Minutes:
(a) Cabinet
Councillor J D Ablewhite, Executive Leader of the Council and Chairman of the Cabinet presented the Report of the meetings of the Cabinet held on 28th February, 22nd March and 19th April 2012.
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In connection with Item No. 61 and in response to a question from Councillor S Greenall, Councillor Ablewhite confirmed that savings arising from the deletion of the post of Housing Services had not been included in the budget or Medium Term Plan.
On the same subject and in response to a question from Councillor P J Downes, Councillor Ablewhite was confident that the deletion of the post of Head of Housing Services would not impact upon the delivery of the front line housing service.
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In connection with Item No. 62 and in response to a question from Councillor P D Reeve, Councillor Ablewhite indicated that he was unable, in the current financial climate and in the absence of future Government guidance on this issue, to commit to a position whereby the Authority would not approve the development of wind farms on District Council land.
On the same subject and in response to a further question from Councillor Reeve, Councillor Ablewhite confirmed that he was not presently aware of any proposal to develop a wind farm on District Council owned land.
On the same subject and in response to a question from Councillor J A Gray, Councillor Ablewhite assured the questioner that there would be full consultation with Town and Parish Councils at the time when the District Council decided to update its current supplementary planning guidance on wind power.
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In connection with Item No. 66 and upon being moved by the Chairman, Councillor J J Dutton and duly seconded by Councillor N J Guyatt, it was
RESOLVED
(a) that the Huntingdonshire Community Infrastructure Levy Charging Schedule 2012, the CIL Instalment Policy and the CIL Regulation 123 Infrastructure List be approved for implementation from 1st May 2012; and
(b) that subject to the approval of the above, the “correctable error” for the Charging Schedule referred to in paragraph 4.2 of the report of the Head of Planning Services now submitted be approved as a point of legal clarification.
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In connection with Item No. 70 and in response to a question from Councillor P J Downes on the review of the Neighbourhood Forums, Councillor S J Criswell reported that a draft Constitution recommending a new method of operation had been sent to Town and Parish Councils that day, that it had been proposed that the Forum should operate within revised geographical boundaries and that they should involve all County, District and Town and Parish Council representatives; copies of the consultation document had been issued to all Members and he was hopeful that the Council would take the opportunity to respond.
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In connection with Item No. 71 and in response to a question from Councillor D B Dew, Councillor Ablewhite advised the Council that progress had been made in seeking to secure an alternative premises for St. Ives District Rifle and Pistol Club which had been required to vacate their current accommodation at One Leisure, St. Ives due to the redevelopment of the existing buildings.
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In connection with Item No. 72 and in response to a question from Councillor P A Swales, Councillor Ablewhite confirmed that the arrangements for the future management of the District Council’s HR and Payroll Service would be reviewed and monitored by the Corporate Governance Panel.
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that, subject to the foregoing paragraphs, the Report of the meetings of the Cabinet held on 28th February, 22nd March and 19th April 2012 be received and adopted.
(b) Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Economic Well-Being)
Councillor T V Rogers presented the Report of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Economic Well-Being) held on 28th February, 8th March and 5th April 2012.
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In connection with Item No. 55 and in response to a question by Councillor P J Downes, Councillor Rogers indicated that, as far as he was aware, the Council had not yet developed any measures to monitor the performance of the proposed new HR Service. However, he reported that the Panel had recommended the inclusion of various terms within the Agreement which would enable it to review performance at various stages. Councillor Ablewhite added that negotiations were ongoing to secure the best possible service through a Service Level Agreement.
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that the Report of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Economic Well-Being) held on 28th February, 8th March and 5th April 2012 be received and adopted.
(c) Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Environmental Well-Being)
Councillor D Harty presented the Report of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Environmental Well-Being) held on 13th March and 10th April 2012.
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In connection with Item No. 49 and in response to a question from Councillor P D Reeve, Councillor Harty undertook to establish the reasons why it had been decided to use a German rather than British company to install solar panels at Eastfield House and to reply in writing to the questioner.
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that the Report of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Environmental Well-Being) held on 13th March and 10th April 2012 be received and adopted.
(d) Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Social Well-Being)
Councillor S J Criswell presented the Report of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Social Well-Being) held on 6th March and 3rd April 2012.
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In connection with Item No. 63, Councillor P J Downes indicated his support for the views expressed by the Panel that representation on the proposed Police and Crime Panel should be drawn from one of the District Council’s existing Overview and Scrutiny Panels.
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In connection with Item No. 66, Councillor P J Downes welcomed the continuing work undertaken by the Panel on Hinchingbrooke Hospital.
On the same subject, Councillor Criswell reported that the Head of Business Development at the Hospital had indicated, in answer to a question previously asked at a Council meeting by Councillor P R Ward, that the financial demands arising from the Private Finance Initiative Agreement had been included within Circle’s financial plans. Councillor Criswell also was pleased to report that representatives of Circle Health Care and Hinchingbrooke Hospital had undertaken to update the Panel on a regular basis.
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that the Report of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Social Well-Being) held on 6th March and 3rd April 2012 be received and adopted.
(e) Development Management Panel
Councillor D B Dew presented the Report of the meetings of the Development Management Panel held on 27th February, 19th March and 16th April 2012
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that the Report of the meetings of the Development Management Panel held on 27th February, 19th March and 16th April 2012 be received and adopted.
(f) Licensing and Protection Panel
Councillor J W Davies presented the Report of the meeting of the Licensing and Protection Panel held on 22nd February 2012.
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that the Report of the meeting of the Licensing and Protection Panel held on 22nd February 2012 be received and adopted.
(g) Corporate Governance Panel
Councillor E R Butler presented the Report of the meeting of the Corporate Governance Panel held on 28th March 2012.
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Upon being put to the vote, the recommendations contained in Item No. 20 were declared to be CARRIED.
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In connection with Item No. 22 and in response to a question from Councillor P J Downes, Councillor Butler acknowledged the comments which had been made by representatives of Town and Parish Councils earlier in the meeting on the lack of progress on the Town and Parish Charter and reiterated that it was his understanding that the Panel would be involved in development of the Charter in advance of its final approval in September 2012.
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In connection with Item No. 26 and in response to a question from Councillor S Greenall in respect of the timetable for the finalisation of the 2011/2012 accounts, Councillor Butler assured the questioner that he did not anticipate any delay to the completion of these accounts. Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that, subject to the foregoing paragraphs, the Report of the meeting of the Corporate Governance Panel held on 28th March 2012 be received and adopted.
(h) Senior Officers’ Panel
Councillor N J Guyatt presented the Report of the meetings of the Senior Officers’ Panel held on 12th January and 22nd February 2012.
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Whereupon, it was
RESOLVED
that the Report of the meetings of the Senior Officers’ Panel held on 12th January and 22nd February 2012 be received and adopted.
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