Agenda and minutes

Venue: Swale House, East Street, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 3HT

Contact: Democratic Services, 01795 417330  Democratic Services Officer

Items
No. Item

356.

Prayers

Minutes:

The Mayor’s Chaplain said prayers.

357.

Emergency Evacuation Procedure

The Mayor 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 Mayor 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 Mayor 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.  Nobody must leave the assembly point until everybody can be accounted for and nobody must return to the building until the Mayor has informed them that it is safe to do so; 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 Mayor 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.

 

 

Minutes:

The Mayor outlined the emergency evacuation procedure.

358.

Minutes

To approve the Minutes of the Meeting held on 9 October 2019 (Minute Nos. 277 - 287) as a correct record.

Minutes:

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 9 October 2019 (Minute Nos. 277 – 287) were taken as read, approved and signed by the Mayor as a correct record.

359.

Declarations of Interest

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 Mayor 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 Monitoring Officer, the Head of Legal or from other Solicitors in Legal Services as early as possible, and in advance of the Meeting.

Minutes:

No interests were declared.

360.

Mayor's Announcements

Minutes:

There was a minute’s silence in memory of Gill Harris, Spatial Planning Manager, and past Member Mrs Sylvia Butt who both passed away recently.  The Leader paid tribute to Gill Harris, and another Member praised her work.  Councillor Lloyd Bowen spoke about former Councillor Butt’s work as a Councillor and advised that her funeral would take place at Bobbing Crematorium on 22 November at 11am.

 

The Mayor thanked the Members who represented the Borough Council at one of the many Remembrance Services held in the Borough.  He spoke of the higher attendance at services this year and noted the higher proportion of younger people attending.  He thanked the Royal British Legion for their organisation of so many services.

 

The Mayor advised that, between them, he and the Deputy Mayor had attended an average of one function per day over the previous month.  He highlighted the Swale Awards Gala, two 100th Birthday celebrations, the presentation of the Queen’s Award for Industry to Trinity Fencing, opening new businesses and attending Faversham Carnival as particular highlights.  He had also welcomed the new priest to the Church of the Sacred Heart in Sittingbourne as well as attending the inaugural meeting of the University of the Third Age at Sheerness.

 

As it was the last scheduled Council meeting before Christmas, the Mayor wished Members a Happy Christmas and reminded everyone that the Civic Christmas Service would be held at Borden Church on Saturday 21 December at 6.30pm, and all were welcome.

361.

Questions submitted by the Public pdf icon PDF 48 KB

To consider any questions submitted by the public.  (The deadline for questions is 4.30 pm on the Wednesday before the meeting – please contact Democratic Services by e-mailing democraticservices@swale.gov.uk or call 01795 417330).

 

Question topics added 11 November 2019.

Minutes:

The Mayor advised that two questions had been submitted and as Mr Tim Brown was unable to attend the meeting, his question (2) and response would be recorded in the minutes.  Hannah Temple was invited to ask her question.

 

Question 1:

“The Annual Treasury Management Report considered by Council in October revealed that the Council has £17.99m invested in money market funds managed by Invesco, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Black Rock, Aberdeen and Amundi. It is very likely that, through these funds, the Council has substantial investments in companies operating in the oil and gas, tobacco and arms industries whose business models are inconsistent with the Council's commitments to a low carbon future, its priority to improve public health and the Climate and Ecological Emergency motion that it passed in June.

Will the Council agree to review the investments it holds, and adopt an ethical investment policy which screens out investments that are incompatible with its values while still providing a sound financial investment for public funds?”

Response – Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Roger Truelove

 

Thank you for your question and it is an important one and it is good to have the opportunity to respond.

 

So firstly I would like to say that the Council does not directly own any shares in companies or corporate bonds. I am happy to confirm that if the strategy did change to allow investments of this type then it would exclude the types of company you refer to. I will ensure this is reflected in the treasury strategy for 2020/21.

 

The Council has a very careful approach to managing its cash and with the exception of the Church, Charities and Local Authorities (CCLA) Mutual Investment Property Fund we only use bank deposit accounts or Money Market Funds. We predominantly use Money Market Funds as they offer better returns than bank deposits and are more secure.

 

Money Market Funds are portfolios comprising of securities issued by governments and financial institutions. They are low risk ways of holding cash and they do not invest in equities or corporate bonds.

 

Supplementary Question and Response

 

Hannah Temple asked the Leader if the information on where the money was invested could become more transparent to the public?

 

The Leader replied that it would.

 

Question 2

 

“Why has free parking been allowed for remembrance services but not for Christmas shopping bearing in mind Councillor Valentine has stated that free parking will increase the number of cars into the town, which goes against the Council’s ‘Climate & Ecological Emergency’ statement?”

 

Response - Cabinet Member for Environment

 

Thank you for your question. My comment was included in the answer I gave at Council in response to a motion tabled by Councillor Hampshire. The motion called for free parking on 15 days in November and December and for shuttle bus services to be provided on one day. This proposal was costed at approximately £100,000. I have already provided you with a copy of research which showed clearly that free  ...  view the full minutes text for item 361.

362.

Questions submitted by Members pdf icon PDF 52 KB

To consider any questions submitted by Members.  (The deadline for questions is 4.30 pm on the Monday the week before the meeting – please contact Democratic Services by e-mailing democraticservices@swale.gov.uk or call 01795 417330).

 

Question topics added 11 November 2019.

Minutes:

The Mayor advised that seven questions had been received from Members.  Each Member was invited to put his/her question, which was responded to by the relevant Cabinet Member.  The questioner was then invited to ask a supplementary question.

 

Details of the questions and responses are set out below:

 

Question 1 – Councillor Steve Davey

 

“Are there any more plans to install public and or private charging points for electric cars (EV Charge Points) in the Borough?”

 

Response – Cabinet Member for Environment

 

Thank you for your question. Electric vehicle (EV) charging points are a very topical issue at the moment and I can confirm the Council is working to be at the forefront of the changes. The recent Department for Transport figures show that Swale has 16 charging units per 100,000 population. This puts us slightly below the national average and mid table across Kent.

 

There are already a number of additional units in the pipeline that will improve this position.  Swale Borough Council itself will be installing another 4 bays in Faversham Central car park and two further in Rose Street, Sheerness. These will be in place by the early summer 2020.

 

Through continuous analysis, Parking Services monitor environmental performance data from each EV unit which includes energy used, number of charging sessions, average charge time and estimates of the amount of carbon dioxide emissions saved. As the EV units demonstrate good usage, targeted growth of the EV charge point offer will keep pace with demand within each town centre location, further supporting clean air and greener transport in Swale. All of these points have been funded by Swale Borough Council (SBC).

 

We are also supporting others to follow our lead. Just recently the Planning Committee considered and approved permission for a care home, hotel and supermarket at Perry Court, Faversham on the A251. This is just off the M2 Junction 6 so is in a strategic location. The hotel will have 2 x 50Kw rapid chargers and 6 x 7Kw chargers. The supermarket will have 2 x 22Kw chargers. There will be car chargers at the care home as well. So, when this development is built, the Borough will be well served.

 

Finally, we are considering how we can encourage major employers in the Borough to provide workplace chargers for electric vehicles, and adopt EVs in their own fleet. Currently the Office for Low Emission Vehicles offers a grant scheme for workplace chargers. The Council is looking to set the standard by converting the majority of its vehicle fleet over to EV and therefore, we will also be providing further chargers for our staff to use.

 

Supplementary question and response

 

“Is there any feasibility in fitting extra charging points in more locations such as on streets?”

 

The Cabinet Member advised that there would need to be liaison with Kent County Council (KCC) as they were responsible for highways and he was due to have a meeting to discuss this with them. He advised that there were funding grants  ...  view the full minutes text for item 362.

363.

Leader's Statement

Minutes:

The Leader reminded Members that at the last Council meeting, some time was spent reporting on and scrutinising the ‘do or die’ preparations for exiting the European Union on 31 October.  He said that there were thoughts about road congestion, curtailment of food and medical supplies, delivering our own services and even possible civil disobedience.

 

He said that, as suspected by many, it didn’t happen and it was very inclusive of Westminster politicians to devolve down to local authorities the politics and governance of futility, even though they had better things to do than use up resources on hypothetical non-events.

 

In considering the future position, the Leader questioned what was next - leaving with a deal, where a transition period might follow with regulatory alignment ruling out the need for emergency measures?; or leaving with no deal?; or not leaving and a new deal?; or maybe to remain?

 

The Leader referred to the General Election and acknowledged the intrusion into the Council’s day to day work. He explained that slight changes had been made to the Council’s meetings schedule to observe the purdah conventions and the need for space, just prior to the poll. The Leader reminded Members of the long-term absence of the Chief Executive and departure of the Democratic and Electoral Services Manager prior to the election and highlighted the challenges facing the new team in delivering the election.  He asked for everyone to be supportive of the team.

 

The Leader referred to political campaigning and stated that whoever was elected in Sittingbourne and Sheppey, and Faversham and Mid-Kent, he hoped they would engage with what the current administration at SBC was trying to achieve.

 

It was now six months since the Coalition brought forward its plans for the next four years and the Leader gave a review. He said that he welcomed the work being done by the Policy Development Review Committee on Area Committees, and he hoped that this would come to fruition and that he then looked forward to working on the intention to have Council committees involved in decision making. He said he welcomed the critically constructive part played by the Scrutiny Committee at  the previous week’s meeting in determining the way forward on some major steps for SBC.

 

The Leader said that very good progress was being made in several other areas: in bringing forward more affordable and social housing, forging good links with the community, establishing a strategy for health improvement and leading the way on climate change and biodiversity.  He added that the Council wanted to affect a change in the local economy, towards more diversified, better paid and more secure employment for residents and he reported a very constructive meeting with Christ Church University, where there were discussions around the role that higher education might play in providing more local GPs, more engineers and more recruits to tourism, heritage and creative employment in Swale.

 

In acknowledging the earlier question that the waste collection contractors had let the Council down again,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 363.

364.

Review of Fees & Charges 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 399 KB

Tabled paper added 20.11.19

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Leader advised that the report had been considered by Cabinet and Scrutiny Committee, and he referred to the minor amendments in the tabled paper.  He explained that most charges were unchanged and drew attention that the fee in the multi-storey car park in Sittingbourne was reduced to a more realistic level, from £15 to £7 per day.  He proposed the recommendation. The Deputy Cabinet Member for Finance seconded the recommendation.

 

The Leader of the Conservative group acknowledged the long process of consideration of the Fees and Charges report before being reported to Full Council.  He referred to the parking fee in the multi-storey car park and said that the previous charge set was to deter all day parking.  He gave his full support for the fees and charges 2020/21.

 

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 19(5), a recorded vote was taken, and voting was as follows:

 

For: Baldock, Beart, Bonney, Bowen, Carnell, Darby, Davey, Dendor, Ellen, Fowle, Gibson, Gould, Hall, A Hampshire, N Hampshire, Harrison, Horton, Hunt, Gould, Ingleton, Jackson, Jayes, Knights, Macdonald, Marchington, Benjamin Martin, Ben J Martin, McCall, Neal, Palmer, Perkin, Pugh, Rowles,  Saunders, Simmons, Paul Stephen, Sarah Stephen, Tatton, Thomas, Truelove, Valentine, Whelan, Whiting, Winckless and Woodford. Total equals 45.

 

Against: 0.

 

Abstain: 0.

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  That the proposed fees and charges 2020/21 set out in this report be approved.

365.

Review of Polling Districts and Places - Teynham and Lynsted Ward pdf icon PDF 58 KB

Minutes:

The Leader introduced the report and supported the convenience the additional polling district would provide to residents.  He proposed the recommendation.  The Deputy Leader seconded the recommendation.

 

Ward Members supported the recommendations.

 

A recorded vote was taken:

 

For: Baldock, Beart, Bonney, Bowen, Carnell, Darby, Davey, Dendor, Ellen, Fowle, Gibson, Gould, Hall, A Hampshire, N Hampshire, Harrison, Horton, Hunt, Gould, Ingleton, Jackson, Jayes, Knights, Macdonald, Marchington, Benjamin Martin, Ben J Martin, McCall, Neal, Palmer, Perkin, Pugh, Rowles,  Saunders, Simmons, Paul Stephen, Sarah Stephen, Tatton, Thomas, Truelove, Valentine, Whelan, Whiting, Winckless and Woodford. Total equals 45.

 

Against: 0.

 

Abstain: 0 .

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  That the proposed addition of a polling district and place in the Teynham and Lynsted ward be approved.

366.

Appointment of Chief Financial Officer S151 Officer pdf icon PDF 61 KB

Minutes:

Mr Vickers, the Chief Financial Officer S151 Officer, left the room whilst discussion and voting on this item took place.

 

The Leader introduced the report and advised that previously Mr Vickers was employed by KCC and SBC paid a fee for his services, but as Mr Vickers was retiring from KCC and his services were necessary during the financing of the Spirit of Sittingbourne and in facing serious budget challenges in the future, his appointment at SBC was vital.

 

The Leader proposed the recommendation which was seconded by the Deputy Leader.

 

The Leader of the Conservative Group fully supported the recommendation but raised concerns over the lack of transparency of the selection process. The Leader explained the selection process in interviewing for a senior post and acknowledged that there should have been more involvement and transparency with other Members on this occasion.  He gave his assurance to follow the correct procedure and engage more fully with Members in the future.

 

A recorded vote was taken:

 

For: Baldock, Beart, Bonney, Bowen, Carnell, Darby, Davey, Dendor, Fowle, Gibson, Gould, Hall, A Hampshire, N Hampshire, Harrison, Horton, Hunt, Gould, Ingleton, Jackson, Jayes, Knights, Macdonald, Marchington, Benjamin Martin, Ben J Martin, McCall, Neal, Palmer, Perkin, Pugh, Rowles,  Saunders, Simmons, Paul Stephen, Sarah Stephen, Tatton, Thomas, Truelove, Valentine, Whelan, Whiting, Winckless and Woodford. Total equals 44.

 

Against: 0.

 

Abstain: 0.

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  That the Council approve the appointment of Mr Nick Vickers as Chief Financial S151 Officer.

367.

Recommendations for Approval/Noting pdf icon PDF 57 KB

Council is asked to note the recommendations from the following meetings:

 

·         Appointments Sub-Committee – 30 October 2019

·         General Purposes Committee - 30 October 2019

·         Cabinet – 30 October 2019

Minutes:

The Council was asked to note the recommendations from the Appointments Sub-Committee, General Purposes Committee and Cabinet meetings held on 30 October 2019 as separate reports on the items had been considered earlier in the meeting.

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  That the recommendation in Minute no. 319 of the Appointments Sub-Committee, Minute no. 325 of the General Purposes Committee and Minute no. 331 of the Cabinet Meeting, all held on 30 November 2019 be noted.