Agenda and minutes
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Apologies Additional documents: Minutes: Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Joe Harris, Rachel Coxcoon, Ray Theodoulou and Steve Trotter. |
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Declarations of Interest To receive any declarations of interest from Members and Officers, relating to items to be considered at the meeting. Additional documents: Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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To confirm the minutes of the meeting of Council held on 19 January 2022. Additional documents: Minutes: The minutes of the meeting held on 19 January 2022 were agreed as a true record subject to the following amendment:
In relation to the Armed Forces Motion, the reference made by Councillor Julia Judd to the Cadet Force should be included, specifically that there were 21 Cadet Forces throughout Gloucestershire who could provide young people with a variety of activities.
Record of Voting – for: 28, against: 0, abstentions: 2, absent: 4 . |
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Announcements from the Chair, Leader or Chief Executive (if any) Additional documents: Minutes: The Chair of the Council, Councillor Dilys Neill welcomed Members, Officers and those public present and watching the meeting online to the meeting.
The Chair wished to place on record her thanks to all Officers and the Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance for all of the work undertaken in preparing the proposed budget.
The Chair welcomed Councillor Tom Stowe who was elected to the Council following the Campden & Vale ward by-election.
The Chair requested that the top table introduced themselves for the benefit of viewers at home.
The Chair drew Members’ attention to the budget setting process which would be utilised at the meeting.
The Chair congratulated Her Majesty the Queen on her Platinum Jubilee. A round of applause was given by all Officers and Members in attendance.
In the absence of the Leader of the Council, the Deputy Leader of the Council did not have any announcements to make.
The Chief Executive congratulated Councillor Tom Stowe on his appointment to the Council.
Members were encouraged to use the Council switchboard number in the event that the ongoing severe weather would result in emergency planning procedures having to be utilised.
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Public Questions To deal with questions from the public within the open forum question and answer session of fifteen minutes in total. Questions from each member of the public should be no longer than two minutes each and relate to issues under the Council’s or Committee’s remit. Any member of the public wishing to ask a public question is requested to contact Democratic Services by no later than 5.00pm the working day before the meeting. Additional documents: Minutes: Mr Gibson attended the meeting to pose two questions which had not been submitted in advance of the meeting.
The first question related to comments made by the Leader of the Council, Councillor Joe Harris in relation to a Member of Parliament.
The Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Mike Evemy responded and informed Mr Gibson that the previous Secretary of State had said that local Councils would be given ‘whatever it takes’ in relation to ensuring that the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic could be mitigated as much as possible at a local level. Although the Government had provided the Council with funding throughout the pandemic, the Council was in deficit due to the Government grants not covering the full costs covered by the Council in relation to the pandemic.
The Monitoring Officer addressed the meeting and informed Members around the processes and procedures associated with speaking in the Chamber. A complaints process in relation to the conduct of Members was available for members of the public to utilise if they felt the Members Code of Conduct had been breached in any way.
Mr Gibson’s second question related to a statement made by Councillor Joe Harris in March 2015 in relation to the reduction of car parking charges should the Liberal Democrats achieve overall control of the Council. Council noted that the Liberal Democrats did not win control of the Council until the 2019 elections.
Cabinet had taken decisions at the February 2022 meeting in relation to future car parking fees and charges. Members noted that the issue of car parking would also be considered as part of the budget discussions held at this meeting.
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Member Questions The following questions have been submitted:
Question from Councillor Richard Morgan to Councillor Juliet Layton, Cabinet Member for Development Management and Licensing:
Cllr Layton, I have been contacted by Didmarton Parish Council and several concerned local Didmarton residents regarding a large semi-permanent "Costa Coffee Cup" advertisement situated outside of the BP petrol station on the A433 (just north of Didmarton).
Whilst nobody is objecting to this type of advertising, this specific advert is situated on the edge of the road and restricts the view of oncoming traffic when vehicles are exiting the petrol station (please see the attached photos). A number of residents have asked me if this advertising could be moved back 1 or 2 meters so it is less of a hazard.
The Costa Coffee Cup is a semi-permanent structure. It is movable but it has a solid concrete base. In theory it should be easy to relocate the advertisement to a less dangerous position. Local residents have allegedly spoken to the owner of the petrol station and asked for the advertising to be moved, but no action has been taken.
As a result, Didmarton Parish Council have contacted GCC Highways, but GCC HIghways advised that this is a CDC planning issue and should be dealt with by Cotswold District Council. On that basis, could you please clarify the following questions:
1 - Is this type of semi-permanent advertising situated outside of petrol stations a CDC planning issue or a GCC Highways issue?
2 - If the answer to question one is that this is a CDC planning issue - does this advertisement have the correct planning permissions in place?
3 - What can CDC do to investigate the claims that this advertisement is a hazard and restricts the view of oncoming traffic when exiting the petrol station.
4 - Can you ensure that CDC will take the appropriate action regarding this hazard.
Question from Councillor Stephen Andrews to Councillor Rachel Coxcoon, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Forward Planning:
On 12th January 2022 the Government completed its consultation on the phasing out of the installation of fossil fuel heating in homes that are off the gas grid in England. For those homes that are off the gas grid there is no strategic hydrogen option whilst many of those homes are heritage homes that do not lend themselves to the levels of insulation required of low temperature air source heat pumps. Other issues, such as the need for the local electricity distribution networks to be upgraded to accommodate an electricity-based solution may also make an electricity-based solution wholly impactable in the short to medium term.
For the Cotswolds, this was an important consultation given the historic nature of many homes in our District and the difficulty that many of those homeowners have found in finding a practical and economically sensible solution to the problem of moving away from a fossil fuel based domestic heating system.
Given the importance of this issue to this Council and to ... view the full agenda text for item 64. Additional documents: Minutes: A record of Member questions and answers are available in the schedule attached to these minutes.
Questions were asked by:
Councillor Richard Morgan to Councillor Juliet Layton, Cabinet Member for Development Management and Licensing.
Councillor Stephen Andrews to Councillor Rachel Coxcoon, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Forward Planning.
Councillor Stephen Hirst to Councillor Joe Harris, Leader of the Council.
Councillor Stephen Hirst Question to Councillor Lisa Spivey, Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness.
Question from Councillor Robin Hughes to Councillor Joe Harris, Leader of the Council. |
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Medium Term Financial Strategy and Budget 2022/23 Purpose The purpose of this report is to present the budget for 2022/23.
Recommendation(s) That Council considers the budget proposals from Cabinet and approves:
a) the Budget proposals 2022/23,
b) the Medium Term Financial Strategy,
c) the Pay Policy Statement,
d) the Capital Strategy
e) the Investment Strategy
f) the Treasury Management Strategy;
g) the opportunity to issue a £1 million Community Municipal Investment, with approve of the final terms being delegated to the Deputy Chief Executive in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance,
h) the Local Council Tax Support Scheme for 2022/23 as detailed at 2.61 to 2.63,
i) Subject to the Council approval of recommendation (h), Council delegates authority to the Deputy Chief Executive to approve the Local Council Tax Support Scheme annual uprating of allowances and non-dependant deductions in line with national regulations. Additional documents:
Minutes: The Deputy Leader of the Council and the Cabinet Member for Finance proposed the Medium Term Financial Strategy and Budget 2022/23.
Councillor Evemy commented that it was an honour to propose the third annual budget, which continued the work the administration had begun to rebuild the Council’s finance and invest in the Cotswolds.
Councillor Evemy highlighted Government funding cuts, which over the previous decade had resulted in a £2.4 million real terms funding cut to the Council.
Members noted that it was likely that a further £228,000 Government funding reduction would occur for the 2023/24 year.
Initial analysis of the Fairer Funding Review (due to be implemented in 2023/24) had indicated that Cotswold District Council could be one of the worst affected Councils nationally.
The Council noted that continued innovation was key, particularly in relation to how the Council could generate its own funding in future years.
Additional funding had been allocated to improvements in recycling, increased car parking provision and in the webcasting technology being used to improve the transparency around Council decisions.
Members noted that a key aim of this budget was to ensure the delivery of efficient services.
Council noted the need to borrow and invest in the future to ensure the Council continued to deliver high quality services to its residents.
There would be continued investment in solar and other green schemes. Council noted that the public would have an opportunity during the spring of 2022 to invest in some of the Councils green initiatives to achieve a return on their investment which would also serve to improve the environment.
Members noted that the local Council Tax support scheme would continue.
The Council would continue to seek appropriate external funding from Government and other funders so that investment in communities could continue.
Council noted that the proposed budget also sought to ensure that an effective economic recovery took place following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Members noted the support provided by the Council to businesses throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, along with the financial support of those self-isolating.
Members noted the investments made by the administration during the Liberal Democrat tenure as the majority group.
Council noted the importance and associated difficulties of delivering a balanced budget during a difficult economic period.
Councillor Evemy highlighted examples of investment in the health and wellbeing of residents and of schemes such as the Clean and Green Programme.
Members noted that the Local Plan Review was green to the core.
Councillor Evemy wished to place on record his thanks to all Officers who had assisted with the budget and to all staff working across the Council in delivering services to local people.
The Council remained committed to the provision of affordable homes.
Members noted that the largest ever budget consultation had taken place in advance of this proposed budget being formulated. Thanks were expressed to all those who had participated in the consultation.
Council noted the forthcoming budget pressures in relation to inflation increases and the potential decrease in the usage of ... view the full minutes text for item 65. |
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Council Tax 2022/23 Purpose To set the Council Tax for 2022/23.
Recommendation(s) It is recommended that:
1) for the purposes of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 Section 35(2), there are no special expenses for the District Council in 2022/23;
2) it be noted that, using her delegated authority, the Deputy Chief Executive calculated the Council Tax Base for 2022/23:
(a) for the whole Council area as 42,192.93 [item T in the formula in Section 31B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as amended (the “Act”)]; and
(b) for dwellings in those parts of its area to which a Parish Precept relates as in the attached Schedule 1.
3) the Council Tax requirement for the Council’s own purposes for 2022/23 (excluding Parish Precepts) is £143.93.
4) the following amounts be calculated for the year 2022/23 in accordance with Sections 31 to 36 of the Act:
(a) £46,754,944 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A (2) of the Act, taking into account all precepts issued to it by Parish Councils and any additional special expenses.
(b) £36,821,092 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A (3) of the Act.
(c) £9,933,852 being the amount by which the aggregate at 4(a) above exceeds the aggregate at 4(b) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 31A(4) of the Act, as its Council Tax requirement for the year (Item R in the formula in Section 31B of the Act).
(d) £235.44 being the amount at 4(c) above (Item R), all divided by Item T (1(a) above), calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 31B of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year (including Parish Precepts and Special Expenses);
(e) £3,861,014 being the aggregate amount of all special items (Parish Precepts and Special Expenses) referred to in Section 34(1) of the Act as per the attached Schedule 2.
(f) £143.93 being the amount at 4(d) above less the result given by dividing the amount at 4(e) above by Item T(2(a) above), calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34(2) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which no Parish Precept or special item relates;
(g) the amounts shown in Schedule 2 being the amounts given by adding to the amount at 4(f) above, the amounts of the special item or items relating to dwellings in those parts of the Council’s area shown in Schedule 2 divided in each case by the amount at 2(b) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34(3) of the Act, as the basic amounts of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which one or more special items relate;
(h) the amounts shown in Schedule 3 being the amounts given by multiplying the amounts at ... view the full agenda text for item 66. Additional documents: Minutes: Councillor Evemy proposed the recommendations for setting the Council Tax for the next municipal year, 2022/23, which included precepts for Gloucestershire County Council, Town and Parish Councils and the Police and Crime Commissioner.
Councillor Dale seconded the proposals which he considered were clear and prudent.
The Deputy Chief Executive confirmed that the figures contained within the report remained unchanged.
RESOLVED that:
1) for the purposes of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 Section 35(2), there are no special expenses for the District Council in 2022/23;
2) it be noted that, using her delegated authority, the Deputy Chief Executive calculated the Council Tax Base for 2022/23:
(a) for the whole Council area as 42,192.93 [item T in the formula in Section 31B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as amended (the “Act”)]; and
(b) for dwellings in those parts of its area to which a Parish Precept relates as in the attached Schedule 1.
3) the Council Tax requirement for the Council’s own purposes for 2022/23 (excluding Parish Precepts) is £143.93.
4) the following amounts be calculated for the year 2022/23 in accordance with Sections 31 to 36 of the Act:
(a) £46,754,944 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A (2) of the Act, taking into account all precepts issued to it by Parish Councils and any additional special expenses.
(b) £36,821,092 being the aggregate of the amounts which the
Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A (3) of the Act.
(c) £9,933,852 being the amount by which the aggregate at 4(a) above exceeds the aggregate at 4(b) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 31A(4) of the Act, as its Council Tax requirement for the year (Item R in the formula in Section 31B of the Act).
(d) £235.44 being the amount at 4(c) above (Item R), all divided by Item T (1(a) above), calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 31B of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year (including Parish Precepts and Special Expenses);
(e) £3,861,014 being the aggregate amount of all special items (Parish Precepts and Special Expenses) referred to in Section 34(1) of the Act as per the attached Schedule 2.
(f) £143.93 being the amount at 4(d) above less the result given by dividing the amount at 4(e) above by Item T(2(a) above), calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34(2) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which no Parish Precept or special item relates;
(g) the amounts shown in Schedule 2 being the amounts given by adding to the amount at 4(f) above, the amounts of the special item or items relating to dwellings in those parts of the Council’s area shown in Schedule 2 divided in each case by the amount at 2(b) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with ... view the full minutes text for item 66. |
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Community Governance Review Purpose To approve and adopt the Terms of Reference for a Community Governance Review, along with draft proposals.
Recommendation(s) That Council approve and adopt the Terms of Reference and Draft Proposals for consultation for the Community Governance Review. Additional documents:
Minutes: Councillor Mike Evemy introduced the report with Council noting that this exercise had been completed for the first time in nine years.
This item was seeking approval for the consultation to commence.
Councillor Evemy proposed the recommendations as outlined in the report.
This was seconded by Councillor Jenny Forde.
RESOLVED:
That Council approve and adopt the Terms of Reference and Draft Proposals for consultation for the Community Governance Review.
Record of Voting – for: 29, against: 0, abstentions: 0 absent: 5.
The Meeting commenced at 6.00pm and closed 9.45pm. |
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Notice of Motions No Motions had been submitted for consideration at the meeting. Additional documents: Minutes: There were no Motions submitted for consideration at this meeting. |
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Next meeting 16 March 2022 – 2pm Additional documents: Minutes: 16 March 2022 – 2pm |