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, relevant Executive Member, or Committee Chair.

 

10.1 Question from Councillor Mufeedah Bustin

 

Can the cabinet member outline the council’s new graffiti and street art policy?

 

Response of Councillor David Edgar, Cabinet Member for Environment:

 

The policy was recently adopted by the Mayor in Cabinet. It addresses what I think is a growing problem in the borough of dealing with the level of graffiti that people often find unattractive and believe has an impact on the environment. The new policy sets out the approach to tackling graffiti and the way in which we prioritise graffiti which is racist or otherwise offensive and details how we make those decisions.   It also provides a good account of the work that is being done and the way we are trying to catch up with the back log that has built up. It talks about the pressures we are applying to Veolia to make sure we do a better job. It also sets out how the Mayor put more money in the budget to graffiti removal teams, so we will have more graffiti removal teams in the new financial year, which I think will be a very useful way of tackling the backlog. What it also did was to recognise that there are some pieces of street art which most people would agree on. It sets out a framework for making decisions on those, so we get a proper balance between removing unsightly graffiti and recognising that some of it is attractive as street art.

 

No supplementary question was asked.

 

10.2 Question from Councillor Andrew Wood

 

Why was the Serious Case Review for baby 'Elias' only released in February 2019 when he died approximately 31 months earlier. Given that the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board should aim for completion of a Serious Case Review within six months of initiating it according to guidance issued by the Department of Education in March 2015.

 

Response of Councillor Danny Hassell, Cabinet Member for Children School and Young People:

 

This is clearly a very tragic case. The Governments guidance suggest that

Serious Case Reviews should be completed within six months unless they are complex cases. Often the level of complexity is not identified until mid-way through that process.  This was certainly the case for two of the most recently published serious case reviews. There were a number of factors that contributed to serious delays. They included:

 

§  Identifying the right independent reviewers with the necessary expertise from a national pool.

§  A drift in the set-up process between the Council’s Procurement Provider and the individual reviewers

§  Further unexpected delays arose from the impact of IR35 tax legislation

 

However, I would like to assure the council, as is the case with serious case reviews, that we have made sure that the learning is considered and we have already taken steps including:

 

• Ceasing to have a social work team at the Royal London Hospital.
• Adopted clearer, pan-London guidance.
• Developing better relationships with schools and processes for escalating.
• We have increased management oversight of cases significantly.
• We have increased workforce stability, reducing the number of agency workers, and providing better support to student social workers.

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Wood:

 

Do you think it would be a good idea for Overview and Scrutiny to be given updates on series case review and progress without receiving lots of detail.  One of the issues is that we were not aware of these cases until after they were published.

 

Councillor Hassell’s response to the supplementary question.

 

The government are changing the regulations for safeguarding children’s boards and partnerships and how serious case reviews are undertaken. I am quite happy to work with Overview and Scrutiny and find a way we can report mechanisms around start and end dates, working with the local children’s safeguarding boards or the successor partnership.

 

10.3 Question from Councillor Faroque Ahmed

 

There have been ongoing requests for a zebra crossing in front of Kobi Nazrul Primary School. This was raised a number of times. What are the updates and time frame for this happening? A number of visits also took place by both the Mayor and Cllr Edgar to the area in question.

 

Response of Councillor David Edgar, Cabinet Member for Environment:

 

I have visited the school and I have talked to a number of staff at the school and local residents and parents who are concerned about it. The school is one that is being included in the new School Street Programme for delivery of works in 2019/20.  The main objective of that programme is to make the area around schools safer and easier for children to navigate. Within that programme the school will undergo an assessment to identify the best way to address the issues. It may be that a zebra crossing will provide the best solution, but there will be a feasibility study to inform the scope of the work that is done there. It is a school along with many other schools where we are trying to improve pupil safety and making a contribution to addressing the problem of air quality and air pollution.  

 

No supplemental question was asked.

 

10.4 Question from Councillor Peter Golds

 

Will the Mayor provide an update on how much of the £98.6 million that the Isle of Dogs and South Poplar Opportunity Area Planning Framework (Development Infrastructure Funding Study) finalised in November 2017 said had to be spent by the end of this month, has actually been spent on new infrastructure to support growth in the area?

 

Response of Councillor Rachel Blake, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Air Quality:

 

The figure that you present we are assuming has been established by granular data from 2017 – 18 and 2018 – 19. Officers have undertaken a similar exercise and have found that the total is closer to £280million. £210 million of this is for the delivery by other bodies, such as developers, utility providers and TfL. £194million of that is actually for the TfL led Network, strategic transport projects, of the Rotherhithe to Canary Wharf Bridge. We are working in partnership with those organisations in order to bring forward the delivery of these projects. Of the approximately £70 million associated with local delivery, £48million is for education with £22m for other social infrastructure.

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Golds:

 

The figures of course are based on the hiring of Peter Brett who the GLA themselves hired and they produced a report in 2017 which was then published in May 2018, but in that intervening period, the Council were quite aware of these figures. Our concern is that a number of them, and I have got them in front of me, which is where we get the figure of £98million from, were marked critical, essential, high and desirable.  In particularly, £19 million of the figures announced in 2017/18 and 2018/19 were those that were identified as critical. This is our concern and I would like to know your observations on that.

 

Councillor Blake’s response to the supplementary question:

 

Clearly the scale of infrastructure needed on the Isle of Dogs is critical. That is why the scale of the investment planned is increasing over time, and not least in the next few years. We will be starting a Borough wide programme for investment in the public realm. Next year, it is anticipated to be £36.49 million. Significant amounts of this are expected to be spent on the Isle of Dogs. It is important to recognise the role of all of the partners that will be involved in this kind of delivery. That is why Mayor John Biggs has led on bringing together the various partners: TfL, GLA, utilities as well as housing developers to get round the table to focus on this kind of deliver and to take this matter as seriously as it should be taken.

10.5 Question from Councillor Kyrsten Perry

 

Can the Lead Member please give me an update about the council’s investment in police staff locally in Tower Hamlets, particularly the staff addressing anti-social behaviour?

 

Response of Councillor Asma Begum, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Equalities:

 

We know the impact that anti-social behaviour can have on residents. By working with partners we are addressing this.  Our budget committed to making Tower Hamlets a cleaner, safer and fairer borough. Despite our core funding being cut, I am proud that our Labour budget allocated 148million to the ASB team, and we have now six ASB investigators instead of four.

 

No supplementary question was asked.

 

10.6 Question from Councillor Marc Francis:

 

To ask the Lead Member for Environmental Services what action is being taken to deal with Veolia’s persistent missed recycling collections in Bow East ward?

 

Response of Councillor David Edgar, Cabinet Member for Environment:

 

Residents and ward Councillors have been insidious in letting me know about the problems that there have been in some parts of that ward with recycling collections. I have been very unhappy with their level of performance. What the Council has been doing, over the last six months is increasing its monitoring of the recycling collection rates. It has been increasing the levels of fines imposed on Veolia, its contractor for failing to provide the services that it should do. Those measures which has been illustrated by your walk, tell us that all that is not enough. A bigger exercise is being undertaken which is to look at the entire collection rounds across the Borough to make sure that they can be reorganised in a much more efficient and balanced way to improve collections across the borough. That new set of the recycling rounds is due to come in by the 8 April 2019. Letters have just been sent to those affected by it A reminder will go out on 5 April. I am very keen to ensure that this makes a difference and I will be watching very carefully to ensure that it does.

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Francis:

 

Can I thank the Lead Member for that response and the positive intervention, and also the intervention that officers are trying to make to ensure that Veolia adheres to the terms of the contract for the final year. I am really pleased to see that we are getting rid of Veolia and the service is being brought back in house. That is something that Councillor Edgar has argued for in the past. I note the change to the routes and I think that will be part of the solution. The other part of the solution would be the Council proactively monitoring.

 

Can he give the ward Councillors an assurance that proactive monitoring will take place on the recycling collection days, in the Bow East ward for the first month or so of implementing the rounds to ensure that Veolia is collecting it and we are not relying on the public to report missed collections to us.

 

Councillor Edgar’s response to the supplementary question.

 

I can give an assurance that there will be monitoring of recycling collection performance on a daily basis. We should not be in a situation where residents have to report such things. We must have systems to allow us to manage it, making sure that when Veolia is still with us, they are doing the job well. I will be taking a very keen and close interest in that. Where there are problems that remain, I am very happy to hear from Councillors across the Borough who may want to draw particular problems to me. I very much hope that these new rounds that have been put together in a much more thoughtful way and a more sensible way, will go a long way to addressing the problems.

 

10.7 Question from Councillor Victoria Obaze

 

Can the Mayor or Lead Member tell us what measures are being taken to tackle ASB and drug crime in Whitechapel ward?

 

Response of Councillor Asma Begum, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Equalities:

 

Issues in Whitechapel Ward are regularly discussed and monitored at the weekly Operational Tasking meeting, which allocates the Council funded Police officers, to address our priorities. Both myself and the Mayor, and ward Councillors attended public meetings organised by the residents and the TRA. The tasking meeting is chaired by the Council and comprises other partners such as the Police and Housing Associations. In the last six months in Whitechapel, there have been: 32 arrests, 27 ASB warnings issued, 11 vehicles processed and 1 drugs address closed. Intelligence from CCTV also leads to around 3 arrests a day, across the borough and we will continue to make community safety and tacking anti-social behaviour a key priority.

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Obaze:

 

When will the next visit take place?

 

Councillor Begum’s  response to the supplementary question.

 

Both myself and the Mayor are organising two dates to meet the TRAs.

 

10.8 Question from Councillor James King

 

Can the Mayor update me on progress to preparations for the structural repair of Malting and Brewster Houses in Limehouse ward?

 

Response of Councillor Sirajul Islam, Statutory Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Housing:

 

Malting and Brewster House underwent a Fire Risk assessment which found the cladding to be in the substantial risk category – though I should be clear it was not ACM cladding. In 2018, the cladding was removed from the building. A further specialist survey found that structural strengthening works need to be completed before the replacement cladding can be added.

 

The Council, with support from Tower Hamlets Homes, is appointing appropriate contractors to carry out the structural strengthening works required on these two high rise blocks as part of our Better Neighbourhoods programme.

 

Detailed contract documents and specifications are being drawn up with a view to commence the works in April. Residents and the Tenants & Resident Association have been regularly updated on the progress of investigation and works proposals.

 

The Council is dedicated to keeping the lines of communication open, ensuring that residents and councillors continue to be fully consulted and informed throughout the period of works.

 

Supplementary question from Councillor King:

 

The structural repair of Malting and Brewster House will be a significant outlay for the Council, so can you tell me what advice and reassurance the Council has received before moving on with this project?

 

Councillor Islam’s response to the supplementary question.

 

As I said in my earlier response, specialist structural engineers have looked at the strengthening work. As per the recommendations, the proposed work will be carried from April.

 

10.9 Question from Councillor Dan Tomlinson

 

Could the Mayor or Cabinet member provide an update on the potential impact of the Fair Funding Review on the Council’s budget?

 

Response of Councillor Candida Ronald, Cabinet Member for Resources and the Voluntary Sector.

 

The Governments fair funding review looks set to be anything but fair.  Areas like ours face further potential cuts, after almost a decade of Tory austerity. The Government has just closed its initial consultation on the funding formulae. Unusually, that consultation did not include any exemplifications, making it impossible to gauge how resources diverted from one part of the system will be reallocated to another. 2019 also sees the next spending review, setting out the total funding envelope for local authorities, from 2020-21. So the impact on spending from the review on the overall resource levels combined with the reweighting of fair funding means that it’s not possible to make any income projections with any degree of certainty. However, noise is coming out of the Ministry to suggest that there will be less weight for deprivation and population growth. Both of which will have a major negative impact on this Council.  Fair funding looks like the typical Tory sleight of hand, expecting Councils to do more, while cutting funding to the bone.

 

No supplementary question was asked.

 

10.10 Question from Councillor Puru Miah

 

Can the Lead Member for Community Safety tell me what additional measures have been taken by the Council and other agencies, following the stabbing off Salmon Lane, of a teenager on the 21st February 2019?

 

Response of Councillor Asma Begum, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Equalities:

 

I am absolutely committed to making our streets safer for all of our residents especially young people. I can confirm the stabbing is still under investigation by the police.  Two knives were recovered from the scene and are being assessed for forensic examination. Police have made an arrest in connection with the stabbing. High visibility policing has been deployed in the Salmon Lane area and the Police and council are both supporting the victim.

 

Since the stabbing the police have increased weapon sweeps and their focus on habitual knife carriers. They have conducted a week of action targeting knife crime along with the rest of London.

 

To tackle knife crime more broadly we have developed a Partnership Knife Crime Action Plan. The Plan includes 65 activities and it reports back to the community partnership board.

 

No supplementary question was asked.

 

10.11 Question from Councillor Mohammed Ahbab Hossain

 

Can the cabinet member please update members about Operation Continuum and its recent progress?

 

Response of Councillor Asma Begum, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Equalities:

 

Recently we have taken Operation Continuum to Cabinet to roll out this programme for the next year. It is an ongoing programme and there are plans to have another initiative in the future.

 

No supplementary question was asked.

 

10.12 Question from Councillor Harun Miah:

 

Can Mr Mayor inform us of the percentage increase in Business Rates since 2015.

 

Response of Councillor Candida Ronald, Cabinet Member for Resources and the Voluntary Sector.

 

As a small business owner you will know that business rates are set by Central Government with a multiplier that is applied to the rateable value determined by the valuation agency, an independent body. Property valuations are updated on a five year cycle .So rates increase each year by a CPI – 0.8% in 2016, 8.7% in 2017, and 3% in 2018 and 2.3% in 2019. The 8.7% was a result of a government revaluation. Overall yields from business rates have decreased whilst assessments have risen. This is due to changes in the way properties are valued, since the new valuation list came into force, including some court decisions that have been detrimental to the tax base,

 

No supplementary question was asked.

 

10.13 Question from Councillor Rabina Khan

 

Following the February Budget Meeting can the Mayor outline the steps he has taken to address the Community Language Service Petitioners concerns that the service would be gradually closed through the new proposals that were put forward within the budget?

 

Response of Mayor John Biggs:

 

As you know from the Budget meeting, there are no plans to end support for the community language teaching in the borough. Given the scale of government cuts, we do need as with other services to consider other ways to deliver it. No matter how many ways you suggest otherwise, we have no intention of stopping community language provision in our borough. Whilst the tory government cuts to the budget mean that no service can be immune from savings, our budget proposal agreed by the Council included only a small saving for 19/20 for the CLS, which can be achieved through the management of staff vacancies.  In years 2 and 3 of the proposed savings, we will engage with community groups in a full consultation on any changes with the aim of improving the quality of, consistency and value for money of the service. The savings are indicative and all options will be considered before any final decisions are made.

 

No supplemental question was asked.