Agenda item
TO RECEIVE WRITTEN QUESTIONS FROM MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL
The questions which have been received from Councillors to be put at the meeting are set out in the attached report. A maximum of 30 minutes is allowed for this agenda item.
The order of questions is as printed in the agenda item and provides for members of the majority and minority groups to put questions in turn. However as agreed by the Council on 27th October 2010, the Chair of Council has discretion, within the 30 minutes allocated for this item, to vary the printed order of questions in order to invite an ‘ungrouped’ Councillor to put his/her question.
Decision:
8.1 Question from Councillor Joshua Peck to the Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Councillor Oliur Rahman re: the number of Children’s Centres for Tower Hamlets
8.2 Question from Councillor Peter Golds to the Cabinet Member for Resources, Councillor Alibor Choudhury, re: sharing staff and back office functions with adjoining authorities and public sector bodies
8.3 Question from Councillor Fozol Miah to the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ohid Ahmed re: lack of toilet facilities in the Brick Lane area
8.4 Question from Councilllor Anna Lynch to the Cabinet Member for Resources, Councillor Alibor Choudhury re: the estimated additional full year cost of setting up and staffing the Mayor’s Office
8.5 Question from Councillor Tim Archer to the Mayor re: the future of the Isle of Dogs hoppa bus
8.6 Question from Councillor Harun Miah to the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ohid Ahmed re: the Council’s contract with Veolia (No supplementary question was asked)
8.7 Question from Councillor Abdal Ullah to the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ohid Ahmed re: increasing recycling rates in the Borough
8.8 Question from Councillor David Snowdon to the Mayor re: East End Life
8.9 Question from Councillor Rachael Saunders to the Mayor re: the Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park
8.10 Question from Councillor Zara Davis to the Cabinet Member for Resources, Councillor Alibor Choudhury, re: engagement with residents on budget proposals
The above questions and in each case (except where indicated) a supplementary question were put and were responded to by the Mayor or relevant Cabinet Member.
Questions 8.11 to 8.24 were not put as the time allowed for this agenda item had expired. Written responses will be provided to each question.
(Action by: John S. Williams, Service Head, Democratic Services)
Minutes:
8.1 Question from Councillor Joshua Peck
“Can the Mayor tell me what he believes is the right number of Children's Centres for Tower Hamlets?”
Response by Cabinet Member, Children’s Services, Councillor Oliur Rahman
Children's centres are a key and important part of the welfare state and our services for children. We must applaud the labour government for their investment this has transformed provision for children under 5. Delivering excellent services to children under five has a big impact on their long term success and well being. We should be proud of our services to and the provision in the borough. I want to thank all our staff who work to support our young children.
· Currently the LA is responsible for 23 designated children’s centres (developed by the previous government).
· These designations currently provide direct services to children under 5 in 85 venues across Tower Hamlets
· The DfE have removed the need for designated Children’s centres
· Our proposed structure reduces the number of management and administration posts whilst increasing the provision of frontline services to families
· The four locality areas (based on paired LAPs) will continue to deliver direct services to children under 5 in the same 85 venues.
· None of these delivery venues will close
· 12 of these delivery venues will become Community Hubs
· Key staff will be based at each Community Hub, including a Community Lead officer, Family Support Officers and Play and Learning workers.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Joshua Peck:
I am concerned that the Cabinet Member has not given a clear answer. Can he confirm that the Council will not be rationing the service and that the centres will remain are open to everyone with no reduction in service. Is it proposed to cut the jobs of vital staff members?
Summary of Cabinet Member’s response:
Thank you for your supplementary question. We would like to have 25,000 centres – one for each child in the borough but that is not possible. Currently the Council is responsible for 23 designated children’s centres. No staff have been given redundancy notice as the consultation period is still effective and I will be able to tell you after this has finished. Family Support Workers will be increased. If you are so concerned why have you waited until now to ask this question to either me or the Mayor?
Point of personal explanation
Councillor Joshua Peck rose to give a personal explanation. He stated that he had in fact raised the matters set out in his question above previously with the Acting Corporate Director of Children, Schools and Families.
8.2 Question from Councillor Peter Golds
“Has the administration undertaken any investigation or conversations with adjoining authorities and public sector bodies within the borough as to sharing staff or back office functions?”
Response of the Cabinet Member, Resources, Councillor Alibor Choudhury
The authority is actively involved in work across London and East London on shared working. We are looking at the experiments taking place to test whether there is real business case for change beyond the headlines. We have also an example of successfully sharing services in the form of our Out
Of Hours call handling contract with Vangent, where a number of London Authorities joined together and are now receiving a service significantly cheaper due to economies of scale than when delivered in house.
We have to devote our main energies over the next few months on how to save money reliably and quickly, and although I wouldn't criticise other authorities for trying to negotiate a large-scale shared services arrangement, there is a danger that it is a huge distraction which is not within the control of any one authority and is not guaranteed to succeed. It would not give us
the assurance we need that it would protect front-line services.
The NHS and the Police are not governed at a local level and are always going to be subject to change imposed on them from above. Members will be aware that we have had arrangements in the past with the PCT to share senior management posts, but the proposed abolition of the PCT means that these arrangements would not have been sustainable. I support working in partnership, but as soon as the arrangement is formalised there is additional financial risk.
The best chance of successful shared services is probably to start small, on specific service areas where we can show benefits, and to work with organisations like ourselves. An example of this is our Benefits Resilience Contract. Here we have developed a framework agreement for benefit assessment which we use to undertake peaks in workloads and is now being offered to other London boroughs for them to use.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Peter Golds:
I will go back to the question that was put. I am aware that there are 33 staff members that are paid over £75,000 and 13 who are paid over £100,000 per year. Why have you not considered sharing some of these staff with other boroughs when you need to save money?
Summary of Cabinet Members’ response:
Councillor Golds we will consider any options to protect our frontline services. I do not consider that writing to Eric Pickles suggesting that he takes away £3M of the Council’s money will help.
Point of personal explanation
Councillor Peter Golds rose to give a personal explanation. He stated that he had not asked the Minister to take away £3M of funding from the Council. The Mayor intended to put this money into reserves and Councillor Golds sought to ensure that it was instead spent on maintaining services as intended by the Government.
8.3 Question from Councillor Fozol Miah
“Is the Mayor aware of the frustration and anger of residents in the Brick Lane area about the continuing problem of urination and defecation in public areas around Brick Lane as a result of the lack of public toilet facilities, especially at market times which on Sunday now stretches throughout the day, and is he also aware of a large sign half way up Brick Lane saying please use the toilets but which has no indication where the toilets are, and does he agree that officers should urgently investigate this problem and that at least part of the solution will be to provide adequate and well-publicised temporary toilets, especially at market time?”
Response of the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ohid Ahmed
We are fully aware of the concerns raised by residents about the problem of street urination within the Brick Lane Town Centre. We will not tolerate this as a council. So far, the Enforcement Officers have submitted 146 cases to legal services to pursue through the courts.
Over the Christmas period, the council coordinated a zero tolerance campaign to crack down on street urination. As part of Operation Mercer, there were 427 occasions when a person was challenged for their behaviour and asked to provide their name and address. There were 13 alcohol seizures, 16 prosecutions for public urination, 20 warnings and 2 arrests made.
The council is actively reviewing a number of options for the provision of public toilets. This includes a community toilet scheme which has been a success in London Borough of Richmond, for example. Under the scheme, local businesses would allow public to use their facilities during business hours. We will know more once the council has completed its review over the coming weeks and months. I want to reassure you that we are taking this issue very seriously.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Fozol Miah:
Would the Cabinet Member agree that something must be done to increase the toilet facilities even though in these financial times this may mean that higher charges need be made, and that better signage is needed?
Summary of Deputy Mayor’s response:
Yes I agree.
8.4 Question from Councilllor Anna Lynch
“Given that I have still not been provided with a figure and now that consultation on the future structure of Democratic Services has closed, can the Mayor now tell me what is the estimated additional full year cost to the Council's budget of setting up and staffing his office?”
Responseof Cabinet Member for Resources, Councillor Alibor Choudhury
I would ask Councillor Lynch to check her facts. The Democratic/Members’ Services restructure proposals are still under consultation with staff and trade unions and therefore subject to change. Until the proposals are finalised an accurate figure cannot be given. I will not put out speculative figures but I will provide full and accurate information as soon as it is available.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Anna Lynch:
Thank you Councillor Choudhury. I have a figure for you. One of your staff is being paid more than £200 per day. With the care of the elderly being faced with cuts, do you think that is justified?
Summary of Cabinet Member’s response:
I have no information of that nature. The borough voted overwhelmingly for the Mayoral system and the Mayor is working extremely hard. No resources are wasted in the Mayor’s office.
8.5 Question from Councillor Tim Archer
“Will the Mayor please inform me what the future of the Isle of Dogs hoppa bus is?”
Response of the Mayor
Let me say first of all that I am a supporter of this service. The Hoppa bus was introduced in September 2009 and is due to run until 27th August 2011. The cost of the enabling work and operation in the first year was approximately £207,000. The service is funded through a s106 contribution from Crossharbour (London Arena) specifically aimed at bus improvements or new bus services and was agreed by the Planning Contributions Overview Panel on the 28th May 2009.
Officers have advised me that because of licensing, insurance and cash handling issues it was determined that collecting fares would not be a viable option to off-set some of the costs which would be entirely met from s106 contributions.
The Council is due to explore options with TfL to see if they could adopt a Councillor to lobby TfL and the Mayor. I hope that Cllr Archer can help me protect this service even when his Tory colleagues in Whitehall are cutting like mad.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Timothy Archer:
It is interesting to note you are a supporter of this bus or the Isle of Dogs ghost bus as it is known. It replaced a popular shopper bus provided by Tower Hamlets Community Transport which was well used and well liked. The hoppa bus is not well liked and costs £172,000 per year. This amounts to £36 per person, per journey. It would be cheaper to get taxis for people. Instead of charging for the use of the hoppa bus, will you scrap it and re-instate the previous service which was much loved and cost a fraction of the price?
Summary of the Mayor’s response:
I note your comments and all possibilities will be explored.
8.6 Question from Councillor Harun Miah
“Is the Mayor aware that a contracting local authority may exclude an economic contractor from bidding if the contractor has “committed an act of grave misconduct in the course of its business” and does he agree that grave misconduct must include assisting the maintenance of illegal Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory and would he urgently investigate the situation of Veolia in this regard and in particular the possibility both of terminating contractual arrangements with this company and excluding them from future bidding for council contracts?”
Responseof the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ohid Ahmed
I am aware that this issue has been raised in the past and it arouses strong emotions. At a personal level I share your feelings on this and strongly object to the illegal settlement of the West Bank. However, it is important that we put the interests of Tower Hamlets’ residents before our own personal feelings. Our obligation is to provide the best service for the residents of Tower Hamlets. Faced with huge cuts from central government, we have to make sure, more than ever before, that we are providing the service that is also most cost effective.
Senior managers of Veolia have offered to discuss this issue with members. I would be more than happy to ask relevant council officials to set up a meeting with Veolia if sufficient members express an interest in this matter.
No supplementary question was asked.
8.7 Question from Councillor Abdal Ullah
“Can the Mayor tell me what action he is taking to build on the progress made by the last administration on increasing recycling rates in the Borough?”
Response of the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ohid Ahmed
Since the October 2010 Mayoral elections, the council has taken significant steps in this area.
A new high impact communications campaign was launched in January. As a former Lead Member, Cllr Ullah will be aware that past publicity campaigns have had a significant positive impact. Promotions include: outdoor advertising at bus stops, poster sites and public transport locations; lamppost banners; new vehicle livery; newspaper adverts and press releases; and on screen advertising at Idea Stores and Brick Lane.
The Council also recently made a bid to the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to deliver a campaign on food waste recycling.
This administration is committed to improving recycling.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Abdal Ullah:
Thank you Councillor Ahmed. I wasn’t aware who had taken over cleaner, safer, greener but I note that it has been given to the Deputy Mayor. When I left the job recycling had increased 23%. Will the new Mayor take the challenge to improve on that?
Summary of Deputy Mayor’s response:
Thank you Councillor Ullah. Under the current Mayor’s leadership, as the former Leader of the Council, performance did increase and I congratulate you and the Mayor for your good work. You, I and other colleagues share the same goals. Come and work with us, the real Labour.
8.8 Question from Councillor David Snowdon
“The Mayor’s diary includes a regular Tuesday slot with the Head of Communications to “look at the proposed news list for East End Life”. Would the Mayor please intimate as to whether he has directed the Head of Communications or any other officer to include or exclude a story for this publication, or specified which stories he wishes his picture attached to?”
Response of the Mayor
As Mayor I take a keen interest in how we promote our services and values. I know East End Life has its critics in this chamber, and I have already stated that it is up for review. However, it remains the main way the Council communicates with residents. As Mayor, it is my duty to be aware of what we’re putting into the public domain.
As with previous administrations there are meetings with the Head of Communications to discuss the items they have placed in East End Life, but editorial control and compliance with the law continue to rest with that department. The guidelines as set out in the 2007 Cabinet report are strictly adhered to.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor David Snowdon:
Thank you Mr. Mayor. Does it not bother you that the person holding the consultation on the future of East End Life is the person responsible for this publication? Should we not have a proper independent enquiry?
Summary of the Mayor’s response:
I have full confidence in the integrity of our officers. Let us wait for the options and then make a judgement.
8.9 Question from Councillor Rachael Saunders
“Does the Mayor support the Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park in their vital conservation and heritage work and will he work with me to secure the future of the Park?”
Response of the Mayor
I fully support the conservation and heritage work done by the Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park and other park green spaces in the borough. For example, he has given his full support to protect the King Edward Memorial Park. I want to work with the community to conserve our green spaces and preserve the borough’s heritage.
The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park currently receives annual funding from the Communities, Localities and Culture Directorate budget. This pays for maintenance responsibilities within the cemetery park. This funding will continue and I will be happy to work with the Member to secure the future of the park.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Rachael Saunders:
I am glad to hear that commitment and welcome any work the Mayor can do on this. Dockers and Match Girls and those that died in the Bethnal Green Tube Disaster are buried at this cemetery. Will you arrange a meeting as soon as possible with me and the Friends of the Park to discuss funding?
Summary of the Mayor’s response:
Being able to visit loved ones that we have lost is important. I will work with you and anyone else to ensure the good work continues.
8.10 Question from Councillor Zara Davis
“What steps has the Mayor taken to engage with Tower Hamlets residents over his budget proposals, and what opportunities have been provided for residents to feedback their views?”
Response of the Cabinet Member, Resources, Councillor Alibor Choudhury
The authority regularly asks questions on finance and value for money as part of its regular consultation with residents. For this budget process, four focus groups were held with local residents from 9 – 13 January 2011. Participants were asked a series of questions, best grouped into three main subject areas. The first part of the session aimed to develop awareness about the forthcoming cuts amongst residents; the second part to develop a better understanding of the ways in which participants felt that the cuts will impact on local people; and the third part of the session was to explore the ways in which local people and organisations can work more effectively together in order to achieve results with less funding.
The outcome of this will be reported together with other consultations to Cabinet in February. The Mayor has also held two Budget Congress events with partners over the last few months to gain a shared understanding and approach to the issues we face as an area in response to Government cuts and the impact of Welfare reform, which of course go far beyond the Council's budget.
Summary of supplementary question from Councillor Zara Davis:
Two weeks ago in your own column in East End Life you said there would be lots of chances for residents to have their say in the coming weeks but I have not seen any consultation for all residents. Other boroughs are doing this. Why haven’t you done a full and open consultation?
Summary of Cabinet Member’s response:
We have had two sessions of Overview and Scrutiny with residents observing. We have held discussions with the Trade Unions, many of whom are residents. A Budget congress with the third sector has been held and we have been out to the communities and spoken to people directly that are going to be affected.
In accordance with Rule 12.10 (expiry of the time limit) questions 8.11 to 8.24 were not put. Written responses would be forwarded to the questioners.
Supporting documents: