Skip to main content

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 have been submitted prior to the publication of the agenda:

 

Question 1 from Councillor Tom Stowe to Councillor Mike McKeown, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability

 

In December last year, your predecessor, Cllr Coxcoon, stated her position that tourists travelling to the Cotswolds via air travel should be deterred. Please could you confirm the Cabinet's current position on promoting the Cotswolds as a place to visit for air travellers?

 

Question 2 from Councillor Julia Judd to Councillor Juliet Layton, Cabinet Member for Planning and Regulatory Services

 

CDC recently issued a Press Release about the planning department including new information about recruitment. How many vacancies are there currently and will that mean that the planning department will be running at full capacity for the foreseeable future?

 

Question 3 from Councillor Tom Stowe to Councillor Paul Hodgkinson, Cabinet Member for Health, Leisure and Culture

 

Please could you confirm the total costs to CDC of hosting the upcoming Mr Motivator event on Sunday 1st October?

 

 

 

 

 

Question 4 from Councillor Len Wilkins to Councillor Joe Harris, Leader of the Council

 

There have been some recent high profile cyber security attacks on several private and public organisations. This threat is likely to continue to grow over the coming years. To counter this growing threat it’s vital that organisations have a policy of continuous improvement in cyber security practice to support the security, resilience and integrity of digital services, data and systems. Does the council have a formal published cyber-security policy?”

 

Question 5 from Councillor Gina Blomefield to Councillor Paul Hodgkinson, Cabinet Member for Health, Leisure and Culture

 

A local resident from the farming community raised concerns with me regarding the future of the very important collection of old agricultural equipment currently displayed at the Old Prison, Northleach.  I followed this up and subsequently had a meeting with Emma Stuart of the Corinium Museum together with Dr Alison Grierson-Brooks at the Old Prison and also met three of the volunteers who work on the conservation of the objects.  As I understand it the collection is owned by the Corinium Museum which in turned is owned by Cotswold District Council.  Many of the pieces in the collection are ‘accessional’ and were accepted by the Government in lieu of death duties so cannot be sold. Friends of the Cotswolds bought the Old Prison from CDC in 2012-2013 and agreed to house and maintain the collection there. A review of the display with a condition report was due to have been carried out in July 2022 but was never done.

 

What are the plans for the future of this historic collection of farm equipment which I feel should be given greater care and more publicity so that more people now as well as future generations can learn about farming methods before the advent of modern machinery and enjoy seeing these fascinating objects?

 

Question 6 from Councillor Gina Blomefield to Councillor Mike Evemy, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance

 

I read the latest Ubico newsletter with interest, particularly regarding the visit to Oak Quarry Household Recycling Centre in Coleford by students from the Heart of the Forest Special School.  I am frequently asked questions regarding recycling by residents – where it goes, how it is organised and the proceeds from it.  Could a visit to this recycling facility for all interested District Councillors be arranged so that we could see for ourselves how this important service is managed by Ubico

 

Question 7 from Councillor David Fowles to Councillor Mike Evemy, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance

 

Given the national concern over public buildings constructed using RAAC concrete, could the leader confirm that no buildings owned by CDC were constructed using this material.

 

If CDC does not have this information, will the leader confirm what plans he has to reassure members of the public that our buildings are safe?

 

Question 8 from Councillor Daryl Corps to Councillor Joe Harris, Leader of the Council

 

Historically all Council meetings were held during the working day. When the Liberal Democrats took power in 2019, the times of meetings were reviewed and changed so that a number of meetings now take place in the evenings.

 

This change was designed to allow elected members who worked to attend meetings as well as giving members of the public more flexibility.

 

Since 2019 we have been through Covid, introduced agile working for staff and held local elections resulting in a large number of newly elected members who in many instances have to attend Parish Council meetings and other meetings in the evenings.

 

We have experienced many instances where staff are not available in the evenings and members have meeting clashes and conflict.

 

I believe the schedule of meeting times doesn’t work and needs to be changed as a priority.

 

Please could the portfolio holder undertake a review?

 

 

Question 9 from Councillor Nikki Ind to Councillor Mike McKeown, Cabinet Member Climate Change and Sustainability

 

Further to the recent announcement that the first funding for rural electric buses via the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas programme is being made available to all local authorities in England outside of London, can you please confirm that Cotswold District Council is working with Gloucestershire County Council to apply for this funding to provide rural transport, which is lacking in the District and particularly in my area in the south – which missed out on the Robin ‘on demand’ trial currently being run in the north of the District.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Minutes:

The Chair introduced this item by highlighting that the written responses to Member Questions were on desks. These are attached at Annex A

 

The supplementary questions can be found attached at Annex B.

 

 

 

Supporting documents:

 

Related Pages