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“This Council
notes:
•
Harrow Council is facing significant financial challenges
to its budget, with the council having to find £75 million so
far to make up for this shortfall.
•
That
in February 2013 Council had agreed a 2 year balanced budget for
2013/14 and 2014/15.
•
In
May 2013 the Public Accounts Committee concluded that government
did not properly understand the overall impact on local services
that resulted from its funding reductions. It said that the
government’s modelling was inadequate and must be improved in
time for the next spending round.
•
The
announcement by Government in the summer that local government
funding will be further reduced - creating a further £60
million gap in Harrow Councils budget - clearly shows that the
Government has not listened.
•
That
Harrow Council consults in accordance with agreed processes
including the Council’s Protocol for Managing Organisational
Change (PMOC).
•
That
to meet the financial challenges the Chief Executive launched a
wide ranging consultation in October 2011 for a Senior Management
Structure with the primary aim to reduce the number of senior
manager from 30 to 20 and a resultant cost saving of circa £1
million.
•
That
an information report was submitted to Cabinet on the
21st October 2011 explaining the rationale behind the
proposals, as the Council moved forward in its journey towards
achieving its Vision and Priorities in a challenging economic
climate.
•
As
part of the open and transparent consultation process,in 2011 meetings had been held with the;
Political Parties, Scrutiny, the Corporate Strategy Board, the
Corporate Leadership Group, the Trade Unions and the
Council’s Partners where a number of positive and
constructive comments were contributed to the
proposals.
•
As
part of the Terms & Conditions agreement there was a basic pay
reduction of 2.5% to Chief Executive and Corporate Director grades
from 1st January 2013.
This Council believes:
•
A
lack of robust and meaningful consultation when making council
decisions is disrespectful to others, and runs contrary to the
CREATE values published in 2008.
•
That
the council must enter into meaningful consultations without
assuming an outcome.
•
To
reach an informed judgment, key decisions must be made in an open
and transparent way and not by submissions to blogs or via press releases.
•
That
rushing key decisions will damage the reputation of the
council.
•
That
the recent proposed changes for the Chief Executive role means more
than a superficial change of title; it brings changes to
organisational relationships and personal
accountability.
•
That
during these uncertain financial times it is important to have
experienced people in the senior roles to deliver objectives,
strategies, policies and programs for Harrow Council, whilst at the
same time providing overall direction and management to the
organisation.
This Council resolves:
•
To
cease any changes to the Chief Executive or Strategic Management of
the Council until after the
Council elections in 2014. By then the financial settlement for the
council and any changes for Local Government responsibilities will
be known, which will allow Council to make informed decisions based
on facts and substantive evidence.”
[Under the provisions of Council Procedure
Rule 14.6, it is considered that the subject matter of this Motion
refers to matters within the powers of the Cabinet and the Motion
therefore stands referred to its next
meeting.]
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