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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Virtual Meeting via Webcast

Contact: Julia Brown 

Media

Items
No. Item

1.

APOLOGIES

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence received.

2.

MEMBERSHIP OF THE COMMITTEE

To be apprised of any changes to the membership of the Committee in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.

Minutes:

There were no changes to Membership of the Committee.

3.

URGENT BUSINESS, IF ANY, INTRODUCED BY THE CHAIRMAN

Note:  No other business is permitted unless, by reason of special circumstances, which shall be specified at the meeting, the Chairman is of the opinion that the item(s) should be considered as a matter of urgency.

 

Minutes:

There were no items of urgent business.

4.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST pdf icon PDF 299 KB

If a member requires advice on Declarations of Interest, he/she is advised to contact the Legal and Democratic Services Manager in advance of the meeting.  (For the assistance of members a checklist for use in considering their position on any particular item is included at the end of this agenda sheet.)

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

5.

DECLARATIONS OF PARTY WHIP

In accordance with Overview and Scrutiny Committee Procedure Rule 16, Members must declare the existence of any Party Whip, and the nature of it, when considering any matter in the following categories:

 

-       The review of any decision of the Cabinet or

-       The performance of any Member of the Cabinet

 

N.B. The Secretary of State believes whipping is incompatible with Overview and Scrutiny.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of Party Whip.

6.

MINUTES pdf icon PDF 290 KB

To receive as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 30 January 2020.

Minutes:

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the meeting held on 30 January 2020 be received as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

7.

PUBLIC SPEAKING pdf icon PDF 243 KB

Residents of West Lancashire on giving notice, may address the meeting to make representations on any item on the agenda except where the public and press are to be excluded during consideration of the item.  The deadline for submissions is 10.00am on Friday 19 June 2020.  A copy of the public speaking protocol and form to be completed is attached.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There were no items under this heading.

8.

CALL IN ITEMS

There are no items under this heading.

Minutes:

There were no items under this heading.

9.

RELEVANT MINUTES OF CABINET

To scrutinise the following Minutes of Cabinet:

10 March 2020

9 June 2020

 

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the Minutes of Cabinet held on 10 March 2020 and 9 June 2020 as contained on pages 13 to 24 of the Book of Reports.

9a

Cabinet - Minutes of the meeting held on 10 March 2020 pdf icon PDF 293 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED: That the Minutes of Cabinet held on 10 March 2020 be noted.

9b

Cabinet - Minutes of the meeting held on 9 June 2020 pdf icon PDF 371 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED: That the Minutes of Cabinet held on 9 June 2020 be noted.

10.

DRAFT COUNCIL VISION AND PLAN 2020/21 - 2022/23 pdf icon PDF 131 KB

To note the revised Draft Council Vision and Plan 2020/21-2022/23 and consider the process for approving the Plan.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation and Resources as contained on pages 25 to 30 and 77 to 78 of the Book of Reports which was to consider the revised Draft Council Vision and Plan and endorse the proposed process for approving the final Plan.

 

The Corporate Director of Place and Community outlined the report and explained that the Draft Council Vision and Plan identified seven priorities to take forward.

 

Members raised several comments in respect of the Draft Council Vision and Plan, in which the Corporate Director of Place and Community noted, and explained that Members will have the opportunity to raise comments and feedback at the proposed Scrutiny Workshop.   She also explained that the Draft Council Vision and Plan will undergo stakeholder consultation by residents and partner agencies which will be presented to Cabinet in September.

 

RESOLVED: A. That the Draft revised Vision and Council Plan at Appendix One to the report be noted.

 

                        B. That the proposed process outlined in paragraph 3.3 of the report for approving the final Plan be endorsed.

 

                        C. That the Workshop Session be held virtually on Tuesday 14 July 2020 at 6.00pm with the Leader, Deputy Leader and Members of the Executive Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Corporate and Environmental Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

 

11.

MINUTES OF MEMBER DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION

To consider the following minutes of the Member Development Commission:

4 February 2020

12 March 2020

 

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the Minutes of the Member Development Commission held on 4 February 2020 and 12 March 2020 as contained on pages 31 to 38 of the Book of Reports.

11a

Minutes of Member Development Commission - 4 February 2020 pdf icon PDF 214 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Member Development Commission held on 4 February 2020 be noted.

11b

Minutes of Member Development Commission - 12 March 2020 pdf icon PDF 219 KB

Minutes:

A question was raised in respect of Minute 30 – SORP Member Development Project, in relation to the revised Draft Questionnaire which was due to be circulated to all Members in April 2020.

 

The Democratic Services Manager explained that there had been a delay with the circulation of the questionnaires due to the Covid–19 pandemic, however it would be circulated to members in due course.

 

RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the Member Development Commission held 12 March 2020 be noted.

 

 

12.

HRA REVENUE AND CAPITAL MONITORING pdf icon PDF 271 KB

To consider the report of the Corporate Director of Place and Community.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Place and Community as contained on pages 39 to 44 of the Book of Reports which provided an update on the current position in respect of the 2019/20 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) and Council Housing Capital Investment Programme.  The report had previously been considered by Cabinet on 10 March 2020.

 

The Deputy Borough Treasurer attended the meeting and provided an overview of the report referring to details set down in the report and appendices.

 

RESOLVED: That the financial position in respect of the 2019/20 HRA and Council Housing Capital Programme be noted.

13.

USE OF CAPITAL FUNDING FOR PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS AT WHEATSHEAF WALK pdf icon PDF 616 KB

To consider the report of the Corporate Director of Place and Community.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Place and Communities, as contained on pages 45 to 70 of the Book of Reports, which was referred to the Committee from the Cabinet meeting held on 9 June 2020.  The report sought the Committee's agreed comments regarding the use of capital funding for urgent public realm improvements at Wheatsheaf Walk, to include the removal of the pagoda and planters to create a more open and functional space to aid social distancing and the re-opening of businesses during the current COVID-19 outbreak, which would then be considered by the Director in consultation with the relevant Portfolio Holder.

 

A comment was moved and seconded in the following terms:

 

"The Executive Overview and Scrutiny have concerns about the proposals for the following reasons:

 

Given the recent relaxation of the Lockdown Regulations, including the opening of shops and the planned opening of bars, cafes and restaurants on the 4 July, the time window for the urgent removal of the Pagoda and Planters has now passed.   The necessary closure of public access to Wheatsheaf Walks while the proposed demolition work is undertaken, is likely to have a detrimental impact on the newly opened businesses.

 

In Paragraph 4.9 of the Report, mention is made of the possible use of "Small Square" for delivery vehicles to park or turn around yet the illustrations provided show that this would not be possible due to proposed installation of a concrete bench.

 

The Committee is also mindful that the responses from the Public Consultation undertaken by the Council does not provide strong support for the proposals and that there appears to be considerable opposition on social media.

 

Consequently, the Executive Overview & Scrutiny Committee recommend to the Cabinet that it adopt the alternative approach detailed in Paragraph 4.12 of the Report i.e. to retain the Pagoda and Planters and consider their removal or long term retention at a later date with the wider public realm improvements at Wheatsheaf Walk and that once these have been formulated they be subject to a full Public Consultation."

 

A vote was taken on the 'comment' and at the request of a Member, was recorded as follows:

 

FOR:               Councillors I Ashcroft, A Owens, A Sutton, D Westley and D Whittington (FIVE)

 

AGAINST:     Councillors R Cooper, S Evans, M Mills, M Nixon, G Owen and D West (SIX)

 

The 'comment' was NOT AGREED.

 

The Portfolio Holder, who was in attendance for this item only, advised the Committee that given the close result of the vote, he would consider this item further with Cabinet colleagues at an informal meeting being held on Friday, 26 June 2020, prior to any decision being taken in respect of the removal of the pagoda and planters.

 

The following Motion was moved and seconded in the following terms:

 

A.        That the consultation feedback on Wheatsheaf Walk public realm improvement proposals provided at Appendix 2 to the report be noted.

 

B.        That the Committee agree with the content of the report in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.