Agenda and minutes

Linda Davis from the Quakers gave the blessing.

The Mayor thanked Linda Davis for the blessing and made the following announcements:

1.         Death of a former Councillor

The Mayor advised that it was with regret that she had to inform members of the sad death of former councillor, Peter Perryman. 

She asked members to join her in observing a minutes silence in his memory.

2.            Update on Mayoral Engagements

The Mayor updated members on the range of engagements she had undertaken since the last meeting.  This had included a visit to Gladbeck in Germany and meeting Her Majesty the Queen at an event to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.  

At the successful Enfield Town Show she had visited many stalls and hosted a tea party. 

She had also enjoyed attending the Mayor’s Annual Fun Run, which this year had been attended by over 600 people.  She congratulated everyone who had taken part and all those who had helped to organise the event.

3.            Future Events

The Mayor reminded members that she was hosting a fundraising Summer Party on Saturday 26 September 2015 at noon.  Tickets (£15 each) were available from Alison Brookes, in the Mayor’s Office.

Members were also reminded about the Arctic Convoy Commemoration Event, which was to be held at 2:45pm on 14 November at the Civic Centre.  Members were asked to let Lisa McEwan (Members Services) know if they were able to attend.

Finally she advised members that she would be happy to receive invites to local events in their ward areas.

To approve, as a correct record, the minutes of the Council meeting held on Wednesday 24 June 2015.

AGREED that the minutes of the Council meeting held on Wednesday 24 June 2015 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Daniel Anderson, Chris Bond, Lee David-Sanders, Turgut Esendagli, Robert Hayward, Suna Hurman, Adeline Kepez, George Savva MBE and Haydar Ulus.

Apologies for lateness were received from Councillors Nick Dines and Ozzie Uzoanya.

Councillor Joanne Laban declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to Agenda Item 12.1 (Motion in the Name of Councillor Brett – reduction to PCSOs) as a result of her employment in the office of one of the deputy mayors of London (non-policing).  She remained in the meeting and participated in the debate but was not present for the final decision on this item. (Min.71 refers)

Councillor Stewart moved and Councillor Taylor seconded a proposal, under paragraph 2.2(b) of the Council Procedure Rules, to change the order of items on the agenda so that the following was dealt with as the next item of business:

•        Item 11: Councillors Question Time

The change in the order of the agenda was agreed without a vote.

Please note the minutes reflect the order in which the items were dealt with at the meeting.

11.1    Urgent Questions (Part 4 - Paragraph 9.2.(b) of Constitution – Page 4-9)

With the permission of the Mayor, questions on urgent issues may be tabled with the proviso of a subsequent written response if the issue requires research or is considered by the Mayor to be minor.

Please note that the Mayor will decide whether a question is urgent or not.

The definition of an urgent question is “An issue which could not reasonably have been foreseen or anticipated prior to the deadline for the submission of questions and which needs to be considered before the next meeting of the Council.”

Submission of urgent questions to Council requires the Member when submitting the question to specify why the issue could not have been reasonably foreseen prior to the deadline and why it has to be considered before the next meeting.  A supplementary question is not permitted.

11.2    Councillors’ Questions (Part 4 – Paragraph 9.2(a) of Constitution – Page 4 - 8)

The list of fifty one questions and their written responses are attached to the agenda.

1.1.   Urgent Questions

There were no urgent questions. 

1.2.   Questions by Councillors

NOTED

1       The fifty one questions on the Council agenda and written responses provided by the relevant Cabinet Member.

2       The following supplementary questions and responses received for the questions indicated below:

Question 1 (Cost to the Council of Temporary Accommodation) from Councillor Neville to Councillor Taylor, Leader of the Council:

“I thank Councillor Taylor for his response but can I ask him to elaborate on the response to point (c) in my question regarding the action taken to raise the matter with London Councils and the Government in terms of the need to review Homeless Person legislation and guidance, given the increasing pressure being faced by the Council.”

Reply from Councillor Taylor:

“In my answer I have tried to address the issue not only from the perspective of the Borough, but across London as a whole which I think is a more appropriate focus for any response.

There is clearly a link between the worsening housing position across London and the impact of the Governments Housing Policy and Welfare Reforms including changes in Housing Rent Policy; the decision to extend the Right to Buy to Housing Association properties; the enforced sale of Council owned housing, introduction of the welfare benefits cap and changes in Local Housing Allowance.  Supply has been further affected by Inner London boroughs now looking to secure cheaper property in Outer London in order to place their households in temporary accommodation.

This position has been created as an outcome of the current Government’s Housing Policy and I therefore feel it would be more appropriate if Councillor Neville were to join me in questioning whether the Government has the right policy and priorities, which I feel will be a more effective way to address the current position.”

Question 2 (Insurance Premium Tax) from Councillor Levy to Councillor Taylor, Leader of the Council:

“Does the Leader not agree that despite this “stealth tax” in combination with the wider regressive fiscal policy and cuts, which are impacting disproportionately on the most vulnerable, the Government is still failing to control the deficit and what impact does he feel this is having on the residents of Enfield?”

Reply from Councillor Taylor:

“Members may be surprised to hear that tax receipts fell in August whilst the deficit continues to rise.  I do worry about the extent and impact of the next round of cuts the Government are planning given their  ongoing failure to manage the economy and failure to control the deficit.  It strikes me that the impact of this failure will result in more cuts to public sector services and will also damage the welfare and income of residents across Enfield.”

Question 4 (Impact of the Government’s Austerity Measures on Children’s Services) from Councillor Barry to Councillor Orhan, Cabinet Member for Education, Children’s Services and Protection:

“I thank the Cabinet Member for sharing some of her concerns and would ask if she could clarify further what impact she  ...  view the full minutes text for item 67.

To receive a report from Overview & Scrutiny Committee setting out the Scrutiny Annual Work Programme and workstreams identified for 2015/16.                 (Report No.54A)

Members are asked to note:

·                that the report has been referred on to Council for formal approval following consideration by Overview & Scrutiny Committee (2 June 15) & consultation with Cabinet (16 September 15).

·                Any comments made by Cabinet on 16^th September 2015 will be reported to Council as part of the Council amendment sheet tabled at the meeting.

Councillor Levy moved and Councillor Smith seconded the report from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee (No.54A) setting out the Scrutiny Annual Work Programme and workstreams identified by Overview & Scrutiny Committee (OSC) for 2015/16.

NOTED

1.         The work programme and workstreams had been referred onto Council for formal approval following consideration by Overview & Scrutiny Committee (2 June 2015) and consultation with Cabinet on 16 September 2015.

2.         The work programme proposed by OSC included programmes for both the Standing Panels on Health & Crime as well as a list of the agreed workstreams prioritised for 2015/16 (Appendix 2) and additional list of potential workstreams identified by Members (Appendix 3).

3.      The important role of scrutiny with the context of the Council’s governance arrangements and also in relation to member development.

4.      The more outcome based, balanced and flexible approach towards scrutiny provided through the workstreams and need identified to ensure consistency in membership in order to allow members to develop their knowledge and expertise in the areas being reviewed.

5.      Cabinet, in considering and recommending the work programme and work streams to Council had noted their wide ranging and flexible nature, alongside the need:

a.      to ensure that Cabinet Members were invited to engage in reviews relating to services within their portfolio as well as with OSC on a more systematic basis outside of the formal work programme; and

b.      to ensure, subject to available resources and time, that OSC were encouraged to take as wide a view as possible in terms of scrutiny’s role around policy and service development including looking at areas of service not currently being provided and the justification for this.

6.      Despite initial concerns expressed by the Opposition Group regarding the recent changes introduced to the scrutiny function it was felt that a lot of valuable work had been undertaken on a cross party basis under the new scrutiny model.  Concerns were however recognised in relation to the need to ensure that members from both groups were encouraged to attend, participate and engage in the scrutiny process.

7.      The thanks expressed by members to the officers involved in supporting the scrutiny function for their help in delivering a comprehensive and well balanced scrutiny programme.

The recommendations in the report were then put to the vote and agreed unanimously, without further debate or a vote.

AGREED to approve adoption of the 2015/16 scrutiny work programme and workstreams for the Council’s Overview & Scrutiny Committee, as detailed in Appendix 1 of the report.

To receive the annual report from the London Borough of Enfield Audit Committee for 2014/15, covering the key issues dealt with by the Committee over the past year.

Members are asked to note that the report was initially considered by Audit Committee on 9^th July 2015 and is due to be resubmitted to the Committee for formal approval on 23^rd September 2015.

The decision made by Audit Committee on 23^rd September 15 will be reported to Council on the amendment sheet to be tabled at the meeting.

Councillor Lemonides moved and Councillor Maguire seconded the Audit Committee Annual Report 2014/15, which set out the key issues dealt with by the Committee over the past year.

NOTED

1.            The report had initially been considered by the Audit Committee on 9 July and had subsequently been approved for recommendation on to Council by the Committee on 23 September 2015.

2.         The importance in ensuring that the Council maintained a robust audit function and governance arrangements in order to protect the interests of the Council and wider community.

3.      The key areas of work undertaken by the Committee during the past year in order to ensure that the Council’s internal control environment was kept under review and was relevant and proportionate.  Full details of the areas covered had been set out in Appendix A of the report, with specific reference made to work around the management of risk, risk awareness and counter fraud activity.

4.      The close working relationship between the Committee and Council’s external auditors, Grant Thornton.

5.      The role of the Committee in holding the Executive to account, which had been demonstrated throughout the year by the attendance of senior officers at its meetings and through the work undertaken to review the use of Contract Procedure Rule waivers and changes made to the procedure as a result.  Concerns in relation to this issue were highlighted by the Leader of the Opposition who, whilst recognising the changes in procedure, felt the Committee would need to continue monitoring the use of these waivers.

6.      The cross party nature of the work undertaken by the Committee, which was supported by the Leader of the Opposition.  Councillor Lemonides, as chair, feIt that the Committee had covered a wide range of issues and undertaken its role effectively against a background of increasing pressure on resources and thanked all members and officers involved for their ongoing support.

The recommendations in the report where subsequently agreed unanimously, without further debate or a vote.

AGREED to approve the Audit Committee Annual Report for 2014/15.

Councillor Stewart moved and Councillor Taylor seconded a proposal, under paragraph 2.2(b) of the Council Procedure Rules, to change the order of items on the agenda so that the following was dealt with as the next item of business:

•        Item 12: Motions

The change in the order of the agenda was put to the vote, without further debate, and agreed as follows:

For:  32

Against: 15

Abstentions: 0

Please note the minutes reflect the order in which the items were dealt with at the meeting.

12.1    In the name of Councillor Brett:

“Enfield Council regrets the recent statements regarding cuts to PCSOs at a time when reported violent crime is increasing in Enfield.”

12.2    In the name of Councillor Maguire:

“Enfield Council notes the desperate plight of refugees fleeing Syria and seeking safety in the countries of the EU.

This Council will work with other London Councils to play a part in a national response to the crisis.

This Council, however, insists that the Government must fully fund the national response for as long as it takes and not just for one year.”

12.3    In the name of Councillor Orhan:

“Following the campaign in the Londra Gazette and my letter to the Schools Minister urging him to intervene and force the AQA and OCR exam boards to reconsider the decision to scrap “A” levels and GCSEs of certain community languages such as Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Polish and Turkish, it has been disappointing that other than a reprieve of a year no firm announcement of a commitment has been made by the Government that a u-turn has been achieved.  It begs the question who is in charge of education in the UK and if this Government is committed to providing language skill opportunities much in demand in business and much in need by an outward facing country.

As this is of a huge interest for Enfield residents I ask the Council to fully support me in a letter urging the government to make a public statement that community languages will be taught in school beyond 2017.”

12.4    In the name of Councillor N.Cazimoglu:

“The country, particularly London, is facing a housing crisis and residents in Enfield are feeling the effects.  This Council believes that the only real solution is to build more homes.

House building is at its lowest since the 1920’s; private rents have increased by 37% in the past five years and the government continue to use billions of pounds of public money to subsidise private landlords through housing benefit.

This Council believes that government is complacent about the housing crisis which is affecting many of our residents in Enfield.

We call on the government to grant local authorities the powers and financial ability to increase the supply of housing for our residents.  The government should go further than they already have in lifting the cap on borrowing for Housing Revenue Accounts.  Council’s must be given the financial flexibilities they need to be able to scale up housing development, both in partnership and directly.”

12.5    In the name of Councillor Laban:

“Enfield Council does not support any proposal for female only train carriages on trains. The idea amounts to nothing more than gender segregation and does nothing to address any of the issues of sexual harassment - those people travelling within the borough of Enfield should feel safe on trains, isolating women and treating them as the problem is not the answer.”

1.1     Councillor Brett moved and Councillor B.Charalambous seconded the following motion:

“Enfield Council regrets the recent statements regarding cuts to PCSOs at a time when reported violent crime is increasing in Enfield.”

Following a debate, the motion was put to the vote and agreed, with the following result:

For: 32

Against: 0

Abstentions: 19

Councillor Laban declared a non-pecuniary interest in the above motion.  She left the chamber, after the debate, but before the vote took place and took no part in the decision.

Given the limited time remaining to complete the business listed on the agenda Councillor E.Hayward moved and Councillor Neville seconded a proposal, under paragraph 2.2(b) of the Council Procedure Rules, to change the order of items on the agenda so that the following was dealt with as the next item of business:

•        Item 10: Review of Political Balance and Council Proportionality Arrangements

The proposal to change the order of the agenda was put to the vote and not approved.

In accordance with section 15.4 of the Council Procedure rules the Opposition Group requested a roll call vote, with the result as follows: 

For 20

Councillor Erin Celebi

Councillor Lee Chamberlain

Councillor Jason Charalambous

Councillor Don Delman

Councillor Nick Dines

Councillor Peter Fallart

Councillor Alessandro Georgiou

Councillor Elaine Hayward

Councillor Ertan Hurer

Councillor Eric Jukes

Councillor Joanne Laban

Councillor Michael Lavender

Councillor Andy Milne

Councillor Terry Neville

Councillor Anne Marie Pearce

Councillor Daniel Pearce

Councillor Michael Rye

Councillor Edward Smith

Councillor Jim Steven

Councillor Glynis Vince

Against:  33

Councillor Abdul Abdullahi

Councillor Ali Bakir

Councillor Dinah Barry

Councillor Yasemin Brett

Councillor Alev Cazimoglu

Councillor Nesil Cazimoglu

Councillor Bambos Charalambous

Councillor Katherine Chilbah

Councillor Guney Dogan

Councillor Sarah Doyle

Councillor Christiana During

Councillor Nesimi Erbil

Councillor Krystal Fonyonga

Councillor Achilleas Georgiou

Councillor Christine Hamilton

Councillor Ahmet Hassan

Councillor Jansev Jemal

Councillor Doris Jiagge

Councillor Nneka Keazor

Councillor Bernadette Lapage

Councillor Dino Lemonides

Councillor Derek Levy

Councillor Mary Maguire

Councillor Don McGowan

Councillor Ayfer Orhan

Councillor Ahmet Oykener

Councillor Vicki Pite

Councillor Toby Simon

Councillor Alan Sitkin

Councillor Andrew Stafford

Councillor Claire Stewart

Councillor Doug Taylor

Councillor Ozzie Uzoanya

Abstentions: 0

Please note the minutes reflect the order in which the items were dealt with at the meeting.

1.1      Councillor Maguire moved and Councillor Georgiou seconded the following motion:

“Enfield Council notes the desperate plight of refugees fleeing Syria and seeking safety in the countries of the EU.

This Council will work with other London Councils to play a part in the national response to the crisis.

This Council, however, insists that the Government must fully fund the national response for as long as it takes and not just for one year”

Following a short debate on the motion, Councillor Dines moved and Councillor Neville seconded the following amendment to the motion:

To delete the last paragraph of the original motion and replace it with the following paragraphs:

“This Council recognises that the Government has contributed over £1.1billion in aid in response to the crisis in Syria/Iraq, the UK’s largest ever response to a humanitarian crisis. The Council also acknowledges the role and commitment of the Royal Navy, which has rescued over 6,700 people making the perilous journey across the Mediterranean.

This Council acknowledges and welcomes the Government’s decision to resettle 20,000 refugees over the lifetime of this current Parliament and requests that the cost of local authorities of this be borne by the National Government, not putting financial pressure on local authorities.”

Following a further debate, the amendment was put to the vote and lost with the following result:

For: 20

Against: 32

Abstentions: 0

The substantive (un-amended) motion was then put to the vote without any further debate, and agreed with the following result:

For: 32

Against: 20

Abstentions: 0

The Mayor advised, at this stage of the meeting, that the time available to complete the agenda had now elapsed so Council Procedure Rule 8 would apply.

NOTED that in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 8 the remaining items of business on the Council agenda were considered without debate.

Audit Committee (November 2014) approved the recruitment process for the appointment of an Independent Member to serve on the Committee in an advisory and consultative manner.

Following a selection process, undertaken by an Appointment Panel established by the Audit Committee, the appointment of Mrs Chaitali Roy as Independent Member on the Committee has been recommended for approval.  This appointment would be for a 2 year term of office to expire on 24^th September 2017.

Recommendation:

Council is asked to approve and confirm the appointment of Mrs Chaitali Roy as an Independent Member of the Audit Committee for a term of office to expire on 24^th September 2017.

Council was asked to confirm the appointment of Mrs Chaitali Roy as Independent Member of the Audit Committee.

NOTED that the appointment had been recommended by the Audit Committee following a selection process undertaken by an Appointment Panel established by the Committee.

AGREED that Council formally approve and confirm the appointment of Mrs Chaitali Roy as an Independent Member of the Audit Committee for a two year term of office to expire on 24 September 2017.

To receive a briefing paper from the Director of Finance, Resources & Customer Services advising members of a change in the political balance of the Council and associated review of the proportionality arrangements relating to the allocation of seats on the committees, joint committees and panels that have been set up for discharge of the Council’s functions.    TO FOLLOW

RECEIVED a briefing paper from the Director of Finance, Resources & Customer Services advising members of a change in the political balance of the Council and associated review of the proportionality arrangements relating to the allocation of seats on the committees, joint committees and panels that have been set up for discharge of the Council functions.

AGREED to note the changes in political balance and proportionality on the Council and to agree the revised allocation of seats as set out in the briefing note.

The Leader of the Opposition asked for it be recorded that the Opposition Group would have voted against the above recommendation, given concerns regarding the ongoing status of the councillors named within the briefing paper.

The following motions listed on the agenda lapsed due to lack of time:

12.3   In the name of Councillor Orhan:

“Following the campaign in the Londra Gazette and my letter to the Schools Minister urging him to intervene and force the AQA and OCR exam boards to reconsider the decision to scrap “A” levels and GCSEs of certain community languages such as Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Polish and Turkish, it has been disappointing that other than a reprieve of a year no firm announcement of a commitment has been made by the Government that a u-turn has been achieved.  It begs the question who is in charge of education in the UK and if this Government is committed to providing language skill opportunities much in demand in business and much in need by an outward facing country.

As this is of a huge interest for Enfield residents I ask the Council to fully support me in a letter urging the government to make a public statement that community languages will be taught in school beyond 2017.”

12.4   In the name of Councillor N.Cazimoglu:

“The country, particularly London, is facing a housing crisis and residents in Enfield are feeling the effects.  This Council believes that the only real solution is to build more homes.

House building is at its lowest since the 1920’s; private rents have increased by 37% in the past five years and the government continue to use billions of pounds of public money to subsidise private landlords through housing benefit.

This Council believes that government is complacent about the housing crisis which is affecting many of our residents in Enfield.

We call on the government to grant local authorities the powers and financial ability to increase the supply of housing for our residents.  The government should go further than they already have in lifting the cap on borrowing for Housing Revenue Accounts.  Council’s must be given the financial flexibilities they need to be able to scale up housing development, both in partnership and directly.”

12.5    In the name of Councillor Laban:

“Enfield Council does not support any proposal for female only train carriages on trains. The idea amounts to nothing more than gender segregation and does nothing to address any of the issues of sexual harassment - those people travelling within the borough of Enfield should feel safe on trains, isolating women and treating them as the problem is not the answer.”

Council is asked to note the details provided of a decision taken under the Council’s urgency procedure relating to the waiver of call-in along with the reasons for urgency.  The decision has been made in accordance with the urgency procedures set out in Paragraph 17.3 of Chapter 4.2 (Scrutiny) and Paragraph 16 of Chapter 4.6 (Access to Information) of the Council’s Constitution.

NOTED the details provided of the following decision taken under the Council’s urgency procedure relating to the waiver of call-in along with the reason for urgency. The decision had been made in accordance with the urgency procedures set out in Paragraph 17.3 of Chapter 4.2 (Scrutiny) and Paragraph 16 of Chapter 4.6 (Access to Information) of the Council’s Constitution.

·                Housing Quarterly Electricity Contract Renewal

To confirm the following changes to committee memberships:

(a)     Public Transport Consultative Group

Councillor Laban to be replaced by Councillor R.Hayward

Please note any additional changes notified once the final agenda has been published will be tabled on the Council amendment sheet at the meeting.

AGREED the following change to committee memberships:

(1)       Public Transport Consultative Group

Councillor Laban to be replaced by Councillor R Hayward.

To confirm any changes to the nominations on Outside Bodies.

Please note any changes notified once the final agenda has been published will be tabled on the Council amendment sheet at the meeting.

No changes to the nominations on Outside Bodies were notified. 

17.1    Date of Next Meeting

To note that the next meeting of the Council will be held on Wednesday 11 November 2015 at 7.00 p.m. at the Civic Centre.

17.2    Change of date for Council meeting in January 2016

Members are asked to note that due to a clash with an event arranged to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day there is a need to reschedule the Council meeting on Wednesday 27^th January 2016.

Following consultation with both Groups, it is proposed to move this meeting back by a day to Thursday 28^th January 2016.

Recommendation:

Council is asked to approve the change in date for the January 2016 Council from Wednesday 27^th to Thursday 28^th January 2016.

NOTED the next meeting of the Council would be held at 7.00pm on Wednesday 11 November 2015 at the Civic Centre.

AGREED that due to a clash with an event arranged to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day the Council meeting which was scheduled to have taken place on Wednesday 27 January be moved to Thursday 28 January 2016 at 7:00pm.