Agenda and decisions

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Daniel Allen and Amy Allen.

To take as read and approve as a true record the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on the 19 November 2025.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 19 November 2025 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.

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.

Ecological Emergency

The Council has declared an ecological emergency and is committed to addressing the ecological emergency and nature recovery by identifying appropriate areas for habitat restoration and biodiversity net gain whilst ensuring that development limits impact on existing habitats in its process.

The Council has set out to do that by a) setting measurable targets and standards for biodiversity increase, in both species and quantities, seeking to increase community engagement, b) to work with our partners to establish a Local Nature Partnership for Hertfordshire and to develop Nature Recovery Networks and Nature Recovery Strategy for Hertfordshire and c) to investigate new approaches to nature recovery such as habitat banking that deliver biodiversity objectives and provide new investment opportunities.

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 recorded.

(2)   The Chair reminded Members that the Council had declared both a Climate Emergency and an Ecological Emergency. These are serious decisions, and mean 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. Agenda item 17 would be considered following agenda item 15.

To receive petitions, comments and questions from the public.

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

The Chair advised that the items referred from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and Finance, Audit and Risk Committee would be taken with the respective items on the agenda.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – ENVIRONMENT

To agree the level of garden waste charge for the subscription period 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet approved the garden waste subscription charge for the period 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2027, at £57.

REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure the Council’s Garden Waste service is financially sustainable, in line with the priorities of the Council and of the Shared waste service.

REPORT OF THE INTERIM STRATEGIC PLANNING MANAGER

This report provides an overview of the new plan-making system and sets out a revised Local Plan programme aligned with the requirements of that system.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Approved the broad ‘direction of travel’ for the Local Plan Review pending formal laying and enactment of the relevant legislation and regulations.

(2)   Delegated authority to the Director: Place, in consultation with the Executive Member for Place to, following the creation of a new planning system:

a.     Publish the formal notice of intention to undertake a review of the Local Plan; and

b.     Approve and publish a revised Local Plan timetable, attached as Appendix A, subject to any alterations necessary to ensure alignment of timings with the new statutory framework.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To ensure the Council is well-positioned to progress preparation of the Local Plan as quickly as possible once the new plan-making system comes into effect. Cabinet previously first resolved, in principle, that a review of the Local Plan should take place in January 2024. However, the Council did not progress on the review which was held back due to the delays in the publication of the regulations and guidance on the new local plan system.

REPORT OF THE INTERIM STRATEGIC PLANNING MANAGER

This report identifies the latest position on key planning and transport issues affecting the Council.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet noted the report on strategic planning matters and appendices.

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

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – REGULATORY

The purpose of the report is to review the status of the Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) as declared in the AQMA Orders.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet approved the Revocation Orders (as appended to this report) for the following areas:

•       The No1. AQMA Stevenage Road Hitchin,

•       The No2. AQMA Payne’s Park Hitchin.

REASON FOR DECISION: The reason for recommending the Revocation of the AQMAs is that there is no reasonable justification for retaining AQMAs where the air pollution levels can be shown to have significantly reduced below statutory air quality objectives as defined by HM Government within UK Air Quality Regulations.  

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

This report presents progress on delivering the Council Delivery Plan for 2025-26.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet noted progress against Council projects and performance indicators, as set out in the Council Delivery Plan (Appendix A), and approved new milestones and changes to milestones.

REASON FOR DECISION: The Council Delivery Plan (CDP) monitoring reports provide Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and Cabinet, with an opportunity to monitor progress against the key Council projects, and understand any new issues, risks, or opportunities.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

This report sets out minor changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme for 2026/27, which should be considered by Cabinet before approval by Full Council.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL: That it:

(1)   Amend the Council Tax discretionary policy to include the support provided to residents with a terminal illness, with the wording detailed in paragraph 8.17.

(2)   Approve changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme bands to reflect the impact of inflation.

REASON FOR RECOMMENDATIONS: To respond to the request from Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and to consider changes for next year.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

To update Cabinet on progress with delivering the Capital Programme for 2025/26, as at the end of September 2025.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Noted the forecast expenditure of £26.416M in 2025/26 on the capital programme, paragraph 8.3 refers.

(2)   Approved the adjustments to the capital programme for 2026/27, as a result of the revised timetable of schemes detailed in table 2 and 3 and the update on the museum storage project, increasing the estimated spend by £0.773M.

(3)   Noted the position of the availability of capital resources, as detailed in table 4 paragraph 8.6 and the requirement to keep the capital programme under review for affordability.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: Cabinet is required to approve adjustments to the capital programme and ensure the capital programme is fully funded.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR - RESOURCES

To inform Cabinet of the summary position on revenue income and expenditure forecasts for the financial year 2025/26, as at the end of the second quarter.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Noted this report.

(2)   Approved the changes to the 2025/26 General Fund budget, as identified in table 3 and paragraph 8.2, an £846k decrease in net expenditure.

(3)   Noted the changes to the 2026/27 General Fund budget, as identified in table 3 and paragraph 8.2, a total £555k increase in net expenditure. These will be incorporated in the draft revenue budget for 2026/27.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: Members are able to monitor, make adjustments within the overall budgetary framework and request appropriate action of Services who do not meet the budget targets set as part of the Corporate Business Planning process.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

To update Cabinet on progress with delivering the Treasury Strategy for 2025/26, as at the end of September 2025.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL: That it notes the position of Treasury Management activity as at the end of September 2025.

REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION: To ensure the Council’s continued compliance with CIPFA’s code of practice on Treasury Management and the Local Government Act 2003 and that the Council manages its exposure to interest and capital risk.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

This report updates on changes to our spend and funding forecasts since the Medium-Term Financial Strategy and seeks approval from Cabinet on the revenue and capital proposals that should be incorporated into the final budget report in February. It also seeks approval for the level of Council Tax increase to be assumed in that report.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Noted the Council’s expected funding for 2026/27.

(2)   Confirmed (in line with the Medium-Term Financial Strategy) that budget forecasts should be based on increasing Council Tax by 2.99% (the maximum amount allowable without a local referendum). Noting that Government have assumed Council Tax will increase by the maximum allowed in calculating Core Spending Power.

(3)   Agreed which proposals (revenue and capital) should be taken forward as part of the budget-setting process for 2026/27.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To ensure that all relevant factors are considered in arriving at a proposed budget and level of Council Tax for 2026/27, to be considered by Full Council on 26 February 2026.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES

To provide the Committee with an update on the effectiveness of the Risk Management Governance arrangements at the Council. The review is referred on to Cabinet, and the Committee can make recommendations on how we can improve our risk management arrangements.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Noted the mid-year Risk Management Governance update.

(2)   Approved the changes to the Risk Management Framework.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS:

(1)   Cabinet has overall responsibility for ensuring the management of risk.

(2)   Finance, Audit and Risk Committee have responsibility to monitor the effective development and operation of risk management.