Council Procedure Rule 10.6 provides for questions by any member of the Council to the Leader, Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee or any Portfolio Holder, without notice on:
(i) reports under item 6 above; or
(ii) any other matter of a non operational character in relation to the powers and duties of the Council or which affects all or part of the District or some or all of its inhabitants.
Council Procedure Rule 10.7 provides that answers to questions without notice may take the form of:
(a) direct oral answer from the Leader or, at the request of the Leader, from another member of the Cabinet
(b) direct oral answer from the Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee or, at their request, from another member dealing with that issue as part of an Overview and Scrutiny review;
(c) where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or other published work, a reference to that publication;
(d) where the reply cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer circulated later to the questioner; or
(e) where the question relates to an operational matter, the Leader, Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee or a member of the Cabinet will request that a response be given direct to the questioner by the relevant Chief Officer.
In accordance with the Council Procedure Rule 10.8, a time limit of twenty minutes is set for questions. Any question not dealt with within the time available will receive a written reply. The Chairman may extend this period by up to a further 10 minutes to ensure that all political groups and independent members may have their questions answered.
Minutes:
(i) Buckhurst Hill Parking Review
Councillor Spencer asked the Safer, Greener and Highways Portfolio Holder if the proposed timescale for the completion of the Epping Parking Review would result in commencement of the Buckhurst Hill Scheme being delayed until after 31 March 2012.
Councillor Smith, Safer, Greener and Highways Portfolio Holder, advised that there had been no change from the timescale reported previously in relation to the Buckhurst Hill and Loughton Parking Reviews being progressed on a phased manner after completion of the Epping Parking Review.
(ii) Tickets for the Olympic Games
Councillor Stallan referred to the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 28 June 2011 and asked the Leisure and Wellbeing Portfolio Holder when a decision would be taken by the Cabinet in relation to tickets which had been offered to the Council. In that regard he questioned reference in the recent edition of the Forester which had indicated that tickets would be given to the Citizen of the Year and the Young Citizen of the Year.
Councillor Gadsby, Leisure and Wellbeing Portfolio Holder, stated that she would speak to officers and would advise Councillor Stallan of the outcome.
(iii) Leader Lodge, North Weald – Designated Protected Area Status for North Weald
Councillor Grigg asked the Housing Portfolio Holder for information regarding the designated protected area status conferred nationally on rural areas, including North Weald, and the effects of this on the provision of shared ownership.
Councillor McEwen, Housing Portfolio Holder, advised that she would speak to officers and would respond to Councillor Grigg in writing.
(iv) Brooker Road/Cartersfield Road Industrial Estate, Waltham Abbey
Councillor Wixley asked the Finance and Economic Development Portfolio Holder what had happened during the period from the expiry of a long standing ground lease in 2004 until the entering into a new lease reflecting the full market value of the buildings in 2011. He also asked for what period the sum of £24,000 per annum would apply and he sought clarification of the term "full rack rent".
Councillor Mohindra, Finance and Economic Development Portfolio Holder, advised that he would need to check the period of the previous lease but he suspected that there had been a typographical error in his report. He stated that he would speak to officers about this issue and also the length of time for which the £24,000 per annum would apply and he would make the information available to members. Councillor Mohindra asked the Leader and Legal Portfolio Holder to define "full rack rent".
Councillor Wagland, Leader and Legal Portfolio Holder, advised that the term, "full rack rent", simply meant the open market rent.
(v) Fire Safety in Council Flats and Maisonettes
Councillor Richardson asked the Housing Portfolio Holder for a progress report in relation to the provision of mats, etc. in communal areas of flats and maisonettes.
Councillor McEwen, Housing Portfolio Holder, advised that she had no further report to make at this time. She pointed out that the letter received from the appropriate Minister in response to the Council's request for a dispensation had not been very helpful and she was not aware that any further steps had been taken since the receipt of that letter.
(vi) Grounds Maintenance Service/Council Nursery
Councillor Jennie Hart referred to a reference in a report to the last Cabinet regarding consideration of taking the street cleansing element out of the extended Waste Management Contract and tendering it as a Street Scene contract alongside the Grounds Maintenance Service. She pointed out that the suggestion had been rejected on the basis of an external evaluation on the Grounds Maintenance Service which had established that no overall benefit would be likely to accrue from such an action. Councillor Hart asked the Environment Portfolio Holder, in the light of this previous decision and the possibility of the Council's Nursery being moved to Oakwood Hill in order to permit redevelopment of the current site, whether any cost/efficiency exercise had been undertaken in relation to this proposed relocation.
Councillor Knapman, Environment Portfolio Holder, confirmed that for reasons of quality and value for money, the Cabinet had decided to retain the Grounds Maintenance Service in?house. He advised that no decision had yet been made regarding the future of the current Nursery site and that all of the options would need to be considered carefully taking into account cost and efficiencies.
(vi) Ongar Re-cycling Centre
Councillor Jacobs advised that Ongar residents were very concerned about the proposed closure of the Re-cycling Centre and asked the Environment Portfolio Holder if other options such as a reduction in hours had been considered rather than a complete closure of the Centre.
Councillor Knapman, Environment Portfolio Holder, advised that he had asked the County Portfolio Holder to justify the figures on which the proposed closure had been based. He said that he had some concern about those figures. He said that he was also well aware of the local concerns and the major problems which would arise if the Centre was closed.
(vii) Leisure/Sports Facilities and Limes Farm Hall
Councillor Whitbread welcomed the proposed extension of the existing Contract with the Council's leisure providers, SLM, until January 2016. He expressed disappointment however, that there had been delays in completion of the redevelopment of Limes Farm Hall and sought an assurance that despite these delays the project would still be delivered on budget.
Councillor Gadsby, Leisure and Wellbeing Portfolio Holder, advised that the last report which had been provided showed that the project was within budget.
Councillor Wagland drew attention to issues which could arise with building contracts and assured Councillor Whitbread that the Cabinet would investigate the circumstances of the delays and take action as appropriate.
(viii) Reduction of Carbon Footprint and Provision of Solar Panels
Councillor Sutcliffe referred to the Council's Statutory Statement of Accounts which included an objective to substantially reduce the amount of CO2 and the other greenhouse gases the Council emitted through its services and operations. She drew attention to the viability of solar panels and asked if any active steps were being taken to encourage the use of these on new buildings, particularly large developments when planning applications were under consideration. She also asked if there were any plans to install panels on social housing for the long-term economic benefit to the Council and its tenants.
Councillor Philip, Planning and Technology Portfolio Holder, advised that the Housing Directorate were already pursuing such a policy. In relation to planning applications, he pointed out that each scheme had to be dealt with on its merits and the provision of solar panels would be a matter for consideration by Planning Officers and Planning Committees at the time.
(ix) Epping Parking Review
Councillor J M Whitehouse referred to the timescale for implementation of the Epping Parking Review and questioned whether the Traffic Regulation Order would come into force on 16 January 2012 at the commencement of signing and lining work or on 31 March 2012 the estimated end of all signing and lining work. He stated that if it was the latter would it not be possible to speed up the process of signing and lining work.
Councillor Smith, Safer, Greener and Highways Portfolio Holder, stated that she would need to study the schedule which was to be published. She pointed out that during November/December 2011 the County Council would be re?tendering its Works Contracts across the County and this would have an impact on timescales. She continued that she believed the Traffic Regulation Order would be effective from 16 January 2012 but would not be enforceable until lines had been painted and appropriate signage had been provided in the various streets.
(x) Federation of Small Businesses
Councillor Collins referred to the increase of 21% in membership of the Federation of Small Businesses from businesses within the Epping Forest District. She suggested that this was partly due to the encouragement given to businesses in the past by members, particularly the previous Business Champion, and officers. Councillor Collins asked if the new Business Champion would be attending Federation meetings regularly and reporting back to Council on a regular basis.
Councillor Wagland, Leader and Legal Portfolio, advised that Councillor Mohindra, Business Champion, had indicated to her that it was his intention to attend appropriate meetings and report back on them. Councillor Wagland continued that she was working closely with Keith Brown of the Federation of Local Businesses. She said that she sat on a number of groups with him and that at present they were progressing arrangements between traders and the Epping Forest College aimed at increasing custom for traders in Loughton Broadway.
Councillor Wagland said that she was working hard to persuade local residents to use their local facilities and with small businesses to ensure that they provided the type of service required.