The new committee aims to improve transparency and public oversight of the Universal Studios UK development under the Special Development Order.
Something interesting to keep an eye on next week.
At the upcoming Bedford Borough Council meeting on 13th May, councillors are expected to formally announce the membership of the new Universal Project Overview & Scrutiny Committee.
Not everyone agreed this committee was needed, with some concerns raised about it becoming too political or turning into a “soapbox” for debate. Personally though, I actually think this is a positive step.
With Universal Studios UK operating under a Special Development Order (SDO), a huge amount of work and decision making can happen with very limited public information being released. A dedicated scrutiny committee could at least give Bedford residents and the wider community a way to better monitor what’s happening around infrastructure, transport, housing, local impact and the overall project as it develops.
It’ll definitely be interesting to see how active and transparent this committee becomes once it gets going.
The image below shows the proposed committee membership 👇
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