Agenda and minutes

The members had before them:

A.    The Agenda papers (previously circulated);

B.    6 questions submitted to the Assistant Director for Legal and Governance (previously circulated); and

C.   The Minutes of the meeting held on 12 January 2023 (previously circulated).

To receive apologies and invite any councillor to declare any interest in any of the items on the agenda.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs Salman Akbar, Martin Allen, Aled Luckman, Richard Morris, Jack Satterthwaite, Kit Taylor, and Craig Warhurst.

To allow a member of the public to present a petition, or ask a question relating to the functions of the Council, or to make a comment on any matter on the agenda.

Members of the public wishing to take part should notify the Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Manager in writing or by e-mail indicating both the nature and content of their proposed participation no later than 9.00am on the working day before the meeting (in this case, 15 February). Further details are available on the Council’s website. Enquiries can also be made through the telephone number/e-mail address listed in this agenda and on the website.

None.

To approve as a correct record and authorise the signing of the Minutes of the meeting held on 12 January 2023 (previously circulated electronically).

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the meeting held on 12 January 2023 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any announcements to be made by the Chairman.

The Chairman informed Council that Sheena Jones, Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Manager and Michael Hudson, Chief Financial Officer were both leaving the Council in March 2023. He thanked them both for their contribution to the work of the Council and wished them well for the future.

Noted.

To consider the reports of the Cabinet and to receive answers to any questions asked on those reports as follows:

a)    Reports of Cabinet – Matters which require a decision; and

b)    Report of Cabinet – Summary of decisions taken.

Council considered the 2023/24 proposed budget and Medium-Term Financial Plan 2024/25 to 2026/27.

The Leader of the Council introduced the report and moved the recommendation as set out in paragraph 1 of the report; this was seconded by Cllr Marcus Hart, the Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Communities. The Leader commented that the net budget for 2023/24 had increased to over £400m. In addition, the capital programme totalled approximately £430m. He thanked all those who had contributed to the budget-making process including contributors at the County Roadshows, scrutiny members, MPs, staff and stakeholders. The budget would improve services, invest in the county, and help residents and businesses deal with all the challenges that were collectively being faced.

He added that the backdrop to the budget was the increasing demand-led pressures in Adult Social Care, pay and contract inflation, higher home-to-school contract costs, a tighter labour market, considerable cost and supply issues on capital projects and the impact of a growing county. Cumulative pressures totalled approximately £67m and these proposals addressed them with three key elements: Government funding, Council Tax and the reform programme.

He considered that the local government settlement was one of the best in many years providing significant additional resources totalling £26.3m with more money particularly for Adult Social Care. This was on top of the 3-year extension of the high-needs deficit payments and record investment in schools. Residents would be asked to contribute more through Council Tax with a rise of 2.94% together with a 2% precept ring-fenced for Adult Social Care. The additional income would contribute an extra £14m. The rise was half the rate of the Consumer Price Index inflation. The Council continued to set one of the lowest levels of Council Tax in the country for comparable councils. The efficiency and reform programme totalled £22m. A quarter of that total had resulted from the excellent stewardship of the Pension Fund which following the triannual review had lowered employer contributions without impacting on pensions.

This significant package would ensure that the Council provided adequate resources to protect the most vulnerable members of society, meet rising costs and fulfil the Council’s core duties. The budget sought to address the public’s priorities as outlined in the residents’ viewpoint survey including better roads and pavements, tackling congestion and transport.

The budget included further capital funding of £19m to keep the county’s highways in top condition for all users, negating the impact of inflation, to deliver the targets in last year’s budget. The capital programme included cutting congestion schemes, major infrastructure upgrades and funding for Redditch Railway Station and improvements to other rail stations. In total, an additional £5.5m of revenue to fund the cost of borrowing had been included to deliver projects set out in the 3-year programme agreed last year in relation to the economy, environment, school places and highways. It also included the roll out and completion of LED lighting, planting of 150k trees, contribution to flood defences and mitigation works, highways drainage and support for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2423.

The Leader of the Council reported the following topics and questions were answered on them:

·         Request to Consult in Relation to Care and Support

·         Education Sufficiency Annual Update

·         Digital Infrastructure and Connectivity.

To receive the report of the Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Manager on any Notices of Motion received by her.

Councillors are asked to note that any Notices of Motion must be received by the Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Manager no later than noon on 7 February 2023.

As required by paragraph 29.3 in Appendix 2 of the Constitution (Procedural Standing Orders), any proposal to alter or amend the Procedure Rules is, once proposed and seconded, adjourned to the next meeting of the Council to receive a report from the Monitoring Officer. This Monitoring Officer report covered two Notices of Motion deferred from the Council meeting on 12 January 2023 which propose changes to the Procedure Rules.

Council agreed that the Council consider the report as part of debating the Notices of Motion relating to:

a)    removing the time limit for considering Notices of Motion, CMR reports, and Questions, and

b)    the process for Amendments to Motions,

noting the advice about validity set out in the report, and

If the Council decided to amend the constitution, the Monitoring Officer was authorised to update the Constitution accordingly.

Notice of Motion 1 - to change the constitution – Process for amendments and removal of time limits at the meeting

Those in favour of the Motion commented:

·         There were few opportunities for ‘back bench’ councillors to influence policy and ask questions in public. There were occasions when there was time for Council meeting to be expanded without time limits

·         The purpose of the original motion in 2016 was to better utilise the knowledge and experience of, and give a voice to non-Cabinet members. However, the scrutiny exercise turned into a debate about meetings being too long and how could they be shortened. This motion was aimed at returning to the ethos of the original motion and improve the level of debate. The time limit meant on occasion that time ran out to consider timely and important motions

·         Full Council meetings were the chief forum for councillors to discuss key issues. The time-limit rules had been tested and had failed, resulting in motions not being debated, questions unasked and decisions not being taken

·         It was not good practice to effectively limit discussion of motions by Council to 9 hour per annum.

Those against the Motion commented:

·         A cross-party member group had been established to examine this process and as a result these time limits had been democratically approved by Council. Times had changed and the Council needed to change. There was no reason to return to previous working practices

·         The Council could be considering more important issues to local residents at this meeting rather discussing the organisation of debate

·         The current system worked well and there were plenty of opportunities for councillors to contribute. Members could raise issues with the Leader and Cabinet members at any time.

On being put to the vote, the Motion was lost.

Notice of Motion 2 - Process for Amendments to Motions

Those in favour of the Motion commented:

·         Advanced notice of amendments gave members the opportunity to read them, consider them and come to a sensible conclusion. At present, amendments were handed out at the last minute with little opportunity to absorb them which was not good governance. It did not seem onerous for amendments to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2425.

The Council had before it a Notice of Motion set out in the agenda papers standing in the names of Cllr Beverley Nielsen, Cllr Matt Jenkins, and Cllr Tom Wells.

The motion was moved by Cllr Beverley Nielsen and seconded by Cllr Matt Jenkins who both spoke in favour of it, and Council agreed to deal with it on the day.

The following amendment was moved by Cllr Mike Rouse and seconded by Cllr Marc Bayliss:

“By facilitating cycle integration with train travel through enhanced cycle parking facilities at train stations, we as County Councillors will, in turn, help to deliver improved modal choice for the travelling public. Council calls on the Cabinet Member with Responsibility to bring a report to Cabinet to outline how County Councillors can support improvements to active travel facilities at train stations, including potential use of their Divisional and/or Highways funding, which can be matched from a range of sources and be deployed in partnership with partners and other organisations for best effect and compliance with prevailing standards, details of which should be included in the report.”

The mover and seconder of the motion accepted the amendment and the motion as amended became the substantive motion. Members spoke in favour of the motion amendment with the following points being made:

·         Only approximately 1% of the Council’s budget would be spent on Active Travel. This motion aimed to improve the environment, health and well-being, lower emissions and cases of asthma and cut congestion and ask the Cabinet Member to bring a report to Council. It was disappointing that the amendment did not refer to the Travel England zero Active Travel rating because that reflected the scale of the problem and that reference to councillors driving a modal shift had also been removed

·         Travel England had given the Council a zero-rating for Active Travel. It was important to do as much as possible to improve this rating because it impacted on the Council’s ability to seek funding in the future. In particular, the cycle facilities at the county’s train stations were lacking

·         The Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Highways and Transport explained that the amendment removed hyperlinks and reduced the length of the motion without changing the overall meaning of it. He was happy to bring a report to Cabinet

·         A paid-for cycle locker facility had been introduced in liaison with Wychavon District Council at Pershore Railway Station. Members might wish to support similar facilities at their local railway stations

·         Local councillors had an important role in supporting active travel using divisional funds, not just in railway stations but across their division

·         A lot more work was required to get cycling and rail travel synchronised. However, there were also issues with the integration of bus travel and cycling

·         The standard and type of cycle locker facilities at railway stations needed to be reviewed to ensure that they were standardised, fit-for-purpose and safe

·         There did need to be dialogue with train operators to improve the experience for cyclists  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2426.

To receive the report of the Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Adult Social Care on current issues and proposed developments within his area of responsibility and to receive answers to any questions on the report.

The Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Adult Social Care presented his report to Council which covered various topics. He thanked staff in Adult Social Care for their work over the Christmas and New Year period to keep the Acute hospital and other domiciliary care services running in a satisfactory way. He also thanked the carers in the county for their efforts keeping people in their homes to live independent lives for longer.

The Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Adult Social Care answered a broad range of questions from members.

The Chairman thanked the Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Adult Social Care for his report.

To receive answers to any questions asked by Councillors.

(Members are reminded of the timescale adopted by Council for notice of questions. A Councillor may only ask a question if:

·         It is delivered in writing to the Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Managerby noon on 7 February 2023 or

·         If it relates to urgent business, the Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Manager is notified at least half an hour before the start of the meeting and the Chairman agrees the matter is urgent’.)

Six questions had been received by the Democratic Governance and Scrutiny Manager and had been circulated in advance of the meeting. The answers to all the questions are attached in the Appendix.

To consider the report of the Planning and Regulatory Committee and to receive answers to any questions asked on that report.

The Council received the report of the Planning and Regulatory Committee containing a summary of the decisions taken.