Agenda item

To review the decision taken at Cabinet on 15 July 2020 as a result of the matter having been Called-in.

Cllr Greer introduced this item and out-lined the process to be followed. It was re-iterated that only comments and questions relating to the points included within the Reasons for Call-in would be permitted. Cllr Greer welcomed Cllr Maria Alexandrou as the Call-in Lead.

 

NOTED THAT:

 

Cllr Alexandrou expressed her disappointment that the number of reasons within this call-in had been reduced, following assessment by the Monitoring Officer.

 

The Enfield Climate Action Plan had no comprehensive consultation on the LBE website. It was on the website for a few weeks during the peak of the covid-19 pandemic. Public events were cancelled and residents had a reduced opportunity to respond.

 

Listening to the views of residents can result in improved schemes, for example, the Fox Lane Quieter Neighbourhood Scheme.

 

If the views of local farmers had been taken in to account, the media coverage following the proposal to remove meat from Council events could have been avoided.

 

The Green Belt should not be destroyed by non-sustainable development, for a number of environmental factors, including clean air. Clean air is more important to residents than living close to a railway station.

 

The Mayor of London should promote schemes supporting the environment.

 

Cllr Greer thanked Cllr Alexandrou and invited Cllr Ian Barnes, Deputy Leader of the Council to respond. Cllr Barnes confirmed that he rejected each of the 4 points of the call-in.

 

The draft plan was on the Council website for a 6 week consultation period. A public event on 3^rd March was postponed, just before full lockdown was introduced. A later event planned for April couldn’t go ahead because of the covid-19 crisis. This was a time urgent plan which had a May deadline.

 

Cllr Barnes detailed the on-going engagement. The Labour Group had a briefing on the Climate Action Plan, however, the Conservative Group didn’t respond to the offer of a briefing. The draft Climate Action Plan was circulated as part of the Member’s Newsletter on 23^rd March 2020, asking for comments. Many campaign groups such as Extinction Rebellion had provided feedback, along with many comments via social media.  Cllr Barnes took part in media interviews and encouraged the public to provide feedback. There were many useful comments received from staff, following workshops on the subject.

 

Cllr Barnes commented that the Plan was an organic document and future versions will be supported by engagement with stakeholders.

 

In response to issues relating to the Green Belt, it was noted that the Green Belt has many benefits including agriculture, employment and amenity space. There are a variety of funding sources available to support public access and bio-diversity. Land use should be within the remit of the Local Plan, rather than the Climate Action Plan.

 

In response to the issue relating to the key asks of The Mayor of London, it was highlighted that the Mayor of London has responsibility for government in London and provision of public transport, which are both covered in the Climate Action Plan.

 

The Chair thanked Cllr Barnes and Officers for their response and then asked Members of OSC to consider any questions.

 

The following issues were raised by Members and responded to by Cllr Alexandrou, Cllr Barnes, Saray Cary, Doug Wilkinson and Dominic Millen.

 

Q1. Why didn’t the Conservative Group respond to the offer of a Group briefing on the Climate Action Plan?

 

A1. A virtual meeting would have been more appropriate.

 

Q2. Before the Action Plan was published on 13^th March, who did you engage with and how did the strategy change as a result?

 

A2. Social media was used widely, along with personal appearances, encouraging residents to engage. Many of the actions relate to council operations, therefore, a number of staff members were involved in developing action plans.

 

Q3. During the 6-week consultation period, how many responses were received from the public, local businesses, farmers and external organisations?

 

A3. Most responses were from climate change groups (8 in total, including Extinction Rebellion). Feedback from the public was not so forthcoming (8 in total) so more will be encouraged. There were over 300 comments on social media about the need to reduce meat consumption. The message from the Council is eat less meat and if possible, source from an organic butcher.

 

Q4. When consultation is handled poorly, it has the potential to nullify the final report. Appendix 2 of the report gives very little detail on consultation, just generic comments.

 

A4. Many of the groups gave similar comments in their responses. When considering consultation in the statutory sense, this was an engagement process. The report clearly states that an annual review will be carried out, with further public engagement. There will be engagement with schools, encouraging young people to participate and also staff development modules relating to climate change. Resident engagement will continue for decades as advances in science become apparent.

Q5. Specific examples around poor consultation were given; With only 2 short paragraphs on the Enfield incinerator, why doesn’t the document expand on this?; No real consultation relating to how can we avoid further environmental damage.

 

A5. The Climate Action Plan is a framework with over 100 individual actions which will be consulted upon in their own right. This is the start of the process and there will be on-going engagement. We are working alongside the Covid-19 crisis but the climate crisis is also a danger and the plan must be implemented. The Enfield incinerator is part of the North London Power Project and comes under the remit of the North London Waste Authority. The consultation has been adequate, with a greater opportunity for people to engage, being in lockdown. The Council would be criticised if we didn’t address the climate crisis. As a Council, we should be commended for moving this forward at pace.

 

The Chair, asked Cllr Alexandrou, as the call-in lead, to summarize. Cllr Alexandrou stated that the Climate Action Plan should be transparent and more ambitious. The Plan should have been based on the results of consultation with all parties and a virtual briefing meeting should be held for all Councillors.

 

Before proceeding to the vote, Members of the Committee provided some observations. Going forward, there needs to be clarity between consultation and engagement. In the past, the Council has been good at consultation, however, with only 16 responses in total, this should not be referred to as adequate. Cllr Barnes offered to meet with Cllr Smith to discuss the Plan and future consultation.

 

The Overview & Scrutiny Committee considered the reasons provided for the call-in and responses provided   Having considered the information the Committee agreed to confirm the original Cabinet decision:

 

1.  Adopt the Enfield Climate Action Plan

 

2. Delegate responsibility for implementation of the Enfield Climate Action Plan to the Executive Director Place in consultation with the relevant Cabinet Member.

 

 

Councillors Greer, Georgiou, Demiral, Yusuf and Eren voted in favour of the above decision. Councillors David-Sanders and Smith voted to refer the matter to Full Council for wider debate.The original Cabinet decision was therefore agreed.

 

Cllr Greer thanked everyone for attending and closed the meeting.