Agenda item - Petition - Spitting Ban

Agenda item

Petition - Spitting Ban

To receive a report from the Director of Finance, Resources & Customer Services detailing a petition received seeking a public ban on spitting in the borough.           (Report No.226)

 

Members are asked to note that the Petition has been submitted under the Council’s Petition scheme and, in accordance with the scheme, has been referred for debate at Council as it contains more than 2,750 signatures.

 

Under the terms of the Petition Scheme the petition organiser (in this case Monty Meth – Over 50’s Forum) will be given 5 minutes to present the petition at the Council meeting.  Council will then have the opportunity to discuss the petition for a maximum period of 15 minutes.

 

The Council will then need to decide how to respond to the petition.  In doing this, Council may decide to take the action requested, not take the action (for reasons given during the debate) or to commission further investigation.  Where the issue is one on which the Council Executive are required to make the final decision, the Council will decide whether to make recommendations to inform that decision.

 

In accordance with the Petition Scheme, Council is asked to consider the views expressed in the petition having noted that the petition has also been considered and endorsed by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee on 26 January 2012.

Minutes:

RECEIVED a report from the Director of Finance, Resources and Customer Services (No.226) detailing a petition that had been submitted seeking a public ban on spitting in the borough.

 

Council was advised that the petition had been referred for debate at Council under the Council’s Petition scheme, as it contained more than 2,750 signatures.

 

In accordance with the Petition scheme, the Mayor invited the lead petitioner Monty Meth (Over 50’s Forum) to formally present the petition to Council for consideration.  The following issues were highlighted as part of the presentation:

 

·              Thanks were expressed on behalf of the Over 50’s Forum for the time provided to present the petition.

 

·              The wide level of public and cross political party support for the petition, with more than 4,000 signatures having been received by the time the petition was closed.

 

·              The public health issues associated with spitting, with potential links identified to the transfer of TB bacteria and the reported increase in cases of TB across London by the Health Protection Agency.

 

·              The national interest in the petition and campaign to ban spitting in public spaces.

 

·              Subject to approval by Council, the strong level of support towards a ban on spitting would need to be demonstrated as part of the next stage in the process.  This would involve seeking approval from the Department for Communities & Local Government for a bye-law to enforce any ban

 

·              Council was being requested to formally support the petition requesting a ban on spitting in public places and the imposing of fines along with making of a bye-law for this purpose.

 

In accordance with the Petition scheme, Council was then given an opportunity to debate the petition before considering its response.  The following issues were noted:

 

1.      Thanks were expressed to the Over 50’s Forum for taking the lead on the petition and to all Members & Council officers involved in promotion of the anti-spitting campaign.  This had now been picked up at national level, with Enfield as the lead authority.

 

2.      In addition to public health, spitting (unless on medical grounds) was also regarded as a problem of anti-social behaviour.  The need to increase education on this issue and encourage sports stars, as role models, to support the ban was also highlighted.

 

3.      The petition had also been considered by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee (OSC) (26 January 2012) who had unanimously supported the proposed ban on spitting in public places.  As a result of a request made by OSC the Cabinet member for Environment had also written to the three local Members of Parliament (MPs) and Mayor for London seeking their support for the required bye-law.

 

4.      The need, if successful, for any ban on spitting to be accompanied by a heavy fine as part of any enforcement activity.

 

5.      DCLG had previously indicated that it did not consider a ban on spitting to be something that should be addressed through a bye-law, so there would be a need to demonstrate a high level of support to seek a change in this view, which the petition would form a key part towards addressing.

 

6.      The legal process needing to be followed in seeking a bye-law, as detailed in section 5 of the report.  The first stage in the process would involve the making of a provisional application for the draft bye-law, which had been submitted to DCLG.

 

Following the debate the recommendation in the report was agreed unanimously without a vote.

 

AGREED in response to the petition, to approve a ban on spitting in public places and the imposing of fines and to endorse the request made to the Department of Communities and Local Government for the making of a bye-law for this purpose.

Supporting documents: