The Speaker of the Council, Councillor Victoria Obaze in the Chair

The Speaker of the Council brought the Council up to date with some of her activities since the previous Council meeting.

She advised that she was very pleased to have hosted and attended a variety of events. This included:

·         The Eid Reunion and Award Ceremony at the London Muslim Centre;

·         Clifford Chance in Canary Wharf to attended the Jewish festival of Shavuot;

·         St Mary and St Michael Primary School Annual Dance Festival;

·         The London Enterprise Academy annual award celebration which was followed by a Guinness world record attempt to drum continuously for longer than 14 hours;

·         Bethnal Green community fitness event; and

·         The Canary Wharf Group and residents summer barbecue.

Apologies for absence were received on behalf of:

·         Councillor Tarik Khan;

·         Councillor Harun Miah;

·         Councillor Mohammed Pappu;

·         Councillor John Pierce; and

·         Councillor Leema Qureshi.

To note any declarations of interest made by Members, including those restricting Members from voting on the questions detailed in Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act, 1992.  See attached note from the Monitoring Officer.

The following Councillors declared an interest that must be registered (Other Interests) in Agenda Item 7 Administration Motion Regarding Air Quality and Climate Change.

•           Councillor Faroque Ahmed;

•           Councillor Rajib Ahmed;

•           Councillor Dipa Das; and

•           Councillor Asma Islam.

The following Councillors declared an interest that must be registered (Other Interests) in 11.1 Spitalfields and Banglatown Community Governance Review - Final Recommendations.

•           Councillor Denise Jones;

•           Councillor Tarik Khan; and

•           Councillor Shad Chowdhury.

To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the unrestricted minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Council held on 15 May 2019.

RESOLVED:

1.    That the unrestricted minutes of the ordinary Council Meeting held on 15^th May, 2019 be confirmed as a correct record and the Speaker be authorised to sign them accordingly.

The Chief Executive was pleased to report the following success stories:

• London Energy Efficiency Award – Which was a council scheme to offer boiler replacements to low income households in Tower Hamlets has been named as the best in the capital at the 2019 Greater London Energy Efficiency Awards;
• Sir John McDougall gardens has been acknowledged by the Green Flag Award Scheme as one of the country’s leading parks.

Turning to staffing issues, he reported that Carol Swift would shortly be taking up her appointment to the post of Divisional Director Housing and he thanked Mark Baigent for his service to the Council and his dedication.

He also reported on the latest Ofsted Visit which represents remarkable progress according to Ofsted after the Council set an ambitious target of achieving the good rating following the previous inspection in 2017.

The attached reports presents the petitions received for this Council meeting.

5.1 Petition regarding CCTV in Tower Hamlets

It was noted that the petitioner regarding CCTV in Tower Hamlets was not present. The petition was therefore referred to the Corporate Director, Health, Adults and Community for a written response within 28 days.

5.2 Stop the closure of Raines Foundation Secondary School.

Laura Gibson and others addressed the meeting on behalf of the petitioners, and responded to questions from Members. Councillor Danny Hassell, Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Young People then responded to the matters raised in the petition.

RESOLVED:

1. That the petition be referred to the Corporate Director, Children and Culture, for a written response within 28 days.

5.3 Petition Debate - Stop Stepney Green Boy’s School becoming a mixed school

Shahaur A Khan and others addressed the meeting on behalf of the petitioners and the Council then debated the matters raised by the petition.

During the debate Councillor Puru Miah moved and Councillor Danny Hassell seconded the following motion (As set out in the resolution below).

Following debate on the motion it was then put to a vote and was agreed.

That:

1. This Council notes that, despite over eight years of cuts from Conservative-led Governments, Labour in Tower Hamlets has delivered an integrated and inclusive education system in which the vast majority of schools in Tower Hamlets are ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’.
2. This Council is proud of all our schools and the staff who work hard to support Tower Hamlets young people to meet their aspirations and ambitions, and ensure they have the same opportunities as young people in wealthier boroughs.
3. This has been achieved thanks to working in close partnership with our schools, teachers and parents.
4. However, this Council is concerned that the advances made for children in Tower Hamlets could be threatened by the Conservative Government’s policy of forced Academisation of schools, with no powers to return to local authority governance despite the concerns of parents and teachers.
5. This Council notes that, the Conservative Government was forced to drop its plans to compel every school to become an academy by 2022 because of the loss of their majority in the 2017 General Election.
6. This Council also notes that, in recent months there has been significant media coverage of how Academies are not working in the interests of students. There is evidence to show that once a public school is converted into a Multi-Academy trust the standard of education often drops and financial oversight becomes much more difficult. Academisation does not improve pupil attainment and a report from the Education Policy Institute published in 2018, which compared school performance and pupil improvement at every trust and local authority in England at both key stage two and four, found that there is no difference in the performance of multi-academy trusts and groups of local authority schools. It also revealed that academy chains are “disproportionately represented” amongst the worst performing groups of primary schools, with 12 making it into the bottom 20.The LGA itself has said that ‘it is wrong  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

The Council’s Constitution provides for the Elected Mayor to give a report at each Ordinary Council Meeting.

A maximum of six minutes is allowed for the Elected Mayor’s report, following which the Speaker of the Council will invite the leader of the opposition group to respond for up to two minutes should he so wish.

The Mayor presented his tabled report to the Council. The Leader of the Opposition then responded briefly to the Mayors report.

To debate a Motion submitted by the Administration in accordance with Rules 11 and 13 of the Council’s Constitution. The debate will last for a maximum of 30 minutes.

Councillor Rachel Blake moved and Councillor Amina Ali seconded the motion as set out in the agenda and proposed a friendly amendment (Additions in Bold and Underlined).

This Council resolves:

1. 40% of residents in Tower Hamlets live in areas that breach EU and government guidance on safe levels of air pollution and it’s the fifth worst borough in London for air pollution;
2. A recent scientific study showed that children in Tower Hamlets have up to 10% less lung capacity than normal;
3. As highlighted in the 2010 Marmot Review, individuals in deprived areas experience more adverse health effects at the same level of exposure compared to those from less deprived areas. This is, in part, because of a higher prevalence of underlying cardio-respiratory and other diseases, as well as greater exposure to air pollution as a result of homes being situated nearer to busy congested roads and with fewer green spaces;
4. That Mayor John Biggs declared a climate emergency in March 2019 on behalf of the council, and announced the aim of becoming a zero-carbon council by 2025;
5. That the Mayor has written to the Prime Minister calling on the Government to bring forward the ban on diesel cars and invest in a national scrappage scheme;
6. That Mayor Biggs wrote to the Leader of Greenwich Council in June 2018 to express our opposition to cruise ship moorings without the use of on-shore power supply next to the Isle of Dogs;
7. That nationally the Labour Party has announced that climate change would be a core part of the school curriculum under a Labour government;
8. A recent poll showed that around 75% of UK adults believe climate change to be the biggest crisis facing humanity today.

This Council further notes the council’s ongoing work to tackle poor air quality, including:

1. The Breathe Clean campaign, launched in 2018, to tackle air pollution across Tower Hamlets and raise awareness about what can be done locally to improve air quality and reduce risk to residents’ health;
2. The anti-idling campaign, with a particular focus on drivers who idle outside schools;
3. 50 planned ‘school streets’ and ‘play streets’, with some roads closed off to improve air quality around schools;
4. 2,800 trees have been planted across Tower Hamlets over the course of the last year;
5. Significant investment in a Liveable Streets fund to make it easier to get about by foot, on a bike and on public transport;
6. Continuing to consult local people on the installation of secure residents’ Cycle Parking Hangars, as well as on street visitor cycle parking and developing a proposal for a new Secure Cycle Hub for around 100 cycles at Whitechapel Station;
7. The aim to install 300 electric vehicle charging points across the borough;
8. The LED street light replacement programme is continuing and at the moment 63% of lights in the borough have already been replaced with LEDs;
9. Continuing to review the council’s investment decisions, including exploring all opportunities to divest our pension fund investments, noting that the LBTH Pension Fund has transferred  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To debate a Motion submitted by the Opposition Group in accordance with Rules 11 and 13 of the Council’s Constitution. The debate will last for a maximum of 30 minutes.

Motion withdrawn

The questions which have been received from Councillors to be put at this Council meeting are set out in the attached report.  A maximum period of 30 minutes is allocated to this agenda item.

The following questions and in each case supplementary questions were put (except where indicated) and were responded to by the Mayor or relevant Executive Member.

9.1 Question from Councillor Asma Islam about a violent incident in the Borough.

The response of Councillor Asma Begum Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Community Safety We are working across the Borough on a multi-pronged approach which includes working with the partnership task force and is focused on the Council’s priorities in tackling violence; drugs and anti-social behaviour; the Exploitation Team within Children’s Services which was launched in April 2018 has a specific focus on the highest risk children and young people; the Rapid Response Team carries out on street outreach sessions with a structured focus on crime and violence and they work with people under the age of 25; the CCTV Suite is proactive in identifying and responding to violent incidents happen, co-ordination of the police response and the gathering of evidence for any subsequent investigation.

Supplementary question from Councillor Asma Islam Councillor Begum and the Mayor have been extremely helpful in working with the Councillors of Mile End to help the residents of Burdett Estate affected by the incident on St. Pauls Way. Therefore, can I get a commitment from the Mayor and Councillor Begum today that they will continue their work to get a long term solution?

Councillor Begum’s response to the supplementary question Yes we do want to work to get a long term solution and I wish to thank the Mile End Councillors for their hard work in this difficult situation.

9.2 Question from Councillor Andrew Wood how much money has been spent since 2010 on upgrading the Raines school sites?

The response of Councillor Danny Hassell, Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Young People Approximately £1.6 m has been spent on the Raines school sites from 2010-11 and 2018-19 this work was funded from the Department for Education locally Co-ordinated Voluntary Aided Programme and is not a grant received by the Council.  In October 2017 the Cabinet agreed a further £4 m however given the uncertainty over the future development of the school only £1.5 m of this funding has been committed to date.

Supplementary question from Councillor Andrew Wood I understood that the Diocese had put money into the school too?

Councillor Hassell’s response to the supplementary question The Diocese had put money in through locally Co-ordinated Voluntary Aided Programme but I am happy to confirm that in writing.

9.3 Question from Councillor James King has the Council been part of the consultation on the Academisation of Cyril Jackson.?

The response of Councillor Danny Hassell, Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Young People the Governing Body at Cyril Jackson has consulted the Council in its proposals to become an academy.  We should be clear that whilst the Council should be consulted it is not for the Council to make that determination, as that will be a decision that lies with the Department for Education or the Regional  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

To consider the report of the General Purposes Committee setting out a proposed revised Constitution.

The Council considered the report and tabled supplementary papers of the General Purposes Committee setting out the revisions to the Constitution.

The recommendations set out in the report were put to the vote and were agreed.  Accordingly it was:

RESOLVED:

That the Council:

1.         Agree the revised Constitution as set out in Appendices 1 – 4 to this report;

2.         Note that following agreement the Constitution will be prepared for publication in consultation with the Communications team and therefore to agree to delegate authority to the Corporate Director, Governance and Monitoring Officer to make non-material changes to the Constitution during this process subject that any changes be subsequently reported to the General Purposes Committee for noting;

3.         Confirm the refreshed delegations for revising the constitution including as set out in Sections 15, 19 and 42 of the Constitution, for such that:

a)   The Monitoring Officer can approve all non-material changes to the Constitution including those that reflect decisions taken by the Council or changes in legislation or to correct matters of fact;

b)   The Monitoring Officer can recommend to Council or General Purposes Committee for approval any material changes to Parts A to C of the Constitution with the exception of the Executive Scheme of Delegation (Section 30) which will be amended by the Monitoring Officer should the Mayor amend his Executive Scheme of Delegation.

c)    The introduction to Part D of the Constitution sets out the delegated authority to amend each Part D Section. Unless indicated otherwise, the Monitoring Officer has delegated authority to amend Part D documents in consultation with the Chief Executive; and

d)   All Sections of the Constitution remain in place unless explicitly revised or removed.

4.         To note the updated Corporate Scheme of Delegation within the Constitution and to note that Corporate Directors have delegated authority to create their own Directorate Schemes of Delegation. Any such schemes will be published in Part D of the Constitution.

To consider the report of the Standards Advisory Committee setting out its Annual Report for 2018/19.

The Council considered the report of the Standards Advisory Committee: Annual Report.  The provision of this annual report highlights the importance Council places on the profile of ethical standards across the organisation and affords the opportunity to highlight areas of good practice and identify any requirements for improvement.

The recommendations set out in the report were put to the vote and were agreed.  Accordingly it was:

RESOLVED:

That the Council note the report

To consider the report of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee setting out their Annual Report for 2018/19 and their proposed work plan for 2019/20.

The Council considered the Annual Report of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The report presented a summary of diverse range of scrutiny work conducted throughout 2018-19 by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Health, Housing and Grants Scrutiny Sub Committees.

The recommendations set out in the report were put to the vote and were agreed.  Accordingly it was:

RESOLVED:

That the Council note the report

To consider a report of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee setting out their planned areas of work for the 2019/20 municipal year.

The Council considered a report that outlined the Scrutiny Work programme for 2019/20 and covered the:

1)    Overview and Scrutiny Committee;

2)    Health & Adults Scrutiny Sub-Committee;

3)    Housing & Regeneration Scrutiny Sub-Committee; and

4)    Children & Education Scrutiny Sub-Committee.

The recommendations set out in the report were put to the vote and were agreed.  Accordingly it was:

RESOLVED:

That the Council note the report

To consider the report of the Chief Executive setting out proposed Final Recommendations in respect of the Spitalfields and Banglatown Community Governance Review.

The Council considered a report of the Chief Executive that set out the proposed Final Recommendations in respect of the Spitalfields and Banglatown Community Governance Review.

It was noted that:

1. In making its final decision the Council has a duty to ensure that community governance within the area under review:

a.            reflects the identities and interests of the community in that area, and

b.            is effective and convenient;

2. Relevant considerations which should influence the Council’s judgement against these two principal criteria include the impact on community cohesion and the size, population and boundaries of the proposed area;
3. The effectiveness and convenience of local government is best understood in the context of a parish council's ability to deliver quality services economically and efficiently, and to give users of services a democratic voice in the decisions that affect them;
4. The Council has consulted with local people as required by law.  It has taken into account representations received in connection with the review. Consultation findings have confirmed the Council's view that there is not significant support for the creation of a parish council. There is also significant opposition to the proposal from some sections of the community;
5. In making its final recommendations, the Council should consider the evidence it has been presented with in the form of consultation findings and other representations by local people. It should also use its own knowledge of the area as set out in the final analysis and conclusions report. In taking this evidence into account and judging the criteria in the 2007 Act against it, the Council may reasonably conclude that the recommendations set out in the petition should not be made;
6. Whilst the legal presumption is in favour of the creation of parishes and parish councils, it remains open to the Council to reject the proposal. This is particularly important where the Council believes that it is not in the interests of the wider local community and if giving effect to it would be likely to damage community relations by dividing communities along ethnic, religious or cultural lines.

The recommendations set out in the report were put to the vote and were agreed.  Accordingly it was:

RESOLVED:

That the Council:

1. Notes the final analysis and conclusions of the Community Governance Review as set out in Appendix 1 of the report;
2. Notes the equalities analysis as set out at Annexe 6 to Appendix 1 of the report (final analysis and conclusions);
3. Notes the reasons set out for the Council’s proposed recommendation and the alternative options set out in sections 2 and the 3 of this report; and
4. Agrees that there be no change to existing community governance arrangements within the wards of Spitalfields & Banglatown and Weavers and that a parish should not be created.

Nil items.

Nil items