Motion G

Proposer: Cllr J. Young

Seconder: Cllr Dundas

This Council acknowledges the overwhelming tragedies of the ongoing conflict in Israel and Gaza and other conflicts around the world. 

Residents of all persuasions will be feeling powerless, scared and uncertain here in Colchester too. 

Residents in our City have friends, relatives and family connections with Israel and Gaza and we acknowledge the shock, terror and grief that they must be feeling. 

The Council’s number one priority at this time is to keep all of our residents safe and we are working with our partners in the Police and charities such as Refugee, Asylum-seeker and Migrant Action (RAMA) and Community 360 to help keep everyone, and especially those most vulnerable in the City, as well supported as possible.

Colchester as a City of Sanctuary has a vision of being a welcoming place of safety for all.  We are proud to offer sanctuary to people fleeing violence and persecution. We reaffirm our commitment to this important work and thank our officers for the most difficult but vital work they do to support all communities in our City especially at this difficult time. 

As the motion relates to a non executive matter, it will be debated and determined at the meeting.

Motion H

Proposer: Paul Dundas

This Council notes that: 

1.        Colchester City Council recently published on its website a list of payments to suppliers over the last 12 months, this being a statutory duty pursuant to the Local Government Transparency Code 2015, revealing to Colchester Council Tax Payers where their money was being spent. 

2.        As originally published, these statutory disclosures stated that in the past 12 months Colchester City Council had spent, amongst other payments, £2,200,809 on stationary, £245,552 with the Anti-Loo Roll Brigade, £245,000 with the Grosvenor House Hotel, over £2.1m on election software, £880,000 on playground inspections, over £5m on newspaper advertising, over £1m on an individual no one can identify, £350,000 on printing, £847,000 on telephone bills, just under £5m with a Christian Empowerment Charity, £8,646 on Oysters, £130,000 on mobile phones and £1,097,146 on Ice Creams. 

3.        Upon Conservative Councillors querying some of these items it was ascertained that the data for at least 9 of the 12 months was erroneous, many of the payments listed did not in fact occur, and consequently the published figures were removed from the website and the Leader of the Council issued an apology to Councillors. 

 Therefore, the Council: 

1.        Thanks the Leader of the Council for prompt acknowledgement of the error and the email notification of the data failures issued on October 31. 

2.        Thanks and notes the work of Conservative opposition councillors who brought these errors to the attention of the Council. 

3.        Informs Cabinet that the operational finance team may be under considerable time pressure and a review of its workload would be appropriate. 

4.        Urges Cabinet to issue apologies to the Council Tax Payers of Colchester for publishing erroneous information, and also to each and every recipient of payments for which erroneous information was published. 

5.        Requests Cabinet ensure that robust procedures are put in place to ensure all financial information put into the public domain is accurate.

As the motion is not an executive matter it will be debated and determined at hte meeting. 

K... Motion that the recommended decision in the report by the Head of Governance and Monitoring Officer be approved and adopted.

Motion I

Proposer: Cllr Goss

Council  
 
1. Notes and congratulates the Evening Gazette on their anti-knife campaign launch last month in association with the arrival of the Knife Angel statue to Colchester.   
 
2. Notes the tragic consequences of knife attacks on families and friends and recognises the bravery and work of Ann Oakes-Odger MBE whose son was sadly murdered through stabbing.   
 
3. Notes the alarming increase in knife carrying, nationwide, particularly by those associated with gang membership and/or illegal drug activity.   
 
4. Welcomes the work of the police in tackling all forms of crime and the progress they are making, including reducing violent crime. And welcomes their work to raise awareness through the deployment of a knife arch in Colchester centre and work with knife amnesties and knife bins.  
 
5. Notes the work of the Youth Voices Listening Project that found “knife crime and knife harm stood alongside fights and drug use as major concerns for young people in Colchester”.  
 
6. Therefore calls on Colchester Council through the Safer Colchester Partnership to deepen multi-agency collaborative working on this issue. And with our schools and young people to continue work done through the Knife Angel visit. To help make Colchester and its surrounding area safer for us all, particularly our younger residents.  
 

As this motion relates to an executive matter, the suspension of Council Procedure Rule 11(2) will be moved to allow the motion to be debated and determined.