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BABERGH DISTRICT COUNCIL COUNCIL MEETING
MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE BABERGH DISTRICT COUNCIL HELD IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER, COUNCIL OFFICES, CORKS LANE, HADLEIGH ON TUESDAY, 19 DECEMBER 2006
PRESENT: Mr R W Thake – Chairman
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Mr C W Arthey
Mrs E F Bates
Mr P K Beer
Mr N A Bennett
Mr J C Brand
Mr D M Busby
Miss J J Chapman
Mrs S P Clarke
Mr D G Grutchfield
Mr A J Hinton
Mr P J Holbrook
Mr C J Hunt
Ms J A Jenkins
Mr P Jones
Mr D H Keane |
Mr R E Kemp
Mr B L Lazenby
Mr N MacMaster
Dr M R Miller
Mr J M Owen
Mr D J Read
Mr N A Ridley
Mr J W Roberts
Mr D C Rose
Mrs W J Sadler
Mr J R A Sayers
Mr H N Todd
Mr G S White
Mrs S M Wigglesworth |
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The following Members were unable to be present:- Mr A C Bavington, Mr M P Booth, Mrs S Carpendale, Mr K Grimsey, Mr B D Hurren, Mr N H J Irwin, Mr C D Kerr, Mr J A B Long, Mr A E Pearce, Mr J J Quinlan, Mr C M Spence, Mr D L Wood and Mr L H Young.
The proceedings were opened with Prayer.
61 MINUTES
RESOLVED
That the Minutes of the meeting held on 31 October 2006 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.
62 DECLARATION OF INTERESTS
None declared.
63 CHAIRMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENTS
Budget Council Meeting 2007
The Chairman referred to the change of date for the Council meeting in February 2007 which has been rescheduled from 23 to 26 February, by which time both the County Council and Police Authority precepts will be known.
Christmas
The Chairman extended Christmas wishes to all Members and informed them that mince pies would be available at coffee break. He also reminded Members of the invitation to meet with staff at 2.30pm.
Mr S Hogg
At the Chairman’s invitation, Mr Grutchfield advised Members of the death of Stanley Hogg, a former Ward Member for Hadleigh.
64 TO RECEIVE NOTIFICATION OF PETITIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH COUNCIL PROCEDURE RULE NO. 13
In accordance with Council Procedure Rule No. 13 it was noted that the following petitions had been received:-
Clockhouse Farm, Cavendish Lane, Glemsford – Application for Certificate of Lawfulness of an existing use – B/06/01611/CEU
Petition signed by approximately 34 residents in support of the application to allow continued use of a holiday site and caravan and motor home storage which was reported to the meeting of the Development Committee on 6 December 2006 and will be considered by the appropriate officer when taking the decision under the delegated powers.
Felling of Beech Tree in Abbey Road / 112 Melford Road Sudbury
Petition signed by approximately 32 residents against the felling of a Beech tree which was reported to the meeting of the Development Committee on 6 December 2006 and was taken into account by the appropriate Officer under the delegated powers when deciding whether to make a Tree Preservation Order.
65 RECOMMENDATIONS AND REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES
(a) Review of Call-in (Strategy Committee Minute No. 56 and Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee – 11 December 2006)
Ms J Jenkins, Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee presented the recommendations of the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee and of the Strategy Committee. She referred to the background to Strategy Committee’s seven recommendations and the further discussion on the two matters which Strategy Committee had referred to the Joint meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees. Recommendations (1) to (9) on the Agenda were then moved by Ms Jenkins, seconded by Mr N A Ridley, Chairman of the Strategy Committee, and agreed by Members.
RESOLVED
(1) That a minimum of any five Overview and Scrutiny Committee Members be needed to trigger a call-in request.
(2) That the Chairmen of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees be excluded from signing call-in requests.
(3) That a call-in request form be introduced as set out in Appendix 3 to Paper F103 and that requests received by fax or e-mail be acceptable.
(4) That the Head of Corporate Services, in consultation with the Monitoring Officer and the Chairmen of both Overview and Scrutiny Committees, should decide which would be the most appropriate (having regard to the terms of reference of the Committees) Overview and Scrutiny Committee to deal with a matter the subject of a call-in.
(5) That any Member making a request for call-in has the right to attend and speak at the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee considering the matter.
(6) That Babergh’s procedures be streamlined so that the appropriate Overview and Scrutiny Committee can either refer a called-in matter back to the Strategy Committee, or refer the matter to Council. Further that the Council makes the final decision or refers the matter back to the Strategy Committee.
(7) That the new procedures be implemented with immediate effect and reviewed after one year.
(8) That Appendix 2 to Paper F138 be adopted as part of the Council’s Constitution relating to call-in, subject to the deletion of the bullet point on Page 1 of Protocol 2 which reads
- ‘The decision commits the Council to expenditure exceeding £100,000’
(9) That the Head of Corporate Services be authorised to make appropriate amendments to the Constitution in accordance with Recommendation (8) above, together with any consequential amendments which may be required.
(b) Babergh’s Statement of Community Involvement – Adoption (Strategy Committee Minute No. 62)
In response to a question, Mike Hammond Corporate Director confirmed that a briefing note would be prepared for Parishes in relation to Parish and Community Plans, and that SALC would be asked about the possibility of holding joint workshops on the subject.
RESOLVED
That the revised Statement of Community Involvement attached to Paper F123 be adopted.
66 NOTICE OF MOTION
The following Motion, of which due notice had been given under Council Procedure Rule No 16, was moved by Mr R E Kemp and seconded by Mr D G Grutchfield:-
“That Babergh District Council offers its Brown Bin Garden Waste Collection Service free to persons who are registered disabled on the basis that, because they may not have the physical ability to compost or dispose of their garden waste, they do not have the choice available to non-disabled persons and therefore have no alternative but to pay for a collection service.”
Mr Kemp, in explaining the background to the Motion, referred to a letter he had received from the West Suffolk Voluntary Association for the Blind raising issues relating to the Disability Equality Duty which comes into force alongside the Disability Discrimination Act. He also quoted current practice for the provision of green waste collection services by some Suffolk Local Authorities.
Members were advised of the Council’s normal practice when considering Notices of Motion on which further information was required relating to financial, policy and other aspects. The Motion, with an officer report on such aspects, is referred to the relevant Committee(s) for consideration and an appropriate recommendation made to a future meeting of the Council. Mr Kemp and his seconder agreed that the intention of the Notice of Motion was to request investigation by the appropriate Committee(s) before reporting back for consideration by the Council.
RESOLVED
That Mr Kemp’s Notice of Motion be referred to the Overview and Scrutiny (Community Services) Committee and the Strategy Committee for investigation and report back to a future meeting of the Council.
67 QUESTIONS FROM THE PUBLIC
None received.
68 QUESTIONS FROM MEMBERS
None received.
69 THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT WHITE PAPER – POSSIBLE PATHFINDER BID FOR SUFFOLK
Patricia Rockall, Chief Executive, introduced Paper F139 and referred to the Government’s intention to strengthen community leadership and achieve further efficiencies through a more radical approach in current two/three tier areas. Members were aware that Ipswich Borough Council is applying for Unitary status, and the Chief Executive explained the timing for the submission and consideration of Unitary and Pathfinder bids. The Chairman of the Strategy Committee, Nick Ridley, referred to the current position on preparing the Suffolk bid, and the options, as referred to in Recommendation 2. of Paper F139, for considering it at either an additional meeting of the Council in January, or at the scheduled meeting of the Strategy Committee on 11 January. After discussion, it was decided that Recommendations 1. and 5. of Paper F139 should be accepted, with consideration of Recommendations 3. and 4. being deferred for consideration at an additional Council meeting to be held immediately prior to the January Strategy Committee.
RESOLVED
(1) That Babergh District Council supports and participates in the development of proposals to pioneer, as a pathfinder, new models of working in Suffolk in accordance with the vision and general principles set out in Paper F139.
(2) That in accordance with resolution (1) above, the Council supports the submission of a pathfinder bid and agrees to hold an extraordinary meeting of the Council to give endorsement to the bid document prior to the 25 January deadline for submissions to Government. Further that the extraordinary Council meeting be held on 11 January 2007 commencing at 9am.
(3) That to facilitate the development of such detailed proposals, the Chief Executive be authorised to prepare joint discussion papers with other Suffolk Councils for use in internal and external consultation and discussions with Government.
(4) That Recommendations 3. and 4. of Paper F139 be deferred for consideration at the extraordinary Council meeting on 11 January.
70 TIMETABLE OF MEETINGS 2007/08
Members had before them the draft Timetable (Paper F140) prepared by the Head of Corporate Services and which had been subject to consultation with Management Team, Heads of Service and Political Group Leaders.
RESOLVED
(1) That the Timetable of Meetings for 2007/08 set out in Paper F140 be approved, subject to the following amendments:-
- Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee to be rescheduled from Tuesday 28 August 2007 to Wednesday 29 August 2007.
- The Joint meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees to be rescheduled from Monday, 10 December 2007 to Tuesday, 11 December 2007.
(2) That the Members’ Seminar arranged for 22 November 2007 be included, for information, on the Timetable.
71 EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC (WHICH TERM INCLUDES THE PRESS)
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 this item, it was likely that there would be the disclosure to them of exempt information as indicated against the item.
The Council was also satisfied that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.
72 CATERING FACILITIES AT CORKS LANE HADLEIGH (Exempt information by virtue of Paragraphs 1 and 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972)
Mr J M Owen, Mr P K Beer, Mr D G Grutchfield and Mr R E Kemp all declared personal interests in this item by virtue of being Members of Suffolk County Council, of which Suffolk County Catering is a Business Unit.
Mike Hammond, Corporate Director, introduced the report of the Head of Contract and Asset Management (Paper F141) asking Members to consider extending the existing contract for a limited period pending a review of future options for the catering service.
RESOLVED
(1) That the current catering contract with Suffolk County Catering (Business Unit of Suffolk County Council) be extended from 1 January 2007 to 30 June 2007 under the terms offered by the Contractor.
(2) That Contracts Procedure Rules Nos. 3, 4, 5 and 6 be waived to allow the extension to be granted without the need for competitive tendering.
The business of the meeting was concluded at 11.15 a.m.
Chairman
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