Agenda, decisions and minutes

Apologies had been received from Councillor Crake.

The Minutes of the meeting held on16 December were agreed as a true record and signed by the Chair.

RESOLVED

(1)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 6, “West Northants Joint Strategic Planning Committee – Approval of Minutes”.

(2)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 7, “Legal Framework Agreement: West Northamptonshire Joint Strategic Planning Committee”.

(3)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 8, “Housing Tenancy Agreement”

(4)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 9, “Flexible Warranting for health and Safety Enforcement”.

(5)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item10A, “Performance Monthly Report – November 2009”.

(6)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 10B, “General Fund Revenue Budget Monitoring – Period 8”

(7)   That Councillors Mildren and Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 10C, “Housing Revenue Account Monitoring – Period 8”.

(8)   That Councillor Clarke be granted leave to address Cabinet on Item 10D, “Capital Programme Monitoring Period 8”.

Councillor Church declared a personal, non-prejudicial interest in Item 7, “Legal Framework Agreement: West Northamptonshire Joint Strategic Planning Committee” as he was a member of the West Northamptonshire Development Corporation Board.

There were none.

Minutes (attached) to be noted.

The Minutes are noted.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet.  He queried the appropriateness of a proposed option outlined in the minutes and was informed that this had been a specific comment made by a representative of and relating to Daventry District Council.

Councillor Clarke addressed Cabinet commenting on what he saw as a democratic deficit in the requirement to note decisions agreed in the name of Northampton Borough Council, when the council’s representatives on the Board were all members of the Administration.  He felt that other councillors might have opinions on, for example, the distribution of development in the county.

It was pointed out that the views of the WNJSPC were not necessarily those of Northampton Borough Council and that members of the public could put their views to the Joint Planning Unit.

As Portfolio Holder for Planning and Regeneration and a representative of NBC on the WNJSPC, Councillor Church advised Councillor Clarke to attend the public meetings of the Committee to gain a clearer understanding of the depth of discussion that took place before decisions were made.  He then explained the background to one of the decisions referred to by Councillor Clarke.

RESOLVED

That the minutes be noted.

Report of the Director of Planning and Regeneration

The “Agreement” relating to the administration and functioning of the JPU at Appendix 1 of the Cabinet report is approved and agreed, and authorisation is given to the Chief Executive to sign the Agreement on behalf of the Borough Council.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet with concern that the accounting function for the organisation lay with South Northants Council, as Northampton Borough Council was the largest contributor to the budget and was likely to experience the largest development growth.

Councillor Clarke addressed Cabinet calling for a rejection of the document as it did not reflect the views of the whole Council but only the Administration.  He referred to the recent quinquennial review of WNDC and expressed dissatisfaction that NBC has insufficient influence on the sub group considering that it paid for one third of the budget.  He observed that the people of Northampton had been short-changed and that planning powers should be returned to district council level.

Councillor Church, as the relevant Portfolio Holder, presented the report to Cabinet and explained that the legal agreement was in place to formalise arrangements that had already been agreed and were in practice.  The existence of the Joint Planning Unit was a Government-led requirement.  He further explained that the West Northants Joint Strategic Planning Committee was not the West Northants Development Corporation.  The Committee dealt with policy matters and not development control.  Members of the Committee were all elected representatives from across West Northamptonshire.  He felt that it was right and proper that Northampton Borough Council had the important role of managing the Joint Planning Unit.

The Leader, Councillor B Hoare reiterated the important role this Authority had in the organisation and welcomed the formalisation of roles in this legal document.

RESOLVED

That the “Agreement” relating to the administration and functioning of the JPU at Appendix 1 of the Cabinet report be approved and agreed, and authorisation be given to the Chief Executive to sign the Agreement on behalf of the Borough Council.

B Report of the Director of Housing Services

The current position is noted and Officers are instructed to consider and incorporate any suggestions from the consultation, if appropriate, and submit the final draft Agreements to the next meeting of Cabinet for formal approval.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet expressing the hope that those involved in the consultation had learned from previous mistakes and that issues of equality around civil partners and vulnerable tenants be addressed in the Agreements, when produced.

Councillor Clarke addressed Cabinet and referred to unresolved problems with tenants’ participation.  He remained unconvinced that all the proper processes had been undertaken in the consultation exercise and that all tenants had been given the opportunity to have their say.

Councillor Beardsworth, as Portfolio Holder for Housing Services, presented the report to Cabinet to update them on the progress in developing new secure and introductory tenancy agreements.  Officers had made every attempt to engage all council occupants and had made a special effort to involve normally hard-to-reach tenants. Owing to the late contribution of some residents to the consultation, the production of the agreement had been delayed but it was important that all tenants’ views were properly considered.  The new document would be more concise and lay out more clearly the responsibilities of both the tenant and the landlord.

Confirmation was given that a preliminary notice of variation had been sent to all tenants, along with an explanatory leaflet.  All tenants had been given the opportunity to comment and to attend drop-in sessions and extra activities, which had been widely advertised.  The consultation had also included the Council’s forums and comments had been considered from the Disabled Peoples Forum and the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Peoples Forum.

Councillor Beardsworth then recorded her appreciation and congratulations to the Director of Housing and her team for the work that had been put into the project.

RESOLVED

That the current position be noted and officers be instructed to consider and incorporate any suggestions from the consultation, if appropriate, and submit the final draft Agreements to the next meeting of Cabinet for formal approval.

Report of the Director of Environment and Culture

1.      Cabinet supports the principle of entering into a flexible warranting arrangement with the Health and Safety Executive and other Northamptonshire LA’s and is to adopt the Memorandum of Understanding relating to the flexible warrant scheme;

2.      The Head of Public Protection is to be authorised to enter into the MOU on behalf of the Council; and delegated authority is to be granted to the Head of Public Protection to authorise relevant officers for the purposes of implementing the scheme.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet and was surprised that there were no financial implications even though staff would be undertaking work on behalf of other people.  The report did not give details of any response from the unions, although he was aware that in other areas, unions had made comment on similar schemes. He was also concerned about the information sharing with other councils and authorities.

Councillor Clarke addressed Cabinet and welcomed the report as a move forward in the co-ordination of closer partnership working.  He, too, had concerns about trade union consultation and possible resource implications should the scheme go ahead. He felt that Cabinet had not addressed all the risks and problems identified in pilot schemes and urged them not to take a decision until they had all the information.

In the absence of the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Culture, the Leader referred to the relevant officer for clarification of the report. It was make clear that the document was an agreement in principle to the scheme and there was no obligation to undertake individual projects if they were not felt to be cost effective.  In any case, there would be no exchange of money as operational activities would be reciprocal on a day-by-day basis. In some projects the Council would be a contributor, in others they would benefit. The initial project would link in with a national initiative involving the use of LPG.  The Memorandum of Understanding would create more efficient working and put council officers in a better position to address matters of concern.

RESOLVED

1.      That Cabinet support the principle of entering into a flexible warranting arrangement with the Health and Safety Executive and other Northamptonshire LA’s and to adopt the Memorandum of Understanding relating to the flexible warrant scheme;

2.      That the Head of Public Protection be authorised to enter into the MOU on behalf of the Council; and delegate authority to the Head of Public Protection to authorise relevant officers for the purposes of implementing the scheme.

Report of the Assistant Chief Executive

The contents of the report are noted.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet and was encouraged by only seeing six red indicators in the report.  He felt that the cash flow was acceptable considering the current financial situation.  He then congratulated officers whose areas remained within the green indicators.

Councillor Clarke addressed cabinet and commented on the recent stability in the Cabinet’s performance.  He commented that the Council was good at what it did well, although bad at recovering areas of poor performance. Although not enthusiastic about the way the report was written, he welcomed the positive message in spite of concerns about rent arrears and potential subsequent evictions.

As Portfolio Holder for Performance and Support, Councillor B Markham presented the report to Cabinet.  He welcomed the comments received and pointed out that even within the red indicators, improvements were being made month on month and year on year. In many cases, there were external circumstances affecting the figures; for example, there had been a 20% increase in the Revs and Bens case load and yet staff were still coping.

Cabinet was reminded that behind the statistics presented in the report were real people and improvements in performance would lead to real benefits in the quality of their lives.  This was particularly true in the area of public protection, where joint crime reduction initiatives in Lumbertubs, Lings and Thorplands were now being commenced in Spencer and Delapre and were showing pleasing results.  There was concern about the domestic violence figures and it was noted that this would be addressed in some part within the proposed new tenancy agreement. There was also preventative work going on to support people at risk of losing their homes.

The Leader expressed his confidence in the quality of the data and was happy with the level of accuracy they produced.  It was important to see the figures in context and bear in mind the effects of the recession. Officers were being firm but fair in dealing with rent arrears and evictions were almost 40% down on last year.  The team was congratulated for their work in achieving this.

RESOLVED

That the contents of the report be noted.

Report of the Director of Finance and Support

The report and the forecast under spend of £559k net of management action are noted.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet, having noted the steady forecast of under-spend net of management action. He commented on a number of the details in the savings plans and expressed disappointment that the Richmond Scheme had not progressed.  He then mentioned the potential problems arising from the concessionary bus fares issue and wondered about the effect on future bus use.

Councillor Clark addressed Cabinet and suggested there was a lack of clarity and openness in the way the figures were being reported.  He felt that the figures hid the way in which money was being spent and pointed out a need for consultation with the public about the large amount of expenditure in the formation of the West Northants Joint Strategic Planning Committee.  He felt that the public should be made more aware of exactly how money was being spent.

As Portfolio Holder for Finance, Councillor Perkins presented the report to Cabinet was pleased to point out the achievement of £8.3 million saving.  He explained that the budget was an expectation of reality and that action was taken in response to changes in circumstances as they arose.

With reference to the cost of setting up of the Joint Planning Unit, it was made clear that the Council paid a one third share of the cost to do joint work that the Council would otherwise have to undertake on its own at a higher cost.  Public consultation was not appropriate on issues that were a legal obligation, and where the Council had no choice in the matter.

RESOLVED

That the report and the forecast under spend of £559k net of management action be noted.

Report of the Director of Finance and Support

The report and the forecast overspend of £122k on the Net Cost of Services are noted.

Councillor Mildren addressed Cabinet and commended the report.  He was encouraged by the financial savings set out in the report and by the information that people were getting into their homes more quickly.

Councillor Clarke addressed Cabinet and offered congratulations that the Housing Revenue Account was in such good order, reflecting positive management input. However he was still concerned at the backlog of housing repairs and was not happy that tenants were paying towards the service and maintenance of communal areas that was not being carried out. Nevertheless, Councillor Clarke still congratulated the Director of Housing for the work of her and her officers as reflected in the report.

Councillor Perkins, as relevant Portfolio Holder, presented the report to Cabinet and pointed out the need to make further adjustments to the repairs and maintenance account.  He referred to the graphs accompanying the report and was confident that the end of the year would be in line with budget predictions.

Further congratulations were voiced for the Director of Housing Services and her team.

RESOLVED

That the report and the forecast overspend of £122k on the Net Cost of Services be noted.

B Report of the Director of Finance and Support

1.      The following schemes are to be to be added to the capital programme for 2009-10.

Further details of these appraisals can be seen at Annex A of this report.

2.      The following variations to schemes in the capital programme for 2009-10 are approved.

Councillor Clarke addressed cabinet and reiterated an earlier comment that these monitoring reports referred to real people.  He was not confident that the Council could achieve what had been promised and was particularly concerned about a promise of an updated heating system that had not been delivered. He repeated his concern about the lack of service in communal areas.

In response, the Portfolio Holder for Housing agreed to discuss details of Councillor Clarke’s specific concerns outside of the meeting. It had generally been felt inappropriate during this cold weather to perform works that could leave people without heating, even for a short time.

Councillor Perkins presented the report to Cabinet. He assured members that all schemes set out in the report were fully funded and progress was as would be expected at this stage of the financial year.  It was made clear that forecast saving was against the original capital plan and there was still money available to finish all current projects in the appropriate way.

RESOLVED

1.      That the following schemes be to be added to the capital programme for 2009-10.

Further details of these appraisals could be seen at Annex A of the Cabinet report.

2.      That the following variations to schemes in the capital programme for 2009-10 be approved.