Questioner
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Subject
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Response
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Pre-notified questions
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Councillor J. Young
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The safety of young women in our town has to be one of our highest priorities, I applaud the additional investment in safer streets work and investment can’t come soon enough. However, while public money is being invested in more surveillance and lighting it would appear that our most prestigious school has been rated as requiring improvement largely it seems down to a culture of “boys will be boys” encouraging boys and young men to have an entitled attitude and turning a blind eye towards rape culture. I am sure the news that has come from Scarlett Mansfield and Ofsted has shocked us all. I ask the Leader of the Council to write to the Head Teacher expressing our concern over this matter. In addition, I ask the Leader of the Council to consider the roles and opportunities in this authority and the scope for allowing greater power for women members.I remember the Town Deal announcement:5 Men featured.I note that the biggest project this authority is about to deliver,the Tendring Colchester Borders Garden Community, will once again have a board of stale, male and pale representatives . Entitlement starts at a young age: we must do all we can to level the playing field and promote gender equality by offering roles to women to act as role models to our daughters and granddaughters.
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy, welcomed the investment in safer streets and the priority on the safety of women. He was working with the Police and Crime Commissioner to secure additional investment for Colchester. He indicated that he would write to the Head Teacher to express Council’s concerns. The School needed to take swift action, and the Council needed to ensure they did. He also shared concerns that Council was not representative of Colchester. However, it was difficult to identify solutions to attract more female candidates. It was important Councillors treated each other with respect and moderated any personal criticism. The criticisms of the members of Tendring Colchester Border Garden Community were noted but the opposition had also appointed a male as their representative. The importance of promoting role models was appreciated and he was willing to work with others to achieve that.
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Councillor Harris
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Could I ask about what Colchester Borough Council is going to do about electric plug-in points for electric vehicles in public places and can Colchester Borough Council amend planning policy to ensure that plug in points are included in all settings?
Could the Cabinet work with the Communications Team to promote the work on Electric Vehicle Charging Points?
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Councillor Ellis, Portfolio Holder for Housing and Planning explained that an Electric Vehicle Charging Strategy was being prepared and would align with Essex County Council’s work in this area. Electric Vehicle Charing Points were included in all major capital projects involving refurbishment or redevelopment by the Council. There were also aims to secure funding to deliver charging points to a number of the Council’s car parks.
In terms of Planning Policy there were several references in the emerging Local Plan, and full details would be sent. It was an issue that the Council was working towards, even if had not moved as quickly as some neighbouring authorities. He was happy to encourage the promotion of the work on charging points.
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Councillor Harris
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The investment in Colchester via Active Travel Fund is to be welcomed. Would the Leader of the Council agree with me that removing Monkwick from the original plan was a missed opportunity to play a real and meaningful part in climate change in South Colchester? The ward Councillors for Monkwick were ready to play an active part and support the scheme.
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy explained that the shortfall in the Town Deal award had meant that only one of the Liveable Neighbourhoods schemes could proceed. This would be the scheme in Greenstead which was part of the wider Heart of Greenstead scheme. However, this would act as pilot for the other schemes, which remained part of the Town Deal, and would be implemented as and when future funding became available.
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Councillor Cox
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The Government has recently published proposals to reform the planning system. One aspect that has raised particular concern is the proposal to remove local residents’ right to object to individual planning applications in their own neighbourhood if the area is zoned for growth or renewal.
As Portfolio Holder for Planning, what are your views on this proposed reform? Do you feel that the rights of communities to object to individual planning applications should be protected?
Did the Portfolio Holder believe that Liveable Neighbourhoods could be created through consultation, aswell as schemes such as the Town Deal?
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Councillor Ellis, Portfolio Holder for Housing and Planning explained that he had been a member of the Local Plan Committee that had helped formulate the Council’s response to the government’s proposals. The response expressed concern that the White Paper did not provide new opportunities for communities or individuals to participate in the planning system and appeared to reduce opportunities for public engagement and involvement. The proposals were not supported on that basis, and the rights of communities to object or support individual planning applications should be supported. There were also concerns about zoning.
He believed that Liveable Neighbourhoods could be created through consultation and was supportive of the concept of Neighbourhood Planning.
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Councillor Lilley
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Can the Portfolio Holder for Communities please tell me how she is planning to deal with grooming of children into drug gangs in Colchester now she and her Cabinet members have scrapped the Youth Zone which was one of the best chances to tackle this and has the support of Essex Police and the Police Commissioner and his deputy.
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Councillor B. Oxford, Portfolio Holder for Communities stressed that the decision on the Youth Zone had not been taken by Cabinet. It had been put on hold by the Town Deal Board. The previous administration had not allocated capital or revenue expenditure for the Youth Zone and no suitable location had been found.
Considerable work was being done to tackle the grooming of children into gangs such as school visits by the Community Policing Team and multi-agency child case conferences. Statutory and non-statutory agencies worked with the police to protect vulnerable children and due to their work a number of lines had been broken up. Other initiatives aimed at raising awareness and educating children and other groups who came into contact with children, such as taxi drivers, were also undertaken
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Councillor Lilley
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How many hours have Zone Wardens worked in the Town Centre in Partnership with Colchester Police in dealing with begging and drinking in public in the last month? Could more Zone Warden resource be targeted at illegal and anti-social behaviour in and around the Castle Park.
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Councillor B. Oxford, Portfolio Holder for Communities, responded:
- 30 hours of joint patrols have taken place specifically with the Council’s street wardens and police.
- 18 hours on joint operation and nights of action.
- The Council had also led on enforcement action on street drinking and cycling.
- 4 hours on Town Centre Action Plan meetings.
- The Covid Marshals patrolled for nearly 600 hours across the Borough, 260 in the town centre.
- Operation Luscombe was a partnership initiative that continued to support those rough sleeping and tackle associated anti-social behaviour.
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Councillor Lilley
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Now the Mipermit app has been launched, since I introduced the idea, what work has been done to sign all the shops in town up to it.
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Councillor Crow, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability explained that the scheme was being piloted for 6 months with 9 businesses. The project would be monitored at three stages to guide the final roll out, which would be supported the BID. The Council was working jointly with the BID to encourage shops to join the scheme.
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Councillor T. Young
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The overall turnout at this year’s Borough Council Elections was under 34%. This ranged from under 20% in Greenstead ward to 43% in Lexden and Braiswick. Would the Leader of the Council agree with me that, given these disappointing statistics, we, as a council and political groups, need to do more to encourage voter turnout and lobby the government, through our MPs, to drops its plans for compulsory photo ID at polling stations which will only serve to suppress voter turnout and is pointless legislation to address a problem that doesn’t exist?
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy, responded and explained that low turnout in local elections was a concern all Councillors shared but it was not new. Whilst it was incumbent on political groups to try and improve turnout, he did not consider that the proposals for voter ID would have a significant impact on turnout. Nearly every other European country required some form of identification at polling stations and had higher levels of turnout than the UK. The key issue was to increase confidence in the system and to ensure that any system of voter ID was properly implemented.
The Government had made a commitment to provide resources for local government to support voter ID. The proposals included a wide range of ID documents, including some that had expired. If it was communicated well and implemented properly it should not cause a major problem
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Oral questions
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Councillor Hogg
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Last municipal year a request for a CCTV camera for the play area to the rear of the Oak Tree Centre had been made but it had not been approved due to funding and logistical reasons. Following a serious incident at the site, would the Portfolio Holder work with him and the team at the Oak Tree Centre to overcome the funding and logistical difficulties.
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Councillor B. Oxford, Portfolio Holder for Communities indicated that she would be willing to provide whatever help she could.
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Councillor Barton
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Could the Leader of the Council explain what the transformational plans for the Townhouse, as she felt it was no longer fit for purpose and the funding should have been allocated to support the provision of the Youth Zone.
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy, explained that a written response would be sent on the details of the Townhouse. The funding allocated for the Townhouse was only a small proportion of that needed for the Youth Zone.
He had been impressed by the concept and the organisation behind the Youth Zone and was committed to the idea, but it may involve compromises on other priorities and projects. It would need a cross party approach and also a serious conversation with the residents of the borough.
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Councillor Pearson
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Could the Leader of the Council confirm when the review of the waste service would start and finish and confirm the remit of the review?
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Councillor Crow, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability, confirmed that the review would start and finish as soon as possible.
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Councillor King
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Could the Portfolio Holder for Resources confirm that the Cabinet had looked at the impact of the reinstatement of Locality Budgets on the overall in year deficit, given that it was the one saving that Councillors had been able to put forward to help deal with the financial challenge faced by the Council and given that the Council was having to make staff redundant.
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Councillor Lissimore, Portfolio Holder for Resources, responded to explain that Locality Budgets were the quickest and simplest way to get funding to organisations who were in real need of it. Post Covid there was an increased need for funding within communities. £6000 within a ward was a significant amount. It was not accepted that reinstating the locality budgets would lead to redundancies.
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Councillor King
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Could the Portfolio Holder for Resources clarify Youth Zone funding, as the previous administration had allocated £1.5 million in capital funding and £400,000 per annum in revenue funding to the project.
Did the Town Deal Board receive any data or analysis on the outcomes he respective investments in youth provision would provide?
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy indicated that he would find out whether the Board had received the information specified.
The Medium Term Financial Forecast still included £400 000 per annum for the Youth Zone, but there was also already a budget gap of £1.6m. This needed to be reduced to zero in due course, so if the Youth Zone provision remained, another service or project would be impacted. Whilst Onside’s projection was that the cost to local authority of Youth Zone was £440,000 this did not include capital repayments. In addition, allowance needed to be made for inflation. Sponsors and external funders generally contributed over periods of 2-4 years and so there was the possibility of needing to cover gaps in external funding.
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Councillor Fox
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Was it appropriate that visitors to Leisure World would not have to follow social distancing or wear masks, given the rising rates of Covid 19 locally? Would removing restrictions encourage or discourage users to attend leisure facilities? Given the Council’s duty of care to staff, should the same standards be applied across all Council buildings?
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy, explained that that he considered this was an operational matter for the managers of the service, and he trusted their judgement on the issue.
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Councillor Fox
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Could the Portfolio Holder for Business, Economy and Heritage provide an update on the suggestion by the Local Plan Committee that the Cabinet explore the purchase of the ABRO site?
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Councillor Laws, Portfolio Holder for Business, Economy and Heritage responded and explained that he appreciated the importance of the site. A Joint Management Plan for the Roman Circus was now in place. A detailed update would be provided following the meeting.
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Councillor Scott-Boutell
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An apprenticeship post in the Planning Service was being advertised, for a period of 21 months and with no guarantee of a post at the end of the apprenticeship. Could the Portfolio Holder for Resources confirm when and why a decision was taken to move away from paying all staff the national living wage, and would she agree that this was not a proper apprenticeship given the period of service, the lack of study time and that there was no guarantee of employment at the conclusion of the apprenticeship?
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Councillor Lissimore, Portfolio Holder for Resources, indicated she would look into the matter and provide a written response. However, it was not standard practice for apprenticeships to come with a guarantee of employment at the end of the apprenticeship.
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Councillor Scott-Boutell
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Could the Leader of the Council explain why the Conservative Party manifesto was on the Council’s Sharepoint site with links to the Council’s website?
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy indicted that he was not aware of this. The Mayor indicated a written response would be provided by officers.
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Councillor Willetts
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Would the Leader of the Council make a commitment that if in future an executive decision on procurement was to be made that was contrary to the Council’s climate emergency declaration, Council would be consulted before the decision was taken.
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Councillor Dundas, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Strategy, indicated he was happy to make that commitment.
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Councillor Scordis
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Could the Portfolio Holder for Communities explain what plans were in place to improve the service provided by the Neighbourhoods Teams?
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Councillor B. Oxford, Portfolio Holder for Communities indicated that she raise the matter with the service and a written answer would be given.
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Councillor Goacher
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Can the Portfolio Holder for Housing and Planning shed any light on the allegations made in the Observer newspaper on Sunday regarding Middlewick Ranges? Are the allegations of a bespoke metric being agreed in order to get round environmental rules true? Is the insinuation that Colchester Council colluded in this true? If so who is the ‘CBC Ecologist’ who agreed to this metric as to my knowledge the Council does not have an Ecologist?
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Councillor Ellis, Portfolio Holder for Housing and Planning, indicated a full written response would be sent and circulated to all Councillors.
Colchester did not employ an ecologist. The Council had commissioned ECOS, who were the ecological consultancy arm of Essex Wildlife trust, to work with DIO on a metric for Middlewick. The metric had been altered to make the hurdle higher.
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