Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils
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Agenda and minutes

Venue: King Edmund Chamber, Endeavour House, 8 Russell Road, Ipswich. View directions

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Items
No. Item

84.

DECLARATION OF INTERESTS BY COUNCILLORS

Minutes:

84.1         The Chair advised Members that, in accordance with delegated authority, the Monitoring Officer had granted dispensation to all Members in respect of the 20/21 Budget papers.

 

84.2         Councillor Brewster declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 14 as Chair of MSDC (Suffolk Holdings) Ltd.

 

84.3         Councillor Whitehead declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 14 as Director of Gateway 14.

 

85.

MC/19/35 TO CONFIRM THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 23 JANUARY 2020 pdf icon PDF 295 KB

Minutes:

It was RESOLVED:-

 

That subject to the following amendments, the Minutes of the meeting held on 23 January 2020 be confirmed and signed as a true record.

 

Page 17, paragraph 80.17 -amend number to proportions.

 

Page 15 at the top – amended Councillor Flatman to Councillor Fleming.

 

86.

MC/19/36 CHAIRMAN'S ANNOUNCEMENTS pdf icon PDF 17 KB

Minutes:

86.1         Councillor Hadingham, Chair of the Council, referred to Paper MC/19/36, which was for noting.

 

86.2         Councillor Eburne thanked Councillor Matthissen for organising the Z-pod meeting held on the 17 February 2020 for sustainable housing.

 

87.

LEADER'S ANNOUNCEMENTS

Minutes:

87.1         The Chair invited Councillor Morley, Leader of the Council, to present her update.

 

87.2         Councillor Morley provided the following update:

 

Equality and Diversity – the Leader asked that the nine Members, who had failed to attend this mandatory training rectified this now.

 

Needham Market Station - Applications for the Needham Access Project had been successful and had been awarded £380k from the Department of Transport. However, further feasibility work and continuation of the CIL funding process had to be undertaken before the project could move forward. This demonstrated the strong pathways with Greater Analia was working.

 

UNISON Against Violence at Work Charter – It was confirmed that the Council had met the 10 criteria for the charter and could now become signatories to the charter. Achieving this charter was evidence of the commitment the Council had to its staff and the effort made to ensure that staff was protected from violence and aggression whilst at work. She thanked the team that had undertaken this work.

 

Public Sector Leaders Meeting (tomorrow)- the Leader raised three issues which she would present at the meeting tomorrow.

 

·       The Leader anticipated that funding would be approved for £50k to address needs for young people, who were not in education, employment or training. Support for this was delivered through the Mix in Stowmarket.

 

·       Gateway 14 – a proposal was put forward to spend £250k to develop an innovation cluster at Gateway 14 in Stowmarket.

 

·       A new two-year proposal to create a Suffolk Housing Coordinator post would be put forward at the meeting. This officer would be employed by Mid Suffolk and Babergh on behalf of the wider Suffolk system. The Leader would be happy to share the presentation and papers with Members if the proposal was approved tomorrow.

 

Planning Officer for Babergh and Mid Suffolk – the Planning team was in the running for a national award for technological advance as part of 21st planning. Both Councils were shortlisted for the Best use of Digital and Technology category at the annual IEasy Public Sector Transformation Awards 2020.  The award acknowledged the use of technology improving services to residents. The team had streamlined the processing of planning applications, delivering timely applications and becoming one of the top authorities in the County for this service. The team had also introduced an electronic case management system and a mobile App and was working on implementing the use of drones and augmented reality as part of the 21st century Planning process.

 

87.3          Councillor Carter asked the Leader to ensure that there was no last-minute change to any meetings or agendas as last-minute changes made it difficult for him to adjust.

 

87.4          Councillor Mellen referred to a deep clean of a GP Surgery due to the Corona Virus pandemic and if the Council could assure that a plan was in place to provide a service to the public during a pandemic.

 

Councillor Morley responded that if Members were concerned, she would arrange another briefing for the matter.  

88.

TO RECEIVE NOTIFICATION OF PETITIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH COUNCIL PROCEDURE RULES

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11, The Chief Executive will report the receipt of any petitions. There can be no debate or comment upon these matters at the Council meeting.

Minutes:

None received.

89.

QUESTIONS BY THE PUBLIC IN ACCORDANCE WITH COUNCIL PROCEDURE RULES

The Chairmen of Committees to answer any questions by the public of which notice has been given no later than midday three clear working days before the day of the meeting in accordance with Council Procedure Rule No. 12.

 

Minutes:

89.1                None received.

 

90.

QUESTIONS BY COUNCILLORS IN ACCORDANCE WITH COUNCIL PROCEDURE RULES pdf icon PDF 231 KB

The Chairman of the Council, Chairs of Committees and Sub-Committees and Portfolio Holders to answer any questions on any matters in relation to which the Council has powers or duties or which affect the District of which due notice has been given in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 13.

Minutes:

90.1   The Chair referred to the tabled papers and asked Councillor Eburne to ask the first question.

 

Question 1

 

Councillor Eburne to Councillor Morley, Leader of the Council

 

“The cost of Member allowances and expenses has increased from £269,393.13 in 2017/18 to £442,563.39, a difference of £173,170.26.

Please can you provide the explanation for this increase.”

 

Response

There was a one-off increase in the member allowances in 18/19 due to the back payment of the basic allowance and special responsibility allowances that was made following a review of the Members Remuneration Scheme, carried out by the Independent Remuneration Panel. The Panel was tasked with looking at members’ allowances and to take into account the changes to members’ roles following the creation of the Leader /Cabinet model which was constituted in May 2017. The new scheme was adopted by full Council in June 2018.

The figures forecast for 19/20 show a projected decrease in the amount of members’ allowances which will be a more accurate reflection of the cost following a reduction in the number of members since the elections in May 2019.

 

Supplementary question:

Councillor Eburne said that the difference for the back-payment did not make up the £173,170.26, and she asked that the exact figures for the difference were provided to her.

 

Response

Councillor Morley asked the Assistant Director for Corporate Resources to provide a response outside the meeting.

 

Question 2

 

Councillor Geake to Councillor Brewster, Cabinet Member for Economic Growth

 

“We recently heard from the Cabinet Member for Economic Growth, that part of our ongoing work on project delivery, for Regeneration and Capital projects, will take account of climate change. As stronger economic growth tends to be closely linked to a higher carbon footprint, and as we are now in a climate crisis, could we be told which parts of the Council’s work on regeneration and capital projects will not take account of climate change?”

 

Response

As part of the refreshed project management framework across both councils, all project initiation documents have a section on the environment. Project managers, when commencing a project and throughout the life of that project, are required to complete an environmental impact assessment which consider positive and negative environmental impacts of each scheme.  As new projects come to the various Programme Boards, environmental impact is considered as part of the overall deliverability. This means every regeneration and capital project will take account of climate change and will ensure any impacts are assessed and properly mitigated.

 

Supplementary question:

Councillor Geake asked that the Cabinet Member looked at the work of other Councils, with a view to future proofing every single aspect of the Council’s work and she provided two examples; Oxford City Council had provided a climate emergency budget of £18m for capital investments and  £1m for its operational budget to ensure delivery and Warwick District Council had announced they would hold a referendum to increase council tax to provide the necessary funds.

 

Response

Councillor Brewster responded that the Council’s economy budget was the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 90.

91.

MC/19/37 OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE REPORT pdf icon PDF 468 KB

Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Minutes:

91.1          The Chair advised Members that the report would be in two parts and that any information regarding Gateway 14 would be presented under Part Two on the Agenda, she then invited Councillor Welham to present the Overview and Scrutiny Report.

 

91.2          Councillor Welham, Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee presented the report and added that Councillor Mansel was the Council’s representative on the Western Suffolk Community Safety Partnership (WSCSP) and would be able to provide more information about the work of the WSCSP.

 

92.

MC/19/38 GENERAL FUND BUDGET 2020/21 AND FOUR YEAR OUTLOOK pdf icon PDF 1 MB

Cabinet Member for Finance

 

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 19.3, immediately after any vote is taken at a budget decision meeting of the Council the names of Councillors who cast a vote for the decision or against the decision or who abstained from voting shall be recorded in the Minutes of that meeting.

 

At its meeting on 10 February 2020, Cabinet considered Paper MCa/19/43, together with amendments to the General Fund Budget.  Paper MC/19/38 now includes all the relevant updated information, together with the necessary recommendations.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

92.1         The Chair of the Council referred Members to the revised Appendix C in the tabled papers and invited Councillor Whitehead to introduce report MC/19/38.

 

92.2         Councillor Whitehead, Cabinet Member for Finance, informed Members that the budget was a result of a period of strong financial discipline and strict prudence implemented by the administration and the significant contribution of the management team, whom had consistently delivered positive financial outturns against the budget.

 

92.3          He continued that the General Fund Budget report had been presented to Cabinet on the 13th January 2020 and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on the 17th January 2020.  Several Member briefings have also taken place in January for the Budget.

 

92.4          He directed Members’ attention to the fact that the Council had minimised the use of the new Homes Bonus and had not used any New Homes Bonus for the Council’s normal running costs.

 

92.5          He referred to paragraph 8.10, table 5, which illustrated that the New Homes Bonus would end in 2023/24 and currently it was uncertain what and how much would be replacing it.

 

92.6          The Central Government’s revenue support grant had fallen away in recent years and it was therefore important that the Council generated its own income. This was achieved by the following four income steams:

 

·       Income received from various pool investments, all of which produce income streams

 

·       The building up of CIFCO to £50m by investing in secure real estate assets, which generated a significant income stream

 

·       Growing of the council tax base by building new housing and bringing empty properties back in to use, which provided a 1%+ tax increase each year.

 

·       An increase in council tax of 1.66%, which equated to a £2.26 increase per year for a Band D home.

 

92.7          Councillor Whitehead continued that the budget was healthy and included £1m for the development of a Commercial Risk Management Reserve for the Councils’ development sites and £0.5m for Climate Change initiatives for 2020/21. Despite these investments the reserves would still be above £10m for 2020/21, as illustrated in paragraph 7.6.

 

92.8          He then detailed the revised Appendix B, which included information regarding investments into CIFCO, the development of the Needham Market Lake Visitor Centre, development of the Leisure Centre, a proposed change to reduce the 25% council tax discount from three months down to 28 days for Empty and unfurnished properties in section 11.  He also referred to the Pay Policy in section 12.

 

92.9          He thanked the Finance Team for the work undertaken.

 

92.10       Councillor Whitehead MOVED recommendations 3.1 to 3.5 in the report, which was SCEONDED by Councillor Morley.

 

92.11       Councillor Eburne advised Members that the Green Party and Liberal Democrat Groups of Councillors coordinated to produce a series of budget proposals in November 2019, and having had discussions with the Finance Team, then presented 10 key proposals to the ruling Administration for the next financial year.  They were pleased that the Administration had progressed some of these proposals including:

 

·         Promoting sustainable new  ...  view the full minutes text for item 92.

93.

MC/19/39 HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT (HRA) BUDGET 2020/21 AND LONGER-TERM OUTLOOK pdf icon PDF 861 KB

Cabinet Member for Housing

 

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 19.3, immediately after any vote is taken at a budget decision meeting of the Council the names of Councillors who cast a vote for the decision or against the decision or who abstained from voting shall be recorded in the Minutes of that meeting.

 

At its meeting on 10 February 2020, Cabinet considered Paper MCa/19/44, together with amendments to the Housing Revenue Account.  Paper MC/19/39 now includes all the relevant updated information, together with the necessary recommendations.

 

Minutes:

93.1         The Chair invited Councillor Whitehead to introduce the report and to move the recommendations.

 

93.2         Councillor Whitehead, the Cabinet Member for Finance, began by informing Council that the HRA had been through a challenging time and had a budgeted deficit of £564k, which was funded by the Reserves.  A review of Housing Services had been undertaken in 2019/20 and had identified savings efficiencies and income-generating opportunities.

 

93.3          Councillor Whitehead then summarised the main details in the report and advised Members that some of the key points were also included in the recommendations.

 

93.4          Councillor Whitehead MOVED recommendations 3.1 to 3.9 in the report, which was SECONDED by Councillor Flatman.

 

93.5          Councillor Mansel queried the Sheltered Housing service charges increase and asked for clarification of what that service provided. 

 

93.6          The Assistant Director for Housing responded that it was a culmination of several utility charges for the sheltered housing service, such as the Scheme Manager and grounds maintenance. It was the intention to conduct a review of the service charges this year.

 

93.7          Councillor Eburne referred to the previous question and asked what measures the Council was taking to keep utility bills low for sheltered housing services.

 

93.8          She continued regarding investment in the Council’s social housing paragraph 6.4 and said that since the debt cap for housing had been removed, the Council was now allowed to borrow more money, but had no plans to do so. She would like to know if there were any long-term plans for borrowing to increase the Council’s social housing.

 

93.9          In response, Councillor Whitehead explained that the HRA Business Plan would be brought back to Council again next year and he was confident that further housing development would be included in future 30-year HRA business plans.

 

93.10       The Assistant Director for Housing explained, how the total utility cost was managed by Vertas and was based on actual bills received and then the cost was apportioned across the District to achieve the charges.  However, PV heating panels and installation of ground source heat pumps were part of the schemes to reduce the overall costs and improve the life of residents.

 

93.11       In response to Councillor Carter’s question regarding mobility scooters, the Assistant Director clarified that investment was being put into storage facilities where suitable for mobility scooters, to reduce the fire risk associated with mobility scooters being stored inside flats and sheds.

 

93.12       Councillor Field referred to the last time the Council put up rents by CPI+1% and had been reassured by Government that clients would receive the increase from Housing Benefits and then asked Council to reduce rent for four years. He wondered if this was likely to happen again. Councillor Whitehead responded that tenants were paying less rent now, than four years ago.

 

93.13       Councillor Welham asked if the Council was paying more for service charges for Sheltered Housing, as more of these became de-sheltered and fewer sheltered houses were available.

 

93.14       Councillor Flatman responded that in some areas, Sheltered Housing units  ...  view the full minutes text for item 93.

94.

RESOLUTION TO EXCLUDE THE PUBLIC

Recommended Motion

 

That under section 100(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for Items 17 and 18 on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act in the paragraph registered against each item.

 

Note:Information is exempt only if:

It falls within one of the 7 categories of exempt information in the Act and; In all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information

 

Part 2

Minutes:

By a unanimous vote.

 

It was RESOLVED :-

 

That pursuant to Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the business specified below on the grounds that if the public were present during discussion of this item, it is likely that there would be disclosure to them of exempt information as indicated in the report.

 

95.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND REPORTS FROM CABINET/COMMITTEES

96.

MC/19/42 RECOMMENDATION FROM OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE

Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee

97.

MC/19/43 GATEWAY 14 DELIVERY MODEL & PARTNER

Cabinet Member for Economy and Chair of MSDC (Suffolk Holdings) Ltd

98.

MC/19/40 JOINT CAPITAL, INVESTMENT AND TREASURY MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES (2020/21) pdf icon PDF 952 KB

Cabinet Member for Finance

 

At its meeting on 10 February 2020, Cabinet considered Paper MCa/19/45, together with amendments to the Joint Capital, Investment & Treasury Management Strategies.  Paper MC/19/40 now includes all the relevant updated information, together with the necessary recommendations.

 

Minutes:

 

97.1          The Chair invited Councillor Whitehead to introduce the report and to move the recommendations.

 

97.2          Councillor Whitehead, Cabinet Member for Finance, introduced the report and informed Members that the report had been scrutinised by the Joint Audit and Standards Committee before being presented to Cabinet.

 

97.3          Councillor Whitehead MOVED the recommendations in the Report, which was SECONDED by Councillor Caston.

 

97.4          There were no questions on the report.

 

97.5          During the debate, Councillor Eburne referred to Appendix B and informed Members that she was supporting Gateway 14, as it was a local investment project and within the District.  However, she was against CIFCO and disagreed with investing outside the District and could not support this investment strategy.

 

97.6          Councillor Stringer was concerned about the risk involved with the investments in CIFCO and for this reason he could not support the paper.

 

97.7          Recommendations 3.1 to 3.8 were put to Members for voting and the vote was CARRIED.

 

It was RESOLVED: -

 

1.1         That the Joint Capital Strategy for 2020/21, including the Prudential Indicators, as set out in Appendix A and the updates tabled at the meeting, be approved.

1.2         That the Joint Investment Strategy for 2020/21, as set out in Appendix B, be approved.1.2

1.3         That the Joint Treasury Management Strategy for 2020/21, including the Joint Annual Investment Strategy as set out in Appendix C, be approved.

1.4         That the Joint Treasury Management Indicators as set out in Appendix D, be approved.

1.5         That the Joint Treasury Management Policy Statement as set out in Appendix G, be approved.

1.6          That the Joint Minimum Revenue Provision Statement as set out in Appendix H, be approved.

1.7          That the key factors and information relating to and affecting treasury management activities set out in Appendices E, F, and I be noted.

That Officers and Members, Working Parties and whatever mechanisms have been set up commence exploring alternative investment strategies that take greater account of the Councils’ own declaration of a climate change emergency.

99.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND REPORTS FROM CABINET / COMMITTEES

99a

JAC/19/10 HALF YEAR REPORT ON TREASURY MANAGEMENT 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 596 KB

Chair of Joint Audit and Standards Committee

 

At its meeting on 27 January 2020, the Joint Audit and Standards Committee considered Paper JAC/19/10 and accepted the recommendations as set out in the report:

 

Recommendation to both Councils

 

(1)      That the Treasury Management activity for the first six months of 2019/20 as set out in the report and Appendices be noted.

 

(2)      That it be noted that both Councils’ Treasury Management activity for the first six months of 2019/20 was in accordance with the approved Treasury Management Strategy, and that the Council has complied with all the Treasury Management indicators for this period.

 

Note: It is a requirement of the Code of Practice on Treasury Management that full Council notes the Half-Year position.

 

Minutes:

98a.1          The Chair invited Councillor Muller to introduce the report and to move the recommendations.

 

98a.2          Councillor Muller, Chair of the Joint Audit and Standards Committee, informed Members that the Committee had agreed with the recommendations in the report.

 

98a.3          Councillor Muller MOVED recommendations 3.1 and 3.2 in the report, which was SECONDED by Councillor Caston.

 

98a.4          The recommendations were put to Members for voting and the vote was CARRIED.

 

It was RESOLVED:-

 

1.1                 That the Treasury Management activity for the first six months of 2019/20 as set out in the report and Appendices, be noted.

 

That it be noted that both Councils’ Treasury Management activity for the first six months of 2019/20 was in accordance with the approved Treasury Management Strategy, and that the Council has complied with all the Treasury Management Indicators for this period.

100.

MC/19/41 PROPOSED CHANGES TO COUNCIL MEETING DATES 2020-21 pdf icon PDF 253 KB

Leader of the Council

Minutes:

100.1         The Chair invited the Leader to introduce the report and to move the recommendations.

 

100.2         Councillor Morley, Leader of the Council, explained that two dates had been removed from the meeting calendar, as all Council business could be achieved within the remaining meetings.

 

100.3          Councillor Morley MOVED recommendation 2.1 in the report, which was SECONDED by Councillor Richardson.

 

100.4          Councillor Eburne was concerned by the reduction in the number of meetings and that there would be more of a democratic deficit in the District. She also asked why more meetings were not conducted in the community to enable residents to attend.

 

100.5          Councillor Morley responded that it was her personal opinion that the democratic requirements were best served by having the meetings in the Council Chamber, which allowed for live streaming and could be viewed on YouTube by residents.

 

100.6          Councillor Stringer was concerned that less Council meetings reduced the opportunity for Members to hold the administration to account.

 

100.7          Councillor Mansel could not support the paper as no reason was provided for the removal of meetings.

 

100.8          The recommendation was put to Members for voting and the vote was CARRIED.

 

It was RESOLVED: -

 

That the changes to Council meetings detailed in paragraph 3.1 of the report be approved.

 

101.

COUNCILLOR APPOINTMENTS pdf icon PDF 4 KB

Minutes:

100.1       Councillor Hadingham MOVED the proposed changes to Councillor Appointments as detailed in the Tabled Papers, which was SECONDED by Councillor Eburne.

 

100.2        The proposals were put to Members for voting and the vote was CARRIED.

 

It was Resolved:-

 

1.1             That Councillor Matthissen be appointed to Development Control Committee A (to replace Councillor Turner).

1.2         That Councillor Stringer be appointed to Development Control Committee B (to replace Councillor Matthissen).

1.3         That Councillor Mellen be appointed to Development Control Committee B (To replace Councillor Terence Carter)

1.4       That Councillor Carter be appointed to Overview & Scrutiny (Joint and Mid Suffolk) (To replace Councillor Mellen)