The Chairman will advise the meeting of the evacuation procedures to follow in the event of an emergency. This is particularly important for visitors and members of the public who will be unfamiliar with the building and procedures.

The Chairman will inform the meeting whether there is a planned evacuation drill due to take place, what the alarm sounds like (i.e. ringing bells), where the closest emergency exit route is, and where the second closest emergency exit route is, in the event that the closest exit or route is blocked.

The Chairman will inform the meeting that:

(a) in the event of the alarm sounding, everybody must leave the building via the nearest safe available exit and gather at the Assembly points at the far side of the Car Park; and

(b) the lifts must not be used in the event of an evacuation.

Any officers present at the meeting will aid with the evacuation.

It is important that the Chairman is informed of any person attending who is disabled or unable to use the stairs, so that suitable arrangements may be made in the event of an emergency.

The Chairman drew attention to the Fire Evacuation Procedure.

To approve the Minutes of the Meeting held on 28 September 2016 (Minute Nos. 895 - 899) as a correct record.

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 28 September 2016 (Minute Nos. 895 – 899) were taken as read, approved and signed by the Chairman as a correct record subject to the following inclusion to Minute No. 898: Under the heading Swale Green Grid Strategy the following comment from a Member be included ‘the name ‘Green Grid’ did not truly reflect what it is and a better name should be considered’.

Councillors should not act or take decisions in order to gain financial or other material benefits for themselves or their spouse, civil partner or person with whom they are living with as a spouse or civil partner.  They must declare and resolve any interests and relationships.

The Chairman will ask Members if they have any interests to declare in respect of items on this agenda, under the following headings:

(a)          Disclosable Pecuniary Interests (DPI) under the Localism Act 2011.  The nature as well as the existence of any such interest must be declared.  After declaring a DPI, the Member must leave the meeting and not take part in the discussion or vote.  This applies even if there is provision for public speaking.

(b)          Disclosable Non Pecuniary (DNPI) under the Code of Conduct adopted by the Council in May 2012.  The nature as well as the existence of any such interest must be declared.  After declaring a DNPI interest, the Member may stay, speak and vote on the matter.

(c)          Where it is possible that a fair-minded and informed observer, having considered the facts would conclude that there was a real possibility that the Member might be predetermined or biased the Member should declare their predetermination or bias and then leave the room while that item is considered.

Advice to Members:  If any Councillor has any doubt about the existence or nature of any DPI or DNPI which he/she may have in any item on this agenda, he/she should seek advice from the Director of Corporate Services as Monitoring Officer, the Head of Legal or from other Solicitors in Legal Services as early as possible, and in advance of the Meeting.

No interests were declared.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and the Revenues and Benefits Manager – Technical & Financial have been invited to attend for this item.  (Report to-follow).

The Chairman welcomed the Cabinet Member for Finance and Performance, Head of Resident Services and Revenue and Benefits Manager (Technical and Financial) to the meeting.  He explained that the Council Tax Support (CTS) Scheme was introduced in 2013 to replace Council Tax Benefit (CTB).  The local scheme needed to be approved by Full Council by 31 January 2017.  He explained that the purpose of the report was to note the outcome of the public consultation and he drew attention to Appendices I, II and III of the report.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Performance stated that it had been a struggle to put the CTS Scheme together and thanked officers, in particular, the Revenue and Benefits Manager for her hard work on what had been a difficult task.  He stated that the 85% payment from people on benefits was higher than he had expected and demonstrated that the Council had “got it right”.  He spoke about the importance of ensuring that the scheme was easy for people to understand and also that the computer software was easy for staff to operate and process claims.

The Revenue and Benefits Manager explained that officers from Swale had worked with authorities across Kent to design a CTS scheme.  In response to a query, she advised that it had been down to each Council to come up with their own recommendations and they varied across each authority.

In response to a query from a Member, the Revenue and Benefits Manager advised that the administrative fee paid by the major preceptors had not been withdrawn, but replaced.  She explained that all authorities would receive a £70,000 fee, but Swale had a higher caseload, so was likely to receive an additional £74,000.

Q - A Member asked whether alternatives such as increasing Council Tax or using reserves had been considered?

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Performance stated that he was reluctant to use reserves and that it was important that people paid now.  He also thought it would be dangerous to set a precedent now which could have consequences for the Council in the future.  

The Chairman drew attention to Table 2 on page 5 of the report which set out proposed amendments to the CTS Options.  Members considered each of the recommendations.

Option 1 – Reducing the maximum level of support for working age applicants from 85 % to 81.5% or 80%.

The Revenue and Benefits Manager introduced the item and Members raised the following questions:

Q – How much was the 81.5% to 80% figure guided by the tipping point of 21% to 25%

The Revenue and Benefits Manager reported that they were mindful of the limits and considered that this was a realistic figure.

Q – What would the increase in cost be for a person in a Band D property, if the charge was increased from 15% to 20%

Discussion ensued and the Revenue and Benefits Manager agreed to forward this information to the Committee. 

Q – What effect would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 963.

The Committee is asked to review and discuss the Committee’s Work Programme (report to-follow) for the remainder of the year.

The Policy and Performance Officer drew attention to the tabled report which set-out the policies, plans and strategies due to be reviewed by the Committee.  He explained that a lot of policies were coming forward for consideration at the latter part of the municipal year.

The Chairman advised that as there were currently no items for consideration at the 29 November 2016 meeting, it was likely to be cancelled.  There was also a strong likelihood that a new meeting would be arranged for either February/March 2017.  The Chairman advised that he would liaise with the Policy and Performance Officer and update Members as soon as possible.

A Member requested a review on 10 and 12 month occupancy of holiday homes and clarity about why it varied across the Borough.  The Policy and Performance Officer referred to the Terms of Reference (TOR) of the Committee and that it had no provision to instigate reviews of policies itself.    He drew attention to paragraph (v) of the PDRC TOR which stated “provide pre-decision comment on policy decisions”. 

The Chairman agreed to liaise with the relevant Cabinet Member to see if he was happy to refer the item to the Committee for discussion.

Resolved:

(1)  That the schedule of policies, plans and strategies due for review be noted.