Issue - meetings

Redditch Community Lottery

Members discussed the Redditch Community Lottery in detail and in so doing raised the following points:

·                The running costs for the lottery which would be £2,500 per year.

·                The management company that would be operating the lottery on the Council’s behalf.

·                The insurance coverage that would be required by the Council in order to operate a community lottery.

·                The potential financial risks arising from the Redditch Community Lottery and the scale of these risks.

·                The introduction of policies for the lottery, which would ensure that vulnerable groups within society, including children and young people, were protected.

·                The concerns that had been raised in respect of the Redditch Community Lottery at a recent meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

·                The funding that would be raised from the lottery for local Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) groups.

·                The examples of community lotteries delivered by other local authorities which had been taken into account when the decision had been taken to introduce a Redditch Community Lottery.

·                The extent to which gambling was a problem within the Borough of Redditch.

Independent Remuneration Panel Report and Recommendations for 2019/20

There was a detailed discussion about the recommendations from the Independent Remuneration Panel in relation to Members’ allowances.  During this discussion the following matters were highlighted:

·                The Executive Committee had supported the recommendations proposed by the Independent Remuneration Panel and had added a further proposal to increase the allowances available to members of the Executive Committee without portfolio.

·                The level of increase in Members’ allowances, should the recommendations be approved, which would result in a total increase of £60,000.

·                The potential to invest that £60,000 in other Council services.

·                The financial difficulties experience by some members of society.

·                The significant number of years that had passed since Members’ allowances had last increased.

·                The reasons why Members had chosen not to increase allowances in previous years.

·                The allowances that were already paid to Members and the fact that these were the lowest in the county.

·                The extent to which an increase in Members’ allowances would encourage more people to stand as candidates in local elections.

·                The amount of work required from Chairs of Committees and Portfolio Holders and the suitable level of Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) that should be provided to Members in these positions.

·                The request that had been submitted by Members in previous years for the Government to determine the level of allowances that should be paid to local Councillors across the country.

·                The potential for individual Members to choose not to accept the allowances to which they were entitled.

·                The fact that the review of Members’ allowances had been conducted by an independent panel of people.

During consideration of this item a named vote was requested in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 17.5 in relation to the Executive Committee’s first, second and seventh recommendations on the subject of the Independent Remuneration Panel Report and Recommendations 2019/20.

Members Voting FOR the Resolutions below

Councillors Salman Akbar, Tom Baker-Price, Joanne Beecham, Roger  ...  view the full minutes text for item 84