Agenda, decisions and minutes

There were no apologies for absence received.  

Audio recording – 2 minutes and 35 seconds

There were no apologies for absence received.

To take as read and approve as a true record the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on the 19 September 2023.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 19 September 2023 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Audio Recording – 2 minutes 44 seconds

Councillor Elizabeth Dennis, as Chair, proposed and Councillor Ruth Brown seconded and, following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 19 September 2023 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Members should notify the Chair of other business which they wish to be discussed at the end of either Part I or Part II business set out in the agenda. They must state the circumstances which they consider justify the business being considered as a matter of urgency.

The Chair will decide whether any item(s) raised will be considered.

There was no other business notified.

Audio recording – 3 minutes 24 seconds

There was no other business notified.

Climate Emergency

The Council has declared a climate emergency and is committed to achieving a target of zero carbon emissions by 2030 and helping local people and businesses to reduce their own carbon emissions.

A Cabinet Panel on the Environment has been established to engage with local people on matters relating to the climate emergency and advise the council on how to achieve these climate change objectives. A Climate Change Implementation group of councillors and council officers meets regularly to produce plans and monitor progress. Actions taken or currently underway include switching to green energy, incentives for low emission taxis, expanding tree planting and working to cut food waste.

In addition the council is a member of the Hertfordshire Climate Change and Sustainability Partnership, working with other councils across Hertfordshire to reduce the county’s carbon emissions and climate impact.

The Council’s dedicated webpage on Climate Change includes details of the council’s climate change strategy, the work of the Cabinet Panel on the Environment and a monthly briefing on progress.

Declarations of Interest

Members are reminded that any declarations of interest in respect of any business set out in the agenda, should be declared as either a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest or Declarable Interest and are required to notify the Chair of the nature of any interest declared at the commencement of the relevant item on the agenda. Members declaring a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest must withdraw from the meeting for the duration of the item. Members declaring a Declarable Interest, wishing to exercise a ‘Councillor Speaking Right’, must declare this at the same time as the interest, move to the public area before speaking to the item and then must leave the room before the debate and vote.

(1)        The Chair advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be audio recorded.

(2)        Members were reminded that this Council had declared a Climate Emergency. This was a serious decision and meant that, as this was an emergency, all of us, officers and Members had that in mind as we carried out our various roles and tasks for the benefit of our District.

(3)        The Chair drew attention to the item on the agenda front pages regarding Declarations of Interest and reminded Members that, in line with the Code of Conduct, any Declarations of Interest needed to be declared immediately prior to the item in question.

(4)        The Chair advised for the purposes of clarification that 4.8.23(a) of the Constitution did not apply to this meeting.

(5)        The Chair advised of a change in the order of the agenda.  The referrals from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Waste, Recycling and Street Cleansing Design would be considered first, followed by Agenda Item 12 ‘Waste, Recycling and Street Cleansing Service Design – Part 1’. Subject to the discussion and resolution on Agenda Item 12, the Chair advised that Agenda Items 10 and 11 may not be required and deferred to a future meeting.

Audio recording – 3 minutes 29 seconds

(1)        The Chair welcomed those present at the meeting, especially those who had attended to give a presentation;

(2)        The Chair advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be audio recorded;

(3)        Members were reminded that this Council had declared a Climate Emergency. This was a serious decision and meant that, as this was an emergency, all of us, officers and Members had that in mind as we carried out our various roles and tasks for the benefit of our District.

(4)        The Chair drew attention to the item on the agenda front pages regarding Declarations of Interest and reminded Members that, in line with the Code of Conduct, any Declarations of Interest needed to be declared immediately prior to the item in question.

(5)        The Chair advised the change in order of the agenda and Agenda item 6b would be taken ahead of Agenda item 11.

To receive petitions, comments and questions from the public.

There was no public participation at this meeting.

Audio recording – 5 minutes 3 seconds

There was no public participation at the meeting.

Any Items referred from other committees will be circulated as soon as they are available.

The Chair invited Councillor Sean Nolan to present the Overview and Scrutiny Referrals on the ‘Waste, Recycling and Street Cleansing Service Design’.

N.B. The referral from the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee regarding the Medium Term Financial Strategy was considered with the relevant agenda item.

Audio recording – 5 minutes 8 seconds

The Chair invited Councillor Sean Nolan to present the Overview and Scrutiny Referrals on the ‘Waste, Recycling and Street Cleansing Service Design’.

N.B. The referral from the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee regarding the Medium Term Financial Strategy was considered with the relevant agenda item.

REPORT OF SERVICE DIRECTOR – HOUSING & ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

To review the additional in-year allocation of £199.9k of Homeless Prevention Grant for 2023/24, to support Ukrainian households and to help meet wider homelessness pressures.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Approved the allocation £192k of HPG in order to fund the salary budget shortfall in the housing team to March 2027.

(2)   Authorised the remaining amount (of £7.9k) to be used to offset the cost of hotel placements, which are anticipated to grow further over the winter months.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: The recommendations in this report support the Council’s response to the increasing volume and complexity of housing approaches, whilst also meeting the requirements of DLUHC’s ringfenced use of the funding.

Audio recording – 8 minutes 52 seconds

Councillor, Sean Prendergast, as Executive Member for Housing and Environmental Health, presented the report entitled ‘Allocation of (Additional) Homelessness Prevention Grant’ and advised that:

·       The calculations had changed in relation to the original recommendations with revised inflation figures.

·       The allocation of the grant must be spent this financial year.

·       The revised plan was to use the additional grant to finance core housing activity in 2023-24, such as staff salaries.

·       This report highlighted the increasing pressure on the housing team, which would only increase in future years.

Councillor Sean Prendergast expressed his thanks to the officers in the housing team who worked incredibly hard to assist vulnerable people in the community.

Councillor Sean Prendergast proposed, and Councillor Alistair Willoughby seconded, and following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Approved the allocation of a £192k of HPG in order to fund the salary budget shortfall in the housing team to March 2027.

(2)   Authorised the remaining amount (of £7.9k) to be used to offset the cost of hotel placements, which are anticipated to grow further over the winter months.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: The recommendations in this report support the Council’s response to the increasing volume and complexity of housing approaches, whilst also meeting the requirements of DLUHC’s ringfenced use of the funding.

REPORT OF THE SERVICE DIRECTOR – REGULATORY

To identify the latest position on key planning and transport issues affecting the District.

RESOLVED:

(1)   That the report on strategic planning matters was noted.

(2)   That the Planning Reforms responses from North Herts and HIPP, attached as Appendices A and B were endorsed.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To keep Cabinet informed of recent developments on strategic planning matters.

Audio recording – 12 minutes 45 seconds

Councillor Ruth Brown, Executive Member for Planning and Transport, presented the report entitled ‘Strategic Planning Matters’ and advised that:

·       The Local Plan Review had started and was almost complete. The report from this review would go to Cabinet in January 2024, as outlined in 8.1 of the report.

·       The Strategic Planning Board had approved one planning application and the other five applications were in the process of consultation for approval, as outlined in 8.44.

·       The second expansion of Luton airport from 18 to 32 million passengers was currently under enquiry. Objections to this were climate change, noise, air quality and surface access, as outlined in 8.48.

·       The local cycling plan was adopted by Herts County Council in September 2023, as outlined in 8.61.

·       The application by the Council for a grant to install EV charging points in car parks across the district was successful, as outlined in 8.78.

Councillor Ruth Brown proposed, and Councillor Keith Hoskins seconded, and following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED:

(1)   That the report on strategic planning matters was noted.

(2)   That the Planning Reforms responses from North Herts and HIPP, attached as Appendices A and B were endorsed.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To keep Cabinet informed of recent developments on strategic planning matters.

REPORT OF THE SERVICE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

To inform Cabinet of the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2024/25 to 2028/29 to guide and inform the Council’s Business Planning Process. The focus is primarily on setting a budget for 2024/25, as well as determining the actions that will be necessary in setting a longer term budget following on from that.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: That Council adopt the Medium Term Financial Strategy, as attached at Appendix A.

REASON FOR RECOMMENDATION: Adoption of a MTFS and communication of its contents will assist in the process of forward planning the use of Council resources and in budget setting for 2024/2025 to 2028/2029, culminating in the setting of the Council Tax precept for 2024/25 in February 2024. This will (alongside the existing Council Plan) support the Council in setting a budget that is affordable and aligned to Council priorities.

Audio recording 18 minutes and 19 seconds

The Chair invited Councillor Sean Nolan, as Chair of the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, to present the referral from Finance, Audit and Risk Committee on this item. Councillor Nolan advised that:

·       Discussions centred around the challenges ahead over the next five years including the costs of two major contracts coming up and the potential impact on future saving targets.

·       It was discussed that although the Council does have reserves to reduce the short-term impact, it needed to plan how to mitigate those items in the future.

·       He thanked the Service Director – Resources and Executive Member for the points they addressed.

·       There were financial challenges ahead, but that the Council was in a good position to face these going forward.

Councillor Ian Albert, as Executive Member for Finance and IT, presented the report entitled ‘Medium Term Financial Strategy 2024-29’ and advised that:

·       This report improved the way Cabinet and full Council were able to review financial matters.

·       The government had failed to provide a new funding formula or plan for funding for local government.

·       The Council was responsible for setting a balanced budget.

·       The estimated rate of savings of £3.1million by 2028-29 was detailed in page 59 of the report.

·       The Council was in a good position with reserves which would give time to consider the best ways to balance the budget up to 2028-29.

·       Going forward it was vital to consult with Councillor colleagues and residents to ensure needs were met.

Councillor Elizabeth Dennis, acknowledged the hard work that it takes not only to deliver a balanced budget, but also to deliver the services for the residents of North Herts. She drew attention to Appendix A of the report which explained Council reserves and how important it was to consider what could happen if the Council was underfunded and needed to rely on these reserves.

In response to a question from Councillor Steve Jarvis, Councillor Ian Albert advised that all the four items in page 59 of report regarding addressing the funding gap were being considered.

Councillor Elizabeth Dennis, as Chair, advised that this report showed that the Council had a good level of scrutiny by addressing these items and reported that Cabinet wanted to thank the members of the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee for their continued positive work.

 Councillor Ian Albert proposed, and Councillor Steve Jarvis seconded, and following a vote, it was:

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: That Council adopt the Medium Term Financial Strategy, as attached at Appendix A.

REASON FOR RECOMMENDATION: Adoption of a MTFS and communication of its contents will assist in the process of forward planning the use of Council resources and in budget setting for 2024/2025 to 2028/2029, culminating in the setting of the Council Tax precept for 2024/25 in February 2024. This will (alongside the existing Council Plan) support the Council in setting a budget that is affordable and aligned to Council priorities.

To consider passing the following resolution: That under Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, the Press and Public be excluded from the meeting on the grounds that the following report will involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the said Act (as amended).

This item was not required at this meeting. Following the above resolution that the Waste, Recycling and Street Cleaning Service Design be deferred to the next meeting of the Cabinet, the meeting did not consider any matters in part 2.

This item was not required at this meeting. Following the above resolution that the Waste, Recycling and Street Cleaning Service Design be deferred to the next meeting of the Cabinet, the meeting did not consider any matters in part 2.

REPORT OF THE SERVICE DIRECTOR – PLACE

To inform Cabinet that officers are currently undergoing a competitive dialogue procurement and are seeking a decision from Cabinet on further service design options that can be considered in order to achieve the long-term financial sustainability of the service and the Council.

Due to the decision taken on the Waste, Recycling and Street Cleansing Service Design – Part 1, this item was not considered at this meeting.

N.B. The meeting did not move into part 2 and any discussions and resolutions taken were in part 1.

Due to the decision taken on the Waste, Recycling and Street Cleansing Service Design – Part 1, this item was not considered at this meeting.

N.B. The meeting did not move into part 2 and any discussions and resolutions taken were in part 1.

REPORT OF THE SERVICE DIRECTOR – PLACE

To inform Cabinet that officers are currently undergoing a competitive dialogue procurement and are seeking a decision from Cabinet on further service design options that can be considered in order to achieve the long-term financial sustainability of the service and the Council.

RESOLVED:

(1)   That any changes to the service design identified in paragraph 8.2 of the part 1 report (and Appendix 2 of the part 2 report) regarding waste and recycling service would be referred back to Cabinet for approval.

(2)   That any changes to the service design identified in paragraph 8.2 of the part 1 report (and Appendix 2 of the part 2 report) regarding street cleansing service would be referred back to Cabinet for approval.

(3)   That this item and the part 2 item, included as Agenda Item 11, be deferred to the next meeting of Cabinet.

REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure decisions are taken by elected representatives and not delegated to Officers.

Audio recording 5 minutes 12 seconds

Councillor Elizabeth Dennis, as Chair, proposed that Cabinet accepted the recommendations as amended by Overview and Scrutiny Committee included in referrals 6a and 6b, with the addition that these items were deferred to the next meeting of the Cabinet for consideration. This was seconded by Councillor Alistair Willoughby, and following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED:

(1)   That any changes to the service design identified in paragraph 8.2 of the part 1 report (and Appendix 2 of the part 2 report) regarding waste and recycling service would be referred back to Cabinet for approval.

(2)   That any changes to the service design identified in paragraph 8.2 of the part 1 report (and Appendix 2 of the part 2 report) regarding street cleansing service would be referred back to Cabinet for approval.

(3)   That this item and the part 2 item, included as Agenda Item 11, be deferred to the next meeting of Cabinet.

REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure decisions are taken by elected representatives and not delegated to Officers.