A six-month parking crackdown for Bletchley was cut from a motion before MK Council passed it. Three other opposition motions were rewritten the same way.

A six-month parking enforcement trial for Bletchley was taken out of a motion before Milton Keynes City Council passed it on Wednesday 23 September. In its place, officers will consider whether a trial would add anything once a new parking contract is let.

The same thing happened to three other motions tabled by opposition councillors. Each passed, but in a version rewritten by an amendment that removed its firmest commitment. The council’s decision notice, published on 25 September, records the wording that was agreed.

The notice does not record how anyone voted. The minutes, which will, have not been published yet.

Motion Tabled by What was removed What was agreed
Bletchley parking Reform UK A six-month trial on ten named streets Officers to consider a trial within the new parking contract
Western MK bus route Conservative Considering subsidy for an operator Explore the route with operators “at the most appropriate time”
Universal resort Conservative 12-month targets and an advisory group Three cross-party sessions, December to March
Cross-boundary housing Labour Nothing: a Conservative bid to add Cranfield failed Letters to Buckinghamshire and the Housing Secretary, plus a study

The Bletchley parking trial

Councillor Ray Blackman, Reform UK member for Bletchley Park and Fenny Stratford, tabled the motion on 10 September. It said obstructive parking was cutting off pavements and dropped kerbs for disabled people, parents with pushchairs and children walking to school.

It named ten streets where residents and councillors had repeatedly complained:

  • Queensway
  • Victoria Road
  • Denmark Street
  • Aylesbury Street
  • Leon Avenue
  • Bedford Street
  • Vicarage Road
  • Princes Way
  • Paddock Way
  • Chandos Place

It asked the cabinet member for highways to consider a six-month targeted enforcement trial in the ward, starting “as soon as reasonably practicable”. That meant repeat patrols at hotspots, including evenings and weekends, joint working with Thames Valley Police, an interim report after three months and a full evaluation for scrutiny councillors.

Councillor Kerrie Bradburn, the Liberal Democrat cabinet member for environment, waste, highways and transport, moved an amendment. It deleted the list of streets and the six-month trial. The version the council resolved matches it. It asks for:

  • evidence from Bletchley to be weighed alongside evidence from the rest of Milton Keynes when the new parking enforcement contract is drawn up
  • officers to consider, as part of that contract, whether extra action in Bletchley Park and Fenny Stratford is “necessary and proportionate”, including whether a time-limited trial “would add value”
  • any extra action not to “unreasonably divert” enforcement from other areas
  • the new contract to be judged on compliance, safety and accessibility, not on the number of tickets issued or the income raised

The resolution notes that the council is procuring a new parking enforcement contract. It gives no date for it. It also notes that the Queensway redevelopment, paid for by the Bletchley and Fenny Stratford Town Deal, includes features designed to discourage anti-social parking.

What it means for you

If a car is blocking a pavement or dropped kerb in Bletchley, nothing changes this autumn. You still report it the same way. Responsibility is split between the council and Thames Valley Police, and the agreed motion asks for the council’s guidance on which is which to be kept under review. Our parking in Milton Keynes page covers the council’s side.

One promise from the meeting is specific to Bletchley. Councillor Bradburn agreed to discuss with officers a review of the Queensway, Princes Way and Lennox Road junction once the current Queensway works are finished, including how affected owners and businesses would be involved.

Bus route for western Milton Keynes

Councillor Kunal Puri, Conservative member for Watling, asked the council to explore a bus service linking Stony Stratford, Fairfields, Whitehouse, Hazeley, Oxley Park and Westcroft. A residents’ petition for a Stony Stratford to Westcroft route was presented at the same meeting.

The original motion asked the cabinet member to consider whether money could be found if an operator saw a viable route, “including through relevant future subsidy allocations”. It also asked for a report back to Full Council.

The agreed version drops the funding clause. It asks the cabinet member to “explore the potential” of the route through the council’s existing partnership with bus operators, and to share it with them “at the most appropriate time”. It adds that any service depends on demand, commercial viability, available funding and other priorities. The report back now goes to a scrutiny committee, “when appropriate”.

Universal resort readiness

Councillor Johnny Luk, Conservative member for Danesborough, tabled a motion on getting Milton Keynes ready for the Universal resort in Bedfordshire, planned to open in 2031. The agreed text notes the council’s own expectation that around 150,000 visitors each weekend will use shuttle buses from Milton Keynes Central to reach it.

The original asked for measurable targets within 12 months for local jobs, visitor spending and investment. It also asked for a cross-party advisory group and an annual report to Full Council.

The council leader, Councillor Jane Carr, moved an amendment. The agreed version has no 12-month deadline and no advisory group. Instead it sets out three cross-party sessions:

  • Tourism: December 2026
  • Transport: January 2027
  • Jobs and skills: March 2027

It keeps a business readiness survey and an annual progress report, now to a scrutiny committee rather than Full Council, running until at least five years after the resort opens.

Housing over the boundary

The fifth motion came from the ruling side. Councillor Jennifer Wilson-Marklew, Labour cabinet member for planning, raised Buckinghamshire Council’s search for housing land close to the Milton Keynes boundary, “including significant proposals at Beachampton”, a Buckinghamshire village just west of the city.

It passed as tabled. The council will:

  • write to Buckinghamshire Council’s leader and chief executive seeking “meaningful engagement” on Beachampton and other schemes next to the boundary
  • write to the Housing Secretary asking for fairer funding where growth in one council area loads costs onto another
  • commission a study of what neighbouring councils’ Local Plans would mean for Milton Keynes roads, schools and services

A Conservative amendment from Councillor Shazna Muzammil would have added Central Bedfordshire Council’s plans around Cranfield to the letters and the study. Cranfield does not appear in the resolution, so that amendment did not pass.

The rest of the meeting

  • Taxi licensing: a motion asking the government to let councils control private hire cars licensed elsewhere passed. The motion estimates that around 45% of the licensed vehicles working in Milton Keynes are licensed by other councils. We covered the figures behind it in our taxi fees story.
  • Planning: the council agreed the constitution changes that remove the Planning Panel and bring in the national scheme of delegation from 31 October.
  • Redways: in answer to a public question about lighting, overgrowth, signs and cleaning on the Redway network, Councillor Bradburn agreed to pass any further problem locations she is sent straight to the transport team.

Sources