Extra Policy and Resources Committee - 30 September 2020

EXTRAORDINARY POLICY AND RESOURCES COMMITTEE

NOTICE AND AGENDA

For a virtual/remote meeting to be held on Wednesday 30 September 2020 at 7.30pm.

Members of the Policy and Resources Committee:-

Councillors

Sarah Nelmes (Chair) (Local Plan)      Matthew Bedford (Vice-Chair) (Resources & Shared Services)

Stephen Cox

Steve Drury (Infrastructure & Planning Policy)      Andrew Scarth (Housing)

Reena Ranger

Stephen Giles-Medhurst (Transport & Economic Development)

Alex Hayward      Roger Seabourne (Community Safety & Partnerships)

Alison Wall

Paula Hiscocks

Chris Lloyd (Lead Member for Leisure)      Phil Williams (Environmental Services & Sustainability)

Joanne Wagstaffe Chief Executive

22 September 2020

(The Local Authorities and Police and Crime Panels (Coronavirus) (Flexibility of Local Authority and Police and Crime Panel Meetings) (England and Wales) Regulations 2020 made under the Coronavirus Act 2020 enable Council/Committee meetings to be held in a virtual format and enables remote attendance.

The meeting starts at 7.30pm and will be virtual/remote meeting in that it will be conducted at no specific location and all participants are at various locations, communicating via audio and online.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public to its discussion on Part I agenda items at Committee meetings.  Contributions will be limited to one person speaking for and one against each item for not more than three minutes. Please note that in the event of registering your interest to speak on an agenda item but not taking up that right because the item is deferred, you will automatically be given the right to speak on that item at the next meeting of the Committee.  Details of the procedure are provided below:

Members of the public wishing to speak will be entitled to register and identify which Part I report they wish to speak on from the published agenda for the remote meeting.  Those who wish to register to speak must do so by notifying the Committee Team by e-mail 48 hours before the meeting. The first 2 people to register (1 for and 1 against) will be sent a link so that they can join the meeting to exercise that right.  This will also allow the Committee Team to prepare the speaker sheet in advance of the remote meeting to forward to the Chair of the meeting.

In accordance with The Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014 any matters considered under Part 1 business only of the meeting may be filmed, recorded, photographed, broadcast or reported via social media by any person.

Recording and reporting the Council's meetings is subject to the law and it is the responsibility of those doing the recording and reporting to ensure compliance.  This will include the Human Rights Act, the Data Protection Act and the laws of libel and defamation.

Please note that the meeting is being held virtually. The business of the meeting will be live streamed at (link archived)

The virtual meeting protocol is provided below:

1.         APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

2.         NOTICE OF OTHER BUSINESS

Items of other business notified under Council Procedure Rule 30 to be announced, together with the special circumstances that justify their consideration as a matter of urgency. The Chairman to rule on the admission of such items.

3.         DECLARATION OF INTERESTS

To receive any declarations of interest.

POLICY

4.   TO RECEIVE THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CONSTITUTION SUB-COMMITTEE MEETINGS HELD ON  9 and 29 SEPTEMBER 2020 ON THE FOLLOWING (THE MINUTES FROM THE SUB-COMMITEE MEETINGS ON 9 AND 29 SEPTEMBER 2020 ARE PROVIDED BELOW):

1. REVIEW OF RULE 14 – REPORTS FROM AND QUESTIONS TO THE LEADER OF THE COUNCIL AND LEAD MEMBERS AND CHAIRS OF COMMITTEES

Below are the reports which were presented to the Constitution sub-committee on 29 September 2020:

The recommendations from the Constitution sub-committee meetings held on 9 and 29 September 2020 on Rule 14 are provided below for consideration by Policy and Resources Committee and for recommendation to Council on 20 October 2020:

2. REVIEW OF RULE 11 NOTICES OF MOTIONS

Below are the reports which were presented to the Constitution sub-committee on 29 September 2020:

The recommendations from the Constitution sub-committee meetings held on 9 and 29 September 2020 on Rule 11 are provided below for consideration by the Policy and Resources Committee and for recommendation to Council on 20 October 2020:

3. REVIEW OF RULE 18 PETITIONS

The recommendations from the Constitution sub-committee meetings held on 9 and 29 September 2020 on Rule 18 (Petitions) to the Policy and Resources Committee is for there to be no change to Rule 18 and that this be recommended to Council on 20 October 2020.

4.  REVIEW OF RULE 15 (QUESTIONS FROM THE PUBLIC)

The recommendation from the Constitution sub-committee meetings held on 9 and 29 September 2020 on Rule 15 (Questions from the Public) to the Policy and Resources Committee is for there to be no change to Rule 15 and that this be recommended to Council on 20 October 2020.

5.  RULE 16 (RULES OF DEBATE)

The recommendation from the Constitution sub-committee meetings held on 9 and 29 September 2020 on Rule 16 (Rules of Debate) to the Policy and Resources Committee is that any changes to the Rules of Debate which arise as a result of any amendments to Rule 11 be delegated to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Group Leaders and be reported direct to Council.

6.  MEMEMBER/OFFICER PROTOCOL

The recommendation from the Constitution sub-committee meeting held on 9 September 2020 on the Member/Officer Protocol to the Policy and Resources Committee is that the protocol be adopted by Council and that this be recommended to Council on 20 October 2020.  The protocol is provided below.

7.  COUNCIL CONSTITUTION AMENDMENTS

The recommendation from the Constitution sub-committee meeting held on 29 September 2020 to the Policy and Resources Committee is to change the pronouns throughout the Council Constitution to the inclusive they/their/them and that this be recommended to Council on 20 October 2020.

8. WORKING PARTIES

The Constitution sub-committee considered the impact of the Motion passed by Council in December 2018 with regard to Working Parties - details provided below.  The recommendation from the sub-committee is that Council consider the use of Working Parties/Task and Finish Groups in appropriate circumstances ensuring where possible that meetings are held in the public domain.

Minute CL67/18          MOTIONS UNDER PROCEDURE RULE 11

RESOLVED:

This Council notes that Councillors have been elected to take decisions for the benefit of local residents and that presently there are a growing number of areas where significant powers have been delegated.

This Council agrees that the decision making process and the decisions themselves should be open to public scrutiny. This can only be done by having public meetings with fully published agendas and public access. Accordingly working parties will no longer be used; all significant decisions will go to an appropriate public committee for deliberation and decision.

5.          TO RECEIVE THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE LOCAL PLAN SUB-COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 23 SEPTEMBER 2020 ON THE FOLLOWING:

The draft minutes of the meeting held on 23 September 2020 are provided below:

5a) CHANGES TO THE CURRENT PLANNING SYSTEM (AUGUST 2020)

Original report presented to the Local Plan sub-committee meeting on 23 September 2020

Updated report with suggested amendments (shown in red) to the responses as recommended by the Local Plan sub-committee at their meeting on 23 September 2020

5a)

5b) PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE WHITE PAPER (AUGUST 2020)

Original report presented to the Local Plan sub-committee meeting on 23 September 2020

Updated report with suggested amendments (shown in red) to the responses as recommended by the Local Plan sub-committee at their meeting on 23 September 2020

6.        OTHER BUSINESS – If approved under Item 3 above

7.        EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

If the Committee wishes to consider the remaining item in private, it will be appropriate for a resolution to be passed in the following terms:-

“that under Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined under paragraphs 1 to 7 of Part I of Schedule 12A to the Act. It has been decided by the Council that in all the circumstances, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.”

(Note:  If other confidential business is approved under item 3, it will also be necessary to specify the class of exempt or confidential information in the additional items.)

1.            OTHER BUSINESS – If approved under item 3 above.