Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies received.

Under the Code of Conduct members are reminded that in declaring interests you should make clear the nature of that interest and whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest, registerable interest or other interest.

There were no interests declared.

Ms S. Dillon asked the following question:

“My question arises from scanning various management documents presented at the August Corporate Scrutiny Committee meeting and this Cabinet meeting, in particular the Council Development Plan.

The people of NWLD can be termed in various ways, such as residents or customers. These terms imply different types of relationships, suggesting there may be different levels of importance for the voices of people of NWLD.

In a prior question at Council, it was agreed that elected persons should represent the interests of their constituents.

In the development of your Plan, what weight is given to the voices of the people of NWLD in comparison to stakeholder groups, NGOs and government diktats?”

The Chair’s response was as follows:

“Many of the reports and documents presented to the committees of the Council are informed after consultations and discussions with stakeholder groups and individual members of the Council.

Members of the council are elected as representatives of their local communities to be a voice in those discussions.

The Council delivery plan is a good example of how members have been consulted across the political spectrum, and the process allows good public visibility of the plan as it progresses from the scrutiny committee to Cabinet and then on to full Council over a period of several months.

We have outlined our approach in the introduction to the Council Delivery plan, which is about being realistic about what we can deliver, working with stakeholders wherever possible, listening to feedback about our services and measuring our progress through the performance indicators.

We do sometimes refer to people differently depending on the interaction or relationship that they have with the council.  That doesn’t mean that they are or more or less important, but reflects their interaction. 

The Council delivery plan does consider the plans of other stakeholder groups, government directives, legal considerations, likely future developments, and financial sustainability.

It is difficult to assess the weight given to each of these groups, but our aim is always to achieve the best outcomes within our limited resources for the many communities of North West Leicestershire.”

As a supplementary question, Ms Dillon asked how elected representatives went about the process of attaining the diverse views of their constituents; she found her experience variable.

The Chair said it varied from Councillor to Councillor and the community which they represented. He also advised that there was the impact of technological changes to consider. He then returned to the terminology used by the organisation to refer to stakeholders. He noted that given the shifting nature of language in general, some terms, in this instance customer, were more appropriate now than they may have previously been. The Chair and Ms Dillon agreed to discuss things further after the meeting.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 22 August 2023

The minutes of the meeting held on the 22 August 2023 were considered.

It was moved by Councillor M Wyatt, seconded by Councillor A Woodman and

RESOLVED THAT:

The minutes of the meeting held on 22 August 2023 be confirmed as an accurate record of proceedings.

Reason for decision: To comply with the Constitution.

The report of the Strategic Director of Resources

The Corporate Portfolio Holder presented the report.

It was moved by Councillor N. Rushton, seconded by Councillor K Merrie, and

RESOLVED THAT:

1)    The comments from the Audit and Governance Committee made at its meeting on 26 July 2023 be noted.

2)    The Corporate Governance Policies listed in paragraph 2 of the report be approved.

Reason for Decision: To ensure that the Council has an up-to-date suite of governance policies in place reflecting the law and best practice.

The report of the Strategic Director of Resources

The Corporate Portfolio Holder presented the report.

The Chair noted that all Members of the Cabinet had confidence in the Portfolio Holder’s command of the role.

It was moved by Councillor N. Rushton, seconded by Councillor K Merrie, and

RESOLVED THAT:

1)    The forecasted overspend on General Fund for 2023/24 of £242k based on Quarter 1 information be noted.

2)    The Special Expenses forecasted outturn figures for 2023/24 based on Quarter 1 information be noted.

3)    The forecasted overspend on the Housing Revenue Account for 2023/24 of £463k based on Quarter 1 information be noted.

4)    The supplementary estimates detailed in Appendix 2(c) which are below £100k and are externally funded be noted.

5)    The supplementary estimates detailed on Appendix 2(c) which are above £100k and are externally funded be approved.

6)    All supplementary estimates detailed on Appendix 2(c) which require Council funding be approved.

7)    The supplementary estimates detailed on Appendix 2(c) which are above £250k and are externally funded, which were approved by full Council on 5 September 2023, be noted.

8)    The revised 2023/24 General Fund Capital Programme budget detailed in Appendix 5 as approved by full Council on 5 September 2023 be noted.

9)    The revised Housing Revenue Account Capital Programme detailed in Appendix 9 be noted.

Reason for Decision: To update Cabinet on Quarter 1 and request approval for supplementary estimates as detailed in the recommendations below.

The report of the Strategic Director of Place

The Business and Regeneration Portfolio Holder presented the report.

The Chair queried why the CSEWP had not made recommendations to Cabinet on this occasion.

It was moved by Councillor T Gillard, seconded by Councillor R Blunt and

RESOLVED THAT:

1)    The minutes of the Coalville Special Expenses Working Party at Appendix 1 be noted.

2)    Any recommendations made by the Working Party at its meeting on 15 August 2023 be considered.

Reason for Decision: So that the decisions of the Coalville Special Expenses Working Party can be considered.

The officers consider that the press and public should be excluded during consideration of the following items in accordance with Section 100(a) of the Local Government Act 1972 as publicity would be likely to result in disclosure of exempt or confidential information.  Members are reminded that they must have regard to the public interest test and must consider, for each item, whether the public interest in maintaining the exemption from disclosure outweighs the public interest in making the item available.

It was moved by Councillor R Blunt, seconded by Councillor T Gillard and

RESOLVED THAT:

In pursuance of Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the remainder of the meeting on the grounds that the business to be transacted involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act and that the public interest in maintaining this exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Reason for decision: To enable the consideration of exempt information.

The report of the Strategic Director of Resources

The Corporate Portfolio Holder presented the report.

A brief discussion was held on the contents of the report.

It was moved by Councillor N. Rushton, seconded by Councillor R Blunt, and

RESOLVED THAT:

The recommendations within the report be approved.

Reason for Decision: The level of expenditure on the proposed contract extension exceeds the authority level in the scheme of delegation and to ensure the contract is compliant.