Agenda and minutes

To receive apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Casling, Crane, Hobson, Metcalfe, Nichols and Reynolds.

A copy of the Register of Interest for each Selby District Councillor is available for inspection at www.selby.gov.uk.

Councillors should declare to the meeting any disclosable pecuniary interest in any item of business on this agenda which is not already entered in their Register of Interests.

Councillors should leave the meeting and take no part in the consideration, discussion or vote on any matter in which they have a disclosable pecuniary interest.

Councillors should also declare any other interests. Having made the declaration, provided the other interest is not a disclosable pecuniary interest, the Councillor may stay in the meeting, speak and vote on that item of business.

If in doubt, Councillors are advised to seek advice from the Monitoring Officer.

There were no disclosures of interest.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 17 July 2018.

The Council considered the minutes of the meeting of meeting held on 17 July 2018.

Members asked that at page 2 the spelling of York Minster be amended.

The Council also agreed that reference to a question from Councillor S Duckett about bus provision, asked in relation to Councillor Metcalfe’s Executive report, had been omitted and should be included.

RESOLVED:

To approve the minutes of the Council meeting held on 17 July 2018 for signing by the Chairman, subject to the amendments set out above.

The Chairman, Leader of the Council or the Chief Executive will deal with any communications which need to be reported to the Council.

The Chairman updated the Council on the recent success of his civic service at All Saints’ Church in Sherburn in Elmet, and thanked Members for attending. Members had been particularly impressed by the newly refurbished Old Girls School in Sherburn, to which there had been a procession after the civic service to mark the grand reopening.

The Chairman was pleased to inform Council that that he had recently attended the Yorkshire in Bloom awards at York Racecourse, and was happy to report that Market Cross in Selby had won a silver gilt award.

To receive any announcements from the Chairman, Leader or Members of the Executive.

The Chief Executive directed Members to the cut-out silhouette of a soldier in the public gallery of the Chamber, and explained that this was part of a remembrance campaign by ‘There But Not There’, to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War.

County and District Councils across the country had been given the silhouettes to place somewhere in their areas in order to commemorate the fallen, educate today’s generations and heal veterans suffering from the mental and physical wounds from their service.

The Chief Executive explained that she had chosen to display the silhouette at the Council Offices as they were connected to the Selby War Memorial Hospital. Eventually the silhouettes would be given back to the County Council and moved to Ripon Cathedral for a commemoration ceremony for Armistice Day.

The Chairman encouraged Members to attend his charity concert which would be taking place at Selby Abbey on Saturday 29September 2018; tickets were almost all sold out and could be purchased from the Chairman himself or Democratic Services.

Lastly, the Chairman informed Members about the charity ball he would be organising a Selby Golf Club on Saturday 15 December 2018.

To receive any petitions.

There were no petitions received.

To receive and answer questions, notice of which has been given in accordance with rule 10.1 of the Constitution.

There were no public questions received.

To receive and answer questions submitted by councillors in accordance with rule 11.2 of the Constitution.

The following questions have been submitted by Councillor Mike Jordan:

1.    The government have announced that councils will only be able to be members of a single LEP (Local Enterprise Partnership). Could I ask the Executive if they have decided which to remain a member of and, if so, the reason for their decision. I am referring to the Leeds LEP and the North Yorkshire, York and East Riding LEP.

2.    Earlier this year, in Full Council, it was decided that at some point we would be providing free parking for the first hour in Selby. Can I ask when that is likely to occur?

The following questions have been submitted for the Leader by Councillor Mary McCartney:

1.    Could you please give an update on the progress being made to introduce a Public Space Protection Order to stop all vehicles, including motor cycles, quad bikes, cars, vans and caravans from going on and parking on our parks, playing fields, sports fields and other public green spaces? The reaction from Parish Councils and residents show that they are supportive of the proposal.

2.    Could you also say whether you are confident that North Yorkshire Police will get behind such a scheme and will be prepared to, along with SDC officers, enforce any such order?

Four questions from Councillors had been received; two from Councillor Mike Jordan, and two from Councillor Mary McCartney.

Councillor Jordan asked his first question:

1.         ‘The government have announced that councils will only be able to be members of a single LEP (Local Enterprise Partnership). Could I ask the Executive if they have decided which to remain a member of and, if so, the reason for their decision. I am referring to the Leeds LEP and the North Yorkshire, York and East Riding LEP.’

Councillor Mackman responded on behalf of the Leader as the Deputy Leader of the Council, and explained that the Executive had not yet made a decision. A Special Executive meeting had been arranged for Thursday 27 September to consider the matter. Councillor Mackman also explained that in addition a Member briefing had been arranged for the same day at 6.00pm to discuss the topic. Members noted that the Executive would take account of comments made at the briefing for inclusion in the response to the LEP; an information paper would also be circulated on the options.

Councillor Jordan asked his second question:

2.         ‘Earlier this year, in Full Council, it was decided that at some point we would be providing free parking for the first hour in Selby. Can I ask when that is likely to occur?’

Councillor Mackman responded on behalf of Councillor Metcalfe and explained to Members that at some point the Council would be providing free car parking for the first hour in Selby. However, Councillor Mackman went on to clarify that the free parking would be factored into the introduction of car parking charges at Tadcaster as a pre requisite. Members noted that the Leader regarded the issue as an important but sensitive matter, which he wished to address as a written response to Members. The Leader was not present at the Council meeting and as such felt that a written response would be appropriate.’

Councillor McCartney asked her first question:

1.         ‘Could you please give an update on the progress being made to introduce a Public Space Protection Order to stop all vehicles, including motor cycles, quad bikes, cars, vans and caravans from going on and parking on our parks, playing fields, sports fields and other public green spaces? The reaction from Parish Councils and residents show that they are supportive of the proposal.’

Councillor Mackman responded on behalf of Councillor Metcalfe and explained that officers of the Council had recently set up a process for making a Public Space Protection Orders, including a web application process. Members noted that this was to ensure that submitted requests contained sufficient information to show that an order was needed; this was because there could be an appeal against the making of an order where there wasn’t the evidence to justify one.

Councillor Mackman clarified that as part of the process there was consultation with parish councils and the police to ensure that the Council knew, before an order was made, that there was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

The Leader of the Council, and other members of the Executive, will report on their work since the last meeting of the Council and will respond to questions from Councillors on that work.

Councillor M Crane, Leader of the Council reported by Councillor J Mackman, Deputy Leader

The Deputy Leader of the Council reported on the work of the Leader recently undertaken as outlined in the report.

In response to a query concerning devolution and the inclusion of the Sheffield City Region, Councillor Mackman explained that it would be better if Sheffield City Region were involved, but that the Sheffield City deal had now gone through. However, Councillor Mackman explained that there was a possibility that they could transfer over if a Yorkshire devolution deal was agreed.

With regards to a question about the Council’s future membership of Local Enterprise Partnerships, Councillor Mackman confirmed that an all-Member briefing would be taking place on the matter on 27 September 2018, at which Members could express their opinions. This would be followed immediately by a special Executive meeting in order for a decision to be taken directly by the Executive on the matter.

A question was raised by Members about the Olympia Park masterplan and when the revised plan would be put out for consultation; Councillor Mackman explained that the new plans included a different access route and covered the whole site comprehensively. It was hoped that new plans would be available by the end of 2018 or early 2019. Members noted that the public could comment on the scheme as part of the future planning application.

In response to a further question about the promotion of devolution in Yorkshire, Councillor Mackman explained that he had attended a recent meeting with the Archbishop of York to discuss the promotion of One Yorkshire, and agreed that any future decisions would need to be communicated widely.

Councillor J Mackman, Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Lead for Place Shaping

Councillor Mackman, Deputy Leader of the Council and Lead Executive Member for Place Shaping, provide an update on the work he had recently undertaken, as outlined in his report.

In response to a query regarding the deferral of PLAN Selby’s Site Allocations, Councillor Mackman explained that there were still issues to resolve across the district in order to make the allocations viable. Discussions with major landowners were ongoing, and it was likely that further consultation would be required. The revised proposals would then be considered by the Local Plan Programme Board and Executive again.

Councillor Mackman asked the Director of Economic Regeneration and Place to provide a written response to a query from Councillor P Welch relating to the start of work on the Lidl supermarket at Bawtry Road, which had recently been the subject of a judicial review.

Councillor C Lunn, Lead Executive Member for Finance and Resources  

Councillor Lunn, Lead Executive Member for Finance and Resources presented his update on the work he had recently undertaken, as outlined in his report.

Councillor Lunn confirmed that no further comments had been received on the Medium Term Financial Strategy which had been considered by the Policy Review Committee the previous week.

In response to a query about  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

To receive reports from the Council’s committees which need to be brought to the attention of Council. To receive questions and provide answers on any of those reports.

Councillor S Duckett, Vice Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Councillor S Duckett, Vice Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee provided an update on the work of the Committee as outlined in the report. There were no questions for Councillor Duckett. 

Councillor J Deans, Chairman of the Policy Review Committee

Councillor Deans, Chairman of the Policy Review Committee provided an update on the work of the Committee as outlined in his report.

Councillor Deans agreed with a comment from Members that all Councillors should be invited to a briefing on the new Planning Enforcement Management Plan (PEMP), which was currently being developed by officers. The PEMP was due for consideration at the meeting of the Policy Review Committee on 13 November 2018.

Councillor K Arthur, Chairman of the Audit and Governance Committee

Councillor Arthur, Chairman of the Audit and Governance Committee provided an update on the work of the Committee as outlined in his report. There were no questions for Councillor Arthur.  

RESOLVED:

To receive and note the reports from Committees.

To consider any motions.

There were no motions submitted for discussion.

To consider a report which asks Council to approve the Medium Term Financial Strategy.

Councillor Lunn, Lead Executive Member for Finance and Resources presented the report which asked Members to approve the Council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy.

Councillor Lunn explained that report presented an update to the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) covering both the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account (HRA).

The MTFS had been considered by the Executive and the Policy Review Committee, the latter of which who had made no further comments on the MTFS.

Councillor Lunn explained that there was uncertainty over a number of funding streams that were important to the Council, such as the New Homes Bonus, the government’s revenue support grant and business rates retention.

Members asked a number of questions and expressed concerns on various issues such as the precariousness of government funding and the local government finance settlement.

Councillor Lunn confirmed that recent car park improvements at the New Lane car park in Selby had been carried out by the Council.

It was proposed and seconded that the MTFS be approved by the Council. The motion to approve the MTFS was put to the vote and carried.

RESOLVED:

                        To approve the Medium Term Financial Strategy.

REASON FOR DECISION:

To set the framework for the 2019/20 budget and Medium Term Financial Plan to 2021/22.

The Chief Executive will report on any instances where she has acted in urgent or emergency situations under the functions delegated to her in the Constitution.

The Chief Executive informed Council that the following urgent actions had been taken by her since the last Council meeting under her delegated authority:

·           On 24 July 2018, to appoint Councillor John Cattanach as a member of the Audit and Governance Committee to replace Councillor Mike Jordan for the municipal year 2018/19 with immediate effect.

·           On 13 September 2018, to appoint Councillor Debbie White as a member of the Planning Committee to replace Councillor Mike Jordan for the remainder of the 2018-19 municipal year, with immediate effect, and to appoint Councillor Dave Peart as Chairman of the Southern CEF to replace Councillor Mike Jordan for the remainder of the 2018-19 municipal year, with immediate effect.