Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors Caffrey, Christensen, Clarke OBE, Dhillon, Dormer, Drayton, Etholen, Fayyaz, Gaffney, Gaster, Griffin, Hall, Graham Harris, Hogg, Hunter-Watts, Johncock, Jones, Lambert, Lewin, Marshall, Naylor, Sarfaraz Raja, Rush, Sandy, Sir Beville Stanier, Summers, D Town, A Turner, Wadhwa, Waite, M Walsh, Wassell and Andrew Wood. Apologies were also received from Countess Howe, his Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire and Dame Ann Limb, The High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire.

Tribute was paid to Mrs Kathleen Peatey MBE JP, who had recently passed away. The Chairman recorded sincere condolences to her family on their sad loss.

Mrs Peatey had been a Member of Wycombe District Council from 1976-1999, and was Leader of that Council from 1993-95, and the Chairman of Wycombe District Council during 1989-90.  Mrs Peatey had been made an Honorary Alderman by WDC in 2000, and of Buckinghamshire Council since 2020.  She was also a long time Trustee for Wycombe Almhouses, and a Magistrate on the Wycombe and Beaconsfield bench between 1979 and 2002.

Members then observed a minute`s silence in memory of Kathleen Peatey MBE JP.

RESOLVED –

That the Minutes of the Annual Council Meeting held on 17 May 2023 be approved as a correct record.

There were none.

The Chairman detailed events that she had attended since the last Council meeting which included 3 events with the Armed Forces in Aylesbury, High Wycombe and Great Missenden, and the rural farm tour to Hard To Find farm, High Wycombe.  Congratulations were extended to Councillor Mahboob Hussain JP who had recently celebrated 25 years as a Justice of the Peace.  There had been a very busy schedule of events and the Vice Chairman was thanked for events she had attended.

Members who were able were asked to try to attend and support the Chairman’s charity film event on Sunday 10 September at Pinewood Studios, with an outside picnic to see ‘Rocketman’.

Councillor P Martin presented an e-petition on behalf of a constituent relating to ‘Stop Investing in Fossil Fuels.’  The Chairman accepted and referred the petition to the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources for response. The Cabinet Member thanked the resident for the petition and asked for it to be referred to Cabinet for further consideration.

Buckinghamshire Council’s Corporate Plan set out what the Council wanted to achieve and how this would be done, addressing the challenges faced and harnessing opportunities as they presented themselves.  It reflected the services that mattered the most to residents.

The current plan had been approved in February 2020. A light-touch review of it had been undertaken to reflect current challenges facing the economy and other events and how these could have an impact on the Council’s priorities, together with other key developments such as new national legislation.

The Leader introduced a draft of the refreshed Corporate Plan that could be seen attached at Appendix 1 to the Council report. The plan was intended to cover the period until 2025, in accordance with the current Council term, and would continue to be subject to an annual refresh.

In response to queries, Members were informed:

•                    That Parish Councils were included in the Corporate Plan and deliverables as key stakeholders.

•                    That ageing demographics was placing additional pressures on the Council’s budget.  Proposals for future years would come forward in due course to be considered during budget scrutiny.

•                    That the Corporate Plan provided strategic direction for decision-making by the Cabinet and Council.  Some areas would have individual Action Plans to assist in delivering the Council’s key priorities.

RESOLVED –

That the refreshed Corporate Plan for the period 2020-25 be ADOPTED.

Prior to introducing the annual report prepared of the work carried out by the Council’s Audit and Governance Committee during the 2022/23 financial year, Councillor R Newcombe, Chairman of the Audit and Governance Committee informed Members that the Council’s risk team (headed by Caroline Jenkins, Risk and Business Continuity Manager) had recently won Team of the Year 2023 at the ALARM (Association of Local Authority Risk Managers) annual awards.

Members were informed that the content and presentation of the annual report met the requirements of the CIPFA Audit Committees Guidance 2018 to report to full Council on a regular basis on the Committee’s performance in relation to the terms of reference and the effectiveness of the Committee in meeting its purpose.

Members were informed that the Audit and Governance Committee had met six times during the year.  Each meeting had reviewed a Forward Plan to ensure that the work being undertaken mirrored the level of risks and priorities of the Action.  Any actions raised during previous Committee meetings were reviewed for completeness.

The Committee had continued to receive valued professional reports, support and advice from Corporate Finance, Treasury Management, Risk Management, Procurement, Internal Audit and from our External Auditors.

The Committee’s work had included approving and monitoring the Council’s Whistleblowing Policy, Anti-Fraud and Corruption Policy and Money Laundering Policy.  The Committee was also responsible for overseeing the Council’s financial reporting process and for approving the Council’s Financial Statements and Annual Governance Statement.  It was explained that due to a combination of factors the audit of the draft statement of accounts for the year ended 31 March 2021 had not yet been completed by the external auditors but was expected to be concluded during December 2023.  This was part of wider endemic problem across the country whereby 73% of local authority audits for 2021-22 were still outstanding and 300 audits for 2020-21 were also outstanding.

Information provided in the annual report to Council included:

-               On audits undertaken during the year, including the Pension Fund audit.

-               That the Annual Governance Statement for 2021/22 had been agreed in November 2022, with the AGS for 2022/23 due to be considered at the July 2023 meeting.

-               That the terms of reference for Internal Audit (Internal Audit Charter), the Business Assurance Strategy including the Annual Internal Audit Plan, and the Counter Fraud Plan had been approved.

-               That updates had been received on the work of the Counter Fraud/Investigations team, including details of successful outcomes, prosecutions and recoveries.

-               That the Risk Management Group, is a sub-group of the Audit and Governance Committee, had met seven times during the financial year. The group review the strategic and key directorate risks facing the authority and the internal controls and governance in place to manage those risks to demonstrate how risk management is embedded within Services.

-               That the Committee was responsible for approving the Risk Management Strategy, and the Risk Management Group monitors the effective implementation of the strategy, as well as undertaking the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

Members received reports from Cabinet Members. There was an opportunity for members to ask questions of individual Cabinet Members about matters and issues affecting their portfolios.

Leader of the Council, Councillor Martin Tett

The Leader received questions on charging for commercial waste, the Electoral Review of Buckinghamshire and on flood risk.  Members were informed:

(i)                  That secondary legislation would be required before the Government introduced new arrangements for Councils not to be able to charge for commercial waste.  It was anticipated that the new arrangements might apply from the start of 2024.  The details of the impact on the Council were still to be fully understood but it was likely to lead to £1m in additional budget pressures.

(ii)                That the meeting with Lee Rowley MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Local Government and Building Safety) had discussed the general context and issues facing the Council including from ageing demographics, social care and waste.

(iii)              That there were a wide range of issues that would need to be looked at now that the Electoral Review of Buckinghamshire had concluded.  Work had not yet been done on Community Board boundaries that would need to change from 2025.

(iv)              That the transport team’s risk assessments would include planning for issues such as flooding incidents and responding to the impacts of extreme weather conditions.

Cabinet Member for Culture and Leisure, Councillor Clive Harriss

The Cabinet Member received questions on Higginson Park and on accessible play parks.  Members were informed:

(i)                  That the new Higginson Park play area was on track to be open towards the end of July 2023.

(ii)                That he would check to see who had been consulted relating to accessibility when new play parks had been built.  He apologised for the oversight in not mentioning the Whizz Fizz Fest and Aylesbury on Sea in his report, which had been delivered through partnership working with the Aylesbury Town Council.

Cabinet Member for Homelessness and Regulatory Services, Councillor Mark Winn

The Cabinet Member received questions on the Bridge Court temporary accommodation facility, High Wycombe, and on rough sleepers.  Members were informed:

(i)                  That the Council was taking the opportunity to move families from B&B accommodation into the Bridge Court accommodation, that was saving the Council a considerable amount of money.  This also demonstrated the need to provide additional temporary accommodation.

(ii)                That a site with a number of rough sleepers highlighted by the Members was currently being investigated by Officers.  It was stated the rough sleeping numbers did fluctuate and tended to be higher during the Summer months.  The Cabinet Member would speak to the Oasis Partnership and community safety about the instances of begging that had been occurring in the vicinity of collection points in the Wycombe town centre.

Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration, Councillor Peter Strachan

The Cabinet Member received questions on the lack of provision for religious worship as part of new developments and on the visitor economy.  The Member was asked to write to the Cabinet  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

The Chairman informed Members that four motions had been submitted to the meeting.  The motions related to:

(i)                 Cross Party working on the Buckinghamshire Council Local Plan.

(ii)               Day Travel Card.

(iii)              Implementing a 20 mph speed limit on roads outside all schools in Buckinghamshire.

(iv)              Scrutiny.

(i)                 Cross Party working on the Buckinghamshire Council Local Plan.

The motion was proposed by Councillor Stuart Wilson and seconded by Councillor Robin Stuchbury –

“This Council regards the development of the new Buckinghamshire Council Local Plan (LP4B) as one of the most significant actions during this Council term of office to May 2025 and the next. It understands the importance of creating the LP4B based on the widest possible views from all parts of the county as represented by the elected Members. It is noted that cross-political group participation in its development is absolutely necessary to ensure that there is fair and transparent representation across all sections of our communities, towns, villages and rural areas.

Council requires Cabinet to ensure that:

a.                  All future LP4B working parties/task & finish groups and such like involving any Members will include Group Leaders or their delegates as full participants; and,

b.                  All future LP4B working parties/task & finish groups and such like involving any Members will also include additional representatives from all political groups, as a minimum in line with political proportionality, to ensure any geographical or other gaps are covered.”

Councillor Wilson briefing explained the rationale of the motion.  During the debate the Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration explained the role and makeup of the Local Plan Working Group, and detailed the scrutiny and consultation that would be undertaken as the Local Plan was being developed.

At the conclusion of the debate, a requisite number of Members present requested that a recorded vote be held.  Following a recorded vote, the motion was declared to be LOST.

Voting was as follows:

FOR (25): Councillors Baldwin, Bates, Baughan, Cooper, Dixon, Gemmell, Guy, D Hayday, O Hayday, I Hussain, Majid Hussain, N Hussain, T Hussain, James, Kayani, Kelly, R Khan BEM, Morgan, Poland-Goodyer, W Raja, G Smith, M Smith, Stuchbury, Wheelhouse and Wilson.

AGAINST (80): Councillors Adoh, Alam, Anthony, Ashman, Ayub, Bagge, Barnes, Barrett, Baum, Birchley, Blamires, Bond, Bowles, Bracken, Brazier, Broadbent, Broom, Brown, Carington, Carroll, B Chapple OBE, S Chapple, Chaudry, Chhokar, Chilver, Collins, Cornell, Cranmer, Culverhouse, Darby, Egleton, Fealey, Flys, Gomm, Goss, Green, M Harker OBE, Harriss, Heap, A Hussain, Maz Hussain, Mahboob Hussain JP, Irwin, Jackson, Jordan, King, Knight, MacBean, A Macpherson, I Macpherson, Mahon, Martin, R Matthews, W Matthews, Mohammed, Mordue, Newcombe, Oliver, Osibogun, Poll, Rana, Rand, Rouse, L Smith BEM, Southworth, Stannard, Strachan, Sullivan, Tett, Thomas, Thompson, Towns, M Turner, P Turner, L Walsh, Ward, Waters, Williams, Winn and K Wood.

ABSTENTIONS:  There were none.

(ii)               Day Travel Card

The motion was proposed by Councillor Steven Broadbent and seconded by Councillor Martin Tett –

“This council notes the proposed removal of Day Travel Cards by the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

The written responses to questions from Members, published as a supplement to the agenda, were noted.

A list of decisions taken by the Leader since the last Full Council meeting on 17 May 2023 were received and noted.

Wednesday, 20 September 2023 at 4.00pm

4pm, Wednesday 20 September 2023.