Agenda item

In accordance with the Council Procedure Rules, all questions –

v  Must be relevant to an item which the Council has powers or duties;

v  Must not relate to an item which is included elsewhere on the Agenda

v  Should be limited to obtaining information or pressing for action; and

v  Should not exceed two minutes in duration.

Questions should not divulge or require to be divulged, confidential or exempt information.

With reference to the Chair’s list of engagements, Councillor J Neish expressed his disappointment that as the District’s Armed Forces Champion he had not been made aware of the District Council’s Flag raising on Armed Forces Day.  He requested that this be publicised in advance on future occasions as he was aware of several veterans and residents who may have wished to attend. In thanking Councillor Neish for his comments, the Chair indicated that he had already discussed the issue of the future promotion of civic ceremonies with Officers. 

Councillor I Taylor commented on the problems he had experienced over the course of the previous two years in seeking to get defibrillators installed on two buildings owned by the District Council in Eynesbury, St Neots. He questioned whether a streamlined policy or process could be introduced. In response to which, Councillor B Mickelburgh explained that the complexity of some of the tenancy agreements meant that it was not possible to provide a generic answer however he agreed it was a positive idea and he would take it away for further consideration as to how it might fit into future contracts. 

In response to a request from Councillor M J Burke for specific data regarding the use and financial performance of One Leisure across the District, the Executive Councillor for Communities, Health and Leisure, Councillor B Pitt, provided an update for the Council. In doing so, the Council noted that Direct Debit membership was now at all time high of 8,400 members and the One Leisure swim school has seen an increase of 14% in the last two years. Active health sessions had also increased by over 50% in one year and the Active Health Team were now working closely with 15 care homes across the District. In terms of income, the Executive Councillor reported that total income for One Leisure was up 10% in 12 months and costs have gone up by 3.7% which meant that the deficit position had almost halved. With regards to future developments, the Council were informed that £700,000 had been secured from Sport England in March 2023 to install a solar canopy at the car park in St Ives and also triple glazing for the swimming pool. Consideration was also being given to investment in other opportunities for solar PV in an attempt to further drive down operating costs.

With reference to the organisation of the recent election of the Member of Parliament for the Huntingdon Constituency, Councillor J A Gray questioned the Executive Leader as to whether she agreed that the organisation of the election had been exceptionally well run, both by Officers and the candidates, their various counting agents and supporters at the Count. In indicating her wholehearted agreement to this comment, the Executive Leader took the opportunity to thank the staff and volunteers that had contributed to the success of the day and the evening, together with the weeks of preparation. She also took the opportunity to inform the Council that the newly elected Members of Parliament had been invited to come and meet with District Councillors and attend a future meeting. 

In response to a question from Councillor C H Tevlin regarding planning performance and progress with the development of the new Local Plan, the Executive Councillor for Planning provided an update for the Council. In doing so, Members noted that major applications for June 2024 had been 100% on target, with household applications processed within 16 weeks at 95%. He was also pleased to report that the backlog had reduced to 80 cases (from 180 in April 2023). With regards to the Local Plan, it was reported that a report on further issues and options would be presented to Overview and Scrutiny in September 2024 and Members were encouraged to attend and participate.

With reference to an ongoing issue with a planning enforcement case within her ward, Councillor C Lowe questioned performance levels within the Planning Enforcement Team. In response to which, the Executive Councillor for Planning, Councillor T D Sanderson, reported that planning enforcement were making good progress and meeting targets. He undertook to speak directly with Councillor Lowe regarding the specific issue to which she was referring. 

Having congratulated the Electoral Services Team for their efforts given the numbers of elections in recent months, Councillor R Martin then questioned the Executive Leader on the use of the Special Urgency Powers to bring forward an item for discussion and determination at Cabinet the previous evening and queried whether there was a better future mechanism or future to enable other Members to have an informal input. In response to which, the Executive Leader explained that the Special Urgency Provisions had been used as an exception on this occasion. She reiterated that there would be further opportunities to shape the project as it progressed, it would be a long-term project which affected the entire District area. As the Executive Councillor with responsibility for the report, Councillor Wakeford went on to explain that the Cabinet had not agreed the content of a consultation response but merely to take the authority to produce and submit one and agreed that cross party engagement would form part of this work. He reiterated that the opportunity needed to be taken to allow the Council the legal ability to give a voice to the concerns of all Members.

In response to a request for an update from Councillor N Wells on the current situation with the District Council’s Internal Audit Team and recruitment to the post of Internal Audit Manager, the Executive Councillor for Governance and Democratic Services, Councillor J Harvey, reported that a new Internal Audit Manager, Yasir Khan, had recently started in post. 

In response to questions from Councillor J Neish regarding firstly the potential to ease the restrictions on amendments to applications and secondly seeking clarification that the increased fees were being ring fenced for the service, the Executive Councillor for Planning, Councillor T D Sanderson undertook to respond in seeking further clarification on both points and respond in writing.