Agenda and minutes

The Mayor will open the meeting and welcome all present.

The Deputy Mayor opened the meeting and welcomed all present.

To receive any apologies for absence on behalf of Council members.

Apologies for absence were received from the Mayor, Councillor Field, and Councillor Mould.

(Members agreed that the Council’s best wishes for a speedy recovery from his present ill-health be passed on to the Mayor.)

To invite Councillors to declare any interests they may have in items on the agenda.

Kevin Dicks (Acting Joint Chief Executive) declared a personal and prejudicial interest in Item 8 (Acting Joint Chief Executive – Review of Operation of Secondment Arrangements) as detailed separately at Minute XX below.

To consider a limited number of urgent referrals from the Executive Committee which relate to financial decisions relevant to tonight’s business.  (Other matters will be reported to the next ordinary meeting of the Council on 9 March 2009.)

·                    Estimated Outturn 2008/09;

·                    Virement Request – Planning Savings;

·                    Initial Estimates 2009/10.

(The  individual decisions from the meeting of the Executive Committee on 28 January  (attached) and 18 February 2009  (to be tabled) refer.

Members considered urgent referrals from the Executive Committee in respect of the following matters:

Estimated Outturn 2008/09;

Virement Request – Planning Savings; and

General Fund Revenue Budgets and Capital Bids 2009/10 – 2011/12.

During consideration of the item on the Estimated Outturn, Members again reiterated their concern at the further reduction in the contribution from Scottish Widows Investment Partnerships Ltd to the Shopmobility service.

In respect of the General Fund item, the Council was informed that in addition to proceeding with all revenue bids identified as unavoidable or high priority steps were to be taken to identify an existing officer within the organisation to undertake the role of Grants Officer which had been categorised as a medium priority revenue bid.

1.         ESTIMATED OUTTURN 2008/09:

RESOLVED that

the Estimated Outturn 2008/09 be recommended for approval;

2.         VIREMENT REQUEST – PLANNING SAVINGS

            RESOLVED that

            The budget savings totalling £57,900 be vired for studies required as part of the evidence base for the Local Development Framework and the Redditch Economic Strategy, estimated to cost £55,000.

3.         GENERAL FUND REVENUE BUDGETS AND CAPITAL BIDS 2009/10 – 2011/12

            RESOLVED that

1)      subject to comments, above, the Initial Estimates for 2009/10 be approved;

2)      the Revenue Bids categorised as unavoidable and high detailed in Appendix 14 be approved as follows:

                        2009/10          £465,000

                        2010/11          £367,000

                        2011/12          £280,000;

3)      the General Fund bids for capital resources categorised as unavoidable and high set out in Appendix 15 be approved as follows:

                         2009/10          £1,112,800

                         2010/11          £   920,000

                         2011/12          £   820,000;

4)      the Housing Revenue Account bids for capital resources categorised as high set out in Appendix 17 be approved as follows:

2009/10          £1,090,000

                         2010/11          £   570,000

                         2011/12          £   570,000;

5)      the savings / additional as identified in Appendix18 and below be approved  for consultation:

                               2009/10          £   958,400

                               2010/11          £1,464,900

                               2011/12          £1,571,700;

6)      the balance of the set up costs for Civil Enforcement Parking funded by the Council from future income streams;

7)      potential redundancy costs of £35.1, be funded from balances;

8)      Officers be asked to do further work with regard to

a)      ArrowValley Countryside Centre

b)      ForgeMill Museum

c)      Shopmobility

d)      Dial A Ride.

To adjourn the meeting to permit a meeting of the Executive Committee to be held to consider the setting of the Council Tax for 2009/10 and any associated financial items.

RESOLVED that

the meeting of the Council be adjourned to permit a meeting of the Executive Committee to be held to consider the setting of the Council Tax 2009/10 and other associated financial matters.

(At this point - 7.28 p.m. - the meeting adjourned and reconvened at 7.44 p.m.)

On the resumption of the meeting, to receive and consider recommendations from the Executive Committee and to pass the appropriate resolutions fixing the Council Tax for the year ending 31 March 2010.

(Update Report refers)

The Council considered the recommendations of the meeting of the Executive Committee held during the adjournment referred to above, regarding the setting of the Council Tax 2009/10 and other associated financial matters.

RESOLVED that

the recommendations of the meeting of the Executive Committee, held earlier in the evening on 23 February 2009, be approved.

(A motion to amend the recommendation in respect of Council Tax – Year Ending 31 March 2010 through the adoption of a number of different options in respect of revenue and capital bids was the subject of the following named vote in accordance with Standing Order 16:

Members voting FOR the amendment to the motion:

Councillors Cookson, Enderby, Fry, Hartnett, Hicks, Hunt, R King, W King, Shurmer and Taylor.

(10 votes)

Members voting AGAINST the amendment to the motion:

Councillors Anderson, Banks, Braley, Brunner, Chalk, A Clayton, B Clayton, Gandy, MacMillan, Norton, Pearce, Quinney and Smith.

(13 votes)

Members abstaining from voting:

Councillors Hall and Thomas.

Accordingly, the amendment to the Motion fell.)

To review the operation of the arrangements with Bromsgrove District Council for the secondment and sharing of their Chief Executive as the Acting Joint Chief Executive for both Councils.

(Report to follow)

Members received a report from the Leader of the Council reviewing the operation of the arrangements with Bromsgrove District Council for the secondment and sharing of their Chief Executive as the Acting Joint Chief Executive for both Councils.

The figures for the costs to date to Redditch Borough Council for the post of Joint Chief Executive were reported orally as being £38,605, and those for the consequential costs in relation to the Acting Deputy Chief Executive post as being £8,990.

The Leader of the Council reported that she considered the first six months of the trial period for the Acting Joint Chief Executive post and the Joint Working and Shared Services arrangements with Bromsgrove District Council to have been successful.

The recommendations in relation to the Joint Working and Shared Services arrangements received broad support although the post of Acting Joint Chief Executive continued to be cause of less consensus across the Groups as had been the case within the Shared Services Board.

1)          the recommendation from the Shared Services Board to continue with the Joint Working and Shared Service arrangements with Bromsgrove District Council be approved; and

2)          the continued secondment of the Acting Joint Chief Executive to the Council be continued until the 31st July 2009 in accordance with the six month review requirements within the secondment agreement.

(Prior to consideration of this item, and in accordance with the requirements of Section 81 of the Local Government Act 2000, Kevin Dicks, Acting Joint Chief Executive, declared a personal and prejudicial interest, in view of the fact that the matter under discussion was the terms and conditions of his employment by the Council, and withdrew from the meeting.

During consideration of this item, and in accordance with the requirements of Section 81 of the Local Government Act 2000, Sue Hanley, Acting Deputy Chief Executive, withdrew from the meeting in view of the fact that the matter under discussion included the terms and conditions of her employment by the Council.)