Agenda and minutes

To receive announcements (if any) from the officer advising the Mayor (including apologies for absence)

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Karen Richardson and Jim Thorndyke.

Members are reminded of their responsibility to declare any pecuniary or local non pecuniary interest which they have in any item of business on the agenda no later than when that item is reached and, when appropriate, to leave the meeting prior to discussion and voting on the item.

Councillors Tony Brown, Terry Clements, Beccy Hopfensperger, Tim Marks, David Nettleton and Sarah Stamp declared local non-pecuniary interests in Agenda Item 4, Business Case to Establish a Housing Development Company (Report No: COU/SE/15/031) and Agenda Item 8 (A)(2), Referrals Report of Recommendations from Cabinet, Transfer of Street Lighting Columns to Suffolk County Council (Report No: COU/SE/15/034) as they were also elected Members of Suffolk County Council.

(The disclosable pecuniary interests declared by Councillors Robert Everitt, Jo Rayner, Clive Springett and Frank Warby, and local non-pecuniary interests declared by Councillors Diane Hind and Patsy Warby  in respect of Agenda Item 4, Business Case to Establish a Housing Development Company, are recorded under Minute 102 below.)

(Public speaking on Items 4. to 6. below was undertaken at the beginning of the informal discussions, to allow all Members to consider the issues raised by members of the public. Public speaking on Items 7. and 8. below will be subject to the following rules.)

(Council Procedure Rules: Section 6)

(Note: The maximum time to be set aside for this item is 30 minutes, but if all questions are dealt with sooner, or if there are no questions, the Council will proceed to the next business.

Each person may ask one question only. A total of five minutes will be allowed for the question to be put and answered. One further question will be allowed arising directly from the reply, provided that the original time limit of five minutes is not exceeded.

Written questions may be submitted by members of the public to the Service Manager (Democratic Services and Elections) no later than 10.00 am on Monday 16 November 2015.. The written notification should detail the full question to be asked at the meeting of the Council.)

The Mayor reminded Members that public speaking on Items 4. to 6. of the agenda was undertaken at the beginning of the informal discussions in order to allow all West Suffolk Members to consider issues raised by members of the public.

No members of the public in attendance wished to speak on Items 7 and 8.

Report No: COU/SE/15/031

(For reference purposes, Forest Heath District Council’s Report Number is COU/FH/SE/036)

(Councillor Joanna Rayner declared a pecuniary interest as an employee of Havebury Housing Partnership.  Councillor Robert Everitt and Frank Warby declared pecuniary interests as Board Members of Havebury Housing Partnership. Councillor Clive Springett declared a pecuniary interest as a Director of Havebury Housing Partnership.  The aforementioned councillors all left the meeting during the consideration of this item.

Councillor Terry Clements declared a local non-pecuniary interest as a Life President of Havebury Housing Partnership. Councillors Diane Hind and Patsy Warby declared local non-pecuniary interests as Members of Havebury Housing Partnership’s Performance and Scrutiny Panel.  The aforementioned councillors remained in the meeting for the consideration of the item.)

Further to the joint informal discussions held prior to the meeting with Forest Heath District Council on Report No: COU/SE/15/031, Business Case to Establish a Housing Development Company, it was proposed, seconded and,

RESOLVED: That, as detailed in Report No: COU/SE/15/031:

(1)     the establishment of a Housing Development Company incorporated as a company limited by shares that will be jointly owned by Suffolk County Council (50% of shares), Forest Heath District Council (25% of shares) and St Edmundsbury Borough Council (25% of shares), be approved;

(2)     the role of Shareholder in St Edmundsbury be assumed by St Edmundsbury Borough Council’s full Council;

(3)     a Shareholder Advisory Group be established with the purpose of advising each Council when exercising its role as Shareholder consisting of two elected members from Forest Heath District Council, two from St Edmundsbury Borough Council and four from Suffolk County Council, with advice provided by senior officers of all Councils. The identification of St Edmundsbury Borough Council’s nominations to the Shareholder Advisory Group be delegated to the Leader of St Edmundsbury Borough Council acting in consultation with West Suffolk’s Lead Member for Housing;

(4)     the composition of the Company’s Board of Directors be one director from Forest Heath District Council who shall be an officer of West Suffolk Councils, one director from St Edmundsbury Borough Council who shall be an officer of West Suffolk and two directors from Suffolk County Council (anticipated to be officers of Suffolk County Council), with up to an additional three directors appointed by the unanimous decision of the Shareholders;

(5)     the recommendation of St Edmundsbury Borough Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 15 October 2015 that the criteria for selection of the three additional directors as specified in the fourth bullet of paragraph 3.29 in Appendix A be amended to read “up to three additional directors unanimously approved by the three Shareholder Councils. These will be ‘independent’ individuals selected for their relevant expertise and experience”;

(6)     authority to nominate St Edmundsbury’s director be delegated to the Joint West Suffolk Chief Executive, in consultation with West Suffolk’s Lead Member for Housing or the Leader of St Edmundsbury Borough Council;

(7)     the approval of the Memorandum and Articles of Association be delegated to the Head of Housing and the Monitoring Officer, acting in consultation with West Suffolk’s Lead Member for Housing and Suffolk County Council’s  ...  view the full minutes text for item 102.

Report No: COU/SE/15/032

(For reference purposes, Forest Heath District Council’s Report Number is COU/FH/15/037)

Further to the joint informal discussions held prior to the meeting with Forest Heath District Council on Report No: COU/SE/15/032, Review of the Constitution: Part 3 – Functions and Responsibilities, it was proposed, seconded and,

RESOLVED: That

(1)     the revised Part 3, Functions and Responsibilities, of the Constitution set out at Appendix A to Report No: COU/SE/15/032, be adopted;

(2)     the Monitoring Officer be authorised to make such changes or corrections to the text, numbering or layout of the adopted revised Part 3 that are necessary for consistency, accuracy, grammatical correctness and sense, and to remove any parts of the existing Constitution implicitly made redundant by the adoption of this Part 3, or which are otherwise obsolete, prior to its publication;

(3)    the Monitoring Officer be authorised, in consultation with the Head of Paid Service, to make such further changes to the Scheme of Delegation to Officers from time to time as are necessary or desirable to reflect changes in statutory responsibilities, staffing structures and so on, so long as those changes do not materially affect the powers conferred by the Constitution; and

(4)    as a change to the Committee Procedure Rules regarding the continuance in office of committee chairmen, the amendment set out in paragraph 1.1.2 of Report No: COU/SE/15/032, be adopted.

(Councillor Bob Cockle wished it to be recorded that he abstained from the vote on the above recommendations.)

Summary and Reasons for Recommendations:

The West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel (Selection Panel) met on 28 October 2015 and were informed that four applications had been received for the six places on the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel. The Selection Panel agreed further recruitment should be undertaken to appoint six members from 1 June 2016. In the interim period, the four applicants should be appointed to undertake an interim review of both Forest Heath District Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowances Schemes, with a full review to be conducted following the appointment of a new Panel from 1 June 2016.

Recommendations:

It is RECOMMENDED that:

(1)     Kathy Finney, Cyril Leach, David Ray and Kevin Sturgeon be appointed as members of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel until 31 May 2016 to conduct an interim review of both Forest Heath District Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowances Schemes; and

(2)     the members of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel receive £100 for attendance per meeting, plus reimbursement of travel expenses based on the rates applicable to elected Members of the West Suffolk Councils.

Further to the joint informal discussions held prior to the meeting with Forest Heath District Council on a narrative item (Agenda Item 6), Referral from West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel (Selection Panel): 28 October 2015 Forest Heath District Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowances Schemes, it was proposed, seconded and,

RESOLVED: That

(1)     Kathy Finney, Cyril Leach, David Ray and Kevin Sturgeon be appointed as members of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel until 31 May 2016 to conduct an interim review of both Forest Heath District Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowances Schemes; and

(2)     the members of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel receive £100 for attendance per meeting, plus reimbursement of travel expenses based on the rates applicable to elected Members of the West Suffolk Councils.

Report No: COU/SE/15/033 TO FOLLOW

Council considered Report No: COU/SE/15/033, which provided an update on the Eastern Relief Road and Suffolk Business Park project, and sought approval for recommendations to enable the project to progress.

The report provided background to the development of the Suffolk Business Park and how the construction of the Eastern Relief Road (ERR) would link Moreton Hall/Suffolk Business Park to the A14, thus opening up 68 hectares of employment land; land for 500 homes; a secondary school site; leisure and community opportunities; and motorist facilities associated with the A14.  Over a 20 to 25 year period, the employment land had the potential to generate 14,000 jobs and approximately £275 million worth of inward investment into West Suffolk.

Council had previously approved:

(a)     a commitment of up to £3 million investment of Growth Area Initiatives Funding that had originally been allocated from Central Government, towards the construction of the road;

(b)     an allocation of £4.6 million to provide a loan agreement for electricity infrastructure; and

(c)     delegated authority to officers to enter into a development agreement(s) with the adjacent landowners to bring forward Suffolk Business Park in order to realise a return on the investment, which was in accordance with the principles of the Medium Term Financial Strategy.

Running in parallel to the above, approval had also previously been given to committing to Compulsorily Purchasing a parcel of land, if needed, to guarantee delivery of the required land for the ERR.  The Compulsory Purchase Order was considered to be complementary action that was assisting, and would continue to assist, in bringing the ERR and Suffolk Business Park forward, and provided reassurance for funders that the development would go ahead. 

Members noted that as a result of due diligence, it was now clear that there were significant for issues for St Edmundsbury Borough Council (SEBC) in relation to the long term financial investment of £3 million into the construction of the road.  Council was therefore now asked to consider making a grant contribution to the ERR and the report provided the justification for this.

Section 3 of the report then provided reasons for seeking authority for officers to enter into an agreement(s) which would be to reflect the legal and commercial realities of the project, and to share in the uplift of any profits generated by the business park long into the future.

Members also noted that the previously approved loan allocation of up to £4.6 million to Taylor Wimpey for electricity infrastructure had been secured against land which Taylor Wimpey was unable to comply with.  Subsequently, Taylor Wimpey had entered into a contract to provide the required electricity infrastructure using its own funds, which meant that SEBC was not now exposed to risks regarding the repayment of the loan.

A discussion was held on the external legal and technical advice received, with particular reference to the legal reasons for granting the £3million Growth Area Initiatives funding towards the ERR. 

Emphasis was placed on the Council’s continued commitment to bringing this project to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 105.

Report No: COU/SE/15/034

Council considered the Referrals report of Recommendations from Cabinet, as contained within Report No: COU/SE/15/034.

(A)    Referrals from Cabinet: 20 October 2015

1.       Enterprise Zones

Approval was sought for providing delegated authority to officers to pursue Enterprise Zone (EZ) discussions further in the event that either or both bids submitted by the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership and New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership were successful.

Councillor Alaric Pugh, Portfolio Holder for Planning and Growth, drew relevant issues to the attention of Council, including that the above respective Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) had made bids for Haverhill Research Park and 14 hectares of land at Suffolk Business Park, Bury St Edmunds in the latest EZ bidding round.

Council noted the potential benefits and implications of a successful EZ status bid, particularly in relation to business rate growth.

On the motion of Councillor Alaric Pugh, seconded by Councillor Tim Marks, and duly carried, it was

RESOLVED:

That due to the potential financial implications of a successful Enterprise Zone bid, as detailed in Section 2 of Report No: CAB/SE/15/064, the S151 and Monitoring Officers be given delegated authority to pursue the Enterprise Zone discussions further in the event that either or both bids submitted by the Local Enterprise Partnerships are successful.

2.       Transfer of Street Lighting Columns to Suffolk County Council

Approval was sought for a capital allocation for the upgrading and transfer of street lighting assets to Suffolk County Council (SCC), which in turn would reduce annual revenue costs for the Borough Council.

Councillor Peter Stevens, Portfolio Holder for Operations, drew relevant issues to the attention of Council, including that a capital allocation of £1.81 million was sought to enable 3,027 St Edmundsbury Borough Council (SEBC) owned street lighting columns to be upgraded. 1,547 of them would be transferred to SCC Highway Authority and the remaining 1,481 would be retained by SEBC.  For the reasons provided in the report, an annual saving of approximately £156,500 per annum on current maintenance and energy costs was expected to be achieved as a result of the investment.

Discussion was held on the condition and design of some existing SCC-owned lighting columns; column maintenance and adoption issues; the controlling of timings for individual lights to facilitate part night lighting and the implications of part night lighting; and the issue of simplifying the process for enabling residents to report faulty lights to the relevant authority.

The majority of Members supported the proposal and considered the revenue savings that were anticipated to be made justified the £1.81 million capital allocation.

On the motion of Councillor Peter Stevens, seconded by Councillor Terry Buckle, and duly carried, it was

RESOLVED:

That £1,810,000 of non-allocated capital be allocated to upgrade 3,027 St Edmundsbury Borough Council (SEBC) owned street lighting assets to enable 1,547 of them to be transferred and adopted by the Suffolk County Council Highway Authority and to reduce the cost to power and maintain the 1,481 lighting assets retained by SEBC (reducing annual SEBC revenue expenditure by  ...  view the full minutes text for item 106.

To consider whether the press and public should be excluded during the consideration of the following items because it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during the items, there would be disclosure to them of exempt categories of information as prescribed in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, and indicated against each item and, in all circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

See minute 108 below.

Exempt Appendices B, C and D to Report No: COU/SE/15/031

Council considered Exempt Appendices B, C and D to Report No: COU/SE/15/031 during the joint informal discussions with Forest Heath District Council on Agenda Item 4, however, no reference was made to the specific detail and therefore this item was not held in private session.