Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors S H Beer and T A Bond.

To confirm the attached Minutes of the meeting held on 24 July 2019.

The Minutes of the meeting held on 24 July 2019 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any declarations of interest from Members in respect of business to be transacted on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest made by Members.

To receive any announcements from the Chairman of the Council, the Leader of the Council, Members of the Cabinet or the Head of Paid Service.

The Chairman of the Council, Councillor M D Conolly, made the following announcements:

(a)  To congratulate Councillor S S Chandler on being appointed as a Kent County Council Cabinet Member for Integrated Children's Services.

(b)  To note the resignation of Council Leader K E Morris from the Council and call upon Members of the Council to speak about his time on the Council.

Councillor S S Chandler praised him for his calm and measured approach during his time as Leader. In particular, he was a champion of young people and had made homelessness a priority.

Councillor K Mills acknowledged the work that Councillor K E Morris had done on International Women’s Day and stated that each Leader brought something new to the role.

(c)   To advise the Council of the death of former district councillor Gwladys Payne.

The Council stood in silence as a mark of respect at the passing of former district councillor Gwladys Payne.

To elect a Leader of the Council to serve until the Annual Meeting of the Council following the ordinary election of all Councillors in 2023.

The Chairman called for nominations for the vacant position of Leader of the Council following the resignation of Councillor K E Morris.

It was moved by Councillor P D Jull, and duly seconded by Councillor D G Beaney, tjat Councillor T J Bartlett be nominated as Leader of the Council.

In the absence of any further nominations it was

RESOLVED:     That Councillor T J Bartlett be elected as the Leader of the Council until the day of the next Annual Meeting of the Council following the ordinary election of all councillors in 2023.

To note the number of Members to be appointed to the Cabinet.

The Local Government Act 2000 sets a statutory number of members of the Cabinet which, including the Leader of the Council and Deputy Leader of the Council, is a minimum of three members and a maximum of ten members.

Councillor T J Bartlett gave notice of his intention to appoint an Executive (Cabinet) comprising of the Leader of the Council and six members, including the Deputy Leader.

RESOLVED:   (a)   That the composition of the Cabinet be received and noted.

(b)   That it be noted that the Leader of the Council had given formal notification to the Monitoring Officer of his intention to appoint the following portfolio structure:

Leader of the Council

Deputy Leader of the Council

Portfolio Holder for Community and Tourism

Portfolio Holder for Environment and Commercial Services

Portfolio Holder for Housing and Health

Portfolio Holder for Planning and Regulatory Services

Portfolio Holder for Finance and Governance

Portfolio Holder for Transport and Licensing

To receive from the Leader of the Council any changes to the members of the Cabinet and related portfolios.

Councillor T J Bartlett gave notice of his intention to appoint the following Members to the following Portfolios:

RESOLVED:  That the appointment of Members to Cabinet Portfolios be received and noted.

To receive an oral report at the meeting from the Leader (and Cabinet) on the business of the Executive or on any topic or subject that it is felt should be brought to the attention of the Council.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10 (Leader’s Time):

(a)  The Leader (and Cabinet) shall have up to 15 minutes to make within this report any statements that they wish on any topic or subject that they feel should be drawn to the attention of the Council.

(b)  The Leader of the Main Opposition Group (or their nominee) shall be allowed up to 10 minutes to respond.

(c)  The Leader of the Council shall be allowed up to 5 minutes to exercise a right of reply (or 25% of the time given to the Opposition Group Leader(s), whichever is the greatest).

The Leader of the Council, Councillor T J Bartlett, included the following matters in

his report:

(a)  To update the Council on the progress of works at Deal Pier and advise that work had commenced on the landside shelter.

(b)  To highlight the success of the Dover Leisure Centre and its recent open day.

(c)   To advise that work was underway on the Kearsney Park Café and was due to be completed by June 2020. In addition, Kent County Council had commenced works on the new puffin crossing.

(d)  To advise that there would be a cross-party group formed for the refurbishment for Tides, Deal.

(e)  To advise that public consultation would be undertaken in November/December in respect of the design proposals for Maison Dieu. The Council was exploring funding opportunities for the work that needed to be undertaken and had already secured some match funding.

The Leader of the Opposition Labour Group, Councillor K Mills, included the following matters in his report:

(a)  To congratulate Councillor T J Bartlett on his appointment as Leader of the Council.

(b)  To urge the creation of a dedicated portfolio for the environment/green matters. He asked for a letter written to the Portfolio Holder for Planning and Regulatory Services, Councillor N S Kenton, to be circulated to Members and published on the Council’s website.

(c)   To point out that the timetable for the Climate Emergency report had slipped.

(d)  To ask the Council to promote awareness of the impact of fireworks on animals and vulnerable people.

(e)  To point out that Persimmon had built roads in Aylesham that had no street lights.

(f)    To ask the Leader to organise a BREXIT Task Force meeting to update the Council’s readiness for BREXIT. He asked that Members be updated on what the Council had done so far in preparation for BREXIT and what its areas of concern were. Councillor K Mills also expressed concern over the potential adverse impact of Operation Perch on Dover’s road network.

In response the Leader of the Council advised:

(a)  To advise that he supported the promotion of firework safety.

(b)  That he would investigate the issue of roads without street lighting in Aylesham.

(c)   To advise that officers had undertaken a lot of work in respect of BREXIT and that he would look to share that work with Members.

Councillor T J Bartlett, duly seconded by Councillor S S Chandler, advised the following changes to Conservative Group appointments:

In addition, Councillor T J Bartlett was moved as the Chairman of the Electoral Matters Committee to replace the vacancy arising from the resignation of the previous Chairman, Councillor K E Morris.  

RESOLVED: That the following changes to Conservative Group nominations be agreed:

To receive answers in respect of questions from the public to Members of the Executive asked in accordance with Rule 11 of the Council Procedure Rules.

(a)  Questions will be asked in the order in which notice of them was received, except that the Chairman may group together similar questions.

(b)  The period for questions by the public shall be limited so that no further questions shall be put after the elapse of 15 minutes from the commencement of the first question.

(c)   A maximum of three minutes is allowed for the each question to be read.

(d)  A questioner who has put a question in person may also put one supplementary question without notice to the member who has replied to his or her original question. A supplementary question must arise directly out of the original question or the reply.

(e)  Afterwards, any other Member at the Chairman's discretion may speak for up to two minutes on a question or reply.

Questions from the Public

The question from the public received within the notice period are set out in the agenda papers.

(1)  In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11, Sara Gleave asked the Portfolio Holder for Planning and Regulatory Services, Councillor N S Kenton:

“Are the DDC new Local Plan team going to integrate the recommendations of the Town and Country Planning Association on how local authorities can plan for the climate crisis (Planning for Climate Change refers  - with its examples of how councils can get low-carbon social housing and protect greenfield by means of robust dealing with volume developers) into the draft document before the document goes to public consultation in January 2020?”

In response, Councillor N S Kenton advised that climate change was a key issue and would be part of the local plan. Using the latest published material, discussions had already taken place with Officers from other Kent LPAs working in close partnership with the RTPI, Town & Country Planning Association and Climate Earth. Dover District Council was hosting a workshop with policy planners from across Kent in late November to discuss how Local Plans across Kent could take this matter forward on a county wide basis. 

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.8, S Gleave exercised the right to ask a supplementary question.

(2)  In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11, Dominic Howden asked the Leader of the Council, Councillor T J Bartlett:

“Britain is currently at 50% food self-sufficiency, and dropping. How does Dover District Council plan to cope with food shortages in the very near future as an immediate consequence of Brexit, and in the longer term as a consequence of the Climate Emergency?”

In response Councillor T J Bartlett stated that for the immediate future and in terms of any potential future no deal Brexit, the council would explore with partners the possibility of hardship funds for vulnerable communities and residents.  However, the real potential issue would be the supply chain which the council had no direct control over. With regards climate change, the Cabinet would be discussing a report in the near future to look at areas within its own remit/responsibility.

(3)  In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11, Hamish Napier asked the Leader of the Council, Councillor T J Bartlett:

“At the last council meeting, then-leader Keith Morris talked about replacing polluting council vehicles with electric ones, as the leases naturally ran out. So, which is more important: Climate Emergency, or money?”

In response Councillor T J Bartlett advised that the Council had passed two motions relating to climate change at its meeting in July 2019. In response to those decisions Cabinet would be considering a report next week, which included a recommendation that the Council should declare a Climate Emergency in recognition of the challenge which we were all facing. As regards the use of electric vehicles by the Council, as the leases on the current vehicles run out, the Council already reviewed the availability of a suitable electric powered alternative. For example, the vehicles used by the enforcement team were switched to EV charging earlier this year. Looking ahead, he  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

To consider the attached report of the Head of Governance.

The Democratic Services Manager presented the report on the Appointment of an East Kent Joint Independent Remuneration Panel.

It was moved by Councillor S C Manion, duly seconded by Councillor S S Chandler, and

RESOLVED:     (a)     That the Council’s continued participation in the East Kent Joint Independent Remuneration Panel be approved until 30 November 2023.

(b)     That Mr W Ferrier and Mr A Goodall be appointed to the East Kent Joint Independent Remuneration Panel by Dover District Council for a four year term commencing 1 December 2019.

(c)     That the Democratic Services Manager be authorised to agree the arrangements for the administrative support of the East Kent Joint Independent Remuneration Panel.

To consider the attached report of the Head of Regulatory Services.

The report proposed the adoption of the draft revised Statement of Policy and Principles issued under the Gambling Act 2005 following the consultation process.

It was moved by Councillor N J Collor, duly seconded by Councillor D P Murphy, and

RESOLVED:     That the draft revised Statement of Policy and Principles under the Gambling Act 2005 be approved without modification.

Up to 60 minutes is allowed for this part of the meeting unless extended by the Chairman of Council on a motion moved, duly seconded and approved by the Council.  Members may ask one supplementary question in addition to their original question.

Members may ask one supplementary question in addition to their original question.

The questions received are set out in the agenda papers.

In accordance with Rule 12(1) of the Council Procedure Rules, Members of the Cabinet responded to the following questions:

(1)  Councillor R S Walkden asked the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Licensing, Councillor N J Collor:

“In view of recent days - on the 26th. and 27th. of July and the 10th. of August, when central Dover became gridlocked for hours, will the Portfolio for Transport and Licensing, please advise on discussions to keep Dover moving, that are associated with Brexit?”

In response Councillor N J Collor advised that the Council has been working with partners within the Kent Resilience Forum for more than a year now on the development of the plans known as Operation Brock to deal with the potential delays to freight traffic caused by Brexit. The importance of this was highlighted by the events in July and August, a matter of which he was acutely aware, living as close as he did to the A20. The Council has been lobbying all of the agencies involved in the development of these plans for many months and its concerns regarding the likely effectiveness of the Brock plans were well known.

Diverting port bound traffic to Manston was not a policy that the Council supported, and he remained convinced that if introduced it would quickly need to be abandoned, leading in all likelihood to the reintroduction of Operation Stack. More positively, the Council had been closely engaged with Kent County Council on developing plans to protect box junctions on key routes within Dover amongst other things and the Council had been seeking additional powers from government to allow it to enforce these regulations. Kent County Council were also looking to improve the sequencing of traffic lights within the town and improve CCTV coverage of key junctions, which should help to improve traffic flows.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.5, Councillor R S Walkden exercised his right to ask one supplementary question.

(2)  Councillor P Walker asked the Leader of the Council, Councillor T J Bartlett:

“Could the Leader please provide a complete update of DDC employees, following on from that profile of 2016, where age profiles and grades are supplied in order to aid succession planning?”

In response the Chief Executive advised that the work referred to by Councillor Walker was originally undertaken in 2015 as part of a wider Workforce Planning exercise. It was then updated in 2017 but included only age ranges in respect of each department across the Council, not grades. The Council was currently undertaking work with East Kent Human Resources to produce an updated People Strategy, which included a specific strand looking at Skills for the Future, which will include work relating to succession planning.

Age profiling would be undertaken as part of this process and the Chief Executive advised that he was happy to arrange for this to be reported to a future meeting of the General Purposes Committee.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.5, Councillor P Walker exercised his right  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

Motions for which notice has been given are listed on the agenda in the order in which notice was received, unless the Member giving notice states, in writing, that they propose to move it at a later meeting or withdraw it.

If a Motion set out in the agenda is not moved by the Member who gave notice thereof it shall, unless postponed by consent of the Council, be treated as withdrawn and shall not be moved without fresh notice.

Up to 60 minutes is allowed for this part of the meeting unless extended by the Chairman of Council on a motion moved, duly seconded and approved by the Council.  Members may ask one supplementary question in addition to their original question.

The Motions received are set out in the agenda papers.

(1)  In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 13, Councillor P M Brivio moved the Motion of which she had given notice as followed:

“This year 25 years since the FAIRTRADE Mark was launched in the UK and Dover District Council notes that:

•      Since 1994 consumer demand for Fairtrade has grown thanks to the efforts of grassroots campaigners and pioneering Fair Trade businesses.

•      There are now over 600 Fairtrade Communities in the UK and more than 2,000 globally.

•      As a result of Fairtrade commitments from mainstream brands and retailers, the UK Fairtrade market is now one of the biggest in the world.

•      Global Fairtrade sales last year generated £142 million in Fairtrade Premium. Farmers in 73 countries have invested this money in their communities, increasing business productivity and contributing to the achievement of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

•      Despite this positive news, exploitation remains rampant in global supply chains. More than 40 million people are trapped in modern slavery, including forced labour, and 152 million young people in child labour. Hundreds of millions more are earning less than a living income or wage.

This council believes that:

•      Fairtrade has a significant contribution to make towards ending exploitation in global supply chains.

•      The recently agreed International Fairtrade Charter should be welcomed, with its vision of transforming trade to work for people and planet.

•      The Fairtrade principles of paying a ‘premium’ that is wholly managed by farmers and workers themselves, and of minimum prices to protect producers from market volatility, are crucial to systemic change.

•      Public bodies, including local authorities, should support ethical procurement policies, using their purchasing power to support Fairtrade and ensure their supply chains, at home and abroad, are free of exploitation, including modern slavery.

•      Companies operating through global supply chains should go further and take steps to require the payment of living wages and achievement of living incomes for all.

This council resolves to:

•      Commits to achieve ‘Fairtrade Community’ status.

•      Actively promote Fairtrade locally, through support for local groups, in the media including social media, and events, including during Fairtrade Fortnight.

•      Support local Fairtrade Schools, and actively promote Fairtrade teaching materials in local schools and educational institutions.

•      Celebrate and incentivise businesses championing Fairtrade products in the local community.

•      Review its procurement policy, including its catering offer, to ensure that Fairtrade produce is chosen wherever possible, and that Fairtrade considerations are included as a preference in any contracts going out to tender.”

The Motion was duly seconded by Councillor S J Jones.

On being put to the vote it was

RESOLVED:   This year 25 years since the FAIRTRADE Mark was launched in the UK and Dover District Council notes that:

•      Since 1994 consumer demand for Fairtrade has grown thanks to the efforts of grassroots campaigners and pioneering Fair Trade businesses.

•      There are now over 600 Fairtrade Communities in the UK and more than 2,000 globally.

•      As a result of Fairtrade commitments  ...  view the full minutes text for item 43.

There were no items of urgent business for consideration.