A multi-million pound agreement to invest in part of Newport's Parkhurst prison estate has been confirmed by the Island's MP.
As previously reported by Isle of Wight Radio, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) offered the council a one-off, fixed payment to bring areas of its prison estate up to an acceptable safe standard - which has now been confirmed.
Following the consideration of a report to the Isle of Wight Council's Cabinet earlier this month (March) - negotiations with the (MOJ) continued, which included discussions between Bob Seely MP and Ministers.
A deal has now been reached, securing considerable investment in the estate over the coming years.
The Isle of Wight Council will take ownership of the land from the MOJ, and will receive a multi-million pound one-off payment to fund the upgrading and maintenance of the area (including roads, footways and open spaces) to a good standard for the foreseeable future.
MP Bob Seely said:
“This is yet another really good joint effort from “Team Isle of Wight”. I’m delighted that working together we’ve been able to persuade the Government to hand over ownership of the prison estate roads with an acceptable accompanying payment to help fund upgrades and future maintenance.
“This is the result of a good team negotiation from our end, jointly by the Council and myself. The original amount would not have been enough and would have left a significant shortfall, thereby restricting the extent of the improvements which could be made.
“Over the next couple of years, we will see work getting underway to improve the roads and street lighting, to improve the quality of the local area and make it an even better place to live.”
Cara Lock – the Conservative candidate for Parkhurst and Hunnyhill in the forthcoming elections to the Isle of Wight Council – said:
“I have been in discussion with the Council’s leadership over recent weeks about the importance of taking ownership of these roads and upgrading them to improve the quality of life for local residents. There was some concern – from people living on these roads – about whether the transfer (and the resulting investment) would go ahead, and I urged Dave Stewart and his colleagues to do all they could to ensure it did, given the strength of local feeling on this issue.
“This is of critical importance for people living in the Parkhurst area and I am therefore delighted that the go ahead has now been given.
“From the perspective of local residents, this is the first important step in a longer-term process. If elected on 6th May, I will ensure that dialogue with local residents gets underway soon afterwards, and that those living on these roads are fully consulted about the proposed improvement works. I appreciate that this decision does not resolve all of the issues – and there are some roads which are partly in the ownership of some residents – but these are the details which need to be worked through, as we aim work ensure that the extent of the benefit to the local area is maximised.
“I am determined to give residents living in these roads a strong, fresh voice on the Isle of Wight Council, working as part of a wider team of Conservative councillors to be influential on their behalf - particularly on issues such as this."
Chris Ashman, the council's director of regeneration, said it was good news for the area.
He said:
"The highways and footways are in a poor state of repair and local residents have been concerned to see improvements made for some considerable time.
"The council, as highways authority, is better placed to oversee the repairs and future maintenance and as part of the transaction the Ministry of Justice will make a financial contribution towards the costs.
"As part of our regeneration programme, we will work closely with local residents to prioritise the works to be undertaken and achieve the best possible outcome using the funds available to improve community cohesion and quality of life.”
Residents can contact the council via an email address: ParkhurstEnquiries@iow.gov.uk.
*UPDATED 11.45am
Liberal Democrat Andrew Garratt, who has been the Parkhurst ward councillor since 2017 responded to the comments and said:
“Since my election in 2017, I have worked with residents to lobby the Ministry of Justice as the estates had deteriorated for over twenty years. For example, in some roads, no streetlights work and there are bad potholes in many roads and pavements.
“We had made some progress ourselves in lobbying the MOJ. For example, a number of streetlights were repaired and replaced last year.
“So I am very pleased that discussions between the Ministry of Justice and the council has led to this this agreement as, hopefully, it will take things to a new level.
“Residents will be keen to hear from the council as to which roads and areas are affected. I hope the council will be able to do that speedily, but I recognise that they may still have to do some work to confirm the details.
“Residents will also want the details of how they will be involved and play a full part in the council’s decision-making about the improvements that can be made, in particular getting streetlighting that works across the estates.”
Our Island said:
"There seems to be too little information available to make a proper judgment on the deal that has been reached but serious questions exist as to what will happen if the infrastructure in question is not part of the Highway system that Island Roads supports and maintains.
"The contract is due to last for another 13 years. What will happen if problems arise after the initial promised investment? Unfortunately this is is not the sort of debate that can be sensibly pursued during an election period so it appears that this announcement is being made purely to earn political capital at this moment in time rather than having proper regard to the long term implications."
Isle of Wight Radio has contacted the Isle of Wight's political parties for a comment.
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