Agenda and draft minutes
Venue: M71, 7th Floor, Town Hall, Mulberry Place, 5 Clove Crescent, London, E14 2BG
Contact: Amanda Thompson, Democratic Services Tel: 020 7364 4651, E-mail: amanda.thompson@towerhamlets.gov.uk
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APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE To receive any apologies for absence. Minutes: Apologies of absence were received from Councillors Rajib Ahmed and Rachael Saunders and Jake Kemp, Parent Governor Representative.
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DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST 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 Chief Executive.
Minutes: No declarations of interest were made.
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UNRESTRICTED MINUTES To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the unrestricted minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 8 February 2011.
Minutes: The Chair Moved and it was:-
RESOLVED
That the unrestricted minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 8th February 2011 be approved and signed by the Chair as a correct record of the proceedings.
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REQUESTS TO SUBMIT PETITIONS To be notified at the meeting. Minutes: None received.
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REQUESTS FOR DEPUTATIONS To be notified at the meeting. Minutes: None received.
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SECTION ONE REPORTS 'CALLED IN' |
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Report Called In - Leasehold Policy Review (Time allocated – 30 minutes)
Additional documents:
Minutes: At the request of the Chair, Councillor Marc Francis on behalf of the Call-in Members referred to the reasons in their requisition and highlighted the main issues that they held with the Cabinet’s provisionally agreed decision that the Leasehold policies be approved subject to a number of revisions. Cllr Francis praised the decision to retain the £10,000 cap on major works recharges for some older leaseholders on very low incomes. However there were a number of concerns, particularly in respect of the independent audit report of leasehold service charges which had not been signed off from the Project Steering Group.
Councillor Francis outlined the alternative course of action proposed and circulated a copy of the Housing Services Committee report, dated 3rd February 1998, highlighting the decision of that Committee to reduce charges for ground floor leaseholders. In addition to the alternative course of action proposed, Councillor Francis asked that a summary of responses of leaseholders be made available and numbers of legal challenges made in respect of the charge. In conclusion, Councillor Francis felt that the decision needed to be better informed and asked that it be referred back to the Cabinet.
Councillor Francis then responded to questions from the Committee and expanded on the concerns about the draft Beevers and Struthers Audit report. He felt that it had been premature to make an assumption about the results of the audit.
The Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Rabina Khan was of the view that there were some moral grounds for not charging ground floor leaseholders. However, legal advice had stated that the view was incorrect. Councillor Khan advised that the Beevers and Struthers Audit would be signed off at the Project Steering Group in March and therefore the Policy would be revisited if necessary. Ms Jill Bell, Head of Legal Services, Environment, advised that Case Law made it clear that service charges should be shared equally and that one lease cannot be changed without the agreement of all other leaseholders.
Councillor Khan, Ms Bell and Ms Jackie Odunoye, Service Head Strategy Regeneration and Sustainability, responded to questions from Members regarding the rationale for bringing the report forward before the Audit report had been signed off; and clarification of technical and legal issues. Ms Bell advised that Counsel’s opinion could not be released as it could prejudice any legal action against the Council. However a briefing note summarising the opinion could be produced for Members.
The Cabinet Members present at the meeting who had also been present when the Cabinet decision was made left the room. A significant part of the subsequent debate surrounded the rationale for bringing the report forward to Cabinet and whether a decision could have waited for the outcome of the Beevers and Struthers Audit. Concerns were also expressed about the consultation exercise carried out. Members felt that the legal opinion should have been made available in order to scrutinise the decision properly.
After considering the views and comments made by the Member presenting the call-in; ... view the full minutes text for item 6.1 |
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SCRUTINY SPOTLIGHT Councillor Rania Khan, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, will attend to report on her portfolio.
(Time allocated – 30 minutes)
Minutes: Councillor Rania Khan, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, gave a detailed presentation on her portfolio, focussing on the following:
Members then asked a number of questions of the Cabinet Member to which she responded, supported by Mr Nick Smales, Service Head 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The question and answer session focussed on the following points:
The Chair thanked Councillor Khan for her detailed presentation.
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SCRUTINY MANAGEMENT |
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Overview and Scrutiny 6 Monthly Tracking Report Due to the size of the document Appendices 2 – 17 of this report have been circulated separately to Members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee only and are available on request from the Committee Clerk.
It is also available online.
(Time allocated – 15 minutes)
Additional documents: Minutes: The Chair presented the six monthly tracking report which monitored the progress of implementing past recommendations of scrutiny reviews.
Councillor Lesley Pavitt, Scrutiny Lead for Safe and Supportive Communities, made the following points:
Councillor Stephanie Eaton highlighted the need for the Lead Scrutiny Member to take responsibility for past scrutiny reports and asked that the Chair monitor the situation. The Chair concurred and also asked that the Yellow status for the Private Rented Sector in Appendix 1 to the report should be flagged up over the next few months.
RESOLVED
That the report be noted.
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REFERRALS FROM COUNCIL |
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Mayor's Office Staffing Proposals (Time allocated – 5 minutes)
Minutes: The Chair presented the report which followed a referral from Council that the Committee consider matters raised in a question by Councillor Anna Lynch in respect of the setting up and staffing of the Mayor’s office. The report provided an update on progress regarding the establishment of the Mayor’s office and further developments since the Council meeting.
Councillor Tim Archer, requested that details of the cost of the Mayor’s Office should still be provided as per the original question.
RESOLVED
That the Committee does not consider this matter at this time as the budget for the Mayor’s office remains to be set by Council.
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Confidentiality of Member's Enquiries (Time allocated – 5 minutes)
Minutes: The Chair presented the report which followed a referral from Council that the Committee consider the issue of confidentiality of Members’ Enquiries. The report set out the Chief Executive’s findings that there had not been a breach of confidentiality.
RESOLVED
That the Committee refer the matter to the Assistant Chief Executive (Legal Services) to review the procedures for Members’ Enquiries and to report back to Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
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PRE-DECISION SCRUTINY OF SECTION ONE (UNRESTRICTED) CABINET PAPERS (Time allocated – 10 minutes). Minutes: The Chair advised that no pre - decision questions for the Cabinet meeting on 9th March 2011 had been received.
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ANY OTHER SECTION ONE (UNRESTRICTED) BUSINESS WHICH THE CHAIR CONSIDERS TO BE URGENT |
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Strategic Performance and Corporate Budget Monitoring to 31 December 2010. Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Chair informed members of the Committee that the special circumstances and reasons for urgency associated with the proposals were detailed on the front page of the report. The Committee subsequently agreed the special circumstances and reasons for urgency as set out on the front page of the report and also set out below:
“Officers have worked to ensure that the latest possible performance and financial information considered by Overview and Scrutiny and Cabinet. There have also been changes made to meetings to accommodate the budget process, including bringing forward the Overview and Scrutiny meeting by one day. For these reasons the standard publication deadline for Overview and Scrutiny has not been met, although it was possible to do so for the (later) Cabinet meeting. If the report is not taken by Overview and Scrutiny as a separate item at this meeting, then that may limit the Committee’s input to Cabinet. It is considered that these circumstances justify taking the report as an urgent item.”
A discussion ensued and the following points were made:
- A42 - Older People Commissioning – whether increased demand for home care packages would be likely to cause overspend in the future. - A45 Physical Disabilities Commissioning – whether the Council now has appropriate charging set up with the PCT.
Ms Stephanie Ford, Interim Performance Manager, advised that the points made would be reported back to Finance officers and a written response would be provided for Members.
RESOLVED
That the Council’s financial position as outlined in paragraphs 5 and 6 and appendices 1-7 of the report be noted;
That the Quarter 3 2010/11 performance including areas where no further work is needed be noted and that a response to the points raised above would be provided to Members; and
That the actions being taken to address the reported overspends be noted.
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EXCLUSION OF THE PRESS AND PUBLIC In view of the contents of the remaining items on the agenda the Committee is recommended to adopt the following motion:
“That, under the provisions of Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985, the press and public be excluded from the remainder of the meeting for the consideration of the Section Two business on the grounds that it contains information defined as Exempt in Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972.”
EXEMPT/CONFIDENTIAL SECTION (Pink Papers)
The exempt committee papers in the agenda will contain information, which is commercially, legally or personally sensitive and should not be divulged to third parties. If you do not wish to retain these papers after the meeting, please hand them to the Committee Officer present. Minutes: The resolution to exclude the Press and Public was not adopted as there was no Section 2 ‘Exempt’ business for consideration.
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EXEMPT/ CONFIDENTIAL MINUTES None. Minutes: Nil items.
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SECTION TWO REPORTS 'CALLED IN' There were no Section Two reports ‘called in’ from the meeting of Cabinet held on 9 February 2011.
Minutes: Nil items.
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PRE-DECISION SCRUTINY OF SECTION TWO (RESTRICTED) CABINET PAPERS (Time allocated - 5 minutes).
Minutes: Nil items.
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ANY OTHER SECTION TWO (RESTRICTED) BUSINESS THAT THE CHAIR CONSIDERS URGENT Minutes: Nil items.
The Chair thanked those present for their attendance and declared the meeting closed. |