Agenda item

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)  The impact of France closing its borders on Dover and to thank officers for their work in trying to alleviate the problems. He also thanked Veolia for the work it undertook to clear the highway of litter after the problems had cleared though noted that Highways England should have been responsible for doing this not the Council.

(b)  To advise of his experience of undergoing a Coronavirus test and to praise how well it worked.

(c)   The importance of improvements to the road network in order to keep Dover clear and moving in future.

(d)  To welcome the jobs that the Inland Border Control Facility would bring to the district while recognising that actions must be taken to mitigate the impact on the road network. He would be making his formal response to the Department for Transport following the Extraordinary Council meeting on 9 February 2021.

(e)  To advise that a new Head of Port Health and Public Protection had been appointed.

(f)    That he was impressed with the quality of the 8 new interim accommodation flats on Folkestone Road and to note that there were now all occupied. The flats were named after Cuthbert Ottaway, who had been the first captain of the England football team and had been born in Dover. This was part of the Council’s commitment to end its reliance on bed and breakfast accommodation. The issue of housing was vital given the potential for increased homelessness and the Council had set a target of building 500 new affordable homes.

(g)  To recognise the excellent work being undertaken by the Council since the housing service had returned in-house to turn around the service. It was noted that despite the pandemic the void period was easing and 47 homes were being made ready for letting.

(h)  To advise that the Government was changing its focus on the allocation of housing targets and that the council was waiting on new district numbers.

(i)    To encourage everyone to participate in the Local Plan consultation process and to thank the Head of Planning, Regeneration and Development and her team for their hard work. The consultation process had been changed in light of the pandemic but efforts had been taken to ensure as many as possible could be involved including the provision of a telephone number for those who could not respond online.

(j)    That the Council was committed to reducing emissions and to advise that the Cabinet had approved the Climate Change Strategy. It was recognised that there would be challenges in reducing emissions and emphasised that everyone would need to work together to do this. The Council was looking at making its homes more energy efficient and was looking at ways it could decarbonise. There had been funding secured for the installation of 49 electric charging points in the district.

(k)   That the Council would host a virtual event on 3 March 2021 to mark Fair Trade Fortnight with a focus on the impact of Fair Trade on workers and farmers. He thanked Councillors P M Brivio and D Hannent as the council’s representatives on local Fair Trade steering groups.

(l)    To thank frontline staff in the NHS and at the Council for their efforts during the pandemic.

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

(a)  To thank crucial/key workers for their hard work every day.

(b)  To call for a wash-up meeting on the lessons to be learnt from the problems in Dover before Christmas when Dover become gridlocked and to develop a new plan for dealing with such issues in the future.

(c)   That the proximity of the Inland Border Control Facility to the Port of Dover would be an issue and to express his dissatisfaction that the Council was not being given the information it needed to consider the issues properly. He expressed concern that the SDO process would push through the proposals and that the Council would be left responsible for the outcome despite not being responsible for it. There was also concern at the impact of the Inland Border Control Facility on the Fastrack project. He did not believe that the Extraordinary Council meeting would achieve much and emphasised the need to consult with both residents and elected members.

(d)  To congratulate officers on their work since the housing service was brought back in-house.

(e)  To express concern that the vaccine rollout for coronavirus had been piecemeal in the district and seemed like a post code lottery. He noted that residents in Deal were being offered vaccinations in Folkestone which was more than the governments stated target of being within 10 miles away.

(f)    To call upon the Leader to look into the issue of the Phoenix Centre closing after the pandemic and update the Council on what could be done in respect of this vital facility.

(g)  To ask what the Leader was doing to liaise with the Port of Dover over the challenges around the introduction of border controls.

(h)  To welcome the efforts in respect of tackling climate change but to note that the Council’s aspirations would need proper funding to deliver.

In response the Leader of the Council advised:

(a)  That a wash-up meeting had been held with Kent County Council and local Members of Parliament at which lessons had been shared. There would be a further meeting.

(b)  That he had met with the Department for Transport today and there were trying to engage with the Council. He thanked Councillor M Bates, as one of the two district members in the ward where the Inland Border Control Facility would be located for his work with local residents. He welcomed the opportunity that Members would have at the Extraordinary Council meeting to express their views.

(c)   That after a slow start in the district the coronavirus vaccine roll out was picking up speed. He agreed that more work needed to be done to communicate with residents in the district about the roll out.

(d)  To advise that Councillors S S Chandler and M J Holloway as the members for the Sandwich Ward were aware of the issue with the Phoenix Centre and to acknowledge that the Council needed to look at the issue and engage with the Phoenix Centre.

(e)  That he would look into the issues with the Port of Dover.