Agenda item

(1)          Our children and young people should be getting the best - not just getting by Motion

To be moved by Councillor Christine Robson and seconded by Councillor Kiran Ramchandani:

“This Council believes:

·         Good mental health is just as important as physical health, as it provides you with the resilience to cope with set backs and difficult emotions.  The consequences of not tackling problems early can be lifelong;

·         Today, we know that at least one in 10 children and young people are affected by mental health problems.  Historically the funding CAMH services have been chronically underfunded.  Despite this, lack of funding is leaving service thresholds so high that around 75 per cent of young people experiencing a mental health problem are unable to access any treatment;

This Council supports:

·         Children and adolescents should be getting the best care, with mental health and wellbeing being prioritised and appropriately funded;

·         Early intervention is the key to better mental health outcomes, but drastic cuts in Government funding is crippling LA early interventions both in social care where support can prevent mental health deteriorating for children and young people and also as informed commissioners of more specialist CAMHS early intervention services;

·         The lack of funds in the health service resulted in Commissioners setting the entrance threshold for CAMH services too high, limiting access for many children and young people and making early intervention difficult to achieve;

·         Partner agencies should be able to work together to commission such services . Locally the Council’s Children’s Services have worked with the CCG to commission an early intervention service in schools in Harrow.  However, the Government’s funding for local authorities has been drastically reduced and will continue to be reduced over the coming years;

This Council resolves:

1.    To instruct the Interim Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to write  to the Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health, and to Rt Hon Damian Hinds, Secretary of State for Education, to request the release of the £1.7 billion to ensure adequate and sustainable funding for CAMHS and to address the chronic imbalance in the funding for Mental Health Services for Children and Young People and Adults.

2.    The improvement of standards and make sure funding is spent wisely.  It is critical that Government ensure care pathways and services are quickly accessible and appropriate for all, including those with complex needs.  They must also strengthen governance over how funding is spent, recognising that health and wellbeing boards are best placed to ensure that funding reaches the right services;

3.    The prioritisation of prevention and early intervention, providing funding for independent counselling in every secondary school.  Children and young people’s chances of thriving dramatically increase the earlier we provide help as well as saving money in the longer term.  Cuts to the Early Intervention Grant must be reversed, counselling introduced in all secondary schools and funding spread across all services.”

(2)          RAF Northolt Motion

To be moved by Councillor Graham Henson and seconded by Councillor Primesh Patel:

“This Council notes:

·         That RAF Northolt is the 4^th largest airport in London.

·         That it is becoming increasingly obvious to Harrow residents who live under the flight path of RAF Northolt that the number of flights to and from the airport has significantly increased;

·         The findings of the “Project Ark” report, commissioned by the Ministry of Defence in 2012 to explore ‘a range of options for the future development of RAF Northolt,’ and ‘conversion into a civilian operated airport’;

·         There is a planned £45 million renovation of the airport and no residents in Harrow have been consulted on the proposed improvements or changes;

·         Figures released by Parliament show that in 2017

o   Only 18% of flights through RAF Northolt are military

o   Over 70% of flights were commercial

·         That there are serious environmental impacts on the residents who live under the flight path of RAF Northolt

·         That any increase in flights will have a further detrimental effect on the well-being of Harrow residents who live under the widening flight path.

This Council believes:

·         No further increase in the number of commercial flights to and from RAF Northolt should take place without a thorough and transparent consultation, involving all the residents who live in the proximity of the airport and those who live under the flight path;

This Council resolves:

·         To instruct the Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to write to the Secretary of State for Defence, the Rt Hon Gavin Williamson MP, requesting:

o   That the Ministry of Defence conduct a full consultation with Harrow residents about its plans to spend £45 million on renovating RAF Northolt and any future plans for the use of the airport.

o   That the Ministry of Defence accepts the reduction to 5,000 movements for commercial aircrafts at RAF Northolt in order to improve the environment and reduce noise pollution;

·         To instruct the Interim Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to write to the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, requesting that he makes representations to the Ministry of Defence about the real concerns of Harrow residents who live under the flight path of RAF Northolt.”

(3)          Northwick Park:  Save Our Services Motion

To be moved by Councillor Jeff Anderson and seconded by Councillor Sue Anderson

“This Council believes:

·         Our local NHS in Harrow is under threat from an unfair funding settlement and a deficit that could see staff lose their jobs or services cut.

·         Harrow Clinical Commissioning Group inherited a deficit of £18m from its predecessor Primary Care Trust when the Coalition Government’s reforms were introduced in 2013.  Since then, Harrow’s NHS has received the lowest funding per head in London, and the deficit now stands at £20.1m.

·         In January (the latest figures available), 1 in 4 patients at A&E had to wait more than 4 hours.  The upcoming closure of the Charlie Chaplin children’s ward at Ealing Hospital means that from 30th June, children will not be admitted to A&E at Ealing, and will be diverted to other hospitals including Northwick Park.

This Council supports:

·         Northwick Park Hospital is a life saving service for Harrow residents and we believe that it should be appropriately funded to deal with an ageing and growing population;

This Council resolves:

·         To instruct the Interim Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to demand that the Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, ensures appropriate funding is provided to Northwick Park Hospital and the NHS.”

(4)          Harrow Council Supports the Leader of the Council, Councillor Sachin Shah in signing the Letter “Labour Executive Wrong to Meddle” Motion

To be moved by Councillor Paul Osborn and seconded by Councillor Barry Macleod-Cullinane:

“This Council notes:

·         The letter “Labour Executive Wrong to Meddle” published in the Sunday Times on 28^th January 2018, signed by over 70 Council Leaders across the UK, including the Leader of Harrow Council, Cllr Sachin Shah.

This Council believes that:

·         The Labour National Executive Committee “… have no right or justification to interfere in or influence the legitimate actions of locally elected representatives” meaning Claire Kober was treated disrespectfully.

·         All Individual Council groups, made up of democratically elected Councillors “have the ability, within available resources, party rules, and the law, to determine the most appropriate policies to serve their local communities.”

·         The circumstances in which an issue in Haringey was brought forward and discussed by the NEC was very dissapointing.  “Haringey Labour Group was not informed that such a discussion would take place, no advance notice was given, and no papers were produced, meaning the NEC discussion took place based on opinion and speculation rather than facts.”

This Council resolves to:

·         Support the Leader, Councillor Sachin Shah in signing the letter condemning the actions of the Labour National Executive committee as “.....an affront to the basic principles of democracy”.

(5)          Constitutional Amendment to Part 4D Executive Procedure Rules

To be moved by Councillor Paul Osborn and seconded by Councillor Barry Macleod-Cullinane:

“This Council recommends the following amendment to 5.3 in Part 4D Executive Procedure Rules in the Harrow Council Constitution.

5.    The Council’s Allocation of Responsibilities and Executive Functions Motion

5.3       The Leader shall appoint one Non-Executive Member of  Cabinet from the Voluntary Sector and appoint one member of the Harrow Youth Parliament in an advisory and consultative capacity. These appointees may speak but not vote on items before Cabinet in private and public meetings and have commensurate access to documents as full Cabinet Members except for draft Cabinet reports which will be restricted to Portfolio Holders.”

(i)            “Our children and young people should be getting the best - not just getting by” Motion

“This Council believes:

·         Good mental health is just as important as physical health, as it provides you with the resilience to cope with set backs and difficult emotions.  The consequences of not tackling problems early can be lifelong;

·         Today, we know that at least one in 10 children and young people are affected by mental health problems.  Historically the funding CAMH services have been chronically underfunded.  Despite this, lack of funding is leaving service thresholds so high that around 75 per cent of young people experiencing a mental health problem are unable to access any treatment;

This Council supports:

·         Children and adolescents should be getting the best care, with mental health and wellbeing being prioritised and appropriately funded;

·         Early intervention is the key to better mental health outcomes, but drastic cuts in Government funding is crippling LA early interventions both in social care where support can prevent mental health deteriorating for children and young people and also as informed commissioners of more specialist CAMHS early intervention services;

·         The lack of funds in the health service resulted in Commissioners setting the entrance threshold for CAMH services too high, limiting access for many children and young people and making early intervention difficult to achieve;

·         Partner agencies should be able to work together to commission such services . Locally the Council’s Children’s Services have worked with the CCG to commission an early intervention service in schools in Harrow.  However, the Government’s funding for local authorities has been drastically reduced and will continue to be reduced over the coming years;

This Council resolves:

1.    To instruct the Interim Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to write  to the Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health, and to Rt Hon Damian Hinds, Secretary of State for Education, to request the release of the £1.7 billion to ensure adequate and sustainable funding for CAMHS and to address the chronic imbalance in the funding for Mental Health Services for Children and Young People and Adults.

2.    The improvement of standards and make sure funding is spent wisely.  It is critical that Government ensure care pathways and services are quickly accessible and appropriate for all, including those with complex needs.  They must also strengthen governance over how funding is spent, recognising that health and wellbeing boards are best placed to ensure that funding reaches the right services;

3.    The prioritisation of prevention and early intervention, providing funding for independent counselling in every secondary school.  Children and young people’s chances of thriving dramatically increase the earlier we provide help as well as saving money in the longer term.  Cuts to the Early Intervention Grant must be reversed, counselling introduced in all secondary schools and funding spread across all services.”

(ii)          Motion in the names of Councillor Graham Henson and Councillor Primesh Patel.

“RAF Northolt Motion

“This Council notes:

·         That RAF Northolt is the 4^th largest airport in London.

·         That it is becoming increasingly obvious to Harrow residents who live under the flight path of RAF Northolt that the number of flights to and from the airport has significantly increased;

·         The findings of the “Project Ark” report, commissioned by the Ministry of Defence in 2012 to explore ‘a range of options for the future development of RAF Northolt,’ and ‘conversion into a civilian operated airport’;

·         There is a planned £45 million renovation of the airport and no residents in Harrow have been consulted on the proposed improvements or changes;

·         Figures released by Parliament show that in 2017

o   Only 18% of flights through RAF Northolt are military

o   Over 70% of flights were commercial

·         That there are serious environmental impacts on the residents who live under the flight path of RAF Northolt

·         That any increase in flights will have a further detrimental effect on the well-being of Harrow residents who live under the widening flight path.

This Council believes:

·         No further increase in the number of commercial flights to and from RAF Northolt should take place without a thorough and transparent consultation, involving all the residents who live in the proximity of the airport and those who live under the flight path;

This Council resolves:

·         To instruct the Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to write to the Secretary of State for Defence, the Rt Hon Gavin Williamson MP, requesting:

o   That the Ministry of Defence conduct a full consultation with Harrow residents about its plans to spend £45 million on renovating RAF Northolt and any future plans for the use of the airport.

o   That the Ministry of Defence accepts the reduction to 5,000 movements for commercial aircrafts at RAF Northolt in order to improve the environment and reduce noise pollution;

·         To instruct the Interim Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to write to the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, requesting that he makes representations to the Ministry of Defence about the real concerns of Harrow residents who live under the flight path of RAF Northolt.”

A tabled amendment was received and upon being put to the vote was lost.

Upon a vote, the substantive Motion was agreed.

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

(iii)         Motion in the names of Councillor Jeff Anderson and Councillor Sue Anderson

“Northwick Park:  Save Our Services” Motion

This Council believes:

·         Our local NHS in Harrow is under threat from an unfair funding settlement and a deficit that could see staff lose their jobs or services cut.

·         Harrow Clinical Commissioning Group inherited a deficit of £18m from its predecessor Primary Care Trust when the Coalition Government’s reforms were introduced in 2013.  Since then, Harrow’s NHS has received the lowest funding per head in London, and the deficit now stands at £20.1m.

·         In January (the latest figures available), 1 in 4 patients at A&E had to wait more than 4 hours.  The upcoming closure of the Charlie Chaplin children’s ward at Ealing Hospital means that from 30th June, children will not be admitted to A&E at Ealing, and will be diverted to other hospitals including Northwick Park.

This Council supports:

·         Northwick Park Hospital is a life saving service for Harrow residents and we believe that it should be appropriately funded to deal with an ageing and growing population;

This Council resolves:

·         To instruct the Interim Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council to demand that the Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, ensures appropriate funding is provided to Northwick Park Hospital and the NHS.”

(iv)         Motion in the names of Councillor Paul Osborn and Councillor Barry Macleod-Cullinane.

“Harrow Council Supports the Leader of the Council, Councillor Sachin Shah in signing the Letter “Labour Executive Wrong to Meddle” Motion

This Council notes:

·         The letter “Labour Executive Wrong to Meddle” published in the Sunday Times on 28^th January 2018, signed by over 70 Council Leaders across the UK, including the Leader of Harrow Council, Cllr Sachin Shah.

This Council believes that:

·         The Labour National Executive Committee “… have no right or justification to interfere in or influence the legitimate actions of locally elected representatives” meaning Claire Kober was treated disrespectfully.

·         All Individual Council groups, made up of democratically elected Councillors “have the ability, within available resources, party rules, and the law, to determine the most appropriate policies to serve their local communities.”

·         The circumstances in which an issue in Haringey was brought forward and discussed by the NEC was very disappointing.  “Haringey Labour Group was not informed that such a discussion would take place, no advance notice was given, and no papers were produced, meaning the NEC discussion took place based on opinion and speculation rather than facts.”

This Council resolves to:

·         Support the Leader, Councillor Sachin Shah in signing the letter condemning the actions of the Labour National Executive committee as “... an affront to the basic principles of democracy”.

Upon a vote, Motion was agreed.

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