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 followed by a supplementary question (except where indicated) were put and were responded to by the Mayor or relevant Executive Member:-

8.1       Question from from Councillor Danny Hassell:

Will the Mayor join me in thanking foster carers across the borough for their tireless work and dedication with some of our most vulnerable young people?

Response of Mayor John Biggs:

Yes. Foster carers deserve our utmost thanks. They give dedication and they do it not for the reward but because they care passionately about our community and serving local people.  Councillor Whitelock Gibbs and I recently wrote a letter to our foster carers All of whom, I think were shocked by the newspaper coverage and the way in which it portrayed them in an inaccurate and pejorative fashion and passed judgments which were very critical and undermined the dedication they show. As a Council, we should be unanimous in supporting our foster carers who provide dedicated support. They are tireless and they support and care for our children at traumatic times in their lives and they deserve to feel safe and supported and valued. I for one as Mayor of this Borough value our foster carers and encourage others to come forward and we will work tirelessly to ensure that children in our care are looked after property. 

(No supplementary question was asked)

Procedural Motion

Mayor John Biggs moved and Councillor Sirajul Islam, seconded, a procedural motion “that under Procedure Rule 14.1.3 the order of business be varied such that agenda item 12. 4 Motion in support of foster carers be taken as the next item of business”. The procedural motion was put to the vote and was agreed.

8.2       Question from Councillor Ohid Ahmed:

In response to concerns raised about the potential closure of One Stop Shops in the borough, the Mayor stated “We are consulting residents on proposals to merge our One Stop Shop and Idea Stores. This is not, obviously, a proposal to shut One Stop Shops. Indeed a new one will open, it is planned, as part of the Isle of Dogs Idea Store site.” Considering this comment, will the Mayor confirm that the 4 One Stop Shops (Bow, Chrisp Street, Watney Market and Bethnal Green) will continue to operate as they are with stand-alone One Stop service for residents, and not close down?

Response of Mayor John Biggs:

We are consulting on a proposal that was considered as part of our budget proposals for the next three years. We believe that by merging the One Stop Shops and Idea Stores, we will achieve both efficiencies and a better quality service. If I could focus on the current One Stop Shop in Chrisp Street for example, it’s in a pretty inadequate premises and by moving it into the idea store, we think we can provide a better service for residents. By providing a One Stop Shop ideally in a better location as part of a combined operation on the Isle of Dogs, we will be providing residents there with a service they don’t currently receive on the island. We already have combined effectively the One Stop Shop and Idea Store at Watney Market. The one that I remain particularly anxious about is the one in Bethnal Green and as part of the current proposal that might move to Whitechapel. It’s a genuine consultation and there is no predetermination. We will see what the public consultation says. The answer to your question is that we are now in a flat earth situation and we are in a £58million savings situation. But we think that we can improve the quality of services and accessibility to services for residents by including a better internet presence to residents, counter services and by better providing our services more corporately as an Authority.

Supplementary question fromCouncillor Ahmed:

About 1000 residents visit the One Stop Shops on a daily basis. I go to Chrisp Street Market quite often as this is where I hold my surgery. Every time I go I can see people queuing up for advice. So how do you think that particularly the elderly people and people who who don’t speak English as a first language are going to be able to use the service, particularly the online service  you are referring to? 

Mayor John Biggs’, response to supplementary question:

I said very clearly that we are not closing the One Stop Shops, therefore people will continue to be able to access the same level of service and we expect to be able to provide an improved service as a result of these changes.  I appreciate the point you make about people who may not have English literacy and may not have English as a first language and the service will reach out to them to meet the needs of those residents. We need to focus on people who need a counter service in particular and we need to move people as far as possible to other means of contacting the Council which are more efficient and satisfactory for them and work better for the whole community.

Questions 8.3 - 30 were not put due to lack of time. Written responses would be provided to the questions.  (Note:  The written responses are included in Appendix ‘A’ to these minutes.)