Agenda Item 3
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Agenda Item 3 Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the City of Sheffield held in the Council Chamber, Town Hall, Pinstone Street, Sheffield S1 2HH, on Wednesday 5 December 2012, at 2.00 pm, pursuant to notice duly given and Summonses duly served. PRESENT THE LORD MAYOR (Councillor John Campbell) THE DEPUTY LORD MAYOR (Councillor Vickie Priestley) 1 Arbourthorne Ward 10 Dore & Totley Ward 19 Mosborough Ward Julie Dore Keith Hill David Barker John Robson Joe Otten Isobel Bowler Jack Scott Colin Ross Tony Downing 2 Beauchiefl Greenhill Ward 11 East Ecclesfield Ward 20 Nether Edge Ward Simon Clement-Jones Garry Weatherall Anders Hanson Clive Skelton Steve Wilson Nikki Bond Roy Munn Joyce Wright 3 Beighton Ward 12 Ecclesall Ward 21 Richmond Ward Chris Rosling-Josephs Roger Davison John Campbell Ian Saunders Diana Stimely Martin Lawton Penny Baker Lynn Rooney 4 Birley Ward 13 Firth Park Ward 22 Shiregreen & Brightside Ward Denise Fox Alan Law Sioned-Mair Richards Bryan Lodge Chris Weldon Peter Price Karen McGowan Shelia Constance Peter Rippon 5 Broomhill Ward 14 Fulwood Ward 23 Southey Ward Shaffaq Mohammed Andrew Sangar Leigh Bramall Stuart Wattam Janice Sidebottom Tony Damms Jayne Dunn Sue Alston Gill Furniss 6 Burngreave Ward 15 Gleadless Valley Ward 24 Stannington Ward Jackie Drayton Cate McDonald David Baker Ibrar Hussain Tim Rippon Vickie Priestley Talib Hussain Steve Jones Katie Condliffe 7 Central Ward 16 Graves Park Ward 25 Stockbridge & Upper Don Ward Jillian Creasy Ian Auckland Alison Brelsford Mohammad Maroof Bob McCann Philip Wood Robert Murphy Richard Crowther 8 Crookes Ward 17 Hillsborough Ward 26 Walkey Ward Sylvia Anginotti Janet Bragg Ben Curran Geoff Smith Bob Johnson Nikki Sharpe Rob Frost George Lindars-Hammond Neale Gibson 9 Darnall Ward 18 Manor Castle Ward 27 West Ecclesfield Ward Harry Harpham Jenny Armstrong Trevor Bagshaw Mazher Iqbal Terry Fox Alf Meade Mary Lea Pat Midgley Adam Hurst 28 Woodhouse Ward Mick Rooney Jackie Satur Page 5 Page 6 Council 5.12.2012 1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENC E Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Qurban Hussain, Helen Mirfin Boukouris, Denise Reaney and Ray Satur. 2. DECLARATIONS OF INTE REST Councillor Bryan Lodge declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in item of business number 11 on the Council Summons (concerning City Centre Parking) because he owns a business in the City centre. Councillor Ben Curran declared a personal interest in item of business number 10 on the Council Summons (concerning Food Banks) because he is a Trustee of Ben’s Centre. 3. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETING RESOLVED: On the Motion of Councillor Pat Midgley, seconded by Councillor Gill Furniss, that the minutes of the meeting held on 7 November 2012 be approved as a correct record. 4. PUBLIC QUESTIONS AND PETITIONS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS 4.1 Petitions (a) Petition requesting the Government to condemn recent att empts to cause office to Muslim communities Council received a petition requesting the Government to condemn recent attempts to cause offence to Muslim communities. On behalf of the petitioners, Mohammed Ali addressed the Council. He referred to a film, which had been posted on the You Tube website, which caused deliberate offence to people in the Muslim community and he said that such actions had heighted tensions in communities. He stated that, in Sheffield, the Federation of Mosques had worked with the community and South Yorkshire Police toward a collective approach to building a peaceful society. The petition collected signatures from all Mosques in the City and requested the condemnation of the content of the film which had been posted on You Tube. He asked that this be brought to the Government’s attention by the Council and local MPs. Mr Ali requested that the Council send a message to the Federation of Mosques that it would seek changes to the law relating to respect for people’s religious beliefs and does not tolerate people making hateful comments concerning a particular religion. Page 3 of 54 Page 7 Council 5.12.2012 The Council referred the petition to the Leader of the Council (Councillor Julie Dore), who thanked the Federation of Mosques for bringing the petition to Council. Councillor Dore stated that she believed that Council were united in joining the petitioners in their outrage, particularly in relation to the content of the film to which Mr Ali had referred. Councillor Dore referred to existing laws relating to racial hatred and stated that she was aware that the film makers had been questioned by the authorities. In relation to community cohesion, she stated that Sheffield was privileged to have a Muslim community and she praised the way in which the community worked with the Council and other agencies to ensure that we have a safe City. Councillor Dore referred to the power of film as a medium to reach a mass audience, but believed that this particular case showed the potentially damaging use of film. She stated that people that incite racial or religious hatred should be treated in a robust manner. The Council would write to all of the responsible Secretaries of State in relation to this matter, including the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and will also write to Sheffield MPs. (b) Petition objecting to the withdrawal of zero fare bus passes for children attending Church schools The Council received a petition objecting to the withdrawal of zero fare bus passes for children attending church schools. Representations on behalf of the petitioners were made by Jim Conway who referred to anxiety felt by the Catholic community concerning the withdrawal of zero fare bus passes for children attending church schools. The local authority had previously given assurances that free transport would be provided for children attending schools following previous secondary school closures. He stated that this was the basis of trust between the City’s elected representatives and the Catholic community. Free transport for children attending Catholic schools should be provided in line with that provided to pupils attending other schools and he asked why those in the Catholic community should be treated less well. In addition, families on low incomes would be the most disadvantaged by the proposals, especially if the family income was marginally above that which gave entitlement to free school meals. The Equalities Impact Assessment states that there would be adverse impact on some Catholic families in particular. The Council referred the petition to the Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Families (Councillor Jackie Drayton). Councillor Drayton stated that she agreed that the situation was distressing but emphasised that no Councillor wished to discriminate against people of the Catholic faith. The Council had statutory duties in relation to school transport but because of the current financial situation it was having to look at all discretionary provision. She stated that circumstances had changed since the time of the agreement Page 4 of 54 Page 8 Council 5.12.2012 relating to school closures made in 1976. The Government were making reductions to the Council budget, including a reduction of £6 million from the Early Intervention Grant. The funding reductions were disproportionately affecting places in the north of England. Councillor Drayton stated that she had read all of the letters and other email correspondence that had been received as part of the consultation and responded to the points that had been raised. She asked if it was possible for schools and the Diocese to come together to consider whether it would be possible to create a hardship fund to help families that are in financial hardship to ensure that their children can continue to attend their school. She added that she valued the work of Catholic schools and the role of people of the Catholic faith in community life and charity projects. It was noted that other faith groups were also alleging that they were being discriminated against in the proposals relating to bus passes. However, the Council needed to look at the budget as a whole. (c) Petition requesting the restoration of street art on Eyre Sreet The Council received a petition containing 12 signatures and requesting the restoration of street art on Eyre Street. The Council referred the petition to the Cabinet Member for Business, Skills and Development (Councillor Leigh Bramall). (d) Petition requesting the acquisition of land adjacent to 43 Westbrook Road, Chapeltown, by Thorncliffe Cricket and Social Club The Council received a petition containing 5 signatures and requesting the acquisition of land adjacent to 43 Westbrook Road, Chapeltown, by Thorncliffe Cricket and Social Club. The Council referred the petition to the Cabinet Member for Business, Skills and Development (Councillor Leigh Bramall). (e) Petition requesting the Council not to reverse the ban on Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) on Bocking Lane The Council received a petition containing 390 signatures requesting the Council not to reverse the ban on HGVs using Bocking Lane. Representations on behalf of the petitioners were made by Stuart Smith. Mr Smith referred to the ban on Heavy Goods Vehicles using Bocking Lane, which was introduced in 2010/11 and the use of Abbey Lane as a preferred route to accommodate HGVs as it was not tree lined and had a comparatively gentle gradient. He was not aware of a change in circumstances which might lead to a reversal of the ban on Bocking Lane. With reference to the school on Abbey Lane, he considered that relatively few HGVs used Abbey Lane during school periods and referred to a survey in September 2011, which showed that there were fewer HGVs using Abbey Lane in 2011 than in 2004. He Page 5 of 54 Page 9 Council 5.12.2012 stated that petitioners would like to see wider discussion with Derbyshire County Council and reiterated that a reversal of the original HGV ban should not be made on health and safety grounds.