New mayor holds talks with Peterborough United over stadium proposal
Plans for a new Peterborough United stadium on the Embankment were discussed in the first week of the new mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Paul Bristow taking office
A meeting about building a new Peterborough United stadium in the city centre took place during the first week in office for the new mayor of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA), Paul Bristow.
Mr Bristow met with representatives of the football club on Friday 9 May to discuss plans for a community stadium on the Embankment, which would also include a swimming pool and concert venue.
Speaking after the meeting, he said: “This was something proposed by Peterborough United a number of years ago and it’s important that it is done in the city centre to breathe life into a city centre that’s faced challenging times. We would get the benefit of football fans, concert goers and swimming pool users into our city centre to revitalise the economy.”
The Conservative politician, who was previously MP for Peterborough from 2019 to 2024, became mayor after the recent election. He now oversees a £20 million annual budget and has powers to manage up to £800 million in spending on housing, infrastructure, and jobs across the region.
Mr Bristow also met with Peterborough City Council leader Dennis Jones the day before the stadium discussions. He described the meeting as “incredibly constructive” and said: “Dennis has the best interests of the city at heart. Sometimes we’ll disagree on how to get there but I’m determined that we’re going to work together to get the best for Peterborough, and he agrees.”
During his first week, Mr Bristow confirmed several other actions based on his election pledges. He wrote to the government to begin the process of ending the CPCA’s role as the accountable body for the Greater South East Net Zero Hub, saying it had no direct impact on local residents.
He also began work to remove the CPCA’s target to cut car travel by 15 per cent by 2030, describing it as part of his promise to “end the war on motorists”.
Reflecting on his start in office, Mr Bristow said: “We started with a big bang, I wanted to make sure people knew I was serious about what I wanted to do and that my manifesto is a plan for delivery rather than just aspiration.”
He added: “My task, and I’ve started to do it this week, is to meet with the other members of the board, make sure they understand that I want to hunt as a pack and start with a blank page.”
The mayor also met with staff across the CPCA and praised their efforts. “Over the last two or three years, the combined authority has really tried to improve its reputation and improve the way it delivers, and they’ve been successful. That’s down to the staff and the team at the combined authority.”
Further actions taken this week included suspending the CPCA’s existing Corporate Strategy and mayoral pledges, and beginning the process of removing allowances for the Business Board’s chair, vice chair and members. Mr Bristow said this was to make sure public money is focused on frontline priorities.