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City of York Council |
Committee Minutes |
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Meeting |
Corporate Services, Climate Change and Scrutiny Management Committee |
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Date |
13 May 2024 |
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Present |
Councillors Fenton (Chair), Merrett (Vice-Chair), Baxter, J Burton, Healey, D Myers, Rowley, Steels-Walshaw, K Taylor, Waller, Widdowson, Wann (Substitute for Cllr Ayre) and Clarke (Substitute for Cllr Kelly) |
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Apologies
In Attendance
Officers Present |
Councillors Ayre and Kelly
Cllr Douglas, Leader inc. Corporate Services, Policy, Strategy and Partnerships
Claire Foale, Assistant Director, Policy and Strategy Shaun Gibbons, Head of Carbon Reduction Kathryn Daly, Head of City Development Dawn Steel, Democratic Services Team Leader |
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50. Declarations of Interest (5:32 pm)
Members were asked to declare any disclosable pecuniary interest, or other registerable interest, they might have in respect of business on the agenda, if they have not already done so in advance on the Register of Interests.
None were declared.
51. Minutes (5:32 pm)
Resolved: That the minutes of the last meeting held on 22 April 2024 be approved as a correct record, subject to an amendment at minute 46 where the last sentence should read ‘He raised concerns regarding high consumption areas, which he considered to be big polluters’.
52. Public Participation (5:33 pm)
It was reported that there had been no registrations to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme.
53. The Ten-Year Strategies: a stock take (5:33 pm)
The Assistant Director of Policy and Strategy introduced the report and summarised the key points contained in the update.
Members asked a range of questions which covered the 10 Year Scorecards, time lags in data sets, changes to plans as a result of strategic priorities, transport policy including car-sharing initiatives, the role of the combined authority, timescales for reviewing and updating the strategies, climate strategy key performance indicators (KPI’s) and financing the climate action plan.
Officers and the Leader noted that transport policy was being developed in conjunction with the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority through the emerging local transport plan.
Resolved:
i. That the report be noted.
ii.
That the item be brought back to the
committee following any future update of the strategies.
Reason: To allow the committee to discharge its responsibilities in monitoring and advising on council priorities and strategies.
54. Monitoring and Tracking of Approved Council Motions (6:01 pm)
The Democratic Services Team Leader provided an update on the monitoring and tracking of approved Council motions.
Members questioned the wording of the information relating to the motion on the Introduction of Council Tax Premium for Second Homes. They also requested that more information be provided in the actions and status columns where appropriate.
[6.27pm Cllr Rowley left the meeting.]
Resolved:
i. That the content of Annex A be noted.
ii. That CMT/Portfolio Holders and then Group Leaders review approved Council Motions periodically at their monthly session to ensure any agreed actions for Members are being appropriately enacted.
iii. Clarification be sought on the wording for the above motion relating to Council Tax.
Reason: To ensure that processes for monitoring and implementing approved council motion resolutions remain sufficiently robust.
55. Schedule of Petitions (6:29 pm)
The Democratic Services Team Leader provided an update on the Schedule of Petitions, covering petitions received since May 2023.
The officer explained the process for Petitions and noted that there was some ambiguity in the Constitution for the process for petitions received by the council.
[6.30 – 6.31pm, Cllr Steels-Walshaw left the meeting. 6.31 – 6.34 pm, Cllr Taylor left the meeting.]
It was confirmed that members could contact Democratic Services in the first instance for more information relating to the status of a petition. Members suggested that tracking the status of petitions via the website would be useful.
In relation to petition 217, to support calls for an immediate and sustainable ceasefire in Gaza and Israel, Cllr Healey proposed that the petition be escalated to the Leader of the Council for consideration, this was seconded by Cllr Taylor. Members voted unanimously in favour of the recommendation.
Resolved:
i. Democratic Services to look into options for a web page to hold petitions received and progress against them moving forward;
ii. That petition 217, as outlined above, be referred to Executive Leader Decision Session;
iii. Invite Constitution Working Group to review and clarify the practice of referring petitions lodged at Full Council to CCSMC, taking account of custom of practice and the legitimate role of the Committee and avoiding unnecessary delays in the process of petitions being considered;
iv. In the interim, Chair/Vice Chair to review any new petitions received and expedite any not progressed for action/consideration by relevant decision taker
Reason: To ensure the Committee carries out its constitutional function in relation to petitions.
56. Work Plan (6:53 pm)
Members considered the Scrutiny work plan for the four scrutiny committees and discussed future items for the municipal year.
Resolved:
i. That the work plan be noted.
ii. That a draft committee work plan be distributed to Members for review and comment.
Reason: To ensure an overview of the scrutiny work programme.
Cllr S Fenton, Chair
[The meeting started at 5.31 pm and finished at 7.11 pm].