The Mayor reminded all Members to behave properly and considerately at all times and warned that if any Member deliberately disrupted the conduct of the meeting he would move that the Member not to be heard further.

The Mayor further encouraged Members to be considerate when using mobile devices for Social Media purposes so as not to become a distraction to others during the meeting.

Before the start of the meeting the Mayor reflected on a recent sad event in which Mr. Wayne Benson, a Thurrock Council employee, sadly passed away as a result of a traffic accident whilst he was at work.

Reverend Barlow led the Chamber in prayer and a minute’s silence was observed in Mr. Benson’s memory.

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting of the Council, held on 28 January 2015.

Councillor Snell questioned why an outburst made by a Member at the previous meeting was not recorded in the minutes.

The Mayor advised that the minutes provided were a narrative record of the business transacted at the meeting, and a copy of the resolutions passed by those present. It was explained that they must comply with legal and procedural requirements whilst being selective and not to attempt a verbatim record. The Mayor further added that for meetings of Council a separate verbatim record of public questions and Members question time were included as Appendix A to the minutes.

The Mayor further informed the Chamber that although the exact comments from this particular outburst were not detailed in the minutes, an audio recording of the last meeting had been made available publicly online through the Council’s website.

The Minutes of the Council meeting, held on 28 January 2015, were approved as a correct record.

To receive additional items that the Mayor is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency, in accordance with Section 100B (4) (b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

The Mayor informed the Council that he had not agreed to the consideration of any items of urgent business.

To receive any declaration of interests from Members.

There were no interests declared.

The Mayor informed the Chamber that he did not wish to make any announcements this month.

The Leader of the Council had no announcements that he wished to make.

In accordance with Chapter 2, Part 2 (Rule 14) of the Council’s Constitution.

A copy of the transcript of questions and answers can be viewed online at http://democracy.thurrock.gov.uk/thurrock .

In accordance with Chapter 2, Part 2(Rule 14) of the Council’s Constitution.

The Mayor informed Members that, in accordance with the Council’s Petition Scheme, the requisite notice had been given by one member of the public and four Councillors who wished to present a petition at the meeting.

Mrs McPherson presented a petition on behalf of residents, which called on the Council to investigate imaginative library provision rather than the suggestions included in the ‘Future of Library Service’ survey and outlined that they were against the proposal for the closure of libraries, including the mobile library.

Councillor Speight presented a petition on behalf of 3148 residents, which called on the Council not to close any libraries in Thurrock. In presenting the petition Councillor Speight read out a letter that had been received from a young library user which praised the service for the opportunities it provided.

Councillor Baldwin presented a petition on behalf of residents of London Road, which called on the Council to improve residents parking facilities in London Road, Tilbury due to problems caused by parking from users of the Sure Start Centre and local Doctor’s Surgery.

Councillor Purkiss presented a petition on behalf of residents which called on the Council not to close East Tilbury Library.

Councillor Purkiss further advised that he wished to submit a further petition regarding the proposal to withdraw the 374 bus service but that he would raise this later in the meeting.

Councillor S. Little presented a petition on behalf of Horndon residents, which called on the Council to continue to run the 374 bus service which was a lifeline to residents travelling to Basildon and Orsett Hospitals. In presenting the petition Councillor Little explained that 67 signatures had been obtained on one bus journey.

Members received a report on the status of those petitions handed in at Council Meetings and Council Offices over the past six months.

The Council are asked to agree any changes to the appointments made to committees and outside bodies, statutory and other panels, as requested by Group Leaders.

The Mayor enquired whether Group Leaders wished for any changes to be made to the appointments previously made to Committees and outside bodies, statutory and other panels.

The Leader of the UKIP Group informed the Chamber that he wished to make the following changes:

·         for Councillor Snell to be appointed as a member of the Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Committee to replace Councillor Ray.

·         for Councillor J. Baker to be appointed as a substitute member of the Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Committee to replace Councillor Snell.

·         for Councillor C. Baker to be appointed as a member of the General Services Committee to replace Councillor Ray.

·         for Councillor Snell to be appointed as a substitute member of the General Services Committee to replace Councillor C. Baker.

·         for Councillor Jones to be appointed as a member of the Joint Appointments Committee to replace Councillor Ray.

·         for Councillor Snell to be appointed as a member of the Licensing Committee to replace Councillor Ray.

·         for Councillor J. Baker to be appointed as a substitute member of the Licensing Committee to replace Councillor Snell.

·         for Councillor Snell to be appointed as a substitute member of the Planning, Transport and Regeneration Overview and Scrutiny Committee to replace Councillor Ray.

The leaders of the Labour, Conservative and Independent Groups confirmed that they did not wish to make any changes to appointments that had previously been made.

RESOLVED:

1.         That Councillor Snell be appointed as a member of the Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

2.         That Councillor J. Baker be appointed as a substitute member of the Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

3.         That Councillor C. Baker be appointed as a member of the General Services Committee.

4.         That Councillor Snell be appointed as a substitute member of the General Services Committee.

5.         That Councillor Jones be appointed as a member of the Joint Appointments Committee.

6.         That Councillor Snell be appointed as a member of the Licensing Committee.

7.         That Councillor J. Baker be appointed as a substitute member of the Licensing Committee.

8.         That Councillor Snell be appointed as a substitute member of the Planning, Transport and Regeneration Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Councillor J. Kent, the Leader of the Council, introduced the report which set out the proposals for the Prudential Indicators, reviewed the borrowing and investment strategies, amended the Annual Minimum Revenue Provision Statement and outlined a draft Treasury Management Budget for 2015/16. He advised the Chamber that the report had been debated at Cabinet.

In response the Leader of the Opposition raised concerns about the year on year increase in taxpayers underwriting borrowing and opposed the proposed delegation to Cabinet for borrowing and Prudential Indicators in relation to Gloriana.

The Leader of the Opposition advised the Chamber that he felt uncomfortable delegating such decisions and that when borrowing and lending significant sums to Gloriana, it was important that every elected Member had an opportunity to scrutinise these decisions at full Council. As a result he proposed that recommendation 1.1 b) be amended to negate any delegated decision.

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition echoed the sentiments raised regarding delegating decisions to Cabinet and felt that all Members had a right to vote on any budgetary measure. He added that he did not want to see further decisions delegated to Cabinet and that these should instead be taken at Council.

Councillor Johnson further echoed the sentiments raised and felt that more detailed budgetary information should have been provided so that Members could be clear on how the money would be spent.

In response the Leader of the Council emphasised that the Constitution, which had been agreed by all Members, clearly set out the rules and scheme of delegation and that Opposition Members had an opportunity to be involved in decision making and governance in relation to Gloriana through the cross-party Partnering Board.

The Leader of the Council further reported that detailed reports relating to the budget, borrowing strategies and Gloriana had regularly been submitted to Cabinet and relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committees and as a result there had been considerable opportunity for Members to submit questions or call-in decisions if they objected to any of the proposals.

The Leader of the Opposition felt that asking questions at Cabinet had little effect and that the Call-In process was diluted because of the fact that Labour Group Members held the positions of Chair on Overview and Scrutiny Committees.

The Leader of the Opposition further reported that all Members should better understand the risks and proposed that recommendation 1.1 b) be removed, which was seconded by Councillor Halden.

Councillor Worrall, Cabinet Member for Housing, commended the work and aims of Gloriana and expressed her frustration that this was being challenged at such a late stage, when there had been significant opportunity to raise any objections through the cross-party Partnering Board for Gloriana, Cabinet and Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Councillor Ojetola advised Members that he was not in objection of the work of Gloriana, but he questioned the financial control responsibilities of Cabinet and stated that decisions should rest with all Members rather than just 9 Cabinet Members.

Councillor Morris-Cook felt  ...  view the full minutes text for item 104.

The Mayor invited the Leader of the Council to introduce the budget and advised that he had 20 minutes to do so.

Councillor J. Kent

Thank you Mr Mayor.  This is the 5th budget that I have had the privilege of introducing in this Chamber and before I started drafting what it was I wanted to say this evening, I thought it be just instructive to look back at the Agenda for this meeting in February 2010.  I did so, because I am often accused from going on about the government cuts because this is a labour administration dealing with a conservative government.  In February 2010, we of course had a conservative administration and a labour government.  So it is interesting to look and see what the situation was like then.

While it is always difficult to compare directly because governments change the way in which they hand out grants and councils get new responsibilities given to them, at some times but not always with extra money attached, the language used in that report is always interesting. 

So in 2010 the Agenda stated, and I quote “the formula grant for 2010/11 is £59.76 million, this is a 3% or £1.75 million increase over 2009/10 on a like for like basis”.  A 3% increase.  Mr Mayor a 3% increase.  It continues, in 2010/11 the Council is anticipating the receipt of £9.998 million of area based grant and £25.132 million of specific and special grants.  This is a like for like increase of approximately 2.3% and 11.1% respectively over 2009/10.  Mr Mayor a like for like increase of approximately 2.3%  and 11.1% and even then conservative members complained that the government wasn’t being generous enough to Thurrock Council. 

Now I am not saying that the word increase isn’t used this year, it is.  Here is an example - in this settlement, £9 million of health related funding previously financed by the Thurrock Clinical Commissioning Group has been included within the 2015/16 spending power, thus increasing the headline amount available for local authority services despite most of this money going to fund NHS services locally rather than being available to the Council.

My favourite increase reference is in the recommendation, that this council confirms the Council Tax Band D for 2015/16 at £1,124.64 representing a 0% increase.  Mr Mayor, that was a difficult decision.  In fact, probably the last in a very long line of difficult decisions that we have had to take in the past few months in setting this budget.  I believe that this budget is balanced and has been the toughest that I have ever been involved in setting here at the Council and yes, I will say it again, instead of increases, the past 5 years have been a non-stop catalogue of cut after cut after cut.

If we look back at that settlement in 2010 and even leave aside the other grants that this Authority received back then, we today, get over £30 million less in government funding  ...  view the full minutes text for item 105.

Councillor Lynn Worrall, Cabinet Member for Housing, introduced the report which identified the changes within the base estimates between 2014/15 and 2015/16 and the investment in the planned maintenance programme.

Councillor Gledhill welcomed the report which he felt was open and transparent, but requested that the Cabinet Member further consider:

·         The reduction in Central Heating charges by 5% to further assist residents, especially during the cold winter months.

·         To reopen the popular assisted gardening scheme, which he believed would incur no additional cost if managed well.

·         To explore the possibility of providing one property for 4 homeless ex-service men or women to support them back into the community, as part of the work undertaken in relation to the Veteran’s Charter.

At 9.16pm, the Mayor moved a motion to suspend Council Procedure Rule 11.1 to allow the meeting to continue beyond the 2 ½ hour time limit until 10pm. Members indicated their agreement to the proposal.

Councillor Ojetola welcomed the report and expressed his support for the additional proposals raised by Councillor Gledhill. He asked the Portfolio Holder to provide further information on the success of the downsizing initiative.

Councillor Halden seconded Councillor Gledhill’s proposed recommendations and welcomed the comprehensive financial information that was detailed within the report.

The Cabinet Member summed up the debate and made the following comments:

·         That she believed she could find the money within the budget to agree the 5% reduction in central heating charges and agreed to reopen the assisted gardening programme, which she recognised was an invaluable resource to some residents.

·         That the proposal regarding the dedicated Veteran’s House should be referred to the Housing Overview and Scrutiny Committee to determine whether the option was viable and scope out the necessary terms and conditions.

·         That detailed information on the success of the downsizing programme was regularly reported to the Housing Overview and Scrutiny Committee, however that she would instruct officers to circulate a one page update in relation to this initiative to advise Members on the criteria.

RESOLVED:

That the Council:

1.         Agree the budget changes be included in the base budget for 2015/16.

2.         Increase domestic rents by an average of 2.2%, in line with the 30-year HRA business plan from 6 April 2015

3.         Agree a 2.2% increase in de-pooled service charges for 2015/16

4.         Agree a 2.2% increase in garage rents for 2015/16

5.         Agree a 5% reduction in charges relating to central heating in 2015/16

6.         Agree a 2.2% increase in Travellers sites rents

Councillor C. Kent left the meeting at 9.23pm.

(i)         The report of Councillor Victoria Holloway, Cabinet Member for Central Services, is enclosed.

(ii)        The report of Councillor Lynn Worrall, Cabinet Member for Housing, is enclosed.

Councillor Holloway, Cabinet Member for Central Services, introduced the report and, in doing so, highlighted some of the key achievements of the Portfolio, which included:

·         The continual improvements to the website which enabled residents to transact more business online.

·         The planned roll out for Universal Credit.

·         The success of the counter fraud investigation service.

·         The success of the shared legal service which was highly commended as a finalist in the Municipal Journal Achievement Awards for 2014.

·         That over 1000 staff had been enabled to work flexibly and over 3000 training days had been provided.

Members questioned the Cabinet Member and received responses as follows:

·         Councillor Gledhill commended the work of the counter fraud investigation service and questioned how much this service had saved the public purse.

The Cabinet Member appreciated the recognition of the service but advised that she would need to investigate the figures and report back outside of the meeting.

·         Councillor Halden commended the fact that Thurrock paid 94.6% of invoices within 30 days and asked whether the Portfolio Holder had any information on which services were delivered locally in the Borough so that they could be included in tender exercises.

The Cabinet Member advised that she did not have a specific figure of how many invoices were paid to local businesses, but assured Members that all small and medium sized local businesses were encouraged to tender for work that the local authority needed.

·         Councillor Hebb acknowledged the good work that had been undertaken to improve the Council’s website and questioned what was being done to monitor and act upon feedback from local residents about the performance of the Council.

The Cabinet Member advised that feedback was obtained through a variety of forms, which included online, face to face and telephone transactions and that this was used as a measure against Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) which facilitated change.

·         Councillor Ojetola recognised that compliments often went unreported and commended the successes of the service, but raised a concern that the introduction of assessing and categorising ‘concerns’ in addition to ‘complaints’ diluted the reporting procedure.

The Cabinet Member felt that it was right to introduce a pre-stage reporting procedure of ‘concerns’ but assured Members that these were given the same weight as a stage 1 complaint. She felt it was more important that enquiries were categorised better so that appropriate action could be taken more promptly.

·         Councillor B. Little supported the Council’s move to conduct business online but questioned what was being done to assist residents who may not have access to computers or who struggle with IT.

The Cabinet Member observed that sometimes residents were underestimated in their abilities to use technology and often people of all ages and abilities were happy to transact business online, however for those residents that preferred to contact the Council by phone or post this was still an option.

·         Councillor S. Little was concerned that the hot desking arrangements in place were not appropriate for some teams which could negatively affect their performance.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 107.

Councillor Lynn Worrall, Cabinet Member for Housing, introduced the report and, in doing so, highlighted some of the key achievements of the Portfolio, which included:

·         The improvement in quality of repairs and voids and the reduction of the turnaround of void properties from 100 days to 30 days.

·         The success of the transforming homes programme and that 38% of homes had been transformed.

·         The work that had been achieved to reduce damp and mould, which included the completion of 1500 damp and mould surveys.

·         The improvement of private sector homes through the Well Homes Programme.

·         That tenancies were being managed well and 96% of tenants paid rent regularly.

·         That 141 residents were working on programmes through the social value initiative, 25 apprenticeships had been completed or underway and 50 young people Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET’s) had completed pathway programmes.

Members questioned the Portfolio Holder and received responses on the following matters:

·         Councillor Gledhill commended the work that had achieved but was concerned that although the statistics looked positive it meant that there were still 1 in 5 residents not happy with a repair and 1 in 4 not happy with the Transforming Homes programme. He asked the Portfolio Holder what was being done to improve satisfaction levels.

The Cabinet Member advised that she met with officers on a weekly basis to discuss repairs and examine what needed to be improved. Members were advised that an extensive customer slip system logged enquiries and a strong team was in place to respond to any issues.

·         Councillor Aker raised concerns about a homeless resident who required additional support and had no access to a computer.

The Cabinet Member advised that staff would always assist a resident who required help, which included providing assistance to the resident at the Council Offices in order to complete paperwork.

·         Councillor Halden asked the Portfolio Holder whether tenants were allowed to carry out repair and maintenance work themselves and not be bound by health and safety myths.

The Cabinet Member advised that she worked hard to dispel inaccuracies regarding health and safety rules.

·         Councillor G. Rice congratulated the Portfolio Holder on the work around Gloriana and asked whether additional support could be offered to elderly and vulnerable tenants in Chadwell to ensure that repairs and decoration works were carried out.

The Cabinet Member provided assurances that appropriate support would be provided.

·         Councillor Purkiss highlighted concerns with regard to the reporting of complaints and remarked that an individual case had come to his attention of a local resident who suffered from Damp and Mould despite all the appropriate remedial action being taken.

The Cabinet Member observed that the correct reporting of repairs was vital and stated that she would speak to the Member outside of the meeting in relation to the specific case.

In summing up the report the Cabinet Member informed the Chamber that:

·         A new process for the reporting of repairs was expected to be introduced on 2 March 2015 which meant that the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 108.

In accordance with Chapter 2, Part 2 (Rule 14) of the Council’s Constitution.

The Mayor informed the Chamber that four questions had been submitted to the Leader and a further five questions to Cabinet Members, Committee Chairs and Member appointed to represent the Council on a Joint Committee.

Due to time limitations the following Members withdrew their questions.

·         Councillor Aker asked to withdraw his questions to the Leader and Councillor Smith and requested that they be included on the agenda for the next meeting.

·         Councillors Speight and Jones withdrew their questions to the Leader as both had been answered during the course of the meeting.

·         Councillor Gledhill withdrew his question as he had since been updated on progress and did not want to jeopardise the discussions that were taking place with SERCO. He reported that he was in full agreement with the Leader of the Council and that he would resubmit his question for the following Council meeting if progress had not been made in the interim

·         Councillor C. Baker asked to withdraw his questions and requested that they be included on the agenda for the next meeting.

·         Councillor Hipsey asked for his question to Councillor Speight to be withdrawn and requested that it be included on the agenda for the next meeting.

A copy of the transcript of questions and answers can be found at Appendix A to these Minutes.

There were no reports from Members representing the Council on outside bodies.

The Minutes of Committees, as set out in the Agenda, were received.

Members received an information report updating them on progress in respect of Motions resolved at Council over the past year.

In accordance with Chapter 2, Part 2 (Rule 15) of the Council’s Constitution.

No motions had been submitted for debate.