Agenda and minutes

(Council Tax), Council - Thursday 27 February 2020 7.30 pm

Venue: Council Chamber, Harrow Civic Centre, Station Road, Harrow, HA1 2XY. View directions

Contact: Alison Atherton, Senior Professional - Democratic Services  Tel: 020 8424 1266 E-mail:  alison.atherton@harrow.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

128.

MINUTE SILENCE

Minutes:

Members of Council stood and observed a minute silence for former Councillor John Goodwin who had recently passed away.

129.

COUNCIL MINUTES pdf icon PDF 18 KB

That the minutes of the meeting held on 16 January 2020 be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 16 January 2020 be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

130.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

To receive declarations of disclosable pecuniary or non pecuniary interests, arising from business to be transacted at this meeting, from all Members of the Council.

Minutes:

Councillor Susan Hall declared a non-pecuniary interest in that she was a Greater London Assembly (GLA) Member.

 

Councillor Paul Osborn declared an interest in that he was the Chair of a precepting authority, Lee Valley Regional Park.  He would remain in the Chamber whilst the matter was considered and voted upon but would leave if the interest became pecuniary.

 

Item 7 – Borough Plan 2020-2030 including the Corporate Plan

During the course of the meeting, Councillor Jean Lammiman declared a non-pecuniary interest due to her association with HAD.

 

Item 14 – Motions

Councillor Chris Mote declared a non-pecuniary interest in that he was on the waiting list for a transplant.

 

Councillor Janet Mote declared a non-pecuniary interest in that her husband was on the waiting list for a transplant.

 

Item 12 – Non-Executive Fees and Charges 2020/21

During the course of the meeting, Councillor Susan Hall declared an interest in that her business required a Special Treatments Licence.  She left the Chamber whilst this matter was considered and voted upon.

 

During the course of the meeting, Councillor Ajay Maru declared an interest in that his business required a Special Treatments Licence.  He left the Chamber whilst this matter was considered and voted upon.

131.

PROCEDURAL MOTIONS pdf icon PDF 18 KB

To receive and consider any procedural motions by Members of the Council in relation to the conduct of this Meeting.  Notice of such procedural motions, received after the issuing of this Summons, will be tabled.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Mayor drew Council’s attention to the Procedural Motion, tabled Procedural Motion and amendments to the Borough Plan 2020-2030 including the Corporate Plan and Revenue Budget 2020/21-2022/23 and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2020/21-2022/23.

 

The procedural motion under Rule 26.1 was agreed so that, in line with previous years and for the purposes of the debate on the Revenue Budget 2020/21 – 2022/23 and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2020/21 – 2022/23, the rules of debate be varied, as set out on the tabled Summons, and that the procedure therein also be applied to the reports on the Borough Plan 2020?2030 including the Corporate Plan, the Annual Treasury Management Strategy Statement including Prudential Indicators, Minimum Revenue Provision Policy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy for 2020/21 and Capital Strategy for 2020/21, the Capital Programme 2020/21 to 2022/23, the Housing Revenue Account Budget 2020/21 and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2021 to 2022-23, in so far as the recommendations be debated jointly.

 

RESOLVED:  That

 

(1)          the partial suspension under Rule 26.1, regarding the moving of recommendations from Cabinet and the rules of debate (including extended time for opening speeches by the political groups), as set out in the Summons be approved for the purposes of the debate upon

 

Item 7

-        Borough Plan 2020-2030 including the Corporate Plan

 

Item 8

-        Revenue Budget 2020/21 – 2022/23 and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2020/21 to 2022/21 – 2022/23

 

Item 9

-        Treasury Management Strategy Statement including Prudential Indicators, Minimum Revenue Provision Policy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy for 2019/20 and Capital Strategy

 

Item 10

-        Capital Programme 2019/20 to 2021/22

 

Item 11

-        Housing Revenue Account Budget 2019/20 and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2020?21 to 2021-22.

 

(2)          the tabled Procedural Motion be agreed.

132.

PETITIONS

To receive any petitions to be presented:

 

(i)                 by a representative of the petitioners;

(ii)               by a Councillor, on behalf of petitioners;

(iii)             by the Mayor, on behalf of petitioners.

Minutes:

In accordance with Rule 10, the following petition was presented:

 

(i)            Petition submitted by Councillor Marilyn Ashton on behalf of the residents of Dennis Lane, Stanmore and the surrounding areas, containing 80 signatures concerning traffic issues.

 

[The petition stood referred to the Portfolio Holder for Environment].

133.

PUBLIC QUESTIONS

A period of up to 15 minutes is allowed for members of the public to ask questions of members of the Executive, Portfolio Holders and Chairs of Committees, of which notice has been received no later than 3.00 pm two clear working days prior to the day of this Meeting.  Any such questions received will be tabled.

Minutes:

To note that no public questions had been received.

134.

ANNOUNCEMENT - COVID-19 (CORONAVIRUS)

Minutes:

Having agreed the Procedural Motion set out in the Tabled Documents, Council received an announcement from Councillor Adam Swersky in relation to Covid -19 and the position in Harrow.

135.

LEADER AND PORTFOLIO HOLDERS' ANNOUNCEMENTS

To receive a presentation from the Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holders on business since the last ordinary meeting, followed by a question and answer session.  The item is allotted 20 minutes.

Minutes:

(i)            The Leader of the Council, Councillor Graham Henson, introduced the item highlighting the achievements, challenges and proposals since the last ordinary meeting.

 

(ii)          Other Members spoke and/or asked questions of the Leader of the Council which were duly responded to.

136.

BOROUGH PLAN 2020-2030 INCLUDING THE CORPORATE PLAN pdf icon PDF 47 KB

Recommendation V:

Cabinet

 

(13 February 2020)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

A tabled amendment was received and duly seconded.  Upon being put to the vote it was lost.

 

RESOLVED:  That

 

(1)          the draft Borough Plan 2020-2030 be approved for consultation;

 

(2)          the draft priorities for the Council for the 2020/21 year be adopted and that all service planning activity be driven by the new set of Corporate Priorities;

 

(3)          responsibility be delegated back to Cabinet for approving the Corporate Plan Delivery Plan by June 2020, which would set out the Council’s shorter term contribution and performance measures for delivery of the Corporate Plan (Borough Plan).

137.

REVENUE BUDGET 2020/21 - 2022/23 AND MEDIUM TERM FINANCIAL STRATEGY (MTFS) 2020/21 - 2022/23 pdf icon PDF 49 KB

Recommendation II:

Cabinet

 

(13 February 2020)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

(i)            Further to item 8 on the Summons, the Council received Recommendation II of the Cabinet meeting held on 13 February 2020.

 

(ii)          The Mayor requested that Members, in making the decision on this item, had regard to the Cabinet report of 13 February 2020, the sections on equalities, the equality impact assessments and the results of the budget consultation.

 

A tabled amendment was received and duly seconded.  Upon the meeting moving to a vote on the tabled amendment, ten Members rose and requested a Roll Call vote.  The voting on the amendment was as follows:

 

Roll Call Vote (In Favour of the amendment):  Councillors Almond, Ashton, Bath, Baxter, Benjamin, Chauhan, Greek, Halai, Hall, Hinkley, Hirani, Jogia, Lammiman, Dr Lewinson, Mithani, Moshenson, Chris Mote, Janet Mote, Osborn, Mina Parmar, Anjana Patel, Pritesh Patel, Rabadia, Seymour and Stevenson.

 

Roll Call Vote (against the amendment):  Councillors Ali, Dan Anderson, Jeff Anderson, Sue Anderson, Assad, Borio, Brown, Butterworth, Dattani, Ferry, Fitzpatrick, Gilligan, Graham Henson, Maxine Henson, Jamie, Kairul Kareema Marikar, Maru, Miles, Murphy-Strachan, O’Dell, Varsha Parmar, Primesh Patel, Perry, Proctor, Ramchandani, Robson, Rekha Shah, Sachin Shah, Smith, Krishna Suresh, Sasikala Suresh, Swersky and Dr Weiss.

 

Abstain:  His Worshipful the Mayor Councillor Nitin Parekh.

 

Upon the meeting moving to the vote upon the substantive Recommendation it was carried.  The voting was as follows:

 

In Favour of the Motion:  Councillors Ali, Dan Anderson, Jeff Anderson, Sue Anderson, Assad, Borio, Brown, Butterworth, Dattani, Ferry, Fitzpatrick, Gilligan, Graham Henson, Maxine Henson, Jamie, Kairul Kareema Marikar, Maru, Miles, Murphy-Strachan, O’Dell, Varsha Parmar, Primesh Patel, Perry, Proctor, Ramchandani, Robson, Rekha Shah, Sachin Shah, Smith, Krishna Suresh, Sasikala Suresh, Swersky and Dr Weiss.

 

Against the Motion:  Councillors Almond, Ashton, Bath, Baxter, Benjamin, Chauhan, Greek, Halai, Hall, Hinkley, Hirani, Jogia, Lammiman, Dr Lewinson, Mithani, Moshenson, Chris Mote, Janet Mote, Osborn, Mina Parmar, Anjana Patel, Pritesh Patel, Rabadia, Seymour and Stevenson.

 

Abstain:  His Worshipful the Mayor Councillor Nitin Parekh.

 

RESOLVED:  That

 

(1)          the 2020/21 budget be approved, being mindful of the results of the various consultations and equality impact assessments, to enable the Council Tax for 2020/21 to be set (Appendix 2 of the report refers);

 

(2)          the Model Council Tax Resolution 2020/21 be approved, as set out at Appendix 11 to the report;

 

(3)          in accordance with Section 38(2) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, the Chief Executive be instructed to place a notice in the local press of the amounts set under recommendation 2 above within a period of 21 days following the Council’s decision;

 

(4)          the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) be approved (Appendix 2);

 

(5)          the balanced budget position for 2020/21 and the budget gaps of £11.414m and £11.178m for 2021/22 and 2022/23 respectively (table 6 of the report refers) be noted;

 

(6)          the intention to increase Council Tax by 1.99% in 2020/21 (paragraph 1.23 of the report refers) be noted;

 

(7)          the proposal to increase Council Tax by a further 2.0% in 2020/21 in respect of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 137.

138.

ANNUAL TREASURY MANAGEMENT STRATEGY STATEMENT INCLUDING PRUDENTIAL INDICATORS, MINIMUM REVENUE PROVISION POLICY STATEMENT AND ANNUAL INVESTMENT STRATEGY FOR 2020/21 AND CAPITAL STRATEGY FOR 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 48 KB

Recommendation IV:

Cabinet

 

(13 February 2020)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED:  That

 

(1)          the Treasury Management Strategy Statement for 2020/21 be approved including:

 

·           Prudential Indicators for 2020/21

·           Minimum Revenue Provision Policy Statement for 2020/21

·           Annual Investment Strategy for 2020/21

 

(2)          the draft Capital Strategy 2020/21, set out in Appendix H to the report, be approved.

139.

CAPITAL PROGRAMME 2020/21 TO 2022/23 pdf icon PDF 47 KB

Recommendation I:

Cabinet

 

(13 February 2020)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED:  That the capital programme, as detailed within Appendix 1 to the report, be approved.

140.

HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT (HRA) BUDGET 2020/21 AND MEDIUM TERM FINANCIAL STRATEGY 2021 TO 2022/23 pdf icon PDF 47 KB

Recommendation III:

Cabinet

 

(13 February 2020)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED:  That

 

(1)          the Housing Revenue Account Budget for 2020-21 be approved;

 

(2)          the Housing Revenue Account Capital Programme, as set out at Appendix 7 to the report, be approved.

141.

NON-EXECUTIVE FEES AND CHARGES 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 19 KB

Report of the Chief Executive

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED:  That

 

(1)          the fees and charges listed in Appendix 1 to the report for the financial year 2020-21 be approved and set;

 

(2)          the Director of Finance be authorised to amend fees and charges in year and agree new fees and charges, following consultation with relevant Corporate Directors and Portfolio Holders.

142.

QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE

A period of up to 15 minutes is allowed for asking written questions by Members of Council of a member of the Executive or the Chair of any Committee:-

 

(i)                 of which notice has been received at least two clear working days prior to the day of this Meeting; or

 

(ii)               which relate to urgent matters, and the consent of the Executive Member or Committee Chair to whom the question is to be put has been obtained and the content has been advised to the Director of Legal and Governance Services by 12 noon on the day of the Council Meeting.

 

Any such questions received will be tabled.

Minutes:

To note that no Councillor questions had been received.

143.

MOTIONS

The following Motions have been notified in accordance with the requirements of Council Procedure Rule 15, to be moved and seconded by the Members indicated:

 

(1)          Organ Donation Motion

 

 

To be moved by Councillor Ameet Jogia and seconded by Councillor Sachin Shah:

 

 

“Harrow Borough Council supports the change in law on organ donation to an opt out system in England from spring 2020. We believe that this will help save lives by increasing organ donation; particularly among BAME communities who, on average, have to wait longer to get a transplant. We request the Chief Executive to put together a plan to provide appropriate information about the change in law to all Harrow residents by working closely with the National BAME Transplant Alliance 

(NBTA) and NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT).”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Minutes:

(i)            Organ Donation Motion

 

Motion in the names of Councillor Ameet Jogia and Councillor Sachin Shah:

 

 

“Harrow Borough Council supports the change in law on organ donation to an opt out system in England from spring 2020.  We believe that this will help save lives by increasing organ donation; particularly among BAME communities who, on average, have to wait longer to get a transplant.  We request the Chief Executive to put together a plan to provide appropriate information about the change in law to all Harrow residents by working closely with the National BAME Transplant Alliance ( NBTA) and NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT).”

 

RESOLVED:  That the Motion set out at (i) above be adopted.