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Agenda and minutes
Venue: Sussex Hall, White Rock Theatre, White Rock, Hastings, TN34 1JX
Contact: Michael Courts on 01424 451764 email mcourts@hastings.gov.uk
Items No. Item Additional documents:
Minutes:
RESOLVED that the minutes of the Council meeting held on 21 October 2015 and the extraordinary Council meeting held on 25 November 2015 be signed by the Mayor as a correct record of the proceedings
Questions (if any) from: -
(a) Members of the public under Rule 11
(b) Councillors under Rule 12
Minutes:
Questions to the Leader, Deputy Leader and other Lead Members were asked and answered in accordance with rule 12.1 as follows:-
Questioner and Councillor
Subject
Reply Given By Councillor
Atkins
Rocklands Caravan Park the Save Ecclesbourne Glen Group requested that Councillors were present when the plots for caravan sites at Rocklands Caravan Park were re-measured. This request was declined, will the Leader of the Council reconsider this decision?
Councillor Chowney replied that it would be inappropriate for members to be involved in what was a technical matter between the council and the applicant. The council’s constitution included a protocol for relationships between members and officers, this type of involvement by members would contravene that protocol.
Chowney
Rogers
Coastal Revival Fund will the lead member provide an update on a recent bid to the Coastal Revival Fund?
Councillor Poole said that the council had successfully secured £50,000 from the fund. The funding would be used to support the refurbishment of Bottle Alley, including linking the new lighting scheme with that of the pier. The restoration of Bottle Alley would coincide with improvements to the promenade at White Rock and the opening of the pier and a new BMX venue in the former White Rock Baths.
Poole
Pragnell
Rocklands Caravan Park will the Leader of the Council provide an assurance that the new caravan licence for Rocklands Caravan Park will include all of the relevant regulations?
Councillor Chowney replied that he had confidence in the officers involved in processing the licence, that the arrangements would be completed correctly.
Chowney
Westley
Voter Registration will the lead member provide an assurance that the council will continue to do all it can to maximise the number of residents who are registered to vote?
Councillor Cartwright explained that individual electoral registration had been introduced as part of the 2013/14 annual canvass. A number of electors who had not responded during annual canvass that year were carried forward to the new system. Throughout 2014/15 efforts had been made to contact these electors through correspondence and a further door-to-door canvass in order to ensure their entry on the register of electors was up to date. It was found that many of the electors who had been initially carried forward were no longer resident at their registered address and their entries were subsequently removed. Entries may also be removed from the register following a review, if this ascertains that they have left their registered address. The overall electorate in 15 of the town’s wards had fallen following the 2015 annual canvass. However, in Central St Leonards ward the electorate had increased. Councillor Cartwright explained that the council had given consideration to further options to promote voter registration, although the extent to which these activities could be carried out would depend on the level of funding from central government.
Cartwright
Edwards
Rocklands Caravan Park how much has the council spent, including officer time, on resolving issues at Rocklands Caravan Park?
Councillor Chowney agreed to circulate an estimated cost to members ... view the full minutes text for item 22.
Motion (Rule 14)
Councillor Forward to move, seconded by Councillor Chowney that:
This council agrees that:
· the Housing and Planning Bill is currently being debated in Parliament, and if passed would threaten the provision of affordable homes for rent and buy through:
- forcing 'high-value' council homes to be sold on the open market;
- extending the right-to-buy to housing association tenants; and
- undermining section 106 requirements on private developers to provide affordable homes;
· there is no commitment in the Bill that affordable homes will be replaced like-for-like in the local area;
· whilst measures to help first-time buyers are welcome, the 'starter homes' proposals in the Bill will be unaffordable to families and young people on ordinary incomes in most parts of the country; will not preserve the taxpayer investment; and will be built at the expense of genuinely-affordable homes to rent and buy;
· the Bill undermines localism by taking 32 new wide and open-ended powers for the Secretary over councils and local communities, including the ability to override local plans, to mandate rents for social tenants, and to impose a levy on stock-holding councils, violating the terms of the housing revenue account self-financing deal;
· the Bill, whilst introducing some welcome measures to get to grips with rogue landlords, does not help with the high rents, poor conditions and insecurity affecting many of England's 11 million private renters – including one in four families with children – and does nothing to help arrest the recent rise in homelessness.
This council resolves to:
· analyse and report on the likely impact of the forced sale of social housing in Hastings, the extension of right-to-buy and the 'starter homes' requirement on the local availability of affordable homes;
· use this information to:
- support the Leader of the Council in writing to the local MP and the Secretary of State with our concerns about the Bill;
- make public our concerns, including by publishing the above information on the council's website and through the local press.
Minutes:
Councillor Forward proposed a motion, as set out in the resolution below, which was seconded by Councillor Chowney.
RESOLVED (by 22 votes for, 8 against) that this council agrees that:
· the Housing and Planning Bill is currently being debated in Parliament, and if passed would threaten the provision of affordable homes for rent and buy through:
- forcing 'high-value' council homes to be sold on the open market;
- extending the right-to-buy to housing association tenants; and
- undermining section 106 requirements on private developers to provide affordable homes;
· there is no commitment in the Bill that affordable homes will be replaced like-for-like in the local area;
· whilst measures to help first-time buyers are welcome, the 'starter homes' proposals in the Bill will be unaffordable to families and young people on ordinary incomes in most parts of the country; will not preserve the taxpayer investment; and will be built at the expense of genuinely-affordable homes to rent and buy;
· the Bill undermines localism by taking 32 new wide and open-ended powers for the Secretary over councils and local communities, including the ability to override local plans, to mandate rents for social tenants, and to impose a levy on stock-holding councils, violating the terms of the housing revenue account self-financing deal;
· the Bill, whilst introducing some welcome measures to get to grips with rogue landlords, does not help with the high rents, poor conditions and insecurity affecting many of England's 11 million private renters – including one in four families with children – and does nothing to help arrest the recent rise in homelessness.
This council resolves to:
· analyse and report on the likely impact of the forced sale of social housing in Hastings, the extension of right-to-buy and the 'starter homes' requirement on the local availability of affordable homes;
· use this information to:
- support the Leader of the Council in writing to the local MP and the Secretary of State with our concerns about the Bill;
- make public our concerns, including by publishing the above information on the council's website and through the local press.
Membership of Committees
To give effect to any request received from a political group for a change in their representation on committee(s)
Minutes:
Councillor Chowney proposed a motion regarding the membership of committees, as set out in resolution below.
RESOLVED - that the council adopt the following arrangements for the membership of committees: -
1) Councillor Batsford be appointed to the Hastings Joint Parking Board in place of Councillor Davies
Councillor Chowney also announced that the communities aspect of the Regeneration, Communities and Culture portfolio would be transferred from Councillor Poole to Councillor Forward.
Reports of Committees PDF 84 KB
(a) To resolve that the public be excluded from the meeting during the discussion of any items considered while the public were excluded by the relevant committee because it is likely that if members of the public were present there would be disclosure to them of “exempt” information as defined in the respective paragraphs of Schedule 12A to the Local government Act 1972 referred to in the minutes of the relevant committee
(b) To receive and consider the recommendations and any decisions of the following committees: -
Minute No.
Subject
Cabinet Member / Chair
CABINET – 2 November 2015
18
Management Response to the Overview and Scrutiny Review of the Council’s Role in Raising Educational Achievement in Hastings and Educational Outcomes for the Town’s Children and Young People
Forward
19
EU Funding Project Approval – Climate Active Neighbourhoods (CAN)
Forward
20 (C)
Treasury Management – Mid Year Report 2015/16
Chowney
21 (C)
Council Tax Support Scheme
Chowney
22
Medium Term Financial Strategy
Chowney
23
Former Bathing Pool Site at West Marina
Chowney
24
Hastings and Rother Community Led Local Development
Chowney
CABINET – 7 December 2015
30 (C)
Review of Gambling Policy
Davies
31 (C)
Review of Licensing Policy
Davies
32 (C)
Hastings Local Plan – Retention of Employment Land and Premises Supplementary Planning Document (SPD)
Poole
33 (C)
Hastings Local Plan – Visitor Accommodation Supplementary Planning Document (SPD)
Poole
34
East Sussex County Council Waste and Minerals Site Plan – Proposed Submission Draft
Poole
35
New Factory Unit
Chowney
36 (E)
New Factory Unit
Chowney
(C) – Council Decision
(E) – Exempt
Notes:
(1) The Mayor will call over the minutes and members will rise and indicate those items which they wish to have discussed
(2) No discussion shall take place at this stage upon any part II minute covered by the resolution 8 (a) above. Any such discussion shall be deferred until item 9 on the agenda.
Additional documents:
- Minutes Public Pack, 07/12/2015 Cabinet , item 25. PDF 73 KB
- Council Tax Support Scheme , item 25. PDF 107 KB
- Appendix 1 - Cabinet report dated 2 November 2015 , item 25. PDF 124 KB
- Appendix 2 - Scheme 2015 Document , item 25. PDF 1 MB
Minutes:
The Mayor having called over the minutes set out in the agenda, the under mentioned minutes were reserved for discussion.
RESOLVED – under rule 13.3 that the reports and the minutes of committees set out in the agenda be received. Minute number 20 of Cabinet on 2 November 2015 and minute numbers 30, 31, 32 and 33 of Cabinet on 7 December 2015, which were matters for Council decision, were approved without being called for discussion. Only those items which were reserved were discussed, as follows: -
Meeting
Minute
Councillor
Cabinet, 2 November 2015
18 – Management Response to the Overview and Scrutiny Review of the Council’s Role in Raising Educational Achievement in Hastings and Educational Outcomes for the Town’s Children and Young People
Batsford
Cabinet, 2 November 2015
21 (C) – Council Tax Support Scheme
Turner
Cabinet, 2 November 2015
23 - Former Bathing Pool Site at West Marina
Howard
Cabinet, 7 December 2015
34 – East Sussex County Council Waste and Minerals Site Plan – Proposed Submission Draft
Turner
Minute number 21 of Cabinet on 2 November 2015 was a matter for Council decision. The Assistant Director for Financial Services and Revenues submitted a report which sought agreement from the Council that no changes were to be made to the existing council tax support scheme for 2016/17. Councillor Chowney proposed approval of the minute, which was seconded by Councillor Turner, and agreed unanimously.
No motions for reference to an overview and scrutiny committee or reference back to Cabinet were approved in respect of the items reserved for discussion and they were, therefore, received and agreed.
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