CITY COUNCIL

15th January, 2014

Meeting commenced: 9.30 a.m. “ adjourned: 10.35 a.m. “ re-commenced: 10.50 a.m. “ ended: 12.00 noon

PRESENT: Councillor Alan Clague (Ceremonial Mayor) - in the Chair

Mr Ian Stewart - City Mayor

Councillors Derek Antrobus, Howard Balkind, Neil Blower, Adrian Brocklehurst, Eric Burgoyne, Val Burgoyne, Andy Cheetham, Christopher Clarkson, Stephen Coen, Jillian Collinson, Graham Compton, Peter Connor, Richard Critchley, Jim Dawson, Paul Dennett, Sareda Dirir, Peter Dobbs, John Ferguson, Karen Garrido, Stephen Hesling, Bill Hinds, Christine Hudson, Ann-Marie Humphreys, David Jolley, Roger Jones, Joe Kean, Tracy Kelly, Jim King, David Lancaster, Bernard Lea, Iain Lindley, Ray Mashiter, Charlie McIntyre, Gena Merrett, John Merry, Matt Mold, Margaret Morris, John Mullen, Michelle Mullen, Joe Murphy, Stephen Ord, Bernard Pennington, Sue Pugh, Brendan Ryan, Pat Ryan, Gina Reynolds, Lisa Stone, Les Turner, John Walsh, John Warmisham, Barry Warner, Michael Wheeler, Peter Wheeler, George Wilson, Paul Wilson and Ronnie Wilson

43. URGENT ITEMS OF WHICH THE CHAIR HAS BEEN NOTIFIED

The Chair indicated that he had not been notified of any urgent items.

44. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Paula Boshell, Robin Garrido and Jimmy Hunt.

45. PAUL GOGGINS

The Ceremonial Mayor referred to the recent sad death of Paul Goggins, the Member of Parliament for and Sale East and a former Salford City Councillor. The City Mayor paid his own personal tribute and said Paul was respected by members of all political parties as well as the wider community and would be greatly missed.

Condolences were extended to Paul’s family and members stood in silence as a mark of respect.

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 46. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

There were no declarations of interest.

47. MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS

The minutes of the meeting held on 20th November, 2013, were approved as a correct record.

48. RECEIPT OF PETITIONS/COMMUNICATIONS

No petitions, or communications, were received.

49. PUBLIC HEALTH ANNUAL REPORT 2012/13

Councillor Margaret Morris, Assistant Mayor for Health and Wellbeing, presented the Public Health Annual Report 2012/13, which detailed the current work being undertaken and with a particular focus on integration and expected value.

The report was welcomed, as were the initiatives detailed in it, aimed at improving the health of the residents of Salford.

RESOLVED: THAT the report be noted.

50. CONTRACTING OUT CERTAIN HIGHWAYS FUNCTIONS TO URBAN VISION

Councillor Derek Antrobus, Assistant Mayor for Strategic Planning, introduced a report of the Strategic Director of Environment and Community Safety indicating that currently Urban Vision carried out certain activities on behalf of the City Council. Approval was now sought for Urban Vision to make decisions with regard to these functions.

RESOLVED: THAT approval be given, under The Contracting Out (Highway Functions) Order 2009, to Urban Vision exercising the following functions on behalf of Salford City Council:-

 Powers under Section 139(1) and (2) (Control of Builders’ Skips)  Powers under Section 140(2) (Removal of Builders’ Skips)  Powers under Section 169(1)(2)(3) and (4) (Control of Scaffolding on Highways)  Powers under Section 171 (Control of Deposit of Building Materials and Making Excavations in Streets (except insofar as the functions conferred by, or under, Section 171(7) relate to the removal of the property of any person))

51. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY AND GUIDELINES

Councillor John Ferguson referred to the draft Social Media Policy and Guidelines for officers of the City Council, and sought a deferment to enable further consultation with all members.

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 RESOLVED: THAT the Social Media Policy and Guidelines for Officers be withdrawn and resubmitted for consideration at the next meeting of the City Council

52. SWINTON SOUTH BY ELECTION

The Returning Officer submitted a report detailing the results of the Swinton South By Election held on Tuesday, 7th January, 2014.

The City Mayor welcomed Councillor Neil Blower, the successful candidate in that by election, to his first meeting of the City Council.

RESOLVED: THAT the report be noted.

53. LOCALISED COUNCIL TAX REDUCTION SCHEME 2014/15

The City Mayor submitted a report detailing the outcome of the public consultation on the City Council’s proposals for its council tax reduction scheme for 2014/15. He said that the proposed amendments were regretted, but they were ones which the City Council had no other option to make, however in doing so it was hoped the potential impact on some of the most vulnerable members of the community would be minimised.

Councillor Andy Cheetham said the Opposition Group endorsed the proposed amendments to the scheme.

RESOLVED: THAT approval be given to the amended localised council tax reduction scheme to be implemented from 1st April, 2014, including the following change to the main elements of the existing scheme:-

“Everyone of working age, who receives a council tax reduction, will be asked to pay at least 12% of their council tax bill.”

54. OPERATIONAL GOVERNANCE REVIEW

The City Mayor introduced a report of the Assistant Director (Human Resources) outlining the findings of review of the City Council’s senior management arrangements which had been undertaken by consultants from Penna.

Members commented on the proposal which were duly noted.

RESOLVED: (1) THAT post of Chief Executive be deleted.

(2) THAT approval be given to the establishment of a new senior post, to include the statutory role of Head of Paid Service at a salary range of £144,702 to £150,489.

(3) THAT the Workforce Panel be authorised to establish an Appointment Panel to appoint a suitable candidate, subject to ratification by full Council.

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 55. STATEMENT OF THE CITY MAYOR

The City Mayor made a number of announcements and reported on some of the key areas of work he had been involved with since the last meeting of the Council as follows:-

(a) Congratulations were extended to the following people, whose achievements had been recognised by H.M. The Queen in the New Year’s Honours List:-

 Councillor Bernard Pennington, BEM for services to local government.  Mike Lowry, MBE for services to children.  David Dalton, Knights Bachelor for services to healthcare.  Iain Anderson, MBE for services to clinical surgery and medical education.

(b) The process for developing the City Councils Budget 2014/15 continued and thanks extended to the Deputy City Mayor, assistant mayors and senior officers for their commitment to what has been an extremely difficult process. The City Council in the next financial year faced a reduction in its budget of £25M, which inevitably would result in cuts to services, but every effort was being to minimise these. Further budget reductions in forthcoming years would mean that by 2015/16 the City Council’s budget would be reduced by a third to a half from what it had been in 2010. A commitment remained to keep the provision of services in house wherever possible, but other options, including the possible adoption of a mutual approach with partner agencies needed to be examined. The City Council wished to maintain its current services and would do so, even improve upon them, if given the necessary financial support and was making representations on this basis to H.M. Government.

(c) Despite the current economic climate, there was significant current and planned investment in Salford. This included MediaCityUK, where 100 new businesses had relocated with the associated jobs this created, New Pendleton, which ultimately would see the creation of 1,500 new homes, 500 jobs, as well as 3,000 training opportunities and the proposed Port Salford development, which would create up to a further 3,000 employment opportunities together with associated skill training ones.

(d) The Charter for Employment Standards had been launched on 14th November, 2013 and was designed to help raise employment standards for council employees and businesses across the city. A key element of the charter was the City Council’s commitment to ensuring employees received a living wage and work was being done within other local authorities to adopt a similar approach.

(e) The City Council would continue to ensure the provision of 25 hours free nursery care for every child between the ages of 3 and 4.

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 (f) The cumulative effect of the various elements of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 were now being realised and the City Council was making every effort in its power to sure these were minimised in terms of Salford residents.

(g) The Greater Combined Authority was the first of its type in the country and enabled local politicians to work together strategically at a sub regional level. The benefits of such combined working had to be recognised and representations were being made to encourage the de-centralisation of decision making through the creation of place based budgets.

56. GENERAL QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS TO THE CITY MAYOR AND ASSISTANT MAYORS

Q1. Councillor Stephen Ord referred to the recent successful Heritage Lottery Fund bid for the refurbishment of Peel Park and asked what the next steps of the project were and the timetable for these.

Councillor Gena Merrett, Assistant Mayor for Housing and Environment, replied that, an initial lottery bid amounting to £54,000 had been successful and this would primarily be used to develop a second bid for funding of approximately £1.5M. If granted this would be used to refurbish and restore Peel Park. The second bid needed to be submitted by August 2014 and Councillor Merrett expressed thanks to the residents of Irwell Riverside, who had played a vital role in the work to date and would continue to do so.

Q2. Councillor John Mullen asked what decision had been made following lobbying by the private hire and hackney carriage trade with regard to extending the age which vehicles could be used for.

Councillor Gena Merrett, Assistant Mayor for Housing and Environment, replied that, in 2010 the City Council had introduced a policy covering all aspects of private hire and hackney carriage operations in Salford, including the age of vehicles. These had subsequently increased by a further two years in each case. New national standards were currently been drawn up, which were anticipated to be introduced in 2015, until which time the City Council would continue to employ their existing in house regulations.

Q3. Councillor Paul Dennett referred to the Salford’s Discretionary Support Scheme and asked what the likely impact was of H.M. Government’s recent announcement that the funding for this could be withdrawn.

Councillor Peter Connor, Assistant Mayor for Adult Services and Services for Older People, said he had only recently been made aware of the possibility that Discretionary Support Scheme funding could be withdrawn and this was further to reductions already made. He said the funding was utilised to provide support to some of the most vulnerable residents of Salford and if withdrawn would make that task even more difficult. He and the City Mayor asked all concerned to join with the City Council in campaigning to ensure this funding was maintained.

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 Q4. Councillor Howard Balkind paid tribute to the work Salford TUC Unemployed Resource Centre, particularly Barbara Bentham, in terms of providing support to people who were appealing against Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) benefit claim decisions. The City Mayor said this work was recognised and valued, as was that, undertaken by the City Council’s own Welfare Rights Team.

Q5. Councillor Bernard Pennington referred to recent flooding in other parts of the country and asked whether Salford was suitably protected in this regard.

Councillor Derek Antrobus, Assistant Mayor for Strategic Planning, replied that this was an important issue, as Salford was situated on the main flood plain of the River Irwell. Suitable defences were in place, but there was always the potential these could be breached in extreme weather conditions. He indicated that recently £1.2M of improvements had been made to strengthen the Irwell Embankment and a second flood basin was to be constructed at Castle Irwell at a cost of £16M, which would provide protection for 2,000 homes. He also highlighted problems caused by surface water flooding and the planning regulations to address this, together with the regular maintenance of drainage outlets undertaken by Urban Vision throughout the City.

The City Mayor added that, it was due to potential emergencies such as flooding that the council needed to have contingency plans, which meant the City Council had to hold appropriate budgetary reserves.

Q6. Councillor John Ferguson referred to consultation by H.M. Government last year regarding proposals for the introduction of minimum pricing for alcohol. These proposals had subsequently been dropped, which he suggested may have been due to the influence of the drinks industry, but asked whether the City Council would continue to support the campaign for the introduction of minimum pricing.

Councillor Margaret Morris, Assistant Mayor for Health and Wellbeing, said the introduction of 50p per unit minimum price for alcohol would have significant benefits both in improving general health and reducing pressures on healthcare services. She urged Salford City Council to join with Public Health England, who were campaigning for H.M. Government to review their decision not to introduce a minimum pricing policy for alcohol. Councillor David Lancaster said the issue was not only a health one, but also had an impact in terms of anti social behaviour and any campaign should include a focus on community safety aspects too.

Q7. Councillor Neil Blower referred to proposed defence cuts which would mean significant numbers of armed forces personnel would be returning to civilian life and in many cases, Salford. He asked whether the City Council had made any specific plans to deal with the challenges this could create.

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 The City Mayor said the City council had recently signed the Armed Forces Covenant and as part of that would continue to ensure support was provided to ex service personnel.

Councillor Margaret Morris, Assistant Mayor for Health and Wellbeing, said local authorities had received no additional funding from central government to provide support to members of the armed forces who would be returning to civilian life, but every effort would be made to do this as part of existing services and resources.

Councillor Gena Merrett, Assistant Mayor for Housing and Environment, said in terms of housing, again there was no additional funding, or homes, available.

Q8. Councillor Val Burgoyne referred to a current Channel 4 documentary “Benefits Street” and the perception it created that, many people in receipt of benefits were not in genuine need. She said this was not the case and the majority of claimants, through circumstances outside of their control, faced real poverty.

The City Mayor said although it was accepted that benefit fraud was a problem, it was not to the level it was often portrayed as being by the media. Councillor Peter Connor, Assistant Mayor for Adult Services and Services for Older People, echoed these sentiments and said it was vital to make H.M. Government aware of the negative impact the various elements of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 were having on some of the most vulnerable members of society.

Q9. Councillor Iain Lindley referred to consultation being undertaken on the development of the Local Plan and paid particular tribute to the work of Chris Findley, Assistant Director for Planning and Transport and his team in this. He encouraged all with an interest to take part in the consultation process.

Councillor Derek Antrobus, Assistant Mayor for Strategic Planning, said the development of the Local Plan was a vital piece of work, which once completed, would become an essential tool to be used when taking important planning decisions in the future.

57. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THE DISCHARGE OF FUNCTIONS OF JOINT AUTHORITIES AND OUTSIDE BODIES

Councillor Sareda Dirir thanked officers for the support and advice they had provided to local residents with regard to ongoing works associated with the Leigh Guided Busway and asked whether such communication would continue as the project progressed. Councillor Richard Critchley raised similar issues.

Councillor Roger Jones, Assistant Mayor for Transport and City Region said communication with local residents was key and this would continue. He added that certain problems, specifically co-ordination of the activities of utility companies, had been identified in the earlier stages of the project and it would be ensured these

R:status\admin\omin\councilm150114 would not reoccur as it progressed. It was inevitable a scheme of this size would cause disruption for the residents of Salford, but every effort would be made to minimise these.

Two separate reports were submitted, respectively providing updates in relation to the activities of City West Housing Trust and Manchester Science Parks Limited, the contents of which were both noted.

58. GEORGE TAPP

The Ceremonial Mayor welcomed George Tapp, who was in attendance for the first time since suffering an accident in early 2013.

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