To receive questions in accordance with the provisions of Council Procedure Rules 12.2 and 12.4 which require a Member to give at least 3 working days’ notice, in writing, of the question to the Chief Executive.
Minutes:
The first question was from Councillor Barry to Councillor Blamire:
Given cuts in services and increases in charges for green waste and Council Tax, please can you tell me why the recently retired head of regeneration and planning was paid severance pay of £35,000 and, according to the statement of accounts, paid 2 months’ salary beyond his retirement date?
Councillor Blamire responded:
Arrangements made with the former officer concerned were cost neutral to the Council. For garden waste, we expect the income in 2018/19 to be £960,000, an increase of £214,000 on 2017/18.
Councillor Barry was not satisfied with the answer to his question. He asked whether the Monitoring Officer felt it was remotely justifiable to give £35k in this manner?
The Monitoring Officer informed Council that he was not in post at the time this payment was made.
Councillor Barry asked for the opinion of the Monitoring Officer and the Section 151 officer in post at the time to be provided to council. At this point, Councillor Edwards also expressed dissatisfaction with the answer provided.
The second question was from Councillor Caroline Jackson to Councillor Blamire:
“Could you explain why it takes 8 weeks to recruit new staff including casual staff for jobs such as serving in our cafes?”
Councillor Blamire replied:
Recruitment is a key process for the Council, which needs to be carried out appropriately to ensure that the Council selects the right people for roles. Regardless of whether the Council is appointing into an established post or a casual vacancy, a number of steps need to be completed prior to the new appointee commencing work.
These include:
· Vacancies normally being advertised for a period of two weeks, to ensure a good number of applicants;
· Applicants being short listed and invited to attend an interview;
· Relevant pre-placement checks being completed prior to start date, to ensure that the selected applicant is able to carry out the role;
· The appointee serving notice with their existing employer (as applicable).
Councillor Jackson’s supplementary question was about two ice-cream vans belonging to the Council which were not being used during the current heatwave, because the council could not manage to recruit casual staff. She asked when Cabinet were going to set priorities.
Councillor Blamire told Councillor Jackson that she was a member of the Personnel Committee and could ask the question there. She then said Councillor Jackson should ask the questions of the HR department, not her.
At this point, Councillor Hughes asserted that the ice-cream vans had been in use, staffed by existing employees of the Council and had been in operation at both Regent Park and Williamson Park.
Councillor Hamilton-Cox asked a question of Councillor Whitehead:
As things stand, will the Ridge Community Centre be funded from either the general fund or housing revenue accounts in 2019/20?
Councillor Whitehead replied:
In terms of base budget projections for 2019/20, the Housing Revenue Account currently has provision for £29,700 regarding the Ridge Community Centre. It is worth remembering that this projection will be subject to consideration of any specific budget proposals from the upcoming budget process for 2019/20 where Members will decide on final budget provisions. It is also worth noting the planned Overview and Scrutiny Committee review of the commissioning framework, which may also have an impact.
Councillor Hamilton-Cox asked Councillor Clifford:
Can the portfolio holder please detail the progress made since budget council on realising the installation of solar PV arrays on council-owned land at Middleton and Salt Ayre landfill site?
Councillor Clifford replied:
Progress on the feasibility has been good .The services of APSE energy have been engaged to provide expert advice.
Due to the reduction in subsidies the economics of big solar projects stack up when there is a ready and direct use for the electricity, as opposed to simply putting it back in the grid. It is expected that reductions in costs of panels and inverters will reduce further to make the equation more favourable in the next year or two. Even so, having a private wire from the solar farm generates the best financial return. Ensuring a longer term arrangement for direct use takes some planning.
It is important that the Council moves forward on this, so besides solar farms, APSE were also asked to come up with an option that could quickly be delivered and would immediately stack up financially.
The potentially immediate plan is:
Increase the existing roof mounted solar array at Salt Ayre Leisure Centre from 50kw to at least 300kw. To be used directly in the building and reduce energy bills. This has been costed and the wider business case will be reported to Council in the autumn. If Council prioritised funding for this, detailed planning and design could begin in this financial year, which I hope will happen, followed by construction. In addition to the roof mounted array the business case for up to 600kw of car port mounted panels will be presented as well as further 200kw of ground mounted solar panels.
The building of solar farms is still being worked on as well. The key issues will be planning consent, grid connection and making the business case stack up by the sale of power. The 2 options being developed presently, but not exclusively, are:
The funding of the solar farm will need to be prioritised/programmed against all the other ambitions. The report on the Leisure Centre array will provide more detailed information and seek Council’s direction.
Councillor Hamilton-Cox said this was brilliant news. As his supplementary question he asked whether Councillor Clifford was aware of local community energy organisation “MORE Renewables” who could provide assistance with the projects.
Councillor Clifford replied that he was and that he would be willing to work with whoever could get the job done.