Agenda and minutes

At this point, Members are asked to declare:

·        any personal interests not included on the Register of Interests

·        any prejudicial interests or

·        any disclosable pecuniary interests

which they may have in respect of business on this agenda.

Members were invited to declare at this point in the meeting any personal interests not included on the Register of Interests, any prejudicial interests or any disclosable pecuniary interests they might have in the business on the agenda.

Cllr Kilbane declared a personal interest in Agenda Item 8 (iii) (Motion on Stand Up for Carers – Increasing Carer’s Allowance), as a member of his family was in receipt of Carer’s Allowance.  He left the meeting during consideration of that item and took no part in the discussion or decision thereon.

To approve the minutes of the Council meeting held on 29 October 2020.

Resolved:  That the minutes of the Council meeting held on 29 October 2020 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair at a later date, subject to the following amendments:

·        Minute 73(i) – amend to include reference to the motion moved by Cllr Warters and seconded by Cllr Rowley to suspend Standing Orders to allow an amendment to be moved;

·        Minute 73(ii) – amend to include Cllr Doughty’s name in the list of those voting against the amendment to Motion (ii).

To consider any announcements made by the Lord Mayor in respect of Civic business.

The Lord Mayor expressed her thanks to Council staff and Members, and the public in general, for their hard work and commitment in supporting the York community through the pandemic.

The Lord Mayor went on to announce her recent attendance at the following events:

·        The online launch of the Culture Strategy for York, which had originated from a Scrutiny committee that she had chaired;

·        The Forum on the Annual Human Rights report;

·        The formal opening of a new residential care home on the former site of Burnholme School.

At this point in the meeting, any member of the public who has registered to address the Council, or to ask a Member of the Council a question, on a matter directly relevant to the business of the Council or the City, may do so. 

Please note that the deadlines for registering to speak at our meetings have changed to two working days before the meeting, in order to facilitate the management of public participation at remote meetings. The deadline for registering is 5:00pm on Tuesday, 15 December 2020.

To register to speak please visit www.york.gov.uk/AttendCouncilMeetings to fill in an online registration form. If you have any questions about the registration form or the meeting please contact Democratic Services. Contact details can be found at the foot of this agenda.

Webcasting of Remote Public Meetings

Please note that, subject to available resources, this remote public meeting will be webcast including any registered public speakers who have given their permission.  The remote public meeting can be viewed live and on demand at

www.york.gov.uk/webcasts.

During coronavirus, we've made some changes to how we're running council meetings.  See our coronavirus updates at www.york.gov.uk/COVIDDemocracy for more information on meetings and decisions.

It was reported that three members of the public had registered to speak at the meeting under the Public Participation item.  All three wished to speak on the motion at Agenda Item 8(i) – Call for ‘Free after three’ Parking Initiative.

Phil Pinder, Director of York BID, spoke on behalf of York Retail Forum.  He urged Members to support the motion in order to stem further losses and closures in the retail and hospitality sector.

Andrew McGuinness, Vice Chair of York Quality Bus Partnership (YQBP) spoke against the motion on behalf of the YQBP.  He asked Members to consider instead the role that buses could play in the economy, which would reduce congestion and environmental impact.

Maeve Pearson spoke against the motion on behalf of York Cycle Campaign.  She expressed concern about the increased risk to pedestrians and cyclists and suggested that enhanced cycle access be provided to the city centre to help boost trade.

To consider any petitions received from Members in accordance with Standing Order No.15.  Notice has not been received of any petitions to be presented.

It was reported that notice had not been received of any petitions to be presented at the meeting.

To receive and consider a written report from the Leader and the Executive recommendations for approval, as set out below:

A – Executive Leader’s Report

A written report was received from the Executive Leader, Cllr Aspden, on the work of the Executive.

B – Executive Recommendations

Cllr Aspden moved, and Cllr D’Agorne seconded, the following recommendations contained in Minutes 67 and 68 of the Executive meeting held on 26 November 2020 and Minutes 69 and 70 of the Executive meeting held on 15 December 2020:

Minute 67 - Update on the Asset Management Strategy 2017-2022

Recommended:  That Council approve: ¹

a)   the establishment of a capital budget of £3.9m, to fund the acquisition of the Head leasehold interest of the Eco Centre, Amy Johnson Way;

b)   the investment of a further £100k to fund green infrastructure improvements to the building, providing an increase in revenue funded from the One Planet York budget;

and

c)   the delegation of authority to the Corporate Director of Economy & Place, in consultation with the Director of Governance, to complete the purchase once all due diligence has been satisfactorily conducted on the property.

Reasons:            a)      To establish clear principles to guide and shape future use of the council’s assets and to continue to carry out a programme of proactive work to shape the commercial and operational property portfolio further.

                             b)      To support the ongoing economic vibrancy of the city while increasing the income from the council’s commercial and operational property portfolio.

Minute 68 - Capital Programme : Monitor 2, 2020/21

Recommended:  That Council approve the adjustments resulting in a decrease of £36.538m, as detailed in the report and in Annex A. ²

Reason:              To enable the effective management and monitoring of the council’s capital programme.

Minute 69 - New Stadium Leisure Complex Commercial Proposal on Restaurant Units

Recommended:  That a further £1.375m prudential borrowing be applied to the Community Stadium project to offset the loss of commercial investment in the project. ³

Reason:              To ensure the stadium project is fully funded at the lowest risk to council finances going forward.

Minute 70 - Amendment to Council Tax Support Scheme

Recommended:  That Council approve an amendment to the CTS scheme to implement a De Minimis limit of £2.50 before a council tax support customer is required to receive a revised council tax bill. ⁴

Reason:              To support financial inclusion and protect financially vulnerable customers from confusing and unnecessary multiple bills.

A named vote was then taken on each of the above sets of recommendations, with the following results:

Minute 67

To receive a written report from the Deputy Leader.

A written report was received from the Deputy Leader, Cllr D’Agorne.

To consider the following Motions on Notice under Standing Order 22:

Motions submitted for consideration directly by Council, in accordance with Standing Order 22.1

(i)          From Cllr Rowley

Call for 'Free after three' Parking initiative

“Now that we have come out of the second national lockdown and in recognition of a continuing significant improvement in Covid case numbers, Council believes this is the time to take all practical steps to support residents and city businesses in recovering our local economy and helping to protect jobs.

As part of this recovery, Council calls for a ‘Free after three’ car parking scheme. After a hopefully strong run up to Christmas Council is mindful that January sees a lull but businesses cannot afford this after the last nine months. The scheme would enable free car parking at any City of York Council car park after 3pm each day, seven days a week in January and February 2021.

The scheme would be likely to see a fall in overall parking revenue receipts but this will actually be modest against falls suffered in lockdowns already this year.  However it is not a zero sum game as the drop in revenue we now proactively enable will help save jobs, businesses and receipts like business rates.  Helping subsidise this scheme through the release of £250k from the general reserves is therefore a true case of spending now to avert a worse financial loss in the future.

It is proposed that Council delegate implementation of the scheme to the Chief Operating Officer, in consultation with the Leader.”

(ii)            From Cllr Craghill

Finding the Sweet Spot – Carbon Reduction and Economic Prosperity

“Council notes:

• The commitment made by this Council in March 2019 to achieving zero carbon by 2030 and ongoing work on a 2030 strategy and action plan.

• The pressing need to tackle poverty and inequality in York, exacerbated by the Covid crisis and the need to create new jobs and support our local economy as part of the Covid recovery.

• The innovative work being done by local councils as diverse as Amsterdam and Cornwall to use the globally acclaimed economic model developed by Oxford academic, Kate Raworth – now widely known as ‘Doughnut Economics” – to make sure that all their policy decisions achieve both environmental sustainability and economic/social equity.

www.doughnuteconomics.org and https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/environment-and-planning/climate-emergency/our-action-plan/what-is-cornwall-council-doing/decision-making-wheel/

Council resolves

·        To request officers to facilitate a wider understanding of the approach and how it can be used by arranging information sessions for elected members, relevant council officers and interested partner organisations.

·        To request Executive to consider the use of the doughnut economics approach to inform the current review of the council's ‘Better Decision Making Tool’, and also in due course the potential to inform future strategy development (for example on carbon reduction, anti-poverty work and the city's Economic Strategy).”

(iii)        From Cllr Hook

Stand up for Carers - Increasing Carer’s Allowance

“The pandemic has opened all our eyes to the importance of carers, whether employed in the care sector or  ...  view the full agenda text for item 84.

(i)          Call for ‘Free After Three’ Parking Initiative

Moved by Cllr Rowley and seconded by Cllr Doughty.

“Now that we have come out of the second national lockdown and in recognition of a continuing significant improvement in Covid case numbers, Council believes this is the time to take all practical steps to support residents and city businesses in recovering our local economy and helping to protect jobs.

As part of this recovery, Council calls for a ‘Free after three’ car parking scheme. After a hopefully strong run up to Christmas Council is mindful that January sees a lull but businesses cannot afford this after the last nine months. The scheme would enable free car parking at any City of York Council car park after 3pm each day, seven days a week in January and February 2021.

The scheme would be likely to see a fall in overall parking revenue receipts but this will actually be modest against falls suffered in lockdowns already this year.  However it is not a zero sum game as the drop in revenue we now proactively enable will help save jobs, businesses and receipts like business rates.  Helping subsidise this scheme through the release of £250k from the general reserves is therefore a true case of spending now to avert a worse financial loss in the future.

It is proposed that Council delegate implementation of the scheme to the Chief Operating Officer, in consultation with the Leader.”

Cllr Ayre then moved, and Cllr D’Agorne seconded, an amendment to the motion, as follows:

 “After the first paragraph, insert a new second paragraph, as follows:

‘Council notes the hard work carried out by Council staff, under difficult circumstances, to accelerate the city’s economic recovery from the pandemic, including the processing of over £110 million in grant payments for local business, and the delivery of parking incentives for Council owned car parks, including via the RingGo app last summer.  In addition, residents within City of York can continue to access the discounted £2 Minster Badge offer, which secures parking discounts and free parking after 6pm.’

In the second (now the third) paragraph, delete all after ‘Council calls for’ and insert:

‘further parking and sustainable travel incentive initiatives to be brought forward including specific time limited initiatives as part of the economic recovery plan. After a hopefully strong run up to Christmas, Council is mindful that January sees a lull but businesses cannot afford this after the last nine months.’

Delete the third (now the fourth) paragraph and substitute:

‘By identifying further incentive schemes as a part of our ongoing response to the pandemic and within the budget process, Council can continue to support the local economy through such schemes, whilst ensuring a balanced and sustainable budget is set for all Council services.’

To the end of the final paragraph, add:

‘the Executive Member for Finance and Performance, and the Executive Member for Transport.’”

A named vote was taken on the amendment, with the following  ...  view the full minutes text for item 84.

To question the Leader and/or Deputy Leader on their written reports, and to question the Leader and/or Executive Members in respect of any matter within their portfolio responsibility, in accordance with Standing Order 20.

Note to Members:  In order to facilitate the smooth running of the remote meeting, the Lord Mayor has decided to set a deadline of 35 minutes in total for the above questions and responses, to include 10 minutes for questions on the report of the Leader and 10 minutes for questions on the report of the Deputy Leader.

[Note: for ease of reference, questions are grouped by Executive Member rather than listed in the order in which they were asked.]

Questions to Cllr Aspden, Executive Leader

From Cllr Kilbane: Your report refers to the York Central development including 2,500 new homes instead of ‘up to 2,500’ - has there been a shift in position?

(Supplementary from Cllr Webb: You are advocating eating into commercial land to provide non-affordable apartments – how can you justify increasing the financial risk to the council?).

Response: The plan is to endeavour to include 2,500 homes on the site, and now that planning approval has been granted I look forward to working with the Labour group to meet our aspirations in respect of housing.  I don’t agree with Cllr Webb’s assertions; the council has made a decision to borrow, set against the achievement of future income from the Enterprise Zone.  I hope Labour will welcome the fact that government has contributed £77m to the site and am happy to work through the details with their group as the project progresses.

From Cllr Warters: Will you be lobbying government and Higher Education organisations for students to remain at home after Christmas and continue their courses remotely, rather than repeating the mistake of welcoming 40,000 students to York?

(Supplementary from Cllr Warters: If it’s considered safe for students to return in January, when will the council ask its staff to come back?)

Response: I am not going to demonise or segregate groups.  I praise the work carried out by public health, the NHS, universities and schools in difficult circumstances.  My commitment is to ensure we are communicating health guidance as quickly as possible and taking a York approach, including test and trace work with universities.  We continue to follow national guidance on working from home.

Questions to Cllr D’Agorne, Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Transport

From Cllr Hook: Why is it so crucial that we secure Devolution funding?

Response: We have put forward a bid with North Yorkshire for a joint Devolution deal, full details of which are on the council’s website.  The proposals include a £67m York Place fund to support the York Station Front, York Riverside Walkway, Castle Gateway and other projects in the coming year; £175m funding for Bio-Yorkshire; funding for housing, including affordable homes; and £10m for a low carbon skills programme.

(Supplementary from Cllr Rowley: The Railway Institute Band Room is to be demolished as part of the York Station Front scheme – will you work to provide a replacement?)

Response: I’m happy to support anyone affected and am aware that efforts are being made to find suitable replacement premises.

From Cllr Musson: Can you detail the steps taken to progress policy in respect of last year’s Council motion on zero carbon?

(Supplementary from Cllr Crawshaw: Can you reassure us that a strategic approach is being taken, with everyone is signed up to a holistic plan that will be in place  ...  view the full minutes text for item 85.