Agenda item

Questioner:

Councillor William Stoodley

Asked of:

Councillor Kamaljit Chana, Portfolio Holder for Business and Enterprise

(Answer provided by Councillor Susan Hall, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Community Safety and Environment)

Question:

In a recent TV documentary on the Iceland chain store it was claimed that the police will not turn up for a shoplifting offence of less than £20.  In the interests of your administration's constant assurances that you are all for supporting small businesses in this borough, would you kindly confirm what our Borough Commander's strategy is with respect to shoplifting in our Borough?

Answer:

As far as I am concerned, if the Police are called for any shoplifting, they will respond.  Clearly, if you know any different then please do let me know and I will make sure that the Borough Commander knows about that. 

We would encourage people to let the Police know if this happens.  Very often shops, if it is for something small, they do not let people know, they do not let the Police know and I wish they did because petty crime is still a crime and we should do everything we can to stop it.  So as far as I am absolutely aware, there is no problem.  The Police should and would come.

Cllr Stoodley:

Thank you Leader.  That is very reassuring to hear that.  At the end of the day, theft is theft, as you say.

Questioner:

Councillor Bill Stephenson

Asked of:

Councillor Paul Osborn, Portfolio Holder for Communications, Performance and Resources

Question:

Would you agree that the constitution of the Council should both ensure that the majority will of its Members is upheld at the same as protecting the rights of minority groups, and with this in mind will you convene a meeting of the Constitutional Review Working Group to consider how this might be done asking it, in particular, to consider the procedures for suspending standing orders, overruling a ruling by the Chair, removing the Chair, by, for example, in each case a two thirds majority.

Answer:

Thank you for that question, Councillor Stephenson.  I am always pleased to talk about the Constitution, as you know.

However, I am also very keen that we follow it and this actually is not a question that comes under the remit of Cabinet, it comes under Council.  However, I would still like to answer it, so if I may, can we suspend Standing Order 17.1.1 in order to enable me to answer it?  

[Cabinet duly agreed to suspend the Rule.]

I am happy to and indeed have promised at the Council meeting, to convene a meeting of the Constitution Review Working Group to consider issues such as suspending Standing Orders.  I am though very concerned about what I think in that question is an attack on the Mayor and I certainly would not want to be party to that.

Supplemental Question:

I found myself very uncomfortable at that Council meeting when we had to suspend Standing Orders but that was a function that had to be done, it was a function of the Constitution and I hope that we can look at that and maybe on the Constitution Review Working Group or we can go back to looking at things that we were talking about nearer the elections, agreeing things where we can be more user friendly, like having Non-Executive Members of Cabinet, allowing backbenchers to perhaps bring motions to Council. 

So could I perhaps ask about a timescale for the Constitution Review Working Group so that we can get through this and perhaps agree them by the Council in February or April?

Supplemental Answer:

I am absolutely happy to have that conversation.  I have actually asked the Director of Legal and Governance Services, this afternoon, to arrange a meeting.  I will try and get something before Christmas but if not, it would be very early in the New Year.  

Certainly the expectation would be to have something that could go to the February Council meeting. 

Questioner:

Councillor Bill Stephenson

Asked of:

Councillor Susan Hall, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Community Safety and Environment

Question:

The Council has recently undertaken and implemented a major and radical overhaul of its senior administrative structure cutting its senior staff from 30 to 20, reducing the number of Corporate Directors to 4 and introducing a new role of Corporate Director of Resources and a changed relationship for the Section 151 Officer, which has saved the Council over 1 million pounds. Would you not agree that it is important to judge and assess the success or otherwise of this re-organisation before embarking on yet another one so soon on without having this information.

Answer:

I am absolutely passionate about saving money for this Council and for our Council Tax payers, as is my entire Group and Cabinet. 

We are focused at the moment on planning the Council’s finances for 2015 and onwards and we know that this will involve some very difficult decisions.  Nevertheless we are very prepared to take difficult decisions. 

It took a year to implement the main changes in the last restructure.  I felt therefore, it was necessary to start consultation on our proposals as early as possible so that we could secure the savings from 2014 and provide the incoming administration, following the May election, with the most flexibility to determine what structure best supports them. 

I can assure you that all comments on these proposals, including questions such as this, are being fed back alongside the consultation process.      

Supplemental Question:

I thank you for your answer but I would like to ask you to think very carefully about what you are doing.  We now have a hung Council, we all know that.  We have a major reorganisation of all our services among our Directorates which only just started to come into place and the morale of the staff is very low indeed and our reputation as a Council is at risk and dare I say it, I have had people keep talking about a ‘basket case’ Council.

So I ask you, think again, postpone this reorganisation, bring back the Chief Executive to take us through to the elections and then whoever wins the elections can decide and properly consult about any reorganisations that they may like and they might put that in their manifestos and get a proper mandate for it.

Supplemental Answer:

Well, let me first of all say to you, we only ever do proper consultations.  This is a proper consultation we are going in, so I will not actually speak any more about that.

Just because this is a hung Council, that does not give us the reason not to do positive things and I think we should be looking to the future.  If not we will just stagnate for 6 months.  That will not do the morale of any of our staff any good. 

We have to look at the finances of the Council.  We have got some very pressing difficult times coming ahead.  Whoever comes in power in May is going to have to make substantial savings.

We could sit here and tread water and make everybody happy in order that we keep our positions because we are not rocking any boats but, in truth, it is best that we make proper decisions on ways forward that we can save substantial amounts of money, taxpayers’ money, and things will be left in a position so that if an incoming administration in May wishes to change anything that we have done, it can be easily reversed because to do anything else would not be fair.

Questioner:

Councillor Bill Stephenson

Asked of:

Councillor Susan Hall, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Community Safety and Environment

Question:

“Do you agree that where it is proposed to erect a new CCTV camera, it is important that local ward Councillors, traders and residents should be informed and consulted.  In particular could you provide a list of all proposals to erect new CCTV cameras in Harrow, their precise location and the proposed date of erection.”

Answer:

I believe you have been sent a list of where CCTV cameras are proposed. 

I am always slightly amazed when we get questions like this, when a Group have been in control for a long time, they have done nothing about these things themselves and then suddenly, it is why are you not doing something?

But having said that, in all fairness, I do not see the necessity to specifically consult on where these CCTV cameras go because they are very often put in as a response from many residents asking for them.  You cannot believe how many times I am asked if we can put cameras up because they are massively good in deterring crime and resolving crime issues.  People always seem to think they are just there to stop the motorists or to give motorists PCNs but they are not.  They are there for very, very good other reasons and thank goodness for them because the ones in Wealdstone corridor have been invaluable in dealing with lots of challenging anti-social behaviour, shall we say, as well as in the town centre.

So no, I do not believe we should consult.  You clearly do not either otherwise you would have done it when you were the Leader, I am sure.

Cllr Stephenson:

Can I just say I think it is very important and it is one of things our administration was, when things happen in the Wards, the Ward Councillors are informed.  This is not the case and I have raised this every time it has happened in my Ward.

People suddenly find a CCTV camera dumped in their Ward and nobody knows why.  I am told it is solely for crime purposes.  I am not sure I believe that but I do hope and I have been assured by one of the officers, in the future, Ward Councillors will be informed well in advance and discussions take place.

I thank you for your answer.

Questioner:

Councillor Bill Stephenson

Asked of:

Councillor Susan Hall, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Community Safety and Environment

Question:

“Would you agree that in general a legal PCN cannot be issued solely on the basis of CCTV photos and must be supported by other independent evidence, except in cases such as parking illegally in a loading bay or parking on the pavement, and will you ensure that this does not happen.”

Answer:

PCNs are given at different times.  Normally, if they can they will do them by foot anyway.  The CCTV, as I have commented previously, are mainly there for to detect crime.  Sometimes they are in positions because we know there is continual flouting of the laws, in which case they will get PCNs for it.  If there are blue badges on show, then they normally can see those but I will double check with the team to make sure that that is being adhered to.

Cllr Stephenson:

Or that if you cannot see the blue badge then you cannot give a PCN to it.  That I was told by an officer, I just want to confirm whether that is a correct fact.  I am told that these things are being given when they cannot see whether there is a blue badge and I understand that that is not correct and they should not be doing it.

Cllr Hall:

Well, I will look into that Councillor Stephenson.