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Agenda item

Member Questions

A Member of the Council may ask the Chair, the Leader, a Cabinet Member or the Chair of any Committee a question on any matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties or which affects the Cotswold District. A maximum period of fifteen minutes shall be allowed at any such meeting for Member questions.

 

A Member may only ask a question if:

a)    the question has been delivered in writing or by electronic mail to the Chief Executive no later than 5.00 p.m. on the working day before the day of the meeting; or

b)    the question relates to an urgent matter, they have the consent of the Chair to whom the question is to be put and the content of the question is given to the Chief Executive by 9.30 a.m. on the day of the meeting.

 

An answer may take the form of:

a)    a direct oral answer;

b)    where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or other published work, a reference to that publication; or

c)    where the reply cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer circulated later to the questioner.

 

 

The following questions were submitted in advance of the agenda publication:

 

Question 1 from Councillor Jon Wareing to Councillor Tony Dale, Cabinet Member for Economy and Council Transformation

 

Could the Cabinet Member for Economy and Council Transformation please advise the Council about the outcome of the exploratory work officers were asked to do looking at off-site pay by cash facilities for people who can't or don't wish to pay by card, by phone or by app when using our car parks?

 

Question 2 from Councillor Gina Blomefield to Councillor Mike Evemy, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance

 

We have seen the huge amount of building work being carried out on the Trinity Road premises to repair roof defects, install solar panels, office conversions and other improvements. Is this work on time and on budget?

 

Question 3 from Councillor David Fowles to Councillor Joe Harris

 

Could you confirm the cost of producing the October 2023 “Cotswold News”, including design, print and distribution via Royal Mail?

 

Please also confirm ALL officer time spent in preparing this publication?

 

Question 4 from Councillor Daryl Corps to Councillor Tony Dale, Cabinet Member for Economy and Council Transformation

 

On the 5th November this Council announced that it will be conducting a full study and review of its current car parks, working with local communities and parish councils to understand the current needs in each area. It also announced that it will look at what improvements car parks may need such as EV chargers.

So far, the Town and Parish Councils in my ward are reporting that the community reach out from CDC has been limited to one generic email! How does the portfolio holder intend to engage on such an important and fundamental part of Town and Parish life?

‘Working together’ is not done by a circular email or would anything more be considered too expensive given this councils current budgetary pressures?

 

Question 5 from Councillor Gina Blomefield to Councillor Joe Harris, Leader of the Council

 

Cherwell District Council provides support for people needing to rent in the Private Rental Sector (PRS) who have insufficient savings to provide a deposit, are refugees or involved with the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Primarily they provide a deposit bond in place of a cash deposit, as well as other help for both the potential tenant and landlord, including access to grant funding for property improvements of up to £15,000 (Landlord Home Improvement Grant).

Has CDC considered implementing a similar scheme to help those who are on the waiting list for social and affordable housing find suitable, secure accommodation more quickly?

 

Question 6 from Councillor Len Wilkins to Councillor Mike McKeown, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability

 

At the Audit Committee meeting on 18th October, Internal Audit reported a key finding that climate change operations are not sufficiently embedded in the organisation. In particular, it found that 75% of survey respondents did not have any Climate Change key performance indicators to track operational work being done; 88% of officers were not actively tracking their Carbon Footprint within their service area and only 50% of respondents said they had resources to actively work towards their Climate Change commitments. There are KPIs shown in the last two Overview and Scrutiny minutes, so when will KPI’s appear for Climate Change so we can monitor progress being made in this vital area?

 

Question 7 from Councillor David Fowles to Councillor Paul Hodgkinson, Cabinet Member for Health, Leisure and Culture

 

Since Freedom Leisure won the contract to manage CDC’s leisure and museum services, it is noticeable that the built fabric and level of service has deteriorated. As a season ticket member, I receive regular comments from other users. Could the portfolio holder confirm what plans are in place to monitor customer satisfaction levels?

 

Question 8 from Councillor Chris Twells to Councillor Mike Evemy, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance

 

Members will have noted that the 2023/24 pay award for local government staff in England has now been agreed with the trade unions. Can the Deputy Leader now provide us with a figure for increased councillor allowances, as voted for by Liberal Democrats and Cllr Ind at Annual Council on 24 May?

 

Question 9 from Councillor Chris Twells to Councillor Mike Evemy, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance

 

What will be the total cost to council taxpayers for the by-election in the Lechlade, Kempsford and Fairford South Ward scheduled for Thursday 14 December?

 

Minutes:

Member Questions and supplementary responses can be found within the attached document.

Supporting documents:

 

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