Councillor Michael Beston

Councillor Michael Beston – Shanklin Central Ward

2019/2020 has seen engagement on two outside projects come to a successful conclusion. The work with Island Line and South Western Railway has secured an investment package of £26 million to upgrade the rail infrastructure and new rolling stock. £1 million has been contributed by The Solent LEP to create a new passing loop at Brading to improve the connectivity of trains with cross-Solent sailings. The first carriages are due to arrive from Vivarail in early summer 2020 with track improvement works during the winter.

My second outside project was my involvement with the Southern Water Enhancement Programme for Shanklin. The 750,000-litre storm water storage facility has been completed under Arthurs Hill. This will improve the resilience and capacity of the network at times of heavy rainwater storms. It will also reduce the risk of untreated water being released into the sea and help protect homes from flood risk.

I serve on the Licensing and Planning committees and chair the Policy and Scrutiny Committee for Neighbourhoods & Regeneration. This role will help shape and influence policies that will ultimately benefit the Island and Shanklin. One of my first tasks was to set up a ‘task and finish’ group to develop an action plan, recommending how the Council could work with partners and central government to ensure that the Islands net carbon emissions can be reduced to zero by 2030. This draft strategy has been completed and will be presented to full council for approval during spring 2020.

I have supported numerous housing and regeneration projects amongst other applications throughout the last year. I continue to represent residents on local planning applications or other issues.

I am proud to represent Shanklin at IW Council and will continue to give my best - I thank the residents for their support.

Michael Beston

May 2020