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 asked to declare any personal interests not included on the Register of Interests, any prejudicial interests or any disclosable pecuniary interests which they might have in respect of business on the agenda. None were declared.

It is at this point in the meeting that members of the public who have registered to speak can do so. The deadline for registering is 5.00pm on Tuesday 8 August 2017. Members of the public can speak on agenda items or matters within the remit of the committee. To register to speak please contact the Democracy Officer for the meeting, on the details at the foot of the agenda.

Filming, Recording or Webcasting Meetings

Please note this meeting may be filmed and webcast, or recorded and that includes any registered public speakers, who have given their permission.  The broadcast can be viewed at http://www.york.gov.uk/webcasts  or,if recorded, this will be uploaded onto the Council’s website following the meeting.

Residents are welcome to photograph, film or record Councillors and Officers at all meetings open to the press and public. This includes the use of social media reporting, i.e. tweeting.  Anyone wishing to film, record or take photos at any public meeting should contact the Democracy Officer (contact details are at the foot of this agenda) in advance of the meeting.

The Council’s protocol on Webcasting, Filming & Recording of Meetings ensures that these practices are carried out in a manner both respectful to the conduct of the meeting and all those present.  It can be viewed at http://www.york.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/11406/protocol_for_webcasting_filming_and_recording_of_council_meetings_20160809.pdf

It was reported that there had been no registrations to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme.

To consider the decisions made by the Executive at a meeting held on Thursday 13 July 2017 in relation to the above item, which has been called in by Councillors N Barnes, Derbyshire and Looker, in accordance with the Council’s Constitution. A cover report is attached setting out the reasons for the call-in and the remit and powers of the Customer and Corporate Services Scrutiny Management Committee (Calling In) in relation to the call in, together with the original report and the decisions of the Executive.

Members considered a report which set out the reasons for the call-in and the role of the Committee, together with options available to it under the agreed post-decision call-in arrangements.

In accordance with those arrangements three Members (Councillors N. Barnes, Derbyshire and Looker) had called in the above Executive decision for the following reasons:

     i.        The Executive has disregarded evidence provided by GH Hearn as part of the overall evidence base that underpins submission of a sound Local Plan;

    ii.        The decision to wittingly submit an unsound Local Plan represents an unnecessary risk of high financial cost to the local taxpayer that should be avoided;

   iii.        Through submission of an unsound Plan, the council’s ruling Coalition puts at significant risk York’s ability to define a permanent Green Belt, and in doing leaves it vulnerable to speculative development;

  iv.        The Plan drawn up for submission fails in the requirement to ensure housing need is met. Of particular concern are the needs of key workers such as nurses, teachers and care workers for whom York’s housing costs are a significant barrier to working in the city.

Councillor Derbyshire spoke, on behalf of calling-in Members, to reiterate comments from the GL Hearne report on housing need and 5 year supply and uplift. She highlighted that there had been an average shortfall in York of 267 dwellings per annum since 2007, and that this would have made a 20% uplift in supply defensible. The calling-in Members felt  that this expert, and costly, advice had been ignored and that the city had missed an opportunity to provide affordable housing for  key and low paid workers across the city. She stated that neighbouring Local Authorities had expressed their concern that they would have to ‘pick up the tab’ and provide for these workers when they could no longer afford to live in York. Finally she suggested that the Executive had undermined the soundness of the Local Plan by failing to provide for the needs of residents and stated that the plan may be rejected.

The Executive Member for Finance and Performance (Leader) was in attendance to answer  questions, along with Chair of the Local Plan Working Group. In response to the points raised by the call-in Member he stated:

·        In reference to the GL Hearne report giving little or no weight to the special character of York, the Leader was unable to answer whether or not this consideration was part of the Terms of Reference the Council provided, but felt that to not recognise this anyway was a failing on the part of GL Hearne.

·        Significant development was a subjective term, figures were up to Members to decide.

·        Any report which wanted to inflate housing need should be viewed with caution. All this would do is put control into the hands of house builders.

·        Saying York has a housing crisis was unnecessarily emotive. There were not enough houses at present but there would be in future.

·        This was a sound plan, based on sound evidence and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.