Agenda item

(1)   Councillor M Bates asked the Portfolio Holder for Transport, Licensing and Environmental Services, Councillor J L Pout:

“The Examination for National Highways’ Lower Thames Crossing Development Consent Order (DCO) application commenced on 20th June 2023. KCC have been requested to provide a corporate response during the examination process and stakeholders were requested to provide their contributions by 16th June. Can the Portfolio Holder for Transport confirm that, as part of this process, DDC have forwarded a request to KCC that they emphasise within their submission that the significant impact to the volume of traffic which will use the M2/A2 corridor must be considered and that improvements to the current road network to the Port of Dover must therefore be included within the RIS3 programme?”

In response Councillor J L Pout stated:

“I believe Cllr Bates knows we have made a representation to KCC as he signed off on this pre-election when he was the portfolio holder for transport.  

Yes, KCC has been provided with Dover District Council’s ‘relevant representation’ response, which was submitted in February 2023 and emphasised these matters. KCC has confirmed the points raised will continue to be included in their submissions.”

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(2)   Councillor M Bates asked the Portfolio Holder for Transport, Licensing and Environmental Services, Councillor J L Pout:

Following the receipt of £45 million pound in levelling up funding we have received very little in the way of concrete information as to how this funding is to be used in order to improve the flow of traffic into and out of the Port of Dover. Given that the summer rush is almost upon us can the Portfolio Holder for Transport please provide an update as to how discussions are proceeding with KCC and Dover Harbour Board concerning the provision of new port infrastructure and whether any timescales have been produced as to when this work will be completed?

In response Councillor J L Pout stated:

Thank you for your excellent question, it’s just a shame that Cllr Mills beat you to it by first asking this very same question during his opposition time at Full council in January 2023. 

The then leader, Cllr Bartlett, invited KCC to give a presentation, and in March 2023 reiterated his commitment to have KCC give more information. It’s disappointing that this never happened as you would have already had your answer.

As you have noted, the government announced in January the award of £45m from the Levelling up Fund for an upgrade to border facilities at the Port.

The bid was submitted by Kent County Council, working with the Port of Dover, and is intended to enable the provision of new infrastructure, as an enhancement to the existing Port Access Infrastructure, to support new customs controls on goods moving between the UK and the EU and new passport controls on the drivers of the HGVs carrying those goods and tourist passengers.

Once complete the changes will maximise the flow of existing traffic through the Port and remove potential bottlenecks created by new and imminent EU border controls.

The key features of the project are as follows:

1)    A change in the sequence of border controls, so that the UK outbound controls will precede the French inbound controls.

2)    A change in the sequence of outbound controls so that HGVs will check-in with their ferry operator before proceeding to the UK and French border controls.

3)    An increase in pre-check in plaza capacity, that will increase the area of the Port’s Buffer Zone by 1.4km of equivalent traffic volume. This has the potential to take queueing traffic off the road and reduce the number of Traffic Access Protocol (TAP) and Brock instances on the A20 and M20 outside of Dover.

4)    A doubling in the number of border control points (5 to 10), to absorb the increase in the time taken to examine the passports of HGV and tourist drivers and thus enable the rate of traffic flow to be maintained.

5)    A new dock exit route, for the removal from the Port of HGVs which either are not border-ready or which are rejected at the border control checkpoint.

The Council fully supports the aims of the project and welcomes the proposed investment in Port infrastructure.

It is therefore very frustrating that that six months after the original announcement the government has yet to confirm the allocation of funding to the project.

This lack of action on the part of the government is clearly delaying the implementation of the plans, which I am sure is a concern to us all.

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(3)   Councillor M Bates asked the Portfolio Holder for Transport, Licensing and Environmental Services, Councillor J L Pout:

“Last year we received the devastating news from KCC that Stagecoach and other bus companies intended to cut a number of unviable commercial services. Amongst these were a number of school bus routes within the District which, following representations from DDC and other interested parties, were reprieved until July this year. We are still awaiting a further announcement from KCC as to whether these services will be reprieved. Can the Portfolio Holder for Transport confirm that he has made representations with his opposite number in KCC requesting that this reprieve be continued for the following school year?”

In response Councillor J L Pout stated:

“The decision taken by the Tory-led KCC to cut funding from bus services was shortsighted particularly at a time when we should be encouraging greater use of public transport, which is why I ran a petition which received 1500 signatures causing both KCC and the DJTAB to discuss. 

I’ve recently made contact with Cllr Brazier who told me that “The bus industry is deregulated, which means that if operators decide, for whatever reason, they do not wish to continue a service, they can simply withdraw it.” 

If school children have an entitlement to travel, Cllr Brazier assures me KCC will get them to school. 

I can confirm that I will continue to fight for the retention of bus services across the District and will be making representations to KCC and working with partners on the Quality Bus Partnership to ensure that all services are protected, not just those on school bus routes.” 

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(4)   Councillor C A Vinson asked the Portfolio Holder for Community and Corporate Property, Councillor C D Zosseder:

“On which date was the current portfolio holder briefed by the relevant head of service and internal audit team on the findings of the recent proactive audit of car parking and enforcement?”

In response Councillor C D Zosseder stated:

“Thank you Councillor Vinson. I can confirm that I was briefed on the findings of the Parking and Enforcement Audit that was conducted in March 2023, with the final audit report issued 28th April 23 at my first portfolio holder meeting on Thursday 25th May. The Leader and deputy Leader have also been updated on this. I am also informed that my predecessor to the role was also briefed on the audit findings before the May elections.

I would like to add that I and my fellow cabinet members are pleased to see already the vast improvements being made to the service, the vision and future direction of which I am being updated on regularly and I am confident future audits will be much more positive going forward.”

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(5)   Councillor D R Friend asked the Portfolio Holder for Housing, Skills and Education, Councillor P M Brivio:

“Will the portfolio holder confirm that 200 “environmentally friendly council homes” will be built by the Council this year (i.e. in 23/24)?”

In response Councillor P M Brivio stated:

“No. This administration has pledged to build environmentally friendly new homes at a rate of 200 per annum over the life of the administration. But we inherited a much lower annual rate of build than this and so we need to improve it.

We plan to deliver a programme of 800 new homes by the end of the administration, thus achieving the average of 200 per annum, even if we have to make up for a shortfall at the start.”

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(6)   Councillor T J Bartlett asked the Leader of the Council, Councillor K Mills:

“Will the leader confirm whether the Council has a commercial agreement in place with the developers of the former Regent cinema in Deal, in relation to the Council’s landholdings adjacent to the site (including South Street car park, public toilets and former bus waiting room) which are included within the plans recently consulted on ahead of applying for planning permission to redevelop the site?”

In response Councillor K Mills stated:

“Thank you, Cllr Bartlett. As you will be aware, the Council has been in regular contact with the owners of the Regent site for many years, and indeed I understand that they have met with yourself when you were Leader of the Council.

I can confirm that there is no commercial agreement in place with the developers of the former Regent cinema in Deal, in relation to the Council’s landholdings adjacent to the site.”

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(7)  Councillor O C de R Richardson asked the Portfolio Holder for Community and Corporate Property, Councillor C D Zosseder:

“Will the portfolio holder provide an update on current staffing levels within the parks and open spaces team?”

In response Councillor C D Zosseder stated:

“I am pleased to say that we have made significant progress over recent weeks with our recruitment and the team are now fully staffed, which is the first time the Council has been in this position for several years.”

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.

(8)  Councillor C A Vinson asked the Portfolio Holder for Finance, Governance, Climate Change and Environment, Councillor S H Beer:

“What assessment has the portfolio holder made of the future reduction in the Council’s greenhouse gas emissions that may be possible as a result of the renewal of our energy procurement arrangements through LASER (Notice of Decision Taken Between Meetings DPH02 23, 4th July 2023) which includes contracting with Total Energies for gas supply alongside provision of Renewable Gas Guarantee of Origin (REGO) certificates?”

In response Councillor S H Beer stated:

“It was recognised early this year, that there was an opportunity to secure the supply of energy from sustainable sources ahead of expiry of the current contract at the end of September 2024. The mechanisms that provide reassurance are the Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin (REGO) and the Renewable Gas Guarantee of Origin (RGGO) schemes, both of which produce certificates for the end user. REGO certified electricity has been purchased since September 2020 when the Council first contracted with LASER and again at this renewal at an additional cost of approximately £18.5k.

Green gas generation is not as advanced or as available as electricity hence costs are high. The opportunity to purchase RGGO certified gas was considered in September 2020 and again at this renewal. However, the additional cost of opting-in to a RGGO backed tariff (an additional cost of £60,000 per annum) was considered too expensive on both occasions.”

A supplementary question was asked in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6.