Last Thursday, the Isle of Wight Council’s Cabinet discussed the Ministry of Justice offer for improvements on the prison estates.

The discussion was in confidential session. However, the minutes are now public.

This is what the minutes show:

Decision: That further negotiations with the Ministry of Justice be undertaken, with a view to the acquisition of the relevant land on acceptable terms.

Minutes: After a lengthy discussion, members believed that further confirmation about how the most significant risks associated with the proposal would be appropriately mitigated in the terms proposed, with the final decision being taken by the Director of Regeneration and Director of Finance, together with the Cabinet members for Regeneration and Business Development, Corporate Resources and Infrastructure and Transport. The wording of the recommendation was amended from that in the report.

It’s good that the negotiations are continuing. But it’s vital that the chance to get improvements doesn’t slip away.

If agreement is reached, two things must be a priority:

• the confidentiality must be lifted so that residents know which roads are affected and in what way
• extensive consultation and engagement with residents must start so that they are involved in setting priorities and timetables for the improvements

I’ve continued to press these points with Cabinet members and council officers.