale of when we can expect to see rent starting and be paid?”
Cllr Jones replied: “It’s work in progress; there’s 60 people in here who’ve just covered their eyes at that thought.”
Cllr Heather Skibsted, leader of the Greens and a ward councillor for Orton Longueville, weighed in with her question on the rent issue.
She asked her question of Cllr Mohammed Jamil, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Governance.
Cllr Skibsted said that “for an area of high deprivation such as Orton Malborne (where the radio station is based)” it was not obvious what benefits a radio station has to the immediate local community.
“And where the struggling local community centre has now been asked to pay rent and given that the council has been running an asset review for the past 18 months of all its properties, how is it possible that PCR, the radio station, has not come under the spotlight as a property that needs to pay rent until recently and has that situation now changed?,” she said.
Cllr Jamil re-iterated that the rent situation at Peterborough Community Radio was part of the ongoing corporate asset review which is assessing all council owned properties. The radio station’s occupation of a council owned property “was identified as a needing formalisation”.
He said: “Heads of terms have now been issued, and legal services are supporting the process to ensure that the council enforce fair and transparent occupation agreements across all tenants, including community organisations.
“This action is consistent with the council’s wider approach to ensuring best use and fair value from its property portfolio.”
Cllr Skibsted said she understood what the council is now doing “but I’m also aware of how this has looked in the local area where community centres are struggling to survive. Locally, a new charity has just moved in to the Golday Centre and are paying quite a large amount of rent.
“So, can the cabinet member inform how many other businesses have been exempt from paying rent to the council and what the reasons are for those that are exempt?”.
Cllr Jamil replied: “Of hand I don’t know the figures and the organizations, but I can certainly look into it and get back to everyone.”
